Daoqi Huangcheng

Chapter 24. Recognizing Ancestors and Returning to One's Origins
In the abandoned market town, Gu Youwen sat amidst a mass of bloody light. Even from a distance, Song Chen could hear faint, eerie rustling sounds, like venomous snakes slithering. Connecting this to the words "Sewing Manor" and the previously encountered monster of minced flesh, Song Chen could vaguely imagine the scene within the bloody light, and guess that the foolish old cultivator in the yellow robe had become material for his work.
Just then, a beam of light suddenly shot out from the blood-red light, piercing through the boundary membrane of the market with a "snap," and then shot far away, landing somewhere unknown.

Song Chen could vaguely make out that the light seemed to be a ball of something, containing a spirit sword and some pills.

A sense of curiosity arose in his heart, and a thought subconsciously came to mind: Why did Gu Youwen throw the things away?
This question didn't last long.

About an hour later, he saw two figures appear outside the barrier.

One of the two figures was holding a spirit sword.

The two searched outside, but could not find the boundary membrane no matter what they did, so they had no choice but to leave. Gu Youwen did not make a move from beginning to end.

Song Chen looked thoughtful.

Suddenly, it dawned on him.

It turned out that the old monster thought the two were too weak to even detect the boundary membrane, so he was unwilling to fight them and let them leave. Then he spread the news that "there are remaining treasures in the market" to attract more cultivators.

The old cultivator in the yellow robe was one of those cultivators who had been attracted here.
But the old cultivator in the yellow robe was neither the first nor the last to be attracted.

Song Chen couldn't help but give a wry smile.

Poverty can lead to a hundred sorrows. He was really too poor on the path of cultivation, and had very few means at his disposal.

He glanced around. He had actually heard Zhong Xu and Que Tan'er talk about small spaces like the market town. Those two were very knowledgeable and said that there were actually many small spaces in the world.

The smaller ones are called secret realms, and the larger ones are called small worlds.

Before him, this secret realm was clearly a sealed space, with the only exit being the boundary membrane. However, Gu Youwen had no intention of leaving, so even if he wanted to escape, he had no chance.

Most importantly, he had no idea what Gu Youwen was planning to do, so he could only take it one step at a time.

Several days later.
The blood-red light suddenly dispersed, and a blood-red shadow darted out from it. The blood mist around the shadow dissipated slightly, revealing Gu Youwen's appearance.

"Young man, hahaha, your elders have arrived, let's go."

Song Chen stood up, bowed his head, and respectfully followed the old monster out of the market boundary and onto the cliff.

Meanwhile, outside the cliff, rain and mist were rolling and flowing, blurring everything in all directions, as if one had sunk into deep water and could not see anything clearly.

Yet, three tall, slender silhouettes were clearly visible. They were neither human nor benevolent, but their mere presence here instilled a chilling sense of dread.

The moment Song Chen appeared, the gazes of the three figures simultaneously focused on him.

Song Chen felt that gaze was heavy and cold. He suppressed his fear, braced himself, and cupped his hands, saying, "Senior."

Gu Youwen said, "Young man, there's no need to panic. Show me your innate abilities."

Song Chen raised his hand, and the raindrops stopped.

With another clenched fist, the flesh swelled.

Next, he used "illusion".

After using up all three powers, he felt that the drooping gaze was no longer heavy or cold.

He heard laughter.

The laughter was saying "Good, good, good".

Then came the sound of wings beating against the rain.

A figure descended from the sky. Song Chen looked up slightly and saw that the descending figure was a tall and slender crane with a sharp beak and blue eyes. Despite being an animal, it had a human-like expression on its face.

A strange female voice sounded in his ear: "Little one, don't be afraid. You should be a descendant of my clan who was left behind. Although it is very rare for humans and demons to have children, it is not impossible. Come on, come back with us. The place where we are is your true home."

Song Chen cupped his hands and said, "Yes, senior."

The eerie female voice chuckled and said, "Don't call me senior. My name is He Bai. It's really rare for you to inherit my clan's bloodline in human form, so I'll give you a higher seniority. You can call me Aunt Bai."

“Aunt Bai.” Song Chen was very compliant.

He Bai's body trembled slightly. In Song Chen's eyes, the tall and thin man-eating crane demon suddenly transformed into a charming young lady with red lips and white teeth, her long ink-black hair falling quietly, and her eyes smiling. Who else could this be but Qingyue, the young lady he had married?
Song Chen's gaze subconsciously changed, becoming less wary.

"Young Lady Qingyue" parted her lips slightly and spoke in a soft voice: "Aunt Bai won't scare you. I'll still talk to you in the way you like."

Song Chen felt a moment of dizziness. He subconsciously wanted to call out "Qingyue," but he held back and instead said "Beauty" with a lewd expression. Then, he came to his senses and hurriedly changed his address to "Aunt Bai!"

He Bai nodded in satisfaction, then glanced at Gu Youwen and said, "Our clan accepts this favor."

Gu Youwen laughed and said, "That's good, that's good."

In the next instant, as if the Water Dragon King were on a mission, three figures shrouded in a massive rain curtain swept Song Chen away in one direction.
Song Shen could vaguely discern the direction.

That's the north.

Halfway there, the direction changed slightly, then veered eastward.

Song Chen's expression shifted slightly. Wasn't this the direction where the haunting was supposed to be?

This is still near the capital. Deep in the mountains, in caves.
Contrary to Song Chen's expectations, this place was not a bloody, cannibalistic land, but a secluded garden with pavilions and towers.

The garden is extremely large, with many lakes and ancient trees.

There were even humans walking around in the secret realm, but judging from their appearance, they were clearly slaves.

He Bai led Song Chen into a side room, which was modeled after a human side room. There were writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones on the table, long swords and strong bows hanging on the walls, and some deer antler decorations.

Then, He Bai gently sat down in the manner of "Young Lady Qingyue," crossing her long legs, and said, "Auntie knows you may still be a little uncomfortable, but now that our clan is dwindling, it is even more rare to find someone with your bloodline, especially since you are a very rare human-demon hybrid."

Don't be afraid, this secret realm may not be large, but we've managed it for many years and collected quite a few treasures. Of course, besides treasures, there's also…”

"Little Lady Qingyue" suddenly chuckled and said, "By your human standards, they should all be considered beauties. Later, Auntie will take you shopping, pick up some treasures you can use, and then bring back two women for you to play with."

Anyway, none of the other members of my tribe can appreciate the appearance of these humans, so you can choose them all first.

One of your parents must be a powerful being from my clan who has achieved human form. Those who can achieve human form have at least passed the Qi Gathering Realm.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for it to have desires for humans beyond mere appetite, let alone mate with humans, and it would be impossible for you to inherit the power of my race's bloodline.

Song Chen said obediently, "Aunt Bai, you are so good to me."

"Young Lady Qingyue" said, "You are from my lineage, so of course I will take good care of you."

The human and the demon chatted for a while longer before temporarily parting ways.

After a while.
Two beautiful women carried a bath tub to bathe and dress Song Chen.

After bathing, He Bai kept his promise and took Song Chen to browse the library. The library smelled musty, and deep inside were wooden barrels containing tattered paintings. Outside were a collection of human cultivation techniques. Song Chen curiously went to the deeper part to look through them, but the paintings were already blurred and tattered. So he went to the outer area and immediately took a liking to the "Evergreen Ancient Tree Technique". This was a wood-type cultivation technique from the Imperial City Temple. Although it looked incomplete, its presence here was quite unexpected.

On the way back, He Bai led Song Chen to choose a concubine from among the young ladies in the garden. Song Chen had no choice but to pick one who looked clumsy. Immediately afterwards, the young lady was taken away to bathe and change.

In the evening, Song Chen stayed alone in the side room, flipping through the book "The Secret of Evergreen Ancient Trees".

This method is incomplete, and there are no records of supernatural powers within it, but the method of gathering qi is detailed.

Just as he was reading carefully, the door opened and the young woman was brought in.

Then, Song Chen was reading when a strange, somewhat attractive young woman sat quietly by the couch. Suddenly, the young woman quietly got up and pounced on the deer antler decoration beside her.

The horn pierced her throat, and the fear on her face slowly turned into relief. She trembled and uttered indistinct syllables, as if crying out, "It hurts."

This was a girl who was afraid of pain. She couldn't tell whether Song Chen was human or demon, nor did she know what awaited her. She might have wanted to die long ago, but she was afraid of it. She hoped to die quickly, so things like banging her head against a wall or biting her tongue were ruled out. And today, she finally found a deer antler not far away.

However, she still didn't die completely.

She collapsed in a pool of blood, convulsing in agony, crying out, "It hurts!"

Just then, she saw the demon who was reading stand up, draw his sword, and the sword flashed swiftly, instantly piercing her heart and shattering her heart meridian.

The pain stopped immediately.

She closed her eyes and sank into endless darkness.

Song Chen squatted down next to the unfamiliar girl. He squatted there for a long time before turning his head slightly, letting out a soft sigh, and then sitting back down at his desk to continue reading.

He found himself unable to concentrate on reading, but he kept reading, and in one night, he had grasped most of the contents of "The Secret of Evergreen Trees".

The next day
The woman's body was taken away.

But soon a new young woman arrived.

Not every young woman has the courage to commit suicide.

This one then carefully served Song Chen.

Water can produce wood.

This place not only contains water elemental energy, which the marrow-eating demon cranes love, but also wood elemental energy.

Song Chen didn't stand on ceremony. Not knowing what the future held, he began to use the "Evergreen Ancient Tree Technique" to gather the spiritual energy of wood.

After several days of this, He Bai finally reappeared. Seeing that he was practicing the "Evergreen Ancient Tree Technique," he couldn't help but laugh and say, "My clan has excellent cultivation methods, but you don't learn them. Why are you actually learning this lousy method? I thought you were just going to take a look."

Song Chen asked, "Aunt Bai, what kind of magic does my clan use?"

He Bai said, “The Yellow Springs Scripture, however, has a special rule in my clan, that is, clan members must prove their own qualifications in order to obtain the inheritance.”

Song Chen asked, "How can I prove my qualifications?"

He Bai said, "The clan leader and I are preparing. In a few days, we will open the door to the aptitude test for you. At that time, you can go in directly and take the 'Yellow Springs Scripture'."

The female crane demon chuckled and said, "Auntie has always had high hopes for you, so don't disappoint me."

(End of this chapter)