Mutated Tao

“Find something?” Li Huowang’s mind raced when he heard Abbess Jingxin’s words.

On the other hand, when she saw that his expression turned more serious, she explained, “Don’t think I’m just taking advantage of your problem.”

However, this just made Li Huowang’s mood even heavier. He thought for a while, then said, “Abbess Jingxin, this should be your final condition, right?”

He saw her nod in agreement, then took a deep breath and said, “Sure! It’s a deal. What do you need?”

He wasn’t afraid of there being conditions; rather, he was more wary of the other party making empty promises. However, as long as there were conditions set, they were still in the realm of negotiation.

At least, from what he had seen so far, Li Zhi had not lied before he died. In a certain sense, the nuns belonging to the Benevolent Nunnery were indeed good people. It was not easy to find such people in this strange world.

He had no other choice now. Dan Yangzi might end up possessing him first if he continued to look for other methods.

“A pair of eyes. An extremely peculiar pair of sinister eyes. There is a forest about two hundred miles to the east of Henghua Mountain. Head there and bring this sinister thing back,” Jingxin stated her final condition.

“Sinister? What sort of sinister? What sort of abilities does it have?” asked Li Huowang. He wanted to know what sort of foe he was about to face.

“It’s called the Eighteenth Lunar. That thing is very strange. Every year, on the 18th day of the twelfth lunar month, it transforms. At that time, its appearance and supernatural abilities change. I don’t know what it looks like right now, so just remember that it’s red in color. You will have to figure out a method to deal with it yourself. You even carry the Profound Records on you, and you think you can’t deal with that thing? Besides, do you think that Master of yours who attained Immortality will let you die?”

Eighteenth Lunar? That’s a name?

Li Huowang was troubled. This was it? He wasn’t given any hints and he had to go completely unprepared to deal with some kind of sinister being. He was going in completely blind.

He did not want to give Dan Yangzi a chance to make a move again. If he did, then he wasn’t sure who this body would belong to at the end.

“Can I enlist the help of the other nuns in the nunnery? Other matters can be negotiated,” probed Li Huowang.

"Hehe, they're all very lazy. Feel free to try persuading them. But, I’m guessing you don't even have the money to hire them to come down the mountain, right? Hehe," Abbess Jingxin softly mocked her juniors.

Now that a target was established, Li Huowang did not wish to procrastinate further. He re-confirmed the location of the Eighteenth Lunar with Jingxin, then bowed and turned to leave. “I won’t disturb Abbess’s meal any further. I will go down now and have others bring the gold up.”

“Ah, right. I smell persimmon biscuits as well. I really like them; remember to bring me some,” said Jingxin.

“Understood,” said Li Huowang. Since he had already handed over all his gold, a little bit of food did not make much difference.

As he left, the room once again fell into darkness. However, this did not affect the blind Jingxin. She reached out with her right hand and used her blackened fingers to rummage through the greasy folds of fat on her body.

After a long while, there was a rippling sound with a foul odor. A bald old man with frail limbs was pulled out from within.

This old person seemed to be on the verge of death. His eyes and mouth appeared slanted, and he seemed to be mumbling from time to time.

After taking him out, Jingxin pulled him into a gentle embrace with her pus-covered arms. Then, she started feeding him from the bowl, mouth to mouth.

“Son, did you hear that? In a few days, you will have some persimmon biscuits to eat. Hehe, are you happy? I still remember that you loved eating them back when you still wore open-crotch pants,” said Jingxin.

However, the old person had no reaction to Jingxin’s voice, and just reflexively spat out the stuff in his mouth.

Jingxin did not seem to notice this, and just continued to repeat her actions. “See, he’s just like you. That kid is also a Strayed One. But he’s going to have a much harder time than you. You have a mother, but he doesn’t. Who knows what sort of fate awaits him. Ah, that kid is so pitiful…”

Meanwhile, back in the Penglai Inn, Bai Lingmiao was completely naked, as she rested her hands on the edge of the wooden tub. She sighed, “I wonder how Senior Li is doing. It would have been good if I could have gone up with him.”

Should I tell him? If I do, won’t he worry about me? But he already has enough to worry about for now.

Bai Lingmiao contemplated for a long while, until the water in the tub started getting cold. Then, she stood up from the water filled with floating petals, put on her clothes and walked toward the bedroom.

Forget it. No matter what, if he still hasn’t come down after three days, then I’m definitely going up to find him. Who says I’m a burden?

The door creaked as Bai Lingmiao closed it. Once it was fully closed, a strange woman was revealed behind the door. She was wearing a red veil, had colored ribbons on her dress, as well as red embroidered shoes.

Seeing her, Bai Lingmiao pulled back the sheets, and mischievously slid in. Then, her hands firmly embraced the person under the sheets. “I like Sister Xiaoman the most. You’re so fluffy. Hugging you is just so comfortable.”

Xiaoman turned around and faced the white-haired girl. They were so close that they could even feel each other’s soft breathing.

“What’s so good about this thing; it’s just some black hair. Others treat me like I am some weird creature. Even a man in his sixties won’t dare to marry me,” said Xiaoman.

“Don’t worry, Sister Xiaoman. You will definitely be able to find the man of your dreams,” said Bai Lingmiao as she reached out to gently stroke her black hair.

“No need. I hate men. I want to remain unmarried. I can live independently without any man!” declared Xiaoman firmly.

“Why would you want that?” Bai Lingmiao’s eyes widened with surprise. She had wanted to ask if it was because of her father, but she couldn’t get those words to come out of her mouth.

Meanwhile, Xiaoman turned around, showing her back to Bai Lingmiao who reached out to gently hug her.

“Sister Xiaoman, if you have no place to go to in future, then come to my house. How about being the godmother to my children?” offered Bai Lingmiao.

Xiaoman did not respond directly. There was a look of hesitation in her eyes as she stared at the wall before her. “Are you really planning to marry Senior Li?”

However, Bai Lingmiao did not answer her, only hitting her back shyly.

“Why don’t you give it some more thought? This is for your own good. Even though Senior Li has been kind to us, you don’t necessarily have to repay him like that. After all… he’s that sort of person,” Xiaoman tailed off.

Chacha and Char's Thoughts

SHE KEPT HER SON IN HER FOLDS!?

*If you look back at the chapter with the image of Abbess Jing Xin, you can actually see her son in the bottom right corner.