Chapter 169: The Immortal Lands in Youdu

As the female corpse flew away, a large number of people outside rushed after her in pursuit.

Wang Sheng's family and Mu Wanxuan were placed under the protection of the Special Warfare Unit. They were required to be relocated overnight, but Mu Wanxuan had entered a state of comprehension, Wang Sheng's mother was resting, and his father couldn't give an immediate answer.

For Wang Sheng's parents, leaving now would mean giving up their current life, abandoning familiar social circles and jobs, and moving to a completely unfamiliar place. Although the authorities would not treat them poorly because of Wang Sheng, it was still difficult for them to make such a decision so suddenly.

In any case, they could no longer live in their new apartment. This commotion on the first day of the new year would make it easy for various monstrous beings from the cultivation world to find this location. A righteous cultivator politely asking a few questions would be acceptable. However, if they encountered a ruthless, corrupt cultivator who resorted to torture and coercion...

No one could have expected the female corpse to suddenly visit them. The otherwise ordinary couple's peaceful life couldn't handle the tremendous shock.

Wang Sheng also expressed his stance on the matter: he wanted his parents to move to another city, change their environment, and continue their peaceful lives.

His father sighed. Although clearly reluctant, he still said, "Little Sheng, you focus on your cultivation. Your mother and I won't hold you back. I'll have to talk to her about this matter first, though."

"

Mm,

" Wang Sheng said in a low voice. "That female immortal who appeared last night..."

Wang Sheng's father waved his hand. "You don't have to tell us about that. We're not part of that world, so we won't get involved. Just being ordinary, law-abiding citizens is good enough for us."

Wang Sheng was rendered speechless.

The Special Warfare Unit and Special Investigation Unit could only temporarily secure the building, mainly to wait for Mu Wanxuan to complete her comprehension.

Mou Yue arrived at Wang Sheng's home before dawn. Not only was she now in charge of handling the relocation of Wang Sheng's parents, she also came to inquire in detail about Wang Sheng's interaction with the female corpse.

With her arrival, Wang Sheng gained a reliable source for updates. Mou Yue, true to her loyalty, used her clearance to keep obtaining real-time information.

After leaving Wang Sheng's home, the female corpse flew toward the East Sea. She then searched the area for a while. Coming up empty-handed, she turned and swiftly flew west.

The number of witnesses rapidly increased, and more righteous and corrupt cultivators were drawn in. Several chaotic battles between them even broke out.

For the time being, none of that concerned Wang Sheng.

Mu Wanxuan was meditating in the living room, while Wang Sheng and Mou Yue sat in a corner of the sofa, quietly conversing.

Wang Sheng's father was quite thoughtful. He brought bottled water, bread, and some of his senior sister's favorite snacks to the Special Warfare Unit members guarding the hallway and front door. He then told Wang Sheng to be a good host and returned to the room to wait for his wife to wake up.

Having traveled through the night, Mou Yue was a little tired. Lowering her voice, she asked, "Daoist Master Wang, where do you think that female immortal will fly to?"

Right now, they no longer dared speculate too boldly about the female corpse's intentions.

Wang Sheng stared at the red path displayed on the tablet, continuously zooming in on the areas it passed. He searched slowly from the westernmost Tibetan Plateau to the east.

Before long, he pointed at a location near the Shu Sword Sect.

Ancient Youdu, Mount Pingdu.

"Daoist Master Wang, that's just a tourist site," Mou Yue softly explained. "There's no Daoist heritage passed down there, only some unaffiliated practitioners..."

"That immortal said she didn't have much time left—that she was merely a remnant soul. She was going to find a place of reincarnation to see if she has a sliver of hope left," Wang Sheng transmitted, careful not to disturb his senior sister. "If she's flying straight in that direction, then this is likely where she's heading."

Mou Yue looked at Wang Sheng in surprise. Though it sounded rather fantastical, she still nodded. "I'll report this to the captain at once."

Wang Sheng searched online for information about Mount Pingdu. Before the page even finished loading, Mou Yue had already gone back inside and given him a thumbs-up.

"If you're tired, go sleep in the bedroom," Wang Sheng offered, gesturing toward the room he shared with his senior sister. Glancing at his senior sister, he transmitted, "She'll probably take longer with this comprehension. That immortal gave her some guidance that will take time to digest."

Mou Yue blinked, then pulled a small bottle from her pocket and poured out a tiny alchemical pill. She tilted her head back and swallowed it, then struck a flexing pose as if to show off her biceps. It looked a bit ridiculous in her business suit, and her skinny arms seemed like they'd snap at a touch...

Mou Yue glanced at Mu Wanxuan, pointed at her phone, and sent Wang Sheng a message.

Mou Yue: One pill can clear your head, two pills can make you feel invincible, and three pills can grant eternal life! Zero side effects!

Hah. That's pretty cheeky.

Wang Sheng wanted to remind her that even without side effects, one shouldn't consume alchemical pills so casually. Pills always left some residue in one's body, just as he had expelled impurities from his Dao body during his grueling cultivation.

Remembering that Mou Yue wasn't a cultivator, he decided to just let it go.

Mou Yue was relaxed around Wang Sheng. After all, the two had known each other for quite some time now; they had been working together ever since Wang Sheng descended the mountains for the first time.

Soon, she kicked off her heels, curled up on the sofa with a pillow in her arms, and started texting with Wang Sheng across from her.

After spending so much time alone with the female corpse, he and his senior sister had essentially become "antique-grade" research subjects.

Wang Sheng took the initiative to say that he would organize the contents of his conversation with the female corpse into written documentation. That way, he and his senior sister could avoid curious researchers surrounding and interrogating her.

Mou Yue then began discussing how to arrange things for Wang Sheng's parents. Since they were all insiders, pulling a few strings and offering a little extra care to Wang Sheng's parents wouldn't raise any questions.

Wang Sheng thought about it but decided not to decide for his parents. He told Mou Yue to talk to them a bit later.

The two chatted for a while about the female corpse, but Wang Sheng made sure not to mention anything related to his senior sister. Instead, he steered the conversation toward the topic of reincarnation.

Mou Yue couldn't help but ask, "Do people really reincarnate after death?"

Wang Sheng couldn't give a direct answer. He sat quietly, deep in thought.

During the exorcism at the Li residence, his spiritual consciousness had already been able to perceive wandering spirits. Those were souls refined from the living or the dead. Otherwise, an ordinary person's soul would dissipate shortly after death.

Yet the female corpse had mentioned reincarnation several times, and his senior sister seemed to be the reincarnation of a powerful immortal from ages past. As for himself, he had experienced a completely inexplicable regression.

After some thought, Wang Sheng transmitted, "My personal belief is that reincarnation does exist, but it isn't something everyone experiences. It likely requires certain conditions, maybe a soul strong enough to hold together long enough to reach the underworld and pass through reincarnation."

Mou Yue blinked. Pretending to understand, she put on a look of sudden enlightenment.

As she chatted with Wang Sheng, they shifted the topic to the issue of corrupt cultivators.

Soon enough, she conveyed the opinion of the Special Investigation Unit: with the female corpse being so overwhelmingly powerful, was there any chance she could be persuaded to wipe out the current wave of corrupt cultivators?

Wang Sheng genuinely found it difficult to answer.

If the Special Investigation Unit managed to convince his senior sister to plead on their behalf, there was a high chance that the female corpse would act. After all, the bond between the two seemed heartfelt and sorrowful.

On the other hand, corrupt cultivators were still rampant even back in ancient times, when immortals walked the earth. Moreover, since the Daoist sects' lineages had all come from immortals, where else could the corrupt cultivators' teachings come from?

A thought struck Wang Sheng.

What if those ancient immortals had come to Earth not just to preach the Dao but to recruit and expand their forces? Maybe some of them had deliberately created corrupt cultivators as antagonists to give those training in the Dao a chance to hone their skills through real combat and bloodshed?

The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.

After all, how come no one had ever heard of a powerful "corrupt immortal"?

While he was lost in thought, strands of yin-yang qi began to swirl around her. However, it felt different to Wang Sheng. It seemed more mysterious, and the principles it contained were harder to grasp.

More importantly, it looked as though his senior sister had made another breakthrough.

The aura she was releasing was steadily rising, and she still showed no signs of waking up.

Has she formed a Golden Core already?

Reaching the Golden Core Realm in her twenties—was she about to make the entire Daoist community jump off a cliff in despair?

Wang Sheng couldn't help but feel a little bitter. He should have shared in this opportunity, too, but his domineering sword intent had shattered all the insights that the immortal had given him. Now, he could only brood in frustration.

Well, perhaps it simply isn't my time yet.

He got up to make himself a cup of bitter coffee and slowly savored its rich aroma and flavor. Before he could finish it, Mou Yue suddenly launched herself from the sofa and pounced toward him. Instinctively, Wang Sheng tugged his collar tight.

"Daoist Master Wang," Mou Yue whispered as she waved her phone in front of him. On the screen was the internal messaging interface of the Special Investigation Unit, with lines of text flashing rapidly.

Target has entered the back mountain of Mount Pingdu.

Prepare to make contact!

Contact initiated!

Contact equipment destroyed.

Target has gone underground!

Target has descended more than 500 meters. Correction: more than 800 meters...

We have lost the target. I repeat, we have lost the target.

Wang Sheng and Mou Yue exchanged a glance.

She blinked, and they simultaneously sighed. It was as if a heavy burden had been lifted from their shoulders. For Mou Yue, the female corpse could have completely disrupted the now-stabilized environment of the Special Investigation Unit. For Wang Sheng, it was far better for the female corpse to go seek reincarnation than to wander aimlessly in the world.

Still, their brief encounter had left little time for deeper questions. The female corpse had only ever revealed the tip of the iceberg—one Wang Sheng would soon have to report.

In a hushed tone, Mou Yue asked, "Daoist Master Wang, what exactly did she say to you two?"

"Not much," Wang Sheng transmitted. "She said that since my senior sister and I had exceptional potential, she wanted to take us in as disciples and pass down thousands of years of cultivation before she reincarnated. Since our master has been so good to us, we couldn't accept her offer. She ended up just giving us a little gift instead."

Mou Yue rolled her eyes and turned her phone toward him. On the screen was a detailed transcript of everything that Wang Sheng had said the previous night, with precise timestamps and even the tone of his voice annotated.

Eavesdropping through walls in the dead of night wasn't exactly difficult. Fortunately, the female corpse had communicated mostly through telepathy, which gave Wang Sheng plenty of leeway to fabricate a convincing story.

At the very least, Wang Sheng's stance remained firm: be it the research institute or corrupt cultivators, he would not allow any of them to lay a hand on his senior sister.