Chapter Thirty-Seven: Dài Léi Qiū

  "What's a nine-bug?" I asked in surprise, "What is that thing?"

  Xiao Lao stared at the black insect with his big, bright eyes, his mouth watering in anticipation. Seeing its unusual appearance, he knew that this little creature was no ordinary being. Xiao Lao snapped back to reality and said in a flattering tone: "Jun Yang, my young friend, you don't know, do you? This nine-bug is actually a spiritual creature! When it turns red, the starlight can ignite flames that burn for thousands of miles; when it turns white, it can freeze mountains and rivers for ten thousand miles!"

  "Is it really that amazing? But how did it run out of my ears?" I asked in puzzlement.

  "This... I'm also just guessing, maybe it was originally in the array, and after you broke the array, it belongs to you now. Such a spiritual object is really hard to come by." Xiao Lao said with an envious tone.

  Lao San said with a surprised face: "Is this small bug so fierce? I'll try it." He chased after the small black insect, trying to catch it. The insect dodged and weaved, flying high and low, seemingly intentionally teasing Lao San. Exhausted, Lao San scolded and panted, finally saying: "Damn it, I won't catch it anymore."

  Yang Cangcang covered her stomach and laughed loudly: "Can you be any more stupid? You can't even catch a small bug."

  Lao San pouted and returned to my side, the little black insect perched on my shoulder with its tail raised. Lao San swiftly grabbed it and pinched it in his hand, laughing and saying: "What nine insects, what spiritual creatures, they're nothing but this..."

  Just as he was saying that, Lao San's expression suddenly froze, and his entire body was covered in a layer of white frost from head to toe. I looked at the black seed in his hand, which had really turned white, and was even emitting a faint silver glow. We were all stunned. Xiao Lao Da shouted: "Jun Yang, quickly get Jiu Chong to help Ah Long thaw out, or else Ah Long will be in danger!"

  I rushed up to the little bug and shouted loudly: "Quickly thaw out Old Three!"

  That black bug immediately turned red, and the white frost all over Lao San's body began to slowly dissipate. His clothes were soaked through, and he let out a sneeze as he hastily opened his hand to release the bug. Shivering all over, he said: "This damn little bug wants to freeze me to death! In a moment, I'll have Second Brother roast it for you."

  When Lao San finished speaking, the insect immediately turned silver again. Lao San was frightened and hid behind me. Everyone burst out laughing, and the insect flew proudly in front of me.

  I just realized that upon closer inspection, it wasn't a black worm, but a very small person. So small that I could only vaguely make out its arms and legs. "Is this thing a person?" I asked Old Xiao in astonishment.

  Xiao Lao nodded: "The nine insects are not actually insects, but a kind of spirit. Their bodies are very small and look just like insects, but they will grow up and their spiritual power will continue to increase. Because they are rarely seen, other abilities may only be discovered by you yourself, Jun Yang little friend. With this thing, our next battle might be easier."

  Fu Ma looked at me with a complex gaze, struggling for half a day before saying: "Jun Yang, I think that Huo Po seemed to be intentionally luring you into jumping into the stone pit, as if testing something. If it was just a simple array-breaking, how could we have obtained the Jiuchong, an almost extinct spiritual creature?"

  As he said that, I suddenly remembered the words Huo Po said before she disappeared. She said that having a heart of sacrifice and magnanimity is the demeanor of a king, and when she first saw me, she asked if I still remembered her. Did she know Xiang Ye in the past?

  I was still lost in thought when Fuma said, "I didn't mean anything else, I just wanted to remind you that sometimes what seems like a good thing can be the beginning of something bad." I understood Fuma's intention, he wanted to remind me to be careful with these nine insects and prevent any sinister plot.

  Xiao Lao suddenly remembered something and said: "I saw in an ancient book that the nine worms will choose the strongest person as their master. You broke the Li Array, so now they recognize you as their master. If someone can defeat you, the nine worms will belong to them. The nine worms' abilities will gradually increase with time. If the master's abilities are not strong enough, they will be counterattacked by the nine worms."

  "What?" I shouted, "This little thing will eat me up? Then I won't raise it, okay?"

  Karamay replied: "I heard that once you raise it, it will follow you for a lifetime, unless you die."

  "Hmm......" I was suddenly speechless, "Then what does it eat?"

  "It's just a matter of drinking, the nine insects are just better written and called white by everyone." Xiao Lao smiled at me and said, "Everything has two sides, it depends on how you grasp it, Jun Yang little friend." My heart was racing, looking at those lively flying small black insects, it was like having an unpredictable time bomb next to me.

  Yang Cangcang pouted and said: "Xiao Lao, how do you know so much? You always say it's from an ancient book, where did you get so many ancient books?"

  Xiao Lao smiled without speaking, and after a while, he said: "This is an extraordinary encounter from my youth, the details are not important, in short, I happened to meet a superior person and was fortunate enough to read all of his hidden books."

  Lao San burst out laughing and said: "Xiao Lao, didn't you get chased by a group of people, fell off the cliff, met a master, learned some incredible martial arts skills? Are you following the typical wuxia drama plot?" Xiao Lao gave him a cold stare but didn't say anything.

  Yang Cangcang stood at the edge of the huge stone pit on the altar and said to us: "The fire in this pit has gone out, and light can be seen below. This should be the exit leading to the next formation. Let's hurry up." As she spoke, she jumped down herself.

  Lao San still hadn't recovered from the chill earlier, shivering and jumping into the stone pit, we followed closely behind. As we continued to fall, we found ourselves back in the desert again. With one wave after another, I've lost track of dates and times, and rarely see blue skies. For the first time, I feel a sense of intimacy returning to the desert.

  We walked forward for a while and didn't find anything unusual. "There's another stele ahead," Karamay said, gazing into the distance.

  We walked towards the stone monument. This time, there were only paintings on the monument, no words. Xiao Lao took a look and said: "This is the Shocking Formation. The natural attribute of Shocking is Thunder."

  Lao San's face turned pale in an instant: "We're done for, this must be some kind of heavenly thunderbolt that will strike us dead! Alas, it's no wonder it's a great ancient formation, we've only made three moves and we're already exhausted. How can we get through this? Who among us can withstand the lightning?"

  Yang Cangcang said somewhat angrily: "Why are you always boosting others' morale and undermining your own prestige? If there really is a Thunder God, let him strike you first."

  "It's inevitable, let the storm come more fiercely." I pretended to be calm and walked straight away. Since the stone monument appeared, nothing unusual was found, and Lao San had been tense, looking around nervously, breaking out in a cold sweat.

  Yang Cangcang said with a hint of sarcasm: "Big brother, must you? There's no danger yet."

  Lao San looked around every corner and replied, "Do you think this formation is normal? Usually, we should see something by now, but nothing has appeared. This calm before the storm is what's most frightening. Who knows what will pop out in a bit?"

  Just as we were talking, a broad stone platform suddenly appeared in front of us. A person was sitting with their back to us. We all looked at Fuma, and Fuma nodded and said: "It's a human being, but it's a high-ranking person, the aura is very deep, and I couldn't see into his heart."

  Karamay respectfully bowed and said: "Senior, I'm sorry to disturb you, what teachings do you have for me here?"

  That faint figure smiled a few times and said in a strange voice: "Those who can walk to this place are all capable people, my wish of the past ten thousand years has finally been fulfilled today."

  We exchanged a glance, and Karamay continued to ask: "I wonder if there is any wish of yours that we can help you achieve?"

  That figure sneered and slowly turned towards us. When we saw his face, our expressions froze, our faces turned iron green, with black lines all over. The dark shadow had an explosive hairstyle, clearly a man, with stubble on his lips, but he was wearing heavy makeup, with thick rouge on both cheeks, like a monkey's buttocks. A big mole grew on his chin, and two long hairs grew out of the mole. He wore ancient women's clothing, holding a mirror in his left hand and picking his nose with his right hand.

  "Hmph..." Lao San couldn't help but exclaim, "This is indeed Ruhua!"

  The monkey's buttocks faced us, winking its eyes coquettishly at us, and then bashfully sent a flying kiss. In a sassy tone, it said: "Who is Ruhua? Is she as beautiful as me? My name is Dai Leiqiu, the master of this thunder array. Ruhua, if you like me, you can consider changing your name to this one in the future..."

  We all shuddered, and Karamay stuttered: "D...Dai senior, we want to break out of the formation, please tell us the method."

  Dai Lei Qiu quickly covered his mouth with a mirror, looking embarrassed and giggling twice, making Lao San feel nauseous to the point of almost vomiting. Dai Lei Qiu spoke softly to us: "I hate fighting and killing the most, but there's no other way. You think it's easy to pass through? I'm holding a martial arts tournament here to choose my husband. As long as you can defeat me, stay behind and be my husband, then accompany me for all eternity. The rest of you can leave."

  I was at a loss for words and looked at everyone with tears in my eyes, saying: "Uh... I'd rather leave this good thing to you guys, I'd still prefer to die."

  "No no no, I already have a wife, it's Cangcang, you can keep her for yourselves."

  "That... I also have a wife, let's give it to the single ones instead." Karamay looked at Old Xiao.

  Xiao Lao's face turned awkward as he hastily retreated a few steps: "This old man is already advanced in years, afraid of disappointing the young lady, it's better to let the younger generation take over." He looked towards Fu Ma.

  Fu Ma's face turned red, and after holding back for half a day, he said: "I... I... like men!"

  Yang Cangcang laughed so hard on the side that her stomach hurt, panting and saying: "Being a man is really bitter, look at me, I don't have to be so entangled."

  Dai Lei Chou made a hibiscus finger at Yang Cangcang, made an unpleasant expression, and then said: "Miss, you're annoying, my place here is not limited to men and women."

  Yang Cangcang's expression was as if she had just eaten a lump of shit.

  Lao San suddenly sighed: "So that's how the thunderstorm came about, indeed a thunderous person!"