Chapter 714: The Most Charismatic Person
Emperor Yi Yue looked at herself in the mirror several times, turning back and forth, and couldn't help but feel overjoyed. She praised, "Truly a great mage, a grand master hand—there's not a single flaw to be seen!"
"Wait a moment!"
Qin Mu quickly stopped her, saying, "Don't move! When Sister smiles, there are a few tiny wrinkles at the corners of your eyes. Let me smooth them out for you."
Emperor Yi Yue immediately held still. Qin Mu leaned in, and tiny runes burst forth from his fingertips, activating the skin around her eyes to flatten the wrinkles, leaving the skin at the corners of her phoenix-like eyes delicate and fair.
Emperor Yi Yue blinked, raised the mirror, and examined herself several more times. She smiled at the mirror and found that the small wrinkles at her eye corners were indeed gone, filling her with joy.
Qin Mu praised, "Sister is truly beautiful."
Emperor Yi Yue was delighted beyond measure, with a hint of shyness.
"Fake medicine peddler, it's not that the pharmacist profession is going to lose its job."
The Deaf Man came over to the Pharmacist, twitching his ears, and said, "Rather, you're the one who's going to lose your job. From now on, you can only sell fake medicine; you can't rely on your face to make a living anymore."
The Pharmacist sighed and smiled bitterly, "Teach the apprentice, and the master starves. Mu'er is about to become the best in the world. Fortunately, this little fellow is still naive and not keen on romance; otherwise, with his silver tongue, who knows how many romantic entanglements he'd stir up."
The Deaf Man said calmly, "It's because we taught him well. Sweet words are fine, but women are all fox spirits. The kid remembers that, so even though his words are sweet, he's wary of every woman. That way, he won't repeat your mistakes."
The Pharmacist steadied the bronze mask on his face and said in a low voice, "Mu'er is no longer young. Teaching him like this—are we delaying his lifelong matters? What if he becomes wary of all women and dares not take things further with any girl? What then?"
The Deaf Man said nothing.
The Pharmacist asked again, but the Deaf Man still remained silent.
The Pharmacist laughed in anger, "Your ears have grown back, so stop pretending to be deaf and dumb! I'm asking you a question—think of a solution quickly, or I'll poison you deaf!"
The Deaf Man said helplessly, "I don't know either. Back then, I taught him that a modest and virtuous maiden is a gentleman's good match, while you taught him that women are all fox spirits. The sage's scriptures don't say what to do in a situation like this. How about you mix some medicine to make him lustful?"
The Pharmacist said proudly, "As my disciple, needing medicine to induce lust? That would be too disgraceful to my reputation as the Jade-Faced Poison King. Besides, his medical skills are no less than mine; whatever poison I administer, he can antidote. If only I'd held back a trick or two..."
...
When the people of Li Province woke up, they were somewhat dazed, completely unaware of what had happened that night, and simply assumed they had dozed off. However, some cultivators vaguely sensed that a major event had occurred the previous night, but they had no way of guessing the specifics.
Nevertheless, many strange things happened among the villages and neighborhoods. Some people woke up with completely changed personalities, claiming they were not women but men from some other place, and had become women upon waking.
When the cultivators among the neighbors questioned them, these individuals could clearly state where they lived and who their family members were. Upon investigation, the places they mentioned indeed had such people, who in turn insisted they were not men but women who had entered the wrong body.
Hundreds of such incidents occurred, causing a great uproar.
"It's most likely that when the souls returned, they entered the wrong bodies."
Upon hearing these rumors, Qin Mu speculated, "Teacher's Soul-Pulling Divine Art hasn't been mastered yet, causing some deviations when sending the souls back to their bodies. This is due to an insufficient understanding of the Netherworld language."
The Woodcutter Sage's face darkened, and he said, "You're so capable, why didn't you do it yourself?"
Qin Mu replied honestly, "I thought Teacher could handle it; I truly didn't expect you to fall just a bit short. If you grasp the precise meaning and essence of the Netherworld language, the Dao techniques and divine arts within it will become self-evident, and then there won't be any mistakes."
The Woodcutter was choked with anger, trembling and unable to speak.
The Pharmacist and the Deaf Man looked smug. The Deaf Man praised, "Mu'er speaks with humility and courtesy, truly a credit to our hard work raising him. He's too modest—saying the Sage is only a little bit behind him, when in fact it's this much!"
He spread his arms wide to demonstrate.
The Pharmacist also beamed with pride, saying, "This is the fruit of our teaching. From a young age, we taught him that there are always people better than him and heavens beyond heavens, telling him to be humble and cautious. Even when facing someone inferior to himself, he shouldn't tell the truth but say they're only a little bit behind him. That's why Mu'er hasn't been beaten to death yet."
The two elders both showed gratified smiles.
"To resolve this matter, we need to swap the souls back."
Qin Mu said, "But with hundreds of such incidents spread across different parts of Li Province, finding them all will take a lot of time..."
He truly dreaded the trouble.
The Woodcutter Sage said, "The task of swapping the souls can be left to those scholars who have cultivated the Soul-Pulling Art; we don't need to do it ourselves. You've already ordered those scholars to go to Yu Zhi Commandery; just have them come here."
Qin Mu nodded, and his primordial spirit left his body to contact Si Yunxiang.
Si Yunxiang had a tired look on her face and said, "Chief, you told us to go to Yu Zhi Commandery to pull the souls of the people there back to the mortal world. At first, everything was fine, but then something went wrong. While the scholars were pulling the souls, suddenly small boats appeared, and lights shone from the darkness. As soon as the light touched them, the scholars lost their souls and became corpses."
Qin Mu was startled: "This is the work of the Netherworld Prefect!"
Si Yunxiang continued, "Yu Tianwang said it was because we summoned too many souls, triggering the rules of the Netherworld. The underworld officials took the souls of the offenders. However, not long ago, the souls of those scholars suddenly returned. Some say the Netherworld Divine Son pleaded with the underworld officials on their behalf, asking them to release the souls. I don't know if it's true or false."
Qin Mu was bewildered: "I didn't plead for them, nor did I ask the Prefect. What's going on... But it's good that the scholars' souls have returned; it saves me another trip to the Netherworld. I always feel the Netherworld isn't very welcoming to me. Every time I go there, the Prefect and the Earth Lord don't give me good looks, as if they can't wait to kick me out."
He explained the situation and said, "Saintess Xiang, bring a hundred or so skilled scholars to Li Province to send these misplaced souls back to their proper bodies, and don't cause more trouble."
Si Yunxiang agreed and immediately gathered the scholars to head to Li Province.
Qin Mu then took his leave of the Pharmacist and the Deaf Man, accompanying the Woodcutter, the First Ancestor, and Emperor Yi Yue to the capital to meet the Woodcutter's other disciple, the Yan Kang National Master. Qin Mu hadn't planned to go, but Emperor Yi Yue insisted he accompany her.
"Heavenly King, let's take it slow and observe the customs and life of Yan Kang along the way."
The Woodcutter suggested, "The Yan Kang Reformation isn't just talk; it's been put into practice. What we see on the road will surely change your perspective."
Emperor Yi Yue said indifferently, "You were the Celestial Master of the Kai Huang Reformation, leading it so that within just twenty thousand years, the Kai Huang Era advanced to the point where the Outer Heavenly Court had no choice but to destroy it. Are you planning to participate in this Yan Kang Reformation as well? How many years do you intend to take to push Yan Kang to a point the Outer Heavenly Court can't tolerate?"
When the Woodcutter Sage heard her mention the Kai Huang Era, his expression darkened, and he said hoarsely, "I did lead the Kai Huang Reformation, but I haven't interfered with the Yan Kang Reformation. The one truly leading it is my third disciple."
He raised one finger and said, "My eldest disciple passed down the principle that the sage's way lies in the daily needs of the people."
As they walked and talked, Emperor Yi Yue observed the daily lives of the common people along the way. The Woodcutter raised a second finger and said, "My third disciple applied that principle to Yan Kang, which is why Yan Kang has its current state. I taught my eldest disciple for a hundred years, but I only taught my third disciple for two years. As for the Yan Kang Reformation, I haven't interfered with any of it; I only helped my third disciple run errands."
Emperor Yi Yue glanced at Qin Mu and smiled, "You just said the reformation was led by your three disciples, but you've only mentioned the eldest and the youngest. You haven't said anything about the second disciple."
The Woodcutter Sage looked at Qin Mu and felt his head was about to explode. He shook his head and said, "The second disciple—I never taught him a single day. I don't know how it happened, but I somehow ended up with such a disciple."
Emperor Yi Yue asked curiously, "What did he do?"
The Woodcutter Sage tried to muster some energy but failed, saying listlessly, "He's the man behind my third disciple."
Emperor Yi Yue was puzzled.
The Woodcutter Sage said weakly, "When the Yan Kang Kingdom and my third disciple were in their most dangerous moment, it was his full support that saved the Yan Kang Kingdom, the Emperor, and the third disciple. When Yan Kang faced danger again, it was him who saved the kingdom and the third disciple once more. And when danger struck yet again..."
"Great Celestial Master, stop. I understand the rest."
Emperor Yi Yue laughed helplessly, "It must have been him saving the Yan Kang Kingdom and the third disciple again, right?"
"I can't figure out this disciple of mine."
The Woodcutter Sage's expression was strange as he secretly observed Qin Mu and said in a low voice, "He's too hard to understand. I've never seen such an odd personality. He has the boldness for reform and change, an almost indestructible ambition and confidence, and he's clever and quirky, curious about everything like a silly roe deer. However..."
He thought for a moment and continued, "Yet he also has a peculiar charm. When he focuses, he can research all sorts of strange things. He managed to go alone to the Tian Yin Realm, resurrected the Tian Yin Empress, and created spells that can reassemble shattered souls, recreate souls, and bring the dead back to life!"
"He also created the Primordial Spirit Attraction at the Six Harmonies Realm, allowing cultivators at that realm to cultivate their primordial spirits, instantly changing a cultivation system that had been passed down for countless millennia!"
"He also somehow created the Eighteen Forms of the Sword, advancing swordsmanship by a huge step. His understanding of Dao techniques and divine arts seems never bound by rules. What others can't imagine, he often can; what others think impossible, he somehow accomplishes. It's like the Spirit Energy Migration Bridge connecting two worlds—that kid accidentally created it, solving the problem of world barriers."
"And he's never stingy. Whatever he learns or realizes, he always spreads across the entire nation without holding back. Imperial Throne techniques are rare, right? The Outer Heavenly Court goes to great lengths to collect them, but he obtained three Imperial Throne techniques and just passed them on like that."
"Even enemies are won over and become his friends, while friends are so infuriated by him that they wish they could put him over their knee and spank him hard!"
The Woodcutter Sage sighed and said, "I almost thought he would be a perfect person, but then I discovered all sorts of small flaws in him. One is a lack of focus—he's always curiously researching this and that. He creates the Primordial Spirit Attraction, then runs off to do other things. He creates the Eighteen Forms of the Sword, then drops it without following up with the Nineteenth Form, making you want to put a sword to his neck and force him to focus on one thing."
"The second flaw is his boldness, which borders on foolishness—he dares to do anything dangerous. This Li Province incident was clearly a trap, yet he still foolishly came running."
"The third is his arrogance. You see him being humble, but he's not humble at all; he's secretly proud. He thinks of himself as second only to the heavens, second only to the Earth Lord, second only to the Emperor, second only to the Heavenly Emperor..."
The Woodcutter frowned and sighed, "I can't figure him out. Truly, I can't figure him out."
Emperor Yi Yue looked at Qin Mu. He was concocting pills for the Dragon Qilin, and after feeding the Dragon Qilin, he ran off to look at a windmill, discussing with rural scholars whether there was a way to improve it.
"What an interesting person."
Emperor Yi Yue smiled and said, "He lives more freely and joyfully than anyone else!"
"No!"
The Woodcutter Sage shook his head and said, "In truth, the burden on his shoulders is too heavy. It's just that he's very optimistic, making people think he lives freely and joyfully. But the bitterness in his heart is known only to him. He simply chooses an optimistic and enterprising attitude to face life and danger."
"He couldn't choose his birth, but he can choose his future path and the mindset with which he walks that path. He is the most charismatic person I have ever met."