My experience of grinding in another world

Chapter 567 Infiltration
Chen Mu's room is on the top floor of the 100-meter-long ship.

"What's wrong with Old Man Xu? Do you have a grudge against him?" Chen Mu asked Yuan Xian curiously.

“There are indeed some minor disputes, but no major grudges.” Yuan Xian explained, “This person is a protector of the Lingzun Hall of the Lock Dragon Academy. He has mastered countless Yin-Yang Ghost Patterns. It will be more efficient for him to teach you the Crimson-Eyed Ghost Pattern.”

"Moreover, although this person is greedy, he is extremely trustworthy, which is why I spent a lot of money to hire him."

"So Xu Zhou made things difficult for you? That shouldn't be the case, he was paid to do so." Yuan Xian frowned.

"Could it be that your identity as a Qi Refiner has been exposed?" Yuan Xian's expression changed.

Upon hearing this, Chen Mu couldn't help but frown.

According to Yuan Xian, Xu Zhou is no ordinary Dragon Locker; he might actually be able to see through the concealment of the Absolute Breath Divine Power.

"If you really saw through my disguise, why did you teach me the Crimson-Eyed Demon Mark?" Chen Mu asked, puzzled.

“No matter how he considers it, this is still a hidden danger.” A fierce glint flashed across Yuan Xian’s face: “Why not… eliminate him!”

Chen Mu's face twitched.

How did the conversation turn into murder?
"Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free!" Yuan Xian said solemnly.

No, it's really not that bad...

The large ship was now not far from the border of Southern Shu, essentially having left the Great Qian Dynasty, so there was no need to worry about the disguise being seen through. Besides, they had taught him the Crimson-Eyed Ghost Mark, so he couldn't just turn his back on them.

“You’re still too kind-hearted,” Yuan Xian sighed and shook his head.

"Who told me to be a good person?" Chen Mu sighed as well.

Yuan Xian's eyelids twitched, and he almost lost his composure and couldn't maintain his serious expression.

After a long pause, he spoke again, offering his advice: "I think it's best to take preventative measures."

"A Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed?" Chen Mu couldn't help but be tempted.

“That’s right! It’s safer to make them our own.” Yuan Xian said solemnly.

Chen Mu was about to nod in agreement when he suddenly paused.

He looked at Yuan Xian with a suspicious expression.

"First they killed me to silence me, then they used the Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed..."

"You're not planning to use me as a tool to kill someone else, are you?"

Something's not right, there's something wrong with that old guy Yuan Xian!
"You've misunderstood. I'm doing this entirely for your safety," Yuan Xian said, his expression unchanged.

"I think you've got your eye on that Spirit Venerable Palace." Chen Mu sneered, glancing sideways at Yuan Xian.

Despite having a grudge against Xu Zhou and knowing that he was greedy, she still asked Xu Zhou to teach her the Crimson-Eyed Ghost Mark.

Isn't this just deliberately letting Xu Zhou provoke him, and then using him to deal with Xu Zhou?

Besides, according to Yuan Xian's plan, he would put the spy Li Moliang into Qiandeng City and keep him by his side. Even if he didn't have the Crimson-Eyed Ghost Mark, it wouldn't affect his infiltration of Yun Chong's Lower Courtyard.

and so……

Chen Mu's eyes darted around as he stared coldly at Yuan Xian.

Old man, you've got a lot of tricks up your sleeve!

……

Five days later, at a remote ferry crossing in Dali.

Chen Mu stood on the shore and waved to Xu Zhou and Xu Chang on the deck.

They had reached the outer edge of Yunze Lake. The earth's spiritual energy was gradually becoming denser, and various strange beasts began to appear. Whether for safety or for concealment, they could no longer continue on the hundred-meter-long ship for the rest of the journey.

Seeing Xu Chang standing at the stern, waving goodbye to him with his feet up and down, Chen Mu waved again and couldn't help but smile.

As the boat sailed further away, Chen Mu turned around and saw Yuan Xian's surprised and uncertain face.

"Who are you waving goodbye to?" he asked, his expression tense.

"Xu Chang, Xu Zhou's grandson."

“If it weren’t for him, Xu Zhou wouldn’t have been able to teach me the Crimson-Eyed Ghost Mark technique so quickly,” Chen Mu said with a smile.

Yuan Xian's expression changed: "Xu Zhou is all alone; he has no grandsons!"

"Of course there is, isn't he standing there?" Chen Mu said, pointing to the large ship that was sailing further and further away. But Xu Chang, who was jumping and waving at the stern just now, had disappeared, as if he had never been there at all.

He immediately activated his Listening Technique, probing inside and out of the distant ship. He discovered that not only Xu Chang, but even Xu Zhou had vanished!
Chen Mu froze on the spot.

"When we said goodbye just now, that child was clearly standing next to Xu Zhou, didn't you see him?" He couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

Yuan Xian slowly shook his head, his expression solemn as he remained silent.

Does Xu Zhou really have no grandson?

Who is Xu Chang, whom I've spent more than a month with?
Standing under the blazing sun, Chen Mu felt no heat at all, only an icy chill that sent shivers down his spine.

……

Half a month later, at Yunze Lake and Chongmei Mountain.

Yunze Lake is vast and boundless, stretching for thousands of miles. It is located southwest of Dali and is named for the clouds and mist that often surround it. It is also called Qianbo Lake (Thousand Wave Lake) because strong winds and huge waves often occur there.

Chongmei Mountain is located in the center of Yunze Lake. Its shape is unique, resembling a pillar.

The mountain peaks soar into the clouds, piercing through the clouds, covered with dense vegetation, and countless black-tiled, white-walled palaces are hidden inside.

Countless caves were carved into the steep mountain walls all around, and the disciples of the Goose and Sheep Path Yun Chong's Lower Temple lived in these honeycomb-like cave dwellings.

On this day, in a cave dwelling above the clouds on the eastern side of Yunchong Mountain, Chen Mu slowly opened his eyes on a low couch by the window.

Strands of earth's spiritual energy continuously seeped into Chen Mu's body.

The jade is riddled with holes, like a magical talisman corroded by sulfuric acid, slowly recovering.

Chen Mu felt completely relaxed, as if she had shed her heavy winter clothes and put on light garments. Moreover, his mind was clear, and a sense of vitality rose from the depths of his soul.

Chen Mu casually tossed three or five jade dewdrops into his mouth and smiled, "Another purification completed."

Over the past two months, he has traveled by boat to Dali, never forgetting to cultivate the Dark Cloud True Method.

The primordial energy within the Five Ghosts Bag was entirely stored in the Dark Cloud Talisman. Today would be just enough to complete a cleansing of the divine aperture.

Chen Mu turned his head and looked out through the jade window embedded in the thick mountain wall. It was as if cotton had been spread across the earth, and a sea of ​​clouds came into view.

This was his fifth day at Yun Chong Lower Temple.

With the help of the secret agent Li Moliang, Chen Mu first used a shapeshifting technique to transform into the other party's appearance, and then brought him into Thousand Lantern City. Holding the other party's identity jade token, and with his guidance, he easily entered the lower courtyard of Yun Chong.

He had expected to encounter some trouble, but it turned out to be so simple.

"After all, it's just a branch of a farm that cultivates golden pearl mussels, so the mountain protection laws and restrictions aren't that strict."

Feeling the earth's spiritual energy swirling around him, Chen Mu couldn't help but smile broadly: "It's still the most comfortable place to be a Qi Refiner."

The underworld lacks earthly spiritual energy, while the mortal realm does have it, but it's diluted and spread out by the City God's ritual. As a Qi cultivator, being separated from earthly spiritual energy is like a fish swimming in shallow water—it can survive, but it's extremely difficult to adapt.

Moreover, the Great Qian Dynasty is now shrouded in the power of the Underworld, and has undergone inexplicable changes. Beneath its calm and peaceful surface, countless strange and eerie entities lurk.

Like Xu Chang, even now he is not sure if the other party really exists.

"That little guy is probably not human."

"Locking Dragon Academy, Spirit Venerable Hall..." Chen Mu couldn't help but narrow his eyes.

The Dragon Locking Academy, which he had already come to know quite a bit about, was shrouded in a thin veil once again, becoming even more mysterious and unpredictable.

Although Yuan Xian had ulterior motives, the fact that the other party went to great lengths to send him away from Daqian was actually a good thing.

"Hmm... when we catch monsters later, let's try to catch as few as possible." Chen Mu revealed a playful smile.

The reason he readily agreed to come to Goose and Sheep Path was because he knew that Yuan Xian would drive the evil spirits to Goose and Sheep Path's territory.

That thing carries countless Netherworld Insects with it; once it catches one, it can use the Five Ghost Bag to conjure countless Netherworld Monsters. This can greatly shorten the time required to refine one's divine aperture.

Whether it's to drive away Qi cultivators or to facilitate the future establishment of a City God's ritual site, the Lock Dragon Academy will inevitably use demons to destroy the earth vein springs controlled by the Qi cultivators.

Just like in the present-day Great Qian Dynasty, all the former lower courtyards of Jilongdao within its territory have had their earth veins destroyed, leaving them desolate.

Now that the Great Qian Dragon Locking Academy is targeting the Goose and Sheep Path, it certainly won't let go of the Yun Chong Lower Academy, which is a Golden Pearl Clam breeding farm.

Before long, they will summon evil spirits to devour the earth's spiritual energy and destroy the earth's veins and springs.

"Yuanxian, you'd better step up your efforts and drive away a few more evil spirits to Yunchong's lower courtyard." Chen Mu said with anticipation.

(End of this chapter)