Return Journey

Xu Ya’s constitution was close to that of an ordinary mortal. Unlike cultivators brimming with spiritual energy who only needed to meditate without rest, she couldn’t keep up. After staring blankly at Shi Yuzhen meditating for a while, Xu Ya began to nod off, her head bobbing up and down, nearly hitting the table.

In a place Xu Ya couldn’t see, Shi Yuzhen suddenly opened her eyes and silently watched her for a moment.

She formed a hand seal and cast a spell, gently moving Xu Ya onto the bed.

In the darkness, she continued to watch Xu Ya closely, then reached out to touch the space between her brows.

The result was exactly as expected—nothing. Xu Ya was a plain and simple five-element-rooted mortal. A complete cultivation dead-end, with no hidden surprises.

The spiritual energy Shi Yuzhen released circulated through Xu Ya’s dantian. Though it showed slight improvement, a cultivator of Shi Yuzhen’s level could easily see that it was just a superficial effect from improved nutrition. After over a decade of malnourishment, Xu Ya had long missed the optimal window for body refinement. Even the most precious pills in the world would be of no use now.

Shi Yuzhen withdrew her hand from Xu Ya’s forehead, tucked her in carefully, then returned to the reclining chair in the corner to resume her meditation.

The next morning, everyone gathered outside the inn.

After a night of rest, all the cultivators who had eaten Xu Ya’s Fried Chicken were glowing with vitality—except for Xu Ya herself, who couldn’t stop yawning.

Their previous disdain for Xu Ya had flipped into genuine respect. They now fully believed what she had said the night before.

Wasn’t this exactly the kind of opportunity granted by the Heavenly Dao?

Recalling the freshly fried Crispy Fried Chicken, they felt as if they had returned to the mortal world. Yet even the hot fried chicken from their childhood hadn’t been this crispy. And this one even enhanced cultivation—it was truly a miraculous feat of Culinary Cultivation.

By now, the villains in the Yunmeng Immortal Marsh were probably getting anxious, wanting to leave and confirm whether their plan had succeeded.

Just like criminals who return to the scene of the crime to admire their handiwork—this was something even little Xu Ya had reminded them of.

Xu Ya couldn’t reveal spoilers, but she could offer hints based on her modern-day experience watching TV dramas. Bravely pretending to hesitate, she suggested the idea. Sure enough, the five others were stunned at first, then quickly understood.

The path down from the Yunmeng Immortal Marsh passed right through this village. No matter how they traveled—sword flight or otherwise—they would be detected here. That was why this place had been named “Yunmeng Immortal Village.”

So the six of them only needed to lie low and observe.

They split into five groups, each hiding under the shade of various buildings, all with a clear view of the route from the marsh.

Xu Ya felt her position wasn’t hidden enough. She plucked some grass downstairs and headed up to join Shi Yuzhen in scouting.

But unexpectedly, she ran into someone familiar.

The person was squatting in the patch of grass she had just cleared.

It was the little beggar she had met before at the Meeting Immortals Platform.

He seemed to have been hiding here for quite some time, and his body bore many new wounds compared to last time.

Xu Ya imagined what he must have gone through and felt a pang of sympathy. She reached behind her and pulled out her treasure pouch.

Her supply of Fried Chicken had just been replenished—plenty in stock.

As soon as she opened the food box, the rich aroma of crispy skin wafted out, immediately catching the little beggar’s attention.

Skin and bones, the child stared at the Fried Chicken with wide eyes, drooling.

Xu Ya had no intention of teasing him. She generously handed over the food box.

This time, the little beggar didn’t hesitate. As if unafraid of being burned, he snatched the box from her hands and tore into the Crispy Fried Chicken ravenously.

In no time, he had devoured the entire chicken, leaving even the bones perfectly intact.

He hadn’t eaten so well in ages. After a loud burp, he stammered, “Thank you, big sister.”

Xu Ya’s heart ached. In the modern world, a child his age would still be a pampered flower in a greenhouse. But here, he seemed to have no parents, wandering alone through Yunmeng Immortal Village, likely suffering beatings just for being hungry.

She couldn’t help but empathize with him. Ignoring the dirt, she reached out and gently patted his head.

Then she pulled out another food box from her treasure pouch and handed it to him.

The child clutched it tightly. Xu Ya didn’t want to delay any longer. She gave his head another pat and said goodbye.

But what she didn’t see was that the child quickly followed her, trailing not far behind with light, eager steps.

Shi Yuzhen, unlike Xu Ya, was a high-level cultivator with extremely sharp senses. Xu Ya feeding the beggar hadn’t escaped her notice—nor had the child secretly following her.

Still, the child bore no ill intent, so Shi Yuzhen didn’t drive him away. Instead, she found Xu Ya’s kindness and innocence unexpectedly genuine, even if she still looked like a clumsy little liar.

A moment later, an unexpected figure appeared in Yunmeng Immortal Village, leaving Shi Yuzhen frozen in place.

Xu Ya noticed her strange reaction and looked over. She spotted the figures and confirmed—it was Master Xu and Master Chen.

Xu Ya suddenly felt nervous. Could it be that the villain and protagonist from the first half of the incomplete script were about to meet face-to-face?

Shi Yuzhen was also deep in thought. This wasn’t what she had anticipated.

One was her revered master. The other was the elder who had watched her grow up. Emotionally, Shi Yuzhen didn’t want to suspect either of them.

Xu Ya understood. She cleared her throat, intending to give a subtle hint. But just as she was about to speak, the system intercepted her words and altered them to: “Maybe Master Chen and the others just came down the mountain to handle some business.”

A warning immediately popped up:

【Warning! Spoilers to in-world characters are strictly prohibited! Please respond in character! Your inappropriate statement has been filtered! Do not attempt this again! The consequences of narrative collapse are unimaginable!!】

Xu Ya was speechless: What kind of character setting does a cannon fodder like me even have?

She looked at Shi Yuzhen, who was clearly struggling to believe what she was seeing, and let out a heavy sigh.

According to the plot, this moment wasn’t meant to make Shi Yuzhen realize that Master Xu was the villain. Even though Xu Ya had altered the path of the entire cultivator team, she couldn’t offer any more hints.

Just as she was at a loss, Shi Yuzhen suddenly took her hand and led her downstairs, heading straight toward Master Xu and Master Chen.

Unfortunately, when they came face-to-face, both men wore identical expressions.

Their eyes first landed on the clasped hands between the two girls. Then they voiced their concerns.

Master Xu said, “Xiao Ya, little Shi? What happened on your journey? Why didn’t you return to the Yunmeng Immortal Marsh as expected? Where are the others?”

Master Chen added, “Senior Brother, they’re fine.”

Xu Ya, knowing the future plot, felt Master Xu’s current behavior was like someone trying too hard to cover something up.

Just as she was wondering how to break the deadlock, a sudden force bumped into her, making her stumble forward.

A pair of small, grimy hands wrapped around her.

She turned and saw—it was the little beggar she had just fed.

Xu Ya was mortified by the bizarre scene. But then the child pointed his blackened finger straight at Master Xu and the others, and said with innocent delight, “I saw the immortals again!”

He clung to Xu Ya’s free hand, swinging it back and forth like a child would, still pointing at Master Xu. “Saw them in the day, saw them at night. Daytime, nighttime. Immortals!”

From those few simple words, the child had somehow revealed exactly what Xu Ya and Shi Yuzhen had been trying to investigate.

Master Xu crouched down and patted the child’s head. “Little one, you’ve got a sharp eye.”

The child was about to say something to curry favor with Xu Ya, but Master Xu interrupted him and said, “We came to Immortal Village to discuss a shop. Originally, we planned to wait until you returned before telling you, but since you were delayed, Master Chen and I had no choice but to go down the mountain and temporarily put the project on hold.”

Shi Yuzhen caught the key point and asked, “A shop?”

Master Xu replied, “Yes. I can see that Xu Ya truly has a talent for being a Culinary Cultivator. You know how hard things have been for her—she doesn’t even have the spirit stones to buy supplements to nourish her body. The other disciples receive rewards from completing missions, but Xu Ya doesn’t. So I discussed it with Master Wang and Master Chen, and we decided to fund a shop for her. That way, she can earn some spirit stones and take better care of herself. Besides, the senior brothers and sisters are all craving your cooking!”

Master Xu wore his usual kind and gentle expression, hands clasped behind his back, though his fists were clenched tightly. “We had planned to discuss it with Xu Ya much earlier, but then that incident happened. Xu Ya went off with the main group to reinforce the front, and we waited on the mountain for a few days. In the end, we decided we might as well go down and talk to the shopkeeper first.”

Xu Ya was stunned. She mentally flipped through everything she remembered from the fragmented plot and confirmed that none of this was in the original story. Could it be that after investigating and failing to eliminate Shi Yuzhen, Master Xu came up with a new plan overnight? Was he going to use the fried chicken as an entry point? Was he planning to become a shareholder and secretly poison the food?

A sudden wave of paranoia hit Xu Ya. She couldn’t help but overthink it. Little did she know, her suspicions were exactly what Master Xu intended.

That day, the group of eighteen had split up early in the morning. Master Xu secretly tracked the movements of Shi Yuzhen and her companions.

He took a shortcut to reach the location ahead of them. With a casual hand seal, he walked through the smoke as if it weren’t there.

At the center of the forest lay several unconscious cultivators, tightly bound and slumped awkwardly across the grass.

A cold gleam flashed in Master Xu’s hand. With lightning speed, he slit the throats of the unconscious cultivators, draining their blood. Their bodies shriveled rapidly, as if all their essence had been sucked dry, leaving them in grotesque, twisted postures.

Master Xu worked quickly, draining the blood of over a dozen cultivators in the same gruesome manner. A few skeletons collapsed to the ground with a clatter.

He then pulled out a pre-prepared talisman from his robe and slapped it onto the pile of bones. In an instant, the pile turned to smoke and vanished.

After completing all this, Master Xu took out a pair of specially made gloves from his sleeve and began drawing talismans in the large pool of blood on the ground.

If Cai Wenle had been present, he would have immediately recognized this as the preparatory ritual for one of the Seven Forbidden Arts described in the ancient tree!

The reason why Heaven-Seizing Creation was labeled a forbidden and demonic art wasn’t just because of its effects, but because of the horrifying, murderous rituals required to cast it.

The more people sacrificed, the higher the success rate. If the offering was a high-level cultivator, it would become an inescapable trap.

Wherever Master Xu’s hand passed, the blood transformed into thick black sand. Even through the gloves, he could feel the burning heat.

But he didn’t flinch. After finishing everything, he curled his lips into a sinister smile, as if victory was already in his grasp.

Facing the talisman, he stepped backward one step at a time. When he saw that the Soul Snatching Talisman was complete, he couldn’t help but let out a villainous cackle. A moment later, Master Xu slipped away without a sound.

— Translator’s Notes —

– body refinement: A foundational stage in cultivation where one strengthens the physical body to better contain and channel spiritual energy, typically done during youth.