The Forbidden Path to Immortality - Chapter 163

Chapter 7 Ambition

Li Xun followed the three pursuers for about half an hour before they finally stopped.

Yigui Gou and Fatty Ji faced each other, while the Divine Erosion Blade remained hidden in the shadows. From the perspective of Li Xun, the onlookers, their murderous intent wasn’t particularly strong.

Fatty Ji seemed unable to run any longer, his hands on his knees, panting heavily

. Yigui Gou, without even shedding a sweat, moved forward like a ghost, then stopped ten feet from Fatty Ji. He sneered, “Master Ji, why aren’t you running?”

“No, no. Even if your Zhugou Sect isn’t as good as the Luoyu Sect, your ability to run isn’t far behind. Oh, it’s exhausting.”

Yigui Gou listened to him rambling. His long, dark face was also smiling, and his yellow, turbid eyes remained calm. Although he was ugly, his bearing was truly extraordinary. After Fatty Ji finished his grumbling, he spoke slowly.

“It’s better not to run. We didn’t run all this way just to see Pavilion Master Ji’s buttocks. Pavilion Master Ji, can you please return the stolen Ghost Spirit Beads?”

“Brother Diao, what are you talking about? Who stole your Ghost Spirit Beads?”

Fatty Ji looked innocent, but seeing Yi Gui Gou’s face darken, he quickly smiled and said, “How can that be called stealing? I didn’t actually have any use for the beads, I just borrowed them for a while. Brother Diao—and Brother Zou—please stay away so we can talk!”

Seeing his nonsense, Yi Gui Gou was furious and laughed. However, when he called out the name of the Eclipse God Sword, which had not been used in the sect for nearly a thousand years, Yi Gui Gou, despite his gloomy and experienced nature, was slightly surprised.

This not only proved that Ji was sensitive to the Eclipse God Sword’s hidden presence, but also that he had a highly sophisticated information channel.

This was probably why he was able to steal the Ghost Spirit Beads without anyone noticing.

Unwilling to argue with the fat man any further, he took a step forward, his voice cold, “Return the beads.”

“Of course, something borrowed must be returned.”

Fatty Ji, however, nodded and bowed, his eyes almost splitting with laughter. He flipped his wrist, revealing the black beads in his palm.

The beads appeared to be made of wood, yet glossy black, each engraved with intricate and profound patterns. A faint, inky mist seemed to shroud the fat man’s white palm.

Yi Gui Gou, extremely concerned about this treasure, also had his murky, yellow eyes. He took a half step forward, his entire body tense.

This made Fatty Ji jump back suddenly. “Wait, Brother Diao, we mean no harm. You can’t do that!”

Yi Gui Gou’s glare became like a knife, slashing fiercely at Fatty Ji’s face. But the top assassin quickly adjusted, his eyes narrowing slightly, the yellow light gleaming through them more like the glint of a venomous snake’s eye.

Fatty Ji shook his fat hands repeatedly, “I’m not lying. I really do have something to discuss with you, brother. Actually, Brother Diao, you know your junior brother isn’t exactly a generous person. If he’d spoken up on Mingyu Mountain, who knows what kind of trouble he’d have gotten into.”

Yi Gui Gou sneered, “Junior Brother Qianji, how come it’s not your turn yet…”

“Qianji? Old Monster Qianji? Your sect leader?” Fatty Ji froze for a moment before he started yelling, “This is a huge misunderstanding! The junior brother I’m talking about isn’t that… ahem!” He

was cut off mid-sentence by Yi Gui Gou’s sinister, cold gaze.

The fat man, however, took advantage of the situation, and Yi Gui Gou realized he’d been tricked and had to swallow his words.

He glanced to the side, thankfully, it was the Eclipse God Blade that arrived; if it had been someone else, it would have been another problem.

Fortunately, as a skilled assassin, Yi Gui Gou remained calm the more things went wrong. He sensed that the fat man before him was no pushover. His words were full of traps, and their meanings were profound, not to be taken lightly.

He calmed himself down and said in a deep voice, “Ji Bu Kou, I respect you as a leader of our sect, so I’m talking to you a little more. But if you continue to act so unruly and disregard the loss of face for your sect, don’t blame me for being rude to you.”

His words were resounding. Fatty Ji’s eyes flashed, and his attitude became much more serious. “Very good, Brother Diao is indeed a straightforward person. Of course, I agree with your sect leader. You are indeed a little narrow-minded…”

Ji Bu Kou’s sudden and explicit accusation of the old monster Qianji surprised Yi Gui Gou a little. He instinctively wanted to stop this dangerous topic, but he saw Fatty Ji hooking his fingers together, hooking the beads on his index finger, and swirling them in circles.

“This string of ghost beads isn’t a particularly valuable treasure. Three of the nine beads are substandard. With your wealth, Brother Diao, you wouldn’t care about such a thing. But I heard a rumor a few days ago that Brother Lin accidentally lost a plague ghost in the southwest?”

The fat man was clearly exposing his scars, testing the killer’s patience.

After all, the Plague Ghost Gou was no ordinary man. He could even smile: “Yes, the Blood Demon has appeared out of nowhere, with uncanny skills and evil magics. I am no match for him.”

Hearing his frank confession, Fatty Ji nodded and smiled, “I have seen the Blood Demon a few times and he is indeed very powerful. But don’t be discouraged, Brother Diao. The strength and weakness in the Tongxuan Realm are never static. Who knows if there will be a chance for revenge in the future?”

He blinked and changed the subject, sighing, “Brother Diao, the reputation that the Plague Ghost worked so hard to build has been damaged. Even I can’t help but feel sorry for you when I think about it.

“Now that you are using the poison-overlay method to catalyze the Ghost Spirit Pearl, you must be trying to obtain another Plague Ghost, right? However, the poison-overlay method is only a method of formation, and the consequences are endless. Brother Diao is also a well-known figure in this world, so why didn’t you consider this? Even an outsider like me doesn’t know that before the Plague Ghost is formed, it must be born and nurtured. If you force it to catalyze, who knows what troubles may arise in the future.”

The Plague Ghost Gou’s cultivation level is at least 30% of that of the Plague Ghost. How could he not know the key? Naturally born and raised plague ghosts are easy to find, but truly mastering them requires the arduous steps of refining, cultivating qi, and cultivating the mind. It would take two or three hundred years to achieve anything.

The Tongxuan Realm was currently rife with turmoil, and a catastrophe could strike at any moment. He didn’t have the time to slowly cultivate them.

However, he could also hear that Fatty Ji clearly had some work to do on this matter.

For the plague ghost, the situation was already dire, and even if it were to change, the chances of it getting worse were extremely low. So he looked at the fat man coldly, his lips twitching twice as

he asked, “What do you mean, Pavilion Master Ji?” “I mean…” He trailed off, then smiled, “Brother Diao, do you look down on our Qianbao Pavilion?”

He first uttered a serious accusation. As the plague ghost frowned, he flicked his finger and easily returned the ghost spirit beads.

At this moment. The plague ghost Gou was no longer interested in this and casually took it and said, “I wonder how I have offended you?”

Fatty Ji laughed and clapped his hands together with a crisp sound. Like magic, a bamboo tube appeared.

The bamboo tube was about the thickness of a hand, three or four inches long, withered yellow color and no decorations. It looked like a bamboo joint cut from any bamboo. It was inconspicuous.

However, when the plague ghost Gou saw this thing, his body tensed up and he couldn’t help but take another step forward. But this time, the fat man didn’t jump away

. Fatty Ji held the bamboo tube in his hand and shook it up and down: “Brother Diao, if you don’t look down on our Qianbao Pavilion, why didn’t you come to our pavilion to ask about the plague ghost after losing it? Although this little thing is rare, our pavilion has been collecting treasures for many years and it is bound to get something.”

He glanced up at the Plague Ghost’s expression, then laughed again. His thick fingers unscrewed the bamboo tube’s lid, and with a tap of his little finger on the tube, a small figure leaped out with a muffled “puff puff” sound.

Its blue-gray fur almost blended into the gathering night. Not only Plague Ghost, but also Li Xun, watching from miles away, became intrigued. Even straining his eyesight to the utmost, he could clearly see the tiny figure escaping the bamboo tube. It was undoubtedly the Plague Ghost.

As the culprit who had killed the previous Plague Ghost, Li Xun had some memory of this little creature. Despite its adorable appearance as it scrambled up and down the bamboo tube, Li Xun felt a bit of a headache when fighting it.

Especially the Plague Ghost’s incredible speed and its long, needle-sharp beak with venom glands.

The Plague Ghost paralyzed one of his arms with a single encounter and injected a massive amount of poison. Had Li Xun’s Blood Shadow Demon Body not assimilated all foul poisons, and had it not been for the divine sword’s sharp edge, Li Xun’s arm had been severed in time to protect himself, the outcome would have been uncertain under Zhu Gou’s four-man siege.

The creature that had just emerged from the bamboo tube, though dozens of times smaller, only about the size of a thumb, was unmistakably a Plague Ghost. And judging by the Plague Ghost Gou’s expression, this little creature was likely quite valuable.

“This Plague Ghost was captured by our company seven hundred years ago. It’s been kept in the Five Poisons Cave ever since. I’m not bragging, brother. If it were just a naturally born spirit creature, I wouldn’t have the nerve to call it a treasure. It’s a treasure because we’ve spent the past seven hundred years raising and training it using our unique methods, at great expense. More importantly, two generations of technicians have poured immense effort into it, making it a truly precious and living treasure!”

Fatty Ji eloquently promoted his wares. “On the surface, a seven-hundred-year-old Plague Ghost may not be as good as Brother Diao’s two-thousand-year-old one, but for training, in actual combat, I guarantee it’s no less capable than your previous one.”

“This little fellow has already become psychic, and his physical and mental state are in top condition. You took it back today. It only needs a few months of training and refining before it can be used. It’s even faster than the Catalytic Ghost Orb, and there are no side effects. Isn’t that wonderful?”

Plague Ghost Gou stared intently at the little Plague Ghost crouching atop the bamboo tube, his cheeks twitching. He relied on his millennia of cultivation to hold back his greed. He knew Fatty Ji wouldn’t give up such a spirit creature easily. But he wouldn’t just show it to make him covet it; he’d then demand a sky-high price and then pay it back.

As for robbing it… He swept his sunlight towards the direction of the Eclipse Divine Sword, ultimately dismissing the idea.

Without spiritual incantations to activate it, the Plague Ghost was quite fragile. If Fatty Ji could ruthlessly kill it with a flick of his hand, where would he find such a treasure again?

He remained silent for a moment, building up enough psychological defenses. Then, with a forced calm, he spoke, “This Plague Ghost is indeed something I urgently need. Pavilion Master Ji, since you’re interested in selling it, please state a price.”

He wanted Ji to make an offer first, but Fatty Ji was even more cunning, smiling silently, staring at him with his eyes fixed, seemingly as steady as a rock.

The Plague Ghost Gou cursed inwardly and asked tentatively, “Pavilion Master Ji, you took the Ghost Spirit Beads earlier, so maybe you’re interested in this treasure?”

Fatty Ji laughed. Without another word, he simply tapped the bamboo tube, and the little Plague Ghost obediently slipped inside. He then slowly screwed the lid back on, as if to disband if no agreement was reached.

Yi Gui Gou’s face turned a dark green, a faint glint in his eyes, a hint of murderous intent etched in his impatience. He also knew his previous offer was far from ideal. While the Ghost Spirit Beads were a treasure, they were still quite good. As the master of the Sikong Thousand Treasures Pavilion, possessing countless rare treasures, how could he be so interested in such a third-rate item?

Yi Gui Gou was puzzled. Since this man possessed no shortage of treasures, why was he acting as if he was trying to negotiate with him?

Could it be that this fat man had a great enemy? He wanted him to take over his old trade?

The more he thought about it, the more plausible it became. Yi Gui Gou sighed, a smile breaking across his face. “Of course, our Zhu Gou Sect originated with weapon refining and assassination. We’re all businessmen. Perhaps Master Ji has some business to look after. If…”

He hadn’t finished his words when the fat man suddenly clapped his hands and yelled. It was precisely because of this that he narrowly avoided shattering the bamboo tube in his hand.

Yi Gui Gou’s eyes nearly popped out, and he was relieved to see that the bamboo tube was intact.

Now he knew that the deal was a done deal, so he became much more steady. “That’s very good, Master Ji. Just name the name. As long as it’s within the capabilities of our clan, I will take his life in exchange for…”

“Brother Diao is really straightforward. With such an attitude, what kind of deal can’t be done? But who said we want to kill people?”

Fatty Ji opened his eyes wide and showed an innocent look, then shook his hands.

“Ours is all business, after all. Business thrives on harmony. How can we take lives without a care in the world?”

Yigui Gou cried out inwardly, knowing he’d fallen into another trap, yet he pressed on. “I misunderstood, Pavilion Master Ji.”

“Just now, Brother also mentioned that your sect started out with weapon refining and assassination. Since it wasn’t assassination, then it must be something else. As the head of the Sikong Qianbao Pavilion, it’s only natural for me to collect magical artifacts from this world. A few days ago, I suddenly had an idea. I remembered that your sect has a treasure that suits my taste perfectly, so I asked Brother Diao to discuss exchanging it for Yigui. Since you said it’s okay, I’ll say it…”

Without waiting for Yigui Gou to refute the loophole in his words, Ji Pang had already quickly spat out a name.

“Dry Sky Fire Spirit Pearl.”

“Impossible!”

Yigui Gou’s face, already dark blue, now looked even uglier.

“That’s the sect’s divine artifact for refining weapons. Without it, how can the sect control the heat during refining? Master Ji, you’re destroying our sect’s very foundation!”

Without the Heavenly Fire Spirit Pearl, one of the sect’s greatest strengths and the most sinister hidden weapon in the world, the “Little Red Hook,” the success rate of refining it would plummet to an unacceptable level. In a few hundred years, it might even become extinct. He wouldn’t trade such a precious item for even a single Plague Ghost, let alone a hundred!

As he flatly refused, the Eclipse Divine Blade, which had been concealed to the side, suddenly erupted with a murderous aura that seemed tangible, enveloping Ji.

The fat man uttered a cry of pain and retreated in embarrassment, his bamboo tube crackling with his grip. The sound of the Plague Ghost Gou’s heart ached, the pain clenching in his ears.

“I was wrong, I was wrong, okay?” the fat man cried. “I didn’t expect that bead to be so valuable. Your sect doesn’t even consider it a treasure!”

The killing intent of the Eclipse God Sword suddenly vanished, and the two brothers stared at each other from a distance. He’d

been fooled again . In a

few words, the fat man had thoroughly expounded on the importance of the Heavenly Fire Spirit Bead. He was truly a master of rhetoric.

A strong sense of unease welled up in Yi Gui Gou’s heart. He stared at Ji intently, determined to discern his ulterior motives.

Ji Fatty didn’t disappoint him. The embarrassment on his face wasn’t even a play. He shook his head vigorously. “I’m truly sorry. I just heard that your sect is proficient in refining weapons and has quite a few Fire Spirit Beads for controlling heat. This aligns perfectly with my current goal, so I casually mentioned a more prestigious one. I didn’t realize how important that bead was to your sect. I was careless.”

The more sincere the fat man’s words, the more uneasy Yi Gui Gou felt.

If it were any other day… He would never say a word and just kill this evil with a single blow, but now he had to ask for help from others and had to endure it forcefully, but he couldn’t stop himself from falling into a disadvantage step by step.

Seeing the fire was ready, Fatty Ji touched his chin with his fat hand, pausing for a moment before saying, “Actually, any high-quality Fire Spirit Pearl will be fine. I heard your sect has another pearl called the Sun Wheel Pearl, which bears some resemblance to the Dry Heaven Fire Spirit Pearl. Both are formed from the convergence of fire spirits. If I take this pearl, it won’t further undermine your sect’s foundation, right?”

Yigui Gou finally understood, yet a bitter taste welled up in his mouth.

Bullshit Dry Heaven Fire Spirit Pearl! This fat man had clearly been after the Sun Wheel Pearl from the start, seemingly negotiating and easygoing, but the word “high-quality” sealed any room for negotiation.

The Weigou Sect does have a few Fire Spirit Pearls, but the only ones the Thousand Treasure Pavilion Master could call top-quality, besides the Dry Heaven Fire Spirit Pearl, were the Sun Wheel Pearl.

As Ji Buhao had said, the Sun Wheel Pearl was far less valuable than the Dry Heaven Fire Spirit Pearl. Trading this pearl for Yigui was a fair trade, but there was a hurdle that he couldn’t overcome.

The Sun Wheel Pearl is a beloved possession of Zhugou Sect’s leader, Qianji Old Monster. Since acquiring it, he rarely leaves it. He even devised a special method for utilizing it to maximize its power. To obtain the pearl from him and then trade it back, one must engage in a serious “deal” with Qianji.

The problem is that after the forty-ninth tribulation, the relationship between Yigui Gou and Qianji, the sect leader’s junior fellow, has deteriorated, becoming more and more like strangers in recent years. The mere thought of acquiring the Sun Wheel Pearl from him is a headache.

However, compared to the importance of Yigui Gou and the earlier Lion Sun Dry Sky Fire Spirit Pearl, this is a minimal price.

Yigui Gou still has some reservations and is considering further bargaining, but then Fatty Ji, with a smile, pulls out a jade slip from his bosom. “Here are the insights accumulated from my sect’s seven hundred years of raising Yigui. It also contains some of the spirit-controlling techniques of the Hundred Beast Sect. Since the Hundred Beast Sect’s disbanding, these techniques have all but vanished…” “

Deal!”

Yigui Gou snaps in his decision.

These rewards were more than enough to offset his future losses, especially the Hundred Beasts Sect’s spirit-controlling techniques. This was exactly what he’d lacked when raising the Plague Ghost. If he could master these techniques and combine them with the Plague Ghost’s internal and external attacks, his cultivation would almost certainly reach the True One realm, saving him at least three hundred years of hard training.

Even if he completely fell out with Old Monster Qianji for this technique and the Plague Ghost, he wouldn’t be unacceptable.

Fatty Ji acted incredibly generous. After the Plague Ghost Gou agreed, he tossed the jade slip over: “This is my deposit. Whether the deal goes through or not, it’s yours, Brother Diao. After all, even if it doesn’t, our friendship remains!”

The Plague Ghost Gou took the slip, a little dazed, but his mind, tempered for millennia, wasn’t easily fooled. The closer he got to success, the more lucid he became.

Suddenly, a thought struck him. He turned his gaze to Ji’s fat face. The glint of light connected with certain rumors in this world, slowly connecting the dots.

He tucked the jade slip into his arms and suddenly exclaimed, “Has Pavilion Master Ji not removed the candidate hat yet?”

“How difficult!”

Fatty Ji showed no surprise at all, instead acting as if he was sharing his heart with Yi Gui Gou.

“Those elders in this Pavilion are all more stubborn than a wooden block, setting up increasingly difficult trials. This time, I need your Sect Master’s Sun Wheel Pearl and your help, brother… Remember when those old immortals actually wanted me to retrieve something from the old Kunpeng demon’s lair in the East China Sea? Ugh, that was a close call!”

Yi Gui Gou’s face twitched slightly, narrowly avoiding a blow that shattered the fat man’s face. However, a question lingered in his mind. After a moment’s deliberation, he asked, “It’s a blessing for your sect to have someone like Pavilion Master Ji in charge of Qianbao Pavilion. Why are your elders creating so many obstacles and causing so much trouble?”

His implication was that with Ji’s excellent management of Qianbao Pavilion, he should have established a solid internal and external integrity. How could he let those old immortals lead him around?

This, in fact, was also the suspicion of Li Xun, who was hiding nearby.

The more he saw the fat man, the more he felt he was a man of deep scheming, possessing both soft and hard tactics. He was truly capable of being a sect leader, but this fat man displayed an oddly good temper, allowing the elders to order him through one dangerous and difficult “treasure-seeking” operation after another. This was truly bizarre.

Upon hearing this, the fat man laughed heartily. “If it were simply to lead the sect, I’d be incompetent, but I’d be more than capable. The elders in our sect understand this. It’s just about expanding the business. The risks involved will be greater, and the challenges will be different. I’m happy with that.”

Li Xun sneered in the dark, but a question lingered in his heart. “It seems this fat man is quite ambitious. While Qianbao Pavilion may be financially strong, where should we expand?”

It was clear that Yigui Gou shared the same sentiment, and the look in his eyes when he looked at the fat man again was quite different. However, the Qianbao Pavilion, located east of the Tongxuan Realm, had nothing to do with the Zhugou Sect, so he wasn’t prepared to delve into the matter.

Suddenly, Fatty Ji said, “Actually, speaking of big business, there are some matters concerning your sect…”

As soon as he finished speaking, four icy gazes pierced his face, their murderous intent only intensified.

Fatty, however, remained unfazed, not even the smile lines on his fat face flickered. (Yilukanxiaoshuo.com)

“It’s not just your sect. In my opinion, besides your and my sects, there’s also the Yanxing Sect and Qianfan City. A total of four sects are enough to do something.”

A chill had previously surrounded the fat man, but when he mentioned the latter two sects, the Yigui Gou and the Shishendao, the murderous intent subsided. This was because the four sects the fat man mentioned weren’t particularly powerful. In fact, with the exception of the Zhugou Sect, the others were secluded and rarely intervened in the conflicts within the Tongxuan Realm.

Clearly, the fat man wasn’t stirring up anything overly dangerous, and these sects couldn’t possibly stir it up.

Yigui Gou and Shi Shen Dao exchanged glances, a smile still breaking through their ugly faces. “That’s interesting! I wonder what Sect Master Ji has planned?”

Fatty Ji didn’t rush to answer. Instead, he counted off his fingers, listing off one by one: “Qianfan City has always been ensconced in the Tianxing Sea. However, their weapon-refining techniques are unparalleled. Honestly, even your sect is slightly inferior. The Yanxing Sect is mysterious, but for tens of thousands of years, their eavesdropping and burrowing methods are unsettling. The intelligence they spread is also indispensable to the Tongxuan Realm.

” “Our sect, of course, has a reputation for collecting the world’s greatest treasures and trading them. And your sect’s weapon-refining and assassination techniques are both exceptional and truly exceptional in the Tongxuan Realm…”

Before the two Zhugou Sect assassins, the fat man shook his head, reciting everything, and suddenly said, “When our four sects are lined up, can you sense any similarities

?” “Similarities?”

The two were stunned.

Given their experience, they shouldn’t be so incompetent. But the fat man’s eloquence and his evasive speech were so numerous that their minds were spinning in circles. Their acumen was much weaker than before, and they were truly baffled.

The fat man chuckled, ignoring the Plague Ghost’s murderous gaze. He tapped the bamboo tube against his other palm and revealed the secret.

“Our four sects are the most genuine merchants in the Tongxuan Realm! Let me explain. Aside from your sect’s occasional quest for profit and territory, Zifan, Yanxing, and our own sect rely almost entirely on individual businesses to make ends meet. We are completely different from those other sects that focus solely on cultivation, fighting, and mentoring.”

After he had grasped the deeper implications of the Yi Gui Gou scheme, he was the first to react and nodded, saying, “That’s not bad. Your sect’s business has been booming over the years, with Qianfan City and the Yanxing Sect doing no worse… But so what? Could it be that the leader is planning a major deal involving all the other sects? In that case, our sect would be somewhat interested.”

Ji Bu Kou shook his head, “Brother Diao is just playing dumb. I’ve made it clear. Isn’t this exactly what I meant by expansion? It’s just that our sect isn’t acting unilaterally, but rather uniting the four sects to create a synergistic force.

” “We’re all in business, so there’s no significant competition or conflict. Connecting things together shouldn’t be difficult.”

Yi Gui Gou uttered a “hmm,” his expression clearly devoid of interest. “After all, it’s all business. You make your money, I make mine. Connecting things together or splitting them up doesn’t make much sense.”

At this point, he added a jab at Fatty Ji, “The Ji Pavilion Master is quite ambitious.”