Telling Stories

Foreword:

The timing and temperature can be adjusted, and the universe becomes infinitely vast.

--Xia Yuanding

[Part 1: Dead Men Tell No Tales]

"Lord Mude! Get inside and see me!"

A deafening roar erupted from the cave, terrifying the old yellow ape so much that he scrambled into the main hall.

"Demon Lord! Demon Lord! Your disciple has arrived! Your disciple has arrived!"

When Wood Virtue Star Lord walked up to Dan Chenzi's corpse, he saw that Bai Mu's sword was broken in two and lying to the side. He guessed what had happened and his expression turned strange.

"How dare you, senior brother?"

Bai Mu laughed loudly, "What are you calling this beast?! Senior Brother?!"

Wood Virtue Star Lord quickly changed his tune. "This wicked beast! How dare he come to assassinate the Demon Lord!"

"My palace is completely empty within a hundred paces, precisely to guard against assassins sent by the Buddha Sculptor." Hundred Eyes slumped on his throne, completely unconcerned about personally killing his traitorous disciple. "I just didn't expect this foolish tiger to actually harbor murderous intent and dare to challenge me."

The Wood Virtue Star Lord hurriedly asked, "Demon Lord! Did this beast hurt you?"

"It doesn't even deserve it?" Bai Mu recounted the battle, his face beaming with excitement, a true battle maniac. "At first, it approached me under the pretense of offering a treasure, then it attacked with its sword."

"Unfortunately, your hand skills are not as good as Yu Zhen's, and your footwork is not as good as Mude's."

"Once it saw me get the weapon, it unleashed its innate supernatural power, the Protective Chang Ghost, which I chopped into pieces with each sword strike. After twelve rounds, it was powerless to fight back."

"I originally intended to spare its life and get to the bottom of things, but seeing its filthy state, I was filled with rage!"

At this point, Hundred Eyes roared.

"If it's a little tougher, it'll be a real hero. Send it to Yuehe Pass to do hard labor, and after a few years it'll still be my good apprentice."

"But it was wagging its tail and begging for mercy, shouting something."

Hundred Eyes Great King imitated the expression on Dan Chenzi before her death.

"Immortal Lord, spare my life! Immortal Lord, spare my life!"

"Pah!"

A spittle flew from Bai Mu's mouth onto Wood Virtue Star Lord's face. Old Huang Yuan closed his eyes and quickly wiped the saliva clean.

Enraged, Bai Mu slammed his fist on the handguard of the bronze throne, unleashing a deafening roar.

"A good-for-nothing who's good for nothing and good for nothing! He'll be at peace if he dies!"

With a loud "thud," a layer of dust fell from the beams of the entire hall.

The Wood Virtue Star Lord immediately shouted, "The Demon Lord is mighty!"

"It was just killing a kitten." Bai Mu waved his hand, then stroked the hilt of the fake sword, a smug look on his face. "Mu De Lang Jun, Dan Chenzi wanted to kill me, so tell me, where did it get the guts? Did the Buddha Sculptor find an even more powerful monster? A more obedient demon?"

The old ape, quick-witted as ever, immediately came to a plausible conclusion. "It's likely that Dan Chenzi has been bewitched by the Demon Lord's protective magic weapon, believing that with the sword's assistance, it will possess the power to overturn the heavens."

"Hmph." Hundred Eyes sneered, "Using Master's treasure to fight Master? It's dreaming!"

Old Ape: "Can it unleash the full power of the treasure?"

Bai Mu: "Where would you use that? My magic weapon! You wouldn't dare help outsiders against me, would you?!"

Old Ape bowed his head and said, "Yes, yes, yes."

But while I wanted to argue, I didn't dare to say it aloud.

The Buddha Sculptor relied on the Soul Dissolving Sword's power to subdue Bai Mu. If magical artifacts can protect their masters, what does Bai Mu have to fear from the Buddha Sculptor?

"Uh," Old Huang Yuan deliberately found an angle to approach from the side. "I heard from Zhang Guiren that this sword has been sealed by the Buddha Sculptor, and it cannot be used without knowing the incantation."

"Hmm?" Upon hearing this, Bai Mu suddenly realized, "No wonder this little cat was shouting and yelling about the God of Darkness before the assassination—my darling is probably too protective of its master to help it."

The old ape asked repeatedly, "Demon Lord! Do you still remember the incantation?"

"How could I remember?!" Bai Mu roared, "Do you think I need to chant the Buddha Sculptor's incantation just because I'm using my own treasure?"

This demon really had a bad memory. Even though Dan Chenzi repeated it four times before he died, Bai Mu still couldn't remember it. He had already lost his spine, and his physical essence was damaged. Like Benni, who had lost part of her soul, his brain couldn't function properly.

"What a pity," the old yellow ape sighed, "If the Demon Lord could remember the incantation, and with the help of the extraterrestrial demons, it wouldn't be impossible for him to seize Black Wind Town, steal the Blood Jade Guanyin Bodhisattva, and kill the Buddha Sculptor."

"Hey! Young Master Mude, you must be careful with your words." At this critical juncture, Bai Mu did not make a definitive statement. "As long as the Lingguang Buddha keeps an eye on the southeast, I cannot kill the Buddha Sculptor no matter what—a fight with him would be a mere exchange. It would be a show of it; if we really fought to the death, it would break the rules of the Lingguang Buddha."

"Since the Lingguang Buddha wants him to win, I can only lose."

Bai Mu had a very clear understanding of the human flesh trade in Black Wind Ridge.

"Without Buddha Sculptor, are we demons and monsters supposed to worship a Bodhisattva? I think the Buddha Sculptor brought the sword here because he was confident in his abilities and naturally knew how to take it back."

Old Ape thought so too. He had always felt that if the Buddha Sculptor dared to do this, he must have a trump card to restrain the Demon Lord—now the Demon Lord has obtained the magic weapon, but cannot use it at will because of the restriction.

"Zhang Guiren said that she brought the magic weapon to Black Wind Village to cure Goddess Zhuzhu's illness."

Upon hearing this, Bai Mu stood up in anger.

He acted like a child who hadn't grown up, stomping hard on Dan Chenzi's head, seemingly not satisfied with his anger.

"You beast! How dare you ruin my wife's pregnancy!"

"You beast! You beast!"

"Quickly! Lord Mude! Take the treasure to Guanyin Cave!"

For Baimu, there is only one true path to ascend to the Immortal Realm and become a god.

The Lingguang Buddha wanted immortal embryos to refine elixirs, and then he Hundred Immortals Assembly to create the Investiture of the Gods. The peaches of immortality, ginseng, and longevity pills at the banquet were all refined from these immortal embryos. With the addition of the Imperial God Cauldron, he would cultivate great vows and supreme supernatural powers—making all the paths in this world under the blue sky, and making all the laws of this world under the control of the immortals.

Reversing Yin and Yang, defying the heavens, good days are yet to come!

Once the Buddha Sculptor accomplishes this and becomes an inner disciple of the Hunyuan Creation Sect (a member of the Immortals' alliance), the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord will also achieve perfect merit, reclaim his magic weapon, be reborn, and no longer have to be a miserable laborer; he will transform into a boss. At that time, he will be the true [Immortal Venerable]—not some demon lord in the guise of an immortal.

He didn't think he had any management skills, but he would be more than willing to kill people and become a violent machine—that's why he said that fighting with the Buddha Sculptor was meaningless, it was just a matter of touching the target.

Since ancient times, even heroes have found it hard to resist the charms of beautiful women. For the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord, besides "killing" being his top priority in the first half of his life, he diligently practiced martial arts and transformed himself from a human into a demon, all for the sake of "love"—he was purely driven by romantic love.

The Blood-giving Monster cannot have children, Pearl Fairy's task of nurturing a celestial embryo and refining celestial essence is a matter of life and death.

Whether his wife can survive this ordeal will determine the future and happiness of the couple. It is precisely because Dan Chenzi used this crucial treasure for nurturing the fetus to assassinate Bai Mu at this critical juncture that Bai Mu is so enraged.

The Wood Virtue Star Lord quickly picked up the sword and leaped and climbed between the pillars like lightning to return the fake sword to Guanyin Cave.

[Part ②·Alchemy Furnace]

As soon as Jiang Xueming entered the cave of Goddess Zhuzhu, he felt the overwhelming demonic energy and surging spiritual pressure. His hair stood on end, his blood surged, and his heart raced.

Wu Xiuwen knew the way. He gritted his teeth and held on for a moment, his eyes bloodshot, a sign that his capillaries had burst.

Such surging and malevolent spiritual pressure suggests that Pearl Fairy has consumed countless elixirs and tonics to nurture her immortal embryo. The process of refining these primordial substances will also increase the concentration of Spirit Calamity in the region.

The Zhao Brothers were sweating profusely one moment and trembling like leaves the next, almost matching the reaction of the soldiers in the Shinto City region. Xiangxiang, on the other hand, started experiencing angina halfway through the journey, and her skin turned red, bearing the Vita Imprint.

"Little demons came to greet us from both sides," Jiang Xueming said immediately.

"You all go out and take Xiangxiang away."

Wu Xiuwen immediately said, "Honorable sir, are you alone?"

Jiang Xueming: "Someone will lead the way, I'll go in alone. It's about time, you go outside and wait for Wood Virtue Star Lord."

"Huh?" Wu Xiuwen was stunned for a moment.

--Waiting for the Wood Virtue Star Lord? Why wait for the Wood Virtue Star Lord?

Xue Ming was referring to the time when Dan Chenzi died.

He was certain that the big tiger was no match for Baimu, but whether he could inflict one or two scars on Baimu, or test out more of its supernatural abilities, were secondary objectives.

Xue Ming's true purpose was to use the human head to gain Baimu's trust and to build a bridge of friendship with the fake sword.

Jiang Xueming: "When you meet Wood Virtue Star Lord, you will naturally understand what I am talking about."

Wu Xiuwen nodded in agreement and led the Zhao Brothers away, no longer fighting against the strange demon cave.

Jiang Xueming followed the two little monsters deeper into the cave, where the terrain became increasingly lower.

He could feel the skin on his right arm beginning to ulcerate; rolling up his sleeve, he could see the red mark left by Vita Imprint—

"--My esteemed lady, please quickly consume the Immortal Honey." The female demon leading the way on the left laughed, "Pearl Fairy possesses immense magical power, and she is currently nurturing her celestial embryo. The evil poison from her elixir is overflowing; ordinary people cannot endure such torment."

Seeing Zhang Congfeng's handsome appearance and casting him a flirtatious glance, the female demon on the right exclaimed, "How can this foreigner from the Nine Realms be so handsome? Every word, every action, every gesture is so elegant and dashing. He can still maintain his sanity even after absorbing the poison. Such good flesh makes my heart itch."

Jiang Xueming took out a gourd and took a sip. The ulcers on his right arm turned into a stream of blood, and new flesh slowly grew back.

Walk another hundred steps into this deep valley, and you'll enter a large bronze furnace linked by iron chains. There you'll find the bed in the center of the furnace.

The bed was extremely large, about sixteen square meters.

Xue Ming's expression showed slight surprise, because Pearl Fairy was no longer in human form.

Or, to put it another way, Pearl Fairy is not a person, not a bird, not a head.

On the large bronze bed, a strange creature with eight claws and eight limbs lay supine.

It resembles a spider, with a golden light bulging from its abdomen. Looking up, its limbs are like human arms and legs, neither as short as arms nor as thick as thighs, but rather like the toes of an ape, with two-inch-long horny claws at the tips.

These arms and limbs are connected to its waist and abdomen, and are decorated with different colorful tattoos. Combined with the silk fabric on its body, it looks exactly like a ghastly spider with a bright red face.

Furthermore, where its forelimbs connect to its head, it has three heads.

--The three heads were stacked on top of each other, each one larger than the last.

Xiao Tou has a complete chin and is a young girl.

The mouth of the woman with the middle head was covering the girl's head; she was a woman without a chin.

Then, at the very top, there's a huge head, no nose left, resembling a helmet, so thin it's practically skin and bones—it looks like an old woman.

These three heads and six eyes formed the spider demon's complete face. Golden silk threads spun from its abdomen, and there was a spindle-like tool nearby to collect the silk threads.

Xue Ming recognized at a glance that the texture of this silk thread was the same as the blood-stained silk used by the common people of Black Wind Town to wrap the Elixir of Immortality.

"Is Zhang Guiren here?"

A weak, feeble voice escaped from Pearl Fairy's mouth.

Come before me, let me take a look.

Xue Ming remained calm and walked straight to the large bronze bed.

The two lesser demons beside him dared not follow, and only whispered among themselves behind him.

"The imperial Imperial Physician who treat the Emperor are truly exceptional, sister."

"Lord Jinxu is also a doctor, and every time he comes to see the Empress, he's so frightened he wets his pants."

Pearl Fairy rolled over halfway on the bed, all eight pairs of toes pointing towards Jiang Xueming, assuming a defensive posture.

Immediately, the three skulls widened their eyes, trying to see clearly which deity the Buddha Sculptor had summoned.

--Xue Ming neither backed down nor pretended to be crazy; his eyes burned as he faced the demon's spiritual pressure head-on.

Pearl Fairy was taken aback at first, but after seeing her beautiful appearance, she continued.

"I thought he was an old man, but he's so young."

"For Goddess Zhuzhu's pregnancy, what we need is someone effective, not someone old enough," Jiang Xueming said, sitting by the bed.

"Doctor, you have quite the nerve." Pearl Fairy let out a strange chuckle, "Having seen my true form, you're not afraid at all?"

"I have seen the true dragon emperor of the Nine Realms; its true form is far more terrifying," Jiang Xueming said truthfully. "I have cured its illness, Your Majesty, please rest assured."

The body of Goddess Zhuzhu resembled a giant gourd of elixir, with a painted image of Guanyin Bodhisattva on her belly. She tilted her head, her eyes full of curiosity, clearly having been poisoned by the Face Fruit—bewitched by the Gunsmith's passive skill.

A sense of mystery is a very effective trait.

Goddess Zhuzhu: "So it was my neglect of the Imperial Physician? After overcoming this difficulty and giving birth to this celestial child, I will transform into human form to entertain you, Your Excellency?"

Jiang Xueming remained silent, only smiling slightly.

With just that smile, Goddess Zhuzhu was seized by lustful thoughts. She couldn't see her husband while she was pregnant, and the immortal essence in her belly smelled like a delicious feast to Bai Mu. If Bai Mu lost his mind and became a demon, he would immediately come and devour her flesh and blood.

In this tiny Guanyin Cave, every day, Goddess Zhuzhu would chat with the little demon by her bedside, listening until her ears were calloused. Time passed in a blur, and she never saw a single man.

"Doctor, tell me, what do the true dragon emperors of the Nine Realms look like?" Pearl Fairy asked curiously. "I'm trapped in the alchemy furnace and can't move. My foolish husband doesn't have much skill, so he only found these little demons to take care of me—to have them tell stories and sing operas, to tell some strange tales, but they can't even fart after holding it in for so long."

"It was a hundred feet tall." Xue Ming recounted this story, recalling the Taowu's true form. "Its flesh and blood were formless, its body was unpredictable, and it could transform into anything. It could possess iron ships and flying boats, flying a thousand miles in a day—or it could transform into a cat. It would send people to dig holes and explore dangerous and perilous places, and then tell them the story to it. It had to tell it beautifully and excitingly before it would be satisfied."

Pearl Fairy immediately slumped back down, tilting her head as she listened to the story.

"So amazing? How can such a eccentric and unruly Magic Creature become a king and an emperor?"

"Because it used its own body to refine medicine," Jiang Xueming continued. "First, it blinded itself, so ordinary people wouldn't go crazy when they saw it. Later, it dissected its three souls and seven spirits, cut off its flesh and bled out blood to make a spiritual medicine—every fifty years, the spiritual medicine flowing from the body of the true dragon emperor could fill a small river and nourish millions of people."

"Oh," Pearl Fairy's six eyes went black, but she had her own interpretation. "We're in the same boat. I'm the incarnation of Guanyin from Black Wind Ridge, and he's the Emperor of the Nine Realms Continent. We're both tied up in the alchemy furnace, waiting for our merits to be fulfilled."

Jiang Xueming said, "That's one way to understand it."