Chapter 59: The Immortal Sect’s Live-In Son-in-Law: A Substitute and a Spy. The Divine Demon Grand Burial, Departure.

Chapter 59: The Immortal Sect's Live-In Son-in-Law: A Substitute and a Spy. The Divine Demon Grand Burial, Departure.

“A S-S-S-Sage?!”

Li Xueke’s eyes bulged, his neck stretched out like a roast duck being lifted up.

He exclaimed in shock, “Killing a Sage’s avatar—isn’t that making a mortal enemy of the Sage? We’re done for, we’re done for.”

The Paper Effigy Boy couldn’t take it anymore. With a *whoosh*, it flew up, spread its paper arms and legs, transforming itself into a cross-shaped seal, and plastered it over Li Xueke’s mouth.

If it let this guy keep talking, it was afraid it wouldn’t be able to resist the urge to slay its own master.

Fu Yu waved her hand. “A minor matter.”

When Qin Qianzhu was dying, she had originally wanted to utter a threat too.

Fortunately, she remembered in time that villains always die from monologuing, so she held back—Fu Yu had always been very self-aware. Someone like her, to put it nicely, walked the line between good and evil; to put it even more nicely, she was naturally the great Demon King.

As long as her identity remained hidden, the killer was Ghost Lingjun. 🙂

Fu Yu turned her head, looking toward the center of the stone grotto.

The Divine Court spy—the woman who bore a striking resemblance to the Old Charlatan—had already been rescued by the Yellow-robed Cultivators. They laid her flat on the ground, using a robe as a cushion.

Qin Qianzhu had used the Dream Kill Art to destroy her mind and then performed a Soul Search on her. She was about to die.

Fu Yu crouched before the woman. She felt she should help her up, but it was as if an invisible wall stood in the air, preventing her fingers from advancing an inch.

Fu Yu couldn’t help but think of the past.

On ordinary days, she could flatter the Old Charlatan with all sorts of extravagant praise, just to get an extra bite of food.

But if the Old Charlatan was injured or fell ill, Fu Yu would suddenly become as silent as a mute gourd, completely incapable of saying a single word of concern—she didn’t know what this flaw was.

Now, facing this woman who looked so much like the Old Charlatan, Fu Yu’s old flaw acted up again.

She pressed her lips into a straight line, appearing utterly indifferent.

“Huh, I know this person,” one of the Yellow-robed Cultivators said.

Fu Yu’s breath hitched slightly. After a moment, she spoke slowly, “Tell me.”

The Yellow-robed Cultivator told her, “This woman was originally a mortal. Somehow, Qin Qianzhu took a fancy to her, kept her by his side for many years, favored her exclusively, and practiced dual cultivation with her all year round. Others were envious to death—Qin Qianzhu never had any concubines by his side.”

Fu Yu gave a slight nod.

In terms of looks, the Old Charlatan’s face was indeed rather plain, hardly the type to inspire exclusive devotion in a High-level Cultivator.

The Yellow-robed Cultivator scratched his head. “I once said, this woman probably saved Lord Qianzhu’s life in her previous life.”

Fu Yu: “...”

Whether this woman was the Old Charlatan’s reincarnation, Fu Yu didn’t know—even if she was, after reincarnation, she was already a different person. (See Li Daoxuan and Li Xueke.)

The woman had a face identical to the Old Charlatan’s. Qin Qianzhu treated her like a treasure, using her as a substitute, being “good” to her, to atone for his past self.

Regarding the events of that year, Qin Qianzhu had regrets.

After being acknowledged by his lineage, he immediately ordered cultivators to slaughter the Prime Minister’s entire household, then went to the underground gambling den, wanting revenge.

Little did he know the underground gambling den had long been wiped out.

He failed to avenge her with his own hands.

He went mad with red eyes, shaking others by their collars like a lunatic, demanding to know who had done it, who had robbed him of the chance to personally kill those bastards who beat Chen Guihua to death.

How ridiculous.

Even if he borrowed a hundred times more courage, he would never have imagined that the one who slaughtered the underground gambling den was that Little Burden.

His so-called revenge, in Fu Yu’s eyes, was nothing but a farcical monkey show.

He could never imagine what it felt like—on that stormy night, clutching a stolen, rusty butcher knife, sneaking into the underground gambling den, locking the doors shut, leaving no retreat for herself or her enemies... What kind of feeling that was.

Someone like him, who the Old Charlatan would call a coward, would never understand.

After being recognized by the Crane Shadow Family, becoming He Yingkong, Qin Qianzhu did not try to find the Little Burden who had been by the Old Charlatan’s side.

Perhaps he thought that little girl had already been killed by the Prime Minister’s daughter.

Or perhaps... he was just a bastard son, his own future uncertain—how dare he bring along another burden?

Fu Yu collected her thoughts and asked with a smile, “He Yingkong, who is his current wife?”

“Huh?” The topic jumped so abruptly the Yellow-robed Cultivator was momentarily confused, but he answered honestly, “His wife is the Goddess Yuetong, the youngest and most beloved daughter of another Sage, Emperor Wugu.”

Fu Yu let out a derisive laugh.

She knew it. After being acknowledged by his lineage, he must have become a live-in son-in-law in the Immortal Sect again.

This time, his wife’s family successfully helped him rise to great heights.

Fu Yu thought, a faint smile on her lips.

“Uh...”

An extremely weak groan sounded.

Fu Yu’s body stiffened. After a dazed moment, she turned her eyes, one slow moment at a time, fixing them on the dying woman.

“How... more people... come to save me...”

The woman’s gaze was unfocused. With all her strength, she raised a hand and grabbed the back of Fu Yu’s hand.

Fu Yu shuddered all over.

Her pupils trembled slightly as she felt a weak, feeble force coming from the woman’s hand. The other was pushing her, urging her to leave. “Quick... go. This place... is a trap.”

Fu Yu took a deep breath.

Suddenly, she couldn’t get enough air.

The Old Charlatan had hit her so hard, forcing her to leave.

This woman was pushing her away with such light force, urging her to leave.

They were clearly unrelated.

The woman’s strength was extremely faint, but where she was grabbed, it felt like fire was burning.

Fu Yu forced herself not to pull her hand away.

'I understand,' she told herself. 'Qin Qianzhu destroyed her mind, blurring the line between reality and illusion for her. He deceived her with dream magic, making her believe companions had come to rescue her, and in this way, got the names of the other undercover agents out of her.'

"Don't worry," Fu Yu said woodenly. "I killed Qin Qianzhu. You're safe now."

There was no reaction in the woman's glazed, lifeless eyes.

She was already cut off from the outside world.

The woman, on the brink of death, mumbled in delirium: "I never... loved... Qin Qianzhu. He killed... Brother A Niu. Just one more day... I could have married... Brother A Niu... Brother A Niu was good... to me..."

Fu Yu gazed at her, stunned.

So she had almost had a good life.

Fu Yu leaned down, putting her lips near the woman's ear: "Give me your hatred. I will avenge you. Silence means consent."

The woman did not speak.

Fu Yu raised her hand and placed it gently on the woman's head.

The woman's soul was already shattered. Fu Yu felt as if she were traversing a ruin of shattered glass, gently, clumsily touching the fragments.

One piece, then another.

The broken soul dissipated into scattered points of light.

Just as Fu Yu was about to finish clearing this ruin, letting the woman pass on in peace...

Suddenly, from the soul about to vanish, a violent storm erupted.

*Thwack!*

Fu Yu's soul was lashed a heavy blow.

"Hiss—"

A furious roar struck her soul directly: "You damn bastard trying to trick me again! I only understand the language of force!"

Fu Yu was shocked.

What a vicious last gasp!

The feeling of her soul getting beaten was oddly familiar.

Gritting her teeth, Fu Yu muttered, "I'm terrifyingly strong now. You can't even scratch me. Hit me all you want."

There was no comeback.

After that one last violent outburst, the other's soul completely dissipated.

Like a gentle breeze brushing through Fu Yu's hair.

Fu Yu was momentarily dazed.

She had obtained some fragmented memory images.

This woman was called Zhao Xiufeng.

Qin Qianzhu had taken her by force, killed her Brother A Niu, and used her as a substitute for Chen Guihua.

Zhao Xiufeng was adaptable and resilient. She coaxed him into teaching her cultivation. Once she gained some cultivation, she found ways to contact the "Evil Cultists."

At first, she was simply desperate to avenge Brother A Niu by any means necessary. As time passed, she realized that compared to the Divine Court, the Evil Path seemed almost righteous to the point of being perverse.

She came to believe in their cause.

In the end, she risked exposing her identity to send out the message because Qin Qianzhu's true body—that is, He Yingkong—had run into trouble: his wife had caught wind of something.

Zhao Xiufeng was very shrewd.

She sensed Qin Qianzhu was struggling and hesitant.

She didn't trust this man at all.

Rather than waiting passively for death, it was better to take a gamble, risking her life to transmit the top-secret information out.

In her haste, the only person Zhao Xiufeng could find was Double Plum.

Not long after that, Qin Qianzhu captured her.

He was already indecisive, wavering over whether to "deal with" her. With this incident, he naturally no longer needed to hesitate.

Zhao Xiufeng, deceased.

"I understand."

Fu Yu stood up, tilted her head, and counted on her fingers.

"Killing one Sage originally settled two debts. Adding you makes it three."

She signaled for Li Xueke to pick up Zhao Xiufeng's corpse.

Li Xueke was on the verge of tears.

Someone as afraid of ghosts as him was, of course, also afraid of corpses!

He blinked desperately, hinting: *Boss, look, you have so many subordinates, they're just idle anyway, wuwuwu...*

Unfortunately, Fu Yu was heartless and unmoved.

She glanced at Zhao Xiufeng, thinking to herself, *'Whether you are her reincarnation or not, I'll have the Human Emperor give you a funeral. That's impressive enough, right?'*

Stepping out of the bloody cavern, Fu Yu shielded her eyes with her hand and looked up at the sun.

A very perceptive Yellow-robed Cultivator approached and asked, "Lord, should we destroy this wretched place?"

Fu Yu would have liked to.

She pondered for a moment: "This grand formation is not simple."

Turning back, she climbed to a higher point and let her gaze sweep over the landscape.

The entire Monkey Ridge stretched out before her eyes.

She casually raised her hand, pointing at various spots: "Don't you think these surrounding ridges look like chains, binding that monkey?"

Following her pointing finger, the others looked and saw it more and more clearly.

"Huh! That does seem to be the case!"

The colossal stone monkey was pinned at the very center. The "chains" of the eastern ridges converged precisely beneath their feet.

The Yellow-robed Cultivators gaped down.

"This impregnable mountain-formation... it almost looks like an... iron stake?!"

You didn't need to think hard; it was enough to make one suck in a sharp breath.

If they were really using so many formation mountains to suppress a single monkey, just what kind of great demon could it be?

A Yellow-robed Cultivator swallowed hard. "The... the Great Sage Heavenly Equal?"

"Are you stupid? The Great Sage Heavenly Equal is a storybook monkey!"

"Can't you see how huge this monkey is? How could it be an ordinary monkey?"

Fu Yu rubbed her temples, struggling to recall the obscure ancient texts Jun Bu Du had once found for her.

"The Nine Heavens Demon-Subduing Vajra Grand Formation."

Her gaze sharpened, and she formed a hand seal, casting a blessing spell upon herself.

"Purple Water Rises, Fortune Gathers; Wind Conceals, Qi Amasses—Dragon-Seeking."

This was originally a geomancy incantation for surveying feng shui and locating tombs, but using it to examine a formation seemed close enough?

Fu Yu closed her eyes to clear her mind. Moments later, when she reopened them, she saw the metallic, seal-suppressing energy flowing through the mountains, humming and vibrating along the mountain ranges.

The peak itself, shaped like a stone monkey, showed no trace of anything unusual.

Fu Yu opened her left hand, her five fingers lightly brushing through the empty air before her, sensing the flow of the energy veins.

Her wide sleeves fluttered slightly in the mountain breeze. Everyone watched, holding their breath, unconsciously marveling in their hearts: Our Lord... she seems like a charlatan!

Suddenly, Fu Yu's eyes lit up.

In a flash, with a thought, she summoned from her sea of consciousness the Sword Intent she had taken from Li Daoxuan's corpse.

Holding it in a backhand grip with her right hand, she swung out cleanly.

The pure, vast Sword Intent swept across half the mountains and rivers.

For a moment, everyone forgot to breathe.

"A... a moon has appeared!"

"In broad daylight, a moon has appeared!"

The silver light was like a sea, gentle and harmless.

But just as their hearts were suspended at their highest point, about to fall back down, the mountain split.

The cultivators, having fought in the stone caverns for so long, knew well that the mountain was reinforced by a grand formation, making it as solid as a fortress, impregnable as iron walls.

Yet, under the moonlight's illumination, it silently split in two.

Everyone rubbed their eyes in disbelief. Their hearts, already lodged in their throats, now thumped wildly, threatening to leap into their mouths. For a moment, they dared not breathe or speak, afraid that if they accidentally opened their mouths, they might bite their own frantically beating hearts.

Fu Yu chuckled lightly. "So inexperienced."

It was just a strand of Sword Intent. These people were born thousands of years too late, unable to witness the true glory of a peerless Sword Immortal firsthand.

"Gulp! Gulp!"

Everyone swallowed their hearts back down, overwhelmed and speechless, dropping to one knee in unison. "Our Lord's divine power is peerless!"

Fu Yu raised a hand, her wide sleeves fluttering in the mountain breeze. She calmly pointed out the landscape.

"See the severed formation energy veins clearly? Disguise yourselves as Qin Qianzhu's subordinates and clean out this mountain. If you can drain those energy veins, it'll be worth a thousand or eight hundred years of cultivation for you."

Everyone felt their scalps tingle. "Th-thank you, Lord!"

The flying vessel soared across the sky.

Li Xueke said nervously, "Aren't you afraid of releasing some great monster by destroying that formation?"

The Paper Effigy Boy happily did somersaults. "Monkey! Big monkey!"

Fu Yu was unconcerned. "How bad can something suppressed by the Divine Court really be? Let's give the Divine Court something to worry about. It'll be entertaining."

Li Xueke was dazed. "That makes sense."

As they spoke, the flying vessel arrived at the Azure Cloud Sect.

Seeing Fu Yu, the Foxtail Grass Spirit's eyes instantly turned red. Its mouth opened and closed, but after struggling for a long time, it couldn't squeeze out a single auspicious word.

Its mind was filled with thoughts like, "Wah wah wah, Master, I thought you'd died out there!"—the kind of bad thoughts that couldn't be spoken aloud.

Wu He said sarcastically, "Who did you kill this time?"

Li Xueke forced a smile. "...A Sage."

"What?!"

The Foxtail Grass Spirit and Wu He's eyeballs nearly popped out.

Li Xueke: "...'s avatar."

The popped-out eyeballs couldn't be stuffed back in.

Fu Yu went straight to the Profound Wood Peak.

Perfected Person Suwen was happily fiddling with a horsetail whisk in the Apothecary Hall.

"I arrived too late," Fu Yu got straight to the point. "Zhao Xiufeng is dead. The Divine Court obtained several names, including yours, Perfected Person."

Suwen's movements didn't stop. She turned her face with a smile. "Oh dear, that's a bit troublesome."

Message delivered, Fu Yu stood up to take her leave. "Take care, Perfected Person."

Suwen waved her hand. "Go ahead and focus on your own affairs! Don't worry. For matters like this, everyone has long been prepared!"

They exchanged a smile; no more words were needed.

The flying vessel ascended into the sky.

Li Xueke seemed to have something to say but hesitated.

Fu Yu sighed, "Come on out."

"Thud."

The couch cushion was pushed up from inside, and Wu He crawled out, followed by the Foxtail Sprite.

Fu Yu rapped the table, signaling to Wu He.

"Send a message to Bao Hai, using your Turtle Ten code."

"Tell him it's time to pay up."

"Have him watch over Qingyun Sect for me. If anyone dies..."

A moment later, Wu He looked up, "If anyone dies, then what?"

Fu Yu smiled, "Leave it at a comma, no 'then.' That'll scare him enough."

The trio: "..."

"Master, do you know who Bao Hai's true form is?"

"Nope."

"Huh? You don't know, yet you threaten him like that?"

"He doesn't know that I don't know."

"That makes so much sense..."

Moonlight gradually filled the sky.

"Destination: Divine Demon Burial Ground, let's go!"