Wet viviparity

Chapter 796 Jade Immortal, Calculating Child
Baicaozi stopped pounding the pestle and led Ji Ming to a tea table to sit down. He respectfully said, "Since the Master sent the decree, I have been inquiring about news from the palace."

He stroked his beard and pondered for a moment, then said, “Our lineage of Xinglin values ​​medicine. Our specialty has always been the art of healing and refining medicine. The Jade Immortals on the Medicine-Pounding Platform in the Moon Palace are the masters and originators of this art. Therefore, Xinglin has always been eager to befriend them.”

To cultivate this relationship, hundreds of acres of the mountain's vast apricot orchard were donated to the medicine-pounding platform, hoping to gain the favor of the Jade Immortals and receive a Moon-Listening Pestle as a gift.

Ji Ming was surprised that the Xinglin lineage had such courage and decisiveness. After thinking about it carefully, he roughly guessed that it must have been instructed by the founder of the Xinglin lineage.

"The other day, I used my precious pestle to sense the energy of the moon palace. In addition to the sound of pounding medicine, I could also faintly hear the sound of jade pieces striking a chessboard, which was clear, cold and lonely, and quite extraordinary."

Later, a Jade Fairy sent a message saying that the Goddess had recently been setting up games in the Cold Jade Pavilion deep within the Toad Courtyard, sometimes inviting star lords, sometimes summoning ancient immortals, and sometimes even playing chess in the void, placing pieces in mysterious ways, seemingly deducing some great evolutionary number; she was quite addicted to chess.

"it is good!"

Ji Ming slammed his hand heavily on the table, and Bai Cao Zi trembled slightly.

In his heart, the experience of being bound to the demonic stele on Jiangpu Xishan for many years surged into his mind like a tide. The intense feeling of his body being harmed by the poisonous magic on the stele and gradually rotting and infesting with maggots made him unable to help but vomit on the spot.

Ji Ming didn't say anything to comfort Bai Caozi, he just quietly watched him.

Bai Caozi quickly drank a sip of the specially prepared medicinal tea. Seeing that Master Lingxu was waiting for him to continue, she did not dare to worry about appearances and continued speaking.

“When the Goddess is playing chess, her mind is most at ease and she is most comfortable talking to people.”

If one were to seize this opportune moment and personally visit the Moon Palace, explaining one's purpose by the chessboard, perhaps one could gain the favor of the Divine Mother; who knows?

"The question is, how do we get there?"

Ji Ming asked in a deep voice, seeking advice.

Seeing Baicaozi's troubled expression, Ji Ming continued, "I've heard that there's a Toad Master in the True Spirit Sect. He was originally a spirit toad in the Moon Palace Toad Courtyard, but later became a disciple of Jiang Xuan, the third ancestor of the True Spirit Sect's Jade Toad, and attained the true fruit of a demon immortal."

Whenever the Divine Mother set up a chess game in the palace, some members of the True Spirit Sect would always manage to find a way to get close to this Toad Sect member and play a game with her, thus enjoying endless celestial blessings.

“That’s true.”

Bai Caozi understood perfectly well what Master Lingxu meant; he wanted him to smooth things over with the Jade Immortals.

The Jade Fairies on the Medicine-Pounding Platform were not as easy to talk to as the Silver Toads in the Toad Palace. Each one was aloof and mysterious, and never easy to get close to. He was truly powerless to do anything about it.

"Is there really no other way?"

Ji Ming said, his tone becoming more serious.

Feeling the pressure being exerted on him, Bai Caozi's mind was in turmoil, and he said with a bitter taste in his mouth, "Even if I give away another hundred acres of merit apricot forest, the Jade Immortals will not grant me special permission, unless there are immortal herbs and spiritual medicines, then I can gain the favor of the Jade Immortals."

"Immortal herbs and elixirs?"

"Yes, it is a miraculous herb."

The Jade Immortals have long been devoted to the pursuit of immortality, and the ancient art of external alchemy originated from them. If a sorcerer possesses information about rare and precious herbs and elixirs, the Jade Immortals will readily grant them assistance.

Upon hearing Bai Caozi's words, Ji Ming was somewhat moved.

He did indeed have information about a rare and wonderful herb, namely the Tai Sui Zhi Tong from the Bingfu Cave.

Seeing Ji Ming's expression, Bai Caozi sensed that there might be something going on, so she said, "The Jade Immortals hold a transcendent position in the palace and possess the secret to immortality. If you can gain their favor, you will surely enjoy endless benefits in the future."

"really?"

Ji Ming was a little unsure, after all, in his mind, the Tai Sui Zhi Tong was definitely one of the top five treasures he had.

"I dare to guarantee with my life that as long as the sorcerer has enough medicine, the Jade Immortals will repay you double and help you achieve all your wishes, whether it is bringing the dead back to life or becoming an immortal on the spot, they can do it."

I believe that.

Ji Ming said.

The Jade Immortal, also known as the Jade Rabbit, has a well-known story of pounding medicine in the palace.

Ji Ming did not make a decision immediately, but instead went to a stone chamber in Kuangshan to contemplate.

He had long intended to revisit the unsolved mystery of that year—the enigmatic Tai Sui Zhi Tong within the Bingfu Cave. He still remembered the drizzling rain in the banana grove, the changes in the cave walls, the Buddha's bones turning to dust, his internal organs becoming treasures, which ultimately caused strange noises from the pagoda depicted in the murals, forcing him to flee. As for the origins of that Tai Sui Zhi Tong, they remained elusive, like trying to see flowers through a fog, its form impossible to discern.

"Pupil God, help me to see this mystery." Ji Ming's thoughts stirred slightly, and he murmured like a chime.

As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes suddenly shone with a strange light.

Golden light flowed from his right eye, and a strange glint suddenly leaped out, transforming into a tiny figure about an inch in size, with a large, crystal-clear pupil as its head—this was none other than Da Tong Zi.

As soon as it appeared, it stood with its hands on its hips on the stone in front of Ji Ming's knees, its childishness revealing its arrogance, and laughed: "Haha, little saint, why bother with such a mere old ghost? Let me take a look at it for you."

His left eye trembled slightly, and a radiant light spilled onto the ground. Another tiny figure quietly appeared, its form slightly concealed, topped with a lustrous pupil—it was the Two Pupils.

It timidly shrank behind Big Pupil, its voice soft and low, like a mosquito's buzz: "Big Brother, the creature in that cave seems extremely ferocious, filled with eerie yin energy. Deducing its power is incredibly taxing; it might even damage my very foundation."

"Silence!" Big Pupil was impatient and waved his short hand. "With me here, what is there to fear? Little Saint Master has a deep foundation and his divination skills are not shallow either. Besides, this time the calculation is led by you and me, so we will definitely achieve twice the result with half the effort."

"So brave."

Ji Ming nodded in approval.

He held the two pupils in his hands, stroking them gently with his fingertips as if they were precious to him.

“My dear Tongzi, this matter is of great importance, otherwise I would not have asked you to make the calculations yourself. If there are any ominous signs during the calculations, your safety should be the top priority. Do not continue to make the calculations.”

As he spoke, once the two pupil gods were ready, he calmed his mind and began to probe the mystery.

Strands of true qi overflowed from his fingertips, condensing and not dissipating, forming a hazy, clear light that enveloped the area about a foot in front of him.

In the clear light, the scene of the old Military Talisman Cave vaguely appeared—a wet banana grove, a deep stone gate, a narrow passage, and two strange murals facing each other—the World Honored One solemn, and the Ghost King ferocious.

"go with!"

Ji Ming snorted softly.

The pupils of the pair of eyes suddenly brightened, their gaze solidifying and shooting into the illusory light like a bolt of lightning.

In an instant, the scene within the clear light rapidly shifted, decomposed, and reconstructed, as if countless invisible threads were unraveling the cocoon, tracing back to the causes of the past.

Ji Ming was inwardly full of praise. Even if he practiced diligently for a hundred years, he still couldn't catch up with the Pupil God's divination skills.

The divination results are laid out within this small space.

On the stone wall, in the mural depicting the Scorched-Faced Ghost King, the figures of the little ghost's copper basin, steamer, box, and other objects emerged one by one in the clear light, and the energy contained within them was analyzed one by one—the mundane nature of rice cakes and wine, the refined nature of steamed buns, the precious light of pearls, the herbal and woody spiritual energy of Solomon's seal, Ganoderma lucidum, and ginseng, and even the strange medicinal power of the three annual ring pills that enhance one's abilities. All of this was as clear as the lines on one's palm.

The scene then shifts to another mural, where the black pagoda behind the Buddha [Langa] shakes, and letters, scrolls, and esoteric texts fly out, their words and meanings transforming into flowing light, flickering in the clear light.

Finally, the image freezes on the hairy rock wall, where the "Buddha" gradually grows flesh and bones, and his internal organs shine within his chest cavity, resembling a cluster of precious fruits.

Upon reaching this point, the illusory light suddenly froze, as if it had crashed into a sticky, murky swamp.

The Buddha's bloodshot eyes on the mural suddenly opened, his venomous gaze piercing through the past and stabbing straight at Ji Ming.

Those blood-stained, blood-red eyes, filled with utter evil and resentment, made Ji Ming gasp and feel a chill run down his spine.

The illusory light formed by the twelve fingers fluctuated violently, and the scene inside twisted and swayed like water waves. The heavy footsteps from the depths of the black tower seemed to be ringing in my ears again, making my heart tremble.

His fingers flew even faster, his divination skills reaching their peak.

The two pupils were desperately holding on. After all, they were created by Yinbo Gun and were truly extraordinary. The chaotic scene within the clear light was forcibly sorted out, and the false and ominous things within were stripped away.

Finally, Ji Ming saw it.
The "Buddha" suddenly changed, shedding its sacred appearance and revealing its true nature: a large mass of flesh, vaguely resembling a bird, with sparse feathers and thick claws sticking out of its surface covered with skin and blood vessels.

A root-like aura could be seen extending from the monster into the tower.

Within that black tower, there is a fleshy fungus with mottled colors, its surface interwoven with five colors, wriggling incessantly, emanating an ancient, chaotic aura brimming with boundless vitality—the very essence of the Tai Sui Fungus Child.

(End of this chapter)