Xie Shuci’s strong self-esteem took a blow. 

He had always thought that he left a towering and majestic image in the little blind boy’s heart, but now it seemed he had given off a creepy impression right from the beginning!

Xie An smiled and lowered his gaze. “I heard about it on my way here.”

Xie Shuci slumped on the table, feeling dejected. He was a law-abiding and upright young man from the 21st century. How could he have done such a crazy thing? He couldn’t just tell Xie An that he didn’t do those ridiculous things and that it was the idiotic behavior of the original owner whose identity he took over.

“Xie An, let me tell you a secret,” Xie Shuci said mysteriously.

Xie An nodded, looking puzzled.

“In fact, I didn’t do those crazy things,” Xie Shuci said.

Xie An smiled, not confirming or denying anything. “I didn’t think you were that kind of person.”

Xie Shuci agreed and nodded, “Exactly! I, Xie Shuci, always sit upright and behave properly. I never do anything sneaky or sly. Actually, the original ‘Xie Shuci’ and I are not the same person.”

Proud of his revelation, Xie Shuci looked at Xie An, thinking he had just dropped a bombshell, expecting him to be astonished.

Unexpectedly, Xie An calmly nodded and said, “Possession.”

“Possession?” Xie Shuci frowned. Could it be Little Blind was talking about the kind of possession where a soul takes over someone else’s body after death?

Xie Shuci quickly shook his head, “I can’t do something so wicked.”

This body was genuinely his own, and the original character in the book was just a nameless minor character without identity. The name “Xie Shuci” belonged to him.

“Why do you say that?” Xie An looked puzzled.

“Taking someone else’s body, isn’t that unethical?” Xie Shuci asserted with righteousness.

Xie An smiled and said, “It’s just survival of the fittest.”

Hearing this, Xie Shuci’s brows furrowed.

However, he soon let it go, understanding that he was from a different era with different values from the people in this world.

In any case, he didn’t know if Xie An believed him, but at least his image had been somewhat preserved.

After the demon’s death, peace returned to the small town.

Xie Shuci and Xie An spent two days recuperating in the town. After the green-robed Daoist took Ah Dong away, Xie Shuci decided to take Xie An to another place.

Although the little blind boy didn’t care much about his cultivation, Xie Shuci believed that they might encounter similar situations in the future. Perhaps the next time wouldn’t be as fortunate. Therefore, he decided to develop his own grand plans while finding a way to help Xie An restore his cultivation. Staying in a small town like this wasn’t an option for them.

“It is said that Bianzhou’s Luofang City will open the Dragon Tooth Secret Realm on the third day of next month. The secret realm contains numerous treasures, and countless cultivators will flock there from far and wide. I was also framed by someone on my way to Luofang City,” Xie An said silently.

Upon hearing the words “secret realm,” Xie Shuci’s eyes lit up. 

In the original book, secret realms were things that existed in another world. Under specific conditions, they would open a gateway to another world in the human realm. Generally, these secret realms were mysterious and dangerous, but they contained rare treasures and treasures beyond compare in the cultivation world. In the book, the protagonist gong, that big fool was a fervent explorer of the secret realms.

“Can the things inside help you restore your cultivation?” Xie Shuci asked eagerly.

Xie An nodded slightly.

Excitedly, Xie Shuci said, “Then let’s go to Luofang City!”

Xie Shuci didn’t want to go to snatch any treasures. He just wanted to join in the fun. When the secret realm opened, countless cultivators would flock there. Perhaps he might even bump into the protagonist Gong and some other supporting characters. Who knows, he might even get lucky and pick up some treasures.

“Alright,” Xie An agreed.

Soon, they packed their belongings and set off.

Not long after leaving the small town, Xie Shuci saw a small white horse grazing by the roadside.

Staring closely, Xie Shuci was dumbfounded. “Immortal crane?”

He thought the Immortal Crane was killed by the demon. How did it end up here?

The little white horse perked up when it heard his voice and trotted happily to his side, offering him the reins.

Xie Shuci patted its fur and turned to Xie An teasingly, “Based on the Immortal crane’s intelligence, I believe it’s only a matter of time before it forms an inner core. How about we wait for it to cultivate an inner core and then dig it out for you?”

Before Xie An could respond, Immortal Crane kicked some sand onto Xie Shuci in annoyance.

“Kick me again! Kick me again! I’ll leave you in a desolate wilderness and you won’t get to accompany us to do great things,” Xie Shuci threatened.

The little white horse disdainfully glanced at him, shook its tail proudly, as if Xie Shuci was a fool and it didn’t want to argue with him. It loaded all their luggage onto its back, then turned back and leisurely walked together with Xie An.

The wind blew, carrying the fragrance of the wild grass. Xie Shuci felt relaxed, enjoying the rare tranquility and beauty that was hardly found in the bustling city.

Sighing for no reason, Xie Shuci said, “If you were there that day, it would have been better.”

Xie An glanced at him, looking puzzled.

Xie Shuci explained, “You see, that silly dog divided its cultivation between me and Ah Dong. Well, I’m a pacifist, not fond of fighting and killing. It helped improve my talent, but I didn’t plan on seriously cultivating. If you were there, it might have given its cultivation to you, maybe it could have restored your cultivation.”

After listening to him, Xie An was silent for a moment.

Perhaps only Xie Shuci in this world would have such thoughts.

The value of a demon’s inner core was not inferior to the treasures inside the secret realm; everyone wanted to claim it for themselves.

After a while, Xie An tapped his shoulder twice with his hand, indicating for him to look at him.

Xie Shuci turned his head and looked at him curiously. Xie An’s lips parted slightly as he said, “Would you like to hear a story?”

Xie Shuci asked curiously, “What kind of story?”

“There was once a cultivator who became possessed by evil spirits while passing through Bianzhou. He happened to encounter a demon with a cultivation of two hundred years, which he killed and took out the inner core, greatly increasing his own cultivation. Later, due to some coincidences, he returned to the same place and encountered the powerful demon when he fell into madness again. However, this time he didn’t take the demon’s inner core,” Xie An said calmly. [1]

“Did he feel remorseful?” Xie Shuci asked skeptically.

Xie An shook his head, “No.”

“Then why not?”

Xie An fell silent; why indeed? Perhaps nobody knew the answer.

“Maybe it just wasn’t necessary,” Xie An replied.

The word “necessary” sounded somewhat sarcastic coming from him.

Xie Shuci nodded with some confusion, “Oh.”

His intuition told him that Xie An had more to say, but after pondering for a while, he couldn’t grasp the deeper meaning.

A few days later, the two arrived at Luofang City.

Luofang City was situated in the southeast of Bianzhou and was a bustling town with a continuous flow of carriages. It was guarded by the Helian Family, the largest sect in Bianzhou.

Outside the city gates, Xie Shuci stretched his neck and looked around. There were exquisitely crafted carriages passing by, and various disciples from different sects orderly walked towards the city gates.

Under the magnificent city gate, the Helian Family disciples stationed outside were dressed in moon-white robes, exuding an ethereal aura. They treated disciples from other sects politely and courteously.

“So many people,” Xie Shuci exclaimed.

Standing next to him, Xie An seemed uninterested in everything around him.

At this moment, a few female disciples passed by. Among them, two girls who seemed to be around sixteen or seventeen years old frequently glanced at Xie An with shy and embarrassed expressions, nudging each other, seemingly trying to get to know him.

Xie Shuci playfully bumped Xie An’s shoulder and said in a low voice, “This is already the seventeenth female disciple who secretly glanced at you. Why not go and get to know them?”

Xie An pursed his lips and glanced at him. “No need.”

With an air of a big brother, Xie Shuci patted Xie An’s shoulder and said, “It’s good that you have this awareness. After all, you’re still young. As a man, you should focus on achieving great things and put aside such relationships.”

“Are the two young masters entering Luofang City?” 

Before Xie Shuci finished speaking, a pleasant female voice sounded nearby.

Xie Shuci turned his head to see a woman dressed in red with a heroic appearance.

Her bold and direct gaze naturally fell on Xie Shuci. Although she was deliberately approaching, it didn’t make people feel uncomfortable.

Xie Shuci asked in confusion, “Are you okay? Why would we come here if we’re not going in?”

The woman, “…”

She rolled her eyes and didn’t say anything more, turning to her own group.

Xie Shuci looked puzzled and even heard her complaining to her companions, “Another boring person, no fun at all.”

Xie Shuci pointed to himself with grievance and asked Xie An, “She called me boring? I’m a very interesting person, why can’t she appreciate it?”

Xie An couldn’t help but chuckle, “She doesn’t know how to appreciate it.”

Xie Shuci snorted unhappily and walked closer to the woman with the Immortal crane. The Immortal Crane was a smart and good horse, aware of its master’s mood. As it passed by the woman, it deliberately kicked some sand toward her.

“Ah!” The woman exclaimed, looking up angrily, “Don’t you have eyes?”

Xie Shuci’s trick succeeded, and he turned around to make a funny face at the woman before quickly turning back.

As their eyes met, the woman saw his comical expression and couldn’t help but laugh, finding it quite amusing. If she could refine him into a furnace…

She was about to chase after him when another figure appeared in front of her.

A young man in white blocked her path and glanced down at her before walking past. For some reason, in that instant, she felt as if a knife was pressed against her neck.

Cold sweat dripped down her forehead as she stood frozen in place until the young man walked away, and she finally let out a sigh of relief.

She immediately said to her companions, “This person is not simple. Xiaosi, follow him closely, but don’t let him notice you.”

A petite woman among them clasped her fist, “Understood.”

“Wait—” the woman called after the person, “He’s around your age and not bad-looking. If you get caught, you can seduce him for self-preservation and refine him into your furnace.”

The woman named Xiaosi blushed and stomped her foot, “Stop talking nonsense.”

The red-clad woman chuckled, “Good-looking men, it would be a pity not to refine them into furnaces. By the way, the one in front is for me; I quite like him.”

“Understood!”

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[1] Xie An is talking about his previous life. In his previous life, he took the demon’s core but in this life, he didn’t.