Immortal Cultivation and Life-Saving Guide

Chapter 377 The storm is rising
Wei Xi turned his questioning gaze to Qin Feng, who shook his head. "I know the old emperor had a tenth princess, but I've never met her in person!"

Qin Feng spent most of his years stationed at the border with his parents, rarely even returning to Ju City; moreover, Qin's father was a military officer of moderate rank, and had little interaction with the princess raised in the deep palace.

Therefore, it is reasonable that Qin Feng did not know whether this matter was true or false.

Yun Qing pulled the portrait over, examined it carefully, and said with certainty, "This is the Tenth Princess! Although it has been several years since I last saw her, her appearance has not changed much! Moreover, there are very few people with such a face!"

"Why is there a portrait of this person out of the blue? Did Yuan Qizi borrow the power of the Tenth Princess?"

Faced with Yun Qing's straightforward question, Wei Xi was both pleased and worried: pleased that Yun Qing's mind was still quite sharp—as long as it didn't involve love and romance; worried that this person's words were as blunt as ever, and that she was probably not up to the task.

Before Wei Xi could answer, Yun Qing hesitated and said, "That shouldn't be the case. How could she influence Chongxiao City?"

"It was just a coincidence..." Wei Xi, unwilling to reveal more information, changed the subject, "This person is very generous. Money makes the world go round. No wonder he came from the palace."

“No,” Yun Qing said, supporting her belly. “The Tenth Princess’s mother comes from the Ning family of Zhongzhou, which is one of the wealthiest families in Ju Kingdom.”

"The Ning family is not a family of cultivators, but they had an extraordinary opportunity. Eight or nine generations ago, the Ning family's ancestor was a soldier in the army. While cleaning up the battlefield, he saved the emperor who was hit by a hidden arrow and was on the verge of death. From then on, he rose to prominence."

"This old ancestor was also a remarkable person. Although he was deeply trusted by the emperor, he was honest, upright, and kind-hearted."

"His Majesty is getting old, so he sent this trustworthy minister to inspect the mausoleum. When the old man arrived at the mausoleum, he met with the officials in charge of the major constructions in each area and, together with the officials from the Ministry of Works, inspected each one."

"Everything was fine a few days ago, but on the seventh night, it rained heavily, and a lot of water flooded into an unfinished burial pit."

"The old man got anxious and took people to work on repairs overnight. But the mud and water in this place were like they were alive, and no matter what they did, they couldn't get the rainwater out of the burial pit."

"In the end, the old man himself jumped down and found a mud turtle the size of a basin at the very bottom of the burial pit! This big mud turtle was trapped in place by the thousand-year-old stake driven into the ground, which made it unable to move and unable to use any of its supernatural powers."

"The old man sensed something was wrong, so he quickly rescued the mud turtle, drained the water, and reinforced the burial pit."

"Old Master Ning returned to his room covered in mud and rested haphazardly. In his dream, he saw that big mud turtle again."

"The mud turtle said it was a descendant of the ancient monster Fanshan, and liked to eat all kinds of minerals. After it was full, it would rest underground. But when it woke up again, it was nailed to the spot."

"Fan Shan?" Wei Xi was shocked—the person on the Treasure Ship of Dawn and Dusk was actually a demon beast. Fortunately, she was used to having a gloomy face and her expression was well managed, so she managed not to let Yun Qing see that Dawn had appeared.

“This thing is an ancient demon beast that rules over the earth. If I remember correctly, that’s its name,” Yun Qing said, lying on the bed after being interrupted. “Who remembers such trivial details?”

"That's really strange!" Lian Gouyan quickly said, "The descendants of ancient divine beasts are actually trapped by a few broken pillars? The Ning family has made up a terrible story!"

Yun Qing said, "That's why I say this mud turtle is unlucky! Things from royal mausoleums carry karma; how can it break free?"

"In short, this giant mud turtle made a pact with the Ning family ancestor to repay a debt of gratitude: every ten years it would enter the dream of the Ning family head and tell him the location of the mine, for a period of one thousand years."

"It was thanks to this opportunity that the Ning family became a prominent family in the State of Ju after only two generations," Yun Qing said with genuine envy. "They were truly lucky!"

Now Wei Xi understood: no wonder she spent spirit stones without batting an eye, it turned out that the Tenth Princess's family really was rich. This thought vanished in an instant, but what truly choked Wei Xi was Fan Shan—he was actually a demon beast!
But Wei Xi really didn't want to believe that a monster could be so human-like, and what about his "promise"? Who could make an ancient monster make a promise and still keep it a thousand years later?
"It might just be a coincidence of names," Wei Xi thought. "The Yun family should have a lot of information about monsters. When Yun Qing returns home, we might be able to get some materials to investigate."

"If the Tenth Princess is here, can I return to Ju City with her?"

Hearing this, Wei Xi sneered inwardly, but remained outwardly calm. He said in a deep voice, "The Tenth Princess has concealed her identity and traveled thousands of miles to a harsh place like Chongxiao City. She must have important business to attend to and cannot attend to you for the time being."

"Furthermore, if I were her, and I ran into you in Jucheng, I would either inform the Yun family to gain favor, or hand you over to the Yun family's political enemies."

Wei Xi feigned concern, saying, "By the way, do you have a kill order? You can exchange for one!"

It must be said that Wei Xi is indeed exceptionally talented in intimidating people. With just a few words, he dispelled Yun Qing's idea. The latter turned pale and claimed that she was tired, so she lay down to rest.

The only bed in the room was given to Yun Qing, while Wei Xi and the other two slept on the floor.

"Should we head straight to Bone Reef Sea tomorrow?" Qin Feng whispered. "Are we really just going to find a security escort agency to send her back?"

Wei Xi lay on the floor writing a letter, a halo of light hovering above his forehead. "No rush at Bone Reef Sea, the escort agency is a certainty."

Lian Gouyan, who was warming himself by the fire, laughed and said, "If you ask me, Qin Feng is still soft-hearted. He just scolded someone, but he still has endless worries behind their back!"

Qin Feng grabbed Lingyin and threw her at Lian Gouhan, who didn't even dodge, just grinning foolishly.

“We must not have any public relations with Yun Qing,” Wei Xi said without looking up, reaching out to catch Ling Yin as she fluttered back. “The escort agency is discreet enough that the possibility of something going wrong is extremely small.”

"Don't worry," Wei Xi said, blowing away the ink on the letter. "Don't underestimate Yun Qing. If she can't get back even with the protection of bodyguards, then there's no need for cooperation."

"Sigh," Qin Feng sighed, stroking his sword, "How did things come to this? Right, if we don't go directly to Bone Reef Sea, where should we go?"

Wei Xi, who had begun writing his second letter, replied: "The Devouring Sea Sect!"

The 23rd day of the seventh month of the fifteenth year of Tianyou arrived quietly, and those who were busy with it did not find it strange.

On this day, Princess Yan, the wife of Prince Wuyang in Jucheng, gave birth to a son, and Concubine Jiao was diagnosed as pregnant.
On this day, a group of strange men wearing hoods came to the Bone Reef Sea and settled in a nearby fishing village;
On this day, in the mass grave outside Bingzhou City, a wild dog was gnawing on a rotting corpse. Soon after, it staggered and fell down, its howl drowned out by the belated downpour.

On this day, at the gate of Chongxiao City, Yun Qing, who was sitting in a carriage waiting to leave the city, opened a letter and her eyes widened.

On this day, inside a defensive line in Chongxiao City, Princess Yu Ji of Ju Kingdom was inspecting a troop, her ambition burning brightly in her eyes.
On this day, Wei Xi rode on the Ice Plains Horse sponsored by the wealthy woman, released a paper crane, and spurred his horse towards the Eastern Barbarians.

July 23rd of the fifteenth year of Tianyou was an ordinary day.

"Your Majesty" is the term used by the people of Ju in this article to refer to a deceased emperor; it refers to a group of people.

A "kill order" is a bounty offered.

Prince Wuyang had one principal wife (née Yan) and two secondary wives (née Jiao and Yan Qingluo).