Amidst the chaos, Shen Gurong calmed Xi Guxing, who was about to attack him with a sword, and Chao Jiuxiao, who had transformed into a dragon and was about to devour him whole. After settling the debts owed to Jing Zhuchen and Lin Shuhe, Shen Gurong, under Mu Zhe's expectant gaze, generously tossed the Mustard Seed to Xi Guxing, sending him off to prepare for the grand ceremony.
"The more elaborate and extravagant, the better," Shen Gurong declared magnanimously.
Xi Guxing's face turned green: "Master gave you these spirit stones so you could squander them like this?"
Shen Gurong raised an eyebrow: "Otherwise? For cultivation?"
Xi Guxing snatched the Mustard Seed, snorted, and said, "Don't waste resources. Dual cultivation is enough for you."
Shen Gurong: "..."
Mu Zhe: "..."
Everyone around—except Jing Zhuchen—fell silent.
After Xi Guxing finished speaking, he belatedly realized what had happened. He pursed his lips, frozen for a long time, then feigned composure, gave a heavy snort, and ran away, his face flushed.
And so the matter was settled.
Three days later, the marriage invitations from Liren Peak were sent from Fenglu City to all parts of the Three Realms. Overnight, everyone knew that the Holy Lord of Liren Peak was going to marry his disciple.
In recent years, besides slaying wicked ghost and demon cultivators, Shen Gurong had mostly been in seclusion on Liren Peak. People in the Three Realms only vaguely knew that he wore blue robes, had white hair, and wore an ice-silk mask over his eyes; very few had actually seen his face—after all, those demons who had seen his face had usually already been killed.
This time, the marriage invitations were sent from Fenglu City by its newly appointed city lord. Every sect with any power received the bright red invitations. After repeatedly confirming the spiritual power and names on them, they were all stunned.
The Three Realms are never short of tales about masters and disciples, but these are usually written by seasoned lovers for their own self-gratification. Very few masters and disciples actually become Daoist partners, since few disciples dare to covet their masters.
But Mu Zhe was an extremely special case. He not only dared to covet, but he also ate.
The people of the Three Realms admired him immensely, and all wanted to come to Liren Peak to see what this audacious person looked like.
In Taozhou's Great Swamp, Xue Manzhuang was drinking with Qingyu while clutching a wine jar and wailing bitterly.
"I...I'm so beautiful, my feathers are so gorgeous, why doesn't the Holy Lord like me?"
He grabbed Qingyu, dazed and confused, and cried, "Why didn't he choose me? Why did he choose that ugly monster?"
Qingyu was talking to a butterfly and, hearing this, casually replied, "Wait a minute, I'm discussing how much dowry to give with that ugly monster."
Xue Manzhuang: "..."
Xue Manzhuang burst into tears.
"No one chose me?! Waaah, I'm a phoenix, the only phoenix in the Three Realms! Waaah!"
"You'll regret this! I'm going to breathe fire and burn Liren Peak...it'll all be burned down!"
Xue Manzhuang, drunk, breathed out a small cluster of flames, almost scorching Qingyu's tail. He slumped onto the table, his voice gradually fading.
"Burn it all down..."
"So they can never, ever be registered again..."
"Waaah."
Qingyu: "..." Qingyu looked at the drunk Xue Manzhuang with a headache, feeling utterly overwhelmed.
This phoenix is already an adult, so why does it still act and speak like a child? Did its inherited memories go to waste?
He took off his robe and draped it over Xue Manzhuang, sighing. He was thankful he had usurped the throne; if the demon race had fallen into this person's hands, they would likely be finished.
Mu Zhe's voice came from the spirit butterfly: "What did you say?"
Qingyu sighed: "Xue Manzhuang has been cursing you for two days now; my ears are calloused."
Mu Zhe sneered: "Ignore him. Destroy the spirit stone Master gave him, so he won't interfere with my important matters."
Qingyu had received so much help from Mu Zhe, so upon hearing this, he had no choice but to get up and search Xue Manzhuang's body, intending to find the spirit stone.
But after only a couple of touches, the drunken Xue Manzhuang suddenly opened his eyes, looking at Qingyu with a dazed expression.
For a moment, the scene was extremely awkward.
Qingyu immediately withdrew his hand, forcing a dry laugh, "I was just... looking for something."
Xue Manzhuang looked at him pitifully, tears streaming down his face.
Qingyu: "..."
Qingyu was exasperated: "Spare me, I'm really bad at comforting people."
He thought for a long time, finally resigned himself to transforming into a small nine-tailed fox, nuzzling against Xue Manzhuang in a coquettish manner.
Xue Manzhuang looked at him blankly for a long time, then suddenly hugged him tightly, squeezing and kneading him vigorously, seemingly very fond of him.
Qingyu: "..."
Qingyu looked utterly hopeless.
Liren Peak.
Mu Zhe scattered the spirit butterflies, turning around to revert to his gentle and refined demeanor.
Shen Gurong was carving ink bamboo in Fanjiang Residence, seemingly intending to make a bamboo flute by hand.
Mu Zhe moved closer and sat down next to him. "Master, it's already night. Carving any longer will strain your eyes. Your eyes aren't fully healed yet; you should rest early."
Shen Gurong took the carving knife and carved another stroke, then tilted his head and gave him a half-smile. "Rest? Are you planning to let me rest?"
Mu Zhe looked at Shen Gurong innocently, as if saying, "I don't understand."
Shen Gurong chuckled, tucked the unfinished bamboo flute into his sleeve, and said with a snort, "You can sleep by yourself tonight."
Mu Zhe quickly asked, "Where is Master going?"
"To your Martial Uncle."
Mu Zhe: "I'll go with you..."
"No need." Shen Gurong glanced at him. "The marriage ceremony is in a few days. I have something to discuss with your Martial Uncle."
Mu Zhe couldn't stop him and could only watch helplessly as Shen Gurong turned and left.
Shen Gurong finally had a peaceful night. After leaving Fanjiang Residence, he casually asked a young boy to take him to find Xi Guxing.
Soon, he followed the flattered boy to the Boundary Spirit Tablet. A small lamp illuminated the surroundings, and Xi Guxing was sitting cross-legged beside the abandoned array, seemingly doing nothing.
Shen Gurong dismissed the boy and walked over suspiciously: "Senior brother, what are you doing…" Before he could finish speaking, he caught sight of Xi Guxing's actions, and his face turned green.
His senior brother, who was so meticulous about splitting even a single spirit stone in two, was now using a small knife to pry off the layer of spirit stones on top of the array.
Shen Gurong: "..." Shen Gurong's lips twitched: "Senior Brother."
Xi Guxing saw him approach and casually greeted him, mumbling, "What's wrong? Is something the matter?"
Shen Gurong's expression was complicated: "What are you doing?"
Xi Guxing said, "Digging for spirit stones. Anyway, the formation in the Burial Mound is useless now, and the spirit stones are just a waste here. I might as well dig them out and save up more for your dowry."
Shen Gurong: "..."
Shen Gurong could only straighten his robes and sit down, propping his chin up as he watched Xi Guxing dig for spirit stones.
Xi Guxing was too lazy to pay attention to him and continued digging for spirit stones, afraid that using spiritual power would accidentally break them, so he had to dig by hand. He had already dug up dozens of spirit stones, and he didn't know how long he had been digging.
Shen Gurong stared for a while, then suddenly whispered, "Senior brother."
Xi Guxing didn't even look up: "Hmm?"
Shen Gurong hesitated again, then finally said, "Have I never apologized to you yet?"
Xi Guxing, his mind preoccupied with digging for spirit stones, casually retorted, "If you're going to apologize, hurry up—can't you help me dig one? Your cultivation is so high, what's the point?"
Shen Gurong: "..."
Shen Gurong was both amused and exasperated, saying, "Senior brother, I'm serious."
Xi Guxing dug out another spirit stone, then looked up at him suspiciously: "Apologize? Apologize for what?"
"Apologize for causing me so much trouble? You certainly haven't done that. Hurry up and say it."
Shen Gurong could only say, "I'm sorry, Senior Brother. You've worked so hard."
Senior Brother said, "I don't accept it."
Shen Gurong: "..."
Shen Gurong suddenly chuckled. As he laughed, his eyes became slightly moist. He raised his hand and gently wiped them away before whispering, "I'm sorry."
When he first joined Liren Peak, Shen Gurong's cheerful nature was overshadowed by his return to Huitang City. He was gloomy all day long, and only Xi Guxing would stay by his side. Although it was awkward, Xi Guxing was genuinely good to him.
Shen Gurong had always been good at being affectionate, showering his parents, brothers, teachers, and even Xiwu with affection. But since arriving at Liren Peak, the first and only time he acted affectionately was towards Xi Guxing.
He said, "Kill me, thank you." In that instant, Xi Guxing's face turned deathly pale.
From that moment on, Xi Guxing developed a deep psychological aversion to Shen Gurong's coquettishness, always reacting with fury whenever he did.
Sixteen-year-old Shen Gurong, unaware of Xi Guxing's thoughts, always laughed at him, but now, he understood.
Shen Gurong tilted his head, smiling at him, and said softly, "Thank you, Senior Brother."
Xi Guxing was stunned, instinctively wanting to scold him, but for some reason, the words suddenly wouldn't come out.
He awkwardly lowered his head and continued digging for spirit stones, but after a long while, he couldn't find a single one.
After an unknown amount of time, Xi Guxing finally said softly, "Hmm."
Shen Gurong suddenly smiled, relieved. He pulled Xi Guxing up, raised his hand, and with a wave of his hand, the spirit stones in the large magic array were overturned by a surge of spiritual power, countless spirit stones piling up intact at Xi Guxing's feet.
Xi Guxing glanced at them, his eyes flickering slightly, seemingly moved.
Shen Gurong smiled, waiting for his senior brother, the sect leader, to thank him.
Xi Guxing turned his head to look at him, his lips moving slightly as he muttered, "You bastard..."
Shen Gurong: "???"
Xi Guxing cursed angrily, "You bastard! Where were you before?! I've been digging here for so long and you didn't help? Did you want to see me make a fool of myself?!"
Shen Gurong: "..."
After scolding him, Xi Guxing took the spirit stones and stormed off.
Shen Gurong was abandoned by Xi Guxing again. Fortunately, he was prepared and found a place with abundant spiritual energy, intending to find a place to stay for the night, so he wouldn't be unable to get out of bed again due to Mu Zhe's antics.
As he walked, he finally saw a house.
Shen Gurong raised an eyebrow, about to walk over, when he saw Jing Zhuchen sitting under the old locust tree by the door, smoking a pipe.
Shen Gurong remained expressionless, turned his toes to the side, and prepared to find a place to sleep on the street.
Jing Zhuchen smiled faintly, "Eleventh, you're here, won't you come in and sit down?"
Shen Gurong took a deep breath and had no choice but to turn and walk over.
"Fourth Senior Brother."
Jing Zhuchen led him into the room, casually extinguishing the incense burning in the room, and rummaged through the bookshelves.
Shen Gurong asked, "Senior Brother, what are you looking for?"
Jing Zhuchen vaguely replied, "The grand gift I'm planning for your official registration."
Shen Gurong recalled Jing Zhuchen's extravagant manner in Suihan City and felt a strange sense of anticipation, wanting to see what kind of gift his lavish fourth senior brother would give him.
Soon, Jing Zhuchen found an exquisite sandalwood box and casually tossed it to Shen Gurong.
Shen Gurong caught it, glanced at it casually, and noticed the character "Shen" engraved on the bottom of the box, which Jing Zhuchen must have done intentionally.
“Thank you, Senior Brother,” Shen Gurong said. “May I open it?”
Jing Zhuchen nodded, removing the smell of tobacco from his clothes, and lazily sat on the soft couch, tilting his head with a smile.
Shen Gurong opened the wooden box with a hint of anticipation. Inside were several small compartments, about a dozen in total, each containing a small, exquisitely crafted, shimmering glass bottle, about the size of a fingertip.
Shen Gurong didn't quite understand what these were and looked up at his senior brother, asking, “What is this?”
Jing Zhuchen replied, “The spiritual power of a demon cultivator.”
Shen Gurong tilted his head. “What?”
Jing Zhuchen explained slowly, “Didn't you try it before? As long as your body absorbs the spiritual power of a demon cultivator, you can temporarily possess the true form of a demon cultivator.”
Shen Gurong was taken aback, then remembered that he had briefly transformed into a phoenix and had been with a fox-eared demon before.
But he still didn't understand. Did it have anything to do with these glass bottles?
“Of course,” Jing Zhuchen said. “I specially collected the spiritual energy of these demon cultivators to add some fun to your dual cultivation. The spiritual energy in one glass bottle can last for a day, so you can do whatever you want with it.”
Shen Gurong: “…”
Shen Gurong froze.
Jing Zhuchen pointed to the items in each compartment, explaining, “This is the spiritual energy of a fox demon, this is a cat demon, a rabbit demon… each compartment has something different. Oh right, this is the spiritual energy of a snake demon that I painstakingly found. It's labeled below; it's not for you, so remember not to mix them up.”
Shen Gurong: “…”
Shen Gurong expressionlessly closed the wooden box gently, the click interrupting Jing Zhuchen’s incessant chatter.
Jing Zhuchen raised an eyebrow: “Don’t you like it?”
Shen Gurong put down the box, his voice almost inaudible: “Senior brother, I’ll take my leave.”
With that, he turned and left.
Jing Zhuchen clicked his tongue, put the wooden box away, intending to slip it into the gifts for their joint cultivation later.
RIP to Gurong's crysanthemum should Mu Zhe use the snake energy
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