Gong Qi held the message-bearing talisman and looked at Lang Jiuchuan, explaining, “I gave our young master the full account of everything we learned at Tongtian Pavilion, including our conjectures. I imagine he has something to convey in reply.”
Lang Jiuchuan nodded.
Gong Qi made no attempt to conceal anything — right there in front of them, he burned the message-bearing talisman. The voice of the Gong Family’s young master came through and fell upon the ears of those present.
Once the talisman was consumed by flame, the message concluded.
Lang Jiuchuan pressed on the area of her Spirit Platform, trying to push down the aching, swollen, stabbing pain in her spiritual soul — but accidentally pressed on the raised lump there, and let out an involuntary hiss. “In other words,” she said, “when the accomplished Daoist of the Cong Family perished, he perished together with the demonic evil, so no remains were ever found, and the tomb in the Cong Family’s ancestral ground is merely a cenotaph — a burial of clothes and effects, nothing more.”
A’Piao frowned. “From the way the Gong young master spoke, it seems he suspects the Corpse Fiend was formed from that elder of the Cong Family — but something feels off to me. The evidence seems insufficient.”
Gong Qi said, “Each of the great Xuan Clan families keeps records of important events for later generations to consult. I have read some of those historical records. The distinguished elderly Daoist of the Cong Family — that founding elder — encountered a wandering Daoist during his youthful travels and learned from him. Though he was rather full of himself, his talent was extraordinary: he achieved Foundation Establishment before the age of fifty. Had he not been defeated in a spiritual contest against a mountain demon, he truly might have led the Cong Family into the ranks of the Xuan Clan.”
A’Piao felt considerable contempt, but now was not the time to mock the Xuan Clan’s air of superiority, so he bit his tongue.
“Following what the young master said, let us place ourselves in the position of the Cong Family and reason it through. The Cong Family had once been on the verge of ascending to the Xuan Clan, yet fell just short through an unfortunate stroke of fate — the very person who could have led the clan to glory fell, and was that not an enormous regret? Now, suppose we hold a forbidden technique in our hands: once perfected, it becomes a great weapon for the clan — one that can likewise be used to identify talent and expand resources, and so walk once more toward the pinnacle. Would that temptation be sufficient to justify the risk?”
A’Piao laughed coldly. “Cultivators — more than a hundred years ago — mostly cultivated the heart, the body, and themselves. Those who sought the Great Dao seldom involved themselves in the mundane world of men, and even less so would they crave positions of power. Whether cultivating deep in the mountains or amid the secular world, they all kept a heart unmoved by the world’s strife. They were nothing like the Xuan Clan, who resort to any means for fame and profit, looking down on all beneath them.”
Gong Qi’s expression grew uncomfortable.
Lang Jiuchuan said weakly, “Proprietor Piao, I am forcing myself to stay upright here — not so I could listen to you pick apart the Xuan Clan’s conduct. Once this matter is resolved, I will listen to you denounce them for three days and three nights if you like — but for now, can we speak to the matter at hand? Time is running short.”
A’Piao shot Gong Qi a glare.
Gong Qi quickly continued, “Let us assume for now that the Cong Family has such a motive. Who, then, would they choose to become the subject of this Corpse Fiend cultivation? The ideal candidate would be someone they could control, someone closely bound to the Cong Family — perhaps even someone who could pass something on to future generations. Beyond their own people, who else would do? That founding elder was a figure of extraordinary talent: if he were cultivated into a Corpse Fiend, even if he could not be raised into a full demonic evil, that Corpse Fiend alone would already be near impossible to deal with.”
“No — it was said that to make the demonic evil sufficiently full of grievance and ferocity, a person must be tortured to death and then their soul sealed within. That founding elder died a natural death.” A’Piao cut in.
But Lang Jiuchuan said, “Torture to death is only one method. To achieve sufficient grievance and ferocity, killing is not strictly necessary — deep unwillingness and resentment can also suffice.”
A’Piao still shook his head. “That still does not add up. The founding elder was worn down in a spiritual contest against a mountain demon and fell because his cultivation was exhausted. Even if his remains were intact, what of his soul? The Cong Family cannot have been like you — peering into foreknowledge — and known in advance he would fall, waiting to snatch his body for the purpose of cultivating a demonic evil, and seizing his soul in the bargain. If anyone in the clan possessed such ability, why would they need to worry about not reaching the pinnacle of cultivation?”
Lang Jiuchuan and Gong Qi both fell silent. Put that way, it did indeed seem not to add up.
She closed her eyes slightly and recalled the scene she had seen within the blood mist — the Corpse Fiend standing beside the demon infant, its appearance…
“It is not that founding elder,” Lang Jiuchuan snapped her eyes open. “That Corpse Fiend — it appeared to be no older than its early twenties. The founding elder only achieved Foundation Establishment when he was already at the age of knowing Heaven’s mandate. Foundation Establishment can extend one’s lifespan, but it cannot cause a person to grow young again and become a child, so it is not him.”
Gong Qi was stunned. “You have seen the Corpse Fiend? Where?”
A’Piao said coldly, “What do you think left her in this state — of course it was from observing the future during the divination.”
Gong Qi was shaken to the core. The look in his eyes as he regarded her became complicated.
So when she had mocked their Xuan Clan for being unwilling to spend their spiritual power and cultivation on divination, she had said it from a position of real confidence — she herself was willing to expend her cultivation for the sake of all living beings and peer into the future.
Lang Jiuchuan said, “Let us set aside the previous conjecture and suppose instead — what if the founding elder’s exhaustion of cultivation was real, but his death was not? What if at that time, he was actually still alive? If he lived, he could cultivate a great weapon for the Cong Family, giving them a chance to return to the ranks of the Xuan Clan — is that not so?”
Just as she had said — even when fierce winds rise, one does not abandon the will to live. What if that arrogant founding elder was also a bit unhinged, and subscribed to exactly this belief?
The more they analyzed it, the more apparent it became that the Cong Family had laid down a great game of strategy many years ago. The board had long since been set, the pieces of general, elephant, and horse all lying dormant and waiting — biding their time for the moment to strike and seize the citadel, to become kings and lords, to restore the clan to glory.
“Then what sort of person would this Corpse Fiend be?” Gong Qi murmured.
“It should be a member of the Cong Family — from the bone structure, he bears a resemblance to Cong Fuma in several features.”
Lang Jiuchuan thought of the Corpse Fiend’s appearance, and the already-damaged spiritual soul that had suffered Heaven’s Punishment and not yet recovered trembled afresh. Blood seeped from the corner of her mouth — a sight that made A’Piao’s eyelid twitch.
“Stop thinking about those images. Be careful — the Corpse Fiend won’t even have been found yet and you’ll already be done for yourself. Since you have already seen the future, let them go and encircle and destroy it. The Xuan Clan receives the devoted belief of ten thousand common people and has no idea how much of that devotion they have indulged in — it is time for them to put in real effort.” A’Piao’s gaze was unfriendly as he threw a sideways glance at Gong Qi.
He was afraid that the spiritual soul his master had worked so hard to help his little aggrieved one gather together would collapse again — and then he would be the one to suffer, with perhaps not even a paper body left to replace.
Lang Jiuchuan hesitated no further. She passed the painting over and said, “The birth of the demonic evil is inextricably bound to the Corpse Fiend. If the Corpse Fiend is destroyed, then regardless of whether it is the Cong Family or someone else, their scheme to cultivate a great weapon will come to nothing. So whether or not the Cong Family laid this plot is not what matters — what matters is finding the Corpse Fiend and destroying it.”
Gong Qi took it and looked down. His pupils contracted sharply. “This is—”
“A scene from when the demonic evil will be born. I do not recognize this mountain, but I believe Princess Zhao’an has already been moved there to await the birth.” Lang Jiuchuan said. “Truly, years of planning. If they want this to come to a perfect conclusion, then the Corpse Fiend must also already be there waiting. Find that mountain — find and destroy it there.”
Gong Qi’s breathing quickened. “You said the time left is not much — exactly when?”
“The fifteenth day of the first lunar month — when the moon is full.”
Gong Qi’s whole body went rigid. That meant only a few short days remained.
He turned to go at once. Lang Jiuchuan called after him, “Gong Qi — can we trust you? Can we trust the young master of the Gong Family?”