《The Healer Demands Payment!》Chapter 53 - Sikong Xing
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Translation: Aerial Rain Translation (aerialrain.com) by koffeam
Meng Qi seemed to be frightened by the red fox woman. She quickly hid behind Chu Tianfeng, poking her head slightly to glance at the woman. As soon as their gaze met, she hurriedly turned away and muttered: “Who are you? I…I won’t go with you.”
She looked delicate and timid, very pitiful, and very much in line with her identity as a weak Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Just now, Chu Tianfeng watched her laying out arrays diligently on the open space and knew her plan to hunt demon cultivators to earn spirit stones. He had been accustomed to Meng Qi’s calm and cold appearance, and was a bit uncomfortable seeing her current acting. For some reason, seeing her like this actually made him….feel an indescribable chillness on his back.
He knew that Meng Qi was luring people…no, luring fox, all in order to earn spirit stones!
“Little sister.” The red-clothed woman smiled sweetly. With a slight wave of her hand, Chu Tianfeng’s flame circle completely disappeared, not leaving behind even a sliver of smoke. The woman took a step forward, and the immortal devouring vine in her hand raised its head and coiled on her arm, like a venomous snake spitting out its letter.
Seeing this, Meng Qi shrank back behind Chu Tianfeng, only poking out her small head to peek timidly.
“He can’t protect you.” The red-clothed woman pursed her lips. The smile in her eyes deepened. As if to prove her words, she walked a few steps forward and waved her hand again. A dozen shadows instantly rushed towards Chu Tianfeng and Meng Qi, stopping in the center of the open space.
“Even with the array you worked so hard to set up just now, you can’t do anything to this sister.” The woman said smilingly. She had observed Meng Qi and Chu Tianfeng for a while and naturally saw what Meng Qi did just now. But it was just a Foundation Establishment cultivator who was not even using a magic weapon. Even if the girl laid out a trap, she was not afraid.
Hearing her words, Meng Qi and Chu Tianfeng’s expression instantly changed. Meng Qi clearly saw that the woman was still several meters away from them. However, in a blink of an eye, the slender hand, was so soft as if it was boneless, had already brushed her cheek. The slightly cold fingers brought over a flowery fragrance. As soon as the fragrance hit her nose, Meng Qi’s head felt dizzy. Her body shivered, and the red-clothed woman smiled even more happily: “Don’t worry, this big sister will treat you well. I like a pretty and cute girl the most. Especially your look…” She was getting closer. Without putting Chu Tianfeng in her eyes, she inhaled deeply near Meng Qi’s neck: “Really.”
This was the second time the woman approached Meng Qi without warning. She was incredibly agile. Every time she moved forward and then away, it was just in a blink of an eye.
But this time, Meng Qi swiftly threw away all the spirit stones in her palms. The crystal clear stones instantly flew to all the arrays she previously set up on the entire open space. This throwing technique alone, Meng Qi has practiced no fewer than thousands of times. Her Master taught her the Four Poles Great Array was mainly to trap enemies, especially those whose cultivation level was much higher than herself. For that kind of situation, even one breath worth of time might decide life or death.
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Master made her memorize the array thoroughly. So much that as long she had enough material, she would be able to set it up in the shortest time possible. Not only that, he also especially taught Meng Qi a throwing technique and supervised her on practicing it repeatedly, so that she could instantly throw the spirit stones to the places needed to activate the arrays.
The red-clothed woman was initially surprised, but soon laughed amusedly. In the end, it was just a Foundation Establishment…
However, before she even finished her thought, her complexion changed: “This is?!”
The open space, which was very calm just now, suddenly was lit up by a fluorescent light, which rushed straight into the sky and trapped the woman in the very center. Her expression changed inexplicably, and even the ten or more subordinates she just summoned were also trapped in the array formation.
“Why can you use it?!” The red-clothed woman suddenly gaped at Meng Qi, but she had already pulled Chu Tianfeng’s arm and quickly retreated under his protection.
Surrounded by light, the red fox woman could only see two shadows jumped directly outside the arrays’ encirclement.
“Stop!” The woman’s expression changed drastically, and her smile had disappeared completely. She stared at Meng Qi and asked incredulously: “Where did you learn this array?” The woman moved her hands and attacked the array frantically. She wanted to break off this encirclement and hurried to grab this little Foundation Establishment cultivator for questioning.
She was careless!
She saw this girl set up the arrays before, but looked down at her low cultivation base. She merely thought that an array used by a person in the Foundation Establishment stage could do nothing to them, so she didn’t care in the slightest.
Unexpectedly…
“Aaaahhh!!!” The red-clothed woman had just taken one step forward when a blue gas suddenly gushed out. In an instant, apart from the glimmer of the spirit stones, only the light from the blue gas remained in the entire open space. This gas was a bit pungent; just one smell was enough to know that it wasn’t a good thing.
“Hold your breath!” The woman’s eyes instantly became cold, and she hurriedly commanded her subordinates in a stern voice. “Stand still.”
She wouldn’t be afraid of the poison used by a little Foundation Establishment cultivator, even if the other party…
“Ugh——” Before she could even finish her thought, the woman suddenly groaned. At her command, her subordinates didn’t dare to move. They all gritted their teeth to hold their breath as much as possible; eyes filled with shock and fear——
All of a sudden, their faces were swarmed with densely packed bees. Even the red-clothed woman was no exception. Those bees were too dense and too many. They were so overwhelming and almost existed as real objects inside the arrays that filled the whole open space.
Once the bees stung, they immediately disappeared into a light smoke. But the pain was real. In an instant, all the demon cultivators under the red-clothed woman had their faces full of red swellings.
Even more frightening was that there were too many bees squirming around. Many even entered from their sleeves or simply stung them through the outer robes. Most of the sting couldn’t penetrate through their clothes, but there was always a small amount of exception that could reach their skin. Coupled with other bees crawling along their sleeves and collars, in the blink of an eye, all the demon cultivators except for the red-clothed woman tumbled to the ground and cried in pain.
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“Uh…” Chu Tianfeng could feel his back numb. He didn’t know how to describe the scene he saw right now. His ears were full of buzzing sound, and countless bees were flying around in front of his eyes. Chu Tianfeng subconsciously turned to look at Meng Qi, but found the girl was also staring into the arrays attentively.
“How terrible…” Meng Qi murmured, “But so amazing!”
Gosh!!
Chu Tianfeng wanted to complain. Great sister, ah. Before you used it, didn’t you know how powerful it is?!
“Four Poles Great Array! It’s Four Poles Great Array!” The red-clothed woman screamed frantically. Her voice was so sharp, as if piercing through the clouds: “Why are you…Who are you?!”
The woman could no longer care about her subordinates, who were still wailing on the ground. She hurriedly used a spell. A transparent barrier instantly separated her from the densely packed bees, barely protecting her body. However, the barrier was too thin and too close to her skin, so she could still clearly see the bees crawled up and down.
The red-clothes woman was shocked and scared, and she was totally in a panic now. The name of Four Poles Great Array was a too great deterrence. In fact, she only needed to calm down a bit to find out that with her cultivation base, the array formation could only trap her for at most one incense stick of time.
But she didn’t dare to move!
Countless thoughts flashed quickly in her mind. She stared at Meng Qi with an inexplicable astonishment. This girl looked very young. Her cultivation base was merely at the Foundation Establishment stage, but she looked so calm and unperturbed. Her eyes, they were as clear as the cold mountain spring. But now, separated by a hoard of flying bees, the red-clothed woman felt that this young girl was so terrifying.
Gradually, she began to overlap Meng Qi’s figure with the image of those great celestial demons whose names she didn’t even dare to mention. “I…” She murmured, trying to open her mouth strenuously. But her knees were so weak that she almost couldn’t stay standing.
Those great celestial demons, all were the most outstanding members of the royal white tiger clans. Especially that person…
The red-clothed woman instantly shivered and didn’t dare to continue her thought. She suddenly fell into one knee and said hoarsely: “My Lady, this servant is willing to subject myself to you. Begging my Lady to spare our lives.”
“My…Lady….” Chu Tianfeng was stunned. He was a Golden Core cultivator. Although he wasn’t specialized in arrays, he could see that regardless of the fear the red-clothed woman showed towards Meng Qi’s array, she only needed to protect herself temporarily with the barrier she used now, and she would be able to break the array in the span of at most one incense stick of time.
Meng Qi stared down at the red-clothed woman, her eyes narrowed slightly. This woman was the leader of this group. Seeing how easily she dealt with Chu Tianfeng, she must be at least a fourth-rank demon cultivator. And the immortal devouring vine next to her…she was undoubtedly the most expensive reward!
Meng Qi spent a lot of money to buy materials for the arrays. If she didn’t catch a few fourth-rank demon cultivators, she wouldn’t even be able to recoup her initial cost. But now, Su Junmo has not back yet. She couldn’t corner this woman too far.
Meng Qi raised her eyes and looked at the red fox woman: “What’s your name?”
“This servant is Sikong Xing.” She replied respectfully.
“Sikong Xing!” Before Meng Qi could respond, Su Junmo’s voice suddenly came from the big tree behind. “You actually dare to cross the boundary. Has Sikong Yan been killed by the ancestor’s will before he has time to tell you?!”
“Su Junmo?!” Sikong Xing looked up towards the voice, and the last doubt in her eyes disappeared. Su Junmo actually followed this Foundation Establishment cultivator. What else was there to doubt?!
Sikong Xing once again knelt down. This time, her whole body fell submissively on the ground, and her tone towards Meng Qi was full of reverence: “This servant begs for my Lady’s pity.”
Su Junmo: “…” He suddenly choked. His eyes immediately swept over the ground. Gosh! He also wanted to kneel. It was really the Four Poles Great Array!
Su Junmo has followed the Lord for a long time. Although he wasn’t proficient in arrays, he naturally saw and learn a lot. The Four Poles Great Array was the most famous killing array in the Demon Realm. The four poles in its name corresponded to the four directions: east, west, south, and north.
Ten thousand years ago, the white tiger clan’s ancestor used this Four Poles Great Array to fight against four great celestial demons with the same cultivation base as himself. After stepping into the Four Poles Great Array, the four great celestial demons encountered different situations:
One was trapped in the same place for a long time, unable to move forward or retreat.
One was overtaken by countless weapons.
One entered a battlefield and has to desperately fight against an endless horde of demon cultivators.
One was attacked by millions of poisonous insects that filled every inch of the ground, sky, and anything between.
After that battle, the name of the celestial demon white tiger clan, together with the Four Poles Great Array, shook the entire Demon Realm and allowed them to secure their position as one of the royal clan. Later, successive generations of Demon Monarch all came from the white tiger clan, and they also occupied more and more seats in the Demon Realm’s Council of Elders. If it weren’t for their low number of offspring, which made their population much lower than other celestial demon clans, the whole governmental body of Demon Realm, including all the leaders of the Nine Heavens, would probably be monopolized by white tiger demon.
Su Junmo somewhat understood why Sikong Xing was so scared. One of the four great celestial demons trapped and killed by the Four Poles Great Array ten thousand years ago was the ancestor of the red fox clan. After the red fox’s ancestor was killed, the Lord’s ancestor held the Demon Monarch’s order and demoted the red fox clan from the celestial demon noble to the ordinary celestial demon. Even until now, the red fox clan has been unable to recover from this damage. Otherwise, they wouldn’t cultivate the immortal devouring vine secretly.
Su Junmo could easily imagine how much fear the red fox clan’s descendants held towards the Four Poles Great Array. He just didn’t expect that Sikong Xing, this woman who was so proud of her beauty and always acted so fearlessly and domineering, would ever show such a blatant fear and submissiveness like now.
Su Junmo slowly walked to Meng Qi’s side. Seeing Sikong Xing trembling on the ground, he couldn’t help but cough a little: “Do you want to…let her go?”
“She is a fourth-rank.” Meng Qi replied indifferently. “The immortal devouring vine she brought is the same price as her.”
“Ah…cough, cough, cough…” Su Junmo was stunned, but soon realized what Meng Qi meant.
Sikong Xing was even more stunned. She subconsciously raised her head. Inside the arrays, it gradually became quiet. The bees slowly disappeared, and only a few were still flying slowly in the air.
Not to mention Si Kongxing, even her subordinates were no longer being attacked. But they were still lying on the ground weakly. Their strength seemed to have been hollowed. Their spiritual sea was empty, and the red swellings on their face and all over their body were still painful and itchy. But all of them tacitly laid on the ground unmoved, for fear that something worse would happen if they dare to move.
“My Lady.” Sikong Xing stared at Meng Qi blankly. “This servant is indeed a fourth-rank demon cultivator. This servant is willing to offer my soul to you. From now on, I am loyal to my Lady, will serve you wholeheartedly, and will never dare to betray you for life.”
“Cough…” Su Junmo couldn’t bear seeing it anymore. Compared to Sikong Yan, he didn’t dislike this Sikong Xing. This girl was a bit domineering, but as far as he knew, she never hurt anyone in Three Thousand Worlds cultivator before. In the Demon Realm, she even had a name for offending the strong to save the weak. Among female demons, Sikong Xing’s reputation was excellent. Many who was getting bullied went to ask for her help.
“You…” Su Junmo wanted to help Sikong Xing, so he spoke to her: “When did you come to Three Thousand World?”
“Just today.” Sikong Xing replied, then she lowered her posture again. “This servant has never hurt any human cultivators and doesn’t have any hostility either. This servant’s father sent me here to find my mother, who left us to return to Three Thousand World one hundred years ago.”
“Meng Qiqi.” Su Junmo turned to Meng Qi, “She is indeed different from Sikong Yan. You can trust her.” He paused. After getting along with Meng Qi during this period of time, Su Junmo felt that he has understood some of her line of thought: “Speaking of which, you and she are pretty similar. Sikong Xing treats female cultivators very well. If she found women being bullied, she always stands up for them. In the Demon Realm, Sikong Xing’s reputation among women are very good.”
Meng Qi did not respond.
Su Junmo continued: “Aren’t you also very good to the female cultivators? You are always ruthless to males, but very generous to female.”
“Really?” Meng Qi didn’t feel so. She used to treat everyone equally, but now she has to prevent herself from getting a misfortune and thus demanded payment from male cultivators.
“What’s more, Sikong Xing’s father is quite different from other red foxes. In their clan, he is a well-known rich man. Sikong Xing is his only child, and she always has a lot of spirit stones!” Su Junmo said quickly. As he spoke, he winked at Sikong Xing.
Sikong Xing was stunned and couldn’t react immediately. It was indeed an indisputable fact that her father was famous for his wealth. But demons respected strength. Many people mocked their father and daughter openly, saying that it was useless for them to lie on the pile of spirit stones, and they were the biggest idiot of the red fox clan!
Su Junmo sighed softly and began to explain: “She…” He pointed to Meng Qi, then said to Sikong Xing and the subordinates behind her: “…wants to exchange you for spirit stones reward. You, plus the immortal devouring vine you bring in, are priced two hundred eighth-grade spirit stones. For your subordinates, it is one hundred seventh-grade spirit stones per person.”
Sikong Xing felt suddenly felt dizzy. Because of her father’s hobby of collecting spirit stones, she has always been laughed at by other people in the red fox clan. But this Lady also liked spirit stones?
For some reason, a warm feeling suddenly rose in Sikong Xing’s heart. It seemed that the grievances and ridicules she had received since childhood was nothing. Such a powerful person who could use the Four Poles Great Array and be followed by Su Junmo actually also liked spirit stones!
Sikong Xing immediately took out a brocade bag from her storage space item and held it with both hands respectfully: “My Lady, this is one hundred ninth-grade spirit stones. This servant is willing to use them to buy this servant and subordinates’ lives….” Sikong Xing bit her lower lips slightly. After thinking for a moment, she continued: “In fact, these people aren’t this servant’s subordinates. They are all demon cultivators saved by this servant. Because they were grateful, they volunteered to follow this servant.” She bowed respectfully to Meng Qi: “They are here only to help this servant. Begs my Lady to forgive them.”
“Meng Qiqi.” Su Junmo continued to persuade: “Sikong Xing is indeed not a bad fellow. Just let her go.”
Meng Qi’s gaze fell on Sikong Xing’s face: “Give all the immortal devouring vines to me, and I can let you go.”
“Many thanks to my Lady.” Sikong Xing bowed deeply.
The demon cultivators who followed Sikong Xing also got up strenuously and knelt down: “Many thanks to my Lady.”
“You don’t need to call me ‘my Lady.'” Meng Qi waved her hand. “Also, don’t call yourself ‘this servant.’ I don’t need a subordinate. I trust Su Junmo, but in the future, you cannot bring any immortal devouring vine to Three Thousand Worlds again.”
“Yes. Sikong Xing lowered her head. “I understand.”
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