Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan
"Tianshui Glue!" Yuan Ming's eyes lit up as he saw the contents of the jade box through his Soul Crow.
When he first entered the Eastern Domain, he had heard a shopkeeper in the market mention this item, saying that Tianshui Glue is produced at the bottom of the deep sea and requires a combination of spiritual energy, earth veins, temperature, water pressure, and other conditions to form. It is extremely rare, with a small piece costing seven to eight hundred spirit stones, and it is hardly ever available for sale.
"Elder Bai, please keep this item. I am the master of Xuanhua View and bear the mission of our ancestors. I dare not forget that the incense-making scriptures of Tianben View cannot possibly be sold," Xuanhua said, shaking his head with unusual determination.
Bai Lin's face darkened as he said coldly, "Fellow Daoist Xuanhua, I have already made such an offer, do not be ungrateful! At the root of it, it's because you failed to complete the commission of one hundred Seven-Step Incense on time, ruining my big plans, leading to the current situation. Even if you go to Tieyun View to argue, you have no grounds to stand on!" Xuanhua's face turned beet red.
"That beast has been startled and is hiding in its lair, refusing to come out. The only plan now is to use the incense-making scriptures of your Xuanhua View and ask Fellow Daoist Lanxi to help, only then might we have a chance to hunt down that beast. If we fail, both our lives are at risk. If you die, Xuanhua View will vanish into thin air, what legacy is there to speak of?" Bai Lin's eyes were frighteningly cold as he spoke, word by word.
With each word from Bai Lin, Xuanhua's face grew paler, and by the time Bai Lin finished speaking, fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
"I'll give Fellow Daoist Xuanhua one more day. I will come again tomorrow, and I hope you won't disappoint me, otherwise, don't blame me for being ruthless." Bai Lin said, packing up the jade box and storage bag, and left.
Xuanhua had no color left in his face and sat down in the front hall, utterly dejected. Footsteps sounded, and it was Yuan Ming who walked in.
"Fellow Daoist Yuan, what brings you here?" Xuanhua asked as he stood up.
"Do not take offense, Fellow Daoist Xuanhua. I have a secret technique that allows me to hear distant sounds. I accidentally overheard your conversation just now and thought to come over and discuss the matter with you," Yuan Ming apologized with a bow.
Xuanhua was taken aback, then waved his hand wearily and sat back down.
"Fellow Daoist Xuanhua, from your conversation just now, it seems that you've fallen into a difficult situation because you failed to hunt down a fierce beast. What exactly happened? I don't dare to claim expertise in other matters, but when it comes to hunting fierce beasts, I believe I have some skills that might be of help," Yuan Ming said as he sat down on a bench next to the wall.
"You? Hunt a fierce beast?" Xuanhua looked at Yuan Ming with surprise, clearly disbelieving.
It was no wonder, as incense makers spend their years busy in closed chambers, and even purchasing materials requires others to act on their behalf, having no connection to combat. Yuan Ming smiled slightly and made a hand gesture.
A nearby chair suddenly split in two, the cut so smooth it was exceptional, and Xuanhua didn't even see what happened.
"I didn't expect Fellow Daoist Yuan to have such skills, but I'm afraid you won't be able to help with this matter," said Xuanhua, surprised but still shaking his head.
"Why not tell me about it?" Yuan Ming didn't give up and continued to inquire.
"Alright, this started a month ago," Xuanhua sighed and began to speak.
***
A month ago, that Bai Lin brought a big business deal, commissioning the crafting of one hundred Seven-Step Incense sticks, offering a high price but requiring completion within ten days.
Xuanhua was gathering spirit stones to prepare for the crafting of Foundation Establishment Incense and agreed immediately.
With Xuanhua's incense-making skills, crafting one hundred Seven-Step Incense sticks in ten days was more than achievable. However, fate was not on his side, and on the seventh day, an old ailment in his head flared up, causing him to faint in the chamber for two whole days before waking up, greatly delaying the incense-making process. In the end, he only managed to make just over eighty Seven-Step Incense sticks, failing to meet Bai Lin's deadline.
Bai Lin needed one hundred Seven-Step Incense sticks to hunt a Vortex Beast in the sea. The beast was already at the peak of the second level, just half a step away from the third level, and was extremely cunning, hiding in the undercurrents and whirlpools at the bottom of the sea year-round.
Bai Lin somehow lured it to the surface, trapped it with a formation, and used a large amount of Seven-Step Incense to bewilder it, taking the opportunity to strike.
But with an insufficient number of Seven-Step Incense sticks, the Vortex Beast regained consciousness at a critical moment, broke free from the formation's constraints, and escaped back to the sea bottom. No matter how Bai Lin tried to lure it out afterward, it never showed itself again.
Bai Lin was hunting the Vortex Beast on the orders of a Nascent Soul cultivator from Bailong Island. That Nascent Soul cultivator had a volatile temper, and if Bai Lin couldn't bring back the Vortex Beast's body on time, his life would be in danger.
With no other choice, Bai Lin sought help from a formidable rogue cultivator near Ning City, Lanxi the Hermit. Lanxi had reached mid-stage Foundation Establishment, his cultivation method was adept at underwater activities, and he had a water spirit beast to assist him, which was enough to contend with the Vortex Beast and perhaps lure it out again.
However, Lanxi demanded the incense-making scriptures of Xuanhua View as his price for helping, otherwise, he refused to make a move, leading to Bai Lin's forceful visit.
***
"Fellow Daoist Xuanhua, you suffer from a brain ailment?" Yuan Ming asked after hearing the story.
"Yes, it's an old problem. I get attacks when I'm agitated or emotionally excited. I've been taking medicine to suppress it for years and haven't had an episode for a long time. But recently, for some unknown reason, my thoughts have been restless, and coupled with non-stop incense-making, it triggered the old ailment," Xuanhua sighed.
Yuan Ming opened his mouth as if to say something but then hesitated, a flicker of apology in his eyes.
Xuanhua's recent restlessness might be due to the influence of Yuan Ming's consciousness since he possessed the body.
"What do you plan to do, Fellow Daoist Xuanhua? Are you really going to hand over your sect's scriptures?" Yuan Ming asked again.
"Even if I die, I will never hand over the scriptures of my sect to others!" Xuanhua's eyes were resolute.
"In that case, there's only one path left, and that's to hunt down the Vortex Beast. Do you know where its lair is?" Yuan Ming paused before asking again.
"I heard Bai Lin mention it once; it's near Coral Island, about a hundred miles to the southwest. Do you really intend to hunt this beast? I appreciate your kindness, but that Vortex Beast is powerful; even several Foundation Establishment cultivators working together might not be able to defeat it, let alone us Qi Refining cultivators. I'd rather ask Tieyun View to handle this matter, even if it costs a lot of spirit stones, I don't believe we can't settle this," Xuanhua shook his head.
"I alone certainly can't handle it, but I have several quite formidable companions. If they take action, there should be a good chance of success," Yuan Ming said.
"Do you really have confidence, Fellow Daoist Yuan?" Xuanhua's face showed a glimmer of hope upon hearing this.
He had just said he would pay to ask Tieyun View for help, but in reality, he had no confidence at all. The matter was his fault, and he had no close friends in Tieyun View, so it was unlikely they would take his side against the elders of Bailong Island for some spirit stones.
"I can't guarantee a hundred percent success, but there's a fifty to sixty percent chance," Yuan Ming thought for a moment and said.
"If you really can hunt down the Vortex Beast, you will be a benefactor to Xuanhua View. In the future, whatever you ask for, I will not refuse!" Xuanhua bowed deeply, making a solemn promise.
"Fellow Daoist Xuanhua, you are too kind. If I retrieve the Vortex Beast's body, I should be able to exchange it for Tianshui Glue from that person on Bailong Island. If you can make more than two Foundation Establishment Incense sticks, I hope you can spare one for me."
Whether to express his apology or to craft the Foundation Establishment Incense, he was determined to hunt this Vortex Beast.
The beast might be troublesome for others, but Yuan Ming had many methods at his disposal, especially with the corpse of the Heavenly Serpent Elder merged with the skin of the White Ape. As long as he wasn't directly fighting a Nascent Soul cultivator, he feared nothing.
Moreover, from the conversation between Xuanhua and Bai Lin, the hardest part of hunting the beast was luring it out from the sea bottom, and for this, he had a unique secret method. Xuanhua readily agreed.
"From what you've said, the Vortex Beast is cunning. I might not be able to return tomorrow. If that cultivator from Bailong Island comes again, try to delay him for a few days," Yuan Ming said.
"No problem, leave this small matter to me," Xuanhua replied. Yuan Ming nodded, stood up, and walked outside, with Xuanhua personally seeing him off.
Yuan Ming didn't leave through the main entrance he had entered, but had Xuanhua lead him out the back door.
His Soul Crow had detected that Bai Lin had people watching the main entrance, and Yuan Ming didn't want to deal with Bailong Island's people yet to avoid trouble. The two passed through the courtyard behind the front hall, and a pavilion appeared in front of them, where they could see ancestral tablets and candles burning brightly, with incense wafting in all directions.
"That's the ancestral hall where we worship the ancestors of our view," Xuanhua explained as he noticed Yuan Ming's gaze.
Yuan Ming looked at a large incense burner inside the hall, filled with incense ash, and his eyes brightened. He had thought the amount of incense ash in the main hall was too little, but there was more here.
Yuan Ming didn't ask for it and continued walking forward, soon leaving Xuanhua View through the back door.
***
Half an hour later, a nearly invisible figure slipped into the ancestral hall of Xuanhua View, approached the incense burner, took out a large jade bottle, and scooped up nearly half of the incense ash before swiftly leaving the premises. A disciple of Xuanhua View, broom in hand, suddenly stopped; he thought he saw a shadow flash by, but upon closer inspection, saw nothing and shook his head, dismissing the incident and began cleaning the ancestral hall.
The shadow left Xuanhua View and quickly arrived at a deserted alley nearby, lifting a gray cloak to reveal its true form—it was Yuan Ming. Looking at the jade bottle in his hand, he showed a pleased expression. With so much incense ash, he would have enough for a long time to come.