Chapter 14: Wang Lixia’s Path of No Return
Chapter 14: Chapter 14: Wang Lixia’s Path of No Return
Chen Mo stopped about fifty meters away from the two of them. He looked from afar at Xiao Changhua, whose muscles bulged and face was covered in a thick beard, and frowned slightly. Curiosity killed the cat; he had little interest in knowing other people’s secrets.
Just as he was about to turn and leave, Wang Lixia coughed dryly. "You come over too."
"Me? Come over?" Chen Mo asked in return.
"Come listen to this, see if you’re interested."
Hearing this, Xiao Changhua looked at Wang Lixia in astonishment. "You’re planning to let him get involved in this?"
"Whether he goes or not is his business."
Chen Mo slowly approached. This time, the dark-faced Qi Refining Second Layer Cultivator who had walked the Martial Dao was no longer guarding against him like a startled cat.
"Say it again," Wang Lixia said slowly. In Chen Mo’s eyes, the old woman appeared even older.
Xiao Changhua hesitated for a moment before finally speaking. "It goes like this. There’s a mine between Purple Cloud Peak and Yellow Cloud Peak. After years of excavation, quite a few Spirit Stones and Spiritual Sand were found there. I heard that about a year ago, they unearthed an Ancient Immortal’s Pocket World Blessed Land."
At those words, Chen Mo immediately lost interest. What did a Pocket World Blessed Land have to do with him? Could a mere Qi Refining First Layer Cultivator really expect to reap any benefits?
Seeing his absent-mindedness, Xiao Changhua sneered inwardly and continued. "However, it seems Restrictions have been placed upon that Pocket World Blessed Land. Only Qi Refining Early Stage Cultivators can enter."
"So you plan to invite Senior to go with you?" Chen Mo asked.
"That’s right! The Cyan Yang Sect has made this secret semi-public. As long as someone can help them retrieve Magical Treasures and Immortal Pills from within the Pocket World Blessed Land, they can successfully join the Cyan Yang Sect! And not just any peak, but the main peak," Xiao Changhua said.
"Fellow Daoist Chen, what do you think?" Wang Lixia, who had been silent on the side, suddenly asked.
"Me?" Chen Mo was slightly surprised. He pondered for a moment before saying, "This Pocket World Blessed Land was discovered nearly a year ago?"
"Correct."
"And no one has successfully retrieved the treasures inside for a whole year?"
"Right!"
"Is it dangerous? Will people die?"
"Rumor has it that since it was buried deep underground for so long and nourished by a Spirit Vein, it has bred quite a few evil entities." Xiao Changhua smiled disdainfully. "If it were simple and didn’t require taking risks, would the Cyan Yang Sect have announced this information?"
"Then what makes you think you can definitely pull it off?"
"When did I ever say I was going?" Xiao Changhua retorted with a straight face.
"Then you..." Chen Mo suddenly turned to look at Wang Lixia, instantly figuring everything out. Of course! Since the Cyan Yang Sect had released this news, they naturally wanted to recruit a large number of Loose Cultivators from the Marketplace to act as cannon fodder. Naturally, since only those at the Qi Refining Early Stage could enter, Qi Refining Third Layer Cultivators had the highest chance of success.
Although it was unknown how long Wang Lixia had before her physical decline, given her current state, it would be extremely difficult for her to make any further progress in her cultivation. In that case, risking it all before death was indeed a logical choice!
"Senior?"
"Do you think I should go?" Wang Lixia asked in return.
"From what Fellow Daoist Xiao said, this trip will likely mean certain death!" Chen Mo said solemnly. If she left and never returned, he would lose his backing when selling grain at the end of the year.
Wang Lixia looked at the two men opposite her, then raised her eyes to look at the distant mountains. Her cane supported her hunched body, and a bewildered expression appeared on her deeply wrinkled face. Neither Chen Mo nor Xiao Changhua spoke at this moment. They both knew very well that no one else could make this decision for her.
After a long while, Wang Lixia’s gaze finally sharpened. "Let’s go back for now. Allow me to think it over for two days."
"Alright! Farewell!" Xiao Changhua had successfully delivered the message.
Chen Mo wasn’t in a hurry to leave. Instead, he walked over to the adjacent field and began to perform Rainfall over this Spirit Field. If she really chose to take the risk—a desperate, last-ditch gamble—then this Spirit Field would be left in his care. He wondered whether this would be a burden or a stroke of luck.
After finishing the Cloud Formation and Rainfall, Chen Mo returned home.
Early the next morning, a faint knock came from outside the door. Upon opening it, the visitor was none other than Wang Lixia!
Before Chen Mo could speak, she turned around and said, "Follow me."
The two of them, one after the other, arrived in front of Wang Lixia’s small wooden cabin.
"Wait here."
She went back inside by herself, and after a while, walked out carrying a sack. "This is two hundred catties of Spirit Rice, the grain I’ve saved up over the years." As she spoke, she took a cloth bundle and a Porcelain Bottle out from her Dou. "Inside here are eight Fasting Pills and thirty taels of Spiritual Sand. Take them for now."
Chen Mo’s eyes widened. He couldn’t believe these things were being handed over to him. For a Loose Cultivator, this was a considerable fortune!
"These items will be temporarily stored with you. If I am lucky enough to return alive within three months, you must return them to me in full, not a single piece missing." Wang Lixia’s expression was stern.
"Understood!" Chen Mo nodded earnestly.
"If I die..." At this point, her eyes visibly dimmed. "...then consider it your payment for managing my Spirit Field."
"Senior! This trip will likely bring you more doom than fortune! You absolutely don’t have to go." Compared to these resources, Chen Mo actually preferred she didn’t leave. Although this Spiritual Sand and Spirit Rice was a lot, given three years, he could earn this much on his own. However, three years was nowhere near enough time for him to reach the Qi Refining Third Layer!
"My mind is made up!" Wang Lixia shook her head, her tone reverting to one that brooked no argument. Only she knew her own condition best. If she didn’t take this gamble, she had at most one year left to live. Rather than dying quietly in the Spirit Field, it was better to fight for that final sliver of a chance!
"Senior, I’ll help you manage your five acres of Spirit Field for now. I wish you a triumphant return!" Chen Mo cupped his fists.
Wang Lixia tapped her cane lightly and said, "You need to be careful of that Cultivator from yesterday. I can see he isn’t far from breaking through to the Qi Refining Third Layer!"
"I don’t seem to have any interactions with him, do I?" Chen Mo was somewhat confused.
"Those two acres of Spirit Field!"
Chen Mo’s heart skipped a beat. Could it be that Xiao Changhua also wanted to lease those two acres?
"Thank you for the warning, Senior!" Having a covetous neighbor was not good news at all.
Having given her kind reminder, Wang Lixia turned and went back inside, muttering to herself, "Next year, who will this Spirit Field belong to..."
Her resolve to face death was firm. She probably also knew this journey was virtually a death sentence, yet she still chose to step onto this path of no return. This was the sorrow and helplessness of a Bottom Layer Cultivator!
Chen Mo carefully pocketed the Fasting Pills and Spiritual Sand she had temporarily left in his care, hoisted the sack of Spirit Rice onto his shoulder, and returned to his own home.
Around noon, he gazed from afar as Wang Lixia, leaning on her cane, limped away and vanished at the end of his line of sight.
As for whether she would ever return? Chen Mo grasped the Spiritual Sand and began to meditate, immersing himself in Immortal Cultivation.