Day of Ascension

Chapter 52 - Caged Maiden

To Yuan Weiyang’s surprise, warmth spread through her belly as the locust flower entered her stomach. Yang qi blazed like the sun, penetrating deep into her bone marrow.

The Yuan clan’s mastery of the divine sense was second to none. They even had techniques to temper their physique using the divine sense, but they were advanced clan techniques. Yet a mere locust flower produced a similar effect, leaving her astonished.

Moreover, after eating a locust flower, she felt her primordial qi fluctuate, and her cultivation rose. Only then did she realize how many benefits they had gotten while fooling around these past few days!

The trio gulped down the locust flowers greedily, finishing a whole branch in no time. They grew hot from eating. Fine beads of sweat formed on Yuan Weiyang’s forehead as Yang qi coursed through her, cleansing her muscles and purging impurities from her marrow.

Xu Ying rose to his feet and channeled the Supreme Yin Primordial Nurturing Art to stretch as he practiced the eight movements from supreme, Yin, primordial, nurture, one, Yang, eternal, and true.

Yuanqi also wriggled and squirmed, seemingly practicing the Supreme Yin Primordial Nurturing Art. One moment, he twisted into a “乙” shape, then contorted into a “凹” shape, and later, he shifted into a “凸” shape.

Yuan Weiyang watched from her seat. She faintly heard primordial qi and divine sense flowing through Xu Ying and the huge snake, accompanied by the profound whisperings of their souls. Rustling sounds also came from within their marrow.

Light seemed to rise inside them. Whenever it circulated through their acupoints, divine light seeped outward.

The divine light projected the internal structures of each acupoint into the air with immaculate detail. To Yuan Weiyang’s surprise, the internal structures of acupoints resembled natural grotto heavens or palace complexes!

This cultivation technique is extraordinary. The longer one practices it, the more transformations take place. It is indeed much better than the Granny Tuo Immortal Book!

Yuan Weiyang continued observing in silence. As she studied the acupoint projections, a profound realization dawned on her.

She thought, From these acupoint projections, I can combine the Primordial Dao Heavenly Domain Resonance and the method of Inner Vision and Actualization to create a Divine Trove Art! I will hide a god in each acupoint across me, forming a network of three hundred sixty-five divine troves.

The thought sparked a burst of inspiration. At that moment, she felt that obtaining the Supreme Yin Primordial Nurturing Art no longer mattered.

She remarked inwardly, Though I still need the detailed internal structures of these acupoints to perfect the divine troves.

“My mouth tastes a bit bland. Brother Yuan, let’s go catch loaches!”

Xu Ying reached out, pulled Yuan Weiyang to her feet, and ran toward the river flowing along the tree trunk. Caught off guard, she stumbled but hurried after him.

Looking at the river ahead, she cried out in shock, “How could there be loaches here?”

Xu Ying let go and shouted, “Yuanqi, go upstream and block the water! We’ll dig for loaches downstream. I’ll give you a few extra later!”

Yuanqi acknowledged and swam upstream, then used his massive body to block the river.

The current wasn’t very strong, but the slope allowed the water to drain quickly. Before long, the downstream section had mostly emptied, leaving only ankle-deep water behind.

The mud, however, was somewhat deep.

Xu Ying bent over to roll up his pant legs. “Brother Yuan, roll up your pant legs like this so you don’t dirty your clothes. Eh? Your legs are really fair!”

As Yuan Weiyang bent over to roll up her pant legs, revealing her smooth, fair skin, Xu Ying couldn’t help but reach out and feel her leg.

He praised, “It’s smooth like silk.”

The touch flustered Yuan Weiyang a bit. Fortunately, Xu Ying quickly withdrew his hand.

He then showed her how to roll up her sleeves so they would stay in place. Afterward, he jumped into the riverbed. His feet immediately sank into the mud up to his knees.

Seeing that, Yuan Weiyang felt reassured and carefully entered the riverbed. She watched as Xu Ying dug into the mud, searching.

Puzzled, she asked, “Are there really loaches here? We're higher than most mountains in the world. How could loaches live in a place like this?"

Xu Ying whispered, “There are. The loaches here are huge and taste delicious. You won’t find them anywhere else on land... I found one!”

He quickly pulled his hand out, grabbed Yuan Weiyang’s hands, and guided them into the mud.

He smiled. “Feel it for yourself. Be careful, don’t startle it.”

Yuan Weiyang bent her waist and carefully felt her way down. She laughed. “I don’t feel any... It’s huge!”

She cried out in shock, “Such a thick one! It’s so slippery. I can’t hold onto it at all!”

The more she tried to grab it, the more it slipped away. Eventually, it escaped.

Suddenly, the mud churned violently. With a splash, a “loach” about five to six chi long leaped out of the mud. It opened its mouth wide, revealing a mouth full of spike-like teeth, and bit toward Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang.

Ordinary loaches were only a little over a chi long at the most, with small mouths and whiskers. However, that “loach” was astonishingly huge. It had a dragon's mouth, a loach's body, dorsal fins along its back, and long whiskers fluttering from the corners of its mouth. It looked exceptionally ferocious.

Unfortunately for it, the two young experts gave it no chance to attack. They knocked it unconscious before it could bite either of them, though it managed to splash mud all over their clothes.

“It looks like a dragon loach!”

Yuan Weiyang looked closely and exclaimed in shock, “It really is a dragon loach! I’ve read about it in my clan’s ancient texts. Dragon loaches have four whiskers on each side of their mouths, a dragon's head, and a loach's body. They're extremely slippery and incredibly rare exotic beasts!

“The Record of Thousand Recipes, Imperial Annals of Emperor Zhidao, and Chronicles of the Martial Saint have records of it!”

Xu Ying tossed the dragon loach to the shore and asked with bright eyes, “Do the books say how to eat them?”

Yuan Weiyang opened her mouth, but was at a loss for words. She stammered, “N-no, they didn’t mention it.”

Shaking his head, Xu Ying said, “Then those books aren't proper ones. Legitimate books would definitely explain whether something is edible and how to eat it."

Yuan Weiyang was exasperated. “That’s just absurd!”

Feeling a little guilty, Xu Ying changed the topic. “Brother Yuan, you have to watch out for air bubbles in the mud when you’re feeling for them. Never reach out for those places. Their heads are underneath, and they'll bite you. The places where the mud sinks slightly are where their tails are."

He taught her step by step, caught another dragon loach, then let Yuan Weiyang try on her own.

Her heart pounded wildly. Though she was much stronger than a dragon loach, the excitement, anxiety, and uncertainty of digging for them thrilled her. She had never experienced anything like it.

The two dug through a section of the river and caught seven dragon loaches. Upstream, the river water continued to accumulate as Yuanqi blocked the flow. The water gradually rose until he could not hold it back any longer, and the two hurried ashore.

Yuanqi unblocked the channel, allowing the river water to surge forth.

Looking at the mud on him, Xu Ying laughed. “Brother Yuan, let’s jump into the river to wash ourselves!”

Yuan Weiyang jumped in fright and blurted out, “Wash? Wash what? How do you wash?”

Puzzled, Xu Ying replied, “Of course, we take off our clothes and jump into the river to wash the mud off. How else would we wash? City folks are really strange. Later, I'll turn around, and you scrub my back. Then you turn around, and I'll scrub yours."

He quickly took off his shirt, then removed his pants.

Yuan Weiyang flushed red. She stared in shock as Xu Ying stripped down to a pair of shorts. Then he removed those as well.

Yuan Weiyang shrieked. She stammered, “H-how could you strip naked?”

Xu Ying looked down and said helplessly, “Another strand grew!”

He grabbed it and gave it a hard pull.

Yuan Weiyang's eyes widened. Before she could cover her eyes, she saw the Great Demon King Xu sprint naked toward the river and plunge into the water with a splash.

The sight left her stunned for a long moment.

Xu Ying waddled into deeper water until it reached his neck. Laughing, he splashed water toward her.

“Brother Yuan, come down and play!”

Yuan Weiyang flushed even redder. She lowered her head and walked upstream and shouted, “I’ll go wash over there. I’m not used to washing with others...”

Her steps quickened until she broke into a run.

Xu Ying shook his head. “City folks and their strange rules. Out in the countryside, we all wash together.”

Yuan Weiyang walked several li upstream, only stopping when she was nearly reaching the river’s source. She looked around, then scanned the area with her divine sense. Upon confirming that no one was nearby, she finally began undressing.

Recalling how Xu Ying had stripped without a word, her face flushed red and turned hot. Then she recalled him charging naked into the river buck naked, and her cheeks flushed even redder and hotter.

After removing her last piece of clothing, she folded everything neatly, with not a single crease out of place. She stood carefully with her arms crossed over her chest. Suddenly, she looked down as if driven by some strange impulse, pinched a single strand of fuzzy hair, and pulled at it hard, giggling out loud.

She ran wildly toward the river like Xu Ying, screaming with excitement, and jumped in, sending water splashing.

The maiden slapped at the water and spun through the river, sending sprays in every direction.

She laughed. “So carefree!”

After a while, she finally remembered she had to wash the mud off her. So, she scrubbed herself, rubbing back and forth. Then, she moved to an area where the waters were shallow, manifested four mirrors around her, and checked every angle repeatedly to make sure she was clean.

She gently rubbed beneath her breasts, behind her knees, and in places where dirt easily accumulated. She even checked between her toes and under her nails carefully, before going ashore and putting her clothes back on one by one.

She fixed her hair and appearance in front of the mirror. Shortly afterward, the maiden turned back into a handsome young man.

Yuan Weiyang retraced her steps to where Xu Ying had been washing. Neither Xu Ying nor Yuanqi was there, but a rich, savory aroma drifted through the air and made her mouth water.

Following the scent, Yuan Weiyang soon found Xu Ying and the huge snake. They had propped up the great bell and were using him as a cooking pot. Water filled his interior, and the dragon loaches were already simmering inside.

Dazhong barked, “Favors come with obligations. No one is allowed to speak a word about what happened here, or I will shatter your skulls!”

Yuan Weiyang quickly walked over, astonished and amused.

This great bell was sentient, could cultivate, and communicate with others. Clearly, he was top grade among artifacts—an exotic treasure!

Yet, Xu Ying and Yuanqi used him as a pot to cook loaches. Worse, he felt no shame about it and even threatened anyone who dared mention it.

Such shameless behavior was truly unexpected.

Yuan Weiyang asked, “Master Zhong, are your injuries healed?”

Dazhong praised, “You’re the sensible one, Little Brother Yuan, unlike these two. They only thought about food after returning and never asked about my wellness. My external injuries are okay, but my internal injuries remain.

"The demoness is incredibly powerful. To completely erase her imprint, I still need to siphon more vital energy. Mmm, and I must cultivate diligently.”

Yuanqi said indignantly, “Siphon? You mean, steal.”

Dazhong clanged in fury. “Siphoning is not stealing! Siphoning, heh...”

The dragon loach soup was rich and flavorful. Swallowing it made one feel their primordial qi wriggling like a dragon loach, unblocking their meridians and bringing them a sense of comfort. The meat was fresh, tender, and exceptionally delicious.

Xu Ying plucked leaves to use as bowls and leaf stems as sticks. Yuan Weiyang had never imagined she could eat so much. She felt as though this single meal exceeded everything she had eaten and drunk during the previous fifteen years of her life.

After having their fill, the humans and the snake sprawled wide on the ground and refused to move.

Dazhong shouted at them to get up and scrub him clean. However, they were all so full that they couldn’t be bothered to lift even a finger, let alone do something as tedious as scrubbing him.

Cursing under his breath, he went to the river to wash himself.

A while later, Xu Ying, Yuanqi, and Yuan Weiyang sprang up to their feet and began cultivating in unison, as if they had agreed.

Dazhong cursed out loud in anger. He didn’t know that the trio had only gotten up to practice because they had eaten too many dragon loaches, not because they had become diligent out of nowhere. Excess energy had accumulated inside them with nowhere to go. They felt swollen to the point of bursting.

While channeling their guiding methods, Xu Ying and Yuanqi struck various strange poses again. The two different cultivation techniques ran in parallel harmoniously.

Meanwhile, Yuan Weiyang practiced the method in Primordial Dao Heavenly Domain Resonance while observing the projections of acupoints throughout Xu Ying, cross-referencing with her cultivation technique. Gradually, a new cultivation technique sprouted in her mind.

By the time they had fully refined the energy from the dragon loach soup, Xu Ying's soul and divine sense had reached a new level. They ascended into the first heavenly domain within his ethereal void beyond the mystic gateway.

Standing on the first heavenly domain, he looked up at the sky and down at the earth, feeling a surge of heroic spirit.

Looking at the world today, with chaos gradually rising, is there a place for me, a snake catcher from Yongzhou?

They threw the locust branches and loach bones into the fiery pit to destroy all evidence. After cleaning the area, they finally descended the tree.

Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang jumped down from the tree. Every dozen or so zhang, they tapped their feet lightly against the bark as footholds before continuing their descent, light as foxes and agile like butterflies.

Meanwhile, Yuanqi slithered through the crevices in the bark at breakneck speed. He suddenly cried out, “Ah Ying, I ate too much good stuff, I think I’m about to break through! This is bad, I might have to molt again!”

Xu Ying halted and turned his head back. “The last time you molted, it took several days. This time, you’re breaking through and molting. You’ll likely take a few more days. Stay on the tree for now. Master Zhong will guard you. Come down and find me once your transformation is complete.”

Dazhong flew out from the back of his head and went to Yuanqi’s side.

Xu Ying turned back and leaped down, quickening his pace to catch up with Yuan Weiyang.

Xu Ying whispered in warning, “Brother Yuan, the Zhou clan’s old ancestor is dangerous. You and Uncle Xiao must escape if you see any opportunity.”

Yuan Weiyang’s heart shook slightly. She looked at him with a hint of confusion.

Xu Ying recounted his discovery of the stone chamber in Qin Yan Cave. “He burned every scripture he couldn’t take away with him. If he treats scriptures this way, how would he treat other humans?

“Once we finish deciphering the Granny Tuo Immortal Book, to him, we would have become no different from scriptures he cannot take away with him.”

Catching on instantly, Yuan Weiyang said, “To him, sparing us carries the same risk as leaving the scriptures behind in Qin Yan Cave back then. Just as he burned those scriptures, he would kill us for the same reason.”

They arrived at the base of the massive locust tree and saw Uncle Xiao standing there with a grave expression. It seemed he had been waiting for a long time.

Yuan Weiyang stopped in place upon seeing Uncle Xiao. The girlish nature she had revealed atop the tree vanished. Once again, she became the refined and elegant young master.

She approached Uncle Xiao and asked, “Uncle Xiao, you must have waited a long time.”

Yuan Weiyang turned his head around and smiled faintly. “Demon King Xu, let’s catch up another time. I look forward to our next exchange.”

Xu Ying bowed slightly. Yuan Weiyang also lowered her head slightly.

Uncle Xiao glared at Xu Ying fiercely before departing with Yuan Weiyang. Yet, he was unaware that once a nature that had been long imprisoned in their heart was freed, how long could it remain locked away again?