Starting Cultivation During a Trip-Chapter 161 - 114: Pill Fire Conceals Sword Intent! Crossing the Mighty Yangtze, As Leisurely as a Stroll

Back at the Jiangnan Province Daoist Alliance Headquarters, she hadn't paid any attention to the two people sent by "Night is not bright," except for Jiang Hu, who was from Maoshan and had some weight with her. Other than that, whether it was their status in the Daoist sect or the mission at hand, both she and Sui Chunsheng unintentionally or intentionally emanated a sense of superiority.

Especially on this trip to Gusu, they practically treated Zhang Fan and Jiang Hu as mere add-ons, it wouldn't matter if they were there or not. Everything revolved around her and Sui Chunsheng.

However, what was happening before her eyes now had completely overturned Zhan Xinyue's perception of Zhang Fan.

This man…

Whoosh, whoosh…

At that moment, Shi Shougong's charred, shriveled skin suddenly split open, and a shadow jumped out from inside, sticky liquid spilling all over the floor…

"Shedding!?"

Sui Chunsheng's brows jumped violently. Looking at the vibrant Shi Shougong, stark naked, as if just emerged from the womb, covered in oozing liquid, his face went pale, breathing heavily, eyes locked onto Zhang Fan, his vigilance at its utmost.

"A demon… This is a demon… Truly troublesome…" Sui Chunsheng's brows furrowed.

When a spirit monster seizes a host, it becomes a demon. After gaining a human body, their bodies manifest varying degrees of mutation.

Usually, these mutations are controllable, and can even grant them special abilities, sometimes surpassing Daoist techniques.

Evidently, this demon called Shi Shougong possesses the abilities of invisibility, plague poison, and shedding.

Three abilities give him extraordinary survival prowess, which hints at his previous origins.

"Like sunlight piercing the night, dawn quietly streaks across the sky…"

"Whose silhouette weaves through the cycle of reincarnation…"

At this moment, a stirring, melodious singing rose from afar, echoing through the quiet night.

"A new storm has appeared, how could we simply remain stagnant…"

"Cross time and space, sparing no effort, I will come to your side…"

That uplifting singing, sometimes near, sometimes far, shimmered through the darkness like a ray of light, drawing everyone's attention.

"Time to go."

Shi Shougong's gaze grew icy, turning sharply toward the direction of the voice, then his eyes darkened as he looked at Zhang Fan, as if imprinting him in memory.

"Next time we meet, it won't be like today."

As soon as he finished, Shi Shougong's figure slowly vanished, melding into the surroundings.

Sui Chunsheng and Zhan Xinyue remained wary, sweeping their eyes around, but he did not appear again.

"He left!?"

"Seems so." Sui Chunsheng nodded, instinctively glancing at Zhang Fan.

At this moment, Zhang Fan had finally calmed down, the waves of flames around him slowly dissipating. He even sat cross-legged, hands cupped over his dantian.

"He's meditating again," Zhan Xinyue couldn't help but say.

"He never woke up at all," Sui Chunsheng shook his head, trembling as he got up.

The blasted hotel room, shards of glass all over the floor, and charred corpses… all looked especially conspicuous on this cold and clear city street.

By now, the effects of the thick fog were gradually waning, and people were starting to peek outside.

"More trouble…"

Sui Chunsheng rubbed his temple, quickly took out his phone, and made a call.

Cleanup would be handled by professionals.

For now, he and Zhan Xinyue hurried to haul Zhang Fan back into the hotel.

The exploded room was a mess, the smoke sensors had long activated, sprinklers dousing the flames bit by bit.

"Damn…"

In the corner, Jiang Hu crawled out from the wreckage, his face covered with black soot, coughing up a dust cloud with each hack.

Luckily, he'd had a protective talisman, otherwise he'd have been cremated on the spot.

"The Jar…"

Suddenly, Jiang Hu slapped his forehead and turned to look. That old jar had already shattered into pieces.

"This… this…"

"No need to worry."

Right then, Sui Chunsheng raised a hand to calm him.

"There was never anything in the jar to begin with."

"Huh!? What do you mean?" Jiang Hu couldn't help asking.

"The real item is being escorted by Daoist Alliance experts. Should arrive at the Observatory of Profound Mystery by tomorrow," Sui Chunsheng flicked the island.

"We were escorting a fake."

"Hmm!?"

Even Zhan Xinyue showed a strange look—she hadn't even known about this.

"Something so important, there's no way they'd leave it to us juniors to escort."

Sui Chunsheng sat weakly, letting out a long sigh.

"It was just to attract Wuwei Sect's attention… And also flush out any sleeper agents hidden within the Observatory of Profound Mystery."

"Sleeper agents!?"

"Wuwei Sect's reach is too long. From what I know, there are people inside the Observatory who belong to them…" Sui Chunsheng said gravely.

"That's why you weren't rushing to hand over the jar, but chose to stay overnight here," Jiang Hu suddenly realized.

"Few people know about us escorting the Dharma Jar to Gusu, making it easy to lure out that sleeper agent."

Sui Chunsheng's eyes narrowed, heavy with concern.

"I just never expected Wuwei Sect to be so huge—not only infiltrating the Daoist sects, but also recruiting every kind of demonic ghost."

Thinking of Shi Shougong's methods just now, Sui Chunsheng broke out in cold sweat. If not for Zhang Fan, today they might have all perished here.

"Fellow Daoist Jiang, what's his background?"

Thinking of this, Sui Chunsheng couldn't help but ask, his address now conspicuously polite.

"He's a disciple of Zhenwu Mountain," Jiang Hu replied blandly.

"That I know… Xia Weisheng mentioned him… but with such Dao Practice, why have I never heard of him?"

Sui Chunsheng looked puzzled.

"Who's his master?"

"Transcendent Zhenren." Jiang Hu recalled Bai Buran's reminder, and spoke the name.

"Transcendent Zhenren!? He's Transcendent Zhenren's disciple?"

Sui Chunsheng shot to his feet, staring in astonishment at the still-meditating Zhang Fan.

"Wasn't Transcendent Zhenren's closed-door disciple Xia Weisheng? How can there be another…" Zhan Xinyue looked shocked and confused.

"I don't know either…"

"He was out traveling, apparently, and was picked out at a glance by Transcendent Zhenren, who insisted on making him a disciple."

"What!?"

Upon hearing this, Sui Chunsheng and Zhan Xinyue exchanged glances, as if they'd just heard something unreal.

Transcendent Zhenren, the living legend of Daoist sects, a Living Zhenren in this world, already entered the Pure Yang Wuji Realm, famed for the Jiazi Demon-Vanquishing, and the unmatched existence who slew the world's top master Three Corpses Daoist.

With that status, that legend… let alone apprenticing under him, just glimpsing him would be like ancestors smiling down from heaven.

Sightseeing? Insisted on taking him as a disciple!?

Is this for real!?

"No wonder I sensed something from Taoist Brother Zhang at first sight… turns out he's Transcendent Zhenren's disciple…"

Sui Chunsheng looked at Zhang Fan with newfound reverence, as if light shone from his eyes.

"What do we do now?" Jiang Hu couldn't help asking.

"Switch rooms, wait for the local authorities to handle it." Sui Chunsheng was familiar with procedures for these incidents, so he booked two more rooms, making sure Zhang Fan got one to himself.

In the Primordial Spirit Inner Scenery, the river surged.

That vertical stroke of the brush was like a sword returned to its sheath, slowly dissipating.

"Sword intent hidden within Pill Fire… It's just like the Ancestor Lv Stele I saw that day in the Pure Yang Hall… Good, good…"

Zhang Fan came back to himself; that brushstroke he'd used just now had really given him a lot.

Above the great river, the bright moon shone, that lonely and mysterious figure seeming about to depart, fading into the misty water vapor.

"Are you a Thousand-Year-Old Demon?" Zhang Fan asked.

Buzz…

Before he finished, that solitary figure walked into the depths of the great river, tides rising and falling, tranquil and desolate, leaving only the eternal moon.

"Whew…"

Morning sunlight streamed through the window onto Zhang Fan's face. He opened his eyes; the sun was high. Picking up his phone, he saw it was already 9:37 a.m.

"It's that late already?"

Zhang Fan sat up and looked around.

"This isn't yesterday's room!?"

Zhang Fan frowned, puzzled, and unlocked his phone.

"You're finally awake."

At that moment, Zhang Fan walked in.

"Why did I sleep here?" Zhang Fan couldn't help but ask.

"Don't you remember anything?"

"Vaguely… felt like I got in a fight…" Zhang Fan rubbed his head, his right arm stinging fiercely.

"Yesterday you…"

Jiang Hu had just started speaking when he saw Zhang Fan's expression change.

"What's wrong!!?"

Jiang Hu asked as he went over, and saw on Zhang Fan's phone a news alert had popped up.

[Shocking! Mysterious creature appeared on the Yangtze River last night, riding the waves]

He tapped the news, and a blurry video began to play.

Endless Yangtze River, rolling waves, a bright moon shining over the river, a mysterious and solitary figure stood astride the waves, clouds swirling around, that figure walking slowly, crossing the vast river as if strolling in a courtyard.