After the Villain Lost His Cultivation - Chapter 17

Down the Yuchuan River, there is the Evil Qi Road.

Evil spirits were in power, and resentment surged to the heavens. Xi Jianglan hummed a leisurely tune as he pushed the wheelchair through the crowd of demons and monsters, as if he had long been accustomed to this scene, his gaze steady.

Heng Yudu, a gentle gentleman raised among jade, had never encountered such a spectacle before. He held the glass bird in his hand, his forehead furrowed.

”Do you have any news about the seller of the painting?”

Xi Jianglan casually plucked a handful of osmanthus flowers from the roadside, bringing them to his lips to taste, and said, ”Why should I go looking for information myself? Can’t I just ask you directly?”

After all, Heng Yudu had gone to see the abbot of Gu Chang Temple long before Sheng Jiao arrived.

”Changing Moon” will definitely provide a wealth of information.

Heng Yudu paused as he stroked the glass bird.

They are all smart people, Heng Yudu did not play dumb and calmly said, ”I won’t tell you, I have my reasons.”

Xi Jianglan choked slightly, a small petal of golden osmanthus stuck to his lips, which he gently hooked with the tip of his tongue and rolled into his mouth.

”You’re starting to sound more and more like Rang Chen. He’s always so unfathomable, as if he’s strategizing and can control everyone’s fate with just his words.”

Heng Yudu began to explain again, ”I’m not pretending to be profound, I really didn’t get anything useful from the abbot of Gu Chang Temple.”

Xi Jianglan tilted his head, ”Is he a wooden puppet?”

Heng Yudu fell silent.

Xi Jianglan’s sharp intelligence is sometimes so sharp that it makes people feel creepy.

”Yes.”

But strangely, Xi Jianglan simply acknowledged it and didn’t ask any more questions.

The Evil Qi Road did indeed have thirty-six alleys, just as Xi Jianglan had described. The wide road was lined with brightly lit theaters and bustling shops, and a bright moon could be vaguely seen across the Yuchuan River above.

Xi Jianglan arrived at the twenty-first alley, holding a small ghost-light lantern and pushing his wheelchair forward with one hand.

The twenty-first alley was bustling with activity. The ground was covered with piles of yellow paper. When the wooden wheels rolled over them, faint screams could be heard, as if someone’s hand was being crushed.

Heng Yudu looked back.

“There are many dishonest ghosts in the twenty-first alley,” Xi Jianglan leaned over and whispered into Heng Yudu’s ear, “It’s best not to accept their money, and don’t use your lamp to exchange for anything else.”

Basins of clear water were placed on the small stalls on both sides of the road. A nearby customer had taken a fancy to a small jade ball with purple water ripples and generously paid for it with a large bag of spirit stones.

The stall owner weighed it, sneered, and poured the spirit stones into the water.

With a loud splash sound, the supposedly heavy spirit stones floated directly to the surface of the water.

They were actually made of yellow paper, crudely shaped.

Heng Yudu hesitated and asked, “Evil Qi Road… Is there really no one in charge?”

This kind of place, teeming with both people and demons, exuding wicked energy, would require at least someone at the Return to Void Realm level of cultivation to enforce order.

Throughout the entire Thirteen Provinces, there were only a handful of people at the Return to Void Realm.

Xi Jianglan replied, “Of course there is, or it would have descended into chaos long ago.”

The stall owner had already chopped the evil ghost into several pieces with a knife. He spat, took the jade ball back with a curse, and continued to set up his stall

Xi Jianglan added, “…But as long as no one violates the iron rule of the Evil Qi Road, these minor scuffles are usually left alone.”

Heng Yudu asked, “Iron rule?”

In a place full of such miscreants, where killing and ghost extermination were commonplace, what kind of iron rule could exist?

In the space of two sentences, Xi Jianglan had already pushed Heng Yudu into a brightly lit and bustling establishment.

From the two lanterns hanging above the threshold, two blue flames leaped out and cheerfully floated before them.

“A house full of gold and jade!”

“The sun circles a thousand streets!”

Xi Jianglan flicked a piece of jade with his fingers, hitting the fire pattern that scolded him, and laughed, ”Idiot, can’t you even say some auspicious words?”

The two fire patterns vied to grab the jade and gnawed on it. When they saw that the two lanterns were still lit, they snorted twice and returned to the lanterns, allowing them to pass.

Heng Yudu watched quietly and finally spoke up, ”You seem to come to Evil Qi Road often?”

But the high and mighty little immortal should have had nothing to do with such a decadent place in his life.

Xi Jianglan replied vaguely, ”If you want to escape, Evil Qi Road is naturally the best place to hide your identity and whereabouts, oh, we’ve arrived.”

Heng Yudu looked over and was surprised to find that this place was actually a gambling house.

Countless people were living a life of drunkenness and dreams here, hoping to get rich overnight and change their fate, just as the two fire patterns had said earlier.

Some had a house full of gold and jade, while others were rich and powerful.

Gamblers with bloodshot eyes were everywhere, filled with filthy resentment. Heng Yudu, sitting upright in his exquisite wheelchair, felt out of place, people kept staring at him, wondering what he was thinking.

The surroundings were like an attic temple, with long corridors connecting to form a circle, and buildings nested within buildings, one layer after another.

A huge gambling table was set in the center of the space. Perhaps someone was gambling there. A wall of people surrounded it, layer upon layer, making it so dark that one couldn’t see who was inside.

Xi Jianglan strolled and pushed Heng Yudu up to the second floor. Only by standing in the corridor and looking down could he see the scene at the gambling table on the first floor.

A man was gambling heavily.

Countless spirit stones piled up like mountains, and the flickering candlelight reflected shimmering waves, making the people around eager to act.

Xi Jianglan lounged lazily on the armrest of Heng Yudu’s wheelchair, an imperceptible cold light glinting in the corners of his eyes as he coldly stared at the man whose face was flushed with joy.

Heng Yudu noticed something was off with his mood. After a moment’s thought, he asked, “Is that child’s father?”

Xi Jianglan replied calmly: “Mm.”

Qin Banban’s gambling father had likely been gambling here for quite a while, and the guests watching on the second floor were huddled together, whispering.

“I heard that this person took a hundred thousand spirit stones. With such good luck, he has already lost half of it.”

“Those spirit stones are enough for an ordinary family to live for three lifetimes. Tsk.”

Suddenly, a loud laugh came from below. After losing three rounds, Qin Si finally won one and was so happy that he gathered a pile of spirit stones.

The dealer asked, “Shall we continue?”

Without a moment’s thought, Qin Si replied, “Continue.”

The short-sighted man used the spirit stones obtained in exchange for his daughter’s innate mark to indulge in the thrill of sudden wealth and reckless gambling.

Xi Jianglan’s hands, hanging at his side, suddenly tightened, as if he could no longer bear it. He was about to stand up with his jaw clenched when Heng Yudu grabbed him.

“Jianglan,” Heng Yudu whispered, “Don’t act on impulse.”

Xi Jianglan replied, “I wont.”

Heng Yudu looked up at him and found that Xi Jianglan appeared calm. His lowered gaze towards Qin Si was filled with pity and disgust, but there was no anger that suggested he wanted to rush up and kill.

Xi Jianglan naturally reached out to Heng Yudu. “Give me some spirit stones.”

Heng Yudu’s lips twitched slightly. “You always lose when you gamble.”

“What are you thinking?” Xi Jianglan laughed. “This ant definitely won’t survive today. Why should I bother gambling with him? Spirit stones, hurry up.”

Heng Yudu was puzzled but still handed him a storage ring.

Xi Jianglan was very satisfied and sighed, “If it were that poor fool Sheng Jiao, he probably wouldn’t be willing to give me even a single spirit stone.”

Heng Yudu said gently, “He isn’t poor right now.”

“But he’s still stingy.” Xi Jianglan extended his hand to a passing servant, saying, “Come here.”

The servant approached respectfully, wearing a skull mask.

“What do you need?”

Xi Jianglan skillfully tossed the storage ring over. “Get me the ‘Abandoned Immortal Bone.”

The servant’s mask tilted suddenly, and his expression became even more respectful.

He was about to leave with the spirit stones in his hand when Xi Jianglan suddenly leaned over to his ear and whispered something.

Even with the skull mask on, it was clear that the boy’s pupils were trembling violently, and the mask nearly shook off his face. He ran away in panic without saying a word.

Heng Yudu asked doubtfully, “What is the ‘Abandoned Immortal Bone’?”

Xi Jianglan curled his lips and smiled, as if he was being mischievous. “It’s… something that can make people lose their minds.”

Heng Yudu had a hunch that what Xi Jianglan had just said to the servant was definitely not something good.

Soon, the servant returned, holding an exquisite little box in both hands, and presented it to Xi Jianglan.

Xi Jianglan accepted it and casually handed it over to Heng Yudu.

“Here.”

Heng Yudu gently opened the box, and a strange surge of spiritual power suddenly rushed over him, blowing his long hair back over his shoulders.

With a “click,” the box opened completely.

Heng Yudu’s pupils trembled violently as he slammed the box shut, a rare look of horror appearing on his calm face.

“Tianyan… spiritual vein?”

The “Abandoned Immortal Bone” bought with a pile of spirit stones turned out to be a small clump of Tianyan spiritual vein!

The Tianyan spiritual vein, a gift from the Heavenly Dao, can produce innate marks.

Originally unique to the great families of the Thirteen Provinces, ordinary cultivators had no chance of knowing what the Tianyan spiritual vein was, and naturally, they could not produce innate marks.

But in the Evil Qi Road, it could be easily be bought with spirit stones?

However, when Heng Yudu carefully examined the “Abandoned Immortal Bone,” he discovered that this spiritual vein was merely a semblance of the real thing and not the true Tianyan spiritual vein.

Xi Jianglan looked down at the man who was still gambling, a cold light in his eyes, but his tone was gentle and indifferent: “The ‘Abandoned Immortal Bone’ is also called False Tianyan. It can temporarily provide spiritual power, but it is extremely damaging to the spiritual roots.”

But how could someone who could come to the Evil Qi Road care about the consequences?

Abandoned immortal bone.. Abandoned immortal bone. With this good thing that could lead them to the heavens, they would naturally be willing to abandon their immortal bones.

Heng Yudu frowned.

The False Tianyan of the Evil Qi Road is like an undercurrent beneath the calm water surface. No one knows when it will break through the waters of Yuchuan, sweep into the world, and turn the entire Thirteen Provinces into a muddy pool.

“The mastermind behind Evil Qi Road has allowed the ‘Abandoned Immortal Bone’ to be sold freely,” whispered Xi Jianglan, “But he does not allow anyone to privately buy and sell the innate marks.”

If the business of innate marks grows larger, and everyone seeks to buy the “paintings” to become an unattainable immortal with innate marks, then who would use something like “Abandoned Immortal Bone,” which is like drinking poison to quench thirst?

Heng Yudu looked at Qin Si, who was already determined to gamble, and seemed to understand something.

“So the iron rule of the entire Evil Qi Road is to prohibit the buying and selling of innate marks.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd on the first floor erupted with exclamations.

“The man with the skull mask is here!”

“It’s Yu…”

Heng Yudu looked down and saw that the large crowd seemed to be avoiding something terrifying. They quickly parted to the left and right, revealing a long path leading directly to the gambling table.

A man in red with a skull mask strolled over leisurely, and with every step he took, a circle of purple patterns spread out beneath his feet.

Heng Yudu’s pupils trembled.

This person… is actually a spirit condensed from the Tianyan spiritual vein?

At this moment, someone nearby whispered in astonishment, “Yu Tuishan?”

Skull mask, Yu Tuishan.

The entire Evil Qi Road knows about this person, but it is rumored that he only comes out to rectify and cleanse when someone violates the rules of Evil Qi Road, and he never enters the gambling house.

Why today…?

Yu Tuishan strolled leisurely, every movement exuding an indescribable nobility and grace. He slowly followed the path cleared by the crowd to the gambling table, bringing with him a peculiar scent of…

salt and pepper crispy fish.

Upon seeing him, the dealer of the gambling house quickly stood up and bowed respectfully, “My Lord.”

“What’s wrong?” Yu Tuishan’s voice was soft and gentle, each word like a confession of deep affection to a beloved, lingering and enticing. “It’s quite interesting, go on and continue gambling.”

The dealer, unsure of who he had come for, could only continue gambling with the confused Qin Si.

It was Qin Si’s first time visiting the Evil Qi Road. He didn’t understand the fear the people around him had for the man with the skull mask. Frowning, he tossed out a handful of spirit stones.

Yu Tuishan stood behind him, pulling out a paper bag of salt and pepper crispy fish from his pocket and enjoying it with great relish.

He appeared so relaxed, yet those around him fell silent and retreated quietly, as if afraid of being caught in the fallout.

However, Yu Tuishan seemed to have forgotten the purpose of his visit. He seriously finished the bag of crispy fish, licking the residue off his fingertips with his mask tilted slightly, resembling an elegant and beautiful cat.

Qin Si had experienced both wins and losses before, but the overwhelming presence of the man behind him made him inexplicably nervous, and he lost all of the next few games.

“Maybe it’s time to stop…” As he watched the piles of spirit stones shrink, a moment of clarity struck him, and he thought, “It won’t be too late to come back tomorrow. Banban also likes to eat fish. I’ll go buy her one to nourish her body.”

Just then, the dealer said, “You’ve won this round, do you want to continue?”

Qin Si’s eyes brightened, instantly discarding his earlier thoughts, his gaze filled with greed: “Naturally, I will continue!”

What gambler would complain about not winning enough?

What gambler wouldn’t believe that they could continue their winning streak and turn the tide?

Yu Tuishan, having just finished eating the fish, let out a soft sigh, as if regretting something.

He reached out and pinched a jade dice on the table, looked at it in the candlelight, and said lightly, “Do you like dice?”

Qin Si frowned, thinking this person was an eyesore. “Get lost.”

As soon as those two words were spoken, everyone around gasped and looked at him with pity in their eyes.

It was obvious that this man had just arrived at Evil Qi Road and had no idea of the methods of this skull masked man.

Yu Tuishan was not angry and gently asked again, “Do you like them?”

Qin Si vaguely sensed something was wrong and frowned, “What do you mean by ‘like’ or ‘dislike’?”

Gamblers risk their entire fortunes and lives on this tiny jade dice.

If the dice comes up with the number they pressed, then they like it;

If not, then it is a deep-seated grudge.

“Since you love gambling so much, you must like it.” Yu Tuishan laughed and gently touched Qin Si’s brow with his slender fingers, saying softly, “Whatever you like, that’s what you should become, right?”

Qin Si was so angry at the gesture of having his forehead poked that he slammed the table and was about to curse, but he suddenly felt his vision spinning violently, as if someone had slapped him hard and sent him crashing out.

The surrounding crowd and the massive gambling table seemed to vanish in the blink of an eye, leaving only an endless expanse of darkness.

His vision was low, and he found himself unable to move.

The entire gambling house was in complete silence.

Yu Tuishan had actually transformed a living person into an ordinary jade dice in an instant.

The dice spun several times on the gambling table before finally coming to a stop amid the pile of spirit stones.

The number “one” quietly faced the sky.

It took Qin Si a long time to realize that something was wrong. He was so frightened that he wanted to scream, but his internal organs and even every meridian seemed to be fixed, and he couldn’t make any sound, no matter how hard he tried.

He… had actually become a dice?!

“How strange,” Yu Tuishan pushed the immobile jade dice with his fingertip, frowning slightly, appearing somewhat confused. “Weren’t you very fond of dice? Why are you so terrified?”

Qin Si was filled with dread, and the tiny dice trembled slightly because of his fear.

The overwhelming terror swept through his entire soul, leaving him unable to think.

He didn’t even know what he had done wrong, and didn’t know how to admit his mistake when he wanted to ask for forgiveness.

Was gambling wrong?

But it was obvious that other people were also gambling.

Yu Tuishan seemed to have noticed something, and his gaze beneath the skull mask grew even colder.

Unrepentant idiot.

He lowered his eyes and casually tossed Qin Si’s dice back into the dice cup as if it were stained with something dirty. He took the white cloth handed to him by the servant, wiped his five fingers, and turned to leave.

The people around him all nodded at him with pale faces and watched him go in fear.

Yu Tuishan was about to exit the gambling house when he suddenly remembered something: “The person selling the innate mark has been found, but what about the buyer?”

The servant hesitantly replied, “That person… didn’t say anything.”

Yu Tuishan tilted his head and glanced toward the second floor.

The corridor was empty, with no one there.

“Have you been used as a tool to kill someone?” Yu Tuishan smiled. “No, I need to use others to do things.”

“Lord Yu?”

Yu Tuishan strolled out leisurely, asking, “Did anyone from the Xiezhi Sect come today?”

The servant hurried a few steps to catch up: “Yes, only one came, and it seems he went in the direction of Hezhou City.”

“That’s great. Let the people from the Xiezhi Sect help me deal with Hezhou City.” Yu Tuishan walked out of the gambling house slowly, “I have to…”

The servant thought that this powerful man had other important things to do and was listening attentively, but he heard him say.

“I have to buy another bag of crispy fish.”

The servant: ”…”

Alright.

Xi Jianglan took advantage of the chaos to take Heng Yudu away from the gambling house. His brows, which had been cold all along, finally relaxed as he leaned back in his chair, speaking lazily.

“I also want to eat pepper-salt crispy fish. There’s a place at the corner of Nineteenth Alley that makes it particularly delicious. I’ll take you there later.”

Heng Yudu was not in the mood to eat crispy fish, he knew without thinking that Xi Jianglan must have said something to the servant to lure the skull-faced Yu Tuishan over.

But seeing the unmasked joy on Xi Jianglan’s face, he had to swallow his words of reprimand.

“Alright, are we going home after buying the crispy fish?”

“We’re not going home.” Xi Jianglan picked another handful of osmanthus flowers to eat, his cold eyes slightly raised, as if he were looking into the unknown distance through the brightly lit long street.

“I’m going to retrieve ‘Third Watch Snow’.”