Wet viviparity

Chapter 739 Taking a Detour, Jingjing'er
After deciding to search for the alchemy room in the side hall, Black Owl glanced at Jiang Hubiao again.

It's not a good idea to bring this rascal along when I'm out treasure hunting; it seems I'll have to find an opportunity to shake him off.

"Brother, now that we've entered this treasure mountain, where should we look for more treasures?"

Black Owl asked with great interest.

"I don't know either." Jiang Hubiao's joy subsided slightly, but he suddenly thought of a plan and said, "I think some of the cultivators who entered the sect earlier seemed to have a plan in mind. They must have done a lot of preparation beforehand, unlike us who are just blindly trying to find opportunities."

"Why don't we join forces to capture one of them and interrogate him for the information he knows?"

"We are a reputable and righteous sect."

Black Owl said with an air of righteous indignation.

These words immediately attracted a man carrying a bunch of exotic flowers and fruits.

The man had a sly smile on his face, the kind of "cunning and shrewdness" that comes with being a member of the underworld, and he claimed that he was willing to offer half of his treasure in exchange for the two brothers giving him a ride.

"go with!"

Without a second thought, Jiang Hubiao kicked the ordinary man away.

"You dare to show off a bunch of wild grass and fruit to your grandfather? You're really clueless."

Because the area was too crowded, Hei Xiao and Jiang Hubiao leaped into the deep ravine of the green forest where thin clouds floated ahead. The two of them ran like tigers, skimming through the gaps in the light. Relying on their keen sense of smell, they quickly locked onto a cultivator.

"Twenty-three li to the northwest."

Jiang Hubiao lowered his head, sniffed deeply, and chuckled, "He's a kid who just refined his dragon-tiger form in the third realm, but unfortunately, he's been poisoned by a mixed evil spirit used in the 'Subduing Yang Dragon' technique. He'll only ever reach the Golden Core stage in this lifetime."

"Don't lose track."

Jiang Hubiao said something to Hei Xiao, and his figure flashed, shooting like a yellow shadow as he sped away.

Seeing that Jiang Hubiao had left him far behind in just a few breaths, Hei Xiao took a step back, changed direction, and disappeared from the spot like smoke.

Not long after they started walking, they came into view of a famous scenic spot in Ziding Mountain – a hundred acres of peach orchards on the sunny slope, which was also where Ma Ling was guarding.

Many cultivators choose to venture deep into this forest, hoping to obtain the peaches of immortality, or at the very least, collect a few bottles of Peach Blossom Essence. With a little refinement, they can then roam freely throughout the land.

Black Owl's gaze swept past the peach grove and fixed on the Purple Soul Peak, shrouded in purple mist and cascading with icy spring water. That was the location of the old Star Lord's Nanhua Immortal Cave. The peak was protected by immortal array diagrams and guarded by divine generals and spirit officials from the Longevity Palace. Anyone who ventured there would surely suffer calamity.

Black Owl showed no interest in bypassing the peach grove.

At most, one can pick a Jiazi Peach from here, which will extend one's lifespan by sixty years. As for the Worldly Fortune and Calamity Peaches, there is no chance of getting them.

If these two kinds of peaches were picked by outsiders, Ma Ling wouldn't just be able to eat them; she'd probably have to go to the Demon-Slaying Platform in the heavens.

Passing through the rising neon-colored mountain mist, ahead lies a vast expanse of uniquely shaped pines and cypresses, covering no less than ten thousand acres. Each root reaches hundreds of feet high, its roots twisting and knotting on the icy rocks, its needles covered in frost crystals, translucent and faintly revealing specks of silver light within.

The mist and haze swirl around the waist of the forest, like a fairy maiden's sash.

In this forest, Black Owl no longer ran like a tiger. As far as he knew, there were several immortals from the Longevity Palace living in this forest.

"Here, the Turtle Lord in charge of the palace's water supply is also a demon."

However, this demon is different from Ma Ling. She has always had an excellent reputation in the palace and is diligent in her work. She can be called a model worker in the palace and I have met her a few times.

There was also a Taoist priest known as the "Drunken Belly," a notoriously lazy yet highly skilled Taoist in the palace. Although I had never met him, I had long heard of his exploits.

Black Owl strolled leisurely through the ancient forest, as if he were wandering in his own backyard.

If it weren't for the fact that he was responsible for the affairs of a prefecture and was a pillar of Taiping Mountain, he probably would have moved to Ziding Mountain to settle down.

As Black Owl was traversing a massive purple fungal rock formation shaped like a lingzhi mushroom, he suddenly heard a clear, melodious crane's cry from above, accompanied by the sound of a wooden wheel turning.

Looking up, one sees an exquisitely crafted four-wheeled wooden kite, gliding leisurely along the misty surface of an ancient tree. The driver is a young boy, with delicate features, wearing a short jacket with crimson flame patterns. He is none other than Jingjing'er, the chief official in charge of ensuring the smooth operation of the earth, fire, wind, and water in Ziding Mountain.

Although he looks like a child and his Taoist name contains the character "er" (儿), he is actually an old monster who has studied Taoism for many years. Hundreds of years ago, he was one of the most prominent figures on the coast of the East China Sea, and his seniority is even higher than that of the master.

Jingjing, controlling a kite with one hand and holding a crystal jade ruler with the other, was idly gesturing at the flowing spring below, muttering to herself, "At three-quarters past Shen hour, the water level in the east has dropped by three and a half inches..."

As he spoke, he looked toward the peach grove, his expression displeased.

"That demonic ape is playing his tricks with the Immortal Ladder in the human world again. With this gate open on the east side, spiritual energy will inevitably be released to the outside world, causing changes in the water level on the east side."

Ma Ling had only received a few pointers from the Spirit Official and was given a chapter of the True Secrets from the Tai Xian True Scripture. He had only managed to reach the fifth change, the Marrow Change, among the nine changes in "Form Change".

With his level of cultivation, he thought he could fool the world, control variables, and display divine power, but little did he know that the slightest misstep would lead to utter destruction. Ultimately, it was because his demonic nature remained unchanged.

The black owl in the forest shrank under the fungal rock, its body covered in bright purple fungal powder, causing it to itch terribly.

At this moment, a strong wind swept through the secluded valley, causing the pine needles and ice crystals to collide, producing a clear, piercing sound that went straight to the bone. In an instant, frost formed on the ground where the cold wind passed, forcing the black owl under the cliff to circulate its qi and blood to dispel the frost and cold wind.

He knew that once his vital energy and spirit were activated, his physical body would be like a bright star in the night in Jingjing'er's eyes.

Sure enough, Chi Jing'er's eyes flickered, and he pointed the jade ruler at the spot below the cliff: "What kind of demon dares to trespass on this sacred mountain? Settle!"

A faint light flashed, and Black Owl's figure froze, as if he were sealed in invisible amber. Fortunately, Jingjing'er did not seal his throat, and was obviously preparing to keep him for questioning.

He hurriedly said, "Senior, how have you been? My father is the Divine Tiger of the Jiang family of the True Spirit Sect. He has mentioned your reputation on Lingpa Island in the East China Sea many times. I heard that more than a hundred years ago, when your disciple's physical body was damaged, you even came to my house to borrow medicine."

"It's remarkable that someone as young as you can remember something that happened over a hundred years ago."

Jingjing put away the jade ruler, and the wooden kite landed lightly on the fungus rock. He jumped off the carriage, looked around at the black owl, and had an extremely old-fashioned expression on his small face. "The tiger's children are like piglets. Judging from your bone age of less than eighteen, you've probably just given birth to a batch of cubs."

"Your physical body is robust and your spirit is clear and peaceful, yet there's a fierce glint in your eyes. You must have been spoiled at home. Many of the immortals here are eccentric and not to be trifled with. You'd better obediently turn back and wander around the peach grove."

"Senior."

“I know what you’re talking about. I’ve already paid back all the favors I owed to your family and your sect a long time ago. You don’t need to use that to persuade me.”

Hei Xiao was at a loss for words. When he met Jing Jing in Yanshou Palace, she wasn't so difficult to talk to. Her true form had even exchanged insights on the immobilization technique with him. Could it be that she had these two faces because she treated people differently and didn't see Hei Xiao as highly respected as her true form?

At this moment, a beam of Buddhist light burst forth in mid-air, transforming into a circle that raced through the gale and vanished in an instant.

"Senior, you can't stop me all by yourself."

Black Owl pointed to the ever-shrinking halo and said hurriedly.

Jingjing stood still for a while, which was actually an infant leaving its body. It caught up with the circle of Buddha's light. The circle of light, which was the size of a coin in the far distance, stopped immediately, but soon started moving again.

“The monk Jueguang took the invitation and said that he was going to visit a virtuous monk in the mountains by borrowing the Immortal Ladder.”

Jingjing said this.

"I'm here to pay a visit as well."

"Go to hell." Seeing Hei Xiao's opportunistic words, Jingjing'er spoke without any seniority, "When others come to visit, you come to visit too. Is this how your True Spirit Sect raises its disciples?"

"I really have come to visit."

Whom are you visiting?

"Master Lingxu!"

"You," Jingjing'er's expression changed, and she changed her tone, laughing, "So Master Lingxu has already come to Ziding Mountain. I didn't know that. If you had told me earlier, I wouldn't have made things difficult for you. Now I've made myself the bad guy for nothing."

(End of this chapter)