Old Refining Spirit

The girl's name was Xiaoman, and she was a poor girl who didn't even deserve a surname.

She carried a tattered paper lantern cautiously, trudging along the muddy and rugged mountain path, occasionally stealing glances at the man following behind her with extreme fear in her peripheral vision.

A torrential rain had just fallen last night, and the mountain roads in the desolate wilderness had long been washed into mud, where one could easily step into a puddle that was over ankle-deep. Yet the blind Taoist priest who had just swallowed a hundred-year-old demon walked leisurely behind her, as if he were strolling on a royal road with carved railings and jade steps.

What terrified Xiaoman the most was that Li Xuangeng's long Taoist robe, which was washed until it was faded and even a little old, along with his thin white cloth shoes, walked for a full half hour on the muddy mountain path without getting a single speck of mud on it!

The Taoists say, "Shrink the earth to an inch, walk on water without leaving a trace." But Xiaoman doesn't understand these things. She only knows that ordinary people can't possibly walk without getting their feet muddy. Legend has it that only wandering ghosts floating in mid-air, or mountain spirits that have sucked human blood, can walk so spotlessly.

She had barely escaped the man-eating "River God's" mouth, but now she had become this blind, sickly Taoist priest's guide. Compared to that toad covered in tumors, Xiaoman felt that the man in front of her, who always maintained a gentle smile and treated monsters like candy, was the truly indescribable terror.

"Taoist Master..." Xiaoman swallowed hard, her teeth chattering uncontrollably, her voice trembling in the night wind. "After crossing that mountain pass and passing that mass grave, we'll reach Qingping County."

"Don't be afraid, just guide your way," Li Xuangeng replied gently.

He tilted his head slightly back, as if breathing in the crisp mountain air, while his left hand slowly and methodically twirled a string of dark red prayer beads made of an unknown material. Each bead gleamed with a chilling, oily sheen in the dim light. If a highly accomplished master were present, they would immediately recognize that it was not Bodhi wood at all, but a string of bones crafted from the skull of an extremely powerful and malevolent being!

At this moment, Li Xuangeng was immersed in his newly acquired supernatural ability, the "Aura Observation Technique".

Taoist classics say: Heaven has three treasures: the sun, the moon, and the stars; Earth has three treasures: water, fire, and wind; and man has three treasures: essence, energy, and spirit. Ordinary people see the world through the superficial appearances of men and women, mountains and rivers, and plants; but Taoist practitioners who have mastered the art of observing qi see the most fundamental flow of qi in this vast world.

"The Great Dao is fifty, and the Heavenly Evolution is forty-nine. This morbid world even has a nauseating stench emanating from its spiritual energy."

Through the old white silk ribbon, which was only three fingers wide, Li Xuangeng channeled the true energy of creation within his body into his eyes and quietly activated the [Qi Observation Technique].

In an instant, the world before his eyes completely changed.

The once lush and verdant forests lost their color, turning into wisps of grayish-white earth energy. However, within this earth energy, there were countless dark red threads interwoven like blood vessels, and even the stubborn rocks by the roadside appeared to writhe slightly like rotting flesh under the vision of the Qi Observation Technique.

He turned his gaze to Xiaoman, who was walking ahead. A weak wisp of white mist floated above the girl's head, representing her mortal vitality. However, the white mist contained a few wisps of grayish-black mold caused by excessive fright, as well as a faint, pale red aftershock of escaping a near-death experience.

"So that's how it is. Seeing through all illusions and striking at the root of karmic obstacles. This [Aura Observation Technique] combined with my [Creation Furnace] is simply the best tool for selecting the finest ingredients." Li Xuangeng's lips curled slightly, and his Adam's apple bobbed gently.

Half an hour later, dawn finally broke. The morning light tore through the oppressive clouds of the night, and the outline of a county town with blue brick walls and towering walls finally came into view.

"Master! We've arrived!" Xiaoman suddenly stopped, pointed to the city gate ahead, and let out a long sigh of relief, as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "We'll be safe once we're inside! There are upright officials and constables from the Demon Suppression Bureau patrolling the city; those evil spirits from the mountains won't dare to enter!"

To ordinary people like Xiaoman, those tall and sturdy brick city walls were the last line of defense against the terrors of the wilderness. The wisps of smoke rising from the chimneys and the faint cries of vendors inside the city represented the warmth of human life and absolute safety.

"Safety?" Li Xuangeng stopped and tilted his head slightly. The white silk ribbon was pointing in the direction of Qingping County.

He didn't laugh out loud, but his slightly trembling shoulders betrayed his extreme joy, even a little manic.

To the mortal Xiaoman, it was a prosperous and peaceful haven. But in Li Xuangeng's [Qi Observation Technique], the entire Qingping County was nothing more than a giant pigsty built on a slaughterhouse!

"The secret arts of feng shui say: 'Left is the Azure Dragon, right is the White Tiger, front is the Vermilion Bird, and back is the Black Tortoise.' This place, backed by Yin Mountain and facing the Yellow River, should have been an auspicious place for gathering and retaining auspicious energy." Li Xuangeng's lips moved slightly as he murmured, as if commenting on the presentation of a dish. "Unfortunately, the Azure Dragon's broken horn has turned into a vengeful insect, the White Tiger carries a corpse with malevolent energy, the Vermilion Bird weeps blood and tears, and the Black Tortoise rots and sinks into the ditch. It has twisted this 'land of the four spirits' into a 'gathering yin and embracing evil formation' that drains the yang energy of the entire city."

In his view, there was no auspicious aura above the county town, but rather a thick, unyielding crimson aura, like a giant overturned blood cauldron, tightly burying tens of thousands of people inside.

Especially from the direction of the county government office, a jet-black, thick, and towering demonic aura shot straight into the sky! Within that aura, the mournful wails of countless wronged souls of young boys and girls could be faintly heard, accompanied by the chilling sound of flesh being chewed. The bustling crowds of the city, their bodies radiating a white aura of life, were transforming into wisps of invisible water that continuously flowed into that jet-black demonic aura.

"This is the government office of the Great Yuan Dynasty..." Li Xuangeng took a deep breath, greedily inhaling the stench in the air that ordinary people couldn't smell. His tone revealed undisguised excitement. "This county magistrate has really mastered the art of cultivating. Refining a batch of 'Great Official Fortune Pills' will definitely allow my cultivation to reach another level."

The two walked to the city gate one after the other.

On either side of the city gate were several makeshift barricades. Two yamen runners dressed in the official uniforms of the Dayuan Dynasty were leaning lazily against the wooden fence, carrying swords at their waists, and were checking and plundering the people passing by.

One of the fat constables, with a face full of scars and a waist as thick as a water bucket, was picking his teeth idly. He spotted Xiaoman, who was dressed in rags but had a fairly pretty face, and Li Xuangeng, who was following behind, dressed in shabby clothes and with his eyes blindfolded with white silk.

"Stop right there! What are you doing?!"