Mountain and sea lantern

Chapter 598

Immediately afterwards, more troubles came. Feng Qingping received a confirmation message, or rather a reminder, from Li Xianghong, the city lord of Dazhi City.

The message was sent to Dazhi City, ordering the arrest of Bai Qiru. After much hesitation, Li Xianghong did not act directly. Instead, she reminded them that Bai Qiru had already been arrested once. He was released back then because the Empress Dowager's people had given instructions. Was it appropriate to arrest him again now? Were they sure they wanted to do this?

Feng Qingping, who was still in front of the mountain gate, looked at the clan leader, whose face was ashen, and handed him the message on the mother-child talisman, letting him read it himself.

Feng Xi stared at the message gradually disappearing on the mother-child talisman, his face tense. On one side, the Queen of Dongsheng greeted him, and on the other side, the people around the Demon Queen greeted him.

After hesitating for a long time, he said in a deep voice, "Arrest them! It's just arresting them, not doing anything to them. If the Empress's people can speak up for her again, it won't be too late to release them then."

Okay, Feng Qingping immediately picked up the mother-child talisman and sent the decision to Li Xianghong.

Feng Xi turned and went back to the mountain, followed by those around him.

After returning to the North Mountain Central Hub, Huang Ye dismissed his still suspicious subordinates and went up to his second floor alone, where he paced back and forth.

He could understand what Situ Gu was saying, that he was being asked to relay a message to his superiors, but he didn't know if he had been exposed or if the other party was bluffing him.

If he wasn't bluffing, how could he have escaped? Would Jiang You'er confess to him?

He didn't know what to do, and dared not go down the mountain to make contact, so he could only take out the mother-child talisman to contact the outside world...

While flying through the air, Shi Chun kept glancing at the purple-gold gourd in Situ Gu's hand with envy in his eyes. He felt that this treasure was too good. It could capture a master of the Earth Immortal realm with a single glance. Fighting and killing would be too easy. It felt that it was most suitable for someone like him who was still struggling.

He was genuinely envious and wanted it.

So he finally spoke up, "Senior, is the person inside the gourd still alive?"

Situ Gu: "I won't die for now, but who knows what will happen after a while."

Shi Chun asked curiously, "So this gourd can kill people?"

Situ Gu glanced at him and said, "Those who are taken inside cannot open their spatial storage artifacts. There is no air to breathe inside, and how long they can live depends entirely on their cultivation level. If you want them to die faster, you can activate the treasure bottle to refine and absorb them. How long they can last also depends entirely on their cultivation level."

Shi Chun asked again, "How high a cultivation level can this magic gourd deal with?"

Situ Gu: "Those whose cultivation level is below the Shattering Void Realm will not be able to come out once they go in."

Shi Chun was shocked upon hearing this, his eyes shining brightly. Did this mean that anyone below the Great Perfection of the Celestial Immortal realm could be dealt with?
He found this treasure to be ridiculously powerful, so he immediately probed, "Great stuff, great stuff, senior, are you selling this?"

Situ Gu glanced at him again, "I won't sell it, you can't afford it, and I won't give it to you."

Shi Chundun chuckled dryly, "Was it refined by you, senior?"

Situ Gu: "Could it be that you made it?"

Shi Chun secretly curled his lip, realizing that this old guy was not being fair. Back when he needed something from him, he didn't talk like this at all.

He had originally intended to say that he needed some protective magic items to protect Zhen'er in the future, but then he realized it was difficult to bring it up. After all, whether he could even rescue Zhen'er was a question now, and he couldn't be too obviously greedy.

Once Zhen'er is rescued, it's not too late for her to ask for more magical treasures.

Hmm, it sounds wonderful, because Zhen'er seems to be easier to handle this old guy.

Thinking of this, I almost smiled without realizing it, but I quickly suppressed it, afraid that the old man would see it.

Having made up his mind, he temporarily suppressed his desire for a baby, but he still didn't want to let go of the juicy meat he was looking for.

He got back to the point and said, "Senior, the guy in the gourd can't die yet. Let's find a place to interrogate him first and see which faction he belongs to."

This was indeed a serious matter. Situ Gu didn't say much, glanced around, and finally flew with him to a mountain peak that was visible in the grassland.

After landing on the hilltop, Situ Gu pulled the gourd's mouth off and reversed the spell. Immediately, a swirling mist of light, resembling a nebula, shot out, along with a rapidly growing black dot—Jiang You'er.

Jiang You'er landed and clutched her chest, gasping for breath, feeling like she was about to suffocate. She looked up and saw Situ Gu holding the magic gourd, and was startled again. She looked around in panic and found that she was no longer on the sacred mountain. The sacred mountain hadn't protected her. What the hell?

Dun quickly cupped his hands and begged for mercy, saying, "Senior Situ, I have no grudge against you, why are you doing this?"

Situ Gu's words startled the other person, "Are you a member of the demonic path?"

"..." Jiang You'er's pupils shrank suddenly, and she began to retreat step by step. Then, her eyes gradually revealed determination. Suddenly, a burst of demonic energy erupted from her body, engulfing her. The demonic energy then suddenly shot out in all directions, like flying dragons. There was no one left on the scene.

"Oh no!" Shi Chun exclaimed in alarm.

Situ Gu, however, remained calm and unhurried. With a flick of his sleeve, his energy surged across the heavens and earth, instantly shattering the dragon-like demonic energy that had been shooting in all directions. Within one of these energy streams, a true dragon was revealed.

No, upon closer inspection, Shi Chun discovered that it was actually a large, nearly three-zhang-long (approximately 10 meters) snake, writhing and struggling in mid-air.

Looking to the side, I saw Situ Guzheng grabbing at something in the air with one hand, and then pulling it away from there.

Then the large, flowery snake suddenly shot back and flew to the two of them. Situ Gu grabbed it by its vital spot, and its head and tail went limp.

Shi Chun grinned at the sight. Although Situ Gu was not good at fighting, the overwhelming force of this huge difference in cultivation level was truly unavoidable.

Situ Gu casually slammed the limp giant snake to the ground and demanded, "Tell me, which branch of the demonic path do you belong to?"

The giant snake spoke in human language, letting out a miserable laugh, "What difference does it make whether I talk or not? If I'm exposed, do I even have a chance to live?" Situ Gu's eyes turned cold, and he was about to strike again, but Shi Chun hurriedly stopped him, saying, "Senior, don't dirty your masterful hands that refine magical artifacts, it will damage your reputation. I come from a lowly background, it doesn't matter to me. Let me do this dirty work."

The voice sounded somewhat familiar. The limp giant snake barely managed to lift its head to examine Shi Chun's appearance. This person, all red, was clearly deliberately concealing their face. Looking at the other person's eyes and brows, the next moment, he exclaimed in surprise, "Shi Chun, is that you?"

He then looked at Situ Gu, his gaze sweeping back and forth between the two of them, recalling the rumors about them.

Shi Chun chuckled and continued to maintain a refined demeanor in front of Situ Gu, bowing to the giant snake and saying, "I am indeed the one who is talented."

He turned to look at Situ Gu, his eyes questioning.

Situ Gu hummed in agreement. "Go ahead and interrogate them."

Shi Chun chuckled and said, "Well, my interrogation methods aren't very elegant and might offend your eyes, senior. Also, I'm afraid the demonic path might hear the news and arrive without warning. I'd like to trouble that senior to stay here and keep watch while I take him to dig a hole halfway up the mountain to avoid trouble, how about that?"

As long as the interrogation is effective, that's fine. Situ Gu remained noncommittal, guessing that this kid had overestimated his image as the world's number one weapon-refining master.

That meant he agreed. Shi Chun immediately grabbed the big snake by the tail and dragged it down the mountain. The scene was not very pleasant.

Once they reached the halfway point on the mountain, Shi Chun immediately started digging a tunnel.

Situ Gu, standing atop the mountain, frowned, utterly bewildered. With such meager strength, how dare they cause such chaos in the cultivation world? Among all the people he associated with, even those close to him, there was no one with such poor cultivation. They were even inferior to Zhen'er.

He couldn't stand it anymore, so he stomped his foot on it.

Bang! A loud, explosive sound rang out.

As Shi Chun dug, a dragon of earth 'spit' out from the side, forming a cave.

Looking up, Shi Chun immediately understood. He bowed respectfully from afar, then dragged the snake's tail into the cave, and then partially collapsed the entrance, effectively sealing it off.

Returning to the giant serpent, he spotted its demonic energy, sat cross-legged, placed one hand on the area, and began to absorb it using the 'Demonic Bathing Technique,' while demanding, "Tell me, which branch of the demonic path are you from?"

Feeling the demonic energy he had painstakingly cultivated rapidly draining away, the giant snake's eyes widened in shock, and it stammered in terror, "You...you...what are you doing?"

Concentrating on his internal energy, Shi Chun replied absentmindedly, "Are you stupid? You've never seen torture before? Surely not on the sacred mountain, where there are even prisons for holding people."

Then, after a moment of silence, seeing that Shi Chun was not asking any questions and was only focused on absorbing his own demonic energy, the giant snake, gripped by fear, finally couldn't help but speak up, "Shi Chun, have you considered the consequences of offending our demonic path?"

Shi Chun, who was taking a deep breath, replied lazily, "I've already offended you, it's too late to say anything more."

As his demonic energy dissipated, which meant his cultivation was fading, the giant snake's breathing became increasingly rapid. He felt as if he had encountered someone even more demonic than the demonic path itself, and said in a trembling voice, "Even if I confess, you will not let me go."

Shi Chun hummed in agreement. "How will you know if you don't confess? You don't have to confess; I won't force you."

He was no longer in the mood to deal with it; instead, he was worried that the other party's demonic energy was too overwhelming, and whether he could suppress it with his current cultivation level.

Earlier, absorbing the demonic energy of Xia Fuli, who was at the Human Immortal realm, was already a bit overwhelming, and it took him a long time to refine it all. Now, with the demonic energy of Xia Fuli at the Earth Immortal realm, the difference in the sheer volume of demonic energy is not just a little bit, but a world of difference.

Otherwise, why would he stop Situ Gu from capturing Huang Ye? It would be a waste, and it would be troublesome to find another one. It would be better to keep one that is obvious. He just doesn't know if Huang Ye will run away. He doesn't know if the woman in red can keep an eye on him.

I don't know how much my cultivation will be improved after absorbing the demonic energy of the Celestial Immortal realm. I have no experience, and I can't figure it out even if I count on my toes. I should focus on the Earth Immortal realm for now.

I wonder if Li Hongjiu is still at the library.

While lost in his own thoughts, he tried not to think about Jiang You'er's feelings, and he also had to keep an eye on the outside world, worried that Situ Gu might suddenly barge in and notice something amiss.

Big Flower Snake realized that this person really didn't take the interrogation seriously at all, often remaining silent. What kind of interrogation is this? It's quite frightening.

As he endured the ordeal, he clearly felt his cultivation level rapidly declining, and he gradually couldn't hold back any longer. He suddenly said, "Alright, as long as you guarantee my survival, I can seek refuge with you."

With his eyes already closed, Shi Chun gave a perfunctory "Mmm," and said, "I promise."

The giant snake said, "We belong to the 'Guicang' lineage of the demonic path."

He planned to reveal the details little by little in order to negotiate a better price.

To everyone's surprise, Shi Chun muttered as if in a dream, "I don't believe it."

The giant snake suddenly became anxious, "I'm not talking nonsense, I really am from the 'Guicang' lineage."

Shi Chun muttered, "I don't believe it."

The demonic energy continued to dissipate, and the giant flower snake grew increasingly anxious. "I really didn't lie. I am indeed from the 'Guicang' lineage. The Lord of the Northern Mountain of the Divine Mountain, Huang Ye, is my superior. You can find out by capturing him and asking him."

However, Shi Chun still muttered the same words, "I don't believe it."

"..." The giant snake was so anxious that it flicked its tongue. "What do I have to do for you to believe me?"

Shi Chun stammered, seemingly lost in thought, "Of course I'm telling the truth."

The giant snake bared its fangs again and again, and finally, steeling itself, it changed its tune and said, "Fine, I'll tell the truth. I'm from the 'Lianshan' lineage."

Shi Chun continued muttering, "I don't believe it."

(End of this chapter)