Water Ghosts

In the afternoon, the sun hung high overhead.

The air already held the faint weight of summer heat, enough to leave any mountaineer who had walked long enough parched.

At the foot of Luoyun Mountain stood a lonely little awning.

It was a tea stall, set up specifically to offer tea and other drinks to thirsty climbers.

“According to the information we got, the Immortal Spirit Physique is somewhere in White Cloud Mountain…”

The man sat on the table, staring blankly into the distance. “Why hasn’t she come yet?”

The tall, thin man beside him said, “Wait a little longer. She may be here soon.”

These two men looked no different from ordinary people.

But if one looked closely, one would notice that their eyes were utterly hollow, and their faces carried a faint bluish-black cast.

They were both water ghosts of the Luoyun River.

Water ghosts lived by rivers and streams.

Whenever a mortal was killed by a water ghost, they would become a water ghost as well.

In order to be reborn, they had to wait for their next target.

Kill that person, and they would be freed.

And in the cultivation world, there was, hidden in the shadows, a reward system set up for water ghosts.

If a water ghost bound the soul of a high-level cultivator, they could register in the Underworld for a good rebirth.

If they were lucky, they might even obtain the qualification to be reborn into one of the four great immortal-clan families.

The tea bowls on the table were steaming.

But if they only seized the souls of common people, then although they could still be reborn, what they became in their next life—pig or dog—would be left to fate.

The man clenched his fist; a trace of gloom flashed through his eyes. “She’s our hope for rebirth. We have to get her today!”

-

Yan Jue finally drove her donkey cart to the foot of the mountain.

The sun still hadn’t set, hanging brutally hot in the sky.

Yan Jue was dressed in a red robe like fire; wearing a narrow-brimmed bamboo hat and narrow sleeves, she held a donkey whip and swayed along atop the donkey.

The sun had left her so dazed that her throat felt dry, and then, out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly spotted a little tea stall off to the side.

Yan Jue froze, then turned to ask, “Shall we go over there and have some tea?”

Qi Xianqing wore a veiled bamboo hat, “Silence Breath Canopy,” and glanced over there. “All right.”

The donkey cart stopped in front of the tea awning.

A man in coarse hemp clothes came out from under the awning, grinning from ear to ear. “Would the two madams like some tea?”

Qi Xianqing looked at him quietly.

Yan Jue smiled. “Two cups of tea, please.”

The man answered obediently and ducked back under the awning to prepare them. In the blink of an eye, he came back out with two steaming bowls of tea. “Madams, to tell you the truth, these are top-grade leaves just brought from Jiangnan a few days ago! They’re wonderfully refreshing and delicious!” He held the tea out to them.

Yan Jue looked at his face and paused slightly.

Because she was a fox demon, her senses were sharper than a mortal’s.

This man didn’t seem abnormal on the surface, but she somehow felt a faint black aura seeping from his face.

He wasn’t an ordinary person. Yan Jue instantly went on guard, and then she saw another tall, thin man walk out from inside the tea awning.

The tall, thin man held another bowl of tea and handed it to Qi Xianqing.

Seeing that Qi Xianqing made no move, he was afraid she wouldn’t drink it, so he lifted the bowl very high, practically to her lips. “Madam, are you thirsty? Drink quickly…”

If the Immortal Spirit Physique drank this tea, her soul would separate from her body.

Then he would only need to tug lightly with a Soul-Hooking Lock…

Ha. Then this beautiful vase of a woman would be his.

In the next life, he would definitely be reborn into a good family… and then… tsk, tsk, tsk.

The thin man’s gaze was hot and eager. Watching Qi Xianqing lower her eyes as though she were about to drink the tea, his arms began to tremble with excitement.

In the next instant, a flash of sword qi swept past.

The man’s eyes flew wide open; in an instant, his whole person—no, the whole ghost—split into four pieces!

Dense black qi whirled in the air.

The other burly man shouted, “What are you doing!”

Before the words were even finished, another streak of blue-gray sword qi flashed by, and the man’s voice vanished into the air before he could even finish speaking.

Yan Jue stood frozen on the spot, staring at the now-empty tea stall.

“This…”

Yan Jue slowly turned her head and stared at Qi Xianqing, who was gripping Zhuying tightly in her hand, her expression cold and murderous.

“What were those two?”

Qi Xianqing picked up the tea bowl and splashed the tea out. “Soul-hooking grass. If you drink it carelessly, your soul will be dragged away by water ghosts.”

Yan Jue was somewhat incredulous.

Although she had been transmigrated into this world for a long time, every time she encountered something like this she still found it unbelievable.

Qi Xianqing: “This place isn’t suitable for staying long. Let’s go.”

The sun still had not set, and the light was viciously harsh. Yan Jue had sweat on her forehead; her throat was so dry it felt like smoke.

She looked back at Qi Xianqing. Qi Xianqing’s eyes were half-lidded, and even her snow-white cheeks carried a faint flush.

On the road, Qi Xianqing briefly explained water ghosts to Yan Jue.

The water ghosts in this world were not like the ones Yan Jue had known before, the kind that lurked by the river and dragged people into the water.

Water ghosts all possessed one basic skill: soul-hooking.

If you came across a suspicious tea stall in the wilderness, you absolutely must not casually go over.

Because you might drink a water ghost’s soul-hooking broth.

…

After leaving the tea stall, the two climbed back into the donkey cart.

Yan Jue perked up a little and began asking Qi Xianqing about arrays.

A few days ago at Suyang Immortal Mansion, Qi Xianqing’s way of breaking the restriction with a coin had looked unbelievably cool.

When Yan Jue had been at Five Dragons Mountain before, she had read some books about the Qiankun hexagrams, but she had never practiced them in actual use.

“Senior Sister, I’ve already learned the Spirit Communication Art.”

“Mm.”

“?” Yan Jue said, “What do you mean, ‘mm’?”

Qi Xianqing narrowed her eyes, her tone carrying a smile. “Not bad.”

Yan Jue: “…”

After confirming that Qi Xianqing really hadn’t understood what she meant, Yan Jue said blankly, “Shouldn’t you teach me a new martial art now?”

Qi Xianqing asked, “What do you want to learn?”

Yan Jue froze slightly.

How rare.

Qi Xianqing actually didn’t use a thousand reasons to block her.

Yan Jue: “I want to learn arrays from Senior Sister.”

The sun was fierce. She forced her eyes open and stared at Qi Xianqing without blinking.

Seeing her flushed cheeks and sweat all over her forehead, Qi Xianqing said softly, “Don’t ask for now. Let’s talk when we get to the inn.”

Yan Jue was stunned.

Qi Xianqing then took a handkerchief from her sleeve and handed it over.

Yan Jue couldn’t help muttering, “We’re using the same handkerchief. Is that appropriate…”

Before she even finished speaking, Yan Jue suddenly remembered that a few days ago at Suyang Immortal Mansion, she really had used the same handkerchief as Qi Xianqing.

Qi Xianqing’s light, drifting gaze swept over. Yan Jue raised her hand and wiped the sweat from her forehead with her sleeve, looking extremely awkward.

Qi Xianqing lowered her eyes, and an inexplicable trace of displeasure flickered through her heart.

…

The cave abode was the cave abode.

Inside the cave abode, the distance between the two of them had been drawn infinitely close; it was unavoidable that a sense of mutual dependence would arise.

But outside was outside.

Was Qi Xianqing feeling sorry for her? Yan Jue frowned. Impossible. She definitely just didn’t want to teach.

Not long after the two left the tea stall, they saw another one.

Yan Jue: “We can’t possibly run into two groups of water ghosts on this road. Shall we go over and take a look?”

The chance of encountering water ghosts twice in the same area really wasn’t high.

Qi Xianqing gave a slight nod, and the two walked toward the tea stall.

Just as they got close, they saw a man in his thirties lazily walk out from inside, holding a bowl of tea and looking at Qi Xianqing with a fawning smile. “Madam, come in and have a cup of tea—”

Before he even finished speaking, a wave of fierce sword qi swept over him. Reflected in the man’s pupils was a huge, semicircular blue-green sword glow.

Before the man could even scream, his body instantly turned to powder.

The tea bowl crashed to the ground, shattered to pieces.

…"

Qi Xianqing sheathed her sword and frowned. “Still a water ghost.”

Yan Jue stood behind her, breaking into a cold sweat.

Qi Xianqing was truly merciless when it came to ghosts and demons.

She didn’t know what it would look like if Qi Xianqing one day took a sword and hacked at a little fox.

Yan Jue stared at the man’s figure as it gradually vanished into the air, frowning slightly. “Why are there so many water ghosts in this area? I remember there should only be the Luoyun River nearby.”

Qi Xianqing was also puzzled and gave a slight shake of her head.

The two continued on, and soon saw yet another tea stall.

Yan Jue stared at the tea stall in the sunlight not far away, growing more and more suspicious.

Qi Xianqing glanced at her, her fingertips resting lightly on her sword as she walked forward.

Before the two even reached the stall, they saw a woman strolling out of it.

The woman looked to be in her twenties, wearing a light-yellow embroidered ruqun. She walked out of the tea stall, met Qi Xianqing and Yan Jue’s gazes, and her expression brightened as though she had been waiting a long time for customers and had finally gotten a few.

Looking at the two of them, she smiled and said, “Would the two guests like to come in and have some tea?”

At once, Yan Jue saw dense black qi on the woman’s face again.

Yan Jue glanced at Qi Xianqing and subconsciously frowned, waiting for the woman’s sharp sword strike.

Qi Xianqing did not draw her sword; instead, she walked in silently.

The tea-selling woman smiled and asked, “I wonder what kind of tea the guests would like? We have Snow Bud recently transported from Jiangnan, and there’s also Northland’s Zhichun. If you want to try something fresh, there’s also the immortal tea from Luan Terrace in the east.”

Qi Xianqing wore a snow-white cross-collared, narrow-sleeved patterned dress. At her waist hung the pitch-black immortal sword Zhuying. Those clear, deep peach blossom eyes looked through the veil without blinking as she said lightly, “Then Zhichun from the north.”

The woman: “Right away.”

She seemed extremely efficient and brisk, and quickly went over to pour the tea.

Yan Jue frowned slightly.

Perhaps because she was nervous, the black aura on this woman grew denser and denser…

Very soon, the woman brought over the Zhichun tea.

Qi Xianqing suddenly said, “May I ask, did the madam come today under someone’s instruction?”

With a sharp crash, the tea-selling woman’s face instantly turned ugly. “I don’t know what this guest means…”

“You don’t know?” Qi Xianqing looked at the tea leaves in the woman’s hands, then stood up and slowly drew the sword from behind her. “I can help the madam escape the sea of suffering.”

Zhuying came free of its sheath, exuding a faint blue-gray glow in the air.

The aura of a mid-Fusion Realm cultivator was already terrifying, much less when Qi Xianqing was a sword cultivator, born with a body of ironclad sword bones.

Faint sparks of electricity began spreading outward.

Thunder and lightning were the natural bane of all evil demons in the world. The water ghost’s face gradually turned blue, and the whole of her seemed to be soaked in an icy sea of thunder and lightning.

The woman bit her lip, her fingertips whitening as she clutched the teacup. “Guest, I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The pressure in the air suddenly grew even greater!

The tea bowl smashed to the ground with a piercing sound, and the tea-selling woman could not withstand it. She dropped straight to her knees. “Please spare me, Immortal Lord… I ask for nothing else. I only accidentally heard news that the Immortal Spirit Physique, a rare sight once in a hundred lifetimes, would pass through the foot of Luoyun Mountain today. Because I have been a water ghost for more than ten years and want to be reborn into a good family, I came here boldly to try my luck…”

Qi Xianqing sheathed her sword.

“Who spread this news?”

Her brows furrowed slightly, her expression grave.

Her trip down the mountain for training should have been known to no one except the Administrative Hall.

After all, she was the Immortal Spirit Physique; if her whereabouts were exposed to demons and ghosts, carrying out the mission would become extremely troublesome.

The tea-selling woman’s voice trembled a little. “Someone among the water ghosts spread it. As for who it was… this humble one doesn’t know…”

Qi Xianqing: “Killing people must be repaid with one’s life. With so much yin and evil energy on your body, even if you’re reborn into a good family in your next life, you’ll inevitably suffer the consequences of karma. It’s better not to do such things too often.”

The woman frowned. “This humble one also doesn’t want to be stained with this yin and evil energy, but I’ve been a ghost for too long and wandered the underworld for years. There’s nothing to be done…”

Qi Xianqing raised her eyes and looked at her calmly. “I can help wash away all the evil energy on your body.”

It turned out that ghosts and demons were always inevitably tainted with evil energy.

When the evil energy on the body became too deep, it would erode the ghost’s soul.

The soul had intelligence; the spiritual fragment did not.

When a ghost carried evil energy for years, its soul would be consumed.

Over time, the only intelligent part—the soul—would be used up entirely, leaving only the fragment.

Then the ghost would become a bewildered wandering shadow, a spirit with no destination.

Thus, if ghosts wanted to preserve their own sanity, they had to cleanse the yin and evil energy from their bodies regularly.

The tea-selling woman froze, then trembled all over with excitement. “Please, Immortal Lord, help this humble one wash away the evil energy. This humble one is endlessly grateful.”

Yan Jue was slightly stunned.

Qi Xianqing took something out of her Qiankun bag, then gently placed the dazzling Spirit-Transforming Pearl on the table.

The pearl’s radiance gradually enveloped the tea-selling woman. The latter anxiously prostrated herself within the light and closed her eyes.

Then Yan Jue watched as the woman smiled faintly and her body gradually dissolved into the air.

Yan Jue: “Didn’t you say you were helping her wash away the evil energy? Why did you…” directly transcend her?

Only then did she realize Qi Xianqing’s intention.

Water ghosts could not kill themselves, and most water ghosts didn’t have the courage to seek a cultivator to transcend them.

They could only search for a target and, by killing that target, gain rebirth in the Underworld.

Water ghosts in this world harmed people and took lives; not only did they harm others, it was also extremely agonizing for themselves.

It was better to transcend them and let them be reborn early.

Qi Xianqing truly had a heart of exquisite sevenfold delicacy.

Only…

Yan Jue couldn’t help complaining inwardly.

Qi Xianqing is so gentle to female ghosts…

When she dealt with those male water ghosts just now, she had clearly crushed them all with a single sword strike.

Yan Jue stared blankly at Qi Xianqing and suddenly thought that she really didn’t seem to have seen any men in the sect who were too close to Qi Xianqing.

A ridiculous thought suddenly rose in Yan Jue’s mind.

Could it be that Qi Xianqing likes women?!