Chapter 43: Growing Smaller

Langyuan City covered a vast area, with a permanent population of about one million. While this number might seem negligible in a modern metropolis, it was a massive population for an ancient city. And there were at least a hundred cities like Langyuan City on the Hengze Continent.

Of course, large cities were generally built around major sects. Beyond Langyuan City, there were also Xishan City, Baigu City, and others. However, because of the great distances, with Wen Xu’s current cultivation at the seventh layer of Qi Refining, he would have basically no chance of visiting them within the next three years.

“Little disciple, do you know why the cultivation world has no imperial rule?”

“Because of cultivators.”

Wen Xu came from the Mortal Realm, which was ruled by imperial power. Upon arriving in the cultivation world, he was naturally astonished by the city-state management system of “small states with few people.” To him back then, the Emperor ruled by divine right and a country could not go a single day without a ruler. Yet the Hengze Continent managed to achieve “self-governance without a ruler.” The crux of the matter naturally lay with the “cultivators.”

Cultivators harnessed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth for their own use, strengthening their bodies, extending their lifespans, and empowering themselves. Imagine how terrifying it would be if the emperor of a nation could live forever.

People change. The history books were filled with wise rulers who worked tirelessly in their youth, only to become fatuous and tyrannical in their later years, deaf to any honest advice.

“Exactly. It is because cultivators live too long. The Hengze Continent used to have imperial rule, but there are checks and balances under the Heavenly Dao. If a cultivator becomes a ruler, they cannot cultivate. No one is an exception.”

“Then why can the city lords of individual cities do it?”

Venerable Chengwei smiled. “How do you know that being a city lord doesn’t hinder their cultivation?”

“It actually does?”

“It does, though I hear it is very minor. Besides, no matter which city it is, as long as the city lord still wishes to progress in their cultivation, they will not interfere too much in the city’s mundane affairs.”

Wen Xu realized. “So that’s how it is. The imperial power in the cultivation world disappeared because rulers preferred longevity and ascension?”

“Yes. And who knows if it was intentional, but back then, several rulers in the cultivation world had excellent cultivation talent, and most of their descendants were also cultivators. Do you know of the Sui Family of Hanhai? They used to be royalty.”

Wen Xu: “…I don’t.”

“So, your master suddenly remembered today, Ah Xu, you were born with an Emperor Fate. Now that you have stepped onto the path of cultivation, you probably can never be a mortal emperor. Do you feel it is a pity?”

Wen Xu shook his head, completely at peace with this. “Master, your disciple is also a mortal at heart.” So, even if he had a choice, he would probably still choose to enter the Dao rather than become some emperor.

What was more, he had never had a choice.

Besides, how could one become an emperor based on fate alone? Ever since he was abandoned in a pile of beggars, no one would ever expect him to become the ruler of the world. And with his current personality, he had no desire to take responsibility for the common people.

As for this so-called Emperor Fate, if not for his master, he might never have known about it until the day he died.

“Exactly. Being an emperor is nowhere near as satisfying as being a cultivator!”

As master and disciple chatted, they finally arrived at the Gongshang Bistro. It happened to be the dinner rush, and the place was packed with guests. There were even quite a few delivery boys waiting outside. Before they even stepped inside, the aroma of hot pot wafted over.

What a pity, a wisp of divine sense cannot eat hot pot, Venerable Chengwei sighed to himself with regret.

Wen Xu wore the disciple robes of Yonglu Mountain. In Langyuan City, the commoners might not recognize the city lord, but they would never fail to recognize the symbol of Yonglu Mountain. Thus, even though he was blind, no one dared to show him the slightest disrespect.

“Immortal Master Wen, please come inside. Are you here to see the owner?”

“He’s here too?”

The shopkeeper wiped the sweat from his brow and hurriedly led him upstairs. “Yes, yes. Something happened today, and the other Immortal Master Xia is here as well. Fortunately, no lives were lost. Heavens be praised.”

“Lives? What happened?”

Wen Xu sensed the atmosphere in the shop. It did not seem like anything had happened.

“It wasn’t a major disaster, it’s just… the snakehead fish in the shop were stolen again. That wicked thief was so out of his mind that he even kidnapped a little girl and threw her into a fish barrel. Fortunately, the child was blessed with great luck and nothing serious happened to her.”

Wen Xu was taken aback. So, the fish thief had been caught? That was good news.

He reached the door and was just about to knock and enter when Bian Chunzhou rushed out with a panicked look, nearly colliding with him head-on.

“I didn’t run into you, did I, Wen Xuxu? What are you doing here?”

“I’m not made of paper.” Wen Xu pursed his lips. “What happened? Why are you in such a panic?”

“Oh right, I need to go fetch a Mystic Physician! You go on in, Senior Sister Xia Ying is inside.”

With that, Bian Chunzhou hurried downstairs and disappeared down the stairwell in moments.

Wen Xu pushed the door open and entered. He sensed that Xia Ying was using her spiritual energy to nurture the little girl in her arms. Seeing him enter, she did not interrupt her spiritual energy, only saying, “Little Grand-Uncle Master, you’ve come.”

Venerable Chengwei: Aha, I almost thought she was calling me! Speaking of which, this little girl… is in a bad way.

“This child…”

Xia Ying briefly explained the situation. It turned out that after putting the little girl to sleep, the two of them had decided to temporarily entrust her to the shopkeeper and his wife. Who would have thought that in the blink of an eye, the girl, whose height had previously reached Bian Chunzhou’s waist, had suddenly shrunk by five or six centimeters.

This was too bizarre! Reverse aging?!

Had a certain unscientific detective kid^[1] dropped into the cultivation world?! Cultivators had sharp senses; they wouldn’t fail to notice such a change, and both of them had seen it clear as day!

“My eyes aren’t playing tricks on me, are they, Senior Sister?”

Xia Ying had also felt the rapidly depleting life force within the little girl. “No. Hurry and fetch a spiritual physician, I’ll watch over her!”

Thus, the scene at the door just now.

Hearing this, Wen Xu was also astonished. Could there really be someone in this world who grew backward?

“There are. But your eyesight is poor, Ah Xu. Actually, that’s not right, you’re just pretending to be blind.” His master’s voice finally echoed in his mind. Wen Xu’s mind steadied. Just as he was about to ask, his master cut him off.

“This child is already nearing her limit.”

He didn’t know if it was just his imagination, but Wen Xu felt that his master’s voice carried a trace of pity at this moment. “A pity. Even your master cannot save her. The only one who can save her is herself.”

Wen Xu could not help but be startled. “Even Master could not save her?”

“There was nothing to be done. I was the same back then. Your grandmaster was already in the Tribulation Transcendence stage at the time, and even that old man was completely helpless. So…”

Wen Xu was so shocked that he opened his eyes. Through the ribbon, he saw the little girl in Xia Ying’s arms, her face contorted in pain.

Was she… a half-demon?

“Let me help you, Senior Sister Xia Ying.” As he spoke, Wen Xu channeled his spiritual energy to assist Xia Ying. At the very least, they had to hold out until Chunzhou brought the Mystic Physician.

Xia Ying nodded gratefully, but her heart sank lower and lower. As a cultivator, she did not believe in so many coincidences. Moreover, this girl was constantly shrinking. Perhaps… she was A’qing!

That was why Tinghe Villa did not dare to make a scene, and why she could not find A’qing even after using the power of the City Lord’s Mansion. It was not because A’qing had left Langyuan City, but rather- “A’qing, it’s you, isn’t it?”

The girl in her arms seemed to hear her clearly. She struggled to open her eyes, but before she could see the person in front of her, she fell back into the agony of “regression.”

Not enough! Not enough!

She wanted to eat fish so badly. She wanted to eat fish!

The Mystic Physician invited by Bian Chunzhou finally arrived. He looked to be middle-aged and possessed a Foundation Establishment cultivation. At a glance, he seemed ten thousand times more reliable than a certain fake spiritual doctor. The moment he walked in and saw the little girl, he knew he probably would not be earning any spirit stones from this trip.

“…She’s a half-demon, isn’t she?” Xia Ying asked, her voice hoarse.

The middle-aged Mystic Physician nodded. “To untie the knot, one must find the person who tied it. A half-demon is destined to cross this hurdle, and no one is an exception.” Even the Divine Venerable on Yonglu Mountain was no different.

A so-called half-demon was the offspring of a human and a demon cultivator.

In truth, the chances of a half-demon being born were very low, even extremely low. Generally speaking, demon cultivators were uniquely blessed with pure bloodlines. Even if they mated with human cultivators, conceiving offspring was difficult. Furthermore, demonic blood was far more dominant than human blood. Unless the human partner had a special ancestral bloodline, the chances of giving birth to a full demon were usually much higher.

Of course, if a powerful human cultivator mated with a weak demon cultivator, there was a high probability they would give birth to a pure human.

A half-demon, on the other hand, possessed half-demon and half-human bloodlines that were evenly matched. Because of this, they did not carry any demonic Qi. In fact, before they made their final choice of “species,” they would not exude any demonic Qi at all and would grow up just like ordinary humans.

“But her situation is highly unusual.”

“What do you mean?” Xia Ying asked urgently.

“Normally, a half-demon’s regression would never happen this quickly. She must have been subjected to some form of artificial interference. Let me check her pulse carefully.” When a spiritual doctor checked a pulse, they used spiritual energy. The energy inside the little girl was chaotic, and though he searched for a long time, he could not detect any specific anomaly.

Still, as an old Mystic Physician who had practiced medicine for decades, he offered his judgment: “The sooner, the better. If you know her identity, you should look for her family. Perhaps they can offer some help.”

Xia Ying made a prompt decision. “Let’s go. To Tinghe Villa!”

Today, even if she had to raze Tinghe Villa to the ground, she would pry the truth out of He Gan. She had been friends with A’qing for decades, yet she had never known-

“Should we follow them?”

This was also Bian Chunzhou’s first time seeing a half-demon. Good grief, this whole situation was terrifying.

Wen Xu nodded. He now had a rough idea of why his master had urged him to descend the mountain. His master must have sensed the aura of a half-demon on him.

After seeing off the spiritual doctor, the two followed Xia Ying’s pace and rushed toward Tinghe Villa.

Fortunately, they had been there once before, so Bian Chunzhou still remembered the way. However, when they arrived, he gasped, “Is Senior Sister always this fierce? She blasted their courtyard wall right open?”

But Wen Xu caught a strange scent in the wind. “Something is wrong. Chunzhou, stay alert.”

Trusting his friend implicitly, Bian Chunzhou immediately wiped the expression from his face and gripped the talismans he always kept on hand.

“It’s coming-“

Wen Xu felt a wave of pure malice whipping toward him in the wind. Almost the instant it reached him, he drew the Spiritual Fan from his sleeve and swung it without hesitation.