Chapter 8: Greasing the Soles (Part 1)

  "Kaito suddenly said in a stern voice: 'Jade Danmei, do you know that just a month ago, the Saro Iron Tree on the Demon Slaying Heaven bloomed.'"

  Duan Mei's whole body shook.

  Shi Jiulang said calmly, "The iron tree blooms, the Demon Lord descends. The legend of the Demon Realm for thousands and tens of thousands of years, you won't forget it, will you, Jiu Danmei? To be honest with you, the Demon Lord has already descended and is about to unify the Demon Realm. These three things are what the Demon Lord specifically wants."

  Ji Dan's expression changed rapidly, and after a long while, she suddenly smiled: "I don't believe in that deceiving legend." One of her paws shot out as fast as lightning, pouncing towards Shi Jiu Lang.

  "Jiudan Mei, you have a big nerve! You even dare to defy the Demon Lord!" Shi Jiulang roared as he charged forward.

  "Bang——bang——", Shi Jiulang's fists flew out one after another, six fists moving in a blur, producing a deafening sound, like countless drums beating in succession. The ground and walls were pockmarked with dents.

  Ji Dan Mei's double paws transformed into a red shadow, the two sides jumped up and down, frequently colliding, in the intense battle, Ji Dan Mei let out a charming smile, her hips twisted, extending nine long scorpion tails, swishing back and forth, shooting out brilliant red light.

  With a "slap" sound, one of the scorpion tails struck Shi Jiulang, who let out a muffled groan and stumbled backwards. The other eight scorpion tails immediately wrapped around his limbs, their needle-like tips pointing at him in unison.

  Shi Jiulang's entire skeleton crackled, his skin suddenly turned gray and hardened into a stone statue. The scorpion tail needle bounced off him. Shi Jiulang sneered: "I told you, your scorpion tail is useless against me."

  "Sea Girl, quickly, break that stone pillar, it's his inner elixir transformed."

  Hai Ji took a deep breath, her palm chopped straight out, and a golden shield flew out of her hand, striking the stone pillar.

  The stone pillar shook slightly, and the golden shield spun back, colliding with the stone pillar once again.

  Shi Jiulang's face changed, he opened his mouth and took a deep breath, the stone pillar flew towards him rapidly. Haiji let out a cold hum, chased after the stone pillar, her palms conjured up golden light, sharp as knife edges, continuously chopping down.

  In an instant, hundreds of palm knives struck the stone pillar. Cracks spread out from the pillar, and with a loud "boom", the pillar shattered into dust. Shi Jiu Lang's body shook violently as his petrified form returned to flesh and blood, and his three-headed six-armed appearance disappeared. The scorpion tail needle took advantage of the situation and stabbed into Shi Jiu Lang's body, causing his skin to immediately swell up and turn a deep purple color. Shi Jiu Lang let out a miserable cry, and with a fierce struggle, he broke free from the scorpion's entanglement, like a mad beast, charging outward.

  Sweet orange really light sword sheath.

  A faint mist of water shot out, like a flying sword, and caught up with Shi Jiu Lang. The latter's body exploded, turning into splashing gravel.

  Under the joint attack of the three beauties, Shi Jiu Lang, who came with a mighty force, ended up defeated and broken. Only now do I truly realize how formidable the three bodyguards Long Die found for me are.

  Ouyang Yuan praised: "Gan Xianzi's Three Thousand Weak Water Swords have already reached the realm of transcending the mundane and entering the divine."

  Ji Dan Mei gave me a wink, and I chuckled: "Master Ou Yang, now that the six guests are dead, these three treasures have become ownerless. In my opinion,"

  Before I could finish speaking, Ouyang Yuan smiled and said, "Let's share it with everyone."

  I nodded in satisfaction, and Fatso also knew what was good for him. This routine of dividing the spoils seemed to be one he was very familiar with.

  Ouyang Yuan first took out a silver dagger, carefully cutting open the Snow Brain, dividing it into two halves. One half was placed in a white jade box and tucked into his own bosom, while the other half was handed to Hai Ji, saying respectfully: "With the Snow Brain, the armor-refining technique of the Sea God will definitely advance another level."

  He brought out a basin of water, threw the Mei Wu Yu Jian into the water basin, took out paper and pen, and said to Ji Dan Mei: "Wait for me to sketch Mei Wu's dance posture, and I will immediately present the jade mirror."

  I curiously stared at the Jade Mirror of Charms, it sank to the bottom of the basin and then slowly floated up again, the water waves swayed, and the charming image on the jade mirror seemed to come back to life.

  A basin of clear water slowly turned green.

  A misty vapor rose from the surface of the water, and threads of green smoke floated out of the jade mirror, transforming into countless wraith-like shapes in mid-air, dancing and fluttering about. Ouyang's round face lit up with joy, and he rapidly wielded his brush, capturing all sorts of dance poses.

  Three beauties all raised their heads, gazing intently at the charming dance. I knew this was something good and also wanted to remember the charming dance's posture, but the green smoke changed a thousand times, nimble and flying, my eyes were dazzled, let alone remembering it.

  I rubbed my sore neck, dejectedly lowering my head. It seemed I wasn't going to learn anything after all. Just then, the corner of my eye suddenly caught a glimpse of a demon's shadow reflected in the bottom of the water basin.

  The shadow was very faint, and it was also dancing, but everyone was attracted by the green smoke in mid-air, no one noticed me. I perked up my spirit, the charm dance at the bottom of the bowl was slow, the movements were clearer, and easier to remember. I immediately focused my attention on the water bowl, trying hard to memorize the dance postures, although they couldn't compare with the fantastic charm dance in mid-air, but it's better than nothing. As the saying goes, others may eat meat, but I can only drink soup.

  The smoke of a meal slowly dispersed, and the charm dance at the bottom of the water basin also disappeared. I counted it roughly, and I probably remembered more than 90 postures of the charm dance.

  "That's strange." Hai Ji suddenly furrowed her brow: "The charming dance is indeed wonderful, but it's purely a dance, how can I see any martial skills hidden in it?"

  "I'm afraid it will require careful study to discover its subtleties."

  Ouyang Yuan took out the Jade Mirror from the water basin and handed it over to Ji Danmei, at which everyone was stunned.

  The charm on the jade mirror has all disappeared. The charming dance of the jade mirror has turned into a smooth ordinary jade mirror. Even the emerald green color has faded to a faint milky white.

  After being stunned for half a day, Ouyang Yuan said: "I heard that Mei Dance Jade Mirror is a spiritual object. Once the martial skills stored inside are seen through by someone, the charm will automatically disappear from the jade mirror. It seems that the three of you have already grasped the essence of Mei Dance."

  Ji Dan Mei's beautiful eyes sparkled as she stared at Gan Ning: "Gan Xianzi, you're actually more formidable than us, to have discovered the hidden martial arts within the charming dance."

  Gan Ning shook his head: "I didn't see it either."

  Ji Dan Mei chuckled: "Ou Yang Yuan, you wouldn't have figured it out, would you?"

  Ouyang Yuan bitterly smiled: "Not even three of them are suitable, let alone me."

  I had wanted to share my discovery, but given their four personalities, none of them would be able to appreciate the subtlety of the dance. If I spoke up, I was afraid they would just laugh at me.

  Ji Dan Mei was about to speak, but hesitated and stopped. She put away the jade mirror. Later, Ouyang Yuan unfolded the map of Zi Zai Tian and studied it for a long time before handing it over to Gan Ningzhen. The latter hesitated for a moment, and Hai Ji said: "We've helped him deal with Shi Jiu Lang, this is his due reward."

  Gan Ning finally took over the map. The division of spoils ended here. The three beauties seemed to be quite satisfied, and Ouyang Yuan had completely figured out their preferences.

  "Coughing, I said: 'City Lord, it seems like both of my hands are empty.'"

  Ouyang Yuanyu smiled and said: "Lin Gongzi, the maids in our mansion, you can choose a few that you like to take away."

  I snorted: "Women are not needed, I can't afford it. A decent man, always has clean sleeves."

  Before long, Ouyang Yuan had someone bring over a heavy and hard package. As soon as I touched it, I knew it was gold, silver, and jewels. Ouyang Yuan, you're really a flower that understands speech! A decent gentleman, it seems I'm not lucky enough to be one.

  And so, the four of us left Ou Yangyuan's mansion with a full load.

  The sun is shining brightly, the white flowers on the roadside are dazzling. I counted the gold and silver in my bundle, my hands shaking uncontrollably. There's so much money, it would take several lifetimes to spend it all. If I return to Luoyang, I'll definitely become a wealthy man. Who knows, maybe I can even marry Princess Wang.

  All along the way, Ju Danmei didn't say a word. I looked at her in surprise: "What's wrong with you?"

  Ji Dan Mei forced a smile, and I felt a stir in my heart: "That iron tree blooming, the Demon Lord descending to the world, what's going on?"

  Ji Danmei gazed up at the sky, silent for a moment, before saying: "At the highest peak of Mo Yue Tian, Kun Peng Mountain, there grows a gigantic Sal Tree. An ancient legend has it that the Sal Tree was formed from the blood of 100,000 demons. For tens of thousands of years, the Sal Tree has never bloomed, but once it does, it will give birth to the strongest demon in history. He will unify Mo Yue Tian and become the ruler of the Northern Realm."

  "Now the iron tree is in bloom, hasn't the Demon Lord appeared? That Shi Jiu Lang must be a servant of the Demon Lord!"

  Ji Dan's face turned solemn: "If this is true, the Northern Territory will be in great chaos."

  "We've seized the three treasures of the Demon King and killed Shi Jiu Lang. Isn't that making a great enemy for no reason?"

  Hai Ji said disdainfully, "The Demon Lord's descent is just a trick of the demons in the Demon Realm. I don't believe that the Demon Lord can do anything to us. Ju Danmei, you've always been bold and ruthless, how can you be afraid now?"

  Jiudan Mei's face was solemn: "You've also seen Shi Jiulang's strength. Even someone as unruly as him has become a slave to the Demon Master, just thinking about it makes me feel uneasy."

  "No way!" Gan Ning suddenly spoke up, his eyes fixed on what was in front of him.

  I also found that the vendors in Ruyi City had all disappeared. The streets were cold and empty, with almost no pedestrians passing by.

  The bustling Ruyi City suddenly became eerily quiet.

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