Chapter 21

Zhang Yan’s eyes narrowed slightly. He closed the door without showing any emotion, as if he had not noticed anything, and sat down by the mat. Soon, the sound of his faint breathing could be heard within the cave.

Gradually, the surroundings grew quiet, just as they usually did.

Two hours later, the sky had begun to brighten. Zhang Yan’s originally half-closed eyes suddenly opened, and without any warning, he leaped up, grabbed the lid of the bronze tripod beside him, and in one step, reached the tripod. He flipped his hand and with a “clang,” firmly covered the tripod.

As soon as the lid was on, the tripod began to rumble and shake, the top making continuous clanging sounds, as if something was trying to struggle out from inside.

Zhang Yan had already deduced that the snake demon was hiding inside the tripod, but he did not act hastily. Instead, he waited until the demon had relaxed before making his move.

At that moment, he took two steps back to the door, his eyes fixed on the tripod, his mind never letting up. If the lid were to be pushed open, he would have to flee first.

However, his worries were unnecessary. The bronze tripod, after all, was a magical artifact, personally refined by Shi Shoujing, capable of boiling fierce beasts alive. How could it be easily breached?

The snake demon, severely injured and in someone else’s cave, had been cautious at first, not daring to make any moves. But as Zhang Yan showed no signs of action, seemingly unaware of its presence, it eventually succumbed to fatigue. It never expected that a moment of carelessness would give Zhang Yan the opportunity.

The snake demon struggled desperately for a long time, but the lid remained unmoved. Realizing the tripod was not simple, it had no choice but to give up, unwilling to waste more energy.

When the tripod finally quieted down, Zhang Yan walked to its side and said, "Are you the snake demon?"

The snake demon replied, "Brother Daoist, why have you imprisoned me here?"

"You secretly infiltrated my cave and killed five disciples of the Feng Cang Sect. Why do you think I imprisoned you?"

"Brother Daoist, you already know my background," the snake demon sighed, trying to defend itself, "I was pursued here, with no other choice but to hide in the tripod. I had no intention of harming you. Please let me go, and I will repay your kindness someday."

Zhang Yan shook his head, "I cannot trust your words. Moreover, Senior Ning may not have gone far. If you leave my cave and are caught, it will be a minor issue for you, but I will be in trouble. Whether you intend to harm me or not, I cannot let you go."

The snake demon suddenly heard a rustling sound and panicked, "What are you doing?"

Zhang Yan smiled, "This tripod is called the 'Zhen Zhuo Tripod.' It is excellent for cooking delicious meals and extracting their essence. I have never tried it before, but today, I will use you to break the seal."

The snake demon was terrified and struggled desperately inside the tripod, but to no avail. Finally, it pleaded, "What will it take for you to let me go?"

Zhang Yan smiled inwardly, finding this interesting.

If he truly wanted to kill the snake demon, why would he waste so many words? He just wanted to ask a few questions.

"I will ask you, why did you come to the territory of the Feng Cang Sect?"

The snake demon stammered, "Just to kill those five disciples, nothing else..."

"Hmph, do you think I am a three-year-old child? How can you deceive me with such lies? The Feng Cang Sect has been in conflict with the San Bo Lake demons for years, with casualties on both sides, but we have never invaded their territory. Yet, you pursued into the heart of our territory just to kill a few disciples weaker than you? Who are you trying to fool?" Zhang Yan sneered, "They must have discovered some secret of yours, which is why you cannot let them live. Otherwise, why would you pursue them so relentlessly?"

The snake demon was startled and inwardly lamented. It never expected to encounter such a persistent young disciple of the Feng Cang Sect, who had guessed the truth almost entirely. With severe injuries and a significant loss of true qi, it was now powerless and could only be at Zhang Yan’s mercy.

However, it still harbored a glimmer of hope and refused to reveal the truth, instead diverting the conversation to other matters, hoping to distract Zhang Yan. But Zhang Yan remained unmoved, lighting a fire and continuously adding wood to the tripod.

Before long, the temperature inside the tripod began to rise.

Even with the lid open, Zhang Yan could barely endure the heat during his qi refinement. The snake demon, though more powerful, was severely injured and had no qi left. It could not withstand the heat and begged for mercy, "Don’t burn me, don’t burn me, I will speak, I will speak..."

Zhang Yan continued to add wood, coldly saying, "Speak!"

The snake demon had no choice but to reveal everything it knew.

It turned out that the snake demon was named Luo Xiao. During a battle with a Feng Cang Sect disciple, it accidentally stumbled upon a cave and, out of curiosity, discovered an undiscovered pearl field. It was overjoyed.

Unfortunately, the location was also discovered by several trailing Feng Cang Sect disciples. It immediately decided to kill them, even pursuing into the Feng Cang Sect’s territory. However, it accidentally encountered Ning Chongxuan and was forced to flee, eventually hiding here.

"Pearl field..." Zhang Yan’s eyes lit up. This was where the spiritual pearls were produced!

The golden pearls inside the spiritual pearls were essential for alchemy, and their shells, ground into powder, were commonly used in the refinement of magical artifacts. Moreover, the spiritual pearls were lustrous and full of qi, making them highly valuable, and thus used as currency by cultivators.

The Feng Cang Sect had been struggling for years to secure a pearl field.

With a pearl field, it was like having a gold or silver mine, making it difficult not to prosper. Every major sect was supported by several pearl fields.

No wonder the snake demon risked everything to kill those five disciples. Even Zhang Yan was tempted.

Thinking about this, he asked, "Who else knows about this besides you?"

"No one, no one," Luo Xiao said, then added hastily, "Besides me, no one can find that place."

Zhang Yan pondered for a moment, "I can let you out, but how can I trust you?"

Luo Xiao quickly said, "I am willing to swear an oath..."

Zhang Yan shook his head, "Empty words are not trustworthy."

"I am willing to form a magical contract."

"Too troublesome, not feasible."

Zhang Yan knew a little about magical contracts, but he lacked the necessary paper, cinnabar, and writing brush. Moreover, he did not dare to release the snake demon easily, so he immediately rejected the idea.

Luo Xiao became anxious, "What do you want?"

Zhang Yan slowly said, "You will form a blood oath with me."

Luo Xiao exclaimed, "What?"

Zhang Yan pressed, "Is it not feasible?"

Luo Xiao remained silent inside the tripod.

Zhang Yan smiled and continued to add wood to the tripod.

Before long, Luo Xiao could not bear it and shouted, "If I form a blood oath, our hearts will be connected. If you die, I will die too. I would rather die now..."

"Only this can reassure me!" Zhang Yan sneered, "If you refuse, I will boil you into a pot of snake soup. Don’t think that knowing the location of the pearl field will stop me from killing you. In my view, only what I hold in my hands and eat is truly mine. Those distant, intangible things are not worth mentioning."

Hearing the word "eat," the snake demon trembled in fear, feeling Zhang Yan adding more wood. It screamed in panic, "Don’t burn, don’t burn, I agree, I agree. Open the lid, and I will give you my blood essence..."

Zhang Yan laughed, "Don’t think I don’t understand. I, Zhang Yan, have read many Daoist texts. A blood oath is bound by the heavens; there’s no need to open the lid. If you try to deceive me, I will peel your skin and break your bones!"

Seeing that Zhang Yan showed no signs of breaking, Luo Xiao had no choice but to force a thread of true essence and blood from its heart orifice, forming a blood oath.

Zhang Yan’s body trembled, as if something had been imprinted on his heart. He could now sense every move of the snake demon inside the tripod, knowing that the blood oath had taken effect.

He then walked to the tripod, lifted the lid, and sat down in meditation without paying attention to the snake demon.

A moment later, a small golden snake about a foot long crawled out, its head weakly resting on the edge of the tripod. It looked around, glanced at Zhang Yan’s face, and then at the Daoist text beside him, exclaiming, "‘Xuan Yuan Neican Miaolu’? Who is trying to harm you?"

Zhang Yan frowned, opened his eyes, and asked, "What do you mean?"

Luo Xiao chuckled, "I have not seen this Daoist text, but I have heard of it. It is said to contain ancient and orthodox methods for opening meridians and breaking through barriers within a month. However, there is a drawback: it invites the envy of heaven. After opening the meridians, one must not hear thunder within a month, or it will shake the true essence and break the immortal meridians, forever severing the path to cultivation."

It added resentfully, "If not for the blood oath, I would not bother to tell you."

Hearing this, Zhang Yan was startled and broke out in a cold sweat. If what Luo Xiao said was true, even with the broken jade in his possession, he would still fall into this trap!

He never expected such a pitfall to be waiting for him...

After some thought, Zhang Yan asked, "How did you know about this?"

"Our demon race cultivates differently from humans. We face countless major and minor calamities from the beginning, so we learn to avoid them from a young age. This Daoist text was mentioned by my elders."

Zhang Yan nodded and asked, "Since you know the secrets of this text, do you know how to avoid the calamity?"

Seeing Zhang Yan’s serious inquiry, Luo Xiao could not help but show off, proudly saying, "You asked the right person. Others may not know, but I, Luo Xiao, know it well. After opening your meridians, dig a deep pit. When the thunder is about to strike, cover your ears, eyes, nose, and mouth, and hide in the pit, covering yourself with soil. After seven days, you can avoid the calamity!"

...

...

PS: First update.