booktalesy Chapter 291 Seducing Jie Xiu
Chapter 291 Seducing Jie Xiu
"Master, the tail is following us."
Qingheng's voice rang in Chen Jinshu's mind, tinged with eager excitement, "Should we get rid of her now?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Jinshu frowned slightly.
Without turning around, she slowly spread her Golden Core stage divine sense like a spider web. Three zhang behind her, two cultivators dressed in gray linen clothes, their auras concealed to the late Foundation Establishment stage, were leisurely following her.
"No need," Chen Jinshu replied telepathically.
“There is a ban on fighting in the market, so they dare not make a move.”
Jiang Yi followed half a step behind her with his head down, his gray servant's clothes making him barely noticeable.
Soon after, the shops on both sides of the street started to light up.
On the left is a shop selling bone tools, and on the right is a pharmacy.
"Fresh 'Crying Infant Fruit,' 300 years old, nourishes yin and replenishes the soul!" a stall owner called out in a drawn-out voice, displaying several fist-sized, purplish-black fruits with the appearance of crying infant faces on their surfaces.
Several blood-robed cultivators surrounded the fruit, and the leader grabbed one and squeezed it, causing the fruit to emit a sharp cry.
"Tsk, the resentment isn't pure enough." The blood-robed cultivator casually tossed it back onto the stall, splashing a few drops of foul-smelling liquid.
Chen Jinshu walked past without looking to either side.
She stopped in front of a small shop with a sign that read "Yin Fu Zhai".
"I need three Tier 3 'Concealment Talismans' and two 'Restriction-Breaking Talismans'," Chen Jinshu said bluntly.
The old woman glanced up at her, her cloudy eyes darting around:
"Concealment talisman: 800 spirit stones each; Barrier-Breaking talisman: 1200. No bargaining."
Chen Jinshu tossed out a small bag of spirit stones.
The old woman weighed the items in her hand, grinned, and said she liked customers who didn't haggle. She then casually pulled out five talismans from her storage bag.
"Are you new here, fellow Daoist?" The old woman asked instinctively when she saw Chen Jinshu's generous spending.
"If I may be so bold, things haven't been peaceful in the neighborhood lately. Fellow Daoist, you'd better be careful..."
Upon hearing this, Chen Jinshu understood her unspoken meaning: "Oh?"
"I don't know the specifics."
"But a few days ago, Old Liu from the 'corpse refining shop' on East Street received a big order: three 'living corpse embryos' at the Foundation Establishment stage, requiring their souls to be intact and their bodies undamaged..."
"Living Corpse Embryo" refers to the evil art of turning a living person into a puppet. It requires stripping the target's soul and imprisoning their body while they are still conscious, and the process is extremely cruel.
Chen Jinshu's eyes, hidden behind his mask, turned cold: "Thank you for informing me."
She turned and left, the old woman's mutterings drifting back to her: "Another one rushing to their death..."
Jiang Yi followed closely behind and transmitted his voice, "Senior, could the Blood Fiend Sect be targeting us...?"
"Not necessarily," Chen Jinshu replied casually after a moment's thought, "but caution is never a bad thing."
She spent another half day wandering around the market.
He went into three shops in succession: "Ghost Grass Hall," which specializes in selling Yin-attribute spiritual plants, where he bought two 300-year-old "Ghost Flower" plants and a packet of "Rotting Bone Vine" seeds; "Hundred Refinement Cave," a shop selling refining materials, where he picked out a fist-sized piece of "Mysterious Yin Iron" that exuded a cold aura; and finally, he stopped in front of an inconspicuous secondhand book stall and exchanged fifty spirit stones for a tattered copy of "Tales of the Southern Frontier."
Throughout the entire process, the two men in gray followed behind, maintaining a distance of exactly three zhang (approximately 10 meters).
"They do have patience," Chen Jinshu thought to himself with a cold laugh.
She deliberately stayed at the "Netherworld Restaurant" in the center of the market.
The restaurant is on the third floor. Opening the window, you can see the various cultivators flowing through the streets below, as well as nine eerie green lanterns floating in the distance.
"Within three days, Manager Liu will prepare the Soul Nourishing Jade and Earth Vein Yin Crystal."
Jiang Yi removed his servant's robe and said with some confusion, "Senior, do we really have to wait three days? What about those two..."
“They dare not make a move in the market town, but it’s hard to say what will happen outside of it.”
For the next two days, Chen Jinshu went in and out of various parts of the market every day.
……
On the third day, at the Hundred Bones Pavilion.
Shopkeeper Liu pushed a heavy storage bag across the counter, his chubby face beaming with smiles: "Fellow Daoist, inspect the goods. Two pieces of Grade 3 Soul Nourishing Jade, three taels and two mace of Earth Vein Yin Crystal, purity 83%, no less."
After taking it, Chen Jinshu scanned it lightly with his divine sense.
The Soul-Nourishing Jade is warm and smooth like cream, with a milky white halo inside; the Earth Vein Yin Crystal is dark gray, and when you hold it in your hand, it feels chillingly cold, with fine black sand slowly rotating inside the crystal.
"Not bad." She paid the remaining balance, put away her storage bag, and said, "Goodbye."
"Fellow Daoist, please wait." Manager Liu suddenly called out to her, a hint of hesitation flashing in his narrow eyes.
"If I may add one more thing... Yesterday, some people from the Blood Fiend Sect came to inquire whether a female cultivator wearing a bronze ghost mask and at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm had sold materials for the Corrupted Toad King."
Chen Jinshu turned around: "You said it?"
"How could that be!" Manager Liu quickly waved his hand. "Our Hundred Bones Pavilion follows the rules, and we never inquire about the origins of our guests. But the elder leading the group from the Blood Fiend Sect is at the late Golden Core stage. If you have nothing else to do, it would be best to leave Southern Xinjiang as soon as possible."
Thank you.
When Chen Jinshu walked out of Baihaige, the fog on the street seemed to be even thicker.
She didn't turn around, but her senses clearly detected that the number of pursuers had increased from two to four.
The two newcomers had obscure auras and were both at the early stage of the Golden Core realm, so they should be cultivators from the Blood Fiend Sect.
"Master, that's four now." Qingheng's voice was no longer excited, but solemn.
"Perfect timing, everything's all sorted out!" Chen Jinshu sneered. She wasn't some delicate little girl who could be easily manipulated!
At noon, Chen Jinshu returned to the Netherworld Restaurant and checked out.
She then led Jiang Yi straight to the market exit.
At the entrance to the stairs, the dwarf elder waited with a lantern in his hand, his empty eye sockets showing obvious confusion: "Fellow Daoist, you're leaving already?"
"Mm." Chen Jinshu nodded.
“Well…” The dwarf elder grinned, realizing he shouldn’t say more, and then said, “I wish you a safe journey, fellow Daoist.”
He stepped aside to make way, but his eyes remained fixed on Chen Jinshu's back until she disappeared around the corner of the stairs.
Outside the Netherworld Palace, the perpetual dark green poisonous miasma of the Blackwater Marsh surged under the sunlight, and the distant roars of unknown monsters echoed.
Chen Jinshu summoned the Azure Phoenix Chasing the Moon Shuttle, which transformed into a three-zhang-long flying boat amidst flowing blue light.
She and Jiang Yi boarded the flying shuttle, transforming into a streak of light as they sped towards Xiliusha City.
The shuttle had barely left the Netherworld Pavilion's vicinity for less than ten miles when four streaks of light quietly emerged from the poisonous miasma behind it.
Two people were dressed in gray, and two people were dressed in blood-red robes.
"Keep a close eye on them." Among the blood-robed cultivators, a middle-aged man with a sinister face licked his lips. "The elder must be alive. That female cultivator might really have clues about 'that thing' on her."
"Senior Brother Zhao, could she be deliberately luring us out?" Another blood-robed cultivator frowned.
"So what if it was intentional?" the cultivator surnamed Zhao sneered. "A mid-stage Golden Core cultivator with a Foundation Establishment cultivator as a burden. The four of us, two early-stage Golden Core cultivators and two late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, are more than capable of surrounding and killing her."
The four quickened their pace, their escape light piercing through the poisonous miasma like a blood arrow.
Ahead, the Azure Phoenix Chases the Moon on its shuttle.
Chen Jinshu was alert to his surroundings, his black robe fluttering in the wind.
She turned to Jiang Yi, who was trembling slightly behind her, and asked, "Jiang Yi, are you scared?"
Jiang Yi gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, his knuckles turning white: "I'm afraid. But I'm even more afraid of dragging you down, senior."
"No need to be reckless," Chen Jinshu said calmly. "When the fight starts, you only need to do one thing! Hide inside the 'mysterious tortoise shell' I gave you and hold out until the battle is over."
She tossed over a palm-sized tortoise-shell talisman: "Once activated, it can withstand three full-force attacks from an early-stage Golden Core cultivator. If it cracks, crush this teleportation talisman to be randomly teleported thirty miles away." Jiang Yi caught it, his eyes welling up with tears: "Senior..."
"Just don't die." Chen Jinshu interrupted him, her gaze turning to the four streaks of light that were getting closer and closer behind them.
"I'm going to speed up. Hold on tight."
The Azure Phoenix Chasing the Moon Shuttle shone brightly, its speed suddenly increasing!
Seeing this, the four people behind also activated their escape techniques and gave chase.
Two hours passed in the blink of an eye as they chased and fled.
Chen Jinshu maneuvered the shuttle to land in a desolate valley on the edge of the Blackwater Marsh.
The place is full of strange rocks, with exposed black rock layers on the ground, and a few withered trees growing crookedly.
She stowed the shuttle and turned to face her pursuers.
Four beams of light descended and immediately surrounded her.
The cultivator surnamed Zhao stepped forward, his blood-red robe billowing in the wind, a cat-and-mouse smile on his face: "Why aren't you running anymore, fellow Daoist? Have you run out of spiritual energy?"
Chen Jinshu took off his mask and casually threw it on the ground: "I've run enough. This place has good feng shui; it's suitable for burying people."
"Arrogant!" a gray-robed cultivator shouted, a pair of blue-green short blades already in his hand.
Another man in gray quietly moved forward, blocking Chen Jinshu's retreat.
The cultivator surnamed Zhao narrowed his eyes: "If you know what's good for you, hand over the items you obtained from the Corrupted Poison Swamp and the Netherworld Workshop, and then come back to the Blood Fiend Sect with us. Perhaps... you can still save your life."
"The Corrupted Swamp?" Chen Jinshu raised an eyebrow. "You've come for the Toad King materials?"
"Material?"
The cultivator surnamed Zhao sneered, "That kind of thing is not worthy of my personal pursuit? Why pretend to be stupid, fellow Daoist? Did you obtain a 'Poisonous Miasma Pearl' deep in the swamp?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Jinshu suddenly realized that while the Toad King was indeed precious, it was still somewhat inferior to the Poisonous Miasma Pearl.
The Poisonous Mist Pearl is a fragment of an ancient cultivator's magical artifact. After hundreds of years of absorbing the essence of decaying toxins, it has become a natural source of poison.
For a demonic sect like the Blood Fiend Sect, it is indeed a treasure for refining poisonous magical artifacts.
"So what if I have it?" she said indifferently.
"Hand it over!" Greed flashed in the eyes of the cultivator surnamed Zhao.
"This item is of great use to my Blood Fiend Sect. Hand over the bead, and I can guarantee your departure."
What if I don't pay?
"Humph!"
The cultivator surnamed Zhao's face darkened, and his body surged with blood-red light. "I'll refine your soul and search your memories!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he made the first move!
With his hands forming a hand seal, a phantom of a blood-red python lunged out from his palms, its fangs menacing, aimed straight at Chen Jinshu!
Two men in gray attacked from the left and right!
The short blade flashed with a ghostly green venom, sealing off any space to dodge!
The blood-robed cultivator then made hand seals and chanted incantations, causing blood-red array patterns to appear on the valley floor, and a strong smell of blood to permeate the air.
Faced with the combined attack of four people, Chen Jinshu remained calm and smiled slightly.
With a light step, she moved three zhang to the side like a ghost, the blood python brushed past her, and all the poisoned blade attacks missed their mark!
"What?" The cultivator surnamed Zhao was incredulous when his attack, which he was absolutely certain of succeeding, failed.
"Is that all you've got?" Chen Jinshu's voice was icy as he placed his hands on the star-moon zither that had appeared out of thin air.
The body of the zither is dark black, with seven star-like spots that shimmer with silver light.
Her fingertips brushed across the strings.
"Zheng—!"
The clear, melodious sound of the zither resounded through the valley, and the sound waves condensed into pale silver ripples that spread outwards!
The two men in gray were the first to be hit. They felt as if their souls had been struck by a heavy hammer. Their vision went black and their movements became instantly sluggish!
"Sound attack magic weapon!"
The cultivator surnamed Zhao was horrified and retreated rapidly. At the same time, he bit his tongue and spat out a blood mist to maintain his consciousness, which condensed into a blood shield in front of him.
However, the sound of the zither was formless and intangible, and the blood shield only lasted for half a breath before collapsing with a bang!
"Pfft!" The cultivator surnamed Zhao coughed up blood and flew backward, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"Mid-stage Golden Core... how can someone possess such divine soul power?"
Chen Jinshu smiled faintly, and the music changed again!
This time, the music was rapid, like rain pattering on banana leaves, each note striking between the heartbeats of the four people.
The two gray-clad men, both at the late Foundation Establishment stage, were the first to succumb, bleeding from their seven orifices, clutching their heads and howling in agony as they collapsed to the ground.
Another blood-robed cultivator was barely holding on when Chen Jinshu raised his left hand.
Seven cyan-gold vines burst from the ground, coiling around his legs like raging pythons!
"Ah!" Lightning burst forth from the vines, the blood-robed cultivator convulsed, and the protective blood light instantly dissipated.
Upon seeing this, a ruthless glint flashed in the eyes of the cultivator surnamed Zhao.
He suddenly ripped open his shirt, revealing a hideous ghost face tattoo etched on his chest!
"With blood as the catalyst, ten thousand ghosts will devour souls!"
The tattoo suddenly glowed with a scarlet light, and the ghost face seemed to come alive, detaching from the skin and lunging at Chen Jinshu!
This is a forbidden technique of the Blood Fiend Sect, the "Heart-Eating Ghost" fed with its own essence and blood, which specializes in devouring the souls of cultivators!
Chen Jinshu's eyes turned cold, and he slammed his right hand down on the strings!
"Star Falls into the Cold Pool"—Pure!
The music transformed into a condensed beam of moonlight, falling like a celestial sword and striking the Heart-Eating Demon's face squarely!
"Sizzle—!"
The ghostly face emitted a shrill scream, and was purified inch by inch in the moonlight, eventually turning into a wisp of green smoke and dissipating.
"No!!" The cultivator surnamed Zhao was struck by a backlash; a bloody hole exploded in his chest, and he staggered to his knees.
Chen Jinshu put away her zither and slowly walked up to him.
“Who…who exactly are you…” The cultivator surnamed Zhao vomited blood, his eyes filled with fear.
"Why ask so many questions of a dying man?" Chen Jinshu lit up a bluish-white flame at his fingertips and touched the man's brow.
"Wait! Let me tell you... why the Blood Fiend Sect is looking for the Poisonous Mist Pearl!"
The cultivator surnamed Zhao begged for mercy in a hoarse voice, "A Nascent Soul ancestor in our sect has reached a bottleneck in his cultivation of poison techniques and needs an extremely yin and poisonous substance to break through... If you kill me, the ancestor will definitely sense it..."
"Nascent Soul?" Chen Jinshu paused slightly.
"Yes! The Ancestor is already on his way to Southern Xinjiang!"
The cultivator surnamed Zhao grasped at a straw, pleading, "If you let me go, I'll keep it a secret for you..."
However, Chen Jinshu did not hesitate at all, and in the blink of an eye, the elixir fire fell.
The cultivator surnamed Zhao froze, and his body rapidly turned to ashes.
Chen Jinshu rolled up his sleeves, collected the four people's storage bags, and then flicked his finger to shoot out several wisps of flame, burning all the corpses on the ground.
Jiang Yi emerged from the tortoise-shell talisman, his face deathly pale, yet he forced himself to stand upright.
"Senior...are you alright?"
"It's alright." Chen Jinshu looked towards the eastern horizon, where faint crimson light could be seen.
"But we should not stay here any longer."
She summoned the Azure Phoenix Chasing the Moon Shuttle and boarded the flying boat with Jiang Yi.
A beam of emerald light shot into the sky, hurtling towards the western city of Flowing Sand.
Behind them, the poisonous miasma of the Blackwater Marsh surged and gradually engulfed the valley.
Further to the east, a crimson rainbow was tearing through the clouds, approaching at an alarming speed.
"Whoever killed my grand-disciple will suffer a fate worse than death!" (End of Chapter)