When Daoist Qinglong was awake, he was the picture of an exceptionally amiable, kind, and benevolent elder.
In cultivation, time has no meaning, and immortals enjoy even longer lifespans.
With so many spells and techniques at their disposal, a cultivator's appearance and age were the most unreliable things of all.
A hundred-year-old crone could possess celestial beauty and jade-like, fragrant bones, while a thousand-year-old monster might look exactly like a young child.
Even Daoist Qinglong, who was at least over five hundred years old, though usually appearing in the scruffy, slovenly, and destitute garb of a Taoist, was actually mature and handsome, with a face as smooth as jade once he was cleaned up.
He was especially blessed with a pair of long, narrow phoenix eyes, which, paired with a beautiful beard, gave him quite a bit of the elegant and handsome charm of a Song scholar.
Nan Zhi had no idea what he was planning, so she simply decided to play dumb and kept to herself, cradling her teacup.
—A newly minted Foundation Establishment cultivator sitting and drinking tea with a Nascent Soul cultivator was something no one would believe, even if she told them.
“Is everything settled at home?”
Daoist Qinglong was as amiable as a family elder who had suddenly taken a whim to chat with her about family matters:
“The girl Miaoyun is certainly generous. To think she would willingly lend you her Miaoyun Prayer Beads, which she has kept by her side for so many years. It is clear she has taken a liking to your talent.
“However, your cultivation is still lacking after all, so you do not understand the true power of these Miaoyun Prayer Beads.
“This string of beads was originally born with Miaoyun, a treasure clutched in her palm. When this treasure came into the world, the entire room was filled with light, and two black birds and a golden lotus flew from the horizon, landing precisely into this string of beads.”
He smiled slightly, seemingly lost in memory:
“Back then, my wife and I both suspected that this girl was a star deity descended from heaven. We just did not know which Star Lord she was. We had intended to deduce her origins, but then we abandoned the thought.
“After all, the affairs of the world are constantly new and change with every generation. If one does not leave a little mystery, would there be any joy left in living?
“And indeed, it turned out exactly so. Her fate was incredibly noble. Though a woman, she bore the Seven Kills star, a destiny of a hidden dragon in the depths.
“Regrettably, the heavenly secrets are difficult to fathom. The dragon emerged from the water too soon, and her efforts fell through at the final step. She had only been the Empress Dowager of the Great Song for a dozen years before she left to become a nun.”
Why was he suddenly bringing up Nun Miaoyun at a time like this?
Danxia Fairy had passed away three hundred years ago, so Nun Miaoyun had to be a figure from at least three hundred years ago as well.
But why did Daoist Qinglong say she was once the Empress Dowager of the Great Song?
The famous Empress Dowager of the Song... there should only be that one, right?
“I only met Buddhist Nun Miaoyun once. I suppose there must be some mystery behind why she temporarily lent me this treasure, but I am dull-witted and cannot even bring out a tenth of the beads' power.”
Nan Zhi spoke up, smoothly buttering up her ultimate superior:
“The Temple Master's abilities are heavenly, and your power of deduction leaves one thoroughly convinced and filled with the utmost admiration...”
“Hehe, when that old Dragon King was making things difficult for you that day, this Realized One had an external incarnation resting in that very foot-shop.”
Daoist Qinglong chuckled as he dropped a mind-blowing bombshell:
“My external incarnation went by the secular surname Duan, with the courtesy name Chunming, implying the meaning of ‘spring is mild and the scenery is bright.’
“I originally thought of killing you on a whim since you repeatedly ruined my plans, but who would have thought your luck was so good that you ran into Miaoyun, allowing you to escape with your life.”
Duan Chunming.
Duan. Chun. Ming.
The evil cultivator who had colluded with Ma San to purchase large numbers of young children in the Ghost Market to refine pills using their spinal fluid and brain matter.
—Shen Luohe's words rang in her ears once more.
【Ten years ago, my master was the Judicial Commissioner of this circuit. He is extremely skilled in artifact crafting and alchemy.】
Who was the person standing before her?
The one who had taken over the Northwest Circuit Demon Suppression Monastery since the reign of Empress Shenlong—the Temple Master of the Demon Suppression Monastery, the Judicial Commissioner of the Northwest Circuit, a disciple of the Qingjing Sect, and the Nascent Soul master, Daoist Qinglong.
Such a person.
Such a person.
...was actually the mastermind behind so many major cases.
All that talk of mercy and compassion for humanity felt like the ultimate joke.
The most bizarre thing was that just a moment ago, Nan Zhi had been determined to risk everything to uncover the truth.
Yet in the next second, the mastermind had so casually exposed his own identity and laid out everything.
He wasn't following the script's formula at all.
“Is the Temple Master joking?”
Nan Zhi was exceptionally calm. Her hands held the teacup perfectly steady, though beneath her wide sleeves, the nails of her left hand were digging deep into her palm:
“Duan Chunming colluded with the evil cultivator Ma San to kidnap mortal children and refine wicked pills using human hearts and brains. I went to Yin Yang Road precisely to bring him to justice.”
The moment the words left her mouth, Daoist Qinglong's figure before her suddenly grew blurry. Over a dozen overlapping figures converged into one spot, turning into more than ten shadows of varying heights and builds:
“Eldest Sister Nan, I always patronized your family's butcher shop. Do you really want to arrest me?”
—It was the stout head constable of Dingyuan, Zhang Long.
“Little demon suppressor, I'm right here. Come and arrest me!”
—It was the scruffy old beggar who had sheltered from the rain with her in the foot-shop.
“Little demon suppressor, you certainly put a lot of strength into that slash of yours.”
—It was the blood-drenched, one-eyed One Eyed Immortal who had died on Yin Yang Road.
The phantoms shifted. Every face seemed to bear some resemblance to the next, and every single one wore the exact same smile.
In the end, these figures gradually solidified, turning back into the familiar bearded Taoist:
“I am right here, ready for you to arrest. Do you dare?”
It was still a peaceful smile, but to Nan Zhi now, that smile felt incredibly eerie and sinister.
The Yin Wine Worm of the Qu Family Distillery.
The white tiger on Tiger Mountain that devoured spirit herbs and grew tiger-changs without any restraint.
Constable Zhang, who had led a band of runners up the mountain to their deaths.
The letters appealing for aid that had been delayed for so long and repeatedly rejected.
The completely vanished Duan Chunming.
Huaguzi and the One Eyed Immortal, who had pursued her all the way to Yin Yang Road.
Shen Luohe's strange behavior, and Hua Xijian's disappearance.
Everything was connected in this single instant, turning into a colossal net that firmly locked Nan Zhi inside.
No wonder in the original timeline, Wanniang, a ghost of only several decades, could turn into the "Lady of Grudge" and launch a frenzied massacre of the city with just a single worm.
No wonder the white tiger had been eating humans for decades without anyone from the Demon Suppression Division ever going to deal with it.
No wonder he said she had repeatedly ruined his plans.
No wonder in the Locust God's memories, of all the circuits of the Demon Suppression Division in the Great Song, only twenty-three had banded together to fight the demons.
—As it turned out, the Northwest Circuit Demon Suppression Division had already rotted to the core, starting right from its root: Daoist Qinglong.
The culprit behind the destruction of the Great Song in the original timeline was sitting right in front of Nan Zhi, yet she did not have the ability to slay him with a single strike.
Nan Zhi did not ask Daoist Qinglong why he made no attempt to hide it.
—Conspiracies, schemes, and calculations were the methods of the weak.
In the face of absolute strength, Qinglong had no need to hide anything at all.
Or rather, he disdained to hide it from her.
...
“...Everything in existence must have a cause and an effect. If I may make a bold guess, the Temple Master created so many external incarnations to collect things like the Yin Wine Worm, the white tiger core, and pills made from human hearts not for yourself.”
Nan Zhi's mind raced furiously:
“It is highly likely that it was for Immortal Danxia, as well as the child of the Temple Master and Immortal Danxia. However, the world has its laws, and the dead cannot be brought back to life—
“Once the soul has entered reincarnation and crossed the Yellow Springs, even if they are reborn, they are no longer the same person as before...”
Before she could even finish her sentence, a look of astonishment flashed across her face:
“No! That's not right!”
Daoist Qinglong had mentioned that when Nun Miaoyun was born, he had made a bet with Danxia Fairy. That meant Danxia Fairy had actually been resurrected long ago!
This was the leverage Huiyuan held over Daoist Qinglong!
“Truly intelligent. You are indeed worthy of being Mayfly Wood.”
Qinglong's eyes filled with admiration, and he clapped and laughed. “Previously, my wife said you were clever, but I did not believe it. I merely thought that a foolish girl, even if her soul had returned to its place, would amount to nothing more than this.
“Looking at it now, it seems I was mistaken.”
A small, jade-colored box suddenly appeared on the table of the bamboo pavilion. Daoist Qinglong took out a fiery-red insect corpse about the thickness of a thumb, looking like a caterpillar, and said with obsession:
“Do you know what this is?”
Nan Zhi looked in silence. She saw that the insect corpse was shriveled, with only an orange-red fungus, thin and tender like a cordyceps flower, growing from the top of its head.
It looked extremely similar to caterpillar fungus.
Rate on N.U.
