Chapter 882: Chapter 882: Shouting Outside the Cave
Right in front of him lay a Qilin Beast on the brink of death, and Liu Zixuan instinctively thought that Old Qing wanted him to save the Qilin.
Seeing his reaction, Old Qing shook his head, "The Qilin’s time is near at hand. Even if you had the skills of an immortal, you couldn’t reverse this. How could I be foolish enough to let you try to revive it?"
"Then what do you want me to do?" Liu Zixuan asked, puzzled.
"The Qilin is naturally male and female, and after extensive observation and research by successive Sect Leaders, it’s considered unified as both genders and also possesses the ability to nurture offspring. Moreover, the last Sect Leader consulted an expert and found that this Qilin Beast gives birth to a Qilin cub every four hundred years."
At this point, Old Qing spoke, and Liu Zixuan scratched his head, "I’m not quite sure what you mean."
"It’s simple. Four hundred years ago, it produced a cub, and now, another four hundred years have passed. A new life has already grown in its belly. But due to its unique physical condition right now, we estimate it can’t birth the cub on its own, so we want you to give it a try."
Listening to Old Qing’s words, Liu Zixuan suddenly had a struck-by-lightning feeling, eyes wide, murmuring, "You want me to try what? Be the midwife to extract the cub from the Qilin Beast’s belly?"
Old Qing furrowed his brows, "You could say that."
"As soon as I came in, I felt an uncontainable murderous intent emanating from it. Even though it’s nearing the end of its life, it is, after all, at the Ancient Divine Beast level. If I help birth it, aren’t you afraid it’ll open its mouth and swallow me whole?" Liu Zixuan muttered gloomily.
"You can rest assured about that because the thousand-year Profound Ice binds it now, rendering the Qilin Beast incapable of attack. Besides, the Profound Sword Sect has coexisted with the Qilin Beast for nearly a thousand years, and no Sect Leader has ever been harmed by it, proving the Qilin Beast will not harm humans," Old Qing spoke.
Liu Zixuan thought for a moment, "You just said the Profound Sword Sect has coexisted with the Qilin Beast for nearly a thousand years. Calculating by time, four hundred years ago it produced a cub, right?"
"Correct."
"Where’s that cub gone? If the Qilin Beast can live for a thousand years, wouldn’t the Qilin born four hundred years ago be an adult now?" Liu Zixuan asked, bewildered.
Old Qing sighed upon hearing this, "I intended to keep this from you, but it seems that’s impossible."
"Four hundred years ago, the Qilin Beast indeed birthed a cub. The Sect Leader at the time was thrilled to the extreme, hoping that possessing two Qilin Beasts would vastly boost the Profound Sword Sect’s power. Alas, before three days of joy had passed, that cub vanished!"
"Vanished!" Liu Zixuan’s forehead was lined with disbelief, "Even when being treasured so dearly, it vanished? And in the dignified Profound Sword Sect, no less!"
"This matter is quite eerie," Old Qing rubbed his chin, "When the cub was born, the Sect Leader was always guarding it, yet three days later, as he took a brief nap, the cub disappeared without a trace. Even in a fury, the Sect Leader searched beyond but never found a clue about the Qilin cub."
"At that time, the Sect Leader even developed a bizarre notion that the Qilin Beast had eaten its cub!"
Liu Zixuan twitched his mouth, immediately shaking his head, "That’s impossible. Even tigers don’t eat their offspring; how could the Qilin, as an ancient divine beast, eat its own cub?"
"Then how do you explain its sudden disappearance?" Old Qing threw the question to Liu Zixuan.
Liu Zixuan rubbed his forehead, "Maybe that Sect Leader had a mistress outside, and he gave the cub as a pet to that mistress!"
"..." Old Qing rolled his eyes in response, what kind of excuse is that!
A dignified Sect Leader of the Profound Sword Sect giving the Qilin Beast to a mistress as a cub? Besides, he didn’t have any mistress!
Old Qing shook his head, "Let’s not discuss the Qilin cub further; just tell me, can you help with this task?"
"What happens if I don’t help?" Liu Zixuan retorted.
"This is one of those two conditions. If you don’t help, you can forget about obtaining the Nether Fire Stone." Old Qing straightforwardly hit Liu Zixuan’s sore spot.
"Damn it, why do I feel like you’ve been setting traps for me since the beginning?" Liu Zixuan grumbled angrily.
Old Qing chuckled like a cunning fox, "But I’ve also let you, young fellow, in on many secrets unknown to others."
"I might consider helping, but I have one question that you must answer," Liu Zixuan said after thinking for a while.
Helping in the Qilin’s birth is the first time Liu Zixuan would undertake such a task, and possibly the last time, given such a miraculous creature could only be encountered once in a lifetime.
Of course, the reason he dared to agree was due to some assurance he held; the Holy Medical Scripture is the most powerful compendium in the Medical Dao, bar none!
It encompasses all medical skills, and with proper preparation, helping in the Qilin’s birth isn’t too daunting a task.
Old Qing replied, "Just ask, as long as I know, I’ll tell you!"
"The Qilin Beast is an ancient Auspicious Beast, birthing a cub is surely a major event. Since the cub vanished, I assume the Profound Sword Sect has been searching all along, right? After four hundred years, hasn’t there been even the slightest trace?" Liu Zixuan asked.
Old Qing heard this and immediately furrowed his brow, clearly Liu Zixuan’s question touched upon the profounding secrets of the Profound Sword Sect.
But after a brief pause, Old Qing let go of his concerns. Given that so much had already been disclosed, there was no need to continue withholding information.
He then spoke, "In the past four hundred years, some useful information has indeed been uncovered. Most initial intel proved false, as when the Sect Leader arrived, it turned out to be various creatures with similar bloodlines to the Qilin. But six years ago, near a northern mountainous area, true traces of Qilin bloodline were discovered. However, despite thorough searches, no Qilin Beast was found, which led to the matter being temporarily set aside."
"A northern mountainous area?" Liu Zixuan’s eyes suddenly brightened, "Which northern city?"
"It’s something like Yuqing City." Old Qing recalled after a pause.
Liu Zixuan suddenly straightened his posture, as the area bordering Yuqing City and Ghost Wood City is only beyond the mountain behind Lingxiu Village!
That’s where he discovered Little Blue.
But when Liu Zixuan pondered further, it seemed off, as Little Blue is just a leopard, only four or five years old as an adult, how could it be a four-hundred-year-old Qilin?
Old Qing noticed his changing expression and was about to ask what was happening when suddenly, outside the Peach Blossom House near the cave, a shout rang out.
"Liu Zixuan, come out right now!"
