The Immortal’s Poison

Wen Leyang has a virtuous and sincere character. Though he was kind-hearted he was not a foolish young lad and was capable of deep thinking. He had been considering a few points in his head. First of all, Chang Li is a very beautiful woman, so why was Grand Master Tuoxie willing to die instead of living together with her. Also, the Rabbit Demon which had an esteemed status was absolutely obedient to her and the monk had shouted ‘cat’ in fear when he first met her. When one added in her constantly evolving expressions, her out-of-this-world beauty, and her appearance which had remained unchanged for two thousand years…

Chang Li’s smile was innocent and warm, her red lips parted gently as she said four words in a light tone to him, “I’m a Cat Demon.” A light scent of orchids exuded from her breath.

Wen Leyang’s curiosity was greatly satisfied and he chortled, “I used to have a pet cat when I was younger, it ran away in the end.”

Chang Li, on the other hand, was stunned. She looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression and asked, “Are you not afraid of me?”

Wen Leyang was a youth of today’s modern age, he had read all the ‘Doraemon’ comics and ‘The Legend of Sealed Book’ when he was younger. He had also played role-playing games such as ‘The Legend of the Sword’ and ‘Fairy’ at the cyber café in the county town. So, to him and most of the teenagers of his generation, the word ‘demon’ no longer held a negative connotation in his heart. He had utterly no awareness as a spiritual practitioner and shook his head in a candid manner as he laughed, “Why should I be afraid of you? I’m not a mouse!”

Chang Li’s gaze was sharp and bright as she stared at Wen Leyang for a long while. She then held out her arm and patted his shoulder, “Young lad, you are much stronger than your great master!”

The rabbit demon monk Bu Le wondered what the relationship between Chang Li and Wen Leyang was. To his eyes, Wen Leyang was just a normal teenager with fine natural endowments. Bu Le continued to fawn at Chang Li, “Before I retired and lived in seclusion away from the world, I had left behind a phrase of Buddhist sutra at the temple. This sutra instructed all the Great Mercy Temple’s disciples and their disciple’s disciples to guard and protect Zhanyan Peak in the coming generations…”

Chang Li waved her arm and interrupted him, “I knew about all that. The little lad known as Hope Sense had told me before this. I spared him his life, you should send someone over to the peak to bring him back.”

The rabbit demon turned around to look at the little-mouthed monk and it was at this point that Wen Leyang realized that the little-mouthed monk who had appeared to be thirty years of age was also a rabbit demon.

The younger rabbit demon braced himself as he answered, “I’ve sent someone over…after seeing his caller ID.” The Great Mercy Temple had received Hope Sense’s call and even though they could not hear anything of note, they knew that something must have happened to him. So they had dispatched some of their monks to help.

Chang Li’s facial features were covered with a puzzled expression as she repeated with her head tilted, “His caller ID?”

Wen Leyang gave a brief explanation but it made Chang Li even more confused than before. She shook her head and pushed that thought aside as she spoke to the two rabbit demons, “The cave now lies empty so there’s no further need to guard it anymore. Do release the people that you’ve captured as well.”

The rabbit demon Bu Le had only chatted with Chang Li for a short while but he was no longer as reserved as he was before. He laughed and shook his head at her request, “If I were the one to go and hand this new decree over, all the monks would only see that the abbot from a thousand year ago had leaped back to life. They would all certainly be petrified to the point of madness. This matter will be handed over to Shan Duan, he’s outstanding with good judgment and he’s also the abbot of the temple!” As he said this, he turned and pointed towards the little-mouthed monk behind him.

The little-mouthed monk Shan Duan smiled shyly and said, “I shall pass the new decree now. Those people had thought that there was the birth of an extraordinary treasure on the mountain and made so much trouble because of that. If I were to release them now they will still make trouble on the mountain so I had no choice but to imprison them at the temple.”

There was a worried look on the old rabbit demon Bu Le’s face, he shook his head and added, “These people were bewitched and enchanted by sorcery; those demons and ghosts of earthly ancestors had been hidden away from the world for decades without any suspicious happenings. Yet in the recent years, they have begun to become utterly insane. Regardless of where they were, as long as there was any sign of disturbance or trouble, they would rush forward in great numbers as if they were looking for something. You should be more careful if you descend the mountain now, I’m afraid there will be more disruptions soon.”

The earthly ancestors were those who had cultivated a type of devilish sorcery and had remained hidden stealthily in the mortal world. They had been placid for decades but had suddenly become restless recently. So whether the place was a famous mountain or some great desert or lake, whenever anything unusual would happen they would be drawn to that area in great numbers. The few great Mountain Sects had begun to take notice as it seemed like these monsters would receive some form of information and were spreading their net in search of something unknown.

Though Bu Le and Shan Duan had demonic origins, yet they have cultivated many years of Dharma practice and prolonged intense meditation. They can be considered as reformed demons of justice.

Ever since the emergence of the ancient cave on Zhanyan Peak was revealed to the world, originally it was not an important occurrence but it had drawn in a chain of dispute on a grand scale. Nothing can be said of the two families of the Wen and Luo had come to investigate and look for their ancestors, but the cruel monsters who had also attempted to ascend the mountain and failed to pass the Great Mercy Temple’s blockade then sent out a rumor about the heaven-sent extraordinary treasure at the peak, catching the attention of the huge group of rogue cultivators who then arrived to cause trouble in their attempt to ascend the mountain.

Disdain showed on Chang Li’s face once again as she patted Wen Leyang’s shoulder and told the monk, “This is my junior, if he were ever inconvenienced by anyone else in the future…”

Both rabbit demons immediately puffed their chests out as their expressions turned serious and menacing, “Then they will also incur the wrath of the Great Mercy Temple! They should weigh themselves first if they wanted to look for trouble with the Mountain Sect’s five blessings! Oh, merciful Buddha.”

Chang Li raised her brow in puzzlement, “The five blessings?”

The rabbit demon Bu Le explained proudly, “There are five great Mountain Sects. Firstly the Three Mountains refers to the sects located in the Kunlun Mountains, Jilong Mountain, and Eyang Mountain, while the One Palace refers to the One Word Palace at Lake Luohai, they are not monks nor cultivators but have formed a sect of their own. Finally, the Great Mercy refers to our Great Mercy Temple on Mount Emei. These five sects are known as the five blessings as they help those who follow the right path to bring benefits to the world.

Wen Leyang laughed heartily at the explanation as the form of address was so incredible that it sounded like it was from a folklore.

The younger rabbit demon took out a name card from his pocket and gave it to him, “Please do call us if you need anything else.”

Wen Leyang was frank, so he recounted the incident of his seventeen clansmen who were buried alive after being hit by an evil spell on that unnamed mountain slope before asking, “Do you know who would be capable of doing that?”

The little rabbit demon frowned and pondered for a while. His answer, however, disappointed Wen Leyang greatly as it was the same answer that the old monk Ji Fei had said. They both mentioned that such dark sorcery, while relatively common, yet this particular spell had never been heard of for a long time, it was a long-lost art. Of those who had been trying to ascend to the mountain peak, most of their strength was at a normal level but there was one particular monster with an unknown name who was extremely difficult to handle. By the time Shan Duan had arrived the unnamed one had already escaped.

The old monk Bu Le was afraid that Chang Li might still be displeased, he tapped his chest confidently and laughed, “Don’t worry, little brother. This matter had happened on Mount Emei and our Great Mercy Temple will take the matter on. I will inform you immediately if we know of any new developments.”

Wen Leyang nodded his head and continued to ask, “Have both the great masters heard of the Sun Dynasty Palace?”

Shan Duan was obviously relieved as he asked with a righteous indignation, “Did they offend you? No, I don’t care! I will make them come to your family’s place and humbly apologize to all of you in a short while. Whether to pay with one’s life for a murder or to pay back the money owed in a debt, they ought to do what needs to be done!”

The prestige of being connected to a large sect was indeed quite sufficient.

Wen Leyang laughed, “It’s best if we can have a discussion with them as there were some things that we have yet to fully understand.”

Chang Li waited for them to finish talking before nodding to the two monks. She grabbed Wen Leyang and walked back out of the courtyard, “Foolish fellow, if you ever need anything you should seek help from these two monks. I had laid the foundations for Bu Le’s immortal roots and according to the lineage of demonic cultivation, he is my disciple. If you need help he wouldn’t dare to ignore you.”

Wen Leyang looked into her eyes as his own were filled with questions.

Chang Li laughed in a free and easy manner, “I will now walk around everywhere in the world. Even if he’s dead, he would have left some bones behind somewhere. Moreover, I do not believe that he would have died so soon. There are so many old demons in the world so I should be able to discover some clues about his whereabouts. I’m out of here.”

Wen Leyang had guessed that she would not stay with him for too long, yet he utterly did not expect that she would leave so abruptly. He shouted at her elegant and rapidly receding figure, “Look for the Wen family village at the Nine Peaks Mountain at Western Chuan, number 138…” But before he could finish saying the address, Chang Li waved her hand and disappeared into the dark night.

Wen Leyang’s heart, however, felt slightly emptier.

Outside the courtyard, a group of monks rushed forward with an attitude of utmost respect. They had been waiting for Wen Leyang to come out so that they could send them off the mountain.

The elders of the Wen family saw Wen Leyang walk out of the courtyard alone. They looked at each other in a peculiar manner but did not ask any questions. Wen Leyang walked alongside Fourth Elder Wen and told him, “Fourth Grandpa, Wen Xiaoyi is waiting outside.”

Fourth Elder Wen nodded his head at first, then he jumped up abruptly and smacked his hand hard on Wen Leyang’s head as he scolded angrily, “Little b*stard, if there’s even one strand of hair missing from her head, I’d skin you alive!”

Grand Elder Luo’s chin was pointed almost skywards, his eyes were even more swollen now and it was almost impossible for him to open them, yet he still laughed at Wen Leyang’s misfortune as he asked, “Who’s Wen Xiaoyi? That name sounds like she’s a little girl, hehe. The children of the Wen family are indeed terrifying, they would dare to bring a maiden along to wherever they go in the world.”

Wen Leyang nodded at Grand Elder Luo and said in all honesty, “That, err…Luo Wangfu is also waiting together with Wen Xiaoyi for our return.”