Fish, Come!

Moonlight spilled across the alleyways, turning the snow piled on the eaves a cold, pale white.

Bear Man trudged toward the coffin shop step by heavy step. He did not continue to use his innate divine power, yet the pressure radiating from his massive body felt almost tangible.

A hint of fastidiousness showed on his blood-smeared face.

Alas, Black Lady told me that even if the blood food doesn't follow the rules, I can only eat one-third of the people in the martial arts hall. Otherwise, Lord Prefect will be unhappy if he finds out.

The next person he was to eat was nearly forty. His flesh would be tough, and his blood vitality had already waned.

Just thinking about it killed his appetite.

The rear gate stood slightly ajar, and a gust of draft from the passageway gently blew it open.

Bear Man swallowed. Never mind. If I eat another ten or twenty people, I should have enough cultivation. When spring comes, I can take the Child Examination.

The moment he stepped into the rear courtyard, a hazy mist quietly spread through the air, carrying a bone-chilling cold.

Bear Man shivered instinctively, only to spot a figure in the courtyard.

At the center of the yard, Ren Qing sat cross-legged, a green fish resting across his lap. Moonlight filtered through the clouds and fell across his hair, lending him an indescribable serenity.

Bear Man scratched his head irritably. By the court's rules, he could not simply eat people whenever he wished.

But this youth looked so tender and delicate. He was bound to taste especially good.

"Hungry."

Bear Man edged forward a few steps, intending to swallow Ren Shanshi whole first, then give the youth a good scare. If the blood food died on its own, it would have nothing to do with me.

At that moment.

Ren Qing slowly opened his eyes.

Even facing Bear Man, his expression remained utterly unruffled, as though he were merely a mongrel raised next door. For no reason at all, Bear Man's heart tightened.

Bear Man halted uncertainly. The other man was simply far too calm.

Yet in the blink of an eye, his suppressed hunger and savage nature surged back to the fore. Shame twisted into fury in his mind as he abruptly opened his bloody maw.

"Eat... eat you!!!"

Ren Qing remained seated, muttering coldly to himself, "In the past, this poor Daoist never understood why Guangchengzi held such contempt for those aberrant beings who became immortals."

"Now, this poor Daoist understands."

"Indeed."

"Those of the heterodox paths—whether furred and horned creatures, or damp-born, egg-hatched vermin—all gather together as one pack. How utterly laughable!!"

How could Bear Man understand any of that? The voice in his ears was unbearably noisy. He could not be bothered with it any longer. His eyes reddened instantly, and he opened his jaws to bite down on Ren Qing.

At that critical instant.

"Fish, come."

Scarlet, furnace-red radiance suddenly burst from Ren Qing's eyes, dazzlingly brilliant, turning the entire rear courtyard bright as day.

As though sensing his call, Fish Immortal plunged into the radiance without hesitation, transforming into a sharp streak of sword light. Carrying the force of ten thousand tons, it flashed past in an instant.

Whoosh!!

Bear Man's vision blurred. It felt as if all the strength had been drained from his body. His huge frame could not move at all, and he could only stare fixedly at Ren Qing.

"You disturbed this poor Daoist's quiet cultivation. You're courting death!"

Bear Man shook his head blankly, still unable to grasp what had happened.

Then his vision flipped upside down. Before his consciousness was extinguished, the last thing he saw was his own neck spurting blood—and Ren Qing, untouched by even the slightest speck of filth.

Squeak, squeak, squeak.

Groups of Black Rat Dao Children crawled out from the darkness and began dismembering Bear Man's corpse.

Bear Man's head rolled three times before dissolving as easily as a hot knife through butter. His last remnants of consciousness continued to mutter, "Mother said there were no Yin Immortals in Water Mouth City who could threaten us. Mother lied to me."

Ren Qing gripped the fish's tail as the three-colored heaven-and-earth aura within the Imperial Court Scroll circulated ever more smoothly.

"No wonder the ancients slew demons and eradicated devils. Occasionally taking action and killing can sharpen one's Dao heart considerably."

"Hm."

Ren Qing's brow suddenly furrowed as he turned to look at the corpse, dead beyond all possibility of revival.

The shadow cast by the corpse abruptly began to churn violently, emanating a heart-palpitating, frigid chill.

Bang.

With a muffled blast, the shadow exploded, transforming into billowing black qi that spread in every direction. In an instant, it engulfed more than half the rear courtyard and lunged straight at Ren Qing.

Ren Qing tapped off the ground and retreated several steps.

The qi of rosy clouds, clouds, and water erupted at once, weaving a three-colored curtain of light around him.

The rosy light met the black qi first, like a blazing sun melting snow, instantly dispersing more than half of it.

Yet the remaining black qi forcibly tore through the obstruction of the cloud qi, then passed through the water qi within his flesh.

At last, a wisp of black qi silently burrowed into Ren Qing's body, making straight for his Niwan Palace.

"Heh."

Ren Qing gave a low snort. The Imperial Court Scroll unfurled, and the Sunrise Diagram wrapped around his Niwan Palace, circulating without cease. The instant the black qi touched the Niwan Palace, it could advance no farther.

In the end, it was completely worn away, leaving not even the slightest trace behind.

Ren Qing's expression darkened as he stared at the Bear Man's corpse on the ground.

The Bear Man's realm had been pitifully low; it likely was not even qualified to take the rural examination. That black qi could not possibly have belonged to it, which clearly meant there was a demon of considerable cultivation behind it.

Countless thoughts ran through Ren Qing's mind. Part of him wished to retreat, while another part wanted to pull up the weeds by the roots.

Yet, relying on the corpse alone, it would be difficult to find the demon behind it.

"To endure for a moment would throw my Dao heart into chaos; to take one step back would ruin my cultivation."

Ren Qing let out a melancholy sigh. His peaceful retreat in seclusion was thoroughly over.

The Black Rat Dao Child scurried over and pointed toward the underground passage.

Ren Qing glanced at the Black Rat Dao Children and said in a deep voice, "What are you standing around for? Grind the bear corpse's bones into powder, and store the flesh separately in earthen jars."

The Black Rat Dao Children staggered in fright. The immortal master was very petty—offending him meant certain death!

"And remember to keep the underground passage clear on a daily basis."

Ren Qing summoned a light rain to wash away the bloodstains on the ground, watering the medicinal fields in passing.

He sat cross-legged again, closed his eyes, and consumed qi. Three-colored breaths slowly circulated around him, smoothing away all the disturbance from earlier. His Dao heart remained firm.

"How could this poor Daoist be someone so easily thrown into disarray? They are merely a few ghosts and goblins."

The moon set and the sun rose, and the night passed without further incident.

When dawn broke, Water Mouth City remained as tranquil as a pool of deep water.

Ren Shanshi rose before daybreak and practiced martial arts in the rear courtyard, every stance and strike brimming with ferocious force. His shouts rang out in bursts, and from time to time, he crashed into the banyan tree in the corner of the yard.

Father and son each went about their own business, without disturbing the other.

Yun Niang swept the coffin shop, never idle for even a moment.

Facing east, Ren Qing breathed in and out the rosy dawn light. The Imperial Court Scroll within his sea of consciousness grew ever more solid.

The Sparrow Dao Child led several Black Rat Dao Children over with yellow clay, cinnabar, and earthen jars filled with bear meat. They were clearly preparing materials to refine talisman treasures.

He realized that his spells were indeed somewhat lacking, but fortunately, he had already figured out how to resolve the problem.

Though the Sword-Nurturing Method could not be perfected into an immortal art, he could still use talisman treasures to take a shortcut.

Dou Sangu had not slept all night, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the alleyway.

Not only had the Bear Man vanished like a mud ox sinking into the sea, but his innate divine ability's warning of disaster had also grown increasingly intense, as though taking a single step forward would leave him dead without even a burial ground.

"No, I... I need to go see Black Lady."

"If Black Lady has already noticed something amiss, I might as well lay out everything about the Great Medicine. At least I can earn her a favor—it is better than having empty hands."

Given the peculiar nature of Black Lady's innate divine ability, perhaps she had already seen the other party's true face at a glance.