"My lord, just ask away. This little woman will tell you everything she knows, without holding back."
The demon spoke in a soft, coquettish voice.
Su Che looked at the Sword Case placed at the head of the room.
"My first question: my divine sword has a spirit. When it encounters demons, it slays demons; when it encounters ghosts, it destroys ghosts. Why was there not the slightest reaction when you, little lady, entered my room?"
The demon paused for a moment before speaking.
"Young Master, do you know where I come from?"
I haven't even asked, and you're already going to answer yourself?
"This servant is a fox demon, known as Qingqiu."
"There are three lineages of fox demons under heaven. One is Xuanyuan Tomb in Beimang, one is Feng Mountain Purple Mansion Palace, and the other is Cloud-Deep Unknown Place, where this servant was born. Fox immortals across the land revere these three places as the Three Ancestral Courts. Those not born from one of these three mock themselves as wild fox Chan."
I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
Still, Su Che tried his best to put on an expression of complete understanding.
"Though Demon Cultivators are said to follow one path, it is like the three thousand Great Daos, each choosing a single branch. Even Demon Cultivators each have their own specialties. Tiger demons excel at binding ghosts and wielding the wind; ox demons possess strength enough to shoulder mountains. Cloud-Deep Unknown Place excels most in the arts of illusion and transformation. What is more, a thread of my true spirit has been pinned down by Yellow Heaven Sect's rotten rope, leaving my aura feeble. With both factors combined, even if the divine sword has a spirit, it will not strike me."
Su Che was sincerely impressed. Yellow Heaven Sect had treated him rather well after all; the Su Family's years of offerings had not been in vain. Of course, his own craftsmanship was not shabby either.
This tortoise shell was truly quite tortoise-like.
Looking at his own handiwork, Su Che felt a small, unspeakable pride.
For a first practical attempt, the results were pretty good.
"Since you come from the Eastern Sea, what brings you to Shanyin County? And as for fortune-telling, do demons need money too?"
As soon as Su Che finished speaking, the demon burst into a fit of coquettish laughter.
"My lord is quite amusing in speech."
"Amusing? I have always followed the principle of getting down to real work when dealing with troubled people and the opposite sex."
"My lord did not come to Shanyin County because of that thing within Mystic Mountain?"
Mystic Mountain? What was Mystic Mountain? Wasn't this Shanyin County?
Yet the fox demon's words threw Su Che's thoughts into confusion, and he carefully recalled the materials he had read on his way here.
Shanyin County was named for lying north of Mystic Mountain. As the saying went, north of a mountain and south of a river were yin.
What was in those mountains to the south?
The fox demon noticed Su Che's silence.
She suddenly asked, "You do not know about Mystic Mountain?"
"Hm? You need not concern yourself with what this official knows. Just speak..."
Su Che tried hard to maintain his unfathomable image.
"You do not know what is hidden inside Mystic Mountain, so what are you doing in Shanyin County?"
At the time, the Ministry of Personnel had given me seven county constable posts to choose from, and I casually picked Shanyin County.
Su Che wondered what expression this fox immortal would make if he told her that secret.
The demon fell silent for a moment, seemingly reorganizing her thoughts.
Madam Qi wore an expression that was both irritated and amused.
"If you know nothing at all, then how did you run into One-Eye right away? Did you simply stumble into a stroke of luck? That luck is far too good, isn't it? How did you know about Withered Forest Chan Temple..."
That bastard. Do you know how many classics I searched through in the sect, how much effort I spent before finally uncovering such a clue? Yet he had simply barged straight in without a thought.
Though her true body was a thousand miles away at this moment, she could already sense signs that the True-Form Dharma Body she had painstakingly cultivated was on the verge of deviation.
This was a tremendous opportunity that could help one attain the Dao and point directly toward the Third Grade Realm. How had this man blundered in so muddleheadedly?
Calm down. You must calm down.
The demon calling herself Qingqiu took a deep breath and steadied her divine sense. This fellow still had value. His treasures were certainly not limited to the Sword Case and Yellow Heaven Sect's Spirit-Sealing Silk.
Think carefully. If she could turn him into her own aid, her chances against Black Mountain Freak later would rise by another thirty percent.
Endure it. The greater picture came first, the greater picture came first.
Madam Qi revealed a warm smile.
"Then, Young Master Su, you should at least know the origins of Withered Forest Chan Temple, shouldn't you?"
Su Che nodded.
He had heard Registrar Tian mention it before. It seemed that during the previous dynasty, a great Western Land cultivator had come east to spread his teachings, greatly shaking the previous dynasty's national fortune. He had then inexplicably headed for the Eastern Sea and vanished between heaven and earth.
Withered Forest Monastery had been founded by the later disciples of that great Western Land cultivator.
"That great Western Land cultivator of old bore the title Lion Azure Lotus Perfected Tathagata. Within the Buddhist School, anyone honored as a Tathagata had at least reached the Third Grade Realm of Pratyekabuddha, Bodhisattva, or Arhat."
Lion Azure Lotus Perfected Tathagata? Su Che pondered the meaning of the title.
He had also seen in books that people of this world ranked cultivation realms into nine grades, much like the ranks of court officials. Ninth Grade was the entry point, while First Grade was the limit.
At the time, he had wondered whether cultivators had copied the court's ranking system, or whether the court had copied this system from cultivators. Surely it could not have been mere coincidence.
Only after reading more books did he understand: the court was never short of First Grade officials, but among the cultivators known to the world today, few could reach the Third Grade Realm.
That Lion Azure Lotus Perfected Tathagata had been a Third Grade powerhouse. He indeed possessed the strength to become the previous dynasty's Imperial Preceptor.
"Young Master Su may not know that this great expert of the Western Land was originally a Demon King from our Ten Isles of the Eastern Sea. He entered the Dao from demonhood, then entered Buddhism from the Dao. Looking across heaven and earth, he was not the foremost powerhouse of his age, but when it came to his experiences and cultivation, he was certainly among the most accomplished."
The demon's tone unexpectedly carried a trace of admiration when speaking of him.
Wasn't that just someone with three family names—no, wait, a servant of three masters? Why make him sound so impressive? His will was so weak, constantly defecting back and forth. He deserved to fall flat on his face.
"Lion refers to his true body, a lion of great majestic virtue, possessing the wisdom to subdue afflictions."
"Azure Lotus means he bore a Daoist inheritance, harmonizing the li dragon and kan tiger, having grasped the mysteries of heaven and earth's creation, of Yin-Yang's transformations and evolution."
"Perfected means his divine abilities and Dharma power were so vast that they could bring all things to perfection."
"And Tathagata refers to his formidable Third Grade cultivation."
The demon abruptly stopped speaking and looked at Su Che.
"What are you laughing at?"
"I wasn't laughing."
"You clearly laughed just now."
"You saw wrong."
"You did laugh."
Su Che waved a hand. "Hearing you explain his honorific title reminded me of a very funny joke."
A joke about a certain young man who first studied literature but failed at it, then studied martial arts but failed there too, and finally studied medicine—only to die tragically after making the first dose of medicine in his life.
Forget it. I'll endure.
After all, the demon was a cultivator. She adjusted her state of mind and continued.
"Everyone says that Lion Azure Lotus Perfected Tathagata went to the Eastern Sea, but that was not the case. According to my research, he seemed to have finally achieved the goal he had always sought and was preparing to return to the Western Land. Going to the Eastern Sea was merely a smokescreen he released."
I knew it. A turncoat like him definitely wasn't doing it for 'spreading the Dharma to benefit living beings' or 'saving all sentient beings.'
"But he did not truly return to the Western Land. Rather, he encountered something and passed away midway, and his remains lie within Mystic Mountain south of Shanyin County. That is why the line of Withered Forest Chan Temple moved to Shanyin County back then."
"What reason?"
"You're actually asking me what reason? Of course it was for the inheritance, the secret treasures! Do you know what a Tathagata means? His remains alone have countless wondrous uses, not to mention his Dharma treasures. Do you know that he may have brought the most important thing from the west..."
Madam Qi suddenly shut her mouth.
"The most important what?"
"When he passed away, he left behind a forbidden art in the depths of Mystic Mountain. Three months ago, the forbidden art suddenly weakened. In a little while, his remains from those days will see the light of day again."
"So what does that have to do with me?"
Strictly speaking, I am merely Shanyin County's local constable, handling simple everyday affairs. As for you people digging up the corpses of old monks, old Daoists, and old demons, I can turn a blind eye. I could even shut both eyes.
But I still have a bright future ahead of me. Why should I get tangled up in your rotten business?
"It has nothing to do with you?"
"Not only does it have nothing to do with me, it has nothing to do with you either."
Su Che said responsibly, "Because in three days, your soul will scatter and your spirit will dissipate. When that time comes, I will personally go look for your remains."
The demon suddenly closed her mouth.
This Third Young Master Su was completely unlike what she had imagined.
Then she opened her mouth again and shouted loudly.
"Someone, help! Indecency! Ah, leave one piece for this servant! Don't touch me! Hm? You're finished already~~"