Ch 66: The Cannon Fodder Won’t Play Along Anymore [QT]

Mu Xing glanced at the man.

His appearance was ordinary, his clothing unremarkable. Mixed in with the people surrounding Ying Shu, he looked just like any other guard—completely inconspicuous.

But Mu Xing noticed that after the man spoke, Ying Shu seemed very surprised, staring at him several times.

He himself also had a faint sense that this seemingly plain middle-aged guard was not so ordinary.

Still, Mu Xing had never done anything shameful, nor did he have any secrets he couldn’t let others know. Toward such irrelevant people, he didn’t care much.

He smiled and nodded. “That’s right.”

The man seemed very interested in him. “The mortal world is noisy, and its spiritual energy is thin—not suitable for cultivation. Yet I see that you, at such a young age, have already formed your Golden Core. Could it be that you had some kind of great encounter?”

His words struck Mu Xing as strange.

Things like great encounters were always a cultivator’s deepest secrets. Unless it was with a trusted companion of life and death, no one would share them.

And yet he and this man had just met, and the other directly asked—this was far too offensive.

Moreover, though the man’s tone was calm and his posture casual, Mu Xing could sense a faint trace of condescension.

Mu Xing smiled faintly. “I’ve never come across any great encounter. But my master says I have outstanding talent—being able to cultivate this quickly even in the mortal world. I suppose that just makes me a genius.”

The man: “…”

Mu Xing ignored him, nodded at Ying Shu, and said, “It’s getting late. My friends are still waiting for me, so I’ll be going on ahead.”

Ying Shu quickly said, “Wait, are you going to the Mirage Market? I am too. Come with us.”

What answered him was Mu Xing’s back, along with a drifting voice carried by the sea breeze: “No need. I’m quite content on my own.”

Watching his slender figure vanish into the waves, Ying Shu rubbed his nose, as if to explain to those around him: “See, I told you—his temperament is aloof and eccentric. He doesn’t treat me any differently just because of my status.”

Receiving no reply, he raised his head uneasily—only to see that the gray-robed man who had spoken earlier was staring deeply in the direction Mu Xing had left, his expression shifting.

A vague sense of unease rose in Ying Shu’s heart.

He coughed, waved the others away, until only he and the gray-robed man remained on the deck.

Once sure no one else was present, Ying Shu whispered: “Father, what were you staring at just now?”

That plain-looking gray-robed man was in fact the Sect Master of the Yudao Immortal Sect, Ying Tianhai!

Scratching his head, Ying Shu asked, “Could it be… you’re interested in Mu Xing?”

He misunderstood his father, thinking he admired Mu Xing’s talent, and couldn’t help saying: “I also feel Mu Xing was born to walk the path of the Immortal Dao. Look at the purity of his spiritual energy—it’s flawless. Yet he’s a demon cultivator!”

Ying Tianhai didn’t answer that, instead asking: “Xiao Shu, you said he was sixteen. Do you know what month he was born in? And after meeting him, did anything strange happen?”

Ying Shu looked blank. “He barely talks to me. We’re not even friends. How would I know his birthday? Strange things…”

He thought carefully, then shook his head. “No, nothing.”

Ying Tianhai waved him away, then stood alone on the deck, gazing out over the vast sea.

The instant he saw Mu Xing, he had been shaken to the core.

No wonder Xiao Shu said Mu Xing looked familiar.

When he saw Mu Xing, for one instant, his figure overlapped with the image of his Dao-companion in her youth.

And Mu Xing just happened to be sixteen.

Most importantly, the Master of the Heaven’s Secrets Pavilion had clearly told him: that child—he had returned.

But that child’s spiritual root had been dug out long ago.

Without a spiritual root, abandoned in the mortal world—how could he possibly have reached Golden Core at sixteen?

If it were true, what a terrifying talent that would be.

Thoughts raced through Ying Tianhai’s mind, though his face remained calm.

He hadn’t been able to act in front of others just now. Once at the Mirage Market, he would find a chance to verify it.

*

Mu Xing returned to the Mirage Market, only feeling that the gray-robed man was a bit unusual, but didn’t think too much of it.

The Yudao Immortal Sect had always had a good reputation, styling itself as a righteous sect. Though Mu Xing felt that the sect’s leaders had been heartless sixteen years ago, in terms of public virtue they had always behaved in line with the standards of the righteous path.

There was no need to worry they would scheme against him in secret.

As for the strange aura he sensed from the gray-robed man, he guessed he was likely just some hidden expert sent by the sect to protect their young master, Ying Shu.

When he got back to the Mirage Market, he happened to run into the Xu siblings.

Seeing the shell-boat at Mu Xing’s feet, Xu Jiao’s face was full of envy. She was, after all, a young female cultivator—how could she not love such beautiful little trinkets?

But this shell-boat, aside from having a protective barrier to shield from wind and water, had no other use.

It was better suited for mortals at sea—practically useless to cultivators.

And it had cost one hundred high-grade spirit stones!

That price could buy a decent mid-grade magical artifact. It was robbery.

Even cultivators as relatively wealthy as the Xu siblings wouldn’t dare squander their spirit stones like this.

At such moments, Xu Jiao couldn’t help feeling envious of Mu Xing.

Being rich really was wonderful.

Mu Xing greeted the siblings.

Xu Jiao was the first to speak. “Junior Brother Mu, back from your outing?”

That phrase “outing” had originally come from Mu Xing himself. Xu Jiao thought about it—riding a shell-boat across the sea, wasn’t that exactly an outing? Quite fitting.

Mu Xing nodded. “The sea view is beautiful.”

Xu Jiao couldn’t help but say enviously, “My brother and I have been busy combing through the stalls, hoping to find a hidden treasure or two. Where do we have the leisure of Junior Brother Mu?”

Mu Xing just smiled and didn’t reply.

His way of thinking was always different from these other cultivators.

They thought of nothing but cultivation and raising their strength, while he felt that the most important thing in life was ease and comfort.

If one was happy, then even a life of just a few decades was worthwhile.

If one was miserable, burdened every day, even if one attained Dao and became immortal—what use was it?

But that was only his own way of thinking. Mu Xing had always been clear-headed: he followed his own thoughts, not others’, and never tried to persuade anyone else to walk his path.

Like Xu Jiao—her Dao was to surpass herself and grow stronger.

For Mu Xing, that kind of diligence and constant cultivation was a shackle.

But for her, perhaps it was true joy.

That day, while drifting leisurely on the sea and watching the surging tides, Mu Xing had faintly sensed a new insight. So he waved goodbye to the siblings and returned to the inn to meditate.

Mu Xing had always been able to still his mind. The moment he closed his eyes, he entered meditation almost instantly.

But this time, he had barely shut his eyes when they suddenly snapped open.

At the same instant, a flash of spiritual light shimmered over his body, and a misty barrier formed around him, shielding him securely.

“Quick reflexes,” a surprised voice sounded by his ear.

The next moment, someone appeared out of thin air inside the room.

Mu Xing’s gaze sharpened—it was the gray-robed man who had been beside Ying Shu, the one who had spoken to him earlier.

The man looked at Mu Xing, his expression carrying both appreciation and something harder to read.

“Little friend Mu, I don’t intend to harm you. I only want one thing from you.”

Mu Xing had already tested quietly: when he sent out spiritual power, it was blocked at the doorway. Clearly this place had already been sealed by the mysterious gray-robed man.

He looked at him. “I have no ties to the Yudao Immortal Sect. What is the meaning of this? Does Ying Shu know you came?”

The man shook his head. “For such a small matter, there’s no need for him to know.”

Even as his words fell, he flicked a finger. The puppet beads Mu Xing hurled forward were casually reduced to useless scrap.

Seeing this, Mu Xing fell silent.

Those puppets had been refined for Yue Fubai’s disciple, made of top-grade materials. Even an average Nascent Soul cultivator couldn’t destroy them so lightly.

Such strength—while being so close to Ying Shu.

Mu Xing thought: Could it be… he thinks I’m that person?

Does he really have that much time to waste?

Or… does he suspect my identity?

On second thought, it wasn’t strange. If the Master of the Heaven’s Secrets Pavilion had already sent people out, then surely he knew something.

And no one knew better than that man how to borrow another’s blade to kill. Passing such information to Ying Tianhai and his wife was only to be expected.

Ying Tianhai looked at the broken puppet beads, his face unchanged, his voice cool. “I advise you not to waste your energy on pointless resistance.”

Mu Xing asked directly, “What do you want?”

Ying Tianhai said, “A drop of your blood.”

As expected.

If Mu Xing had only been guessing before, now he was certain.

Not even Ying Shu knew his identity—there was no reason an ordinary member of the Yudao Immortal Sect should suspect him.

He didn’t care if Ying Tianhai and his wife learned who he was. To him, they were just two strangers.

But he did not like this feeling of being completely suppressed, without the power to resist.

“Why should I? Just because you demand it?”

Ying Tianhai seemed faintly surprised.

With his status, few dared speak to him like this. It had been a long time since anyone refused him. And now, it was a mere junior.

He gave a soft, derisive laugh. “Why? Because I want it.”

Unwilling to waste more words, his five fingers curved like claws, striking straight toward Mu Xing.

Mu Xing felt all his spiritual power pressed down. He gritted his teeth, flinging out a handful of puppet beads and talismans from his storage ring, tossing them forward without even looking.

Ying Tianhai sneered. “Paltry tricks.”

In his eyes, Mu Xing was already a prize in the bag—no need to rush.

He withdrew his hand, swept his sleeve, and an invisible barrier blocked all the flashy puppets and talismans.

But that moment’s delay was all Mu Xing had needed.

He had already realized in that instant that he was no match.

In that case—

He snatched out a jade token from his storage ring, crushed it, and shouted loudly:

“Master! Your disciple is being bullied—!”

❣╰(⸝⸝⸝꒳⸝⸝⸝)╯❣

Sandy: Next chapter is Pw locked. Pw is Ilovesandy