Cooperation (2)

Chixinzi taking the initiative to bring up the "Life-Stealing Bone Bowl" certainly piqued He Ping's interest.

"That Life-Stealing Bone Bowl has a peculiar origin, but to this senior brother, aside from its ability to pilfer the longevity of others, it holds nothing special. If you, Junior Brother He, are interested, I have no objection to you taking it over."

Chixinzi spoke candidly: "However, this Life-Stealing Bone Bowl is tied to another critical matter. Before I hand it over, I still need to make use of it. What do you think?"

He Ping's eyes narrowed, and he furrowed his brows.

He realized that Chixinzi was being evasive, or perhaps dangling a piece of bait to hook him. Still, in order to probe the other's true strength, he took the bait.

"Chixinzi, I am determined to obtain the Life-Stealing Bone Bowl. Don't try to play any tricks."

"But little brother, do you truly know the origin of this bowl?"

Chixinzi asked in return.

"The Cheng Family Horse Ranch is renowned throughout the region. Why would Prefect Sheng of Suian City be so intent on slaughtering the Cheng family? How did the ancestors of the Cheng family obtain this Life-Stealing Bone Bowl? And what is the true origin of this bone bowl? Do you not find it strange?"

"What are you trying to say?"

He Ping asked in a deep voice.

"Junior Brother, are you aware of the 'Seed Demon Technique' of the Sanyuan Devil Palace? Legend has it that this method, along with my Immortal Puppet Sect's 'Formless Secret Treasury,' belongs to one of the thirty-six orthodox techniques. Furthermore, in terms of ranking, the 'Seed Demon Technique' actually precedes the 'Formless Secret Treasury,' placing it among the top tier, while the 'Formless Secret Treasury' is slightly inferior, ranked lower."

Hearing Chixinzi put it this way, He Ping became deeply intrigued.

"Thirty-six orthodox techniques?"

"That's right. Ever since the Great Calamity of Heaven and Man in ancient legends, this world has undergone strange changes. In the distant past, the cultivation methods of most sects and schools were severed, and the old laws of antiquity were lost one after another.

Later generations of ambitious individuals contemplated the Heavenly Dao, using great wisdom and perseverance to create thirty-six orthodox techniques that conform to this world. In the entire world, only these thirty-six orthodox techniques can lead one to the Dao."

Chixinzi revealed a piece of shocking intelligence, or perhaps, a piece of history.

"By your meaning... could it be that only these thirty-six orthodox techniques allow a cultivator to break through to the stage of entering the Dao?"

He Ping was astonished.

"Yes, the thirty-six orthodox techniques are the only path for cultivators in this world to break through to the Dao. Aside from these thirty-six, there are no other methods to build a foundation for the Dao or achieve the Great Dao."

Chixinzi's words left He Ping increasingly suspicious, and he couldn't help but retort: "Could there not exist a path to the Dao outside of these thirty-six? With so many cultivators in the world, has no one created a thirty-seventh or thirty-eighth orthodox technique?!"

Chixinzi laughed heartily.

"Naturally, there is no such possibility. The thirty-six orthodox techniques have already exhausted the workings of the Heavenly Dao; they are the thirty-six methods of entering the Dao most compatible with this world. It is like the number of the celestial cycle—it cannot increase, nor can it decrease. Even if the Buddha were reborn or the Dao Ancestor reincarnated, they could not create a new orthodox technique... However, if there were an overthrow and replacement, where a new law replaces an old one, like the fall of an old dynasty and the rise of a new one, that is not impossible."

It had to be said that his words contained a massive amount of information. After listening, He Ping fell into a moment of contemplation; after all, he needed time to digest these facts.

There are only thirty-six orthodox techniques for entering the Dao in this world—that is truly an unexpected rumor. But listening to Chixinzi, there is still quite a bit of hidden truth here...

Thoughts raced through his mind in an instant, and He Ping reached a decision.

"I accept this booklet. I am also very interested in the 'Seed Demon Technique' and the origin of the Life-Stealing Bone Bowl. However, if you wish to cooperate with me, Senior Brother, you will need to show some sincerity."

The expression hidden beneath Chixinzi's Wood-Carved Mask turned somewhat displeased. He prided himself on having shown considerable sincerity, yet this He Ping was still being difficult. Could it be that he really wanted to fight to the death and continue this struggle?

(Wait a moment, this man shows signs of blood-leaking. What he is most worried about right now is not the Life-Stealing Bowl, but I fear it is that Mountain Demon in the mountains...)

His mind turned quickly, and in a flash, he recalled the purpose of He Ping coming to these Four Peaks Mountain.

"I understand. Junior Brother is referring to that Mountain Demon. If there is such a need, this senior brother will not be stingy in lending a hand..."

"Very well."

The sedan chair in which He Ping sat floated up a few inches. The paper puppets carrying the sedan moved as if drifting, turned around, and the sedan began to move in one direction.

The other paper puppets followed the sedan, one after another. A series of eerie figures departed along a beast path overgrown with wild grass.

"Then please, Senior Brother, come with me!"

A cold, clear voice drifted out from the paper sedan.

"Very well."

Chixinzi patted the Red-Scaled Earth-Armored Centipede Dragon beneath him. The red-armored centipede opened its massive maw and swallowed the mindless Cheng Zhi in one gulp, then raised its head high.

Next, this hundred-legged puppet immediately coiled its body and began to swim flexibly through the air, following the trail left by the departing paper sedan.

Deep in the jungle, Yan the Second dragged his injured leg for several yards. Exhausted and weary, he had fled with all his might until he finally ran out of strength and collapsed by the side of the road.

Yan the Second gritted his teeth, clutching a broadsword. He had abandoned his usual horse-chopping saber in the wilderness. Dragging his wounded right leg, he had limped for half a mile before he could go no further.

"No, this won't do. If I don't keep running, that bastard will surely catch up!"

He struggled to rise, but unexpectedly, a gloomy voice came from behind him.

"Run. Keep running."

A chill crawled from the soles of his feet all the way to his scalp.

Hearing this voice, Yan the Second turned his head in a panic.

Under the moonlight, a burly figure paced toward him. He dragged a blade, the tip pointing to the ground, dripping blood all the way.

This man had a Purple-Complexioned Face. His right arm was gone, and he gripped his blade with his left hand. His blood-stained face was filled with burning hatred, and he cast a pair of blood-oozing red eyes toward Yan the Second.

"Thief! You caused my brothers to die one after another, and the Thirteen Flying Cloud Riders have been wiped from this world. If I don't hack you into ten thousand pieces for this blood feud, how can I ever find peace!"

The one who arrived was none other than Ma Mingsheng. When the One-Horned Mountain Demon first appeared, he and several others from the Thirteen Flying Cloud Riders had tried their best to obstruct it, but who would have expected the mountain demon to be so ferociously savage?

The Thirteen Flying Cloud Riders charged forward in a swarm, a move that was nothing more than throwing eggs against a rock or a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

Admittedly, this reckless courage and hot-bloodedness were worth noting, but in front of that mountain demon, they were as fragile as paper. In the blink of an eye, they were torn apart and twisted by the hideous monster; limbs were severed and skulls shattered, their deaths miserable in the extreme.

Recalling the state of the Thirteen Riders' remains, Ma Mingsheng was filled with extreme grief and rage.

"Even if I manage to escape with my life, how am I to answer to my master... Bah! You thief, speak! Who is the one behind you, pulling the strings?"

The steel blade in his hand vibrated, emitting a sharp, piercing whistle.

Whoosh!

A sinister wind gusted through the forest in the distance, and the crows perched in the trees took flight with a frantic flapping of wings. Sensing a killing intent, Ma Mingsheng whipped his head around.

Clang—!

It sounded like a lute string snapping. A grey blur, like a shadow in the void, extended dozens of yards from the forest, carving a perfect arc through the air.

"Who!"

Before the sound could even leave his throat, Ma Mingsheng suddenly felt a chill at his neck. His vision plummeted as his head tilted backward, his eyes suddenly reflecting the pitch-black night sky.

I... am dead!

As the blade energy of the Milo Blade struck, the head of the leader of the Thirteen Riders flew into the air. Just as it was about to land in a patch of weeds, a white shadow darted over and caught the head in its hands.

"What the..."

Yan the Second was naturally startled, the last word dying in his throat. When he raised his head to look closely, his eyes widened, and his entire face contorted in shock.

It turned out that the one holding Ma Mingsheng's head was a paper puppet. The puppet had a pale complexion and a sorrowful expression painted on its face, though the brushwork gave it an oddly comical appearance.

"Twelve. This is the twelfth..."

At that moment, under the moonlight, a dozen pale figures drifted toward this direction, escorting a paper sedan.

At the same time the sedan touched the ground, a crimson shadow snaked its way through the treetops like a long ribbon, descending from another direction.

Yan the Second saw it clearly: it was a Red-Armored Giant Centipede. Perched atop the centipede's head sat a Green-Robed Person wearing a Wood-Carved Mask, which featured a long, bird-like beak.

"Junior Brother, the one you killed with the Milo Blade was Ma Mingsheng of the Thirteen Flying Cloud Riders. I counted eleven corpses earlier; adding this Ma Mingsheng, one is still missing."

Chixinzi touched the bird mask on his face and scanned the surroundings. Confirming that no one else was nearby, he spoke of the origins of the Thirteen Flying Cloud Riders.

"It must be Qi Huiying, the fifth in rank. I have met that person once before."

He Ping's tone from within the sedan was indifferent.

"She must have escaped during the chaos."

"The Thirteen Flying Cloud Riders are people of Chongyang Palace. We cannot let her get away; if she reveals even a whisper of this, it will be extremely disadvantageous for both of us."

Chixinzi hurriedly warned him.

"That goes without saying."

Cowering in the corner, Yan the Second heard their conversation and couldn't help but shudder, cold sweat drenching him like rain.

To be so open about such a secretive plot to eliminate the Thirteen Flying Cloud Riders... they clearly intend to silence any witnesses. My luck is truly abysmal this time!

On the other side, He Ping could hear from Chixinzi's tone that this "Senior Brother" was deeply wary of Chongyang Palace.

"However, Senior Brother need not worry. As long as she remains within the borders of Four Peaks Mountain, she cannot escape my grasp. The most important thing right now is that One-Horned Mountain Demon."

He seemed to have everything under control, speaking with unhurried composure.

"I have other arrangements in place to further weaken that mountain demon. I will have to trouble Senior Brother to step in and settle the matter later."

"That is easily done."

Chixinzi nodded. Behind the Wood-Carved Mask, those wicked, greenish-yellow eyes turned toward Yan the Second.

"And what of this one? Should we silence him early?"

A cruel smile tugged at the corners of the Green-Robed Person's mouth.

Upon hearing this, Yan the Second trembled like chaff in the wind, knowing he would find it hard to escape his fate.

Suddenly, at that very moment, a firework rose into the sky in the distance.

"The signal," He Ping's voice, sounding slightly excited, rang out from the sedan.

"The other teams that entered the mountain have encountered the mountain demon!"