The Beauty Cultivation Technique

Chapter 21: Schemes

Splash—

The frantic Gao Badou was mercilessly tossed into the pond at the back of the mountain by Ji Yaoge.

She was grateful that she had reacted quickly when things seemed wrong, dragging him into the mountain and finding a clear pond. The effects of the aphrodisiac could not be neutralized easily, but last time, Bai Yan had helped her suppress the effects using water. If the poisoning wasn't too deep, soaking in the pond for a while might help him endure until the effects faded.

"Achoo—" The pond water was icy, but Gao Badou's body felt like it was on fire, the contrasting temperatures making him sneeze.

Seeing the resentment in Gao Badou's eyes, Ji Yaoge could only smile apologetically. Just as she was about to speak, her soul suddenly trembled, nearly causing her to fall into the pond.

"The consequence of abusing marrow bee venom is a destroyed soul," the boy in the water said coldly. After transforming into a human form, his voice was clear and youthful.

Marrow bee venom was a great thing, but it couldn't be overused. She had been using it daily for the past few days and even exceeded the dosage today. It would be strange if there was no backlash.

Ji Yaoge sat cross-legged on a rock by the shore, peeking through half-closed eyelids at Gao Badou.

Honestly, after transforming, Gao Badou didn't look like the old, bossy insect he was. The boy in the thin white clothes, now wet, had water dripping from his hair onto his slightly sharp cheeks. His red eyes held a hint of untamed wildness, diluting his youthful softness. Yet his eyes remained as arrogant and shrewd as ever, not belonging to a typical young boy.

"Soak well. This trouble is my fault. I'll make it up to you when I get the chance," Ji Yaoge closed her eyes.

Gao Badou glared at her fiercely—how could she make up for tarnishing his lifelong reputation?

He wanted to curse her more, but she had entered a meditative state, ignoring him. Frustrated, he dove into the water and didn't resurface.

————

After circulating the "Mysterious Lotus Mantra" for a small cycle, the backlash from the marrow bee venom gradually dissipated. The "Mysterious Lotus Mantra" was indeed an ancient secret technique, greatly aiding in calming the mind and spirit.

As dawn approached, the mountain was bathed in soft light. Ji Yaoge opened her eyes, the world clear before her. The mist around the pond clung to her skin, bringing a chill. Gao Badou was no longer in the pond. She glanced at the jade tube at her waist—he had somehow detoxified himself and returned to his insect form, now sleeping soundly inside the tube.

She remembered him saying he found humans ugly. It seemed he meant it.

In truth, his human form was quite attractive. Unfortunately, humans and insects could never share the same aesthetic.

Ji Yaoge shrugged and remembered the two people still in Ren Zhongping's cave. She didn't dare linger any longer and quickly flew back to Ren Zhongping's cave.

————

Removing the restrictions, the cave door opened from the outside. A slender figure walked in, bathed in sunlight. Bai Yan, sitting on the lotus bed, lazily glanced at the newcomer.

Ji Yaoge had finally returned before his patience wore out.

"What happened here?" Ji Yaoge was stunned by the scene inside.

Bai Yan sat upright on the lotus bed, while Ren Zhongping had woken up, but not as an idiot as Ji Yaoge had expected. Instead, he was kneeling beside the bed, hugging Bai Yan's leg and murmuring ingratiatingly, "Brother, take me to see the fairy sister."

"As you can see," Bai Yan replied irritably.

Before Ji Yaoge could respond, Ren Zhongping saw her, his eyes lighting up as he leaped to her feet like a large dog. She couldn't avoid him in time and was caught.

"Fairy sister, take me to ascend, will you?"

She looked down at Ren Zhongping, his hair disheveled and face covered. It was clear—this man was truly mad.

Bai Yan approached without asking what she had done all night, squatting beside Ren Zhongping, "Little Zhongping, the fairy sister is back. If you want her to teach you to ascend, shouldn't you show some sincerity?"

Though Ren Zhongping's mind was in chaos, reduced to a child's intelligence, he understood Bai Yan's meaning. He quickly pulled a ring off his finger and offered it with both hands, "Yes, yes, this is for the fairy sister."

Ji Yaoge didn't take it, but Bai Yan raised an eyebrow, "Fairy sister, aren't you going to accept Little Zhongping's filial piety?"

She glared at him and accepted the ring, then tried a suggestion, "Why don't you meditate over there?"

Ren Zhongping happily crouched by the wall to meditate.

"Let's see what treasures he has," Bai Yan leaned in, eyeing the ring in her hand.

"A Qiankun ring?" Ji Yaoge examined the ring.

A Qiankun ring, like a Qiankun bag, was a storage space for holding items. The internal space varied greatly depending on its quality. Ji Yaoge had once used a storage ring that could hold enough to fill three rooms. But after coming to Chi Xiu Palace, she only had a basic Qiankun bag, nearly full with just a dozen items.

Though this ring wasn't as good as her previous one, it was far better than the Qiankun bag she currently uses.

The ring was no longer restricted. She tossed the ring onto the bed, and in a clatter, its contents spilled out, forming a small mountain. Bai Yan's eyes gleamed with excitement. Ren Zhongping, with his high cultivation level and reliance on Ye Long, had always had ample resources within the sect.

Ji Yaoge walked to the bed and casually sifted through the pile, unimpressed.

Though there were many items, most were common—charms, pills, techniques, spiritual treasures, and the like, none of high quality. Only the spiritual jade stood out, about two large bags containing over five hundred low-grade spirit jades and two middle-grade spirit jades, making this wealth substantial in Chi Xiu Palace.

"We'll split the spirit jade. The rest..." Ji Yaoge glanced at the mountain of items, slipped the ring onto her finger, and put the only two techniques, blank charm papers, two charms, and a set of casting tools into the ring. She also took two weapons—a jade hairpin and a short knife. The hairpin went into her bun, and the knife at her waist. She ignored the rest.

"You can take the rest."

"All for me?" Bai Yan, sifting through the items, was surprised.

"Yes. These are of no use to me. You can keep them," Ji Yaoge said while walking to the wall, searching for something.

Since he had helped, she couldn't let him go unrewarded.

Bai Yan squinted slightly but didn't refuse, "Alright, I'll take them. Some of these I don't need either. I'll take them to the market later to exchange for spirit jade and split it with you."

Ji Yaoge nodded without responding. Bai Yan divided the spirit jade into two bags, tossing one to her. She caught it without looking, still searching the ground. Bai Yan asked curiously, "What are you looking for?" She had stopped and picked up a deep purple jade ring, the one Ren Zhongping had used to attack her yesterday.

The ring had strange engravings, unlike the writing in the Wanhua Cultivation World. A faint spiritual aura surrounded it, slightly higher quality than the pile on the bed, but...

"A ghost realm item?" Ji Yaoge muttered.

The spiritual aura it gave off was slightly decayed, indicating it came from the ghost realm.

"Senior Sister, is it really Xiao Wu Heng from the ghost realm?" Bai Yan's calm demeanor finally cracked at this name. Though his cultivation level was low, he wasn't ignorant. He had heard of the ghost realm and Xiao Wu Heng, figures of legend. Now suddenly connected to them, the situation felt both exciting and terrifying.

Ji Yaoge shook her head, "I can't be certain." She pondered for a moment, then clenched the jade ring, ready to leave again.

Bai Yan had already stored all the items in his storage bag, which was better than Ji Yaoge's and could just about contain the small mountain. Seeing her about to leave, he asked, "Where are you going?"

"To settle some private matters," Ji Yaoge had thought of a way to deal with the people Bai Li Qing had sent to find her.

"I'll go with you," Bai Yan said.

"But what about him..." Ji Yaoge instinctively looked at Ren Zhongping.

Ren Zhongping, obediently meditating, had fallen asleep at some point, drooling and completely lost to his former self.

"He just needs to sleep well," Bai Yan had sprinkled some Sweet Dream incense into the burner.

Ji Yaoge gave Bai Yan a meaningful look and nodded, "Alright, come with me."

————

According to Ren Zhongping's information, the two people Bai Li Qing had sent to find her were both in the early Foundation Establishment stage. Tricked by him, they had been searching the mountains outside Chi Xiu Palace for days, not leaving. Ji Yaoge and Bai Yan searched all day and finally found them before sunset.

"They seem odd," Bai Yan observed the two figures suddenly stopping in the distance.

Ji Yaoge and he were hiding in a tree about ten feet away, observing them.

The two were indeed odd, tall and thin like paper, wearing white clothes that made them look weightless. Their complexion was deathly pale, their expressions blank, movements mechanical.

They squatted, backs to Ji Yaoge and Bai Yan, digging something from the ground and gnawing on it.

The eerie crunching sound reached them from afar. Bai Yan twisted his neck uncomfortably. The two people seemed to sense something, suddenly turning their heads. In the dim forest light, their ghastly white faces and chomping jaws were revealed, chewing on animal carcasses.

They looked terrifying.

"Yin Corpses?" Ji Yaoge whispered.

She hadn't thought deeply during her escape, but recalling now, Bai Li Qing's methods—whether the artifact used for possession or the soul-chasing beasts sent after her—were all sinister, likely not from Wanhua, including these Yin Corpses, which were ghost realm sorcery.

So she wasn't surprised.

Dealing with ghost realm entities was actually simpler.

"What are Yin Corpses?" Bai Yan had never heard of them.

"I'll explain later. They're not good. I need to kill them. Will you help me?" Ji Yaoge asked directly.

Bai Yan was taken aback, then responded, "I will. If Senior Sister asks, how can I refuse?" He smiled leisurely, "But how do we kill them? Their cultivation is higher than ours."

"With this," she tossed the jade ring to Bai Yan.

"This is..."

"It was given to Ren Zhongping by the talisman master for self-defense. It's quite powerful, enough to deal with one of them. I'll distract one and hold off the other. You wait for the right moment to strike," Ji Yaoge explained while preparing a charm. She murmured a few words, and the charm ignited.

Bai Yan frowned silently.

"Go," she flicked the burning charm, which transformed into a deer-horned rabbit and swiftly darted into the forest.

The two corpses gnawing on the animal carcass heard the noise, turned their eerie gaze, and mechanically dropped the carcass. The rabbit ran quickly, and the two hesitated momentarily before one followed, then the other. Ji Yaoge seized the moment, darting forward and shooting the snake hairpin from her bun.

The hairpin transformed into a slender green snake mid-flight, coiling around the trailing corpse's neck, biting down. The corpse slowed, grasping at the snake, but the serpent was agile, dodging and coiling again. In that brief pause, the leading corpse had chased far ahead, and Ji Yaoge, now a flash of light, attacked with her short knife, slashing at the corpse.

The corpse showed no fear, its face blank, exuding a thick, decayed smell, lifeless. A black mist rose, blocking Ji Yaoge's blade. It cackled eerily, clawing at her through the mist. She dodged, but the tree behind her fell with a crack. Alarmed, she retreated, the corpse lunging at her like a hawk. Ji Yaoge, outmatched, seemed on the brink of defeat when a burst of violet flame struck the corpse's chest.

With a boom, the flame pierced its chest, dissipating the mist. The corpse, face blank, watched the flame consume it, turning to ash inch by inch. Ji Yaoge glanced at Bai Yan, hidden in the leaves, and retrieved the jade ring.

Cold energy approached from behind. "Watch out!" Bai Yan's voice rang in her ear. Ji Yaoge was pulled into an embrace, Bai Yan arriving just in time.

They retreated several steps, turning to see the other corpse returning from chasing the rabbit, attacking stealthily.

Bai Yan grunted, blood scenting the air. Ji Yaoge, unsure of his injury, asked, "Are you alright?"

"I'll manage," he spat blood, struggling to stand.

The corpse lunged again. Bai Yan, one arm holding Ji Yaoge, cast a fire spell with the other, but it was quickly extinguished. Ji Yaoge gritted her teeth, channeling her remaining spiritual energy into the jade ring and throwing it.

A violet flame ignited, striking the corpse's shoulder and sending it flying. The ring fell to the ground.

Ji Yaoge supported Bai Yan, watching the corpse stagger to its feet, then suddenly stop attacking. It picked up the jade ring, confusion on its usually blank face.

Ji Yaoge's mind raced, "Return and tell your master that this place is claimed by the Tianxiao Sect. If you come again, don't blame our Master Xiao for taking action."

Ghost realm against ghost realm—she'd borrow Xiao Wu Heng's name for now.

As expected, hearing Xiao Wu Heng's name, the corpse trembled, then pocketed the jade ring and retreated, likely to report to Bai Li Qing.

With Xiao Wu Heng's name to scare them off, Ji Yaoge thought she might finally have some peace.

————

Ji Yaoge helped Bai Yan to a nearby cliff, propping him against a rock.

Bai Yan, injured while saving her, had claw marks on his back, his clothes in tatters, revealing three blackish-blue wounds. His hair was disheveled, lips pale, blood at the corners. He sat cross-legged, healing. Ji Yaoge wiped the blood from his lips with a clean cloth, waiting for him to recover.

"Ugh!" Bai Yan soon opened his eyes, spitting blood onto the ground.

"How are you?" Ji Yaoge asked urgently.

Bai Yan's face was worse than before, breath weak. He shook his head, "Meridians blocked, energy reversing. I can't do anything."

Ji Yaoge frowned deeply, feeling his pulse with a thread of spiritual awareness.

Indeed, his meridians were blocked, energy unable to flow, the situation dire.

"If only we had Tongtian Pills," she mused.

Bai Yan, leaning weakly, glanced at the blood on the ground, lips moving as if to speak, "Tongtian Pills... never mind..."

The best medicine for Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators, rare even on Wanren Mountain, was almost impossible to find here. The entire Cangling Pavilion had only one.

"I can get the Tongtian Pill from the Cangling Pavilion," Ji Yaoge said, holding his pulse.

Bai Yan's eyes widened in surprise.

Ji Yaoge released his hand, standing tall, "Stop pretending. Your energy reversal isn't because of the Yin Corpses but because you forcibly advanced using drugs. You're no longer at the Qi Refining stage; you've broken through to Foundation Establishment. Did I say anything wrong?"

Bai Yan remained silent, his gaze growing cold. His lips curled into a smile, all previous affection and warmth falling away like withered petals, revealing the poisonous thorns beneath.

Hurting others and himself.