Immortalis

White Dog 3

Following Song Lan, the three arrived at a secluded pavilion in the back mountain. This place was some distance from the hot spring and had no trees blocking the wind. As the cool breeze blew, Shen Qingshi immediately felt much better.

Song Lan helped Shen Qingshi sit down: "People generally don't come here, so it'll be more convenient to talk."

Yang Wujian couldn't help but ask curiously: "Why would such a good place have no visitors?"

Song Lan smiled bitterly: "Because of the rumor that Ancestor Yonglezi achieved immortality and ascended to heaven right here. However, his method of ascension was somewhat peculiar, so ordinary people don't dare come here."

"Peculiar?"

"Legend has it that the Ancestor possessed virtue that could save the world, so before he reached his natural lifespan, immortals came to take him to eternal bliss. However, at that time, the Ancestor was still in a mortal body. The immortals said that the harsh winds above the nine heavens would be difficult for a mortal to endure. If he wished to reach paradise early, he must transform into a star to ascend."

"What does transforming into a star mean?"

"Meteor stars fall from the nine heavens without dying or being destroyed. For a mortal to go against this natural order and ascend upward, they must naturally transform into a star and rise. That day, the immortals taught the Ancestor the method of stellar transformation here. It's said that after taking some miraculous pill, the Ancestor transformed into countless stars - the impure parts fell to the ground, while the pure parts rose to the nine heavens and entered the immortal realm."

Song Lan smiled and looked toward the distant horizon: "This is the Ancestor's place of stellar transformation. Disciples say that the so-called impure stars were the Ancestor's flesh and bones. Although the Ancestor has ascended to immortality, his flesh and blood still scatter across this mountain, as if leaving countless eyes in the mortal world. Those who come here will be seen by the Ancestor."

"Thank goodness the young master isn't here."

Yang Wujian forced a dry laugh, thinking to himself that this sounded like superstitious nonsense. Most likely, Yonglezi had gone completely mad in his later years and took some rare substance he had found himself on this mountain, leaving his corpse scattered in pieces. If this wasn't portrayed as ascension to immortality, to outsiders it would seem like he hadn't even kept his body intact.

Shen Qingshi asked: "Then why does Elder Song Lan still dare to come here?"

Song Lan smiled again: "I have done nothing to feel guilty about, so why should I worry about the Ancestor's eyes? You two, feel free to ask whatever you want to know."

Yang Wujian thought this was quite convenient. As a high-ranking member of the Eleventh Medicine Hall, Song Lan should be very familiar with matters on this mountain.

He asked: "If the Elder doesn't mind, I'd like to ask first - why do the disciples on this mountain avoid Young Hero Shen? She has never been to Medicine King Mountain before, nor has she ever had any conflict with Medicine King Mountain."

Hearing this, Song Lan's expression became somewhat complicated: "Young Hero Shen looks very much like an old acquaintance from this mountain. So much so that when I first saw the young hero at Boundless Sword Manor, I was quite startled. I've been thinking about this matter ever since, which is why I was so rude as to not introduce myself properly."

"Looks like an old acquaintance?"

"You must have heard of her - that female disciple who killed six fellow disciples overnight six years ago, Yin Quer."

"What?Both of them widened their eyes in surprise, with Yang Wujian particularly incredulous: "How could there be such a coincidence in this world?" No wonder the sect leader's attitude toward us has been so strange. Looking at Young Hero Shen must bring back memories of that old acquaintance..."

Song Lan smiled bitterly: "Young Hero Shen is naturally delicate-featured. Even dressed in male clothing, she bears a strong resemblance to Yin Quer. Most disciples on this mountain experienced that tragic incident six years ago, so..."

But why did it have to be Yin Quer?

Yang Wujian frowned.After the palace coup at Longevity Palace that day, he had asked Gu Yun and Mingshan why the Old Palace Master valued the Flesh Conduit in the Black Iron Cage so highly—what was that girl's origin, and how did she come to be here?

At the time, Gu Yun only said that the girl was the most likely candidate to refine the Cicada Molt as a Flesh Conduit then. As for her origin, they only knew her mother was also a martial artist who had already died, which was why Guanri could directly bring her back to Longevity Palace.

Could it be that Shen Qingshi wasn’t actually an orphan girl and still had other relatives in this world?

Yang Wujian instinctively glanced at Shen Qingshi, but she concealed her emotions extremely well, merely asking calmly, "So, Elder Song Lan was also on the mountain that day?"

"Naturally. I also knew Yin Quer. She even worked as an apprentice under me for a long time. I know she wouldn’t do such a thing."

"Why do you say that?"

"She was an orphan girl who grew up on the mountain since childhood. She was always diligent and eager to learn, warm-hearted toward others. Before the incident, most disciples on the mountain liked her very much."

"How was her martial arts?"

"Disciples of Medicine King Mountain are all the same—they practice the medical path, so their martial arts are inevitably weaker. But for ordinary travels in the martial world, it should be sufficient for self-defense."

"In that case, isn’t it strange that she killed six people in a row?"

Recalling now, during the sword competition at Immeasurable Manor that day, disciples of Medicine King Mountain didn’t even participate in the contests. From this perspective, the martial arts of Medicine King Mountain’s sect truly aren’t suited for killing.

Song Lan nodded, "Precisely because of this, the matter is very peculiar. That day, when Yin Quer killed, her power had clearly surged dramatically, unlike usual. In the end, it took two or three elders working together to slay her. Afterwards, they suspected that someone from Longevity Palace had used the Longevity Heart Sutra to grant Yin Quer power, causing her to suffer a qi deviation."

"Hah?"

Yang Wujian nearly laughed aloud on the spot.

Although this inference was somewhat better than the previous nonsense about a white auspicious beast, it wasn’t much better.

After all, while the Longevity Heart Sutra allows one to freely transfer internal energy, practicing the first three chapters only depletes it without replenishment. If someone had drawn out their internal energy to give to Yin Quer, pushing her to the point of qi deviation, that person would have drained themselves completely and would need to consume large amounts of medicine afterward to replenish their blood and qi.

Medicine is three parts poison—for those of Longevity Palace, who already have short lifespans, this would be a truly disproportionate loss.

He thought for a moment and said, "But everyone in the martial world knows that those who use the Longevity Heart Sutra suffer from qi deficiency and blood depletion. That’s why they resorted to refining pills from living people fifteen years ago. Isn’t this explanation a bit far-fetched? After all, to make someone with insufficient power directly suffer qi deviation and kill six people in a row, the amount of energy given would have to be extraordinary."

Hearing this, Song Lan didn’t refute but said, "Indeed. Actually, I also suspect that Yin Quer’s condition that day resembled excessive supplementation. On Medicine King Mountain alone, there is more than one type of pill that can greatly enhance a person’s power in the short term, at the cost of driving them insane. However, for some reason, all the elders insisted it was Longevity Palace’s doing. Moreover, Yin Quer’s body was burned that very day, so what happened to her remains unknown."

"Remains unknown…"

Shen Qingshi instinctively touched her own face.

If Yin Quer looked very similar to her, then perhaps they were actually related?

If she had lived on this mountain and they met, what would they have said to each other?Yang Wujian, standing nearby, caught Shen Qingshi's momentary daze and couldn't help but feel a surge of inexplicable anger, suspecting Shen might have missed something crucial.

These so-called righteous sects would stoop to any low to frame Longevity Palace—since they had no shame left, why should he bother sparing their dignity?

With that thought, Yang Wujian suddenly let out a cold laugh. "This investigation has been suffocating. I doubt Medicine King Mountain's assistance makes any difference—after all, there aren't many clear-headed people like Elder Song Lan on this mountain."

"What are you planning?" Shen Qingshi now fully understood that Yang Wujian was from Longevity Palace, solely focused on clearing the palace's name through this case.

But clearly, Yang's patience with these baseless accusations was wearing thin.

Yang Wujian stood up and stretched lazily. "Elder Song Lan, thank you for your help. We won't mention your name to others—I know it could cause you trouble."

Song Lan looked at him, hesitating to speak, but ultimately just gave a bitter smile. "I only spoke the truth. If you need to find the sect leader later, he should still be in the Pharmaceutical King Hall discussing matters with several elders."

"Perfect timing. With more people around, I have some questions for them too."

Yang Wujian sneered.

They didn't want him to make a scene? Well, he'd see just how much commotion Medicine King Mountain could handle.

Afterward, the two deliberately parted ways with Song Lan and descended the back mountain. From a distance, they spotted Zhou Huai standing there with a smug expression. "Guess what I found out?"

He was preening like a peacock flaunting its feathers right in their faces.

Yang Wujian couldn't help but laugh wryly. "Young Master, you're amazing, the best! Satisfied? Can you tell us now?"Isn't that a bit too perfunctory?" Though slightly displeased, Zhou Huai eagerly blurted out, "They said Yin Quer might have had a lover down the mountain!"

"What?" Yang Wujian was taken aback. "Where did you hear that?"

The peacock puffed with pride. "Through my personal charm, of course! A few female disciples mentioned that Yin Quer always returned from the mountain in low spirits, often staring blankly at her plain medicine pouch. They're sure she had a lover down there and even speculated that her sudden madness might be linked to him—and that this lover was from Longevity Palace."

"Does Longevity Palace have nothing better to do than scam people out of their affections?" Yang Wujian rolled his eyes hard but, meeting Zhou Huai's expectant face, suddenly regretted his bluntness and clutched his forehead in frustration.

"Young Master, I think we've gathered enough on the mountain. I'm about to confront Sect Leader Danyuan Bai—you'd better not come. After all, you're still counting on Medicine King Mountain to cure your Evil Sickness."

With that, Yang Wujian entered the Pharmaceutical King Hall with Shen Qingshi. Inside, Danyuan Bai and several elders, who had been in discussion, grew visibly uneasy at the sight of Shen Qingshi.

"Apologies for interrupting, esteemed seniors. Staring at Young Hero Shen's face probably isn't helping your conversation, right? How about chatting with me instead?"

Yang Wujian acted as if he owned the place, plopping into a chair with a casual laugh. "Six years ago, Yin Quer suddenly went mad and killed six people. Medicine King Mountain concluded it was Longevity Palace's doing, correct?"Danyuan Bai said coldly, "That sinister martial art Yin Quer used to kill people—who else but Longevity Palace could have given it to her?"

Yang Wujian hadn't expected him to still be stubborn and couldn't help but sneer, "Sect Leader Dan, I also have a blood feud with Longevity Palace and want to find them. But to locate Longevity Palace, relying on nonsense won't do."

"What do you mean?"

"Sect Leader Dan practices medicine. I think you should know better than anyone that there are multiple ways to temporarily boost one's power. The Longevity Heart Sutra is just one possibility. It's more likely that Yin Quer overdosed on supplements for some reason. This could be easily verified by examining the corpse. Yet, all the physicians on Medicine King Mountain turned a blind eye, and then someone burned the body overnight..."

Watching the Medicine King Mountain disciples' faces pale dramatically, Yang Wujian's hand had already tightened around the Golden Rings hidden in his wide sleeves.

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

"Can't Sect Leader Dan understand?"

Yang Wujian enunciated each word clearly, "There's something suspicious about Yin Quer's death, and there are traitors on Medicine King Mountain. Sect Leader Dan, I advise you not to deceive us, or you'll damage the entire Four Seas Alliance's reputation."