Spirit Realm Chapter 565-566

Chapter 565: Flustered

Xing Wu looked at them from a distance, his head shaking with inadvertent laughter.

“Come on up, you three,” he said with a nod.

He didn’t envy Qin Lie at all.

Despite the fact that these women belonged to Qin Lie, Xing Wu just found his taste, for lack of a better word, underwhelming.

In order to avoid attracting trouble, Song Tingyu, Xie Jingxuan, and Xue Moyan had willingly concealed their beauty and made themselves look extremely ordinary. They couldn’t even be considered pretty.

Beauties were a common sight to Xing Wu, so he considered average women without even a hint of beauty completely unattractive.

He was simply amused.

The three women couldn’t care less about what he thought. They had grown tired of the bottom level of the ship a long time ago, and the moment they heard Xing Wu’s words, they rushed to leave.

Unfortunately for Du Xiangyang and Luo Chen, all they could do was send them away from this hell with their eyes.

Gao Yu, on the other hand, showed no interest at all.

“That ungrateful Qin Lie!” Di Xiangyang swore.

Luo Chen gritted his teeth in frustration.

Qin Lie had clearly abandoned them and didn’t plan to take them with him.

Xing Wu personally led the three women up from the bottom level of the ship. He wore a mocking smile as he casually asked, “Are all of you truly Xing Lie’s women?”

“Of course.” Song Tingyu pursed her lips into a faint smile, her eyes sparkling brightly.

All of a sudden, Xing Wu felt somewhat confused.

If he disregarded Song Tingyu’s face and only took her eyes and seductive figure into account, Xing Wu would think that she was pretty extraordinary.

The light that shone from Song Tingyu’s beautiful eyes when she smiled made him lose himself for a moment. He almost felt as if he were talking with a peerless beauty.

He shook off the ridiculous feeling from his head and asked, “Why did you agree to this? I mean… all three of you serving a single husband?”

Xie Jingxuan’s and Xue Moyan’s eyes went cold at the same time.

If they were to forget about their statuses and only take their realms into account, Xing Wu still wasn’t at their level.

When their eyes went cold, shock filled Xing Wu as he whispered under his breath.

“The peak of the Netherpassage Realm!”

“We’re willing to serve Xing Lie because he has his own unique charm. What is there to be surprised about?” Song Tingyu felt a bit bored, so she laughed and started teasing Xing Wu. “In fact, someone like you… a guy that’s only slightly handsome and has no real skill isn’t even worth our attention, you know?”

Song Tingyu even turned to Xie Jingxuan and Xue Moyan for their approval. “What do you think, ladies?”

Both women shot fierce glares at her. They inwardly cursed her senseless teasing and how she caused a scene out of nowhere.

“Er…” Xing Wu suddenly felt awkward and laughed in embarrassment. He discovered that he was no match for this sharp-tongued woman.

“I believe that a man needs more than good looks. A man also needs charisma and strength that a woman can rely on.” Song Tingyu shook her head and glanced at Xing Wu. She smiled softly and said, “I doubt you possess any of the qualities that Xing Lie does, little brother. You still have quite a ways to go.”

“I-I’m not little anymore.” Xing Wu rubbed his nose.

“Little Wu, have you brought the women?” Xing Yao’s voice rang from the hallway of the ship’s top level.

“We’re here, Sister Yao,” Xing Wu hurriedly answered.

“Will you look at that? She calls you Little Wu, yet you’re telling me you’re not little?” Song Tingyu chuckled softly.

Xing Wu gave her a bitter smile.

As they spoke to each other, the four of them entered the hallway and immediately saw Xing Yao at its far end.

Xing Yao examined the three newcomers from head to toe, then nodded. She wore a strange expression as she muttered, “I thought he might’ve been amazing, but it turns out that the three of his wives put together can’t even compare to my beauty. I knew it! How could a shameless bastard like him possibly find a good wife?”

The second she took in the faces of Song Tingyu, Xie Jingxuan, and Xue Moyan, Xing Yao relaxed.

“Take them to the room beside mine, Xing Wu.” Xing Yao didn’t bother taking a second look at them and instantly withdrew herself into her room, shutting the door tightly.

At the same time, Qin Lie opened the door to his room at the far end of the room. He waved at Song Tingyu and the others, then moved to them with a smile on his face.

The moment he saw Qin Lie arrive, Xing Wu smiled and turned to leave, saying, “I’ll be on my way now.”

Once the Xing Family clansman departed, Qin Lie led his companions down the hallway, straight to the room he was currently residing in.

Only Song Tingyu gazed at Qin Lie with her beautiful eyes, still smiling. Xie Jingxuan and Xue Moyan glared at him, more or less out of anger, rolling their eyes at him the second they entered the room and closed the door.

Qin Lie pointed at the wall that separated him from Xing Yao and shrugged. His eyes told them that it was the best choice he could’ve made.

Song Tingyu walked around the spacious room with a calm expression, quickly memorizing its layout. She then pointed at the cultivation room and made gestures indicating that its insulation diagram would allow them to talk without worry.

“Let me change into a set of dry clothes first,” Xue Moyan said softly.

However, Xie Jingxuan wordlessly took the initiative to enter the washroom first. Her spatial ring flashed, and a set of snow white clothing with a long skirt emerged from it.

She commandeered the washroom before anyone else could.

Xue Moyan glanced at the washroom, a slight frown on her lips. She also slipped into the washroom, taking out a pale green wool dress.

“Leave room for me!” Song Tingyu smiled, rushing to squeeze her way in.

The three women had entered the washroom, all in a hurry to wash themselves and change into dry clothes.

“I’ll use the cultivation room to meditate for a bit.”

Qin Lie coughed softly and walked into the cultivation room while rubbing his nose, intent on ignoring the three women in the washroom.

He didn’t bother to close the door to the cultivation room since the others would come in later.

As a result, he could clearly hear the sounds that echoed from the washroom.

“Splish splash… splash…”

The distinct sound of water splashing against someone continuously rang out.

Even with his eyes closed, Qin Lie could imagine what Song Tingyu, Xie Jingxuan, and Xue Moyan were doing.

They’d been out on the ocean for days while constantly in close proximity with each other. They had even been soaked in seawater earlier. The three women hadn’t been able to find a private place to wash up until now, so they were naturally in a hurry to get clean.

The constant sound of splashing water softly tugged at his heartstrings over and over. It made his mind go wild, causing numerous alluring images to appear in his head from time to time.

Soon enough, his body began to grow hotter and restless.

“Dammit,” he swore in a low voice, attempting to adjust his breathing and not overthink things. “This is killing me.”

Yet the more he tried to control himself, the more his imagination roamed.

The scenes that popped up in his head grew increasingly erotic as he listened to the water splashing. They made his blood boil, and he grew more and more uncomfortable.

As Qin Lie struggled under an abyss of torment, the three women finally finished bathing and changing into their clothes. Since they were now in private, they didn’t bother hiding their beauty and revealed beautiful, elegant, and clean faces to Qin Lie.

Having changed into sets of immaculate, exquisite clothing and revealed their actual appearances, the three of them entered the small cultivation room one after another, wiping their drenched hair with towels.

Song Tingyu finally closed the wooden door that had an insulation diagram inscribed into it. She ran a comb through her cascading hair, smiled, and said, “Do you really think you’d be able to eat up three wives that popped up out of nowhere, you scoundrel?”

“Are you done yet?” Xie Jingxuan and Xue Moyan glared at her together.

“Hahaha!” Song Tingyu laughed, raising her hands in defeat. “Alright, alright… I’ll stop.”

“Have you seen Xing Shengnan? Was she suspicious of your identity?” Xue Moyan asked as she dried her wet hair. “Also, how are you going to treat Gold Sun Island? And where are these ships headed?” Xue Moyan asked while she ran her fingers through her wet hair.

“The god corpses are following below us, right?” Xie Jingxuan asked, checking on the most critical piece of information.

Song Tingyu asked some questions as well, but her concerns obviously differed from those of the two other women.

“Who is that Xing Yao? When she looked at us, disdain and disgust filled her eyes. What did you do to her?”

Qin Lie gazed at the three of them, taking in their pure, elegant, and enchanting faces. The erotic images that his mind had conjured up hadn’t completely subsided.

“We’re asking you questions!” Xie Jingxuan softly reprimanded him.

Xue Moyan also frowned slightly.

Qin Lie coughed for a while, gradually regaining his composure. He inwardly sighed at their amazing charm and the fact that he nearly lost control of himself.

After calming down, Qin Lie launched into an explanation.

“The god corpses will keep following me. That’s one thing we don’t have to worry about. As for Xing Shengnan, not only was she not suspicious of me, she even greatly approved of my identity. However, I still haven’t figured out where they’re headed…” he said quickly. “Judging from what that Xing Yao said, spies from all kinds of forces have apparently been infiltrating Gold Sun Island recently. She’s paying close attention to me because she thinks we’re enemy spies. She may attempt a thorough search of us in the near future, but this shouldn’t be a problem. The fact that we returned from the Graveyard of Gods shouldn’t be exposed.”

“The Xing Family actually had a clansman named Xing Shan?” Xue Moyan exclaimed in surprise. “That’s an amazing coincidence.”

“It is indeed an amazing coincidence. I randomly blurted out a name, and it actually made Xing Shengnan believe me wholeheartedly.” This outcome astonished Qin Lie as well.

“What do you think about the Xing Family and Xing Shengnan?” Xue Moyan asked, a solemn expression on her face.

After a moment of contemplation, Qin Lie said, “Xing Shengnan… that woman is a decent person. As for Xing Yumiao and the other Xing Family clansmen, I haven’t met them yet.”

“Blood Fiend Sect has been trying to recruit the Xing Family as allies for a long time now. If you can find a way to get them to trust us, that would be fantastic. As Blood Fiend Sect is now, the Xing Family and Gold Sun Island would be a great boon,” Xue Moyan said.

She began getting her hopes up.

“I’ll give it a try.” Qin Lie nodded.

“We better figure out the destination of these ships first,” Xie Jingxuan said, reminding everyone.

Qin Lie thought to himself for a second, then said, “You women should rest for a while. That Xing Yao will probably investigate me and try to figure out my real identity. If I can get her to trust me, then we probably won’t be chased off of the ship. If I succeed… at the very least, we won’t have to clash with the Xing Family.”

“Mn.” Xue Moyan voiced her agreement. “It’ll be best for us to quietly make our way to the Heavenly Calamity Continent while hiding amongst Gold Sun Island. Let’s not reveal ourselves if we don’t have to. If news of us got out, reaching our destination could prove to be a difficult task.

“Isn’t wearing a woman down child’s play for you?” Song Tingyu teased Qin Lie, a smile on her face.

“Uh… what do you mean by that?” A strange expression appeared on Qin Lie’s face.

“Earlier, I said that you’re too charismatic and that seducing women is easy for you.” Song Tingyu chuckled and shot him a flirtatious look. “We wouldn’t mind you having four women.”

“Sister Tingyu!” Xie Jingxuan glared at her angrily.

“Miss Song!” Xue Moyan exclaimed, her expression twisting as if she had suddenly developed a headache.

“Are Gao Yu and the others fine down below?” Qin Lie asked nonchalantly.

“None of the martial practitioners down there can match their strength,” Song Tingyu said. “You don’t have to worry about them.”

“Good.” Qin Lie allowed himself to relax, then said, “Let’s stay aboard this ship until we get a good idea of the situation.”

“Okay.”

Chapter 566: Nine New Essences!

As Qin Lie talked to Song Tingyu, Xie Jingxuan, and Xue Moyan in the cultivation room, Xing Yao pressed against the other side of the wall between their rooms, trying to eavesdrop.

She was only in the middle stage of the Netherpassage Realm, a level weaker than Song Tingyu and the others. She didn’t dare to release her soul consciousness to investigate and risk being found out. She definitely didn’t want to make a fool of herself in front of people more skilled than her.

Instead, she focused her senses and tried to listen in on them.

She quickly discovered that she couldn’t hear anything and realized that Qin Lie and the three women were hiding in the cultivation room. This meant that they were clearly wary of her and took necessary precautions.

“They’re being so secretive… they’re definitely up to no good! I wonder what their goal is.” Xing Yao became even more certain that Qin Lie’s group had ulterior motives.

After trying eavesdrop for a while and realizing she couldn’t hear anything, Xing Yao helplessly left her room to investigate.

She eventually arrived at a training area on the second level of the ship. This training field was meant for people of important status and Fulfillment Realm martial practitioners. Here, they would spar with their spirit arts and discuss bottlenecks they encountered during cultivation. Xing Wu normally trained here, and Xing Yao soon found him.

“Little Wu, find out how many ships carrying people are listed as traveling to the Heavenly Slaughter Continent from the Heavenly Calamity Continent,” she said.

“Sister Yao?” Xing Wu approached her. “Are you suspicious of Xing Lie?”

“Yes,” she said in a straightforward manner, not bothering to hide it from him. “A disaster descended upon our Xing Family a thousand years ago and almost all of our clansmen were killed. Few branch families managed to escape it. In recent years, my father arranged for some of our people to travel through the Heavenly Calamity Continent in hopes of finding surviving members of the Xing Family. Anyone connected to the Xing Family was already found and sent to Gold Sun Island in groups. No other news of Xing Family clansmen has been discovered in the past few years. I don’t believe that Xing Lie is actually seventh grandfather’s descendant.”

“That seems strange to me as well.” Xing Wu thought to himself, then said, “Don’t worry, Sister Yao. I’ll go investigate this for you.”

“Ah, right. Do you know what’s going on with the Pan Family?” Xing Yao asked. “Why haven’t we heard anything from the spies that infiltrated them?”

“Actually, something strange happened.” Xing Wu frowned. “A while ago, the spies sent a message saying that they had made an important discovery and wanted us to wait. They said that the Pan Family had mobilized and that they would try to learn why as soon as possible. Yet we haven’t received any messages since then.”

“Has something happened to them?” Xing Yao asked worriedly.

“The chances of that are extremely high!” Xing Wu said with a sigh. “I sent a few messages to them, but there hasn’t been any response.”

“Send word to Green Moon Valley and ask if they know of any ships being destroyed in the area,” Xing Yao ordered. “We don’t know the origins of these people, and I’m worried that they may harbor ill intentions.”

“Understood,” Xing Wu replied.

Two days later, in the secure cultivation room, Qin Lie suddenly opened his eyes. Bright electrical light shone from them.

“Whoosh!”

The Demon Sealing Tombstone emerged from his spatial ring and released rays of prismatic light.

Small sparks of electricity shot from Qin Lie’s eyes as they eagerly focused on the Demon Sealing Tombstone.

Three droplets of golden liquid filled with a sharp aura bled from the surface of the tombstone.

Qin Lie wordlessly stood there waiting, his hand turned palm-up.

“Drip… drip… drip…!”

Three glittering droplets of golden liquid splashed against the center of his palm, the sharp power they contained almost breaking through his skin.

Qin Lie’s eyes lit up. He silently channeled the Blood Refinement Art and a suction force emanated from his hand, absorbing the three drops of golden liquid into his blood vessels.

A sharp, burning sensation flared within his blood vessels. It felt as if the three drops of golden liquid were thorns that kept on stabbing him, making his entire body uncomfortable.

These three droplets were the essences of the metal spirit. They hadn’t been refined yet, so the sharp power of metal still wasn’t under control.

Before Qin Lie could channel the Blood Refinement Art to refine the three drops of golden essence, three droplets of dark yellow liquid appeared on the surface of the Demon Sealing Tombstone.

Qin Lie hurriedly held out his hand once more.

Soon enough, three drops of the earth spirit’s essence soaked into his blood vessels.

A thick, robust aura of earth energy radiated from his body. He glittered as if he were wearing a golden robe.

This sensation occurred because he cultivated the power of earth.

As the essence of the earth spirit entered his body, Qin Lie felt a familiar power that caused the essence to become gentle on its own. He didn’t even need to immediately refine it using the Blood Refinement Art.

Qin Lie made sure to stay alert this time.

In the next moment, three clear, colorless drops of liquid formed on the surface of the tombstone. They resembled beads of early morning dew.

These were essences of the water spirit.

Qin Lie gathered these three clear drops of liquid in his hand and sucked them into his blood vessels as well.

The three drops of the water spirit’s essence seemed extremely gentle. They did not cause any trouble within his body, nor did they solicit any other responses.

Once the Demon Sealing Tombstone produced these nine droplets of liquid essence—three from the metal spirit, three from the earth spirit, and three from the water spirit—it calmed down. Its rays of prismatic light faded, and the tombstone returned to normal.

Qin Lie stored it in his spatial ring, then focused all of his strength on refining the nine drops of liquid essence.

In a cultivation room not far from Qin Lie’s, a man wearing gold that appeared to be about fifty years old suddenly opened his eyes.

He gasped in surprise, then murmured, “Why do I feel the aura of a metal beast?”

This person’s name was Guo Yanzheng. As a peak Fulfillment Realm martial practitioner, he was one of the six enforcers of Gold Sun Island. He cultivated the power of metal and was very sensitive to it. His bones and muscles even had different types of metal mixed into them.

As one of the six enforcers of Gold Sun Island, he enjoyed extraordinary status. Even though he wasn’t a part of the Xing Family, he qualified for his own set of rooms in the top level of the ship.

Guo Yanzheng rarely went out as of late. He spent all his time in the cultivation room provided for him, trying to find a chance to break through to the Fragmentation Realm. He completely ignored the outside world.

Xing Shengnan knew that he had reached a critical point in his cultivation. As long as nothing important happened, she tried not to trouble him and gave him the space and time he needed. She hoped that he would be able to reach the Fragmentation Realm as soon as possible.

“An unrefined metal beast is an ultimate treasure for someone cultivating the power of metal. This kind of beast, one that is purely metal, is normally born as a Rank Six Beast and has the capacity to grow endlessly.” Guo Yanzheng stopped cultivating, and the golden light that surrounded him gradually disappeared. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “If it’s a spirit material related to an unrefined metal beast… even if it’s just a bone, it’ll be of great help to my breakthrough.”

Having been in secluded cultivation for many days, Guo Yanzheng slowly got to his feet. He opened the door and left the cultivation room, then exited the main room and entered the hallway. Sensing the aura of the unrefined metal beast, he headed straight for Qin Lie’s room.

Quickly arriving at the door to Qin Lie’s room, he narrowed his eyes and used his soul consciousness to examine the inside of the room.

Song Tingyu and Xie Jingxuan were cultivating in one bedroom while Xue Moyan took the other. Qin Lie had taken the cultivation room for himself.

Guo Yanzheng’s soul consciousness floated into the room like ethereal smoke and silently moved around. He wanted to know the realms of the people inside of this set of rooms.

Song Tingyu, Xie Jingxuan, and Xue Moyan immediately felt his soul consciousness. They opened their eyes and withdrew their auras.

Qin Lie frowned and stopped refining the nine droplets of essence within his body. He focused on what was happening outside of the cultivation room, his expression grim.

Peering into a private room with one’s soul consciousness was an impolite thing to do.

This was common knowledge.

Relying on his status as one of Gold Sun Island’s six enforcers and the fact that he knew most of the members of the Xing Family, Guo Yanzheng used his soul consciousness to assess the realms of Qin Lie and the others. Doing this clearly demonstrated that he looked down on Qin Lie and the others.

“Bang bang bang!”

Guo Yanzheng struck the door multiple times, a calm expression on his face as he said, “I’m Guo Yanzheng!”

He had discovered that all four of the people in this set of rooms were in the Netherpassage Realm. Even if they were Xing Family clansmen, they were juniors and needed to treat him with respect.

As a result, he didn’t feel the need to give them any face.

In one of the bedrooms, Song Tingyu and Xie Jingxuan looked at each other, took their masks out of their spatial rings, and put them on.

Xue Moyan’s eyes were cold. She couldn’t help but snort disdainfully as she changed her appearance.

Guo Yanzheng hadn’t knocked first, and instead led with using his soul consciousness to learn what realms they were at. This clearly disregarded proper etiquette.

This person shamelessly wanted them to open the door. He even stated his name, clearly trying to use his identity to pressure them into doing so.

This annoyed Xue Moyan even more.

Xue Moyan was the disciple of and eventual successor to the sect master of Illusory Demon Sect. Even the island master of Gold Sun Island, Xing Yumiao, would usually have to be respectful when he saw her. She wouldn’t have even looked at an enforcer of Guo Yanzheng’s level in the past.

Yet now, on one of Gold Sun Island’s ships, a mere enforcer dared to offend her.

This displeased her.

Suppressing her anger, Xue Moyan remained silent. She wanted to see what Qin Lie would do.

In the next moment, Qin Lie’s voice rang out. “Guo Yanzheng? Who’s Guo Yanzheng?”

Out in the hallway, Guo Yanzheng’s face turned grim.

“You don’t even know who I am?” he shouted. “Who are you?”

“Why should I care who you are? If you have something to say, say it or leave!” Qin Lie yelled impatiently. He wanted to refine the nine drops of liquid essence in his body as soon as possible. That last thing he wanted to do was waste time with this stranger, Guo Yanzheng.

“Enforcer Gu, you came out of secluded cultivation?” Xing Yao’s voice could be heard. She gently opened the door to her room and stood in the hallway to look at Guo Yanzheng in shock.

“Greetings, Eldest Miss.” Seeing Xing Yao emerge from her room, Guo Yanzheng immediately became more respectful. He smiled and explained, “While I was cultivating just now, I sensed the aura of an unrefined metal beast, so I came out to investigate. I don’t know who the four juniors in this room are, but they apparently dare to disrespect me.”

He reported the situation to Xing Yao, partially accusing Qin Lie’s group of slighting him at the same time.

“The aura of an unrefined metal beast?” Xing Yao exclaimed, clearly confused. “I felt a wondrous aura appear just now, but my realm is too low and I couldn’t tell what it was or where it came from. Are you sure that the aura of an unrefined metal beast came from this room, Enforcer Guo?”

“Absolutely.” Guo Yanzheng nodded. “If not for the aura of an unrefined metal beast, why else would I cause trouble by coming here to investigate?”

He paused for a moment, then asked, “Eldest Miss, are the four juniors in this room members of the Xing Family? I seem to recall this room being empty all this time. When did they move in?”

“In the past few days,” Xing Yao said loudly, glancing at the tightly shut door. “They said that they’re from the Heavenly Calamity Continent, but their ship was destroyed in a storm. One guy called Xing Lie is pretending to be a Xing Family clansman, but sister-in-law believes him and made me arrange for him to live here.”

“Eldest Miss! Enemy spies have been operating quite a lot recently, searching for the remains of ancient elites. Didn’t we capture three of them recently?” Guo Yanzheng asked gravely. “Could these four also be spies?”

“I suspect the same,” Xing Yao replied. “However, I haven’t managed to find any information to use against them.”

“How about I search them?” Guo Yanzheng said wickedly, his eyes narrowing. “Your sister-in-law should be gathering spirit energy in her cultivation room. She definitely won’t be paying attention to us over here.”

“If Enforcer Guo feels that it’ll work, I don’t have any objections.” Xing Yao wanted to quickly expose Qin Lie’s true identity while Xing Shengnan was too busy to interfere.

“Allow me!” Guo Yanzheng exclaimed.