Not long after that, Qiong returned carefully, holding a jade box about the size of a palm.
When he handed me the jade box, he appeared incredibly magnanimous.
"Thank you, Uncle," I sincerely thanked.
"Ha, family is one; there's no need for two," said Qiong with a smile on his face.
Next, he asked Qiong's mom to make arrangements, for a grand banquet with an array of dishes, including a rare vintage Chinese rice wine called Hua Diao, to see my tolerance for alcohol.
Qiong Ying's mother left in a hurry, and the others retreated as Qiong Chang arranged.
The father and son chatted with me for a few more sentences, roughly asking about things related to my sect.
After all, because of me, the Jiu family directly broke off relations with the Zhou family. They also brought out Zhongshan White Jelly, so I didn't feel the need to hide or conceal anything. I directly stated that my master was Yin-Yang Master Qin Tai Zi.
Both looked at each other with a mix of suppressed excitement.
However, Qiong Chang inexplicably asked me later, "As a disciple of Yin-Yang Master, do you have any marital relations with other clans of the left-handed path? Will my master agree?"
His expression showed a bit of complexity, telling me not to be upset by these things. Sun Zhuo was like that. Qiong Ying's sister, Huayong, was dead set on Sun Zhuo and ended up being labeled a "left-handed path" with an "unfit clergyman" result. She even lost her life because of it.
I remained silent for a moment before honestly answering that my master had passed away. However, if he were still alive, he wouldn't have obstructed it.
Moreover, there is a deep blood feud between me and Sun Zhuo. At that time, if I kill Sun Zhuo, it would be equivalent to avenging the Jiu family!
After I finished speaking, Qiong Chang and Qiong Ying looked at each other and slightly relaxed.
"So, your master is a Yin-Yang Master... But why, are you using the Nine Streams Technique instead of fortune-telling or geomancy?" Qiong Ying coughed slightly and tentatively inquired: "As I understand it, a Shrine official's Daoist practitioner should require Yangshen's life. Qiong Ying's Tianyi Yanggui life, seems to complement Yangshen's life."
While probing, Qiong's eyes subtly held a hint of anticipation.
Qiong Chang, on the other hand, coughed and chided, "Qiong'er, you're not a child anymore. How can you be so out of line?"
I remained silent for a moment. In fact, I could see what the Jiu family father and son meant.
They are already quite satisfied with me, but who would be willing to accept that their dependence on someone else is greater?
Originally, I was a filial son-in-law. If I had fortune-telling or geomancy skills, they might consider me a golden tortoise son-in-law in their eyes.
"Xianshen is currently unable to use the inheritance of geomancy and fortune-telling due to his master's instructions, but Grandpa, Dad, you don't need to worry in a hurry," said Qiong Ying, her response was ambiguous.
However, it caused both Qiong Chang and Qiong Ying's eyes to shine bright!
"No hurry! No hurry! What's the rush?" Qiong Chang roared with laughter and then instructed Qiong Ying to take me to my room to rest well.
Qiong tightened his fists and his lips quivered for a half moment, muttering something indistinctly.
I left the hall with Qiong Ying, who led me to the room.
Of course, it wasn't her room, but the one she had arranged for me and Tang Quan to stay in before.
After a brief glance at each other, I understood her intention, took out Yu Xiu's jade pendant, and opened the jade box containing Zhongshan White Jelly.
Without knowing what Zhongshan White Jelly was by its name, upon seeing the actual substance, I realized that it had nothing to do with whiteness.
It was a brown, roughly the thickness of my index finger, jelly-like substance lying quietly at the bottom of the jade box. A faint, fishy-sweet smell drifted into my nostrils.
The smell was like blood but not entirely so.
"How do we use it?" I asked Qiong Ying.
"Place the jade pendant on the white jelly, and the thread of soul will slowly absorb it. Once the white jelly is exhausted, that thread of soul should become robust. I'll go prepare some things," Qiong Ying said seriously.
I immediately placed the jade pendant on the brown jelly substance.
At first, there was no reaction, but soon, I saw thin threads of energy slowly seeping into the jade pendant.
Qiong Ying's eyes lit up with surprise. She told me to rest for a while and left immediately.
After speaking, she turned around and left the room, closing the door behind her.
I looked at the door for a while before walking over to the bed and sitting down. I placed the jade box on the bedside table and looked at the jade pendant for a long time.
I closed my eyes slightly, and my temples twitched slightly, a wave of fatigue and drowsiness indeed surged over me.
Given the current situation, the Jiu family could be considered a safe place. I put aside my concerns and reservations, lay down, and fell into a deep sleep.
I don't know how long I slept, but I had some confused and disorganized dreams.
The dream was very strange. I was in an environment where there was complete darkness, even without any semblance of a half-light.
In the darkness, it seemed as though something was relentlessly chasing after me!
I kept running!
When I felt that I couldn't escape no matter how hard I ran, I realized that the darkness around me was not darkness at all, but a dense earth energy. The world was rendered black by this potent earth Qi.
Only then did I stop in my tracks, realizing that the dense earth energy surrounding me protected its master. Who could harm me?
However, as soon as I stopped, I felt something invade my body, causing my consciousness to become muddled.
I also heard intermittent voices calling out my name…
One dream turned into another.
The dark environment vanished, replaced instead by a hilltop covered with broken tiles and scattered stones.
Master Qin's corpse, covered in white feathers, lay on the coffin board, and maggots crawled all over him…
His slightly writhing mouth seemed to be saying something, but on first listen, it was indecipherable. But when you listened closely, it felt like he wasn't speaking at all...
The time in the dream felt very long, and after a very long time, finally, everything before me became fragmented, and I opened my eyes.
A knocking sound reverberated inside the room, and the light inside dimmed significantly as dusk approached.
I rubbed my temples and got up to open the door.
Qiong Ying stood outside the door, holding a bamboo whisk as thick as a baby's arm.
"I estimate that you should be waking up soon too. Go ahead and eat something first. The banquet is ready," Qiong Ying said softly, glancing towards the direction of the bed.
I also glanced back, and in the jade box, the brown Zhongshan White Jelly still had more than half left. Yu Xiu's jade pendant looked even more jade-like, radiant and glossy.
"I'll take it with me."
After saying that, I went to close the jade box and carried it close to my body.
Qiong Ying placed the bamboo whisk in the room.
We then went to the main hall. There were more than twenty people inside, black as a swarm, very lively.
Qiong Chang and Qiong Qin both had rosy faces and appeared particularly delighted. They called me over to sit beside them.
This meal was truly the most sumptuous I've eaten in the past ten years.
Qiong Ying also added several cups of wine for me.
I originally didn't want to drink, but the others started teasing, saying that the father-in-law was pouring wine, how could the son-in-law not drink? Wasn't that disrespecting the father-in-law?
Qiong Ying's cheeks turned pink, and I couldn't bear the embarrassment, so I had to drink a few cups.
It wasn't until late at night and my head was spinning with dizziness that I escaped from the hall and returned to my lodging.
Qiong Ying still hadn't caught up with me. I sat by the bedside, resting for a while, and feeling somewhat more awake.
I took out the jade box and gazed at the jade pendant. A jolt of electricity ran through me, completely waking me up.
With nightfall, the jade pendant absorbed the white jelly much faster.
The Zhongshan White Jelly was now only thinly layered, and the jade pendant reflected a dim green glow under the light.
"Ha..."
A long sigh, abruptly sounded by my side.
