Chapter 16
Chapter 16: Innocent Turtle Spirit
Gu Shi Yi paused, then said, “From here, head east a hundred li. There’s a place called Wan Juan Academy. The headmaster is a famous Confucian scholar—kind to students, willing to teach anyone, truly living up to ‘education without discrimination.’ He’s also a great cultivator on the Confucian Path. When you go, don’t hide what you are. Ask him sincerely, tell him you’re devoted to learning, and show him your resolve. If you’re lucky, he might take you in.”
The rat spirit dropped to its knees with a heavy thud.
“Thank you, honored one!”
It kowtowed three times in a row. Gu Shi Yi laughed and cupped her hands.
“Then I’ll wish Brother Rat success in your studies. We’ll meet again.”
“We’ll meet again!”
They exchanged a final salute and parted. Gu Shi Yi drove the cart along the riverbank, bumped through more than ten li of jagged mountain road, and finally turned onto the main road. Only then did Li Yan Er wriggle out from her collar and ask, “Shi Yi, that rat spirit has eight hundred years of cultivation. If it went back to its true form, with those sharp teeth, it might actually be able to fight you. Why didn’t it ambush you? Why turn into a man and try to fool you instead?”
Gu Shi Yi smiled. “This realm has its own laws of heaven and earth. For beasts like it to awaken and cultivate is already going against the natural order. Unless they studied Buddhism from childhood, nine out of ten will carry heavy karmic debt. Like earlier—when it killed those mountain bandits and thieves. Sure, they deserved it, but the debt still lands on the one who killed them. Killing the ‘right’ people makes the debt lighter, but it doesn’t vanish. When it grows old and weak, it still has to repay it. And if it wants to cultivate into a Great Demon or a Demon Ancestor, that debt comes back tenfold. So unless a spirit creature has fallen into the Devil Path, most of them won’t take on karmic debt casually…”
She paused, then continued, “Humans, on the other hand, are heaven’s favorites. Born clever, able to absorb spiritual qi—everything about the human race is a little unfair. Humans killing humans is one thing, but if other races kill humans, the karmic debt is worse. That’s why most spirit creatures avoid killing humans whenever they can. The problem is… human flesh and essence is exactly what spirit creatures and the demon clan crave. One ordinary person can be worth years of cultivation. A cultivator? Even better. They want to eat—but they can’t. So some clever demon clan figured out that yin-yang essence is the purest concentrate of a human’s vitality. After that, they came up with a method: turn into handsome men or beautiful women, seduce humans, sleep with them, and steal the essence at the moment of climax. That way they get the best part, and because the human gives it willingly, the karma doesn’t stick.”
Gu Shi Yi’s eyes gleamed with the smug satisfaction of someone explaining a scam she’d seen far too many times. “That’s why so many monsters love seducing humans. And the beast clan aren’t exactly big on etiquette—or even fixed genders. Meet a man, they become a woman. Meet a woman, they become a man. The whole business model is just one word: trickery.”
Li Yan Er curled her mouth. “So… that rat spirit… was male?”
Gu Shi Yi nodded, her expression turning a little strange. “Mm.”
Most people traveling long distances in the mortal world were men. So the rat spirit had been “welcoming” men—man on man—and calling it “suitable for anyone.”
Gu Shi Yi waggled her brows at Li Yan Er with an obvious you-know-what-I-mean look. Li Yan Er snickered. They both cackled for a moment—then realized Great King hadn’t made a single comment.
“Great King?” Gu Shi Yi tugged lightly at the tip of his little branches. “What’s wrong?”
Great King didn’t answer at first. He only let out a low, hollow sigh. “You humans really are favored by heaven and earth. Born with intelligence. Hands and feet. You can go wherever you want. Do whatever you want…”
As he spoke, he extended a thin twig and pointed at the cart beneath them. “That old sandalwood—its age might even surpass mine. And you still cut it down to make a cart. Luckily, I awakened intelligence early. If I were still muddle-headed like before, some woodcutter would’ve found me in the mountains, and I’d end up the same way.”
Great King was usually loud, bossy, and full of swagger. Hearing him turn sentimental was so rare it almost felt wrong. Gu Shi Yi softened her voice and coaxed him, “What’s so great about being human? You live for thousands of years. Humans might be born intelligent, but even cultivators only live up to a thousand years, and they have to crawl through endless hardship to get there. Ordinary people get a rushed hundred years, and they spend every day grinding for food and shelter, exhausted and anxious, scheming and scrambling. That’s nothing like you. You’re born of nature, raised by the earth, never worrying about a meal. Even wind and rain and thunder are still more comfortable for you than for humans.”
At least trees didn’t have to chase money, or drown in longing, or break their own hearts. Sometimes muddle-headed wasn’t a curse—it was mercy.
Great King thought it over, then nodded. “You’ve got a point.”
The moment he convinced himself, his spirit returned in full. He straightened proudly in the pot and twisted his trunk as if striking a heroic pose. “That sandalwood just had bad luck and got chopped. Someone like this Great King—once I awakened intelligence, I’m good for tens of thousands of years. Maybe one day I’ll even grow into this realm’s number-one divine tree. Then my lifespan will match the heavens!”
Gu Shi Yi and Li Yan Er immediately nodded as if their lives depended on it, cupping their hands in unison. “Yes, yes, yes—Great King is wise!”
Laughing as they talked, they drove the cart down the main road toward Xuan Cheng, leaving the endless green mountains behind. They had no idea that deep within those mountains, five streaks of escaping light were combing the range.
Back in the rat spirit’s den, the rat spirit lounged in a grand hall, admiring its “ancient tomb sect” decorating style, when a sudden chill crawled up its spine. It lifted its head to sniff the air, nose twitching wildly, then turned and squeaked toward the mountain wall riddled with countless burrow holes.
In the hazy glow of night-luminous pearls, several mountain rats—each as big as a dog—burst out. They stood upright like humans, braced on powerful hind legs, and even clasped their front paws together in a stiff, awkward salute.
The rat spirit ordered, “Send the children out. See who came into the mountains.”
“Squeak!”
The big rats scrambled off. Not long after, they returned in a flurry.
“Squeak squeak squeak…”
The rat spirit’s brow furrowed. “Cultivators? Then they’re not someone we can afford to offend. Tell the little ones to hide. Don’t let anyone get caught.”
“Squeak!”
The big rats scattered again. The rat spirit stared up at the ceiling, heart thumping harder with every breath, and muttered, “Still feels like something’s wrong… Better to hide.”
It glanced at the stone coffin sitting beside it. Why would a rat spirit keep a coffin in its own nest? Partly because its taste was… unconventional. But more importantly, the coffin was carved with an ancient secret talisman that could block divine sense from probing.
That coffin had helped it slip free of more than one predator’s pursuit. Now it didn’t waste time. With a twist of its body, it shrank and transformed into a tiny gray rat, darting into a broken hole at the corner of the coffin. Only its scholar’s robe remained on the floor, limp and empty.
High above the mountain range, five streaks of escaping light converged, and an angry voice spat, “Old Five, this is on you! They were just a few mortals—why pick a fight? You killed them and drew the Qing Spirit Guard. Now we don’t dare search properly, and we still don’t know where the target went!”
The three Qing Spirit Guard who had shown up were all at Foundation Establishment Stage. The leader had even reached the peak of mid Foundation Establishment Stage. Someone like that could crush the five of them like ants. If their brother hadn’t reacted fast back at the town’s rear mountain, they would’ve been caught on the spot. Then not only would Sect Master’s task fail—they’d lose their lives and their dao would end right there.
Just thinking about it made their teeth grind.
Another voice snapped back, “Third Brother, don’t blame me! Those mortals dared to fool Fifth Lord with watered-down wine. If I didn’t kill them, who should I kill?”
“We came out for real business,” Third Brother barked. “You pulled that stunt and dragged the Qing Spirit Guard onto us. Now what? If we can’t finish this job, Sect Master will punish us!”
“I—”
Old Five started to protest, but a low, hoarse voice cut in like a blade. “Enough. Stop wasting time. Before the Qing Spirit Guard catches up, sweep the mountain again with divine sense. If we still can’t find them, we’ll grab a few local mountain spirits and wild monsters and ask questions.”
That voice carried weight. The argument died instantly.
The five streaks of light split apart again, fanning out across the range. An hour later, they gathered once more.
“Brother, nothing…”
“Nothing…”
After a short silence, someone said, “Mm. I just found an ancient turtle spirit in a nearby valley—ten thousand years old.”
Their voices faded as the streaks merged and shot away.
Half an hour later, three streaks of light arrived—one leading, two following. A sweep of divine sense found an old turtle spirit dumped on a mountaintop, its soul already searched. The leading light flashed down onto the rocks, revealing a man with a gentle smile. He stepped closer and nudged the half-dead turtle with the tip of his shoe.
“Its soul has been searched. Looks like they chased in this direction…”
They had even dragged out local mountain spirits and searched their souls too. So they were still hunting the old daoist priest and his apprentice.
Just who was that old daoist priest that the Yin Fiend Sect would travel so far to find?
Before the thought even finished forming, white light flashed—and the man vanished. Only the old turtle remained, barely breathing, belly turned up to the sky, head drooping out of its shell. It wouldn’t live much longer.
“Squeak…”
Only after the streaks of light disappeared did two massive mountain rats crawl out from a hole beneath the rocks. They peeked around for a long while, making absolutely sure the human cultivators weren’t coming back. Then, one in front and one behind, they began pushing the old turtle toward their burrow…
As for how the rat spirit later tried to save that innocent turtle spirit, we won’t speak of it yet.
Gu Shi Yi, unaware of any of this, was already nearing Xuan Cheng. The main road was packed with travelers, carts, and shouting peddlers, and her cart slowed to a crawl. Along the way, she stopped at a small village and bought some rough cloth woven by village women, spending five copper coins. Then she paid two more to have the cart re-draped and rearranged.
From a distance, the cart now looked ordinary. Up close, at most you’d think it was unusually sturdy. No one would suspect anything strange about it anymore.
Gu Shi Yi drove the cart into the stream of people entering the city, inching forward in stop-and-go bursts. Xuan Cheng was a mid-sized city in the north of Yue Kingdom. It sat beside a great river, with convenient transport and bustling trade. Merchants from everywhere stopped here to rest, so the population was always shifting. With her rough homespun clothes and a cart that looked like any other, Gu Shi Yi blended in perfectly—just another small trader coming to stock up.
Because the line was so long, the gate officers questioned each person one by one. By the time Gu Shi Yi reached the front, half an hour had passed.
“Where are you from?” the gate officer asked, motioning for someone to lift the cart curtain to check inside.
“From Qing Shan Town,” Gu Shi Yi answered easily.
“What are you here for?”
“Buying goods.”
“What goods?”
Gu Shi Yi’s eyes rolled once, quick as a bead. “Officer, I sell wine. I heard the Wang family in Xuan Cheng makes good wine, so I came to buy some and take it back to sell.”
The gate officer glanced at her permit, then waved. “Go in.”
“Much obliged, Officer!” Gu Shi Yi smiled, cupped her hands, and drove the cart through.
She didn’t rush to settle in. She wandered the city streets, asked at inn after inn, and finally found one that was tucked away and cheap. Even so, the room still cost fifty copper coins a night.
Gu Shi Yi’s heart bled.
The moment she got inside, she shut the door and counted her silver right in front of Li Yan Er and Great King. “Look at this. We’ve only been out a few days, and we’re already down an entire ingot. The road ahead is still long. From here on out, we have to save.”
With a cart, it was better to stop sleeping in cities altogether. After this, they could camp outside.
Li Yan Er asked, “Didn’t you say catching ghosts and subduing demons can earn money? Xuan Cheng isn’t small. Why not look around for someone who needs help?”
In her old world, this city would count as a far-off, forgotten place—two or three busy streets, housing everywhere else. But compared to the towns Gu Shi Yi had passed through, it was huge, crowded, and loud.
Gu Shi Yi thought it over and shook her head. “No. If you want to catch ghosts, this kind of place is the worst.”
“Why?”
“There might be more business, but the income won’t necessarily be higher. And daily costs are brutal. Stay a few days and we’ll spend more than we earn. We won’t make money—we’ll lose it.”
A wandering daoist like her was like a traveling doctor. Rich families looked down on her and didn’t trust her. Ordinary families couldn’t pay much. One job might not even cover a single day’s expenses. It was a bad bargain all around.
She laid out the math for Li Yan Er. Li Yan Er nodded. “You’re right. So we leave tomorrow?”
Gu Shi Yi nodded firmly. “Tomorrow. Today we’ll buy some dry rations. Tomorrow we leave the city.”
In theory, Xuan Cheng had water routes—taking a boat would be faster and steadier. But Gu Shi Yi didn’t have the money, and boats didn’t make it easy to pick up work along the way. Better to keep driving, stopping at nearby villages and towns, asking around for wealthy households and local gentry. Rich people did more guilty things. Where there was guilt, there was work.