Chapter 51: Coincidental Encounter
「On the third night after leaving Qianmu Temple.」
Because they were in a rush, Wang Ping and his group didn’t have a fixed place to rest. They traveled along the main road as long as there was daylight, so they usually made temporary camps along the roadside.
Today was no different. After the sky had completely darkened, they found a nearby spot to make camp. Just like the previous two nights, the twenty-some disciples broke off into small groups after settling in, sitting around the campfires and chatting quietly.
Atop an old tree next to the camp, Wang Ping hid himself in the darkness. He meditated, using the surrounding vegetation to observe his surroundings. In a small, nearby river, Yu Lian had returned to her original size and was at the bottom searching for her favorite river shrimp.
Half an hour later, Yu Lian must have had her fill of fun. Her massive body, over sixteen feet long, shot out of the river. She soared through the air and landed beside Wang Ping. Her huge body didn’t shrink; instead, it slowly coiled around the old tree beneath Wang Ping, resting its large head on his lap.
Then, the Spiritual Qi surrounding each of them slowly began to merge. As Yu Lian aged, the Spiritual Qi in her Inner Qi Sea was spontaneously transforming into that of a Water Spirit. Wang Ping, being a Wood Spirit, perfectly complemented this according to the five elements’ cycle of generation. Thus, when their Spiritual Qi combined, they naturally formed a small Spirit Gathering Array.
As time crept into the dead of night, Wang Ping used his body’s Wood Spirit Qi to connect with all the plants within a three-li radius. He could instantly detect any disturbance within this area.
「Nearing 3:00 AM.」
This was the time of day when people were most relaxed.
Suddenly, Wang Ping, deep in meditation, opened his eyes. He first looked down at the camp. Aside from the two disciples on night watch, all the others were in a meditative trance.
"Is it mice?" Yu Lian’s voice sounded as her form slowly shrank, coiling around Wang Ping’s wrist.
"Yes!"
They were real mice, and there were a lot of them, slowly approaching the camp from underground.
Wang Ping formed a hand seal for a Magic Formula, awakening his spiritual sense. Combining this with the perception from his Wood Spirit Qi, he instantly located the source of the problem. He sent a warning to Liu Shuang and the other disciples using the ’Sound Transmission Technique,’ then shot toward a scarecrow in the middle of a nearby vegetable patch at top speed!
As he neared the scarecrow, Yu Lian, perfectly in sync with his thoughts, suddenly expanded to her full size. She circled around him and cast the ’Sword Control Technique,’ unsheathing the Longsword from his back and sending it stabbing behind the scarecrow. At the same time, Wang Ping formed the hand seal for the ’All Plants Are Soldiers’ Magic Formula. The moment the Longsword descended, he barked a decree: "Form!"
CLANG!
As the sound of metal striking metal rang out, two colossal figures formed from the bok choy in the vegetable patch. Using the fleeting memories Wang Ping had given them, they each grew a massive fist. They settled into a horse stance, sank their qi to their Dantian, and gathered a visible aura of Wood Spirit Qi. Then, they threw their fists at the shadowy figure behind the scarecrow.
Two muffled thuds hit Wang Ping’s ears. He saw a hulking man, over eight feet tall, block the two punches with long blades held to his sides, but the tremendous force still sent him flying.
Wang Ping’s eyes, veiled in Wood Spirit Qi, clearly saw the figure in the moonlight. He couldn’t help but freeze in shock...
’Dual-wielded long blades, another long blade brandished by its tail, and stitch marks all over its head... Isn’t this the same Mouse Demon that escaped from Sanhe Prefecture over twenty years ago?’
The creature opposite him was also stunned when it recognized Wang Ping, but it was met with the Longsword controlled by Yu Lian. Wang Ping steadied his mind, dispelled the ’All Plants Are Soldiers’ spell, and focused on merging his Wood Spirit Qi with Yu Lian’s Qi Sea.
The next moment, the Longsword in the air visibly accelerated. In the blink of an eye, it was thrusting at the Mouse Demon. The attack was so sudden it made the mane on the demon’s head stand on end, and it hastily raised its twin blades to defend itself.
CLANG!
A metallic clang, louder than before, echoed through the night. The Mouse Demon’s entire body shuddered as if struck by lightning. Though he had blocked the Longsword, all the strength had gone out of him.
Wang Ping seized the opportunity. With a single thought, the Longsword gathered power before the Mouse Demon, poised to strike again. Seeing this, the Mouse Demon decisively threw down its blades, took out a gray Command Flag, and activated it with its demonic qi...
From Wang Ping’s perspective, the moment the demonic qi enveloped the Command Flag, countless fine gray threads composed of a strange energy appeared. They traveled through the Spiritual Qi in the air, attempting to invade his spiritual sense!
"Leave it to me!"
Yu Lian said confidently, transferring control of the ’Sword Control Technique’ back to Wang Ping. Then, the Spiritual Qi rippling around her body formed expanding circles of watery patterns, shattering all the incoming gray threads.
By this time, the Longsword under Wang Ping’s control was already descending upon the Mouse Demon’s face...
"Grandpa, spare me! Spare my life, Grandpa..."
The Mouse Demon squeezed its eyes shut and begged for mercy. Its voice was utterly wretched, as if its own mother had just died, a complete mismatch for its bizarre and imposing appearance.
The Longsword stopped just short of the Mouse Demon’s neck, its blade already buried slightly in his neck!
Despite the Mouse Demon’s pleas, Wang Ping didn’t lower his guard. Channeling power through Yu Lian’s Qi Sea, he cast ’All Plants Are Soldiers’ again. He animated a vine at the edge of the vegetable patch, which tightly bound the Mouse Demon. Then, he took his captive back to the camp.
...
Back at the camp, the disciples had all been roused from their meditation. They had split into five groups and were standing guard in every direction.
Beside a campfire, Wang Ping toyed with the gray Command Flag the Mouse Demon had used. It was a type of Demon Soldier that could invade a person’s mind, but its price was a brief emotional breakdown. For instance, the Mouse Demon was currently muttering to itself, lost in endless self-reproach.
"He’s fine now. He’s just faking it," Yu Lian whispered as a reminder.
Wang Ping perked up at her words. He looked at Liu Shuang beside him and said, "Shut him up. I have some questions for him."
Liu Shuang drew a hidden dagger from her waist and started forward, but the Mouse Demon immediately stopped its nonsensical muttering. Its bound body ceased its twitching, and it lifted its head to look at Wang Ping. "No need, no need! I’m perfectly fine now! Whatever you want to ask, I promise I’ll tell you everything and hide nothing!"
He tried to flash a fawning smile as he spoke, but it only looked grotesque and sickening.
"Are you the only demon here?"
"That’s right!"
"I find it hard to believe you have the guts for this."
"I just thought I’d be poisoning someone, that’s all! Poison is my specialty..." the Mouse Demon gabbled. "Oh, right! I’m with the Court now! I’m the adjutant to the Mountain God of Taipeng Mountain!"
"If you’re with the Court, why would you try to poison us? That’s absolute nonsense," Liu Shuang scolded.
"A misunderstanding! It’s all a misunderstanding..."
The Mouse Demon said in a tearful voice, "My Grandpa Mountain God received intel that a group of Evil Cultivators was passing through here. He ordered me to scout things out. If I had the chance, I was to poison you first, and then he would lead his grand army to wipe you out..."
Liu Shuang’s brow furrowed. She leaned in and whispered to Wang Ping, "Taipeng Mountain is thirty li north of here."
Wang Ping looked at the Mouse Demon, who didn’t seem to be lying, and a theory began to form in his mind. He took a deep breath and said, "Do you realize what you’ve done is tantamount to rebellion? If I report this truthfully, Taipeng Mountain will be subjected to a full-scale search!"
"We’ve been framed! Framed! We were tricked by a scoundrel!"
"Then tell me, who is this ’scoundrel’?"
The Mouse Demon’s eyes darted around. "It’s..." He had just spoken one word, and as Wang Ping leaned in to listen, the rest seemed to get stuck in his throat. The Mouse Demon’s eyes rolled back in his head.
The next moment, Wang Ping sensed the fleeting aura of an Earth Spirit.
"He’s dead?" Liu Shuang exclaimed.