Conquering That Great Demon Lord [Xian Ni Fan Fiction] - Chapter 14: Reunion

Chapter 14: Reunion

[Soul of Life: Two hundred years have passed. If you do not change your target, the Soul Pearl will automatically select one for you.]

Li Muwan had heard this complaint from the Soul Pearl countless times. Leaning against the wooden desk, she gazed at the spotless white plum blossoms in her room, their purity complementing her own ethereal grace.

Months earlier, when the Soul Pearl’s favorability had risen again during alchemythe only such occurrence in two centuriesWang Lin had just emerged from the Ancient God’s realm. He had traveled to the main city beyond the Sea of Demonic Cultivation to gather materials for refining his Restriction Banner. There, he encountered the Flood Dragon Leather Armor left behind long ago in exchange for the Fifth-Grade Elixir Furnace, and memories of his old friend flooded his mind.

“Two hundred years have passed. I wonder where she is now.”

[Li Muwan: Two centuries have changed everything. It’s not that I refuse to change targets, but even within the Cloud Heaven Sect, I cannot find a Fiend who meets the Soul Pearl’s criteria.]

[Soul of Life: Isn’t there one right before you?]

In recent years, the young sect master Sun Zhenwei had expressed interest in becoming Li Muwan’s Dual Cultivation partner, showering her with flattery and overtures. Each time, Li Muwan had deftly sidestepped his advances.

She was well aware of Sun Zhenwei’s intentions. A man of poor character, he relied on his father’s influence within the sect to bully the weak, deceive his superiors, and oppress disciples. Li Muwan found even a single encounter with him repulsive, let alone the idea of Dual Cultivation.

According to the Soul Pearl’s task, conquering him would require employing tactics to make him fall deeply in love with her. The mere thought sent a shiver of disgust down her spine, her entire being recoiling in refusal.

[Li Muwan: He is unsuitable.]

[Soul of Life: It has been two hundred years. Your Cultivation level remains stagnant at the Core Formation Stage. Do you not believe this obstruction stems from your lost Soul of Life?]

[Li Muwan: I would rather sever my own meridians and end my life now than engage in Dual Cultivation with such a man.]

[Soul of Life: Sun Zhenwei appears kind, refined, and handsome. What is there to dislike?]

[Li Muwan: What use is a pleasing exterior when it conceals ruins within?]

[Soul of Life: The task is to choose a target for conquest, not a husband.]

[Li Muwan: You are mistaken. Since retrieving my Soul of Life requires making a Fiend fall in love with me, is that not tantamount to selecting an ideal partner?]

[Soul of Life: …Very well, I will not press you. Consider carefully what is urgent and what is important.]

Li Muwan withdrew the Soul Pearl. She could not be certain whether her stagnant Cultivation level was linked to her lost Soul of Life.

But she was sure it was connected to the damage to her foundation caused by refining the Azure Dragon Jade Tablet two hundred years ago.

In the ancient texts she had studied at the Luoshui Sect, she found four words regarding the Soul of Life: “Soul of Life, no existence.”

She had also searched the Cloud Heaven Sect’s records but still could not decipher their meaning.

In the Southern Garden pavilion, her zither music carried a faint melancholy.

“Master! Master!” Zhou Lin called out, having just crossed the arched bridge at the Southern Garden’s entrance on his Flying Sword. In his excitement, he forgot Li Muwan’s preference for quietthe very reason she had moved to the Southern Garden.

The woman playing the zither bore no trace of age despite two centuries passing. Her beauty had only deepened: her brows were like delicate moth antennae, her eyes bright stars, her grace enchanting. No words could fully capture the unique, cool elegance she exuded from within.

A warm smile touched Li Muwan’s lips. “What has you so joyful?”

Zhou Lin was a child she had adopted in her early years. He had grown up under her guidance and was her only disciple in the Cloud Heaven Sect.

The other disciples envied Zhou Lin for having an elegant fifth-grade alchemist as his master.

Yet she had her own rule: within Cloud Heaven Sect, she only refined elixirs and never took disciples.

Only to this adopted child did she impart all her knowledge. Everything Zhou Lin learned about elixirs, restrictions, and formations came from Li Muwan.

“Master, your disciple has taken a disciple! Your disciple has taken a disciple!” Though Zhou Lin’s appearance wasn’t exceptional, he possessed clear, refined features.

He cultivated diligently and had already reached early Core Formation stage, displaying extraordinary talent as a ninth-generation disciple of Cloud Heaven Sect.

Li Muwan slowly lifted her eyelids. Beneath the moon-shaped carved lattice window, the woman’s figure remained elegant. With a gentle sweep of her sleeve, the light purple window curtain drew back.

“This master is happy for you.”

“His name is Wang Lin. During the disciple selection competition, he drew a water-attributed spirit pearl as his teacher’s gift.”

“Water attribute. That suits you quite well.”

“Exactly, Master. Your disciple needs to go into seclusion for several months to absorb this water spirit pearl. If this disciple’s student ever has questions about alchemy in the future, I beg Master to offer him some guidance.” Zhou Lin spoke respectfully.

“Very well.”

Li Muwan had originally been worrying about whether she should change her strategy target, but seeing her disciple so happy merely from accepting a student, she felt genuine joy for him.

As for this disciple’s disciple, she didn’t have extra mental energy to learn about him. If he had questions about alchemy, offering some guidance as his grandmaster fell within her responsibilities.

Wang Lin lived with his master Zhou Lin in the Northern Garden. The small courtyard in the Northern Garden housed only the master-disciple pair. After Zhou Lin entered seclusion, only Wang Lin remained.

The courtyard grew many spirit herbs. Before entering seclusion, Zhou Lin had specifically gone to the Southern Garden to notify them and instructed Wang Lin to tend the medicinal plants. For any alchemy needs, he could freely use the herbs in the courtyard as long as he didn’t damage their roots.

Wang Lin couldn’t help but marvel: Cloud Heaven Sect truly lived up to being the top faction of the third-level cultivation country. Even an ordinary ninth-generation disciple’s courtyard contained so many varieties of spirit herbs.

As for Zhou Lin himself, Wang Lin’s initial impression of him was quite favorable. At least on the path of immortal cultivation, those who could treat others with such sincerity were few and far between.

The setting sun cast light upon his profile. Dressed in Cloud Heaven Sect disciple robes, he carried a scholarly spirit about hima young man with moonlight in his embrace, elegant as jade trees facing the wind.

His purpose for coming to Cloud Heaven Sect to cultivate was solely to reach Nascent Soul Formation with this Qi Condensation level clone. Immediate cultivation took highest priority, but his alchemy skills were poor, his master was in seclusion and hard to find, and repeated failures yielded no results. He truly seemed to lack talent for alchemy.

The bedroom was in complete disarray after numerous furnace explosions. That handsome, fair face was covered layer upon layer with ash. Wang Lin’s brow furrowed deeply, and he couldn’t help sighing, “The path of alchemy is truly difficult.”

Now he felt some regretwhy hadn’t he learned even a little alchemy back when he was with Li Muwan in the Sea of Demonic Cultivation?

Wang Lin closed his eyes, his thoughts drifting. He wondered how she was doing now.

Seeing him lost in thought, Xu Liguo called out, “Master? Didn’t your cheap teacher say you should seek out your grandmaster if you had problems?”

Wang Lin’s reverie was interrupted, slightly displeased. He collected his expression. “I don’t like asking others. I’ll comprehend it myself.”

Yet no matter how persistent he was, he couldn’t escape the fate of shattered pill furnaces. If he continued like this, he might become the first disciple in Cloud Heaven Sect expelled for destroying too many furnaces. A sense of defeat emerged but was quickly swept away.

Southern Garden? Grandmaster?

Looking at the shattered, chaotic interior, Wang Lin decided to make a trip.

Li Muwan was playing the zither in the Southern Garden waterside pavilion, her fingers moving skillfully across the strings. Guided by Cheng Xian, Wang Lin arrived at the Southern Garden on his flying sword.

At the main entrance of the Southern Garden stood a Restriction. To enter the garden, one needed to present a disciple token. Wang Lin retrieved a jade plaque from his Storage Bag and inserted it into the slot. Only after the Restriction recognized it did the entrance open.

Before his eyes stretched an arched bridge suspended above a lotus pond. Mist curled over the water’s surface, while pairs of cranes glided through the air.

Lotus leaves stretched endlessly green to the horizon, while sun-kissed blooms blazed uniquely red.

Further in, beyond the clouds and mist, a pavilion gradually emerged. The entire structure rested upon the water, surrounded by floating gossamer curtains. Along the banks of the Southern Garden’s lotus pond, rows of peach trees stood in full bloom.

Connecting to the lake’s heart was a waterside pavilion. Clear, enchanting zither notes pierced through the thick mist, spreading like tidal waves and intertwining with the whispering breeze and the gentle flow of the lotus pond.

Long before Wang Lin stepped into the Southern Garden, he had heard of this ancestor’s origins from Cheng Xian.

In earlier years, she was a disciple of the Luoshui Sect in the Fire Burning Country, addressed by fellow disciples as Elder Li? One of only three fifth-grade alchemists in the Cloud Heaven Sect.

Wang Lin’s sharp brows furrowed tightly. These thoughts swirled in his mind, eventually coalescing into a familiar, ethereal figure. How could such a coincidence exist in this world?

Could it be her?

A flicker of disappointment passed through Wang Lin’s eyes. “Impossible.”

The zither music from the waterside pavilion lingered in the air. A slender, willow-like silhouette appeared faintly behind the curtainsa blurred figure that felt familiar yet carried an added grace and composure. The thin veil obscured her features, leaving Wang Lin unable to see clearly and too hesitant to confirm.

For a moment, he nearly lost himself in the entrancing melody, until a melodious, gentle voice emerged from behind the silk curtains.

“Are you Wang Lin?”

That voice!

Wang Lin, who had been speculating all along, grew even more convinced upon hearing it.

His sturdy frame shuddered slightly. His lips parted, and his pupils dilated involuntarily, though the shock vanished in an instant. Composing himself, he steeled his resolve, yet seemed to tread cautiously.

“Indeed,” his voice remained steady as ever.

Abruptly, the zither music snapped. A sharp intake of breath cut off the lingering notes. Light footsteps emerged from the pavilion, the curtain lifted, and a peerless countenance imprinted itself in his vision.

It was the figure that had haunted his thoughts for two hundred years. Instantly, Wang Lin recalled the Jade Slip that had saved him from peril multiple times. Emotions surged and then dissolved within him.

Li Muwan gazed at Wang Lin for a long time, yet the face before her was unfamiliar. She searched for similarities or differences between him and Ma Liang, who had rescued her in the Sea of Demonic Cultivation all those years ago.

But the man before herneither in stature nor appearanceresembled him.

Only the expression in his eyes and the tone of his voice mirrored the person in her memories exactly.

Wang Lin looked at the woman on the steps, his gaze sweeping from her feet upward. Based on Cheng Xian’s description, he had already harbored eighty to ninety percent suspicion about this Elder Li’s identity. The voice he had just heard confirmed his conjecture.

Yet now, his eyes were calm, betraying not a hint of the agitation of a long-awaited reunion.

Two hundred years had passed. Her beauty had blossomed even more strikingly than before, and her Cultivation level had risen significantly. But two centuries could erase many things.

Memories of their past, relying on each other for survival, flashed vividly before Li Muwan’s eyes. She descended the steps slowly, her gaze never leaving Wang Lin.

Her naturally exquisite face was tinged with faint sorrow. Unfortunately, the Soul Pearl showed no reaction, and even the Soul Blood remained utterly unresponsive.

Wang Lin, however, had no intention of revealing himself. He currently bore a deep-seated vendetta…

Two hundred years ago, he had restrained himself and chosen to escort Li Muwan back to the Luoshui Sect. Even when meeting again after two centuries, he wouldn’t reveal himself.

The silk curtains around the waterside pavilion fluttered gently in the wind. Li Muwan stood before him, maintaining a distance.

The once fragile alchemist who needed protection had now become an elder of the Cloud Heaven Sect, and unexpectedly became his grandmaster.

“What brings you here?” Li Muwan sighed softly, turning sideways to avoid his gaze, a flicker of sorrow passing through her expression. It wasn’t him.

“My pill furnace has shattered,” Wang Lin’s voice changed slightly, seemingly troubled by referring to himself as a disciple.

“The furnace shattered because your spiritual power is rising too rapidly. This situation can be avoided by controlling the intensity of the earth fire.” Li Muwan took out a pill furnace. “Since you are Zhou Lin’s disciple, I shall gift you this furnace.”

“This furnace can withstand a hundred alchemy sessions without breaking. If you still achieve no results after a hundred attempts, it means you have no talent for alchemy. You should go to an outer sect for cultivation as soon as possible.” Her tone carried no particular emotion.

Wang Lin’s gaze shifted from the furnace back to her, then returned to the furnace, repeating this several times.

Li Muwan, caught between pleasant surprise and disappointment, remained unaware of how his gaze repeatedly moved away from her.

“Thank you, Grandmaster.” Wang Lin accepted the furnace and took his leave, the thoughts in his heart still unresolved.

The retreating figure seemed vaguely familiar. Li Muwan murmured that person’s name: “Ma Liang?”

The whisper reached Wang Lin’s ears. He steadied his posture and quietly disappeared into the mist. Just as his figure vanished completely, Li Muwan’s divine sense stirred.

[Li Muwan: Soul Pearl, do you think there truly exists someone in this world with such similar voice and expression?]

[Soul Pearl: …]

[Li Muwan: There are cultivation techniques in this world that can conceal a cultivator’s cultivation level. But if even the divine sense response within soul blood can be blocked, naturally it can’t be detected. What about the Soul Pearl’s detection of fiends? Could there be techniques that can block the Soul Pearl’s sensing as well?]

[Soul Pearl: This possibility cannot be ruled out, but in thousands of years, the Soul Pearl has never encountered such a situation.]

The Soul Pearl sensed that the Wang Lin before them was not the Ma Liang from the Sea of Demonic Cultivation. Even with identical expression and voice, he was not the fiend. Li Muwan turned around, looking up at the vast Southern Garden.

[Soul Pearl: Master, two hundred years have passed. You should change your target soon.]

[Li Muwan: I know.]

That gazeshe couldn’t have mistaken it. In the World of Cultivation, changing one’s appearance wasn’t unusual. As for the lack of response from soul blood and the Soul Pearl, perhaps he had cultivated some special technique. She remembered ancient texts recording twin soulsif the souls were different, it would be possible for the Soul Pearl and soul blood to fail detection.

Everything has its origin, though she couldn’t decipher the mystery behind it. She only trusted her own intuition.