Immortality Path: From the Blind Man at the Pharmacy
Chapter 265 - 151, 152. Xuanwu Swallowing the Moon, Crushing the Shadowy Monk (Major Chapter - Seeking Subscriptions)_4

Chapter 265: 151, 152. Xuanwu Swallowing the Moon, Crushing the Shadowy Monk (Major Chapter - Seeking Subscriptions)_4

The mountain hues were purple, perhaps due to some kind of plant, and even in deep autumn, it still resounded with the odd rumbling sounds, as if they were made by the tramping hooves of some giant demon beast.

"Accumulating Thunder Mountain!" Yan Baixiang gazed at the mountain and then said, "Dad, we’ve arrived in Thundercloud State!"

Accumulating Thunder Mountain served as a barrier shielding Thundercloud State, which made the state a desolate area nearly isolated from the fertile soils of the Central Plains.

However, this desolation stemmed from infertile land, not a lack of people... It was different from the barrenness of Northern Snow State.

"King of Li Mountain," Yan Banruo was also extremely excited as he repeatedly thanked Song Cheng.

Song Cheng fixed his gaze in the distance, then scanned the surroundings, his expression subtly changing because he saw two lines of data appear in the distance.

[Strength: 462~824]

[Favorability: 60]

That data was motionless as if it was waiting.

With that in mind, Song Cheng wrote on the ground: ’I will take you over the mountain.’

"I really thank you so much, Mr. Song," Yan Banruo said.

But Yan Baixiang felt somewhat reluctant as he said, "Uncle Song, after we cross the mountain, you... you’re going to leave?"

Song Cheng wrote: ’No banquet lasts forever.’

Yan Baixiang’s head hung slightly; even as a fierce general who had killed his way through the battlefields of the Central Plains, he felt a touch of melancholy.

The huge Ghostly Fox petted his head and wrote: ’There will be chances to meet in the future.’

Yan Banruo smiled and said, "Yes, Xiang, there will definitely be opportunities in the future. Your Uncle Song is not an ordinary uncle; he truly is your uncle."

Yan Baixiang was stunned; he had not been privy to much noble family information and now looked at his father quizzically.

Yan Banruo glanced at the Ghostly Fox which showed no reaction, then smiled and said: "Xiang, your mother has a sister; she’s your aunt, and your Uncle Song is your aunt’s husband."

Yan Baixiang exclaimed in surprise, "Really?"

Song Cheng nodded.

A look of ecstasy appeared on Yan Baixiang’s face.

Then, after a bit more idle chatter, Song Cheng quickly led the two in navigating across Accumulating Thunder Mountain.

The mountain was quite magical indeed; many of the demon beasts that appeared had Form Realm data, and there were even those of the Qi Realm... But these demon beasts seemed bound by something, not venturing too far from the mountain, and the reason was unknown.

One had to know, Song Cheng was only traversing laterally; he had not yet delved into the depths of Accumulating Thunder Mountain. The demon beasts he saw were not even the tip of the iceberg.

With the ability to see data, Song Cheng easily avoided the demon beasts, and in about a day’s time, they crossed the mountain.

After setting the two down, they reluctantly bid each other farewell.

The Ghostly Fox made of dead leaves and mud dissolved.

The Yan father and son duo gazed for a long while, then quickly took off.

"Your Uncle Song really is a great man," the King of Li Mountain couldn’t help but express.

Yan Baixiang said, "Dad, you don’t lead troops, so you don’t know how formidable Uncle Song is. If you knew, you would regard him as a god. I heard before that the Tiger Leopard Cavalry of East Sea State was trained by Uncle Song... Now it seems to be true."

"Next time you see your mother, persuade her more, if she can accept us, father and son... then we might even be able to live together with your Uncle Song." The King of Li Mountain hadn’t given up on Fairy Sister and seized the moment to implant some ideas in his son’s mind.

Lightened in spirit upon reaching Thundercloud State, father and son chatted with each other as they continued heading westward.

Meanwhile, behind them, in the distance...

A pair of eyes quietly watched them from the mists of a solitary cliff.

It was Song Cheng.

Song Cheng had not left.

He watched the silhouettes of the Yan father and son, following them from afar.

Half a day later, another set of data appeared before his eyes.

[Strength: 462~824]

[Favorability: 60]

That set of data swiftly pursued the direction where the Yan father and son had gone.

Song Cheng smiled.

Indeed, the mysterious entity that had appeared before crossing Accumulating Thunder Mountain had indeed reappeared.

The entity had chosen to act after his departure not because it couldn’t defeat him, as after all, his True Self was not present, merely a Manifestation, and the strength he had demonstrated in Soul Severing Valley was only "240~480".

The entity did not want to conflict with him.

But Song Cheng wanted to protect Sister Su’s descendants.

The more someone feared conflict with him, the less he feared conflict with them.

So, upon witnessing such an entity, he had two choices.

One, to confront and eliminate the hidden threat then and there;

Two, to pretend not to see, and wait for the threat to escalate into danger before he acted.

The question then reverted to the old issue of whether it was better to "gild the lily" or "send charcoal in snowy weather".

Gilding the lily won’t make much of an impression on others.

But sending charcoal in snowy weather will earn the gratitude of others.

Song Cheng was never a nice guy, and would still employ whatever tactics were needed.

Therefore, he waited for that person to attempt to kill the Yan father and son, then he would return and save them.

...

The Yan father and son were walking swiftly, not stopping even though they were exhausted.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, they still did not stop.

And the fast-moving shadows were gradually engulfed by the blood-red glow of the evening.

Ding...

Dingling...

Dinglingling, dinglingling...

The strange, crisp sound floated from a distance, mingling with the red light of the sunset, causing the countenance of the Yan father and son to change. Before they could react, they also heard footsteps.

The sound of the footsteps, like a drumstick beating on their hearts, thudded steadily and unrelentingly.

The Yan father and son felt an inexplicable fear, the approaching footsteps and the crisp sounds mixing to create a severe oppression, like a "cat playing with a mouse," like a "fierce tiger closing in."

The two looked at each other in horror and saw that both of their faces had drained of color.

"It’s the Mystic Realm, it’s the Noble Family Child," said Yan Baixiang, his face deathly pale.

There was no need for his son to tell him; the King of Li Mountain understood as well. Although he was a useless man, he was a useless man of the Qi Realm after all. The presence of the other hadn’t even appeared yet, and he was already so frightened that his soul was nearly gone, completely devoid of any will to resist. Who else could it be if not a Noble Family Child?

He added a sentence, "It’s the Noble Family Child’s True Self that has come."

"How could... surely... surely we had already escaped!"

King of Li Mountain clenched his fists in extreme unwillingness.

Dingling...

Dinglingling...

The sound was getting closer.

Yan Banruo urgently turned his head at the sound, only to see an ascetic monk in a conical hat approaching rapidly, his feet seemingly divine, each step shrinking the vast earth beneath them.

Only a few steps before, the ascetic monk seemed on the horizon, but now, he had instantly arrived before the two men.

"Good is rewarded with good, evil is met with evil, you two benefactors have sinned greatly, it’s time to go to hell."

Below the conical hat, a smirking smile appeared.

Yan Baixiang suddenly came to his senses and exclaimed harshly, "You cowardly lot! You’re just scared of my Uncle Song!"

However, the ascetic monk had no intention of explaining anything to these two dead men, and with a flicker of his body, he struck out like lightning.

Yan Baixiang swung his sword to block.

Crash!

The sword broke!

Yan Banruo’s eyes turned bloodshot as he roared, "Why won’t the Imperial Family leave us alone?!"

But there was no one left to answer.

The hand of the ascetic monk had already reached Yan Baixiang’s neck.

And just then, an odd, misshapen, seemingly unstable red-grey giant hand attacked fiercely from behind the ascetic monk.

That was the forbidden hand stretching out from the depths of hell, completely overturning calmness, a ferocious bloodied hand...

This was Song Cheng’s "Unstable Two Aspects."

Three Aspects, namely the Grey Membrane, Reappearance, and ten clusters of Fox Fire.

In a manifested state, naturally there is no Grey Membrane... so this hand was made only of Reappearance, ten clusters of Fox Fire, and a part of the power from the Form Realm.

The three forces were unbalanced, making it extremely unstable. At this moment, that hand swelled with red-grey tumors, resembling sesame flowers blooming higher and higher, an aberrant monstrous hand.

The hand landed on the ascetic monk’s back, scattering the Force Power without breaking his defenses. Yet the hand then burrowed into his body, seizing hold of his soul, which began to struggle.

Song Cheng was the kind who struck lethally once he acted, so... he had unleashed all the power his current form could muster.

Crack...

The surface of the ascetic monk’s Ghostly Soul began to crack, then more delicate fractures spread like a spiderweb. That dark, eerie monk’s Divine Soul. With an increasingly slender waist, amidst the bursting "Unstable Two Aspects," Fox Fire hammered down on its Divine Soul, while Reappearance tore at it...

Ghostly Souls, known as "extremely hard to destroy," are so called because of their rapid healing speed.

Throughout Song Cheng’s assault, the Ghostly Soul was quickly repairing itself.

But... too slow.

The healing speed of the Ghostly Soul was far slower than its rate of destruction.

As Fox Fire smashed down, bits of Ghostly Soul flew off, and the pulling of Reappearance meant the wounds had no chance to heal.

Crack...

Crack crack crack...

Finally, the Ghostly Soul layer completely split open on the surface.

Thump!

The soul shattered.

In the time it takes to speak these words, that is in an instant, the ascetic monk was dead.

The Yan father and son hadn’t seen Song Cheng’s red hand, only the ascetic monk suddenly stiffening up, then collapsing to the ground, slowly kneeling down, with the figure of Song Cheng’s two-tailed Ghostly Fox appearing behind him.

In an instant, Yan Baixiang’s goodwill soared to 100, while "King of Li Mountain" Yan Banruo also reached 99.

Song Cheng was feeling pretty good; the combat performance of "Three Aspects of Power" was better than he expected, and moreover... it could be used separately.