Chapter 36: Let me give it a try first
Uncle Qian was sitting peacefully against a boulder.
"Perhaps what I have done all these years have actually harmed Huairen."
"I hope that my death will jolt him to his senses."
"It’s good anyway. In a place like Heightened district, a cultivator would have no trouble surviving in any way."
"I’m about to die so there’s no need for me to think any further. In the future, Huairen will have to depend on himself."
Scenes began arising in Uncle Qian’s mind.
They were the most precious and unforgettable memories in his life. They were also the reason why he had stayed loyal to the Jia family.
...
It was late autumn with a heavy downpour.
A newborn puppy was trembling beside a wall as it was drenched by extremely cold raindrops. A scholar walked over with an oilskin umbrella and discovered the puppy. He immediately carried it and placed it in his arms to warm the puppy. "Hey, does no one want a little fellow like you too? I have also been chased out and have no food to eat. Little fellow, you sure are smart to burrow towards my chest."
...
The scholar lived an abject life. Having studied all his life, he failed to even become a county scholar. The yellow-furred dog was also very thin. However, they relied on each other for companionship.
...
One night, Empyrean Meteoric Ambrosia scattered across the mortal world.
A thin and frail old dog received a sliver of the Empyrean Meteoric Ambrosia, which led to the lunar essence cleansing its body, giving it sentience and making it a demon. From then on, the man and dog had their lives changed.
From then on, there was the Jia Manor.
There was the old servant Uncle Qian, and Jia Huairen.
...
"Master, I’m coming to accompany you." Uncle Qian muttered to himself. "I can’t take care of Huairen anymore but I can finally accompany you."
Amid his incoherent thoughts, Uncle Qian felt two figures appear beside him.
Qin Yun and Yi Xiao sighed when they saw Uncle Qian.
"There’s no way of saving him." Qin Yun could tell at a glance that Uncle Qian’s injuries were extremely heavy. If he were human, he would have long been dead. Even for a demon, Uncle Qian had lasted this long because of his willpower.
Uncle Qian opened his eyes with great difficulty and said hoarsely, "Young... Young Master Qin, Miss Yi. I have a request that I wish you help me."
"Elder Qian, please speak," said Qin Yun.
"After I die, I wish that to be buried me beside my master’s grave. Heightened district’s Jia Manor graveyard is easy to find. I’ll be troubling you." Uncle Qian’s voice was weak and thankfully, Qin Yun and Yi Xiao had extraordinary perception, allowing them to clearly hear what he said.
Yi Xiao said, "Rest assured."
Uncle Qian’s dog demon face revealed a smile as he felt relieved of his burden.
With his will gone, he relaxed his mind and felt his body turn ethereal. The world in front of him turned white.
Vaguely, an elderly scholar’s figure appeared in front of him, smiling.
Uncle Qian transformed into a large yellow-furred dog as it scampered over.
...
Qin Yun saw the seated Uncle Qian’s aura rapidly dissipate, and quickly, its body returned to its true form. It was a large yellow-furred dog with severe injuries with parts of his body missing.
"Only today have I witnessed how loyal demons can be," said Yi Xiao.
"Demons can be good as well." Qin Yun nodded. Having roamed the world, he had definitely seen more than one good demon. There were loyal humans; likewise, there were loyal demons. Towards the loyal, Qin Yun respected them deep down from his heart.
"I once even suspected that he would collude with Green Tooth Mountain’s demons." Yi Xiao felt a little ashamed.
"It’s hard to tell without seeing it yourself. I had only heard of stories about him in the past. This is my first time making contact with him." Qin Yun stood at the mountaintop and looked at his surroundings. "Let’s not think about this. Let’s deal with the demons first."
"Yes." Yi Xiao’s heart tightened as she looked seriously at her surroundings.
There were large numbers of demons gathered around them in the distance. There were also many demons flying high in the air. White Tiger was glaring at them hostilely at a high altitude. Qin Yun and Yi Xiao could tell at a glance that including the nearly hundred demons in Mist Lake Valley, the surrounding demons added to almost five hundred!
******
By Lanyang river’s bank, there was a large manor that was surrounded by woods. There were multiple pavilions in the compound, with tiny bridges and flowing streams of water, trees and rockery, and many beauties. It truly looked like an otherworldly paradise.
However, this was the residence of the great demon, Water God that had terrorized Grand Dominance County for two centuries, leaving even the imperial government helpless against him.
Water God appeared thin and frail. He wore a silvery-white robe and stood by a lake with his hands to the back.
He had long eyebrows and a cold stare. His cheeks were thin as his cold eyes looked into the distance. "There has not been any news from Green Tooth Mountain. The thousand-year-old Ice Jade Fruit should be ripening this month. I may not need it but I can sell it to those who want it for a high price! Grand Dominance County’s present county governor is rather old. He must definitely want the thousand-year-old Ice Jade Fruit. He will probably scheme to rob the spirit fruit but with Junior Brother White Tiger present, there won’t be any mishaps."
Although he had guessed that Grand Dominance County’s county governor would attempt to rob it from him, Water God still refused to go personally.
"If I were to go to Green Tooth Mountain, it might be a trap laid by the Daoist or Buddhist sects, or even the imperial government. A Connate Golden Core expert might suddenly appear to obliterate me." Water God sneered. "Hmph, don’t even think of luring me there no matter how great the enticement."
Over the past two centuries, Water God had indeed committed countless atrocities.
He had caused immense suffering to countless people in Grand Dominance County. Qin Yun’s family had also suffered in the past.
Neither could many cultivator experts tolerate him nor did the imperial government. They had laid traps, hoping to entice Water God deep into solid land and away from the river so as to vanquish him! However, Water God never fell for the traps. No matter how great the enticement, they failed to cause him to waver. He would escape into the river the moment he felt something amiss. He definitely had the capabilities to support his claim of being a water god. In the water, humans had no means to deal with him at all.
"After trying to ambush me so many times, the humans must have given up trying to lure me."
"With Junior Brother White Tiger there, the spirit fruit will definitely be mine. When the time comes, I’ll split some of the benefits with him, leaving the rest mine. I will then be able to exchange for more treasures." Water God had already decided who to sell the spirit fruit to.
...
At the mountaintop cliff beside Mist Lake Valley.
Qin Yun and Yi Xiao stood there. The closer they were to Mist Lake Valley, the more demons there were. Although about three hundred demons had rushed here in a short amount of time, including the nearly hundred demons originally situated in Mist Lake Valley, there were close to five hundred demons.
"Brother Qin, what do we do now? Shall we forge a path out in that direction?" Yi Xiao asked.
"There are nearly five hundred demons in the vicinity. Moreover, there will be constant swarms of demons rushing here. White Tiger is still watching us from the air." Qin Yun said, "With so many demons, there’s not much point to trying to forge a path out."
"We can join forces and risk it. Both of us have life-saving treasures. I believe we can forge a path out." Yi Xiao’s eyes were sharp and fierce. Against such a situation, the only thing they could do was risk their lives!
"Let me give it a try first. If it doesn’t work, we can try forging a path out." Qin Yun said with a voice transmission.
Yi Xiao was taken aback and was perplexed. "Brother Qin, a try?"
"Miss Yi, just focus on protecting yourself. Also, please watch this axe. Do not let the tiger demon get it." Qin Yun released the axe and tiger claw.
"Don’t worry, I have a Dharma treasure with me that can protect my surroundings." Yi Xiao said as she stepped on the axe. "The tiger demon has no chance of coming close. However, Brother Qin, what methods do you have? How can you defend against so many demons with a single sword?"
White Tiger was commanding the winds and flying high above while glaring at them. As he saw demons gathering over from various parts of Green Tooth Mountain. He was beginning to feel extremely confident.
He was in no hurry to attack. There were already nearly five hundred demons in the vicinity. If time dragged on, there would be more demons gathered. Their advantage would only grow.
"Sou!"
Qin Yun suddenly moved.
His figure darted to an empty plain a hundred feet away. There was nothing around him.
"What is this sword immortal doing?" White Tiger was taken aback. "By being beside the cliff, the demons will find it slightly troublesome to attack him. By standing in such an open area, the demons can attack him from every direction. Isn’t he just committing suicide?"
"Brother Qin, what methods do you have?" Yi Xiao was alarmed when she saw the turn of events. She immediately transmitted her voice with concern. "If you have no confidence, let’s storm our way out together."
"Just watch."
Qin Yun transmitted his voice.
Following that, Qin Yun surveyed the dense swarm of demons around him. He spoke with a resounding voice, "Don’t you want to kill me? Here I am! Standing here for you to kill me! I’ll consider all of you capable if you can even harm me the slightest."