No taboos

Chapter 433 The Destiny of the Thief (Part 3)

"These divine soldiers and generals from the underworld, when they patrol the mortal realm, will take away many souls."

Ma Tianshou explained to Xu Yuan in detail: "Moreover, it is the soul of a person who is not dead!"

"For some reason, these divine soldiers and generals lost their minds as soon as they entered the mortal realm, and it was impossible to communicate with them at all."

They freely use their supernatural powers to capture souls; even before a person dies, their soul is taken away.

When they emerge from the underworld and pass through the mortal realm, they are still fully conscious, and we cultivators can communicate with them. However, once they enter the mortal realm, they lose their minds.

"Some people have tried to enter the underworld and communicate with the souls of the living when the divine soldiers and generals take them away on their way back to the underworld."

After arriving in the turbid realm, they returned to normal, and some of their souls were released. However, these souls had already been corrupted during their journey through the turbid realm, so even if they were saved, it would be meaningless.

Xu Yuan nodded. Most of the gods in the mortal world have disappeared, and the underworld officials have undergone such strange changes... There must be a great secret hidden behind this.

Zhu Zhanmei also said: "In the past, under the seat of the City God, there were day-roaming gods and night-roaming gods, who were originally there to patrol the world and capture evil spirits."

But ever since that great event, the day-roaming gods, the night-roaming gods, and even the city god have frequently made mistakes, ignoring the evil spirits everywhere and instead exterminating the souls of the living.

In several other places, the city gods even transformed into bizarre monsters, sucking away the souls of everyone in the city from mid-air!
This led the imperial court to decide to strip all the City Gods of their golden seals.

Xu Yuan then asked, "Why didn't you just dismantle all the City God Temples back then?"

Zhu Zhanmei couldn't answer this question, but Ma Tianshou did know: "It's said that the person from the Grand Canal tried to stop them."

Xu Yuan nodded.

The four returned to the Jiaozhi Southern Office, where the captains had already returned in batches.

The cleanup work at the inn is almost finished, leaving behind a group of miserable alchemists and martial artists.

Dan Xiu needs to thoroughly clean all parts of the inn using "Flame in the Abdomen".

The martial arts practitioners... were responsible for staying behind to keep watch and protect.

The reason is that martial arts practitioners have abundant energy and staying up all night is not a big problem.

Ma Tianshou waved to the three younger men: "Go and rest, and be careful about yourselves."

The old man stopped trying to persuade Xu Yuan, which in fact made his stance clear: Go all out against Bai Huahun! I support you!
The old man was truly enraged.

Bai Huahun colluded with evil spirits in the mortal realm and got involved in assassinating the head of the Exorcism Division in the mortal realm. He was truly depraved!

If everyone went to the underworld and did that, the world would be in chaos.

The old man is now even more eager than Xu Yuan to kill this bastard.

Even after returning to his study, Ma Tianshou sat behind his desk and pondered: Which fourth-rate expert could I possibly persuade to secretly assist Xu Yuan?
It needs to be reliable, after all, killing Bai Huahun can't be something that can be used against us.

Before long, the old man actually came up with a candidate.

Then, the old man considered: Bian Lü will not let this go easily. I must write a letter to the Northern Capital and find someone to put pressure on him!
The letter was written overnight and sent out at dawn.

The old man also left the government office directly to find that fourth-rate person.

……

Xu Yuan returned to his room, quickly washed up, and went to bed.

But I didn't sleep, finally having time to examine my new destiny.

After escaping from the clutches of the "Deep Void," Xu Yuan's life cultivation advanced to the sixth level.

During this period, Xu Yuan repeatedly forced the power of his destiny, which for a destiny cultivator is a kind of cultivation that constantly "surpasses the limit".

This ultimately led to the promotion.

The destiny I received this time is named:

He was ordained by Heaven.

Therefore, Heaven has five thieves; those who see them will prosper.

People know the heavens, but not the thieves; this is why the Yellow Emperor replaced the Yan Emperor.

The Yellow Emperor, seizing the opportunity of the thief's mandate, ascended to heaven in broad daylight. The Yin and Zhou dynasties, receiving the prophecy of the thief's spirit, destroyed the great with the small. Guan Zhong, obtaining the trust of the thief's time, united the feudal lords nine times. Fan Li, seizing the opportunity of the thief's urgent need for goods, became the hegemon of Nanyue. Zhang Liang, receiving the favor of the thief's merit, defeated the powerful Chu.

The word "thief" can be simply understood as "to steal".

(Note: The saying "Heaven has five thieves" has a complex meaning and has been interpreted in many ways by wise people throughout history. This is a simplified version that is the easiest to understand.)
“This is interesting…” Xu Yuan stroked his chin, revealing a playful smile.

This destiny's abilities are complex and profound, and in terms of its position and complexity, it is no less than that of "having no taboos".

Moreover, the timing of its appearance is very subtle.

Bai Huahun was able to devour the fates of other cultivators, and he had his sights set on himself.

Unfortunately, she herself had her eye on him.

However, Xu Yuan did not know how to "peel and devour" the other party's fate. Originally, Xu Yuan's plan was to capture Bai Huahun and then glean the secret of "peeling and devouring" from his methods.

If you can imitate nature yourself, that would be best; if not, just kill Bai Huahun.

Xu Yuan had previously felt that he had already touched the threshold of advancing to the sixth-rate life cultivator.

After killing that "black donkey" cultivator, he was promoted and a new destiny was born, and he was influenced by that cultivator's destiny in the dark.

It seems that if one kills Bai Huahun and advances to the sixth rank, one can obtain the corresponding destiny and some of Bai Huahun's abilities.

Having the ability to "peel and devour" is like having an extra "protective charm".

Xu Yuan would certainly not be like Bai Huahun, actively hunting other life cultivators, but if he encountered someone like Bai Huahun again, Xu Yuan would not be polite.

Unexpectedly, his early promotion to the sixth rank resulted in receiving this very "divine mandate"!
You can "steal" the fate of Bai Huahun!

However, as Xu Yuan further sensed this destiny, he discovered that it was not difficult to "steal" the destiny of a cultivator whose level was lower than his own, but it was extremely difficult to obtain one whose level was the same or even higher than his own.

However, this destiny is not as simple as just stealing other people's destiny.

Xu Yuan then began to devise a new plan in his mind.

……

Everyone who was originally staying at the inn was moved to the government office for a temporary rest.

One of the inspectors in charge of settling these people suddenly spotted a blond-haired, blue-eyed foreigner in the crowd!

"You, you, you..." The inspector pointed at the guy, pushed through the crowd, rushed in front of him, and grabbed him: "How did you, you ghost, sneak in here!"

Asmru seemed somewhat absent-minded, having been following the group in a daze.

Suddenly being pulled out, he exclaimed "Ah!" and looked at the other person blankly. After a moment of reaction, he stammered, "I...I...I'm Xu Yuan's man."

"Nonsense!" the inspector roared. "Come on, lock him up in jail!"

Two captains rushed up from behind, about to seize Asmru, when the demon hurriedly looked around: "My lord! My lord! Where are you?"

Lang Xiaoba came out and muttered, "Shut up!"

What are you yelling about? If others hear you, they might think I'm your "lover".

"He really did turn to my family."

"This ghost...has sided with Lord Xu?" The inspector looked incredulous. "What does Lord Xu want him for?"

There is no doubt that the Ming people had a strong sense of pride when facing the Western Barbarians.

Except for people like Gao Wanli.

Therefore, the inspector felt that even if Lord Xu kept a dog, it would be more useful than keeping a Westerner.

At least dogs are loyal.

Lang Xiaoba still harbored resentment towards Asmru for his flirtatious "Lang" earlier, so he whispered in the inspector's ear, "Of course the lord has his reasons. We don't understand because we are shallow."

But this guy, now, is truly an adult's servant in life and in death.

The inspector was hesitant: "Is he reliable? Can we let him into the office?"

"Come to my room, I'll keep an eye on him."

"Okay, I'll leave it to you."

Lang Xiaoba believed that since the master dared to accept Asmru, he must have a way to control him.

The two were assigned to a small room—in fact, because rooms were scarce, there were two other captains in the room.

Lang Xiaoba noticed that Asmru seemed distracted: "What's wrong with you?"

Asmru exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? No, it's nothing, I'm fine."

Then Asmru climbed into bed and pulled the blanket over his head.

"My God..." Asmru cried out in his heart, "No one can understand how I feel right now!"

At the inn, Asmru lived next door to Lord Xu.

When evil spirits from the turbid world infiltrated the inn, Asmuru nearly fell into corruption.

Countless eyes flooded into Lord Xu's room, which was far too small to contain them all.

This caused several cracks to appear in the wall between the two rooms, and a slippery eyeball squeezed through the cracks and fell into his room.

When that eyeball appeared in front of him, he felt he was losing control...

Fortunately, Daifuku appeared, grabbed the eyeball, struggled with it for a long time, and finally swallowed it.

This also saved Asmru.

Then, Asmru, through a crack in the wall, saw the Hōjōma—and further saw some of the things happening inside.

But what truly terrified Asmur was that thing in the Deep Void.

Asmru had a sense of familiarity with that thing.

When he unexpectedly took the job, he also "faced" his professional god. The feeling then was extremely similar to seeing that thing in the deep void now!
Asmru suspected that the thing in the Deep Void was a professional god!
But why does the God of Profession eat people?!
In all the propaganda about professionals in the Western Regions, the god of professions is portrayed in a very positive light.

Even though "taking the job" is extremely dangerous, with a high probability of falling into monsters on the spot, everyone understands that in this mysterious world, one must undergo such a test to gain power.

But everything Asmru saw tonight completely overturned his understanding!

The God of Professions... may not be as wonderful as Xifan proclaims.

And Lord Xu was actually able to fight against that being who seemed to be a god of professions!

And he escaped alive from his clutches!

"My God..." Asmru exclaimed inwardly, curling up in a ball under the covers.

He became even more convinced that his decision to stay by Xu Yuan's side was the right one.

……

Before I knew it, it was dawn.

Today's ban...

Xu Yuan suddenly realized that he didn't need to check the almanac today, at least there wouldn't be any taboos in the city today.

Meanwhile, in the courtyard not far away, Bai Huahun and the others had just cleansed themselves of their taint.

Especially those fifth-rate people like He Jingchuan.

They followed Bai Huahun and stood guard outside the inn, their task being to block Ma Tianshou.

Therefore, when the Thousand-Eyed Evil Spirit entered the mortal realm and brought about a strong contamination, He Jingchuan and the others could not, like the others in the inn, guard their original intentions and cleanse themselves of the contamination on the spot.

They had to devote most of their attention to guarding against Ma Tianshou.

Bai Huahun retreated, and they followed suit.

The infection they have been infected with has reached a critical point of transformation.

If it weren't for being a fifth-rate company, it would have collapsed long ago.

"Leave the city immediately!" Bai Huahun gave the order without further explanation, his face grim. Last night... everything went wrong!
Moreover, it violated a taboo.

Colluding with evil spirits in the mortal realm is something that everyone in the demon-slaying army condemns.

If we can extract and consume Xu Yuan's destiny, then everything will be worthwhile.

Now, Bai Huahun dares not linger in Luocheng.

The demon-slaying army immediately set off, exiting the city through the west gate and speeding for twenty miles—but Bai Huahun suddenly raised his hand and clenched it into a fist.

The group immediately reined in their horses and stopped.

He Jingchuan stepped forward: "What's wrong?"

……

Asmru has recovered from last night's "fright".

I woke up in the morning and enjoyed breakfast with Lang Xiaoba, a member of the Huangming family.

In fact, the entire Indian delegation had their appetites fully satisfied since entering the territory of the Ming Dynasty.

The food of the Anelians was something that even dogs wouldn't eat, even in the Western Regions.

Asmru suspects he has gained at least 20 pounds recently.

He ate four steamed buns in one go and was about to finish the fifth when he suddenly saw Lang Xiaoba stand up across from him: "My lord."

Asmru knew that Xu Yuan had arrived, but since he was not a member of the Ming Dynasty, he was not so sensitive to the hierarchy of the Ming Dynasty. He still grabbed the fifth bun, took a bite, and then turned around and mumbled "Your Excellency".

Xu Yuan subconsciously took a step back.

Asmru spoke while chewing, with food scraps and saliva spraying out.

How utterly vulgar! Lord Xu thought to himself.

"Eat your food," Xu Yuan ordered, then beckoned to Asmru, "Come out with me."

Asmru took two more meat buns in his hands before following Lord Xu out.

“I need your abilities,” Xu Yuan said bluntly. “I have an enemy named Bai Huahun, and he is somewhat similar to me. Try to see how badly you can make him suffer.”

Asmru nodded as he ate.

Xu Yuan frowned.

Asmru quickly stuffed two half-meat buns into his mouth. His mouth was indeed very big, and his cheeks were stretched out round and chubby, making him look extremely comical.

Asmru quickly took out paper and pen, held them up in front of him to show the adults that he would start immediately.

Lord Xu found him a room and stood behind him, watching him.

Asmru once told Richard: "There are times when writers can't write."

He was even held to the head by a musket by a publisher, but he still couldn't submit his manuscript.

He has even told many people that he has many creative quirks, such as he absolutely cannot write if someone is standing behind him and watching him.

But this time, Asmuruwen's thoughts flowed like a spring!

There is someone who can escape the clutches of the "God of Profession" and supervise your writing—this is no joke.

When the musket was pointed at his forehead, Asmru knew that the other side wouldn't actually fire.

But if Lord Xu is not satisfied, I will truly feel like I am living a life worse than death.

Asmru wrote it down quickly:

This is a fateful showdown.
This is a bond of souls.
This is a cycle of reincarnation for each other.
This is a lament for our times.

The intertwining of past and future, two souls destined to be entangled...

Asmru suddenly frowned. Why did things feel off after the first sentence?
I must have written too many love stories; I can't use this writing style anymore.

He crossed out everything except the first sentence.

Then I reorganized my thoughts and continued writing:
Unwilling to accept defeat, Bai Huahun decided to take a desperate gamble and achieve victory through unconventional means! When everyone thought he would temporarily avoid confrontation, he chose to do the opposite, setting up an ambush on Lord Xu Yuan's way back to Champa...

Asmru wrote faster and faster, and the plot flowed smoothly from his pen.

Xu Yuan told Asmru that Bai Huahun was somewhat similar to himself.

Asmru is also worried that his skills will be suppressed again and he will be "unable to write".

However, it is clear that this "White Painting Soul" is still somewhat inferior to Lord Xu Yuan.

……

Bai Huahun hesitated.

Originally, he wanted to avoid the limelight for the time being and return to the demon-slaying army first.

He knew that Ma Tianshou was of a fierce nature and would not let the matter of last night go unpunished.

But they just slunk away like that...

For a dignified sixth-rate cultivator to be defeated by a seventh-rate one would severely damage his reputation.

It might even cause Lord Bianlu to lose confidence in himself.

Bai Huahun's will changed: "Change into civilian clothes and go to Champa!"

He Jingchuan: "Huh? This..."

Bai Huahun: "Do as I say!"

"Yes!"

They found a secluded spot by the roadside, took off their official robes, and changed into civilian clothes.

Bai Huahun also changed his clothes, thinking to himself: This time, I will not rely on external forces, but have a fair and square duel between cultivators!

Besides "Heaven's bounty" and "Auspicious stars shining brightly," he also has three other destiny traits:
"No emotional distress".

The more ruthless a person is, the tougher their "fate" becomes!
Besides romantic love, there is also familial love, gratitude, and the sentiments of the people.

The less you care about these things, the stronger your destiny becomes, and the more help it will bring you.

Bai Huahun abandoned Fan Jie without hesitation, not at all bound by the friendship between the two—which was equivalent to a "sacrifice" to this destiny. At this moment, under the influence of this destiny, Bai Huahun should be in a state of "everything going smoothly and without any obstacles".

"Mountaintop Fire Mist".

This is also a matter of fate and destiny.

However, unlike "Lucky Star Shining in the Hall", "Mountain Fire Mist" is "Emerging". When encountering danger, one's own fortune will burn rapidly and erupt instantly to reverse the unfavorable situation.

However, there will be a period of low fortune afterward.

"Four upright principles lead to high status."

This destiny allows Bai Huahun to naturally suppress everyone around him.

This suppression includes, but is not limited to, one's own strength, intelligence, temperament, and demeanor.

Once this destiny is activated, anyone standing next to Bai Huahun will feel a sense of inferiority and be willing to submit to him.

Even if these people are actually more powerful and have a higher status than Bai Huahun.

However, this fate does not apply to fates at a higher level.

Bai Huahun dared not use this fate on Bian Lü.

Besides these five destiny types, there is also the "Sheng Sheng Man" in the guqin (a seven-stringed zither).

However, to activate this sixth destiny, one needs to rely on the power of the guqin.

Bai Huahun activated "Heaven's bounty", "Auspicious stars shining in the hall", "Unfeeling troubles" and "Four uprightnesses naturally high".

"Mountaintop Firestorm" is not suitable for use at this time.

Afterwards, Bai Huahun felt his energy and spirit greatly boosted, and the frustration brought on by the failure last night was swept away.

But this time, Bai Huahun did not let his guard down.

I felt great after using "Lucky Star Shining Brightly" last time, but it ended in complete failure...

"This may be our last chance. We must not afford to make any more mistakes!" Bai Huahun reminded himself as he led his team around Luocheng from the north and headed towards Zhancheng.

……

Asmru wrote with great speed, and it took him more than an hour to finish writing.

Xu Yuan reached out to take a look, but Asmru spread his arms to cover it: "No! No spoilers. You are a character in this story. If you see it in advance, my skills may fail, causing the plot to go in an uncontrollable direction."

Asmru added, "Please rest assured, Your Excellency, the plot I have arranged will certainly satisfy you."

He had Xu Yuan's lice on his body.

Therefore, Xu Yuan knew that what he said was true.

Xu Yuan nodded.

Moreover, just now, Xu Yuan felt his "Destiny of the Thief of Heaven" and "Eight Directions of Injury" move at the same time.

This wasn't initiated by Xu Yuan, but rather resembled a... passive response.

After mastering the six streams of destiny cultivation, one can draw out the power of one's destiny and unleash it as "destiny arts".

Moreover, if one's fate is being targeted, certain feelings will arise in the unseen world.

Xu Yuan then realized that Bai Huahun was targeting him.

After the sixth level, the power of "Eight Directions of Injury" also increased.

Xu Yuan remained calm and said, "Fine, then I won't watch it."

Then Xu Yuan came out and asked Xiang Qinghuai about the Li family's address.

After exchanging greetings, they only brought Lang Xiaoba with them. The two of them came out of the back gate of the government office, hired a carriage, and arrived at the Li family in a low-key manner.

Li Yichuan happened to be home and warmly welcomed Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan asked to borrow the "treasure chest," and Li Yichuan lent it to Xu Yuan without hesitation, as agreed.

When Lin Wanmo helped the Li family repair the "treasure chest," Li Yichuan promised Xu Yuan that he could borrow it three times.

Xu Yuan took the powerful fourth-rate craftsmanship item and returned by car with Xiao Ba.

One of his captains reported, "Sir, Inspector Xiang came looking for you just now; it seems someone wants to see you."

Xu Yuan immediately went to Qing Huai's duty room, where Fu Jingyu's fifth uncle and another middle-aged woman were waiting for him.

When Fifth Uncle saw Xu Yuan, he pretended to scold him, saying, "Little Xu, you don't treat us like family. If the commander hadn't secretly leaked the information today, we would still be in the dark!"

The middle-aged woman introduced herself: "I am Song Lu's third aunt. Xiao Xu, you are a nun whom our two families have jointly supported. Although you do not live at home, we should not be distant."

Fifth Uncle continued, "Are you afraid we can't afford to offend Bian Lü? If we can't, we still have our main family in Beidu! I don't believe that Bian Lü alone dares to stand up to so many of our families!"

After saying that, Fifth Uncle stood up aggressively: "Come on, we'll take you to see Bai Huahun..."

Xu Yuan stopped him and said with a smile, "Fifth Uncle, Third Aunt, I have my own plans for this matter. You two don't need to worry about me."

“How can I not worry?” Uncle Wu said, “Bai Huahun is a sixth-rate…”

"I'm a sixth-rate person now."

"What?!" Fifth Uncle was pleasantly surprised. So far, neither family had given Xu Yuan much support. He never expected that in less than half a year, he would rise to the sixth rank.

This speed... the future looks incredibly promising!

Fifth Uncle immediately slammed his hand on the table: "Xiao Xu, don't have any worries! Go after Bai Huahun! Our two families will back you up!"

(End of this chapter)