Baili Xi and Yuan Wei simultaneously turned their gazes toward the small gourd, their eyes filled with evident confusion.
Jian Xiaolou noticed something seemed off. The gourd they were seeing appeared to be different from what she saw.
A subtle change flickered across Baili Xi's expression as she beckoned. "Xiaolou, come here."
Jian Xiaolou approached hesitantly. "Family Head."
"Why do you say it has become sentient?"
So, they really couldn't see it? How was that possible?
Jian Xiaolou couldn't comprehend it. She hadn't used the Red Lotus Illusion-Breaking Technique. Could it be that after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, it became a passive ability? Unable to lie, she hesitated briefly before deciding to speak the truth. "Family Head, it grew eyes, a mouth, and hands. It's been making faces at me and going 'gulu gulu.' Isn't that sentience?"
A crack finally appeared on Baili Xi's perpetually stoic face. "You're saying the Second Gourd is making faces at you?"
This gourd was called the Second Gourd?
Jian Xiaolou nodded, pointing at the little gourd, which was still sticking its tongue out and making noises. She poked its forehead. "See, it's still doing it."
"Family Head..." Yuan Wei glanced at Baili Xi, her gaze full of shock.
"Take it."
Baili Xi handed the Second Gourd to Jian Xiaolou. After some hesitation, Jian Xiaolou took it and heard Baili Xi say, "Take a closer look. Aside from being sentient, does it have any other unusual traits?"
"Could it be a high-grade spiritual artifact?" Jian Xiaolou relaxed slightly and held the gourd up high, using her spiritual sense to investigate its interior. "Hmm, there's no formation diagram, so it's not a spiritual artifact. But there is a spiritual energy vortex inside. Other than that, nothing else seems unusual."
She scratched the underside of the vine stem, which seemed to be the gourd's ticklish spot.
"Gulu gulu gulu!" The Second Gourd grinned widely, its long, pointy tongue straightening. Only then did she notice a small row of green teeth in its mouth. It continued to go "gulu gulu gulu" with great enthusiasm.
"Ha! It really is a little gourd spirit," Jian Xiaolou concluded with a smile. Growing up watching The Gourd Brothers, the idea of a gourd becoming sentient didn't seem all that shocking to her in the world of cultivation.
Baili Xi and Yuan Wei exchanged glances and fell silent.
This was a bit problematic.
Jian Xiaolou grew uneasy again.
"Xiaolou," Baili Xi's tone turned serious, "you must not tell anyone about the Second Gourd."
"Rest assured, Family Head." Jian Xiaolou quickly agreed.
Before Baili Xi could signal, Yuan Wei had already exited the cave dwelling to stand guard outside. The atmosphere grew even tenser, and Jian Xiaolou's hand trembled slightly as she held the Second Gourd, unsure if it was from anxiety or the gourd licking her hand with its tongue.
The green, slimy tongue licked back and forth across her hand, leaving a faint stinging sensation.
Baili Xi's expression softened slightly, even showing a hint of joy. "Have you ever heard of the Taisigh Forest?"
Jian Xiaolou searched her memory. "Isn't it a chaotic woodland on the border of the Red Sky Territory? There's a legend that, tens of thousands of years ago, the Red Sky Region was barren of spiritual energy until an immortal from the Great World planted a Spirit Gathering Tree in the Taisigh Forest, gradually giving rise to spiritual veins. No one knows if it's true."
"It's true," Baili Xi confirmed. "That Spirit Gathering Tree has been guarded by the Prophet Tribe and the Wood Clan for generations."
She pointed to the Second Gourd. "And along with the Spirit Gathering Tree, a vine called the Huangyu Divine Vine was born. This vine withers and thrives every ten thousand years, producing three gourds each time. The large gourd absorbs impurities, transforming them into purity, while the small gourd absorbs purity and converts it to impurity. This represents the rising of purity and the descent of impurity in the mortal world. Naturally, the large gourd symbolizes righteousness, and the small gourd symbolizes wickedness, reflecting the balance of good triumphing over evil..."
Jian Xiaolou shivered, looking down at the Second Gourd in her hand. Was this little gourd spirit that significant?
Baili Xi continued, "Every ten thousand years, the Red Sky Region sees fierce battles over the large and small gourds in the Taisigh Forest. The last battle was eight thousand years ago. The large gourd was seized by the Northern Immortals' top sect, Tiandao Sect, and became their sect's treasured artifact. The small gourd fell into the hands of the former Demon Saint, Yu Qinxin. She, with her four war generals, stormed the Central Heavenly Domain and even reached the Northern Lands. The Demon Small Gourd played a key role in this, alongside the generals' unmatched prowess. However, Yu Qinxin's defeat came after a betrayal at the Phantom Array, where she embraced the path of Zen through the Demon Sword. The small gourd vanished after that, never to be seen again. As for one of her generals, the ghost cultivator Nian Ming, he was subdued by Tiandao Sect using the large gourd. Whether he's alive or dead after five thousand years remains unknown."
Hearing the phrase "embracing Zen through the Demon Sword," Jian Xiaolou's heart skipped a beat. Wasn't this about Chan Lingzi?
"Gulu gulu gulu!" The Second Gourd hugged her wrist with its two leaves, licking her hand like it was savoring a pork trotter, its tiny mouth smacking noisily in apparent delight.
"Family Head, you mentioned the righteous and demonic factions fighting over the large and small gourds. So what's the deal with this Second Gourd?" Jian Xiaolou finally asked.
"The Second Gourd exists in the middle, representing the energy of the mortal realm. Other than providing a steady stream of spiritual energy equivalent to mid-grade spirit stones, it serves no purpose," Baili Xi replied flatly. "Thus, it's often overlooked during the battles."
A constant supply of mid-grade spirit stone energy? And that's considered useless?
Jian Xiaolou almost wanted to bow down and worship the Second Gourd on the spot.
Yet compared to its other two siblings, it did seem rather underwhelming. The mid-grade spirit stone energy would only benefit cultivators below the Golden Core stage, as those above required high-grade spirit stones, and Nascent Soul cultivators generally relied solely on heavenly spiritual energy.
Baili Xi lowered her eyes slightly. "However, the Prophet Tribe elder told my grandfather that only the Second Gourd could resolve our Baili family's fate of extinction. Unfortunately, none of us have been able to unravel its mysterious powers."
Jian Xiaolou froze. "Family Head?"
Although the Baili family was sparsely populated, their extinction didn't seem imminent.
Baili Xi smiled faintly, her eyes glimmering with a subtle light. "Actually, you know I'm a woman."
Her tone left no room for denial, and Jian Xiaolou's heart skipped again. "Junior..."
"The first time you visited my cave dwelling, your gaze changed three times," Baili Xi continued. "At first, it was a woman admiring a man's beauty. Then came doubt. And finally, when you looked at me again, your gaze was calm."
Jian Xiaolou had no words. The trap was too deep—no matter how careful she was, she had fallen into it.
Baili Xi's sweet smile after dropping her disguise could make one's bones melt. "See, you already know my biggest secret."
What a sugary threat.
Jian Xiaolou surrendered immediately. "Family Head, since I'm under your employ, I'll do whatever you ask. And I can keep secrets very well. I won't leak anything."
"I trust you," Baili Xi replied, her face reverting to its usual stoic expression. "So, I leave the task of unraveling the Second Gourd's abilities to you."
Jian Xiaolou wanted to say she was unworthy, but considering the current situation, she seemed to be the only one capable of seeing the gourd's face and being gnawed on like a pork trotter. If she refused further, she might anger Baili Xi.
"Alright, I'll give it a try. But about the extinction issue..."
"Our Baili family's cultivation method has a flaw," Baili Xi replied.
Another flaw?
Jian Xiaolou recalled hearing from Tall Legs that his family's method had a flaw as well. Was it possible all the cultivation techniques passed down from the Red Sky upheaval had issues?