Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve: Bai Yan'er

"Opinions on ghost cultivation vary. If you use ghosts to do good, that is the righteous path; if you use them to do evil, that is the wicked path. This ghost-binding bag of yours is quite good; it can restrain entities below the level of a ghost immortal." The old beggar, parched from talking, picked up the immortal wine and took a large gulp, as if he were drinking water.

"Ghost immortal?" Xu Daoyan raised an eyebrow, somewhat puzzled.

"When you become a superior person, you must transcend from human to immortal. The same applies to ghosts; they also have different levels. Since they are made of soul and spirit, they can pass through walls and are hard to see with the naked eye. Physical objects find it difficult to block them, but their weakness is their fear of yang energy. If you encounter a ghost, remain fearless, gather the yang energy within your body, and with a loud shout, you can drive it away, or even scatter its soul like you did." The old beggar grinned.

"But these are just low-level ghosts. If you encounter a ghost immortal, you'll see how powerful they are. They can reincarnate, and some can even possess others' bodies to achieve their own goals, or return to life through a corpse."

"Can they pass through walls? Then why don't they just enter my house and cause trouble at my doorstep?" Xu Daoyan muttered, still puzzled.

"Ha ha, you're a seventh-rank person, with your essence, energy, and spirit all condensed, and your blood and qi surging. How dare a low-level ghost approach you? You underestimate me too much. I did teach you, after all." The old beggar patted Xu Daoyan's back of the head and laughed.

"But that makes me even more curious. If they're hard to see with the naked eye, why can Bai Yan'er see them? She's just a human!" Xu Daoyan said.

"Bai Yan'er is not human; she is a demon, and a high-ranking one at that." The old beggar smiled.

"What!" Xu Daoyan's face changed instantly, as his mother was with Bai Yan'er at the moment.

"A girl, at seven years old, has abundant kidney qi, her teeth grow and her hair becomes longer."

"At fourteen, the heavenly癸 (tian gui) arrives, the Ren meridian opens, the Tai Chong meridian becomes strong, and menstruation begins, allowing her to bear children. This is the physical characteristic of human women, which is why many girls can marry at the age of fourteen. Look at Bai Yan'er's figure, tsk tsk, exceptionally alluring. The Tai Chong meridian in women runs to the chest, making their breasts full and firm. In men, it runs to the Renzhong point, below the nose, which is why men grow beards. At twelve, she already has such a figure. Do you think she's an ordinary person? Compare her to your neighbor Ling'er, who has a flat chest, hmm..." The old beggar's smile was somewhat evil and lecherous.

"How can this be? Bai Yan'er is actually a demon? If she is a demon, why would she be bullied so much? She seems harmless, and has no strength, not much different from an ordinary person!" Demons, in the eyes of the world, are often seen as extremely vicious. Xu Daoyan was naturally worried, and the old beggar's lack of respect for his age left him speechless. However, he had indeed thought about this before, as Bai Yan'er's chest was indeed quite large.

"No worries, no worries. To be precise, Bai Yan'er's mother is a high-ranking demon who mated with a human. Her father's true yang essence was absorbed, which is why he is weak. With proper care, he can gradually recover. However, living with a demon, his human qi is weak while the demon qi is strong, leading to his continuous decline. This is due to the demon qi in Bai Yan'er's body." The old beggar explained.

"Back then, when Bai Yan'er's mother left, it was to let her father live a few more years."

"Then my mother will be fine, right?" Xu Daoyan asked hurriedly.

"Ha ha, after drinking my immortal wine, resisting Bai Yan'er's minor demon qi is no problem. Don't worry!" The old beggar waved his hand, knowing that Xu Daoyan was filial. If he didn't explain clearly, Xu Daoyan would be worried.

Xu Daoyan felt relieved, nodded, and stopped asking. He focused on the rejuvenating qi, deeply sensing the profound mysteries within.

"In a few days, I'll take you to the back mountain to catch some ghosts. Since you have the ghost-binding bag, it would be a waste not to use it. I'll catch a couple for you as guardians!" The old beggar smiled and left.

Xu Daoyan's eyes lit up, and he was overjoyed, practicing even more diligently. He knew that Cai Village Chief had great influence in Shiyun Town, and it wouldn't be long before they came looking for him.

The Cai family's house was leveled overnight, and all their assets were looted by the villagers.

That night, in a moment of passion, they did these things. When the villagers calmed down, they were filled with fear.

The Cai family had even greater influence in Shiyun Town, and this news would eventually spread. When the Cai family came with their forces, how could they resist? If they fled, it would be a battlefield, and no one wanted to die!

Many villagers discussed that if the Cai family came to investigate, they would blame Xu Daoyan and push all the responsibility onto him.

"But that's right, we'll say that Xu Daoyan led the way, and then it will have nothing to do with us. That's the truth."

"We can't do that. If it weren't for Xu Daoyan, we would have been deceived by Cai Village Chief and Jia Daoist. He is our benefactor."

"If we don't do this, we'll die. The Cai family has great influence in Shiyun Town and a good relationship with the government. We are no match for them."

"Everyone for themselves, or they will be destroyed by heaven and earth. Isn't Xu Daoyan the incarnation of the Martial Star? He will be blessed and will be fine!"

Many villagers had already discussed this. They had looted a lot of wealth from the Cai family, taking advantage of the situation. These were the same people who often gossiped about Xu Daoyan's mother.

Xu Daoyan was unaware of all this. He practiced every day, and before he knew it, half a month had passed.

With his talent, he had already cultivated the rejuvenating qi to cover an area of one hundred feet. The old beggar then taught him the rejuvenating rain.

His lifespan had increased to three hundred years, reaching the lower rank of the sixth class. Entering the sixth class meant he was no longer a lower class but a middle class!

The ninth class, eighth class, and seventh class were considered lower class, with a lifespan of seventy years, divided into twenty-year intervals.

However, the sixth class, fifth class, and fourth class were considered middle class, with a lifespan of six hundred years, divided into two hundred-year intervals.

In other words, when Xu Daoyan's lifespan reached four hundred and ten years, he would be at the peak of the lower rank of the sixth class. At six hundred and ten years, he would be at the peak of the middle rank of the sixth class, and at eight hundred and ten years, he would be at the peak of the upper rank of the sixth class.

Many people could only reach the sixth class in their entire lives, let alone break through to the middle class or the upper class.

Xu Daoyan began to practice the rejuvenating rain, but it was much more difficult than he imagined, far beyond the level of the rejuvenating technique and the rejuvenating qi.

He asked the old beggar, who replied, "Your liver is too weak!"

Xu Daoyan asked, "How strong does the liver need to be?"

At this point, Xu Daoyan learned that the liver should not only be cultivated in the spring. It is just that cultivating during this time is the most effective and helpful.

The "Yellow Emperor's Heavenly Canon" he practiced divided the cultivation of the five organs into several levels. The first level: flawless and transparent.

The human body's five organs contain impurities. Only by continuously absorbing the essence of heaven and earth, continuously refining and strengthening the liver, can the impurities within the liver be completely removed, making it flawless and transparent. This is the first level.

Using the internal viewing method taught by the old beggar, Xu Daoyan saw that his liver was dark green, which surprised him.

According to the old beggar, only when the liver is cultivated to a bright green, like jade, without any flaws, can it be considered flawless and transparent.

Xu Daoyan was still far from the first level. To practice the rejuvenating rain on a large scale, he needed to reach the second level: a vortex of qi.

This means creating a vortex within his liver, which can absorb and release vast amounts of the essence of heaven and earth for his use.

As for higher levels, the old beggar did not elaborate, and Xu Daoyan did not ask. He would naturally know in the future.

In the past half month, Bai Yan'er had treated Xu Daoyan's home as her own, helping Wu Shi with tasks like fetching water, cooking, and washing clothes, taking a lot of the burden off Xu Daoyan's mother. Wu Shi found that living together, Bai Yan'er was not as evil as people said, and she blamed herself for believing rumors in the past.

Living together, the three of them were quite happy.

Perhaps because Xu Daoyan had saved Bai Yan'er, she was particularly good to him, always putting extra effort into cooking for him.

Occasionally, their neighbor, Aunt Dumb and Ling'er, would come to Xu Daoyan's house for dinner. In the village, they only had close ties with Aunt Dumb's family.

"Brother Daoyan, why hasn't he come back yet?" Ling'er's eyes were bright and clear, with two pigtails and simple, clean clothes, making her very likable.

"Daoyan is always like this, leaving early and returning late. He should be back around now." Bai Yan'er, with her black hair reaching her waist, had a graceful and curvaceous figure, very alluring. She had a natural charm that was very attractive to men, but Xu Daoyan, focused on his cultivation, did not pay much attention.

The sun set in the west.

As Bai Yan'er finished speaking, Xu Daoyan appeared at the door, dragging a wild mountain pig, at least six hundred pounds, which was unconscious.

"Mother, I'm back!"

"Wow, a wild mountain pig! Brother Daoyan, did you go to the back mountain? Can you take Ling'er with you?" Ling'er's eyes twinkled, full of anticipation.