Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Qin Yu couldn't remember when he became the living nemesis of all dark and gloomy yin powers. Poisons, curses, things like that, the more that came, the more he welcomed them.

All of these supposedly vicious and ferocious abilities were like loud and blaring delivery boys with red flags on their backs, completely offering up their everything for the residents residing in his soul space.

This spirit was worth vigorously advocating and deeply praising. But what a pity, these delivery boys that worked with all their heart were doomed to be one-time disposables. It was impossible to encourage them to continue their efforts. This was a minor regret.

Beneath the layers of black curse threads, Qin Yu's lips twitched. He felt a little ashamed for these completely unsympathetic thoughts of his. This person was already pitiful enough so how could he still mock him ruthlessly? Between people, he should still take into consideration the most basic of emotions and civilities.

Mm. I can't laugh. I must be solemn and dignified. But…it's hard to bear! In particular, through the Cosmic Seacross Bell, Qin Yu could faintly feel the old servant's thought fluctuations.

You think you have too much curse strength? Hehe, I fear you don't have enough!

20%

30%

40%

The calm old servant finally revealed an earnest expression. With so much curse strength, even a peak Blue Sea master would have died several times, yet this brat was still alive.

This wasn't right, this wasn't right, something definitely must have gone wrong. Restlessness gushed out from the depths of his heart and beads of sweat appeared on the old servant's forehead. He felt that something had gone horribly awry.

Perhaps he should have been more cautious and investigated the situation further before making his move. As soon as this thought appeared, the old servant wanted to take back his curse strength, but then, his complexion changed. Because to his amazement, he discovered that the curse strength wrapped around Qin Yu's body seemed to be glued tightly to him; it was impossible to take it back.

No, it wasn't just that he couldn't take it back, but that he couldn't even separate himself. It was like some terrifying shackles had bound the two of them together. The old servant took a deep breath. Then, a storm seemed to blow past his incredibly old face, leaving in its wake fierce and twisted terror.

"Open!"

With a loud shout, the black threads began to burn, dissolving into ashes with black flames.

The old servant's back bent down as if he had lost too much strength. Without even glancing at Qin Yu who was wrapped in black flames and ashes, he turned and left.

His body submerged into the darkness and directly fused within as he vanished from sight.

In the martial world, it was said that the older one was, the less courage they had. This saying made complete sense. The old servant had lived for such a long time and killed countless people. Just what sort of scene had he not seen before?

But it was because of his vast experience that he truly understood what it meant for one's ship to suddenly overturn. He had personally witnessed this with his eyes many times.

The Qi Family was strong and there were many methods to kill this Yao Bin. There was no need for him to take this risk. Even if he retreated today with no results, it wasn't that big of a deal. He could look for more chances in the future.

When one was old, their mind might grow muddled, but they never lacked in patience. So when the old servant decided to leave, he didn't delay or hesitate.

Within the garden, the black flames began to gradually extinguish to reveal Qin Yu's calm face. Surprise flashed in his eyes. "Shadow Step?"

So he wasn't the only one who possessed this ability.

Although Undying was still in a state of deep sleep, he had clearly recovered a great deal because the supernatural arts he bestowed upon Qin Yu could be used again. So, after a brief moment of surprise, Qin Yu softly said, "The residents haven't eaten their fill yet, so how can you leave?"

He lightly stepped into the narrow shadows, melting within.

Outside of Dawnperch Hotel there was a large tree. The street lights shined down from above, causing the mottled shadow of the tree to spread out long and wide.

Somewhere in the shadows of the branches there was sudden movement. The old servant stepped out, his face pale and wan. He turned and looked at the still peaceful Dawnperch Hotel, a cloudy look on his face. For so many years, whenever he took action things had gone smoothly and easily. He never expected that he would be pecked in the eyes here today.

This brat was abominably strange. He had to inform the young master as soon as possible and caution him to be more careful and to not lower his guard. However, with his master's disposition, he feared that the more outstanding this Yao Bin was, the deeper his killing intent would be. He would definitely find some way to have Yao Bin stay in Heavenly Demon City.

The old servant's eyes clouded over a little and a bit of infatuation filled his eyes. His young master's personality was this lovable! He coughed several times, clearing these thoughts. He took several steps out, about to leave. But then, his complexion changed and he fiercely spun around.

The shadows of the tree parted like rippling water. Qin Yu smiled and said, "Since you've come, why leave? Life is hard to survive, so let me help you completely free yourself."

The old servant screamed out loud, "This is impossible! You actually know the Shadow Transformation Art!?"

Qin Yu shook his head. "I call it Shadow Step. I have no idea what the Shadow Transformation Art is. But, none of that matters. Let's continue from where we left off."

The old servant turned and fled.

Looking at the old servant sink into the shadows, Qin Yu's eyes flashed. He stepped forward and followed.

Around a corner, the two people appeared one after another. Then in an alley, a tower…

Qin Yu's lips curved up. As he thought, this Shadow Transformation Art caused extreme losses to the soul. After using it continuously several times, the old servant's aura had weakened a great deal. It was almost over. Then, let's bring things to an end. If one played too much, they might end up ruining their plans.

Shua -

After using Shadow Transformation once more, the old servant emerged. His face was pale without the least bit of red remaining. He looked up towards the distance where the brightly illuminated and majestic mansion was. Joy flickered in his darkened eyes.

If he used the Shadow Transformation Art once more he would be able to smoothly enter the Qi Family. At that time he would be safe with the young master protecting him. The old servant smiled. He took a deep breath, suppressing the feeling of nothingness in his soul. Then, he took a step forward.

His body began to transform into shade, fusing with the shadow beneath his foot. But just as he was about to finish, a hand suddenly reached out from the shadow.

Qin Yu lightly said, "Where do you think you're going?"

The old servant was startled. Too fl.u.s.tered to worry about exposing himself, he opened his mouth to shout for help. But then, he suddenly froze. His weak soul could no longer contend with the suppression coming from the Cosmic Seacross Bell. Faint traces of purple moonlight continuously infiltrated into his soul space.

The purple moon also helped out this time. This point was quite strange. It seemed that the curse strength within the old servant's body suited its tastes.

Bang -

A terrifying extraction strength erupted from Qin Yu's body. The old servant's body tensed as the curse strength within his body suddenly burst out as if a dam had been broken.

If this feeling had to be described with words, it was like someone ripping open another person's skull and then taking a tube and sucking out their brains with great gusto…this feeling, just thinking about it left one's scalp tingling.

In fact, the pain that the old servant was withstanding was even more terrifying than this. This was because the curse strength within him had already fully merged into one whole with his body. Every inch of his flesh and blood, his organs, bones, it was all quaking and twitching at this moment.

Indeed, if a person walked along the riverside, they would eventually get their shoes wet. This person had murdered so many people in his lifetime and now karmic retribution had reached him.

The old servant knew from long ago that once he stepped onto the path of curses, he was doomed to die some unnatural and horrific death. But, he didn't regret doing this, because this was what the young master needed. For the young master, he was willing to do anything, even if the young master never knew of his true thoughts.

But was this important?

The old servant exhausted the final dregs of his strength to straighten his back. He looked towards the not too far away Qi Family and gently let out a long breath. His pupils began to glaze over…this life had been far too tiring, it was finally time to rest.

Several breaths of time later, Qin Yu released his hand, allowing the skinny and withered corpse to fall to the ground. He glanced at the Qi Family and then stepped into the shadows.

Ancestral Hall -

Seated against the large wooden chair with his eyes closed in meditation, Qi Dongtai suddenly lurched forward and spat out a mouthful of black blood.

The fourth family manager was panic-stricken. "Father, are you okay!?"

Qi Dongtai's eyes were dazed. After several breaths of time, he stood up and walked outside.

Moments later, the great doors to the Qi Family opened and Qi Dongtai silently walked out, soaring to a large willow tree not too far away.

A corpse lay down peacefully beneath the willow tree. Its body was bent as if they suffered great pain before their death, but their expression was one of peace.

The fourth family manager's eyes violently shrank, fear and alarm rising in his pupils. This was because the one who died beneath the willow tree was his father's old servant. This gloomy and terrifying old dog had quietly died like this? Even as he was dumbfounded into silence, at the same time he also relaxed within.

Of course, the sorrow and despair on his face didn't diminish at all because of this. This old dog had followed by his father's side from his earliest memories and was the one his father trusted the most. In the heart of his father, this old servant probably held a higher status than his sons.

Qi Dongtai took a deep breath. He squatted down and slowly closed the open eyes of the old servant that were still looking at the Qi Family's residence. As he moved, his hand gently trembled.

The third family manager fell to his knees. "Father, the dead cannot return to life. You must restrain your grief and sorrow. You cannot harm your body!"

Qi Dongtai spun around and slapped the third family manager, sending him flying away.

"Father!"

Half of the third family manager's face was swollen blue and purple. Still, he kept on an innocent and unknowing expression.

Qi Dongtai fiercely said, "Shut up! If you didn't produce that little beast, Xia Yan wouldn't have died today! If you weren't my son, I would have already killed you by now!"

No one had the time to gloat. Everyone kept silent. As they looked at the Old Ancestor who was like an exploding volcano right now, they were all left fl.u.s.tered.

The Old Ancestor cultivated stability of his mind and soul. It had been many years since he had become angry. Even when Qi Yunshu died, he was still able to remain calm.

It could be imagined just how terrible his mood was right now!

No longer caring for everyone kneeling on the ground, Qi Dongtai lifted the corpse of the old servant. He suddenly discovered that the old servant's body was light, without any substance to it.

Bitterness surged in his heart. He raised his head, forcefully suppressing his mood. Then, he turned and started walking towards the Qi Family residence, muttering quietly beneath his breath.

"Xia Yan. We have a lifetime of friendship. The thoughts you kept locked in your heart, I naturally knew of them. But, I could not accept them, so I pretended to not know all this time. In truth, I've long wanted to tell you that there was no need to live such a difficult life."

"But I was greedy. I did not want you to leave the Qi Family. I wanted you to help me, to grow the Qi Family so that it became even stronger. For your entire life you stayed with the Qi Family, but when you finally died, it was outside the walls of my Qi Family. I am tortured by this."

"But don't worry. I know who killed you. I promise you that he will definitely follow you. Of course, I know that the person who killed you is not easy to deal with, so I will silently wait for an opportunity. I ask that you be patient. What I promise you, I can definitely achieve."

As Qi Dongtai ascended the stairs, he looked up at the front entrance. "For many years you didn't leave or enter from the main doors. You said that this was the right of the main family, and as a servant you needed to stand by your duty. You told everyone that you were a dog at my side, but I always regarded you as my brother. Today, allow your young master to bring you home. We will go back through the main entrance."

Tears flowed down through the wrinkled creases of his face, slowly dropping to the ground.