132 - Divine Mastering Dragon System

# Chapter 132: Confrontation The icy flow that Xiang Shiyan had just encountered manifested in the form of tentacle-like appendages. Xuanzhi, deftly controlling the slender streams of water, gradually released her grip on Xiang Shiyan, eventually setting her down gently with the thickest water column. Not yet steady on her feet, Xiang Shiyan was given a push by the water shadow, causing her to stagger and lean against the wall behind her. The soft water figure gently pressed her shoulder, pinning her to the wall. Instinctively, Xiang Shiyan resisted, raising her hand only for it to pass through Xuanzhi’s translucent body. The sensation of her body, saturated with Xuanzhi's spiritual energy, was not the straightforward feel of rushing water, but rather a slow, viscous texture. Her spirit energy, like the flowing water moments before, eagerly pressed toward Xiang Shiyan upon encountering a living being. However, the foreign spirit energy entering Xiang Shiyan's body wasn't as painful as she had imagined. She was momentarily stunned, seizing the opportunity to retract her hand. Instinctively, Xiang Shiyan hid her hand behind her back, though the water shadow, ever observant, noticed, shifted uneasily, and briefly transformed shape internally with a grumble, "It tickles like this..." Even though Xiang Shiyan couldn’t touch her, for some reason Xuanzhi could touch Xiang Shiyan just fine. When the water shadow poked Xiang Shiyan’s face with icy fingers, the closeness revealed that the speaker's voice was a slightly blurred girl’s voice, tinged with the vibrations of sound waves passing through a water membrane. These subtle tremors even traveled through the water shadow’s fingers whenever she spoke. This intimacy discomforted Xiang Shiyan, who wanted to retreat but was unable to due to the solid wall at her back. In her moment of distraction, the tendrils extending from the water figure’s body exaggeratedly prodded at Xiang Shiyan’s head in search of phantom ears. Annoyed, Xiang Shiyan raised her hand to conjure an icy barrier before her, cutting off the flow not only but also leaving a layer of spreading frost atop Xuanzhi’s body. "Please, have some decency." Once frozen, Xuanzhi's form was no longer as pliant as before. Her struggles left wave-like patterns as Xiang Shiyan easily pushed her away. "Don’t be so distant," the water shadow grinned mischievously. "Didn’t we kill someone and keep it a secret together?" Xiang Shiyan coolly retorted, "You did the killing; it had nothing to do with me." "Ha, if it’s unrelated, why didn't Yuehua-Jun report the massacre of two families in Xinyang City half a year ago to the Immortal Mansion, instead downplaying it as mere ghosts taking revenge?" Without much thought, the woman in white countered sardonically, "Wasn't it ghosts seeking vengeance? There’s nothing to report. Two water ghosts—nobody would care if news got out." "What about the demon-inflicted murders? Does that not warrant mention? Oh, it seems only the relationship between the deceased Lin family and your beloved disciple deserves mention in Yuehua-Jun's eyes...?" The words barely left her mouth when Xiang Shiyan turned around, her expression cold, strongly poking a part of Xuanzhi’s body covered in a thin shell of ice, "The killing was your doing. What does He-He have to do with it?" What occurred in Xinyang City that day was not truthfully reported by Xiang Shiyan, fearing someone would delve into He-He and Lin Xiang’s connections, resulting in unnecessary complications. Indeed, it was this woman who bewitched the young girl, taking one of He-He’s eyes, no less. Yet she had the audacity to flaunt this before Xiang Shiyan, which inevitably infuriated her. As the thin ice shattered and was slowly "swallowed" by Xuanzhi, she still wore a playful grin despite Xiang Shiyan's accusations, "No need to be upset; besides, this meeting wasn’t my intentional attempt to rekindle old ties with you." Xiang Shiyan glanced at the floating ice shards within the water figure, uncertain whether Xuanzhi’s indifference allowed them to remain, or if her current form truly wasn’t resistant to cold. When exercising her power, Xiang Shiyan hadn’t felt much resistance. This form was evidently a water body altered by spiritual energy; Xuanzhi’s spell shouldn’t have worked so effectively unless Xuanzhi was merely teasing her. "This location is secluded, with the black market above serving as a buffer—surely not a place one stumbles into by accident..." Xuanzhi mused aloud, "Could it be that Yuehua-Jun is here for these two little birds?" Upon hearing that, Xiang Shiyan’s gaze involuntarily drifted towards the two bound demons. She was in no hurry to answer Xuanzhi’s question, instead asking her, "You’re of the same demon race, why did you capture them?" The two still had a breath of life. Given the lengths Xuanzhi went to hide them underground, it seemed this wasn’t, as in past instances, a mere desire to kill. "Don't play dumb; the demon race has countless internal disputes I am unaware of. Surely you, as the inheritor of the Jade Fox, wouldn’t be ignorant?" "I don’t have any relations with them." Xiang Shiyan couldn’t help but frown upon hearing Xuanzhi mistake her for a member of the Jade Fox Du family. "Besides, aren’t you a demon yourself?" The water figure suddenly halted, her body’s ripples and limbs' movements coming to an abrupt stop, casting a stable shadow in the spiritual firelight that appeared rather eerie to Xiang Shiyan. Xuanzhi paused for a moment, hesitantly saying, "There are no longer any of my kin within the demon race, and I haven’t lived among them for long. Whether I count as a demon isn’t so easily determined by race alone." There was a subtle nostalgia in her words, and the mischievous demeanor of the devil was suddenly imbued with emotion, something Xiang Shiyan found unsettling. Then Xuanzhi murmured as if to herself, "I might be closer to the side of demonic beasts..." Xiang Shiyan’s eyes flashed. Although widely believed to share kinship between demons and demonic beasts, the two can be worlds apart at certain stages. Once one's cultivation surpasses the Great Perfection stage, or upon awakening spiritual intelligence with the intention of pursuing this path, transforming into the facade of a human or demon isn’t difficult. She had not personally witnessed such powerful beings, as the so-called transformation technique differs from human cultivation spells. Though Xiang Shiyan was only at the Golden Core stage, she had mastered transformation methods but found it challenging to alter the shapes of living creatures—at best, she could employ illusion to mask them. However, if Xuanzhi were indeed a demon beast, given her cultivation level, the discussion of human or demon cultivation was largely moot. "What purpose does senior have this time? Surely, it isn’t just to pass through again?" "Haha, I’ve come to find an old friend who’s still alive and catch up a bit. But since I’m here, I might as well take care of some matters before leaving. Upon entering Qingyuan City, I caught the scent of this demon group, so I decided to clean up for someone." To clean up? Could Xuanzhi’s old friend be Tianji? That’s impossible; the Tianji sect is the staunchest force against Xuanzhi... Xiang Shiyan pondered, "Why leave them alive if you’re cleaning up?" "Why, do you care for these two?" "Where they live is irrelevant, but where these two die is significant to me," Xiang Shiyan emphasized, her words carrying a pointed undertone. The featureless water figure twisted slightly, "Take them if you want; they’re useless to me now. But, I need to keep their heads." At this, Xiang Shiyan didn't believe for a moment that Xuanzhi had no intention of using this as leverage. After all, only Xiang Shiyan and Xuanzhi would likely recall this underground river in Qingyuan City—no other reason existed. In the original story, Qin Miao was trapped in Qingyuan City, hunted down, with the assassin sent by Xuanzhi. Startled by the spiritual power surging in the underground river, the subordinates didn’t immediately pursue, resulting in another of Xuanzhi’s plans foiled. She couldn’t possibly be ignorant of this. Leaving such obvious signs at the entrance was a deliberate lure for Xiang Shiyan, assuming Xiang Shiyan would have heard of this near-death experience from Qin Miao, her disciple. Xiang Shiyan wasn’t concerned about Xuanzhi’s schemes, merely cautious of her words. Aside from that, Xuanzhi must have gained something beneficial from these two, as they were demon spies. She had a myriad of ways to make them talk; despite leaving no visible wounds, since she claimed, "They’re useless now," she must have extracted something satisfactory. ... What a nuisance. Every encounter with Xuanzhi results in events diverging from Xiang Shiyan’s expectations. The other's overwhelming power lets her twist reality at will. Frankly, Xiang Shiyan wondered why Xuanzhi didn’t simply attack the Tai Xu sect and personally deliver vengeance on her enemies. "Meeting Yuehua-Jun here indicates a shared destiny between us. I have another favor to ask; I wonder if Yuehua-Jun would be amenable…" The water figure, shaking its head, didn’t allow Xiang Shiyan a chance to decline, slowly producing a jade box from her hollow torso, resembling the one Hua Ye received from Tianji today, likely containing pills. "...” This box looked familiar, yet Xiang Shiyan said nothing, accepting it as if it were ordinary, deciding inwardly to have Hua Ye dispose of the one Tianji gifted her soon after returning—who could say its origin or if it was the same as the one mentioned in the scroll, perhaps even poison. Xuanzhi said, "I have some expertise in alchemy; recently, I've been a bit short. I hope Yuehua-Jun will sell this pill for me. Ah, and if you could purchase some spiritual herbs and materials listed here, that would be even better. I’ve checked beforehand; they should all be available in this black market." As she spoke, the water figure produced a scroll from her body, dry and with clear ink marks. Xuanzhi’s handwriting was sharp and distinct. Xiang Shiyan looked up, puzzled. "That's not a big deal, but why don't you do it yourself?" She immediately realized how foolish her question was. Xuanzhi didn’t want to show herself for the same reason Xiang Shiyan wasn't eager to reveal her own role. Xuanzhi suddenly puffed up like a ball, "I don't have a physical form, how am I supposed to conduct a transaction with others?" "Then why choose me? Using someone like me isn't exactly convenient." Xiang Shiyan wasn't concerned about losing face by running errands for others. However, she sensed that Xuanzhi considered her a likely candidate for manipulation, especially after their encounter in Xinyang City when Xuanzhi toyed with her at length. Once Xiang Shiyan returned to her mountain and thought things over, it became clear that Xuanzhi’s actions were aimed at ensnaring her. Xuanzhi wasn't worried about Xiang Shiyan exposing her, as doing so would require explaining the origins of the ghost general and her disciple’s lost eye. It would be a tremendous bother and might drag He-He into the mess as well. Both had their concerns, yet it reassured them; after all, being accomplices is perhaps the most reliable bond in the world. Even though Xiang Shiyan was reluctant, she found herself being pulled further onto Xuanzhi’s metaphoric pirate ship, becoming more involved than she had anticipated. Xuanzhi laughed it off, "I already told you before, Yuehua-Jun, your beauty is quite entrancing, and naturally, I’m happy to work with someone like you." "Everyone I've met with high cultivation couldn’t care less about appearances. Why do you, senior, find it so appealing?" "Naturally because Yuehua-Jun is so beautiful, it's impossible not to be moved." Oddly, Xiang Shiyan couldn’t detect any jest in her tone. Xuanzhi seemed to be stating a simple fact, which made Xiang Shiyan uncomfortable. "... All the seniors who praised my beauty in the past had ulterior motives. Are you thinking of taking this agreeable body since you currently lack one?" Irritated by Xuanzhi's teasing, she made a joke, not expecting Xuanzhi to fall silent. It was unclear whether she was contemplating how to respond or considering the feasibility of Xiang Shiyan’s suggestion. Xuanzhi stared at her face, unable to resist a sigh, "Can’t you understand other kinds of affection? How dull." Xiang Shiyan kept a wary eye on Xuanzhi for a while. Being a peculiar and ancient individual, Xuanzhi undoubtedly knew many soul-seizing techniques. When she mentioned her lack of a physical form, Xiang Shiyan had thought it was an excuse, but reconsidering, it seemed plausible. *cough cough,* Xuanzhi theatrically cleared her throat, surface rippling conspicuously, "You won’t be short on rewards; if you ever lack a rare immortal elixir, feel free to ask for my help." "Senior’s confidence is admirable, but I'm afraid I have no need for your assistance." "Oh, really? No need to repair a damaged soul or cracked golden core? No support needed for stalled cultivation or troublesome bloodlines that hinder complete transformation into human form?" Though her facial features were unclear, the playful tone was unmistakable. "I can manage my issues without senior’s concern." Xiang Shiyan tucked the jade box and scroll into her sleeve, glancing at the pair from afar, "Once you're done with those two, could you send them to the location for me? It saves us the trouble of erasing traces." Noticing a hint of displeasure at Xuanzhi hitting her sore spot, Xuanzhi found amusement, growing increasingly brazen, "Since Yuehua-Jun insists, I won’t meddle further. Yet dealing with personal affairs is easy—some matters can't always go as desired, no?" Xiang Shiyan paused mid-step. "For instance, the pair of sisters you brought back from Huaihai City, with great talent but hindered by their constitution. And your opportunity-seeking senior disciple; how long will her glory last? Your injuries can wait, but she may not have long..." Before she finished speaking, the water figure was blasted back against the wall, scattering into pieces. Xiang Shiyan had used spiritual force to vibrate the air, striking Xuanzhi like a cow from across the mountain. Within mere moments, the water droplets reassembled seamlessly. Shown little regard, she continued speaking seemingly from nowhere, "Are you angry? Heartlessness forbids strong emotion, you know." She didn’t dodge, allowing Xiang Shiyan to rush at her, spells against her akin to a ticklish scratch, merely causing her to sway slightly. "Such tactics won’t work on me—you… huh?" Xuanzhi instinctively attempted to block Xiang Shiyan’s assault, proving that if she intended to defend, ice magic wouldn’t easily engulf her, nor infiltrate her watery body. Unexpectedly, the solid ice didn’t thaw as easily as anticipated, causing Xuanzhi's startled voice to surface. The ice swiftly infiltrated her, leaving a trail of jagged frost and piercing straight to her core. Xiang Shiyan's next attack followed, a gentle touch to her chest splintering the water figure into pieces scattering on the ground. However, the scattered water body didn’t re-coalesce. The ice shards emitted a fragmented voice, "Merely stumbled upon… within such a short time… finding this form’s 'core.' I indeed underestimated you." "Xiang Shiyan, you are impressive." That haughty voice pronounced her name for the first time, yet Xiang Shiyan merely looked coldly at the remnants. "A lion uses full strength even against a rabbit… I am not your plaything." "You may toy with me, but never should you threaten me using others' safety." Turning to leave, she heard the icy remains still laughing behind her, "I understand; I’ll bring you the alchemical formula next time, alright?" As she walked, the woman waved her hand, "I'll handle the matter of the pill and spiritual plants for you." She did not hear, as within the expansive cavern, a young girl's voice softly intoned, "At least dry off before you leave. Spiritual water entering the body is no joke."