With the blessing of this treasure vat, the wine was brewed quickly. Following the steps from the "Playing Classic," Ranran meticulously mixed the ingredients, her movements fluid and seamless, completing the process in one go.
The vat was also quite amazing. In just a short while, the aroma of wine started seeping through the sealed oil paper.
Elder Jiu excitedly took a sip, confirming it was indeed the desired taste. Now, he looked at Ranran as if she were a treasure, impressed by the skills of this young girl.
Worried that he might get drunk, Ranran hurriedly reminded him of his promise. Elder Jiu urgently took several big gulps more and then squinted, saying, "This talisman is the Seven Evil Transformation Spell. When used, it can transform a person into a beast, greatly enhancing their spiritual power. At the same time, the caster can also drive the target to extreme demonic transformation, a very powerful ability… This talisman is too domineering and wicked. It's said not to belong to the human realm, merely used to manipulate desires and amplify greed… See here, what are these two characters?"
Ranran, with her three years of private school education, couldn't hope to understand. Su Yishui glanced at it and said, "This is Sanskrit."
Elder Jiu nodded, "Since tens of thousands of years ago, it was said that the Netherworld Spring had breached three times. During the last disaster, a group of Tian zhu people worshipped the Spiritual spring as a deity and founded a demonic sect called the Fantian Sect. These symbols were charms used by the sect members to enhance their spiritual power. They didn't need to cultivate their foundations or Qi; they just needed the blessings from talismans, to grant them tremendous power like the water demon you encountered. This is why some speculate these talismans' symbols are manifestations of the Spiritual spring's power, used to seduce and manipulate people for its own ends…"
Hearing this, Ranran immediately thought of that Yue'e. She was also a greedy person; who knows if she fell to some temptation and so turned into that inhuman state?
Elder Jiu, sipping his wine, sighed ruefully, "All these people… their greed is too great, choosing not to remain humans… But the Fantian Sect was wiped out a hundred years ago in the battle of righteousness and evil. How could something like this still be circulating?"
Ranran was also puzzled: if these talismans were long lost, why did they appear in the Wangxiang River?
Could it be that the Netherworld Spring has breached again, creating these talismans to beguile people?
If the water demon had been deliberately created by someone, with the aim of driving away Qin Xuanjiu who guarded Wangxiang Pass, it was likely for opening a dangerous rift between the Yin and Yang realms, with intention to bring forth chaos.
Thinking about how her Shifu once gave Wei Jiu the key to the Netherworld Spring, Ranran couldn't help but wonder if this had something to do with Wei Jiu?
Just then, Elder Jiu went into the house and brought out a small wooden box. Opening it revealed a velvet-wrapped… finger-sized small bottle?
The bottle was exquisite, with delicate patterns that also seemed like talisman symbols, its jade-like material shimmering with a faint light.
"Back when Mu girl was possessed by the Spiritual spring, she barely managed to escape it but she had no way to send it back to the Netherworld. She could only seal it temporarily with a Soul-Hosting Stone. I don't know where she hid it. However, the Spring's power will grow over time, even if sealed, it won't last long. Once the stone cracks, it will summon many evil spirits… This is the Sky-Mending Jade that Mu Qingge had asked me to find. It's made of millennium ice and condensed into spiritual jade. This was all there is of it, made into this small bottle. Unfortunately, she was gone when I finished it… If you ever have the chance to find the Soul-Hosting Stone, use this to contain the Spiritual Spring. It's sturdier than the stone."
Saying this, Elder Jiu handed the small jade bottle to Ranran. Clearly, he didn't think much of Su Yishui, but seeing the evil talisman he brought, he knew the Spiritual spring that Mu Qingge had sealed might be causing trouble again. If he ignored this, he probably couldn't live peacefully either and drink wine every day anymore.
Moreover, the Spiritual spring was Mu Qingge's unresolved regret, so after some thought, Elder Jiu decided to give the bottle to this young girl, who he felt a connection with.
Since there was nothing else to inquire further, Su Yishui was about to leave with Ranran.
Elder Jiu felt a special affinity with this young girl and took the opportunity as she was leaving to give her a small cloth pouch.
"Besides being a wine connoisseur, I'm also skilled in drawing talismans. This pouch contains some protective charms. Perhaps you might need them. After all, following an unfortunate master like yours, you might get into trouble too. If things go wrong, be smart and escape first. If you're not happy following this Su, you can seek refuge in Cuiwei Mountain with me. My abilities far exceed those of Su Yishui!"
Elder Jiu openly played the villain, trying to poach Ranran in front of Su Yishui.
Ranran looked at the red-nosed Elder Jiu and forced a dry laugh, not wanting to upset her Shifu, she hurriedly followed Su Yishui down the mountain.
On the way down, she voiced her suspicions and carefully asked, "Shifu, when you gave the key to Wei Jiu, weren't you afraid that after obtaining the Spiritual Spring, he might come back for revenge?"
Su Yishui glanced at her and replied, "The Spiritual Spring is no longer in the Netherworld. Even if he goes, it's just to see the scenery. He gave up so much of his cultivation to me; it's only right to send him for a break."
Although Ranran had already suspected that there must be something more to the key, she didn't expect her Shifu to be so mean.
Wei Jiu with half of his golden core gone… when he goes searching for the Spring only to find a dried-up waterhole, his androgynous face must have turned purple with anger, right?
However, the Fantian Sect, exterminated a hundred years ago, had no survivors. If it was really the Spiritual spring that breached again, and using evil talismans to beguile people, how could they find out where Mu Qingge hid the Spring?
After hearing Ranran's question, Su Yishui counter-questioned, "Where do you think Mu Qingge would hide it?"
This… although Ranran thought it would be more straightforward if her Shifu asked Mu Qingge directly, she still thought about it carefully and replied, "Mu Qingge had specifically instructed General Qin to guard this place, and this human-turned-demon, also appeared at Wangxiang Pass. That means the Soul-Hosting Stone should also be here."
When they reached the foot of the mountain, Su Yishui briefly explained the situation to Qin Xuanjiu and then asked, "When Mu Qingge asked you to guard Wangxiang Pass, did she also tell you what you are guarding?"
Qin Xuanjiu raised his eyes as if trying to recall, then said somewhat evasively, "At thet time, Master was severely injured from battling the demon lord in Fan Yao's Great Battle. She needed time to recuperate and saw many disciples buried here without any family to care for their graves. So she ordered me never to leave this place and to regularly tend their graves. That's why I repeatedly turned down Lord Zhou's offer to promote me to the capital and stayed here."
Su Yishui listened to this, then asked mildly, "What else do you need to do while stationed here?"
Qin Xuanjiu hesitated for a moment and said, "Apart from tending the graves during Qingming Festival, every year on the first and fifteenth day of the month, I need to replenish the lamp oil in the temples I was tasked to build by Master, in the order of east, west, south, and north. This keeps the lamps in these temples lit, comforting the souls of the fallen warriors…"
These were clearly insincere words of evasion. It seemed Qin Xuanjiu was still wary of Su Yishui and didn't want to reveal the truth.
So no matter how Su Yishui asked next, Qin Xuanjiu kept his mouth tightly shut behind his beard.
Seeing that Qin Xuanjiu didn't want to tell him, Su Yishui didn't press further. However, when Su Yishui was about to leave with his disciple, Qin Xuanjiu became anxious.
"The mastermind behind this hasn't been caught yet, why are you in such a hurry to leave? If they regroup and break through… what should we do?"
Ranran found General Qin's behavior very amusing, so she spoke softly, "General Qin, if you want my Shifu's help, you must be willing to share what you know. Besides, your Master once entrusted you to seek help from Su Yishui if there's anything unusual here, right?"
Qin Xuanjiu scratched his beard, feeling relieved as he finally spoke, "Back then, she subdued the demon lord and also took his Netherworld Spiritual Spring. Unfortunately, because Master nearly got controlled by it, she spent alot of effort in order to free herself. Later, Master said she sealed it somewhere in the Wangxiang Pass.
In order to prevent it from causing chaos in the world again, someone has to guard it always. When my Master accepted me as her disciple, she was already practicing dangerously close to demonic cultivation. The Soul Transference Technique she used was a profound art that could reverse the heavens and earth, shifting the stars themselves. If not controlled properly, the demonic nature within one's body would surge uncontrollably. Initially, in order to suppress the demon lord, she used this technique to transfer most of his demonic nature and a large portion of his spiritual spring energy away. However, the demonic nature of the spiritual spring was too strong, and even my master struggled to contain it. Eventually, she devised a method. On the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month, using the peak of Yin energy at Wangxiang Pass, she transferred the demonic nature and power onto a Soul Hosting Stone, sealing it thereafter. My duty was to guard this Soul Hosting Stone, but I truly do not know its whereabouts. My master only instructed me to diligently observe the BaGua Compass; if anything unusual occurred, I was to seek you out…"
Second Uncle Master Yu Tong couldn't help but sigh when she heard this. Previously, she had believed that the female demon Mu Qingge had been tempted by powerful magic, which led her to dabble in the dark arts. Now, after hearing General Qin's words, she realized how deeply misunderstood Mu Qingge had been by the world back then.
However, if she was trying to restrain the demon lord, she could have sought help from the orthodox sects. Why was she unwilling to explain her actions to anyone? And what was the purpose to send Qin Xuanjiu to look for Su Yishui to solve the breach of the Spiritual spring?
At this point, Qin Xuanjiu was already shedding tears uncontrollably, he continued: "But she was already weak at the time, and ambushed by the accursed righteous factions, resulting in her tragic death… You bastard! You were there but did nothing to stop it, allowing them to bully my master!"
As Qin Xuanjiu spoke, he couldn't contain his grievances any longer and he wanted to kick Su Yishui. Yu Chen hurriedly intervened, but he also did not know what to say.
Ranran glanced at her expressionless Shifu and felt that beneath his calm exterior, he wasn't as indifferent as he appeared. But as his disciple, she could only try to smooth things over.
"General Qin, there were so many people back then, and my Shifu can hardly fight them alone! Besides, he did his best to preserve GrandMaster's soul and helped her to reincarnate on the Rebirth Tree. Now, GrandMaster Mu has been reborn and is doing well… By the way, why didn't you go to Jiuhua Mountain to look for her?"