Immortal Cultivation and Life-Saving Guide

"Senior is fortunate," Wei Xi said, his eyelashes lowered, his words carrying a hint of flattery. "The Merfolk are a great clan in the sea, and their ancestors must have been extraordinary!"

"Of course!" The old crab was proud to hear such praise. "Mermaids are the darlings of the sea! Naturally they prosper!"

Wei Xi's gaze slid from its plump claws to the part that was attached to its shell, and after a moment a faint smile appeared on his face.

As they spoke, the three people and the crab reached the foot of the opposite rock wall. The old crab used its claws to pry at the seemingly hard rock wall, and large and small pieces of stone peeled off, revealing a piece of petrified coral.

Wei Xi could see clearly that these corals were distributed extremely densely, and did not look like they had grown naturally at all.

If Wei Xichang were in the coastal area, he would realize that these corals, in terms of their appearance alone, were dead beyond dead.

Unfortunately, not only did Wei Xi lack the relevant knowledge, but even Coral was extremely uncooperative, suddenly popping out dozens of eyes and blinking incessantly at Wei Xi.

Wei Xi's fake smile turned into a real smile, the curve of which was much wider, and he also winked at them.

The eye-catching coral that only scare fish: Upside-down Heavenly Gang!

Wei Xi wasn't intimidated by this thing at all; in fact, he was eager to try and study it.

Unfortunately, since they were on the merfolk's territory, Wei Xi couldn't do whatever he wanted. The oblivious Coral escaped this ordeal and reluctantly pieced together an archway.

"These little fish are quite bold!" The old crab, who had taken in all three of their reactions, chuckled. "I was terrified when I first saw one of these things!"

Startled, Lian Gou asked, "Old man, what is that thing with eyeballs? It was quite frightening to do that so suddenly!"

"This thing is called the Eye-Stealing Coral. It's been kept here as a guard. Look, that little merman, Slug Xun, is inside. He just came back from the front lines, and we gave him a special room to recuperate."

Guards? Wei Xi sensed something was wrong—why were they suddenly enclosed by slugs?
At this moment, Wei Xi felt a strange, inexplicable feeling rising in his heart, as if he had stumbled into some kind of trouble.

The best way to avoid unnecessary complications is to remain inactive.

"On the surface, I'm just here to visit a fellow Daoist," Wei Xi thought to himself. "If I don't say anything, who will know I'm here to inquire about news from the Bone Reef Sea? At most, it's just bad timing, no big deal!"

Thinking this to himself, Wei Xi said aloud, "Since you're here, senior, why not go in and check on the slug season?"

"The three of us don't know anything about medicine, so it would be good if you could give us some pointers. That way, we can feel at ease!"

After a slight hesitation, the old crab actually agreed and went through the archway first.

Wei Xi and the other two naturally followed behind the old crab, while the dazzling coral slowly closed behind them.

Upon entering, Wei Xi immediately noticed that the place was not as well-lit as outside, and had a dark and gloomy atmosphere. Even the flow of the seawater had slowed down significantly.

It was clearly not as good as the public wards outside, where the sun shone brightly and the seawater was clear. It didn't feel like a private room for the wounded; it was more like an underwater cage where fish were imprisoned.

Finally, the old crab slightly turned to the side, allowing the large seashell carrying it to smoothly enter a room on the right.

After several years, the slug's appearance remained unchanged, but perhaps due to injury, its once vibrant fins and scales had faded somewhat, and the whole fish looked listless.

The commotion at the entrance caught the attention of the slug. Unexpectedly, the slug's eyes widened in surprise at the presence of a non-sea creature.

“Gu Xun, who are these people…”

Before the old crab could finish speaking, the slug, who was recuperating in bed (actually inside the shell), said, "This should be Qin Feng and Wei Xi from the Qingcheng Sect, and..."

"Lian Gou Lang!" the person who had surrendered so readily exclaimed immediately, "I'm from the same sect as them!"

Ku Xun gave an awkward smile—he would never forget Qin Feng, who was as beautiful as a fairy and had an extraordinary demeanor, after just one meeting; he could also recall Wei Xi, who was ruthless and had received the people of the Devouring Sea Sect; but he really had no impression of Lian Gouhan.

"These gentlemen came especially to see you," the old crab said, extending its pincers to take the slug's pulse, but its words didn't stop, "...Not bad, you've recovered quite well!" "What brings two or three of you to the Devouring Sea Sect?" After seeing the old crab off, the slug picked up a medicine bottle placed to the side, "Heaven knows what they put in those sea urchins."

"sea urchin?"

While Gu Xun was still trying to mentally prepare himself, the pills had already been poured out. "Are the people outside alright while they're making the medicine in the back?"

"Nothing has changed," Qin Feng said, "We wanted to travel around Dongyi, and after looking around, we still think Bone Reef Sea is the most suitable!"

The cricket stopped holding the pill, seemingly trying to discern whether Qin Feng was speaking human language.

A moment later, the slug plugged the bottle and said casually, "Bone Reef Sea? I wish you success!"

If it weren't for the fact that this kid, Ku Xun, doesn't usually speak like a human being, Wei Xi would have thought he was being sarcastic or unsettling.

Qin Feng said seriously, "Cultivating immortality is about fighting against fate; taking some risks is nothing."

“One should always act within one’s means,” Crawling said somewhat roughly as he stuffed the pill into his mouth, his previously drooping fins lifting slightly. “In that case, fellow Daoist, you must not be here to visit a friend.”

Wei Xi frowned slightly: In her memory, Ku Xun was always very polite, so why was he so tough today?

“We’d like to ask you for more detailed information about the Bone Reef Sea,” Qin Feng said in a low voice. “This is actually a positive development; if we go in…”

Before Qin Feng could finish speaking, the cricket interrupted him, raising its voice: "The coral at the door can't hear you!"

This sentence confused the straightforward Qin Feng. Wei Xi understood and replied, "Since we're already here, it's feasible for us to study at the Devouring Sea Sect for ten days or half a month."

Then Wei Xi began to inquire about their well-being, asking many questions about sea monsters, customs, and spiritual plants.

Surprisingly, Ku Xun patiently answered all the questions, and even engaged in a back-and-forth discussion with Wei Xi, whom he was not familiar with.

Two hours later, another young crab with a livid face rushed in, berating Wei Xi for disobeying medical advice and kicking the three of them out of the ward.

Wei Xi wasn't annoyed; he lingered for a while before reluctantly leaving.

Completely bewildered, Qin Feng followed Wei Xi back the way they came, and the merfolk they encountered were still not very friendly.

"The three young fellow cultivators have returned?" Feng Shi asked casually at the final stage of the goods handover. "It seems you all have a deep friendship!"

After exchanging a few polite words with the sweating Feng Shi, the three of them were led to a guest room by a crab-sturgeon that appeared out of nowhere.

This merman had an even more sour expression than the previous guide, seemingly very unwilling to be with Wei Xi and the others, and swam at an absurdly fast speed. Upon arriving at their destination, the merman tossed out a message: "These are three rooms; dinner is in the middle one," and then flicked its tail and left.

Qin Feng quickly checked the place before the three of them went inside.

As soon as the door closed, Wei Xi's smile vanished, replaced by a gloomy expression.

Seeing this, Qin Feng asked, "What's wrong? Is something amiss?"

Wei Xi crushed a soundproof talisman and whispered, "The slug's condition is not right; it seems to be under house arrest!"

"Household confinement?" Lian Gouyan asked incredulously, "Like that Magistrate Sun from Tangkou Town?"

"Xiao Xi, Gu Xun seems to be in good condition; he doesn't seem to be under house arrest. Besides, would a mermaid who's under house arrest even see outsiders like us?"

Wei Xi shook his head and said, "I suspect this house arrest might not be intended to harm him, but the burns on his body are very suspicious!" (End of Chapter)