indianbanksassociation Chapter 91 : Stone Statue
Chapter 91 : Stone Statue
Chapter 91: Stone Statue
“Lady Liang Qian! The heavens have come at last!!”
“Lady Liang Qian saves the suffering and rescues the distressed! Our village is finally saved!”
“Wuwuwu, my lady, you are our reborn parent!”
“As expected of a disciple of the Spirit Taming Sect from the Twelve Orthodox Paths, I’m crying, wuwuwuwu——”
Liang Qian looked dust-covered and exhausted as she stared at the villagers repeatedly kowtowing before her.
The corners of her mouth twitched as she clenched her fists.
She had spent five whole days tracking this troublesome spirit creature plaguing the village.
A full five days!
She should have been pursuing that high-grade spirit beast she had encountered by chance, but now that five days had passed, if that beast could still be found somewhere within these endless mountain ranges surrounding Red Mud Village, that would be a miracle.
And it was precisely because Red Mud Village sat deep within these vast mountains—
That the mere Second Realm snake demon in her hands had hidden itself extraordinarily well!
Had it only been that, it would have been manageable.
Disciples like them from the Spirit Taming Sect specialized in tracking spirit creatures.
Even if the area was larger than usual,
It should never have taken this long to catch a mere Second Realm little thing.
Yet this village chief had concealed information, always speaking only half-truths while omitting key details!
Every method Liang Qian employed had been based upon the creature’s behavior patterns.
As a result, she had been forced to run circles east, west, south, and north, wasting enormous amounts of time in the surrounding area!
Liang Qian did not doubt her own abilities.
Nor did she doubt the village chief.
But she had begun to doubt the abilities of this spirit creature.
—Perhaps it was precisely because its abilities were extraordinary that it managed to evade my pursuit time and again!?
Liang Qian grew excited.
There were even nights when she could not sleep, silently thanking Fang Chang for this opportunity.
This way, she would be able to make up for the spirit beast she had missed because of this affair.
At least, that was how it should have gone.
But one day, the villagers hosting Liang Qian could no longer bear it.
They told her the truth.
It was a snake spirit. While plowing the fields, the village chief had dug up its nest, where over a dozen snake eggs had been neatly laid.
Had he simply left them alone, or hurriedly buried them back, things would never have escalated to this point.
Spirit creatures cultivated with great difficulty. They would not recklessly fight humans to the death over such matters, especially since this was still Canglan Mountain’s territory.
But that old village chief had married a young wife the previous year.
At night, he found himself lacking strength.
And somehow, he had heard the rumor that soaking snake eggs in liquor could strengthen male virility—especially the eggs of spirit creatures.
So he secretly kept all those snake eggs and soaked every single one of them in wine!
Had he taken only one or two,
The little snake demon probably would have endured it.
But now not even a trace remained, so naturally it refused to let the matter go peacefully.
And thus, everything afterward came to pass.
What?
You ask who this villager was, and why she knew so many details?
Oh—
She was from the village chief’s household. Specifically, the village chief’s first wife.
Then that explained everything...
In any case,
Liang Qian finally located the mere Second Realm little snake through the position of the snake nest using her spells!
The reputation of the Spirit Taming Sect disciples had been preserved.
But her beautiful dream of capturing some powerful spirit creature had shattered.
Thus ended the matter of the children in Red Mud Village falling into convulsions.
Although she publicized the truth and had the old village chief driven from his position by the villagers,
All the time she spent searching had ultimately been wasted.
“Damn it!”
Liang Qian stuffed the snake demon back into her beast pouch, her face cold as she left Red Mud Village. Halfway down the road, she angrily kicked a stone flying.
She still felt unwilling to accept it.
So she formed a spell seal on the spot.
Back when she had pursued that spirit beast, she had secretly placed a hunter’s mark on it from afar. This spell was meant to sense its approximate location.
But now—
There was no response at all. It had long since moved beyond the detection range.
Liang Qian’s expression darkened.
The image of that gloomy yet handsome man surfaced in her mind.
“It just so happens that Canglan Mountain has summoned the Twelve Orthodox Paths to discuss the matter of the Heavenly Dao Rift. I’ll be accompanying my master there...”
“I’d like to see exactly whose disciple is such a bastard!”
“If I run into you again, just see if I don’t teach you a proper lesson!”
...
...
A table full of delicacies, a hall filled with lamplight!
“All of you immortal masters traveled from afar to investigate the matter of the earthquake and crimson light for our Twin Su Manor. I, Xue Dali, am deeply grateful beyond words!”
Xue Dali’s face was flushed red.
His voice rang loudly as he raised his cup toward everyone present before tilting his head back and draining it in one gulp.
Lü Shu sat beside the table, holding her wine cup and merely wetting her lips with it.
She was not good at drinking, nor did she enjoy occasions like this. The Xue Family was simply too enthusiastic, making her feel uncomfortable all over.
Senior Brother Chen You, seated two places away from her, seemed to enjoy such situations greatly.
Calm and composed, he raised his cup in return, smiling appropriately.
According to this senior brother,
Cultivators originated from ordinary mortals and thus ought to interact more with mortals to temper their Dao Hearts.
Though the Xue Family could hardly be considered ordinary mortals.
This Young Manor Master was a skilled Third Realm expert.
At his age, that was already quite impressive.
“Little Immortal Master Lü, why aren’t you eating?”
Xue Dali’s voice suddenly came closer.
Lü Shu raised her head and saw that dark-skinned smiling face.
“Could it be that you dislike the rough food of our countryside?”
“How could that be.”
“Then eat more. Twin Su Manor has nothing especially valuable, but at least we can still offer decent food.”
Xue Dali instructed the maidservant beside him to place a large piece of fish into her bowl, his enthusiasm impossible to refuse.
Lü Shu lowered her head to look at the fish meat in her bowl. The translucent slices were indeed exquisitely prepared.
...She was no longer thinking about Fang Chang anymore.
But for some reason,
She still felt that something was wrong.
She could not explain it. The hairs on the back of her neck remained standing on end.
Xue Dali turned away again to toast the others, and soon the sounds of clinking wine cups rang endlessly.
Lü Shu glanced around the room.
Suddenly, she noticed a detail—
Every member of the Xue Family was smiling, but their smiles looked as though they had been carved onto their faces. Even the curve of their lips was nearly identical.
She froze briefly, wondering whether she was simply overthinking things.
“Immortal masters.”
After several rounds of drinking, Xue Dali set down his wine cup, his voice suddenly lowering.
“Speaking of which, a few days ago while repairing the back mountain, we unearthed something quite unusual!”
“Oh? What was it?”
A disciple from the Grand White Sword Sect asked.
“A stone statue!”
“A stone statue?” Chen You lifted his gaze.
“That’s right. The craftsmanship is excellent, lifelike beyond compare. At a glance, one can tell it is no ordinary object.”
Xue Dali rubbed his hands together, looking utterly sincere. “We rough folk don’t understand such things. Since all of you immortal masters are here, perhaps you could help examine it. If it truly is some ancient relic, then it would be a blessing for our Twin Su Manor.”
Lü Shu noticed that while he spoke, every member of the Xue Family at the banquet stopped moving entirely, silent as rows of wooden puppets.
“Where is it?”
Someone immediately grew interested.
“On the back mountain. Not far from here. The moonlight tonight is excellent, so why not go take a look now?”
That smile appeared gentle, even carrying a touch of honest simplicity.
Lü Shu did not really wish to go, but she could not resist the excitement of the others.
Xue Dali laughed heartily. “This way, please.”
The group exited the reception hall prepared by the Xue Family.
Tonight’s moonlight was extremely dim, nearly too dark to see the road clearly.
The terrain here was somewhat elevated, and from this vantage point, Lü Shu happened to see flickering firelight coming from the medicinal garden to the east.
That was where Fang Chang had gone.
Lü Shu felt somewhat worried.
She feared Lü Muxue would blame her if she returned empty-handed. Her older cousin’s temper had never been particularly good.
Not long afterward,
The group passed through the Xue Family buildings and arrived at the rear courtyard.
The moonlight suddenly brightened.
And there, the statue revealed itself.
It stood in the center of a cavern, about the height of a person, its stone surface smooth and refined.
The shape of the carving...
It was impossible to describe. It looked neither fully human nor fully beast, its outline vague and indistinct.
The moonlight was crimson.
As it fell, it landed precisely upon the face of the statue.
Lü Shu saw the statue’s eyes moving.
Suddenly, it felt as though something extra had appeared within her mind.
...
Xue Dali had disappeared.
Everyone had disappeared.
The five disciples stood in the rear courtyard staring blankly for a long while.
After regaining their senses,
Even the stone statue before them had vanished.
Everyone looked at each other in confusion.
Yet all of them felt refreshed and light-hearted.
“My cultivation seems to have improved,” someone said.
“The same for me. I’ve gained deeper insight into swordsmanship.”
“Likewise. Even my talisman arts seem to have improved somewhat.”
Chen You also appeared excited. “It seems that stone statue must have been a congenital artifact aligned with the will of heaven itself, which is why each of us received some enlightenment from it!”
Lü Shu clutched tightly at her clothes, her chest feeling unbearably stifled.
Unlike the excitement of the others, her heart felt deeply uneasy.
Enlightenment was certainly a good thing.
But since when could merely looking at such an ordinary, crude stone statue grant sudden comprehension?
And besides—
Why did a single sentence keep surfacing endlessly within her mind?
—‘The Ancestor Lord shall soon descend upon the mortal world once more.’