CHAPTER 709: 585 LITTLE PENGLAI

The Dongxuan Immortal had the gall to shamelessly talk about how difficult her life had been, hoping to recover the three Snake God incarnations from Shi Feiyang.

Her five Snake God incarnations were different from those of the Mysterious Sect, which housed their Second Primordial Spirit, and even different from the Evil Demon Cultivators who practiced with the Three Corpses Primordial Spirit. Those were divisions of their own Primordial Spirits, condensed from Essence Energy, and usually housed within lifeless objects like Treasure Beads.

Her five were created using Substitute Gu as a medium to bridge her Primordial Spirit with those of the five Snake Demons, and then she suppressed and controlled them with her powerful spiritual power.

The advantage of this method was speed. In a very short time, she had subdued the five Snake Demons, each with over three thousand years of Dao Level, and refined them into her own External Bodies.

The disadvantage, however, was that these incarnations were not as easily controlled as splitting one’s own Primordial Spirit like in the Mysterious Sect, and if she were injured and not strong enough to suppress the five Snake Gods, she would suffer backlash.

Of course, the Dongxuan Immortal didn’t cultivate the five incarnations to enhance her strength or to engage in duels, but rather to have them replace her in facing her third Great Heavenly Tribulation, where they were expected to die in her stead. In that respect, they could be considered usable.

Shi Feiyang, of course, wouldn’t so easily hand them over, instead, he demanded that she lift the curse from Bai Guanhong.

The Dongxuan Immortal could only wryly smile and admit that she couldn’t lift the curse unless she herself perished.

Shi Feiyang knew she wasn’t lying about this; he had studied the curse on Bai Guanhong in detail and knew it was virtually unbreakable unless the Dongxuan Immortal was killed.

"With your vast Divine Power and Spells, I’m sure you won’t need those five Snake Demons to easily transcend the tribulation," Shi Feiyang played tai chi with her, his stance being that he was open to negotiations, but she needed to show genuine sincerity.

The Dongxuan Immortal understood his meaning and produced two gourds; one contained Golden Spiders and the like, the other was filled with Hundred Poison Golden Silkworm Gu, all of which she had previously taken from Bai Guanhong by force during their duel.

Then she continued playing poor with Shi Feiyang, explaining how she lost all her Magical Treasures and painstakingly nurtured Gu during her last crossing of the Second Quadruple Nine Heavenly Tribulation, leaving her with almost nothing on hand now. The remaining Gu insects were far inferior to the likes of the Golden Spider and its companions.

"The most precious thing I have left is my goddaughter, the Little Mistress Tianpeng. If you hold her in any regard, take her back with you to be your concubine. Although her Mana is weak and she’s of little use for major purposes, she could at least serve tea and attend to you day and night," she offered.

Shi Feiyang replied, "I don’t want those. I only want you to help me with one thing. If you do this, not only will I give you the three Snake God incarnations, but I will also assist you in transcending the tribulation. What do you think?"

To the Dongxuan Immortal, the Snake God incarnations were not that crucial; they were just substitutes for death, useful only for playing some role before the Great Heavenly Tribulation due to being refined from three-thousand-year-old Snake Demons.

Her spirit lifted when Shi Feiyang mentioned he could assist her in transcending the tribulation. Not only was his Mana formidable, but his knowledge of Arrays was profoundly deep. Most crucially, the two Cosmic Treasures he possessed were very enticing. If he genuinely helped her transcend the tribulation, his aid would be much more significant than the three Snake Deity substitutes.

Shi Feiyang declared, "The Fairy Yu Wa on West Sea Island has an item, a Heavenly Treasure, that I want to acquire."

The Dongxuan Immortal was acquainted with Yu Wa: "That Fairy Leng Yun has been renowned for a long time, her Mana profound, and her temperament fiery; she is not easy to engage with if you wish to take something from her..."

She glanced at Shi Feiyang with a smile, "With your strength and methods, it shouldn’t be hard for you, right?"

"If I forcibly take it, it indeed wouldn’t be difficult, but I want her to willingly give it to me, and that’s not easy."

The Dongxuan Immortal paused, puzzled: "That’s indeed a problem. That Yu Wa... I know she has two Heavenly Treasures—a Ruyi Golden Hook and a mysterious Jade Bowl capable of emitting a cold light. With your Divine Power, you certainly wouldn’t be interested in that hook; you must be after that Jade Bowl."

"Exactly."

The Dongxuan Immortal thought for a moment, "How about I visit her first, threatening to annihilate her household, and then you come in as a hero to save her? Or, I could seize that Jade Bowl and pass it on to you?"

Shi Feiyang shook his head; he disdained such actions, or else he would have done so already: "The fate that Yu Wa should have avoided because of me has been delayed but is now erupting ahead of time due to me as well. In no more than three days, Shi Pi the Elder from the Great Asura Sect will seek her out for revenge. At that time, there will be an opportunity."

The Dongxuan Immortal laughed, "That’s perfect. You can nobly intercede at her moment of crisis, save her life, and then claim the Jade Bowl."

Shi Feiyang shook his head again, "Yu Wa is stubborn and extreme. If I do that, according to the Gua Xiang, she would likely destroy herself along with the treasure."

The Dongxuan Immortal was out of ideas, "In that case, please tell me what you would like me to do."

"For someone like Yu Wa, you cannot be forceful; forcing the issue will lead to destruction, and you cannot be overly gentle either, as that would encourage arrogance and disrespect. You must strike a balance between hard and soft. Her disciple killed the beloved apprentice of Shi Pi the Elder, and he will surely seek revenge on West Sea Island. She must already be aware and agitated, though she verbally resists, inside she’s like an ant on a hot pan."

"Fellow Taoist, you can find an excuse to land on the island, and subtly show an interest in forming a connection with her. She will most certainly treat you as a lifesaver and ask you to stay on the island. After three days, when Shi Pi the Elder arrives and she’s backed into a corner, you can advise her to ask for my help by offering the Jade Bowl as a bargaining chip. This will give her some wiggle room, and she will willingly hand over the item."

Dongxuan Immortal understood, "That’s quite easy. I have known Shi Pi the Elder for many years. Fellow Taoist, allow me to make some preparations."

She got up, moved swiftly, and flew away. She found Fairy Tianpeng and Tianpeng Child, as well as Hong Antong and others, left some instructions, and then returned to ask Shi Feiyang if there was anything else he wished to entrust to her.

Once everything was properly arranged, she left Divine Dragon Island and flew toward West Sea Island.

In the East Sea, far from the mainland and close to the Eastern Extreme, there was a large area known as Little Penglai.

West Sea Island was one of the islands within the waters of Little Penglai. There were already two female immortals living on the island, one named Wen Liangyu, the Fairy of Morning Frost, and the other Piao Ao Pei’er.

Yu Wa had settled on the island for less than two hundred years, and while the original two female immortals’ Immortal Mansions were very simple, Yu Wa had embarked on grandiose construction.

In a large freshwater lake to the east of the island, she used spells to solidify water into walls and built a nine-tier Crystal Palace, half submerged and half above water.

The walls of water were ten zhang thick and had a hard, smooth exterior, tougher than jade, impervious to ordinary Flying Swords. Yet inside, they connected with the lake, where thousands of colorful fish and shrimp played amidst the walls, and turtles and dragons roamed in various intriguing forms.

The floors and eaves of each level were then overlaid with copious amounts of gold, silver, pearls, and precious stones, emitting dazzling and bizarre colors, too beautiful for words.

From a distance, Dongxuan Immortal saw the "Crystal Palace" over the lake and laughed, "She really is someone who loves extravagance, is stubborn and self-important, and cares too much about outward appearances!"

She had lived for many years and actually knew Piao Ao Pei’er on the island, so she went straight to Pei’er’s Immortal Mansion and knocked on the door, pretending to be there to visit a friend.

Although Wen Liangyu and Pei’er were Independent Immortals of the side paths, they had both completed their Outer Skills. In these years, they lived in seclusion on the island, focusing on cultivation, merely waiting for their inner and outer skills to reach Perfection before ascending to the Spiritual Space Immortal Realm.

These two were neighbors with Yu Wa, and their relationship was lukewarm. They disapproved of the ostentatious and extravagant behavior of Yu Wa and her disciples, who lacked the frugal desires characteristic of cultivators. Looking at their own Immortal Mansions, they were merely two basic caves, with a few sets of stone and wood furniture such as tables, chairs, beds, and couches, with even the walls and floors left unadorned.

Furthermore, Yu Wa and her disciples were arrogant and looked down on others, especially Yu Xiangzhu, who led a group of disciples that caused trouble and made enemies everywhere, inevitably inviting disaster for the future.

For this reason, Yu Wa wanted to forge connections with the two due to their strong mana, but they always kept their distance from Yu Wa.

This time, the two had calculated in advance that Yu Wa was heading for disaster and so had left early to travel to Tianpeng Mountain’s Immortal Mansion to visit friends. Their caves were sealed with stone doors, cobwebs hung askew, indicating they had departed some time ago.

Dongxuan Immortal stood outside the cave, calling out a few times. After calculating with her fingers, she shook her head with a soft sigh, leaned on her walking stick, and turned to leave.

She looked very picturesque, a kindly-faced old lady leaning on a black jade walking stick, her thick hair already turned silvery white and pinned up with a hairpin.

Clearly, she was a recluse of the world!

Yu Wa had over twenty male and female disciples, all possessing formidable mana. Had they gone elsewhere, they could have established their own sects and become leaders of their own schools.

Dongxuan Immortal did not hide her presence when she came, and had been spotted several hundred miles away from West Sea Island.

Yu Wa’s disciples kept a secret watch on her. Seeing her knock on Piao Ao Pei’er’s door and failing to find anyone, then turning to leave, a female disciple flew over, "May I ask who you are, fellow Taoist? What is your relationship with Elder Pei? What important matter brings you to West Sea Island to look for him?"

Yu Wa’s disciples were accustomed to arrogance, and although their tone wasn’t very strong, the questioning conveyed a domineering presence.

Dongxuan Immortal didn’t mind and responded with a smile, "I’m an old granny from Central Earth South Border who specializes in Gu Refining, my Daoist name is Dongxuan. This time, I came to the East Sea to gather herbs for Gu Refining and I remembered that I hadn’t seen Daoist friend Pei’er for several hundred years. I was wondering if she was here in seclusion, so I came to see her. To my disappointment, the cave is empty. Upon calculating, with her level of diligence in cultivation, by now, she should have already ascended to the Spiritual Space Immortal Realm. Alas, such a good friend and it’s a pity I wasn’t able to meet her one last time."

The female disciple was Chu Ling, one of Yu Wa’s, ranking just behind Yu Xiangzhu, but with the most Magical Treasures.

She too had some knowledge and, although she rarely visited Central Earth, she had heard of Dongxuan Immortal’s fame. She quickly introduced herself and invited Dongxuan Immortal to visit the palace as a guest.

Initially, Dongxuan Immortal feigned reluctance to be a bother, but after Chu Ling insisted, she gracefully accepted the invitation and followed Chu Ling into Yu Wa’s "Crystal Palace."