Chapter 207: Luo Xiaoyong

"I am the Mortal-Realm Wanderer of the Greater-Yin Cult. I came to Mount Shu Sect to see you." The lady in black...Erm...the black-clad individual whose gender remained ambiguous said to Chu Liang.

The Mortal-Realm Wanderer of the Greater-Yin Cult was like the head disciple of Mount Shu. The sect would have the most talented individual of the generation handle affairs in representation of the sect.

Chu Liang and Lin Bei were both really shocked. The person in front clearly looked like a girl, but their voice sounded a bit hoarse and deep?

"You..." Chu Liang stared at the black-clad individual as he contemplated on how he should ask the question.

Then, the black-clad individual said with his deep voice, "My name is Luo Xiaoyong.[1]"

Great. I don't have to ask anymore.

No girls would be named Luo Xiaoyong.

"Brother Luo, I am sorry." Chu Liang apologized as he took a seat, "My friend here misunderstood earlier... It was a bit presumptuous. But your appearance is quite deceiving. Anyway, I apologize for that."

"It's alright. It's not the first time this has happened." Luo Xiaoyong said indifferently, but then added with a change of tone, "Although, among the many lustful individuals I've encountered, there aren't many as presumptuous as him."

"

Hehe.

" Chu Liang could only smile awkwardly.

"However..." Lin Bei still had a trace of curiosity, "Isn't the Greater-Yin Cult known for exclusively accepting female disciples? How did you manage to join?"

Luo Xiaoyong replied, "I came to investigate some matters. I shouldn't have to explain these to you guys."

Lin Bei scratched his head as his eyes filled with a gleam of admiration.

The only male disciple in the Greater-Yin Cult, amidst a sect known for its abundance of beautiful women... That sounded too good to be true.

Chu Liang asked, "I wonder what Brother Luo came to ask me about?"

"A few days ago, a man claiming to be a Whale-Riding Immortal came to the Greater-Yin Cult. He wanted the coffin that held one of our cult's predecessors from our forbidden grounds. The elders naturally refused, so he broke into the tomb that night and stole the ancient ice coffin," Luo Xiaoyong explained. "Now, our sect has issued a Mortal-Realm Wanted Notice, seeking this person across the Nine Provinces. I heard you had an encounter with him in the South Sea before. Can you provide any clues?"

"The Whale-Riding Immortal..." Chu Liang pondered.

Is he the person who might be Senior Sister Jiang's father?

Come to think of it, the lantern fish he caught at that time could also be considered the ancient tomb of an Eminent One at the Heavenly Origin Realm. Now he has gone to steal from the Greater-Yin Cult's tomb... Is he just a professional tomb robber?

If Chu Liang was honest, there was indeed some information he could provide to the Greater-Yin Cult, such as the mysterious little girl he met, and the Whale-Riding Immortal's connection with Senior Sister Jiang... but Chu Liang certainly couldn't reveal everything.

I need some time to think

, Chu Liang thought to himself. And so, he asked, "Before I answer that question, I actually want to know how you joined the Greater-Yin Cult?"

Luo Xiaoyong looked at him strangely.

"Everyone knows that the Greater-Yin Cult only accepts female disciples. With doubts about your identity, I really don't know whether I should answer your question," Chu Liang said.

"..." Luo Xiaoyong pondered for a moment and said, "I guess it is okay to tell you guys about it."

He explained, "My family was originally a landowner in a mountain village in the north. My parents thought I was talented and didn't want my life to go to waste, so they hoped I would embark on the path of cultivation. My father spent a lot of money to purchase a set of cultivation techniques from the black market, claiming to be techniques of the first three realms from an immortal sect in the Divine Nine. He brought it back home for me to practice."

"I studied the techniques on my own and managed to reach the pinnacle of the third realm."

Hearing this, Chu Liang was surprised.

Without any guidance and without any access to cultivation resources, only one out of ten thousand people could grasp the basics of a random set of techniques.

Those intricate and complex cultivation paths were often incomprehensible to ordinary people, let alone to practice. Yet, Luo Xiaoyong managed not only to grasp the basics but also to reach the pinnacle of the third stage all by himself!

It was simply astounding!

This level of talent could almost be described as monstrous.

"After practicing for several years, I began to notice something was off. My appearance became more feminine, and my temperament grew increasingly indifferent. It seemed like this set of techniques was changing me," Luo Xiaoyong explained.

"But having never ventured out and knowing almost nothing about the cultivation world, I didn't realize until I reached the end of the techniques that I needed to seek out fourth-stage techniques elsewhere. After wandering around the martial world for a while and joining some small sects, I quickly realized that none of their techniques were compatible with what I had practiced before," he continued.

Chu Liang began to understand what had happened.

Most cultivators of unconventional paths practice a combination of techniques. Even if they cultivated a blend of methods, they could still make progress in their cultivation.

Only those practitioners of extreme techniques, like those involving cultivation of greater yin or greater yang, would face difficulty in finding a suitable technique for the next stage of cultivation.

"It wasn't until some time later that I found out the truth. It turns out that the techniques my father bought were indeed from an immortal sect of the Divine Nine... but they were techniques from the Greater-Yin Cult!"

Pfft

. Lin Bei couldn't help but laugh, quickly stifling it.

"What are you laughing at?" Luo Xiaoyong glanced at him.

"It's nothing. I just remembered something happy." Lin Bei explained promptly.

Luo Xiaoyong ignored Lin Bei and continued, "So, I climbed the Brilliant Mountain of Yin, which was located in the north, in hopes of asking the Greater-Yin Cult for the manual to the next stage of cultivation. It wasn't until later that I found out they only accept female disciples... The elders in the sect were all shocked to see me. They were surprised that I could cultivate to this level and even more surprised that I was a man... They were especially shocked that a man could cultivate the techniques of their cult to this level..."

Pfft

. Chu Liang couldn't hold back a snicker either.

This was truly quite a pitiful story.

A truly unparalleled genius ended up following the cultivation path of greater yin due to learning the wrong cultivation method... This was indeed a rather sad story.

With Luo Xiaoyong's talent, if he had cultivated Mount Shu's techniques, his progress would likely rival that of Xu Ziyang.

At the same time, this was amusing.

This laughter might cost them ten years of virtue.

"What are you laughing at now?" Luo Xiaoyong glared at him again.

"I was just reminded of something amusing," Chu Liang said, covering half of his face with his hand, no longer showing his expression.

Luo Xiaoyong continued, "They discussed for a long time and ultimately decided to let me stay. They taught me to form the Golden Core of Greater Yin. I didn't disappoint the elders either; my cultivation quickly surpassed my peers and became unparalleled in the sect. Consequently, I was chosen as the Mortal-Realm Wanderer for this generation."

This wasn't surprising.

From Luo Xiaoyong's perspective, if he had wanted to switch to another cultivation method back then, he would have had to abandon all his current progress and start over from the foundation. However, such a decision would essentially sabotage his chances of reaching the Golden Core Realm in this lifetime. It meant jeopardizing the potential of a once-in-a-generation talent, cutting off his promising cultivation journey prematurely.

From the Greater-Yin Cult's perspective, keeping such a talented individual was obviously a favorable outcome.

Even if he was a male talent.

But so what?

Times have changed, and gender shouldn't matter.

Chuckle.

...

"Brother Luo, your experiences are truly astonishing. You deserve the title of a peerless genius," Chu Liang said as he adjusted his mood and spoke earnestly.

"Now that I've shared my background with you, I hope you can answer my questions truthfully," Luo Xiaoyong replied.

"Alright." Chu Liang nodded and answered, "I have met that Whale-Riding Immortal before..."

"Previously, I went to the Immortals' Marsh to search for the Celestial Herb of Ascension. I jumped into the depths of the marsh to save a drowning little girl and stumbled upon an ancient tomb inside a fish's belly, where I unexpectedly found the Celestial Herb of Ascension," Chu Liang recounted, carefully choosing his words. "Shortly after, when I escaped from the fish's belly, I found myself in the Southern Sea. That's where I encountered the person who had caught the big fish, claiming to be the Whale-Riding Immortal. He then took the little girl with him, while I returned to Mount Shu. We barely interacted."

Chu Liang's account was mostly truthful, omitting only the part about Jiang Shijie. Concealing too much would make his story less coherent, and Luo Xiaoyong might become suspicious. It was better to tell the truth, with strategic omissions.

Luo Xiaoyong nodded and then suddenly asked, "Do you know anything about the identity of that little girl?"

"No," Chu Liang immediately replied. "At the time, I was just curious about how a little girl ended up in the Immortals' Marsh. I wondered if she was some evil spirit in disguise, but later found out she wasn't. That's why I went down to rescue her when she fell into the water."

"So you followed that girl into that tomb in the fish's belly. You accidentally entered, but did she?" Luo Xiaoyong continued asking.

Chu Liang felt a slight pressure; this person was indeed sharp. Instead of dwelling on Chu Liang's shallow impression of the Whale-Riding Immortal, he focused on the details.

He answered honestly, "I don't think she did. It seemed like she had intentionally entered that place."

This was the safest answer, as the actual situation was that the little girl seemed to be returning home. Chu Liang also didn't want to reveal the fact that the tomb's owner belonged to the Jiang family or disclose the secrets of the origin of the Celestial Herb of Ascension, so he omitted some details.

"Do you know the owner of that tomb?" Luo Xiaoyong asked.

"I don't," Chu Liang said as he shook his head.

Ripples appeared in Luo Xiaoyong's eyes.

The Supreme Mind makes everything appear as clear as if looking at a mirror.

Luo Xiaoyong immediately pointed out, "You are lying."

Chu Liang immediately understood that Luo Xiaoyong was probably able to use a similar method as the Mind-Reflecting Candle.

He had omitted some crucial details earlier, though the rest of the experience he recounted was true. Consequently, he managed to avoid discovery. However, when he spoke words contrary to his heart, he was immediately caught.

So he chuckled lightly and said, "Because this matter involves the origin of the Celestial Herb of Ascension, it is an extremely important secret. However, it has no connection with the identity of that Whale-Riding Immortal. Therefore, I feel it would be inappropriate to speak frankly to Brother Luo. Please forgive me."

Luo Xiaoyong nodded gently.

Chu Liang immediately admitted to his lie in a straightforward manner, which actually dispelled any suspicion Luo Xiaoyong might have had. After all, he came to request assistance and information, not to interrogate a suspect. The other party was not obligated to disclose everything, especially when it concerned the interests of the sect.

"You mentioned that he used a fishing rod to catch the big fish. That fishing rod must have been an enchanted tool, right?" Luo Xiaoyong suddenly asked. "Do you remember what it looked like?"

Such a tricky question...

Chu Liang thought to himself.

But Chu Liang immediately understood why he asked it. It was very rare and peculiar to have a fishing rod as an enchanted tool. As long as it wasn't a personally crafted item, it wouldn't be difficult to trace its origin. This meant that they could uncover the identity of the person by tracing the origin of the fishing rod.

Pursuing someone with such a high cultivation level worldwide and capturing them was practically impossible. However, if they could trace the origin of the fishing rod, there might be a lead.

Chu Liang didn't conceal anything as he described it vaguely, saying, "It was a white rod with a golden lines around it. The material looked quite valuable."

"Alright," Luo Xiaoyong said. "That's about it. Thank you for your cooperation."

As he rose to leave, Lin Bei suddenly asked, "Brother Luo, actually, I have another question."

"

Hmm?

" Luo Xiaoyong turned to look at him.

His gaze seemed to say, "Let's see what nonsense you're about to spout..."

With a sincere expression, Lin Bei asked, "I was wondering, since the Greater-Yin Cult has already accepted its first male disciple, which was quite a break from tradition, is there any possibility of recruiting a second one?

Um...

I don't have to practice the sect's techniques, I just want to contribute... because since childhood, I have dreamt of joining the Greater-Yin Cult..."

Luo Xiaoyong looked at him and, once again, in a deep voice, uttered, "Get lost."

1. 罗(Luo is the surname) 小勇 meaning brave little one. ☜