Chapter 48 Undying?

* * *

Pi Li Pa La~

The Yin Si Tavern was a scene of chaos. Three demon ghosts fled in disarray, the rolling, spreading yang thunder energy scorching them, emitting waves of foul stench.

Sa Wuling, clutching the yellow dog, was covered in talismans, shaking his bell like a man having an epileptic fit.

Even so, he was still jumping up and down from the stray currents.

But despite the intensity, the seemingly wooden tavern remained undamaged. The tremors grew more violent, the thunder more turbulent, the tables and chairs within tumbling, the decorations flying, but there was essentially no damage.

Hu!

Xi!

An Qisheng stood in the center of the tavern, pores open, as if inhaling and exhaling the thunderous yang energy.

Cultivation is like repairing a canal; the water flows, but the canal remains.

Once achieved, forever achieved.

The first Qi Seed condensation had been extremely dangerous for An Qisheng, but the second posed no problems whatsoever.

Buzz~

Like the striking of a bronze bell.

Tangible ripples spread from An Qisheng's body, flooding the entire tavern.

Screech~

Ah~

Roar~

With a series of inhuman screams.

The three demon ghosts melted like snow under the sun, visibly dissolving until they turned into wisps of green smoke and dissipated within the tavern!

Crack~

As the last bolt of lightning fell, the dark clouds dispersed.

The air currents within the tavern gradually calmed.

Hu~

An Qisheng slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, his Qi Seed now condensed, his power once again filling his entire body.

"Eh?"

But in the next instant, he raised an eyebrow, noticing something extremely strange.

As the thunderous yang energy dissipated.

Within the tavern, the three demon ghosts that had vanished as green smoke suddenly reappeared, dressed as the waiter, the shopkeeper, and the proprietress, just as they had been upon entering.

"The aura of a living person..."

The moment the three demon ghosts appeared, different expressions surfaced on their faces:

"Esteemed guest, donkey meat nourishes qi and blood, and benefits the internal organs. Would you really not like some?"

Seemingly having lost the memories of their final moments before death, they actually rushed forward again, oblivious to their impending doom.

"How is this possible?"

The look of shock on Sa Wuling's face had not faded, his skin tingling from the shock.

People can turn into ghosts when they die, but ghosts can come back to life after death?

What was going on?

"Interesting..."

An Qisheng looked at the three demon ghosts attacking again, lightning seeming to flash in his eyes:

"Undying?"

Boom!

A burst of energy erupted, the vigorous blood qi surging and raging, completely engulfing the three demon ghosts with even more violent and tyrannical force.

Visibly, the three demon ghosts howled, screamed, and finally turned into wisps of green smoke and dissipated.

"The aura of a living person..."

But the moment the blood qi dissipated, the three demon ghosts slowly pulled themselves out of the void again from within the yin energy.

Bang!

The vigorous blood qi reappeared, and the three demon ghosts once again miserably screamed as they turned into green smoke.

"Living person..."

Bang!

Again and again!

The three demon ghosts revived time and time again, An Qisheng repeatedly stimulating his Qi Seed, unleashing his aura.

Dying and reviving, reviving and dying...

For a time, the screams of the three demon ghosts in their final moments never ceased within the tavern!

Sa Wuling, holding the yellow dog, was dumbfounded, wooden, unsure of what expression to make.

He had thought he had seen everything in his years, but he realized he was still too young.

After repeated cycles of life and death, An Qisheng finally understood.

These three demon ghosts were essentially branded within this tavern. If the tavern was not destroyed, they could not die!

Or rather, they were forever frozen in the moment when they were selling donkey meat to someone.

The meaning of their existence was to sell donkey meat.

"Cough cough! This... young brother! What you're doing is useless."

Having witnessed the entire scene, Chang Lin's eyes twitched, and seeing that An Qisheng seemed tireless, he finally couldn't help but say:

"They simply cannot be killed. Even a Yuanshen Great Adept cannot kill them within this tavern."

"Indeed, they cannot be killed."

An Qisheng shook his head slightly, no longer bothering to stimulate his Qi Seed; he was too lazy to do something futile.

"The aura of a living person..."

The three demon ghosts revived again, completely forgetting how many times they had been killed, still asking ferociously:

"Esteemed guest, donkey meat nourishes qi and blood, and benefits the internal organs. Would you really not like some?"

Daoist Chang Lin entered the tavern, struck a pose, and calmly said:

"Bring me three jin of donkey meat, half a jin of donkey offal, a portion of donkey tendons, a portion of donkey ears, and two liang of wine to taste."

His voice was neither too loud nor too soft, as if he were a normal customer ordering food.

But upon hearing his words, the three demon ghosts' pouncing movements froze, rooted to the spot.

Then, they shed all their ferocity, smiles appearing on their faces, with even a hint of obedience:

"Esteemed guest, please wait a moment."

The waiter quickly cleared the tables and chairs, the shopkeeper bent over wiping the tables and chairs, and the proprietress headed to the kitchen.

For a moment, it was so harmonious.

Sa Wuling's eyes were wide open, actually seeing a hint of harmony in this scene.

"Password?"

An Qisheng couldn't help but smile, vaguely guessing what was happening.

"Password? Something like that. This is a recreation of the scene when a certain great figure came here. These three demon ghosts may not have been demon ghosts at that time, but because they came into contact with that great figure, they became immortal and indestructible..."

Daoist Chang Lin walked into the tavern, sighing slightly:

"Such power can be considered earth-shattering."

Behind him, the little Daoist Mingxin followed closely, not at all shocked upon hearing this, as if he had heard of it before.

"Became immortal and indestructible just by meeting that great figure?"

Sa Wuling gaped, as if listening to a myth.

An Qisheng's eyes flashed, but he shook his head:

"Those who are alive are no longer them. Such immortality is meaningless."

After so many tests, he had seen that these three demon ghosts, plus the one in the kitchen that had not appeared, a total of four, were neither human nor ghost.

They were worse than earthbound spirits, forever trapped in the reflection of that one day in the past.

Therefore, even he could not collect their spiritual imprints, because they simply did not exist, and had no spirit.

"In that sense, you are indeed right. However, if this tavern did not only appear once every hundred years, for only a single day each time, it would be a great disaster."

Daoist Chang Lin nodded, then bowed:

"This old Daoist is Chang Lin, from Golden Bell Tower, and this is my little disciple, Mingxin."

"A wandering cultivator, An Qisheng."

An Qisheng returned the greeting.

This old Daoist had an ordinary appearance, but his strength was quite high, far surpassing that of the old eunuch; he just didn't know what level of Tongtian cultivation he had reached.

"An Qisheng?"

Daoist Chang Lin pondered for a moment, not recalling such a figure in the cultivation world, but he silently noted the name.

"This poor Daoist is Sa Wuling, a registered disciple of the Heavenly Will Sect."

Sa Wuling also rushed to answer.

"Oh."

Daoist Chang Lin nodded indifferently.

Sa Wuling didn't mind his coldness; he had seen too many similar things in the past few decades. Seeing the old Daoist react at all was already quite pleasing, and he asked:

"May I ask, Daoist, who is the great figure you mentioned?"

Immortality and indestructibility.

Isn't that the ultimate pursuit of cultivators?

"That great figure is..."

A look of confusion and pain appeared on Daoist Chang Lin's face, and he shook his head, saying, "Perhaps because it was so long ago, this old Daoist cannot remember who it was..."

Saying that, he looked at his little disciple behind him:

"Mingxin, you have read through the Daoist Canon, do you remember who that great figure was?"

Although Golden Bell Tower was a small sect, its lineage was quite ancient. The first thing novice Daoists had to do upon entering the sect was to read through the Daoist Canon.

His disciple was naturally intelligent, and had already passed this test in just three to five years.

Little Daoist Mingxin opened his mouth, but suddenly his mind went blank, and he stuttered:

"This..."

"I don't remember."

The little Daoist's face turned red, feeling ashamed.

"Hmph! Not studying diligently. When we return this time, I will make you transcribe the Daoist Canon eight thousand times!"

"Ah?"

The little Daoist Mingxin's face fell, and he said listlessly, "Yes."

He was also puzzled, wondering why he had forgotten.

He was naturally intelligent, remembering everything he saw at a glance, learning everything quickly, and mastering everything quickly. He had never experienced anything like this before.

"Esteemed guest, your donkey meat..."

At this time, the waiter came up with the dishes, smiling obsequiously.

"Let the Daoist enjoy this table of dishes himself."

An Qisheng glanced at the fragrant dishes, and with a wave of his hand, he retrieved the White Bone Human Demon that had been charred by electricity and severely damaged.

Sa Wuling also felt nauseous, already guessing what the donkey meat was made of.

"That is the White Bone Human Demon..."

Daoist Chang Lin's expression only changed slightly, but little Daoist Mingxin blurted out, his gaze towards An Qisheng changing instantly.

"This brother has a vigorous aura and has not cultivated the White Bone Human Demon."

Daoist Chang Lin waved his hand, stopping his disciple's exclamation:

"Whether one cultivates this method or not, the White Bone Human Demon or weapons are the same, not worth mentioning."

He was not surprised.

Although the Different Evil Dao was destroyed in the past, the great methods of the sect were widely circulated by that Real Person. One cannot simply assume that someone is from the Different Evil Dao just because they see a White Bone Human Demon.

At least, this young man, whom he couldn't quite see through, most likely hadn't cultivated the White Bone Human Demon magic.

Otherwise, if the White Bone Human Demon was so badly injured, how could its master be so relaxed?

"The Daoist is indeed broad-minded."

An Qisheng cupped his hands slightly:

"An has urgent matters to attend to, so I will take my leave now."

"Farewell."

Daoist Chang Lin also smiled.

The two men and a dog turned and left. As soon as they exited, they heard loud braying of donkeys.

Ah En, Ah En~~

In the donkey pen, the braying donkey was frantically shaking its body, slamming into the pen.

During the lightning and thunder just now, many donkeys were so frightened that they leaked excrement and urine. Now, the braying donkey was writhing inside, no less than swimming in a cesspool, making Sa Wuling's face turn green, retching repeatedly.

An Qisheng glanced at it, and just as he raised his hand, he heard Daoist Chang Lin shouting from inside:

"Little brother, please wait! If you trust this poor Daoist, leave these matters to me, so they won't die unjustly."

Hearing the old Daoist's words, the donkey pen immediately fell silent.

"In that case, I will trouble the Daoist."

An Qisheng was happy to save himself the trouble, glanced at the donkey pen, and turned to leave.

After leaving only a hundred zhang or so, he looked back, and the Yin Si Tavern had already disappeared into the night, as if it had never existed.