Chapter Forty-Nine: Not a Dream
Wang Changsheng was well aware, according to what Li Fusheng had told him, that these disciples of the Corpse Refining Sect were the kind who would devour a man whole, bones and all! What’s more, this was the very heart of the Corpse Refining Sect; here, its disciples would act without the slightest restraint!
From his senses, Wang Changsheng could tell these disciples were formidable, even stronger than the one who had abducted him. Yet, when faced with Old Mou, they’d been frightened off without a fight?! Driven away by nothing more than a name?!
Who exactly was this Old Mou? Was he truly just some steward from the menial servants’ quarters? Was he really a tribute captured by the Corpse Refining Sect?
Even the cultivators of the Corpse Refining Sect feared Old Mou, so Wang Changsheng certainly dared not approach him. “A bunch of rats! Listen up, this Old Wang is my neighbor—under my protection from now on!” Old Mou’s voice rang out, deep and forceful. “If anyone causes trouble for Old Wang, they’ll answer to me!”
Then, Old Mou beckoned to Wang Changsheng. “Come, Old Wang, let’s go!”
Wang Changsheng looked at Old Mou in a daze—not because he hadn’t heard him, but because he was so stunned by what had just happened that he hadn’t yet come to his senses. In fact, he still couldn’t quite grasp what had happened.
“Did I do something wrong...?” Wang Changsheng pinched his own cheek, leaving a red handprint. “Ouch! That hurt! It’s real, I’m not dreaming!”
He had truly thought he was dreaming. The cultivators of the Corpse Refining Sect had been scared off by Old Mou, and now a mere tribute had turned the tables?!
“Old Wang!”
Seeing Wang Changsheng unresponsive, Old Mou called out again, “Are you coming or not? If you don’t, I’ll go on ahead!”
“Uh... Coming, coming!” Wang Changsheng finally snapped out of it.
One could hardly blame him; what had just happened was simply too incredible for him to process.
Old Mou led Wang Changsheng into the great hall.
Once the two vanished inside, the Corpse Refining Sect cultivators who had just fled returned, now with even more of their brethren.
“What’s with Old Mou?”
“That’s right, something’s off. He remembers his neighbor? Old Mou shouldn’t be able to remember that!”
“Given Old Mou’s past behavior, he shouldn’t be able to recall such things!”
The crowd discussed the event among themselves. Yet, after much deliberation, they remained utterly baffled as to why Old Mou would remember Wang Changsheng. Still, they all came to one conclusion: Old Mou had remembered Wang Changsheng and claimed him as his own to protect. And so, the Corpse Refining Sect gained yet another person not to be trifled with.
As for Wang Changsheng, only after following Old Mou into the great hall did he finally regain his composure.
He had many questions and intended to ask Old Mou, but upon entering the hall, he was immediately captivated by the scene before him, leaving no room for inquiry.
“So many spirit stones...” Wang Changsheng thought, utterly stunned.
The great hall was enormous, filled with heaps upon heaps of spirit stones. Even the floor beneath his feet was paved with them. The air was thick with spiritual energy, and in one corner, he saw a steady drip—yet it was not water, but liquefied spiritual essence.
“Is the Corpse Refining Sect really this wealthy?” Wang Changsheng was overwhelmed.
In all his years of cultivation, the most spirit stones he’d ever seen were a few tens of thousands brought out by the cultivators of Cloud Palace Peak at the moon platform, and even those were of the lowest quality.
Compared to the spirit stones here, those were utterly insignificant!
Wang Changsheng estimated there must be at least a million spirit stones here, perhaps even more. For he saw adjoining side halls, each with further piles of spirit stones.
“Good heavens!”
He could only use such words to describe his shock—this was even more astonishing than seeing Old Mou drive off the Corpse Refining Sect disciples.
“Old... Old Mou...” Wang Changsheng nudged the man beside him, asking in awe, “Where did all these spirit stones come from?”
Old Mou, for his part, seemed utterly unfazed by the mountain of spirit stones, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.
“I don’t know... What’s the use of all these stones, anyway?” Old Mou asked matter-of-factly.
“Their use?” Wang Changsheng nearly jumped in disbelief. “These are cultivation resources...!”
“Cultivation resources?” Old Mou replied, “That can’t be. For the cultivators of the Corpse Refining Sect, these are all waste—useless.”
And indeed, the cultivators of this sect did not rely on spirit stones for their cultivation.
But while such things were useless to them, to others, this place was a veritable treasure trove!
Old Mou ignored Wang Changsheng and picked up a cloth bag, filled it with spirit stones, then said, “Let’s go.”
“Go?”
Wang Changsheng was utterly perplexed. No one guarded this place, and no one tried to stop Old Mou from taking the stones—why, then, did he take so little before leaving? It made no sense!
“Old Mou... why not take more?” Wang Changsheng asked, incredulous.
“Why should I?” Old Mou replied, pulling Wang Changsheng along toward another great hall.
As Wang Changsheng was led further from the spirit stone hall, his heart bled with regret.
Why take only a little? From this, Wang Changsheng realized that Old Mou wasn’t merely pretending to be a fool—he truly was one!
He was certain that if it were up to him, he would have taken much more. If given enough time, he could have emptied the place!
But seeing the greedy eyes of the Corpse Refining Sect disciples nearby, Wang Changsheng could only follow Old Mou obediently.
Soon, Old Mou brought Wang Changsheng to another great hall.
As soon as they entered, Wang Changsheng was hit by a strong medicinal aroma, and the dense spiritual energy inside left him speechless.
“The spiritual energy here is even richer than in the spirit stone hall...”
He was rendered speechless by the sight.
Everywhere he looked, there were mounds of spiritual herbs and elixirs, precious medicines piled up like small hills. Scattered across the floor were numerous storage rings as well.
Old Mou opened his half-empty cloth bag and began shoveling herbs into it, paying no heed to the fact that some were damaged in the process, diminishing their medicinal potency.
“So this is how Old Mou’s bag of supplements came to be...” Wang Changsheng muttered with a wry smile. “No wonder some of the herbs seemed incomplete...”
Now that he knew the truth, Wang Changsheng truly didn’t know what to say. He had never encountered anyone like this, nor such a situation.
“That’s enough,” Old Mou announced after filling his bag. “Let’s go back.”
He made to leave with Wang Changsheng.
“Take more... Old Mou, why not take more?” Wang Changsheng pleaded.
“No more,” Old Mou replied. “What would I do with it? It’s useless.”
“Useless... not the least bit useful...” Wang Changsheng, hearing this, couldn’t help but want to throttle Old Mou.
Helpless, Wang Changsheng was dragged out of the hall by Old Mou.
He wanted to stay longer, to take more, but Old Mou refused to listen, and with Wang Changsheng’s strength, he had no power to resist.
Outside the hall, Old Mou hoisted the bag over his shoulder, wrapped Wang Changsheng in his true essence, and flew over the mountain. After landing on the other side, they walked back to the small courtyard of the servants’ quarters.
Wang Changsheng followed in silence, on the verge of tears.
He had seen such wealth—spirit stones and spiritual herbs beyond counting—yet Old Mou had taken only a tiny portion. There was nothing Wang Changsheng could do. It was like entering a mountain of treasures, only to leave empty-handed.
Old Mou had said he wanted to broaden Wang Changsheng’s horizons, and indeed, after visiting the great halls of the Corpse Refining Sect, Wang Changsheng’s eyes had been opened—not just to the world, but to its grandest spectacles.
Driving off the Corpse Refining Sect disciples was one thing, but the spirit stone and herbal halls had left Wang Changsheng utterly stunned.
What was truly bizarre was that Old Mou, on entering, took only a handful of items, and the quality of this haul was poorer than last time—not even a single mid-grade spirit stone in the bag!
It was clear that Old Mou chose his spoils at random, caring nothing for quality or potency.
What else could Wang Changsheng say? He was at a loss for words.
Back at the courtyard, Old Mou tossed the bag to the ground and said, “This is for you. Keep up your strength—you look like you need it.”
Wang Changsheng nodded eagerly.
He needed it desperately. In the world of cultivation, aside from oddballs like Old Mou and these half-human, half-ghost rats of the Corpse Refining Sect, who didn’t need these resources?
Without the slightest hesitation, Wang Changsheng clutched the bag tightly, unwilling to let go.
No matter how many treasures lay in those halls, only what was in his hands truly belonged to him. As for the rest, it was better not to dwell on it—for the more he thought about it, the more confounded he became.
“Oh, by the way!” Old Mou said before closing the door, “Next time, you can take things openly—no need to sneak around.”