96: Taoist Child Xuanshuang, the Great and Kind Corpse Slave? (Seeking follow-up reading)

Five Elements Immortal City.

Inner City.

Azure Moon Mountain, outside an ancient building covered in vines on the mountain peak.

Hong Ze, clad in a red robe, knelt on both knees, kowtowing repeatedly.

“Old Ancestor, please save my life!”

“Old Ancestor, please save my life!”

With each kowtow, a mournful cry echoed outside the ancient building.

The stone slab in front of the ancient building had a small pit formed by Hong Ze’s current corpse-puppet-like iron head.

Hong Ze now had no choice.

His Storage Pouch, which he had hidden earlier, had been taken by someone unknown, and all tracking Restrictions had been erased.

The two Foundation Establishment old ghosts within him were both thousand-year-old foxes; nine and a half out of ten of their words were untrustworthy. If he completely released his Physical Body and allowed them to control it, it would be no different from digging his own grave.

Once his Physical Body was controlled by those two old ghosts, it was uncertain if his corpse-puppet body would ever return to his possession.

With his retreat cut off, he could only take a risky move.

To seek help from Old Ancestor Long Yue on Azure Moon Mountain.

As one of the only two Core Formation Old Ancestors in Five Elements Immortal City, only this Core Formation Old Ancestor could remove the two old ghosts from his body.

However, Hong Ze also knew that this move could very likely endanger his life.

Who knew what price he would have to pay.

But at least there was a good chance of preserving his life.

After all, his public identity was still a Foundation Establishment Guest Elder within Five Elements Immortal City. They wouldn't just easily kill him, would they?

With a worried heart, Hong Ze began to kowtow for help.

Dozens of breaths later.

The heavy stone door on the first floor of the ancient building opened halfway, and a Dao Child in green robes walked out. The Dao Child appeared to be only five or six years old, with his hair simply combed and tied into a small bun.

His face was ashen, as if covered with a layer of flour, and his pupils were a pair of blue and red. On both sides of his head, a pair of small, protruding deer antlers could be seen.

“Immortal Master, please stop shouting. Her Ladyship invites you in.”

“Whatever difficulties you have, you may state them.”

“Her Ladyship is in a good mood lately, perhaps she can offer the Immortal Master some guidance.”

The Dao Child Xuan Shuang looked at Hong Ze, who was kneeling there with traces of tears on his face, and spoke with a smile, seemingly with good intentions.

“Thank you, Senior Xuan Shuang.”

“This is my humble offering to Senior Xuan Shuang.”

Hong Ze quickly got up, took out his last bottle of second-tier Medicinal Pill from his Storage Pouch, and handed it to the deer-antlered Dao Child in front of him.

Hong Ze’s Cultivation was only at the Perfection of the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment. He had been stuck at this Realm threshold for many years, unable to advance to the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment.

The Dao Child Xuan Shuang, who served by Old Ancestor Long Yue’s side, appeared to be a Dao Child, but he was an old monster who had lived for several hundred years.

His Cultivation had even reached the Foundation Establishment Perfection Realm.

In Five Elements Immortal City, he was a great Foundation Establishment Cultivator, second only to the two Core Formation Old Ancestors, and was quite renowned among the many Foundation Establishment Guest Elders.

“Good.”

Xuan Shuang said softly, naturally taking the Medicinal Pill porcelain bottle into his possession.

He then led Hong Ze into the first-floor entrance of the vine-covered ancient building. Hong Ze looked at the darkness beyond the heavy stone door, feeling very uneasy.

After all, although Old Ancestor Long Yue was called a Righteous Path Cultivator by everyone, Hong Ze had never seen her true face in all his years in Five Elements Immortal City.

Although he was a nominal Guest Elder under Old Ancestor Long Yue, the recruitment was handled by some senior Foundation Establishment Cultivators on Azure Moon Mountain.

Hong Ze had only met Xuan Shuang twice, and they had exchanged very few words.

Entering the stone door.

In the air around the building, clusters of ethereal blue lotus flames burned, illuminating the interior.

In the center of the first floor.

There was a pig's head as large as a small mountain. This pig's head was enveloped in a surge of Death Qi, and at the same time, there was a powerful pressure that even Hong Ze felt.

“Core Formation Yao Race.”

The aura emanating from this enormous pig’s head was indeed a genuine Core Formation pressure. Although only the head of this Core Formation Pig Yao was present, this pressure was still incredibly powerful for Hong Ze.

His heart felt as if it was being gripped by an iron hand.

Crack, crack, crack!

But at this moment, a crisp chewing sound came from inside the pig’s head, as if something was devouring the flesh and blood of this Core Formation Yao Race within.

Thump!

Hong Ze’s heart rate quickened.

Just at this moment, within Hong Ze’s line of sight, he saw a black-haired woman with a spider body and human face emerge from the mouth of the massive, door-like pig’s head. Her eight ethereal blue spider legs, like long blades, landed on the ground, each step producing a crisp sound.

This female Yao, with a spider body and human face, was exuding a strong Core Formation pressure, like a giant hand several zhang in size, tightly gripping Hong Ze’s body.

“Your Ladyship, I have brought this person in.”

“This person is truly hateful, to come to Your Ladyship’s door to complain precisely when Your Ladyship is eating.”

“Why not punish him by making him Your Ladyship’s snack? I will announce later that this old fellow, not knowing his place, insisted on troubling Your Ladyship and met his demise.”

At this moment, Xuan Shuang, a few steps behind Hong Ze, raised his hand and unleashed the power of his Law Seed. From the ground beneath Hong Ze, dark green vines grew out, firmly binding Hong Ze’s body.

“An old bag of bones, what’s so good to eat?”

“Xuan Shuang, has that old immortal Xuan Gui next door died yet?”

“He truly lives up to being a Xuan Gui; his life is so tough. He was poisoned by my brother and still lives this long. He truly deserves to die!”

Long Yue took a step with her long legs, instantly appearing beside Hong Ze. She raised a spider leg, like a long blade, and pierced through Hong Ze’s chest. It rotated once in Hong Ze’s chest, and when the long leg retracted, a black stone Law Seed, flickering with black light, hung from its tip.

Immediately, Long Yue opened her mouth and swallowed the Law Seed. After chewing twice, she swallowed it.

“It tastes really bad!”

“This old bag of bones is nearing his Lifespan limit, and he even refined himself into a corpse puppet. His Law Seed is contaminated by corpse-Qi, making the taste quite poor.”

Long Yue’s tone was somewhat displeased.

“Replying to Your Ladyship, that Xuan Gui, with his special Bloodline, is not yet dead. Currently, Zhang Xingwen is gathering healing Medicinal Pills everywhere. However, I have secretly instructed that only two second-tier spiritual medicines have been offered by the Foundation Establishment Guest Elders of Zhang Xingwen’s lineage. If we wait a little longer, there will surely be an opportunity to take that Xuan Gui’s life.”

Xuan Shuang quickly bowed and said.

“Very well, let’s wait a bit longer, lest Zhang Xingwen jumps the gun.”

Long Yue thought for a moment, then waved her hand and said.

That Zhang Xingwen was not easy to deal with; even her brother had been injured by him. It was better to proceed cautiously and slowly.

Just then, two pitch-black soul mists suddenly flew out from within Hong Ze’s body, one on the left and one on the right, rushing towards the stone building’s entrance.

“Oh no!”

“He’s truly insane. What kind of person did he seek help from? This is an attempt to drag us down with him!”

Two curses came from within the soul mists.

Xuan Shuang, who was a few steps behind Hong Ze, seemed to have been prepared. With a flick of his hand, a giant soul banner, three zhang high, appeared in his grasp. On the soul banner, demon souls and Human Race spirits were entangled, exuding a powerful aura.

“Collect!”

Xuan Shuang’s soul banner unfurled, and in a flash, two black chains flew out from it. The chains, quick as lightning, seized the two soul masses attempting to escape, pulling them into the soul banner.

“Good.”

Xuan Shuang put away his soul banner.

This Immortal Master was quite sensible, even knowing to send two extra Foundation Establishment spirits.

“This old bag of bones isn’t good to eat, but he can be refined into a corpse slave to search for Cultivators with spiritual bodies near Five Elements Immortal City.”

“For deliciousness, it still has to be Cultivators with spiritual bodies.”

Long Yue chuckled, spewing a streak of ethereal blue flame that enveloped Hong Ze’s body.

“Your Ladyship, I have also searched for a Cultivator with a spiritual body for you. That young female Cultivator is the Cultivator with the best Aptitude in Five Elements Immortal City. She has a dual Spiritual Root bone structure, further enhanced by the Cang Ming Spiritual Body. She is only in her twenties, yet she has already Cultivated to Level 10 Qi Refining.”

“Once she reaches Foundation Establishment, she can serve as a main dish at Your Ladyship’s thousand-year birthday banquet.”

Xuan Shuang, standing to the side, bowed respectfully and said.

“Excellent.”

“Excellent.”

Long Yue praised Xuan Shuang, feeling very satisfied in her heart. After all, she had specially invited her brother Blood Gentleman, and two or three good friends from the mountains to her thousand-year birthday banquet. Wouldn’t it be embarrassing if there weren’t a few presentable main dishes at the banquet?

Subsequently, the spider-bodied half-Yao Long Yue turned and, like a ghost, re-entered the body of the Core Formation pig’s head, beginning to devour the flesh and blood of this Core Formation Pig Yao.

Only the flesh and blood of a Yao Race of the same rank could arouse Long Yue’s desire to eat.