Netherworld Painted Skin Scroll

Chapter 411 Forming a Small Group
Li Wuxiang immediately explored the cave to take stock of the remaining supplies of the old Taoist priest and his group.

The old man lied when they came in; what he showed them wasn't the whole cave. There were smaller caves and secret passages in some places, but they were concealed by illusions or stone mechanisms.

Li Wuxiang pulled out their hidden stash from these places—about fifty catties of dried meat. About ten catties of it was dried fish, and the other forty catties were of unknown origin, but it was definitely not fish.

That would definitely be doxxing.

He packed all the dried meat into a rag in the hall and picked up four swords to carry on his back—which perfectly suited his image as a poor, Golden Core cultivator.

Having done all that, I already have a plan in mind.

Growing up in a parish where people are practically stuffed into coffins, and still managing to repeatedly feel sympathy for wandering monks outside the church—regardless of whether he's genuinely good or just insincerely kind, he's definitely a good person. This goodness has already been proven in extreme circumstances—he just barely escaped death from the old Taoist priest, and now he's showing kindness to Sun Ji. Even if it's lust at first sight, he still has a good core, it's just a bit baffling.

Lou He just mentioned that Zhou Xiang's dispatch to the diocese might involve internal strife within the diocese. Li Wuxiang immediately conjured up a whole bunch of palace intrigue scenarios in his mind. He even thought it wouldn't be surprising if people from the Five Mountains True Form Sect suddenly appeared to assassinate him and then shifted the blame to independent cultivators or people from the Taiyi Sect. Zhou Xiang's identity could be considered that of a "surviving descendant of the late emperor." If he were to send him out to those people, he would definitely make sure there would be no future troubles.

So this huge shipment has now fallen into the hands of an outsider like myself.

First, we need to figure out what the rest of this person is really like. Lou He only said he was a good person; that's not enough. Is he the kind of person who's easily influenced, or is he simply inexperienced in worldly affairs? Does he harbor resentment towards the parish and pity for ordinary people, or is he just indignant that he hasn't been able to seize power within the church?
Only after figuring these things out can we begin to discipline them. Should they respond better with gentleness or force? Can they be bought off with benefits or moved by genuine affection? These are all technical skills.

As he was thinking, he picked up his bundle and walked out of the cave. He heard Zhou Xiang say, "...That's all easy to arrange. When we come across a good place on the road, you two can stay there first. I'll give you some protective items then, and we'll come back to find you after we've finished our business."

Oh, so you've already decided to take people on the road?
Sun Ji had already jumped onto the stone platform and stood with her apprentice, both looking pitiful and full of gratitude, shedding tears together. Seeing them like this, Zhou Xiang seemed extremely pleased, and smiled even more gently: "Junior sister, there's no need for this. When traveling the martial world, it's only right to eliminate evil, promote good, and help each other."

"Senior, I've found something to eat." Li Wuxiang walked over, put the bundle on the ground, and untied a corner. "There's about five or six pounds of meat in it."

Zhou Xiang glanced at it and was about to nod when Sun Ji raised his hand to cover his mouth, his eyes widening as he stared at the dried red meat: "This...this is..."

She turned to look at Zhou Xiang: "This is human flesh!"

Li Wuxiang laughed inwardly, "You're quite the actor. You must have eaten your fill before!"
Zhou Xiang frowned and looked at Li Wuxiang: "Don't take these. Those are fish and meat, right? Take those with you—Li Xiao, you should learn more from Junior Sister Sun; you should be able to tell that these are human flesh."

Oh, now you call me Junior Sister, not Fellow Daoist. I just saved your life, and now you expect me to learn from "Junior Sister Sun," haha. But Li Wuxiang wasn't angry; on the contrary, he was quite pleased. Zhou Xiang looked to be in her thirties, but her actual age was definitely older. However, looking at her now, she seemed more like a teenager, unable to resist putting on airs when she saw the woman she liked.

Upon hearing this, Sun Ji quickly replied, "No, no, Fellow Daoist Li and Senior Brother just killed the evil spirits together, so you naturally know that human flesh cannot be eaten. However, Fellow Daoist Li is also a man, and men are sometimes not very careful in their actions, so it's not his fault. From now on, we, master and disciple, will take better care of you along the way."

Sisters, you're getting serious now, starting to put people down, aren't you? Fine, then you help me get more information out of Zhou Xiang first—as soon as this thought popped into Li Wuxiang's head, he knew how to use this master and disciple duo.

He immediately said, "Oh dear, how could I not have thought of that? What else is there to eat now?" He went over and picked up the human flesh, threw it all under the stone platform, and then wrapped up the remaining fish meat again.

Zhou Xiang nodded: "Then let's set off tonight and get away from this place of trouble."

Sun Ji said, "Senior brother, please wait a moment while we go back and pack our things."

The two returned to the South Cave and packed quickly, taking only two bundles with them. Zhou Xiang, Li Wuxiang, and Kong Youxin waited below. When the two came out again, they saw Sun Ji holding a set of clothes: "Senior Brother Zhou, these are clothes my master used to wear. Please don't mind them... I'll help you change."

Zhou Xiang's clothes were tattered, but they were kept relatively neat, probably because she had something hidden in her chest. Hearing her words, he smiled and said, "I can do it myself."

He took the clothes and walked a distance to the bushes to change, while the remaining four people stood there waiting for him.

Li Wuxiang and Sun Ji started their performances at the same time.

"Fellow Daoist Sun, may I have a word with you in private?" Li Wuxiang said.

Sun Ji said, "Okay."

After the two had walked four or five steps, Li Wuxiang stared at her with an unfriendly look and said, "I was here first."

Sun Ji looked blankly at him, then exclaimed in surprise, "Huh?"

"The senior said he wanted to establish a sect, and I was here first, so I'll be the senior brother from now on. See Kong Youxin over there? She's the senior sister. Don't even think about climbing over my head."

Sun Ji breathed a sigh of relief. She had thought Li Xiao was also a colleague, but now she realized that not only was he not a colleague, but he was far less skilled.

She had been pondering how to find out the origins of these three people—the one who called himself Zhou Xiang had an extraordinary air about him, and looked very strange, like a hermit cultivator from the mountains, but something seemed off. She had initially suspected that Li Xiao was with him, but upon hearing this, she immediately realized they weren't from the same background.

"I'm not...the two of us, master and disciple..."

Li Wuxiang waved his hand impatiently and said, "Don't try that on me. Do you still want to be my master's wife? Let me tell you, Senior Zhou came from an overseas immortal mountain and has seen many beautiful women. Didn't you see my Senior Sister Kong? She's like a fairy. How can you compare to her?"

Immortal mountains overseas!? Sun Ji's heart skipped a beat. He came from overseas? Not from the mountains? Oh, quite a few reclusive families do occupy islands near the coast...

Li Wuxiang raised his hand and pointed in the direction of Dongdan City: "I ran into Senior Zhou as soon as he landed over there. I've been serving him for a day or two. How can you say I didn't take good care of him? If you keep undermining me like this, just you wait and see!"

Sun Ji's heart skipped a beat again. Before settling in Nandong, she was practically a local—Dao Shiye and his group came from the north, but she had always been active around Dongdan City and knew that if it was in the direction Li Xiao pointed out, there was only one large island nearby. But that island was inhabited, belonged to Dongdan, and the former city lord lived on the island.

If it didn't come from that big island... then it came from the Eastern Continent?
But Zhou Xiang didn't have any demonic aura. If she were a powerful demon, she should have exuded demonic energy during the battle in the Northern Cave. If she didn't come from the Eastern Continent, where did she come from?

An unbelievable guess popped into her mind. "No, no, I'm just grateful for your rescue and wanted to do more. I didn't think things through before and said the wrong thing, please don't take it to heart, fellow Daoist."

Li Wuxiang glanced at him sideways and snorted coldly: "Do more work? What can you do? Senior Zhou said that the place he came from is a place of luxury, where everyone looks as beautiful as a celestial being. The Central Continent has all sorts of strange and wonderful things. What could he possibly want from you? Let me tell you, do whatever you want, just don't mess with me."

When Li Wuxiang said these words, Zhou Xiang had already changed her clothes and came out.

Looking at him in his clean Taoist robe, and thinking about what Li Wuxiang had just said, Sun Ji felt that the unbelievable thought in his mind was becoming more and more real.

Li Xiao seemed like a naive and impulsive fool, while Zhou Xiang appeared simple-minded and naive. And then there were Li Xiao's descriptions of "overseas," "luxury food and clothing," and "everyone being as beautiful as celestial beings"...

This person comes from the Xuan Sect. He's probably an untrained disciple from one of the sect's major families!
Sun Ji felt a tightness in his chest, and his heart began to pound.

The five of them set off and walked until dawn. Li Wuxiang observed Sun Ji's behavior, expression, and words with a cold eye, noticing subtle changes in her demeanor.

She had been pretending to be pitiful, but along the way she began to intentionally adjust her persona, leaning towards being "unconventional," "frank and generous," and "able to love and hate intensely." She would laugh whenever she spoke to Zhou Xiang. For the first few hours, she pretended to be secretly watching him and laughing, but as she became more familiar with him, she openly looked at him and laughed, making no attempt to hide her "admiration and affection" for him.

Li Wuxiang knew that based on his previous words, she had roughly guessed Zhou Xiang's background—a member of the Xuanjiao sect, not very worldly-wise. Men and women in the sect were not allowed to marry freely and had never experienced the feeling of free love. Therefore, her behavior had a unique and fatal attraction.

In this respect, she naturally had an advantage over Daoshiye, and was also much bolder.

Zhou Xiang, that good-for-nothing, actually fell for this act. At first, the five of them walked together, but then he and Sun Ji started walking ahead, whispering to each other as they went. At first, Sun Ji covered his mouth and laughed, then he burst into laughter, and later he even playfully punched Zhou Xiang while laughing.

Seeing that Sunji was on the right track, Li Wuxiang went to check on Feng Yuxing.

Feng Yuxing remained mostly silent throughout the journey, projecting an image of a quiet, honest, timid, and cowardly person. But how could someone who could occupy the South Cave alongside Sun Ji be an easy target? It was probably just that she couldn't act without her master's permission.

Sun Ji is investigating Zhou Xiang's situation. However, Li Wuxiang knows that Zhou Xiang is naive, not stupid. He might reveal some details, but he certainly won't divulge much more.

This requires a comparison, starting with Kong Youxin. Li Wuxiang decided to also try to sow discord among them.

At this point, the five of them arrived at the foot of a cliff. They could either take a detour over the mountain or climb over the cliff. The cliff wasn't particularly steep, only slightly difficult for Kong Youxin, who was at the Foundation Establishment stage, so the five of them decided to take the shortcut.

Zhou Xiang and Sun Ji climbed up on top, all lovey-dovey, while Li Wuxiang and Feng Yuxing were in the middle, and Kong Youxin was at the very back. Taking this opportunity, Li Wuxiang leaned close to Feng Yuxing and said fiercely, "Go tell your master not to be so shameless. Tell her to stay away from her seniors. Using your looks to please others will not end well."

Feng Yuxing was startled and asked timidly, "Ah? What happened to my master?"

"Stop pretending. Judging from your master's appearance, you're probably no better. Let me tell you, your master has no chance. See that Junior Sister Kong down there? She came with Senior Zhou. She's his disciple, younger and prettier than your master. If Senior Zhou were someone who would be obsessed with women, he would have been obsessed with her long ago!"

"Don't talk like that, I'm so scared..." Feng Yuxing said timidly, "My master is just like that, she gets along with everyone, senior brother, you're overthinking it?"

"Pah!" Li Wuxiang spat indignantly.

Feng Yuxing looked at him and whispered, "Weren't you with them, senior brother?"

"So what if I didn't? I arrived first. I was here a day or two earlier than you. Senior Zhou is going to establish his own sect, so I am the senior brother."

"So... did Senior Zhou tell you that Junior Sister Kong is her disciple?"

Li Wuxiang smiled smugly: "Of course, Senior Zhou told me not long after we met. He trusts me the most."

"Oh." Feng Yuxing nodded, climbed a few more steps, and suddenly smiled at Li Wuxiang, "So you're the only outsider here."

Li Wuxiang was taken aback: "Huh? What do you mean?"

Feng Yuxing sneered and glanced at him contemptuously: "Senior Zhou likes my master, and Junior Sister Kong and I are good sisters. What are you, with your mere Golden Core cultivation? You dare to lecture me? Just watch, in less than three days, my master will be my master's wife, and you'll be out of here."

Li Wuxiang suddenly flew into a rage: "What did you say?! Who do you think you are? What kind of good sisters are you and Junior Sister Kong? You've never even spoken a word to each other!"

Feng Yuxing smiled, her eyes narrowing: "Not only will I talk to her, I'll also save her life!"

As soon as she said this, she looked down and, with a slight push of her foot, a fist-sized rock on the cliff was pried open and fell down.

Feng Yuxing had pinpointed Kong Youxin's position below when he pried the stone. Before Li Wuxiang could speak, there was a thud, and the stone hit Kong Youxin on the head.

Tonight, she was hit once by a rock that Li Wuxiang knocked down, slashed once by Deng Yuan with a hand chop, and then drugged again by Li Wuxiang. Her mind was still a little fuzzy. Now, caught off guard by this attack, she only had time to scream "Ah!" before her hands and feet went limp, her body swayed, and she slid down the cliff.

Feng Yuxing exerted force with both hands, leaped downwards, grabbed Kong Youxin's hand, and exclaimed, "Fellow Daoist, hold on tight to me!"

He then looked up at Li Wuxiang and called out, "Fellow Daoist Li, be careful!"

Li Wuxiang roared in fury: "You!!"

So, the following morning, Feng Yuxing and Kong Youxin became good friends and started whispering among themselves, leaving Li Wuxiang completely isolated by the two cliques.

(End of this chapter)