Chapter 1662: False death tempts all desires, crossing boundaries to seek Baijing from the master

A daring plan?

Dao Qiongcang instantly grew interested. He had a fondness for 'bold' things, like the demeanor of ancient sword cultivators... well, more precisely, the demeanor of Bazun An. But this was something he couldn't simply emulate; at most, he could imitate it ninety percent. Perhaps Xu Xiaoshou's 'boldness' was a different story?

"Tell me more?"

Xu Xiaoshou didn't respond. Using his Vanishing Art, he quickly 'birthed' another Jǐn Rén. Being able to birth him meant his guess was correct. Jǐn Rén had indeed committed suicide after staying for a while in the Apricot Realm. He wondered if Li Fugui would be scared.

*I'm sorry...* Looking at his doppelganger, Xu Xiaoshou was touched by Jǐn Rén's 'sacrifice to the plan,' but he had honestly forgotten which generation of Jǐn Rén this was. *I really am a cold-hearted person!*

"Hello," said the new Jǐn Rén politely. The new generation Jǐn Rén was extremely polite. After appearing, he neatly put on his clothes, and the Disc of Intent under his feet appeared and then retracted. The Jǐn Rén, born after the Transcendent Dao-Transformation, naturally inherited Xu Xiaoshou's peak abilities. But he was also like a poor soul reincarnated without drinking Meng Po's Soup, clearly remembering how he died in his previous life without much effort. Towards his true self, he felt both reverence and fear, his attitude utterly fawning.

"I have an idea..." Xu Xiaoshou rubbed his hands, excitement on his face, just as he was about to elaborate on the 'bold move' that had just struck him to his doppelganger. Jǐn Rén hesitated, then decided to speak up: "Master Shou, if you have any ideas about me, just think them. You don't need to say them out loud."

"Feigned death?" Dao Qiongcang looked at the brand-new Master Shou before him, listening to the 'bold move' that had just emerged from his mouth, and fell into thought.

Remarkable!

It had to be said, Xu Xiaoshou's external avatar technique, even after seeing it again, was still astounding... Compared to the Storyteller's, it was truly a case of the student surpassing the master!

Dao Qiongcang carefully scrutinized this polite Xu Xiaoshou, who introduced himself as 'Jǐn Rén' upon appearing. He didn't miss any details, yet his regret remained. He couldn't find any difference between the true body and the avatar. If even he couldn't tell, Dao Qiongcang had reason to suspect that no one in the world could discern the flaw. He even briefly thought that the Xu Xiaoshou before him was the real one, who had merely changed clothes and personality after disappearing, playing a trick on him.

True and false, false and true.

Dao Qiongcang also knew what Xu Xiaoshou was thinking. This fellow deliberately displayed this skill, indicating he was very confident, unafraid of being seen through. He simply wanted anyone who saw Jǐn Rén to have an extra layer of apprehension: from now on, whenever they encountered Xu Xiaoshou, if they didn't kill two or more of him simultaneously, anyone would doubt if Xu Xiaoshou was truly dead.

"Yes, it's feigned death." The newly appeared Xu Xiaoshou, named 'Jǐn Rén,' spoke very seriously, his gaze sweeping over Dao, Yue, and Cao in front of him, as he solemnly spread his hands: "Why do people live?"

The three in front were all baffled by the question. *Are you really Xu Xiaoshou?* His demeanor, personality, way of speaking... everything had changed! How could an external avatar have such distinct individuality?

Jǐn Rén ignored their suspicion and answered his own question: "The body, soul, and consciousness determine a person's existence! Only when these three coexist and depart together will a person's trace in this world be created or eliminated. Of course!" He nodded, looking at Dao Qiongcang with a slight smile, "I don't mean to belittle the Way of Memory. I mean that 'consciousness' includes memory, and when it is erased, nothing remains."

Dao Qiongcang remained silent. The reason for his silence wasn't whether Xu Xiaoshou respected his Way of Memory or not. The abilities he possessed wouldn't become stronger or diminish in value based on others' opinions. Nor was Dao Qiongcang someone who would rejoice over external things or grieve over personal setbacks. He was silent because Master Shou's 'boldness' this time was a bit too avant-garde – even he, the 'flashy old Taoist' in others' words, couldn't quite figure out what this guy was up to.

"Brother Xiaoshou, what are you talking about?" Cao Erzhuan scratched his head, indicating he wished he'd speak in plain language.

Jǐn Rén turned and smiled at him. The latter shivered, feeling that this smile was like Uncle Dao's, no, it was even more perverse!

Brother Xiaoshou 'kindly' explained: "In short, when the body, soul, and consciousness have their presence reduced to infinitely close to zero, yet without truly dying, and can still revive... this is 'feigned death'. The 'degree' of feigned death itself doesn't exist; it varies constantly depending on enemies, environment, rules, and so on. Just like here!"

Jǐn Rén looked around the space within the Divine Relic, pointing to the invisible Heavenly Dao present. "The rules of the Divine Relic are incomplete, and the definition of 'existence' itself is very vague. According to the rules set by Ran Ming, 'existences' like Spirit Cultivators, even if their physical bodies die, as long as their souls and consciousness remain, will be 'guided' back to their original location before entering the relic. However, some 'existences' like 'spiritual artifacts' and 'spiritual herbs,' which are spiritual enough to rival Spirit Cultivators, have the opposite characteristics: their souls are relatively strong, but their physical forms are relatively fragile. For such 'existences' – if a spiritual artifact is broken, it's equivalent to its physical body being destroyed; if a spiritual herb is uprooted, it's like being cut in half... yet they don't die. Why is that? If they are with a Spirit Cultivator, and the Spirit Cultivator commits suicide to leave the Divine Relic, they can follow as 'items' to the Saint God Continent, instead of returning as 'existences' to their initial location. Why?"

Cao Erzhuan gasped, his brain starting to ache. Indeed, humans are 'existences,' and weapons with born tool spirits are also 'existences,' so why are their 'treatments' different? As a mature Cao Erzhuan, he gave up thinking and waited for Brother Xiaoshou to continue.

A smile then surfaced on Jǐn Rén's face, displaying a Dao Qiongcang-like expression of having everything under control, as he meticulously explained: "This should be enough to prove my point, right? The Divine Relic's definition of 'existence' is very vague, and its definition of 'guidance' is very rigid. Perhaps the rules were originally very clear, but due to the passage of too much time, what should have been clear became vague, turning into what we see now... Naturally, there are loopholes to exploit!"

"So?" Dao Qiongcang indicated that this was simple to understand and he didn't want to hear idle talk, only Xu Xiaoshou's conclusion.

Jǐn Rén then said: "Therefore, if I enter the 'feigned death' state I just described, reducing my 'form of existence' to be on par with spiritual artifacts and spiritual herbs, thereby avoiding the rigid rules of the Divine Relic..." He looked at Dao Qiongcang's ring: "If I enter your spatial ring, is it possible for you to smuggle me out of the Divine Relic, as if you were carrying a spiritual weapon of low sentience?"

Cao Erzhuan gasped again. This time, he understood. Brother Xiaoshou had said all this simply because he didn't want to return directly to Mount GuiZhe and face Ai Cangsheng after leaving the Divine Relic.

"What about me? I also entered from Mount GuiZhe!"

"Don't rush," Jǐn Rén said, holding back Erzhuan's frantically gesturing hand, indicating that he couldn't consider so much at the moment. "If it truly came down to it, you could train in the Divine Relic for a while; the rules here were incredibly profound, making it a sacred cultivation ground. Why are you so eager to leave? Rushing to reincarnate?"

"I understand what you mean..." Dao Qiongcang stroked his chin, an expression of contemplation on his face, and quickly hit the nail on the head with a pointed question: "Feigned death, but how would you achieve it? If your body, soul, and consciousness all need to deceive the grand rules of the Divine Relic, the required realm isn't low."

Jǐn Rén lowered his gaze and smiled with refined ease: "That, is a secret."

Well, well!

Dao Qiongcang's heart inwardly trembled. He had truly underestimated Xu Xiaoshou. He had originally thought that even if this fellow could display grand dao diagrams for all three—body, soul, and consciousness—it would be impossible for him to reach the Obscure Realm in all of them. Now, hearing his talk of 'feigned death,' it seemed he might have actualized the Obscure Realm in all of them!

"His method, surprisingly, coincides with mine..." Indeed, Dao Qiongcang also had similar plans. But what he needed to achieve was less than Xu Xiaoshou's, and the process was simpler. Within his formation plate, there were still several pitiful remnant souls that Su Yin had nearly sucked dry – only soul fragments remained. If he hadn't continuously poured power into preserving them, they would have long reincarnated. They had no physical bodies, and their consciousness was muddled. One could say, by further concealing their soul aura and refining them... well, 'processing' them like the spirit of a formation plate. Dao Qiongcang was confident he could take Wuxiu and the others' remnant souls out of the Divine Relic without them separating.

Now, having heard Xu Xiaoshou's talk of feigned death... In a trance, Dao Qiongcang thought Xu Xiaoshou had already seen through his plan and was subtly hinting at him. Did he want him to hand over the souls himself, to show they were still good friends? Or did he want him to demand the souls, causing them to fall out and have an unpleasant confrontation?

Dao Qiongcang quickly collected his thoughts and gave a dry, insincere compliment: "Master Shou is brilliant. This plan is truly excellent, I never even thought of it... Shall we leave now?" He silently slipped the formation plate in his hand into his sleeve, no longer daring to be influenced by Master Shou's current display.

"Alright, then I'll die for a bit." As soon as Jǐn Rén's words fell, Cao Erzhuan watched in horror as Brother Xiaoshou, like a salted fish undergoing an accelerated curing process, had all the blood drained directly from his body. His flesh, bones, tendons, and organs seemed to vanish completely, and his body rapidly dehydrated until it was as thin as a sheet of paper. His soul withered. His consciousness faded. The entire person died on the spot!

A foot stepped out from the void, and another Brother Xiaoshou calmly walked out. He picked up the paper-thin Brother Xiaoshou, shook him twice, folded him a few times, and then handed the handkerchief-like Brother Xiaoshou to Dao Qiongcang. Dao Qiongcang calmly accepted the handkerchief-like Brother Xiaoshou and placed him into a brand-new spatial ring, as naturally as eating or drinking.

"Take good care of me, my Dao."

"Of course, my Xu."

Cao Erzhuan felt chills run down his spine after hearing this. "No, why are you two so calm while doing something so terrifying? Just watching made me feel like I'd have nightmares tonight. How can you... how can you be like this!"

"So, next..." Dao Qiongcang gestured towards the horizon, "Open the gate?"

Xu Xiaoshou chuckled, clutching the Heavenly Realm Core, but made no move. Yue Gongli watched with anticipation. He was very glad that these two had finally ignored him; it was the best possible outcome. But at this final step, why had these two 'dirty' people stopped, looking at each other with subtle smiles?

"What's going on..." Yue Gongli muttered to himself, his brows slightly furrowed, feeling as if he had forgotten something. Soon, he lowered his head.

Xu Xiaoshou's smile deepened: "Flashy old Taoist, it's the very end, isn't there anything you want to say to me?"

Dao Qiongcang paused, then looked slightly surprised: "Advice? You want me to give you a piece of advice?"

"I don't need advice."

"Then, take care?" He paused, then added with a chuckle: "I thought Master Shou didn't need these verbal... mm, courtesies."

Xu Xiaoshou continued to smile: "I also thought our relationship was good enough to skip such meaningless pleasantries and go straight to the point."

"The point? What else could be the point?" Dao Qiongcang's expression was perfectly set to make it seem like he was pondering these questions. Before long, he generously waved his hand: "Is Master Shou referring to the character 'Dragon' (龍)? It's fine, you can research the True Stele of Origin first. I will return to this Divine Relic. If, after we part ways, either of us needs help, we can simply meet here." At this, his tone became a little more teasing: "Master Shou wouldn't be planning to claim the Divine Relic as his own the moment I leave, would he? This is 'our' shared property."

Xu Xiaoshou stared at this 'dirty' person, scrutinizing him for a long time, concluding that he was not human inside or out. In the end, he could only shake his head and sigh. He produced a Relic Jade Charm, whose function and effect were equivalent to the Apricot Realm Jade Charm, and handed it to Dao Qiongcang: "You're welcome home anytime."

"I deserve it," Dao Qiongcang said, taking the jade charm contentedly and putting it away. Then... there was nothing more. He stared at the void, signaling to open the gate.

"Are you someone who only takes and never gives, not even a little bit?" Xu Xiaoshou's heart burned with anger, but he managed to calmly say: "Flashy old Taoist, you're truly thick-skinned!"

"What makes you say that?"

Xu Xiaoshou curled his lips into a sneer: "I'm asking for it, and you're truly not going to give it to me?"

Cao Erzhuan had been meticulously analyzing the deeper meaning of their conversation, trying to learn, but at this point, he stiffened and looked up. *Something's not right! I'm not right! I must have misunderstood, learned something wrong...*

But a very ambiguous smile suddenly appeared on Dao Qiongcang's face: "If you don't say it, how will I know you want it?"

Brother Xiaoshou was even more outrageous: "If I want it, will you give it?"

Dao Qiongcang was exasperated: "Of course!"

Cao Erzhuan clutched his head, feeling he shouldn't be there. A twenty-six-year-old 'little baby' couldn't handle such things.

Brother Xiaoshou's expression turned incredibly cold, filled with killing intent: "My master! Give him back! Do I need to be more direct?"

"He even had to add 'Master'..." *Oh, Brother Xiaoshou was asking for people...* Cao Erzhuan recoiled, then stiffly lowered his hand, as if he wasn't quite accustomed to his own body. He raised his hand again to straighten his clothes, then lowered it, then raised it again to scratch his head, indicating that he had raised his hands to cover his head earlier just to scratch it.

"Oh."

"You mean *that*." Dao Qiongcang slapped his forehead, finally remembering this, and took out his formation plate: "I almost forgot, my apologies... By the way, do you only want your master?" His hand paused over the formation plate; he didn't immediately extract Wuxiu's remnant soul.

*Your mouth is truly stubborn. Do you really think your Transcendent Dao-Transformation Way of Memory can guide my Transcendent Dao-Transformed Disc of Intent?* Xu Xiaoshou couldn't be bothered to argue back and forth with this fellow: "Elder Sang, Water Ghost, Cen Qiaofu, Bai Zhou, I want them all, give them all back!"

Yue Gongli's pupils suddenly dilated as he looked at Dao Qiongcang with a hint of disbelief, but he quickly controlled his facial muscles, his expression briefly changing before returning to calm, and he lowered his head.

"Stop pretending," Dao Qiongcang turned his head and, after speaking, gave Yue Gongli a glare: "Do you really think I don't know you have something that can resist guidance? Your acting is terribly clumsy."

Yue Gongli: "..." He kept his head down, silent. Only his masseter muscles tightened then relaxed, his fists clenched slightly but didn't tighten fully, and all parts of his body subsequently relaxed.

Dao Qiongcang clapped: "That's better, it has a bit of a 'you'll pay for this' feeling."

Yue Gongli: "..." He opened his mouth, unable to utter a single word.

In the midst of this banter, Xu Xiaoshou almost forgot about Elder Sang and the others again. His heart chilled once more. But the Transcendent Dao-Transformed Disc of Intent was too powerful! Its passive enhancement effect was supreme! Even Su Yin couldn't guide him, so how could Dao Qiongcang possibly succeed? If he didn't want to draw his awareness, he could only use 'indirect guidance' that wasn't too deliberate. But as long as it wasn't deliberate, the power of guidance wouldn't be strong enough – a dead loop! And he had already developed a subconscious reaction that 'if something feels wrong, it means I'm being guided,' allowing him to actively check the information panel or directly trace the source of the guidance. Therefore, Dao Qiongcang could only influence him for a brief moment, no more than half a breath. This was already the extent he could achieve after his Transcendent Dao-Transformation Way of Memory had improved! One breath, actually, was also terrifying. During that time, a master could do too many things. But against the only 'unfathomable ghost' among the Ten Venerates, especially a fully matured 'unfathomable ghost,' to quickly realize being 'guided' and shorten the 'influenced' time to half a breath... Xu Xiaoshou had done his best. For the remaining half-breath, his countermeasure was very physical – when discussing important matters, he would slow down each sentence, allowing himself to think more meticulously. Unexpectedly, the simplest method turned out to be very effective.

As soon as the idea of Jǐn Rén committing suicide came to mind, Xu Xiaoshou had thought of Elder Sang and the others and began waiting for Dao Qiongcang to hand them over willingly. Unexpectedly, Dao Qiongcang's skin was even thicker than anticipated. He stubbornly adhered to the superficial excuse of 'I forgot too,' gambling that 'no one would dare to fall out with me, Dao So-and-so.' What could be done about this? Only disgust could defeat disgust. Only by being more 'dirty' than the flashy old Taoist was it possible to defeat him!

"Elder Sang." Dao Qiongcang then extracted a large pile of shattered soul fragments: "Severely wounded, almost crippled."

"Water Ghost." Dao Qiongcang then extracted Yu Mo's: "Same."

"Cen Qiaofu." Dao Qiongcang extracted only a few dim, lusterless fragments, pondered for a moment, then said: "This one might have its foundation damaged. You might not succeed in reviving him, and even if you do, there's a seventy percent chance... he'll be an idiot." After speaking, he quickly added: "It was definitely not my doing. If you need me to, I can swear to it."

Xu Xiaoshou slowly closed his eyes. He cut off the memory of their first encounter in the Heavenly Sang Spirit Palace and 'Hedgehog'; he cut off the memory of the 'figure' in the Eight Palaces, fighting with his back against the wall, carrying the Blood Tree's dark branches; he cut off the memory of the guy who secretly protected him after the Spirit Market trade fair in Eastern Heavenly King City, who later came to the building to impart teachings and have heart-to-heart talks; he cut off the memory of the old fellow's passionate and mighty journey, wielding axe light and tribulation lightning after the Four Symbols Secret Realm angrily opened its battle lines; he cut off the memory of a clearly intelligent person who, after reuniting with Elder Sang and Water Ghost in the Divine Relic, had turned into an idiotic expression, only capable of spacing out and vacantly saying 'Ah, yes, yes, yes'...

"*Is it that kind of idiot?*" Xu Xiaoshou himself was startled and quickly cut off the rapidly flashing memories. He also cut off the thought of why this old man, clearly so old and not strong, always dared to take the risk of initiating a battle.

"Holy Slave, Cen Qiaofu..." He cut off everything and took the soul fragments without a word. How could he not know that, compared to the Obscure Elder Sang and Obscure Water Ghost, the old woodcutter's foundation was weaker. His comprehension of 'half a life in the mountains, one night severing the Dao' was certainly high, but how did it compare to the Ten Venerates? Even a god, when fighting Su Yin, could only manage to shatter his physical body. Cen Qiaofu, a mere newly advanced Half-Saint, despite his talent—which hadn't fully materialized yet—was still a vast distance from the Ten Venerates. For him to not have died was already a stroke of luck... no, a miracle! Su Yin's pathetic state was due to repeatedly falling into traps and schemes, akin to Yan Wuse on Void Island, whose full strength was gradually worn down to nothing. Essentially... He, after all, was an Ancestral God. How could he be so easily dealt with?

"Feng Yujin." At this name, Dao Qiongcang hesitated for a moment. But he glanced over, seeing Xu Xiaoshou's displeased expression, and still chose to hand over Feng Yujin. He hadn't expected Xu Xiaoshou to still remember even this one. This was the one Dao Qiongcang had most deliberately tried to diminish the presence of. From this, it was clear that Xu Xiaoshou's Grand Dao of Intent was likely more than eighty percent complete, its progress probably on par with his own Grand Dao of Memory. He was so young, how could he have achieved Transcendent Dao-Transformation as well? Or perhaps... Considering the effortless 'feigned death,' Dao Qiongcang boldly speculated: had Xu Xiaoshou perhaps Transcendent Dao-Transformed all three—body, soul, and consciousness?

—He never judged a person's comprehension of the Grand Dao by the brightness of their Grand Dao Diagram, because the Sky Scroll itself was fabricating.

"Eyes can deceive, but calculations won't!" Regarding this point, Dao Qiongcang, who only returned one soul for each name spoken, expressed deep conviction.

Emperor Fengtian's soul fragments looked even dimmer than Cen Qiaofu's. There was no other way; at the time, he was the primary contributor of energy to maintain Ran Ming's Divine Court. Without him, the Saint Emperor, holding the line, the Half-Saint juniors behind him combined might not even have been able to last for fifteen minutes.

"He..." Xu Xiaoshou found it hard to speak, seeing the fragments were so pale.

"His foundation is that of a Saint Emperor, so he won't fall so quickly," Dao Qiongcang said with a smile this time. "Rao Wang was an anomaly; Saint Emperors generally don't suffer such a miserable fate as being possessed by an Ancestral God."

Xu Xiaoshou accepted the soul fragments, wondering if he should seize this opportunity to separate Mo Mo and Feng Yujin.

"Bai Zhou." Finally, he uttered a name.

Xu Xiaoshou extended his hand, but no soul fragments appeared. He looked up to see Dao Qiongcang staring at him with a half-smile, his tone soft, but his attitude firm: "Master Shou, you've crossed a line."