Monster Alliance I

"Do you have any other relatives?" Liao Xiaojin asked.

Meihu's eyes reddened. "No. I'm the only one left of the Enchanting Fox Clan. My father and brother were both killed by that monster. The Elders of the clan fought that monster desperately with the Disintegration Great Art to protect me and help me escape. Oh, right! My younger sister isn't dead! When the Elders sent me out, I saw that monster capture her. I have to save her!" As she spoke, Meihu rose and rushed desperately toward the door. Liao Xiaojin grabbed her and said, "Are you crazy? You can't beat them. That Wolf King was so powerful, yet he was only a minor lackey. Your entire Enchanting Fox Clan was no match for that monster. Aren't you just throwing your life away if you run there now?"

Meihu suddenly shook off Liao Xiaojin and ran to Zhou Qing. Grabbing his hand, she pleaded urgently, "Please! Please! Please go save my sister! She's my only family now. Your cultivation is so high—you can definitely save her. I'll repay you however you want. I'm willing to serve you like an ox or a horse for the rest of my life, as long as you save my sister!" As she spoke, she was about to kneel and kowtow again. Liao Xiaojin watched with boundless envy. Damn it! Being strong really is great! A beauty is begging him like this—good heavens, she practically delivered herself to his door. When it comes to looks, even Master can't hold a candle to me. Why has no girl ever thrown herself at me? Looks like strength is more useful than being handsome! Who knew what thoughts were turning in Liao Xiaojin's head.

Zhou Qing pulled Meihu to her feet. "Saving someone isn't a problem. But where is this Monster Alliance? What experts are inside? We don't know any of that. I'm afraid we might fail to save anyone and get ourselves killed instead. From what you've said, that monster isn't weak either. I'm not confident." Seeing Zhou Qing agree, Meihu hurriedly said, "I know where the Monster Alliance is! I'll take you there. There aren't many experts in the Monster Alliance now. That monster's attack on our Enchanting Fox Clan has left everyone fearing for themselves. There definitely won't be many demons at headquarters. He only has four utterly devoted subordinates: an Ape Spirit named Yuan Wuji, the Eight Extremes Wolf King, a Cat Demon, and a ghost who cultivated into human form named Nether Ghost. Their cultivation is all around Qi Induction Late Stage. That monster was injured by the Elder's Disintegration Great Art and should be healing his wounds. He won't be able to stop us!" Zhou Qing's eyes darted about. This little girl has the Gouchen Heavenly Book. It's written in the ancient Demon Race's script, which no one can recognize nowadays. Yet that monster chose this moment to seize it, even going so far as to turn countless demons against him. He must have found a way to decipher the Heavenly Book. I should go take a look.

Zhou Qing said, "But your cultivation is too weak right now. You won't be able to help if you go, and you may even become a burden to us. Yet we don't know your sister, nor are we familiar with the place, so you can't simply stay behind either. This is difficult." He shot Liao Xiaojin a meaningful glance. Meihu was troubled as well and froze where she stood. Liao Xiaojin, however, saw through Zhou Qing's intentions at once. Damn it! My master wants to be a whore and set up a chastity arch besides. Earlier, when she wanted to become his disciple, he was afraid of trouble. Now that he sees something to gain, he immediately jumped out again, but he's too embarrassed to say it outright. Fine, I'll have to do it. Master, you really can bring yourself to deceive such a pitiful and beautiful girl. Could you truly have a heart of stone? In his heart, he thoroughly despised Zhou Qing.

"Master, don't you have some way to raise cultivation? Just raise Meihu's cultivation a little, and wouldn't that solve the problem?" "There is a way! But Miss Meihu isn't a disciple of our Heavenly Dao Sect. This method can't be used on outsiders!" Zhou Qing sighed. Liao Xiaojin nearly stepped forward and punched him. Meihu was overjoyed and repeatedly said, "You've agreed to take me as your disciple? Master above, please accept this disciple Meihu's bow!" This time, Zhou Qing did not stop her, receiving all nine of Meihu's resounding kowtows. Liao Xiaojin felt another surge of pent-up frustration. Could it be that this fellow had no good intentions when he took me as a disciple too?

Meihu had no particular thoughts about taking Zhou Qing as her master. Though she looked only twenty-three or twenty-four, by human reckoning she was at least thirty years older than Zhou Qing. But the Demon Race revered the strong, and because demons lived far longer than humans, their minds matured much later as well. Meihu's temperament was only that of a human teenage girl. Zhou Qing laughed. "Good! Good! Meihu, you are now a disciple of my Heavenly Dao Sect. By the way, is Meihu really your name? What is your younger sister called?" "Master, all the women of our Enchanting Fox Clan are called Meihu. We have no names."

Zhou Qing frowned deeply. "That won't do. Since you've joined our Heavenly Dao Sect, you should have a name. Meihu is not only strange, it could also leak information. How about this? Take my surname and call yourself Zhou Chen—Chen as in morning." Meihu found that reasonable and nodded.

Zhou Qing said, "Your Demon Race was born by gathering the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. You are spirits, also called demons and monsters. As long as you have enough spiritual energy of heaven and earth, you can evolve. My Heavenly Dao Sect happens to be quite skilled in this regard." With that, he threw out eight jade plaques, which formed a huge Bagua Formation in midair. "Zhou Chen! Calm your mind and settle your breath. No matter what happens, don't be startled. Cultivate according to your usual method!" The jade plaques Zhou Qing had originally used to set formations had been destroyed in his battle with Mitsui Taro. But now that he had money, he had immediately spent a fortune buying several pieces of exceptional quality, each three parts better than the originals.

Seeing Zhou Chen obediently sit cross-legged in the formation with her eyes closed, Liao Xiaojin gave Zhou Qing a thumbs-up. "Tsk, tsk! Master, you truly are a model for our kind. You even deceive little girls—your heart is harder than steel!" Zhou Qing flew into a rage from embarrassment and smacked Liao Xiaojin on the head. "I'm helping her! Can't you see I'm raising her cultivation? What do you know?" After glaring fiercely at Liao Xiaojin, Zhou Qing took out a fist-sized bead glimmering with red light. It was the Inner Core left behind by the Eight Extremes Wolf King.

With a thought from Zhou Qing, his Second Original Spirit emerged. A mouthful of Samadhi True Fire burned the fiery-red Inner Core into a stream of red vapor. Zhou Qing guided it with a sword incantation, and the red vapor entered the Bagua diagram, tightly enveloping Zhou Chen below. Zhou Qing said smugly to Liao Xiaojin, "This is the King Wen's Acquired Eight Trigrams Formation I recently comprehended. Not bad, right?" Liao Xiaojin snorted. "You're using the Eight Extremes Wolf King's Inner Core to raise her cultivation. Aren't you afraid she can't endure it?" "Do you think I don't know that? There won't be a problem. It'll just hurt a little."

Sure enough, Liao Xiaojin saw Zhou Chen's body trembling nonstop within the red mist. Pain covered her face, and beads of sweat as large as soybeans fell from her brow, only to be instantly evaporated by the fiery energy in the red mist.

Zhou Qing said, "This girl's endurance is truly extraordinary. She hasn't made a sound."

Unable to bear it, Liao Xiaojin said to Zhou Qing, "She's suffered enough already. Don't torment her anymore. Isn't there any way to lessen the pain?"

"There is," Zhou Qing said, suddenly sensing something off in Liao Xiaojin's words. "Hey! What nonsense are you spouting? What do you mean, tormenting her? You make me sound like some villain! I'm doing this for her own good! The core energy is expanding her meridians. Pain is only natural. But you do have a point. She really is pitiful. I'll take a loss today, then."