Netherworld Painted Skin Scroll

Chapter 355: Full of bad intentions
Xue Baoping escaped down the mountain through the waterway of the alchemy room. After descending the mountain, she was so busy escaping that she didn't even have time to dry her clothes.

She felt her mind was now perfectly clear, while the past seemed like a long dream—Xu Zhen, that great demon king, was right; upon closer reflection, Li Wuxiang really wasn't human, he was a demon.

Since it's a demon—every time she thought of this, something would skip through her mind—it must be very dangerous, and she should definitely stay away from it.

However, it wasn't that she had forgotten everything from the past. In fact, she remembered every single thing very clearly. It was just that she felt her mind was frighteningly clear, as if she had jumped out of some infatuated emotion and could see things from an absolute outsider's perspective. She realized that it seemed that being by his side was the most dangerous thing, and that nothing in the world was more important than saving her life!
Their previous carriage, which was transformed from Wan Hua Fang, was hidden by Li Wu Xiang outside Da Pan Mountain. When Xue Bao Ping passed by, she considered whether to take the carriage away, but ultimately gave up.

However, this was not for any other reason than she was afraid that Li Wuxiang would be angry, and that he might find her by following this thing. So she hurriedly took some food from it, carried it on her back, and continued on her way.

She walked for about three days and two nights before she dared to stop and rest on the fifteenth day of the month.

You can still see Dapan Mountain from here, but it's now just an inconspicuous little hill among the mountains. She settled in a small cave, which must have been the hideout of some wild beast. But now the beasts are gone, as are the snakes, insects, and rodents, so there's no need to clean it or light a fire—she collapsed onto the withered branches and leaves in the cave and slept for six hours straight.

When she woke up, she found that a full moon had already risen, hanging brightly in the sky. She ate something and drank some water, then sat cross-legged in the cave and began to call for her master, Li Yunxin.

She could use her supernatural powers on the first and fifteenth of each month. Li Yunxin had previously said that she could call him anytime if she wanted to find him, but Xue Baoping felt that since her supernatural powers were available on the first and fifteenth of the month, it would be easier to get a response if she called him on these two days of the month—he must be like a spirit, and must be the “closest” to her on these two days.

She was right. After calling out the name three times in her mind, only five or six breaths later, she heard a voice in her head—

"Did the method I taught you work?"

Xue Baoping didn't know how to answer, so she could only say, "I don't know... I guess it worked?"

"Is that so? Show me."

Xue Baoping knew what he wanted to see, so she looked around.

"You're no longer with the Shangchi Sect?"

"I escaped," Xue Baoping said. "Master, I think I've figured it out, I—"

She recounted everything that had happened that day. Finally, frowning, she asked, "Master, should I keep running, or..."

She didn't know what Li Yunxin was thinking after hearing all this, because he didn't respond for a moment, seemingly falling silent. Xue Baoping didn't like his silence at all—silence meant he was considering and weighing things, and considering and weighing things meant he was hesitant and had limited abilities... In her mind, since her master possessed such supernatural powers, he should be omnipotent!
But what she said next immediately put her at ease—

"Are you asking me if you want to go back to Li Wuxiang's side?"

Is this what Master is considering? Is he thinking about me? Xue Baoping let out a long sigh: "Yes, because you asked me to help Li Wuxiang before, I..."

"Oh, if that's the case, then it doesn't matter. Asking you to help him isn't about serving him tea and water, and it's not just for the next few days. There will be other times when you need to help him."

"That……"

"Wait a moment." Xue Baoping waited quietly in the moonlight. After a dozen or so breaths, she heard her voice again, "Alright, by the way, we haven't had a proper chat yet. How did you two meet? Would you mind telling me?"

A thought popped into Xue Baoping's mind—how strange! A familiar strangeness! Her master, Li Yunxin's voice was different from Li Wuxiang's, and her tone was different too. Yet, it was precisely these differences that gave her a strange, familiar feeling… exactly the same feeling as when Li Wuxiang spoke!
They all have a kind of... how should I put it, a very strange nonchalance and casualness!
It seemed inappropriate for the spirit to speak like that. And what surprised her even more was that he knew nothing of her past with Li Wuxiang. She had assumed he possessed extraordinary abilities, observing the world from somewhere, seeing everything with perfect clarity!
But after hesitating for a moment, she slowly recounted everything from when she first met Li Wuxiang to what happened on Dapan Mountain—as if she were talking about something that happened to someone else.

After listening, Li Yunxin actually laughed: "Tsk tsk, he really is like him. Interesting. Then you really shouldn't go back, don't indulge his perverted fetishes."

Xue Baoping knew Li Wuxiang was a demon, and she knew he was in danger. She also felt that all her past feelings were like a dream. But when she heard Li Yunxin say "perverted hobbies," she couldn't help but frown: "Master, I know what 'perverted' means... but why did you say that about him?"

"Haha, let me ask you this: when you two are together, is it always you who takes the initiative to throw yourself into my arms?"

In the past, Xue Baoping would have felt embarrassed or even angry at such a remark. But now, she felt no discomfort whatsoever—she felt that, as Li Wuxiang would say, she was frighteningly rational. After thinking about it seriously, she said, "I don't think so. I think it's because he's too..."

Too formal? Too mild-mannered? A gentleman? Or are you just being coy?

"That's it."

"Let me tell you, no. He doesn't like you at all, at least not in a romantic way, you understand?"

"I... don't really understand."

"Hey, young lady, you said that when you two met again after you separated, you slept together, but you just slept and didn't do anything, right?"

"At that time, I was still in the foundation building stage."

"After that, you two met again at the Great Calamity Mountain. You walked all the way here, and still didn't do anything?"

"I think he's afraid of interfering with my cultivation..."

"Haha, how much of a delay could this be? He'll reach the True Realm in a year. If he wants, he can get rare and precious treasures at will. Why would he care about wasting a little time?"

Master seemed to have a point. A faint melancholy arose in Xue Baoping's heart, but she couldn't quite put her finger on why. She simply asked, "Why is that? He used to treat me so well; no one in the world had ever treated me better than him."

"That's why I call him a pervert. Let me tell you, he's doing this for his own good. People like him had an unhappy childhood and want to find psychological compensation—he didn't have a good life in the past, so he wants to make up for it in other people. When he meets a girl like you, who is beautiful, has a pitiful background, is clear-headed, and has been kind to him, you are simply the perfect candidate. If it weren't Xue Baoping, he would have been just as good to Yang Baoping or He Jinyin."

"However, he might not even understand this himself, or he might understand but not want to think it through, and he feels too lonely, so this is how it is. This is more like a nurturing game than a romantic relationship—if he really liked you, he would have countless reasons to convince himself that he couldn't resist, understand? So staying away from him is good for both of you."

Xue Baoping was silent for a moment: "Master, you... are you from the same place as Li Wuxiang?"

"Oh? Didn't you say he was a demon?" She thought she should be saddened by what Li Yunxin had just said. But she wasn't; in fact, she even laughed at his words: "Master, I've just cleared my head, not become obsessed—he became a demon after he died, but I know he was originally human. When you two talk... it's almost the same."

"Then let's say that."

"Were you friends before?"

"Oh? That's what you think?"

"It seems like only friends would say such things about him while simultaneously asking me to help him in the future."

After a moment of silence, someone suddenly said, "It's not bad that you've always been like this."

"Always like this"? What does that mean? But Xue Baoping understood; her master didn't want to discuss this issue anymore. She immediately changed the subject: "Master, you told me before to find the Ninth Young Master—I think I've found him, but I wanted to clarify things beforehand, so I wasn't in a hurry—"

"where?"

“Li Wuxiang told me that he saw the Ninth Prince in Mount Ling. It seemed that he was dead and had become a corpse in Mount Ling, with only bones remaining. He also said that the Ninth Prince seemed to be trapped there and could not or did not want to come out. The current Blood God Sect... the Blood God they have in Mount Ling, part of whom is the Ninth Prince.”

“But Master, you heard it. A couple of days ago, Xu Zhen said that the demons of the Eastern Continent are still worshipping the True Lord of Wei River and the Ninth Prince. He often talks to them. So I don’t know if the one in Mount Ling is the one you are looking for.”

Li Yunxin fell silent again. Xue Baoping waited a while, then asked, "Master, are you also a demon? Why don't you want Li Wuxiang to know about you?"

"Tsk, you're a little too smart."

Xue Baoping wasn't sure if his words carried a hint of dissatisfaction. But she wasn't so afraid of her master anymore. Fear mostly stemmed from the unknown, but now she was clear-headed and felt she could understand many things—just like Li Wuxiang used to talk about external evils and Donghuang Taiyi without much reverence.

Then an idea popped into her head—

"Master, you are the Ninth Young Master, aren't you!?"

"what?"

"That night when you saw me, you called me Master Zeng and said you were so engrossed that you couldn't see me. A few days ago, Xu Zhen's supernatural powers on Dapan Mountain were almost exactly the same as yours back then. Xu Zhen also said that he worshipped the Ninth Prince and the True Lord of the Wei River. Master, you also told me to find the Ninth Prince... You are the Ninth Prince, aren't you? You are trapped, so you want me to save you? Or are you the true spirit of the Ninth Prince? Just like the True Spirit of Taiyi!?"

"Your idea is both reasonable and unexpected, which is quite good, but unfortunately it's wrong. Put the Ling Mountain thing aside for now—where do you plan to go now?"

“I…I want to find a place to live in seclusion and cultivate my spirituality.”

"What will we do about food?"

"I'd like to see if I can find a place like the waterway in Dapan Mountain. Perhaps some valleys and underground rivers still harbor life, just like Dajie Mountain and Dapan Mountain. Or maybe closer to the diocese, that should be faster."

"But this isn't a long-term solution. Even if you find it, what will you do before you do? Are you going to compete with starving people for food?"

Xue Baoping was stunned, wondering why she hadn't thought of this point before, or even when she was speaking.

"Go to the Eastern Continent. It hasn't suffered any disasters there, and the mountains and fields are vast. You can go there to cultivate in seclusion. Besides, seclusion requires strength. You don't have elixirs, materials, or suitable cultivation techniques. What will you cultivate on your own? Li Wuxiang won't be teaching you the Great Calamity Sword Scripture anymore."

"Master, those are all demons over there!"

“Yes. But if you go to the Eastern Continent, I can teach you another supernatural power. It’s hard to say in other places, but it’s not difficult to learn here. After you learn this supernatural power, I will give you a breath, so you won’t have anything to fear when you get to the Eastern Continent. I want you to go there and investigate the matter of the True Lord of Wei River, and see what kind of lineage the Ninth Prince still has there.”

Xue Baoping was intrigued. Her master had only passed on one supernatural power: the ability to resurrect the dead. This power was real; even Mei Qiulu found it incredible. Now, the promise of a second power was bound to be equally astonishing. He was right; cultivating it alone would be very difficult, but—

How do I get there?

"Let me teach you a spell first. Once you've recited it, you'll understand. Now shout outwards—'E Meifeng'."

Xue Baoping was startled, then realized what was happening. She immediately stood up and walked outside the cave, calling out towards the forest bathed in the silvery light of the full moon: "Xiao E? Xiao E?"

After calling out a few times, the woods rustled, and a little girl peeked out from behind a tree, eyeing her warily.

Xue Baoping laughed immediately: "You've been following me all this way? Why didn't you look for me? Come here."

The crocodile demon didn't come over; instead, it shrank back, as if it was frightened by something but didn't want to leave.

"Xiao E, what's wrong? Why are you afraid of me?"

The crocodile demon stared at her for a while longer: "Hey, you, hey, you don't want to skin me alive, do you? Are you out of your mind?"

"Huh?" Xue Baoping frowned. "Li Wuxiang wants to skin you alive?"

"Yes! Sigh! He said he would skin me alive if he couldn't find you! I couldn't find you on the mountain, and I was afraid he would skin me alive, so I rushed here to find you. Sigh! It was so scary! I almost died!"

Xue Baoping sighed and beckoned to her: "Come here, I'm not crazy, and I won't skin you alive—I'll take you to a fun place where there are no people, only demons, so it's still your home."

(End of this chapter)