Wet viviparity

Chapter 763 The Child, Mistakenly Practicing the Method
On Dongji Island, the Divine Mulberry Tree House.

On this day, Bai Ranfeng returned from visiting the South China Sea and went back to his tree house. Suddenly, he had a sudden inspiration. He silently calculated for several months and then summoned the Fire Crow Boy and said, "There are disciples of my sect living in seclusion in Xiaoci Gorge by the Blackwater River in Diqiu. Go to that place and investigate secretly."

If that young man is of decent character and behaves properly, then issue me a decree inviting him to settle on Dongji Island so that he can suffer less poverty and hardship.

If he possesses the vices typical of scions of noble families, then return and do not associate with him; simply let him fend for himself in the hills of earth.

"Yes!"

After Fire Crow Boy received the order, Bai Ranfeng gave a few more detailed instructions.

At the edge of the East Sea, since the ancient kingdom vanished, the hills have become monotonous and dull, as if they have lost all their variety.

Even with the efforts of the immortal Bai Ranfeng to cultivate Dongji Island and continuously explore the glory of the ancient kingdom, it still couldn't change the dullness. So, as soon as Huoya Tongzi received the order, he carried his flower basket and rushed to the Blackwater River.

Upon arriving here, one can immediately sense the changes along the Blackwater River; a vibrant life force, like a winter snake lurking in the earth, is emerging.

Upon closer inspection, the vitality seemed like a mere scratch, prompting the Fire Crow Child to venture out and search for it.

When he arrived outside Little Thorn Gorge, he couldn't help but wonder if he had come to the wrong place.

He had been to Xiaoci Gorge before. In the past, the Lord of Ranfeng Island had bestowed great kindness upon the people of the ancient Diqiu Kingdom, who were relocated to Dongji Island. He had served as an envoy, traveling between various parts of Diqiu to deliver messages.

Among them, the dove demon known as Snow Spirit Mother in Little Thorn Gorge left a very deep impression on Fire Raven Child.

He had never seen a demon as arrogant and conceited as Xue Yinglingmu. Not only did she practice the wrong Daoist arts, but she also flaunted her "ultimate skills," not allowing anyone to disagree. Instead, she mocked Huoya Tongzi for his short lifespan and ignorance, failing to recognize the profoundness of Xue Yinglingmu's Daoist arts.

"Ganshui!"

Fire Crow Boy saw the words on the square tablet by the river outside the gorge.

These two words convinced the boy that the changes here were definitely not the work of that Snow Spirit Mother; that arrogant Spirit Mother did not have the leisure or means to transform this gorge.

He strolled along for a while and saw that the once frozen Blackwater River tributaries now had their riverbeds widened several times over and reached depths of tens of feet.

The waters originating from the main vein of the Blackwater River in the wilderness and the newly opened waterway at the bottom of the gorge converge here. The water volume is abundant, with white waves surging in the rapids and deep blue waters in the calm areas.

What's particularly strange is that the entire river is shrouded in wisps of milky white steam, warm and damp, rising from the bottom of the gorge, where three or five wisps gather into clusters, enveloping the narrow canyon in a hazy, warm mist.

As we approached the mouth of the gorge, the frozen soil on the shore softened due to the combined effects of geothermal heat and water flow, and sparse vegetation grew everywhere, interspersed with a few small flowers, creating a wild and charming scene. The boy picked a few flowers and put them in his basket.

However, as he walked into the gorge, he suddenly felt a pang of anxiety.

Fire Crow Boy immediately cast a spell to conceal his form, but unexpectedly a white blur flew up from the canyon wall, blending into the water vapor and being extremely inconspicuous. It was only when it got close that the boy noticed it.

"Snow Spirit Mother!"

The boy was both surprised and angry.

A touch of green peeks through the white expanse, revealing a tiny, inch-long "infant" sitting cross-legged inside.

"Good boy, this is not the place to talk. Come with me quickly."

Having said that, the infant raised his forearm, and a gust of poisonous wind rose up. Before the Fire Crow Child could react, he was blown into the poisonous cave in the stone wall.

Seeing that he had been easily transferred to this poisonous abyss, Fire Raven Child had to admit that Snow Spirit Mother's infant was truly extraordinary. What was even more remarkable was that the other party had also cultivated a demonic magic power, no wonder he was so arrogant.

"Out of respect for that immortal, I made an exception and risked my life to save you."

"You little brat, you are unaware of the dangers here. More than half a year ago, a pair of wicked men arrived at Little Thorn Gorge, seizing my river gorge and occupying my lair. This place is no place for outsiders to freely enter."

"A pair of jinxes!"

Fire Crow Boy chuckled. If the island lord hadn't given him instructions before he arrived, he would have been completely fooled.

Seeing the boy's expression, Xue Yinglingmu's heart skipped a beat, knowing something was wrong. She guessed to herself, "Judging from his appearance, he probably knows the background of those two. That must be it. Dongji Island has an ethereal atmosphere and boundless beauty. The people on the island never want to come to this poor and remote place. How come they happen to come here today?"

"The Fire Crow Child has likely come on the orders of the immortals. Therefore, I fear it's not easy for me to easily exploit the distinction between good and evil to persuade the Immortal Island Lord to drive away those evil spirits for me."

"Lingmu, I won't play riddles with you. Let me ask you, is there a new tiger demon in this Little Thorn Gorge?"

Fire Crow Boy gently lifted the basket from his arm and asked.

“Boy, you’re using this precious basket to guard against me.” Lingmu said this first, pretending to be nonchalant, and then added, “I have cultivated here for a thousand years and have already survived two calamities through my supernatural powers.”

Now, having delved deeper into the Dao and thoroughly comprehended the principles of change, I can say that your little flower basket can't stop me.

I will answer your questions, but only out of respect for the immortal of Dongji Island. Otherwise, for this minor offense, I would have kept you here and thoroughly humiliated you to vent my anger.

Fire Raven Child knew that Snow Spirit Mother was most fond of bullying the weak.

If your magical power and cultivation are lower than his, even if you have a powerful background and exceptional wisdom, he will look down on you no matter what. Anyone who dares to offend him in the slightest will be dealt with ruthlessly and without mercy. The boy put down the basket and sincerely apologized, which eased the atmosphere somewhat.

"Let me tell you, that king, no, that old ancestor Hum Hum..."

"Hmph, Ancestor?"

"I personally heard his wife call him by that name, and considering his verification of the new method at the bottom of the gorge, he does indeed deserve the title of Ancestor."

"A new law of its own?!"

"You child, you have no composure or calmness at all. Why do you always interrupt me with your sudden outbursts?"

"This is a completely new method."

Fire Crow Boy was very excited and said, "Back then, the island lord proposed another method in the 'Book of Six Jia Spirit Flying Strategy' to refine the Bi Huo True Spirit outside of the Six Jia, and he was already praised as a figure who appears only once every eight hundred years in Baoguang Prefecture."

If this demon possesses such talent, what a bright future awaits him!

As he spoke, Fire Crow Boy became suspicious again.

Thinking of Xue Yinglingmu's limited knowledge, shallow perspective, and arrogant nature, the excitement in his heart subsided, and he began to doubt every word she said.

He did not question Xue Yinglingmu's words directly, but listened to her continue.

After listening, Fire Crow Boy roughly understood the situation.

Based on his understanding of Xue Yinglingmu, the True Spirit Sect disciple who was transformed into a tiger demon due to poisoning probably obtained a magic book and practiced it in this Little Thorn Gorge, which Xue Yinglingmu mistakenly thought was magic of its own.

When he came from the island, the island lord had instructed him that this person had been poisoned outside and had turned from a human into a demon. He was bound to lose his mind and will. Moreover, a beautiful demoness had come from afar to accompany him to the hill. Although her affection was touching, there was a risk that this disciple of the True Spirit Sect might be led astray. Therefore, he was sent here, and the lord specifically instructed him not to judge him by his appearance, but to deeply examine his heart and nature.

Fire Crow Boy has now decided to observe secretly for several days before making a judgment and plan.

Having learned from Xueyinglingmu that this person chanted incantations and performed rituals at the altar of Ganshui River at the bottom of the gorge every day at midnight, he decided to wait.

When Xueyinglingmu learned that Huoya Tongzi had decided to hide outside the altar to observe the tiger demon, she mocked the boy without hesitation and described the elaborate arrangements outside the altar.

The rest of the arrangements were fine, except for one thing: ten feet away from the altar, there was a barrier of cold air drawn down from the Cold Netherworld Spirit Palace in the sky above the gorge. This was a problem that even Xue Yinglingmu found quite troublesome, let alone Huoya Tongzi.

The boy saw that Xue Yinglingmu seemed to know a lot about that person and wanted to ask her for advice.

However, Xueyinglingmu's sarcastic remarks, including saying that the boy's knowledge was as short as the hair on his body that hadn't fully grown, completely extinguished the boy's desire to ask for advice.

The boy waited until midnight. Why wait? Because Xueyinglingmu kept nagging beside him, her words full of slander against that person. However, due to some consideration, the slander was vague and made to sound awkward.

And every now and then he would make sarcastic remarks to himself, his tone making people angry, but the boy couldn't drive the demon away. Even if he put on a cold face, the demon would take it as him being forced to back down because of the demon's tyranny.

At midnight, a spot in the riverbed at the bottom of the gorge glowed with a bluish light.

Fire Crow Boy carefully approached and parted the wisps of cold mist to see an inverted bowl-shaped spirit shield. A dotted line extended upwards from its semi-circular top, which should lead to the so-called Cold Nether Spirit Palace.

At this moment, the dotted line lit up, and a shadow fell on the line. Looking inside the enclosure, a figure had appeared.

To avoid disturbing the other party, the boy rubbed a handful of flower petals from the basket and sprinkled them on the already concealed body, making his aura indistinguishable from that of flowers and plants, so as not to arouse the other party's attention.

The person chanted incantations inside the spirit barrier for quite a while. Although the boy outside couldn't hear it clearly, he knew from his drowsy and nauseous state that the incantation wasn't a proper spell.

After the incantation was finished, the figure disappeared.

Fire Crow Boy guarded the barrier for seven or eight days but couldn't find a way to break it. Snow Spirit Mother would come to see him from time to time and suddenly asked him some questions about alchemy, as if she was doubting her own self-taught "profound Taoist philosophy".

Normally, Fire Raven Boy would have mocked these questions to deflate Snow Spirit's arrogance, but he wasn't in the mood now and gave rather perfunctory answers.

He, Fire Crow Boy, is no saint. Why should he be here to play the teacher and correct Xue Yinglingmu's self-taught alchemy and qi-refining methods? He would rather Xue Yinglingmu waste her efforts and end up with nothing.

After searching the bottom of the canyon to no avail, Fire Raven decided to return and report back, explaining the current situation. He didn't notice Snow Spirit's unusual expression.

It turns out that when Xue Yinglingmu was spying on Hei Xiao earlier, her whereabouts were discovered. After the altar on the Xia Di Sha Cave was completed and the ghost egg was planted, Hei Xiao had a long talk with Xue Yinglingmu, pointing out her mistakes in alchemy. However, Xue Yinglingmu was arrogant and did not listen to his words at all. Instead, she regarded Hei Xiao as her greatest threat.

Until the Fire Crow Child arrived, Black Owl summoned Snow Spirit Mother again to give her a pointer, asking her and the child to verify the Daoist teachings, thus proving that their knowledge was indeed correct.

In the past few days, Xueyinglingmu was restless. After asking the boy those questions and hearing his evasive answers, she realized that the boy must have seen through her act of pretending to be an "infant" when they first met.

The reason they didn't warn me back then was clearly to let me suffer the consequences.

Such a perfunctory answer clearly shows that he still doesn't want to recognize the problem, and his intentions are despicable.

(End of this chapter)