Mo Tianliao stared at the tiger skin rug curiously. It was full of spiritual force and vitality, so it was clearly a high-level Demonic Beast.
“What?” Qingtong put down his book. Then he moved his feet, put them on the tiger’s fluffy head, and pressed it down.
Mo Tianliao came back to his senses and looked around. He saw neither hide nor hair of da-shixiong and did not dare to ask Master, or else it would look like he hadn’t come to see him specifically and was looking for someone else. He had no choice but to take out the cold jade box from his pocket, “This is the Soul Condensing fruit that da-shixiong painstakingly found during his travels. I was entrusted to bring it to Master.”
The tiger lying on the ground perked up its ears. He thought to himself that his shidi was very kind, then lay motionless, feeling reassured.
Qingtong raised his hand, picked up the exquisite Soul Condensing Sansang fruit in the jade box, and poked the tiger’s ear with the tip of his toe.
The big tiger raised his head, looked at the delicate and charming fruit in Master’s hand, and blinked. Was this really the withered fruit he had brought back?
Qingtong held the fist-sized SanSang and looked at it again and again. It seemed very juicy, but it was bigger than his mouth. If he ate it like this, he would definitely get his face dirty. He put it aside; he needed to think it over.
Mo Tianliao looked at this and could not help but say, “Master, it’s better to eat it while it’s fresh.” This fruit was like clay: you needed to use it while moist, so as to wrap your soul more perfectly and make the protective shell stronger.
As he spoke, he took the fruit back, took out a knife, cut the Sansang into tangerine-like wedges, placed it neatly on a white jade plate, and presented it to Master.
The big tiger looked at Mo Tianliao, thunderstruck. This way of cutting things and that suck-up look… he felt like his teeth were about to rot.
Cold, beautiful eyes looked back and forth between the jade plate and Mo Tianliao. Qingtong slowly stretched out his hand, picked up a slice, and put it in his mouth.
The soft pulp melted in his mouth and the sweet juice flowed down his throat. He felt the dull pain in his head disappear.
“Yan Lie has met shishu.” Yan Lie, dressed in a colourful robe with wide sleeves, came in, bowed down, and saluted with a small smile. His gentle and measured tone was pleasant to the ears.
Mo Tianliao got up and gave way.
“Mmm.” Qingtong raised his hand slightly and motioned for Yan Lie to be at ease.
“I’ve met shixiong.” Mo Tianliao raised his hand to greet Yan Lie.
The big tiger at Qingtong’s feet followed suit, “Growl…”
Yan Lie smiled and returned the greeting. His peach blossom eyes bent into a crescent moon shape, and he walked over and touched the tiger’s head. Then he looked up and said, “So, the other day, shishu chopped two of Qingyun Sect’s disciples into pieces at the foot of the mountain. I pushed the blame onto the Demonic Sects.”
Mo Tianliao remembered that he had killed the Qingyun Sect’s Qi Refining cultivator with a sword. What was his name?
“He Xijiu was the direct grandson of Qingyun Sect’s Elder, Yun Song. Qingyun Sect did not say much after learning about the incident, but Elder Yun Song was very angry.” Yan Lie’s eyes showed a bit of derision; He Xijiu was a good-for-nothing little rich boy.
Elder Yun Song only continued to spoil and praise him every day because he was his only blood relative.
People who cultivated had a long life span, it was better to cut off worldly ties if they wanted to ascend. Yan Lie did not understand why Yun Song was so concerned about his bloodline.
“It’s a question of face.” Qingtong picked up another piece of fruit and ate it slowly.
Whether it was a question of blood or a question of face, Elder Yun Song had threatened to find the truth of the matter and was already coming to Woyun Sect to investigate.
“The matter at the foot of the mountain has been handled properly, but Elder Yun Song is difficult to deal with. I ask shishu to please prepare in advance.” Yan Lie took out a folding fan made out of red jade and silk. “Yun Song has a wood attribute; if shishu is afraid of losing to him, I have stored half a month of spiritual force inside this Blazing Sky Fan. Shishu can take it as a precaution.”
Mo Tianliao frowned. That Elder was coming to the sect… was he looking for a fight?
In the demonic path, when a Demonic Sect’s Leader met with someone, fighting wasn’t allowed. For someone with status, fighting and killing like a mere minion was beneath them, as a result, it was all very polite. Why did the righteous path, always so concerned with face, have such a barbaric method of interaction?
“No need.” Qingtong pushed the fan away. There were only two of these fans, both of which were Yan Lie’s treasure weapons. “How could this excellency be afraid of him?”
Water nourished wood. Qingtong, with his water attribute, would fight against Yun Song, who had a wood attribute. Naturally, there would be a slight disadvantage. However, Qingtong did not have a pure water root, but a variation: an ice root. He would simply batter him to death using an icicle, of course!
Hearing this, Yan Lie did not insist. He put away the fan and said a few more things about the arrangements to be made in order to welcome Yun Song. Then he got up and left.
“Master, what is the current situation of Qingyun Sect?” Mo Tianliao remembered that before his death, Qingyun Sect was the number one sect. They had had a very underhanded way of dealing with things. How come they were so impetuous now?
“Three hundred years ago, Woyun Sect was not strong enough to compete with the two other sects. However, Qingyun Sect and Liuyun Sect suffered heavy casualties during the Death Valley Campaign. They would inevitably feel a little anxious.” Qingtong laughed, looked up at Mo Tianliao, then lowered his eyes again.
Mo Tianliao was stunned. He hadn’t expected that his massacre would end up influencing the forces of the righteous path. He also did not know what the demonic path was like now.
Hearing this, the tiger yawned and lay on its side, stretching its limbs to reveal a furry tummy like white velvet. The white feet lifted and moved to the warm belly.
Qingtong slowly finished eating all the SanSang fruit, then stretched out his hand to let the servant dressed in white wipe his lustrous fingertips clean. He closed his eyes and waved his hand in dismissal, “This excellency will enter closed door cultivation for a few days. You may go.”
Mo Tianliao blinked. More seclusion?
The beauty in white rose, and the big tiger at his feet also stood up, shaking its fur.
Frequent seclusion was not the right way to practise. One should note that, along with increasing one’s spiritual force and improving martial posture and movements, maintaining a stable state of mind was also crucial. To improve one’s state of mind, one must experience the world outside. “Master…” Mo Tianliao couldn’t help but want to remind Qingtong of this.
Cold, beautiful eyes looked over, with a slight watery sheen. He looked… sleepy…
Mo Tianliao swallowed what he had wanted to say and instead said, “What’s the name of this Spiritual Beast, Master?” A ferocious Demonic Beast, unlike Mo Xiaozhao, could not play with people without having a pact. Most of the time, they tore people to pieces, so he assumed that this big tiger should be the one shixiong had mentioned — Master’s Spirit Beast.
“Big Fatty.” Qingtong gave an impatient wave of his hand and turned to the inner hall. The big tiger, which had been eagerly running toward the room, heard the name, stumbled, and crashed into the closed door.
Mo Tianliao walked over and petted the big tiger on its head. When he was young, the misfortune he had experienced changed him. He became unable to put down his guard against people, but he had always been particularly patient with small, furry animals. “All right, Big Fatty, we can’t disturb Master’s closed-door cultivation. Come with me, I’ll give you barbecue.”
“Roar!” the big tiger yelled at him.
“Shh, don’t make so much noise!” Mo Tianliao poked the tiger on the head, turned, and walked out of the main hall.
The sunshine outside was perfect, and the warm light shining on the jade steps outside Qingning Palace felt very pleasant. Mo Tianliao flicked his clothes, sat down on the jade steps, and patted the place beside him, “Big Fatty, come on, let’s talk.”
The gorgeous tiger rushed over, grabbed his shoulders, and roared in his ears. Don’t call me Big Fatty!
Mo Tianliao rubbed his ears and said, “Good, glad to know you are so happy. Come and tell me, why does Master go into seclusion so often?”
Ordinary people went into seclusion anywhere between ten days to half a month at minimum and three to five years at most, unlike Master who did it often and for two to three days at a time.
The big tiger used its paws to beat at his neck. I won’t tell you! Who said you could be rude to shixiong!
“The Soul Condensing Sansang fruit needs to be absorbed, but I don’t know the process…” Mo Tianliao frowned slightly. Eating a heaven grade spiritual fruit would cause a reaction of varying extent. He had never eaten a Sansang fruit, so he didn’t know if it would cause any discomfort.
After thinking a little more, he realized that something seemed to be wrong with Master when he had hurried out just now. Mo Tianliao suddenly got up, startling the big tiger who was licking its paws.
“Big Fatty, don’t make any noise. I’m worried about Master, I have to go in and have a look.” Mo Tianliao petted the tiger. Demonic Beasts could understand what people said.
After explaining the situation to Big Fatty, Mo Tianliao tiptoed to the door of the inner hall, contemplated for a moment, then slowly pulled his divine soul away from his limbs.
The big tiger crouched behind Mo Tianliao and was surprised to find that the man’s breath was getting weaker and weaker. Finally, he could hardly sense his existence.
Mo Tianliao raised his stiff wooden hand, slowly pushed the door open, and entered step by step. If he did not have to walk, he would have concentrated his soul entirely in his skull. Like this, he appeared to be a simple tree to other cultivators. It was a good way of hiding his presence.
The inner hall was somewhat dark, the plain white curtains were tightly closed. The whole room was silent.
A person rested quietly in the middle of the bed.
Mo Tianliao smiled stiffly; he really was sleeping! He slowly approached, the soft cushions on the ground muffling his footsteps, the big tiger following him and gathering close to the bed.
Mo Tianliao froze when he saw the man’s appearance.
Face like a jade carving, cold and flawless, thin lips gently pursed, slightly wet and rosy from the fruit he had just eaten. He looked even more beautiful than usual, and for a very good reason: his once ink-black hair had turned white!
If ordinary people had silver hair, they would certainly look old, but Qingtong’s white hair made him look even more stunning. This was because it was not the frosty white of the elderly, but a light, milky white. It looked oddly fitting as if it was always meant to be so. Snow-white hair seemed to be the most suitable for the jade-like beauty.
A thought broke through his mind in a flash of insight. Mo Tianliao stared blankly for a while. He slowly reached out his hand, fingertips trembling, wanting to touch that face. However, he was suddenly blocked by a tiger’s head.
No mini theatre today, have a silly meme and a stupid comic by the translator.