Stellar Transformations

by I Eat Tomatoes

  Right after Lord Teng said this, his red robe flaps and he leaves extremely fast. He has come to and left the Great Shell Cave as he pleases without any hindrance. To him, Fu Hao’s guards and restrictive spells are basically just there for show.

  ……

  A month later,

  When Fu Hao is rolling in the bed with a beautiful woman, he suddenly stops.

  “Sweetie, you can leave first.”

  He unwillingly gives an order then gets dressed at once. When there is no one else in the room, a fat man appears and leans back in the jade chair that Fu Hao often uses. This man is even fatter and shorter than him.

  The short fat man has a thin moustache consisting of 2 lines of hair that look like daggers.

  “Lord Lou, it’s been just a half year yet you have come to eat my treasure again?” Unlike when he saw Lord Teng, Fu Hao behaves in a very relaxed manner when he sees this Lord Lou. But his facial expression has turned bitter.

  The short fat man strokes his moustache then says laughingly: “Yeah, your Blood-red Flaming Honey is really delicious so this can’t be helped. Why don’t you give me another bowl?”

  “Bowl?!”

  Fu Hao suddenly shrieks as if he has been chopped at with a knife.

  “You even said bowl? I only got 3 small bottles in total. Even if they are put together, they won’t fill a bowl!” He says indignantly but his face suddenly turns pale.

  This Lord Lou bursts into evil laughter: “Ha-ha, oh my, you’ve still got 3 bottles yet last time you told me you got only one. Humph, humph, unless you give me 2 bottles, don’t even think that you’ll be okay. Say, what do you want? Giving them to me with respect or having all 3 bottles snatched by me?”

  Fu Hao and Lord Lou like sweets very much. This Blood-red Flaming Honey not only makes the eaters feel a pleasant burning sensation inside as if they are drinking spirit, it is also uniquely sweet, therefore these 2 fat fellows are addicted to it.

  “2 bottles, oh my, just kill me instead.”

  Fu Hao would rather die than obey.

  After bargaining for a while, he eventually unwillingly surrenders one and a half bottles of Blood-red Flaming Honey to Lord Lou. Seeing Lord Lou’s satisfied expression, he feels a great pain in his heart.

  Lord Lou opens a bottle and has a gentle sniff of the honey’s scent, appearing to take great pleasure in doing so. But he says at the same time: “Alright, now is the main business. There should be no need for me to say much, right? Tell me everything you know.”

  Fu Hao is secretly frustrated: “Damn it. What the hell has been going on in the past 2 years that both the Azure Dragon Palace and the Blue Water Mansion have come to find me? Could it be I’ve become popular? But I’ve benefited considerably too.”

  In fact, this Lord Lou and Lord Teng have come to Fu Hao only in the last 2 years. They both have asked Fu Hao to work for them. Because they are very powerful experts, the only thing Fu Hao has been able to do is obey their orders.

  Lord Teng and Lord Lou are very secretive and do not let anyone else notice them every time either of them comes here.

  After a talk, Lord Lou eventually knows what he wanted to know, but he is obviously somewhat stingier than Lord Teng because in the end he only rewards Fu Hao with a high-grade holy weapon, which naturally causes Fu Hao to secretly curse him.

  Only when Fu Hao sees Lord Lou leave does he secretly let out a sigh of relief.

  “Not bad, luckily I was quick enough to immediately say that I got 3 bottles of Blood-red Flaming Honey instead of nine.” In his heart, he is pleased with what he has done.

  For the moment, Fu Hao is stuck between the 3 superpowers and is passing every day in horror, but he has gained quite a lot as well.

  He does not know that the Azure Dragon Palace, the Blue Water Mansion and the Nine Demons Hall generally do not care about minor powers such as the 8 caves and do not plant spies into them either. For example, the Azure Dragon Palace has only infiltrated spies into the Nine Demons Hall and the Blue Water Mansion.

  Even the Nine Demons Hall has never really cared about the 8 caves under it.

  2 years ago, the Azure Dragon Palace and the Blue Water Mansion discovered that 8th majesty of the Nine Demons Hall had left the hall. Even though the Nine Demons Hall announced that he was doing closed-door training, the Azure Dragon Palace and the Blue Water Mansion had planted their spies into it long before that.

  However, Di Tong’s whereabouts were very secret so the Azure Dragon Palace and the Blue Water Mansion were unable to find out what he wanted to do.

  But they did not pay too much attention to this either because while it was worth tracking a majesty of the Nine Demons Hall who had stealthily come out to do something, this was not very important. However, later they received a piece of news from inside the Nine Demons Hall -- “the other 8 majesties were extremely furious outside the place where the soul jade slips are kept.”

  Based on this and the fact that 3 majesties left the Nine Demons Hall at once, they concluded that 8th majesty was dead.

  Only at that time did the Azure Dragon Palace and the Blue Water Mansion realize that 8th majesty’s secret departure from the Nine Demons Hall was not something simple. They immediately began to pay attention to it and even dispatched Lord Teng and Lord Lou, 2 super experts, to investigate.

  Lord Teng and Lord Lou then happened to take the same action -- finding Fu Hao.

  The 3 superpowers have been competing with each other both openly and secretly, and likewise the 8 caves under the Nine Demons Hall. 100 years ago, the Great Shell Cave, which is the one nearest the Blood-red Cave, infiltrated quite a few spies into the Blood-red Cave so there is absolutely no one who knows more about the Blood-red Cave’s affairs than the Great Shell Cave’s master.

  Therefore, Fu Hao immediately became the focus of attention from the 3 superpowers. Di Qing has usually contacted him through his transmitter.

  Lord Teng and Lord Lou have normally communicated with him via his transmitter as well. It is just that this time they knew that 3 majesties would come to the Great Shell Cave soon and it would not take long to reach the Blood-red Cave from the Great Shell Cave, so they have personally found Fu Hao and rewarded him.

  The Azure Dragon Palace ranks 1st among the 3 superpowers and its overlord has shown that he is really worthy of being called the no. 1 expert in the overseas Xiuzhen world by giving Fu Hao much more than the Blue Water Mansion did.

  ……

  “Qin Yu, to be honest, it seems you don’t understand the game of Go. As for this game of chess, even though you taught it to me, you see, check.”

  Li’er moves her horse.

  Qin Yu is immediately dumbfounded. His king can still make a move, but he can see that Li’er’s other horse has already been placed in a good position and will checkmate him right afterwards. He simply has no way out.

  “Li’er, you’ve won again.”

  He has no choice but to give up.

  Actually he understands the game of Go. According to Grandpa Lian, he even belongs to the intermediate level on the Qian Long continent. However, every time he played Li’er, he was forced to admit defeat after 100 moves.

  Qin Yu was secretly frustrated: “Can I be blamed? She always beats me after 100 moves. The gap is too great. Perhaps she even waits until after the 100th move to finish me off to let me save face.”

  When he played the game of Go with Li’er, he noticed that sometimes her pieces would only be useful 100 moves later. Qin Yu was secretly shocked by this. Li’er’s calculation power was really too strong already. How could she plan ahead so many moves?

  Thus, Qin Yu was forced to admit defeat again and again.

  However, as a son of the Qin clan, he did not like this, so he suggested playing the game of chess. Li’er knew absolutely nothing about this game but Qin Yu was even mean enough to explain its many rules vaguely to her. Only after she made a move would he tell her something about the rules.

  Thanks to th
is … he won the first game.

  Only after this game did Li’er have a rough understanding of the rules.

  In the 2nd game, Qin Yu felt clearly that her chess ability had improved by leaps and bounds. Because he had many years of experience in chess and had read quite a few chess manuals in Misty Villa, he was able to win the 2nd game with effort.

  However ... he has always lost since the 3rd game.

  His manly dignity is all gone. He has thought that he himself is smart and that even his father Qin De will have difficulty winning against him but Li’er has defeated him with utter ease. Every time they have played, only when the game was almost over could Qin Yu discover how precise her moves were.

  “Qin Yu, don’t be discouraged. In fact your chess skill …”

  Qin Yu immediately looks at Li’er.

  “… is just a little weak.”

  He cannot help feeling sad. Actually she wanted to say that his skill was very weak but in the end she showed some mercy. As soon as Li’er sees Qin Yu’s expression, she says as if she is a teacher: “Since your skill is weak, you’ll need to learn carefully. I’ll play a game with Uncle Lan in a while and you have to watch it with attention.”

  It has been a half year. Qin Yu has often played chess with Li’er during this period and he has lost most of the time.

  “All right.” He says smilingly. In fact, he does not care too much about winning and losing in chess. But he likes Li’er’s wise expression when she plays chess, which always gives him a peaceful easy feeling. Suddenly, he becomes serious: “Li’er, I’ve got something to tell you.”

  “What is it?” Li’er says with a smile.

  “I’m going to leave tomorrow. It’s time I went back to the Blood-red Cave.” Actually, he should have left this place long ago, but he has been delaying his departure. Now he knows that members of the Nine Demons Hall can come anytime within a month or two so he has no choice but to return.

  Li’er is startled. She has been playing chess with Qin Yu every day for the last half year so for the moment, in her heart, she is somewhat reluctant to be parted from him.

  But then she immediately says smilingly again: “After you’ve handled all your matters, you’ll have to visit me frequently. And when you’ve returned, don’t forget to polish up your chess skill, okay?”

  Qin Yu nods his head.

  “Definitely!”

  He says very affirmatively.

  Chapter 9: The Arrival of the 3 Demons

  Outside the entrance of the ravine, Uncle Lan, Li’er and all the Xiuyaoists in the ravine such as Yan Zi have gathered to bid farewell to Qin Yu. This time, he has been staying in the ravine for more than a half year. Once again, Qin Yu has felt that the heat current sent out by his Meteoric Tear has become stronger by 2 to 3 times during this period.

  It was also like this when he was here last time and only went back to normal after he had left the ravine. In the last half year, he has often listened to Li’er’s music so his mental state has improved quite a lot and his soul has become even more materialized. Now his soul level has already reached the peak of the early Dongxu stage and can experience another breakthrough anytime.

  “There’s no need to keep seeing me off, everybody. And don’t worry about the Blood-red Cave’s affairs. Once I’ve dealt with them, I’m going to return to visit you. After all, the distance between the ravine and the Blood-red Cave is fairly short.” Qin Yu says smilingly to everyone.

  Only at his current level does he dare to say that a nearly 1 million li distance is not far.

  “It’s not far indeed. When I have free time, I’ll also come to visit you. You’ll have to improve your chess skill intensively and don’t let me defeat you so easily next time.” Li’er says with a smile. Given her marvelous travelling technique, she really can cover a million li very easily.

  Hearing the words ‘chess skill’, Qin Yu cannot help having a headache. But he still says with a big smile on his face: “Of course I will, Li’er. In fact, my chess skill isn’t too weak. It’s just that your skill is somewhat too … abnormal.”

  Li’er is a little annoyed at once. But this is just because of her shyness. During this period of time, Qin Yu has often kidded her and she has never become very angry. However, he likes how she looks when she is both embarrassed and annoyed very much.

  “Xiao Yu.”

  Uncle Lan says.

  When Qin Yu just returned to the ravine more than a half year ago, he had a talk with Uncle Lan. Afterwards, Uncle Lan somehow changed his mind and had a completely different attitude towards Qin Yu. He also began to call Qin Yu ‘Xiao Yu’ just like how a senior would call his junior instead of ‘Qin Yu.’ Of course, Qin Yu did not mind this.

  “Remember the transmitter I gave you and that advice.” Uncle Lan says this sentence with a fairly serious expression. He then says smilingly: “Don’t think too much. Just try to temper yourself outside. This ravine is calm and quiet but it’s unsuitable for someone young and inexperienced like you.”

  Qin Yu nods resolutely: “I already remembered, Uncle Lan.”

  “Big brother Qin Yu, next time you’ll have to give me and sis Jin presents. Most importantly, you’ll have to give sis Li’er a present.” Yan Zi says playfully on one side.

  Qin Yu nods at her then looks at the other residents of the ravine. His eyes stop on Li’er a bit longer.

  “There’s no need to keep seeing me off, everybody, goodbye.”

  After saying this, he immediately stands on the Flaming Sword and rushes towards the Blood-red Cave like a beam of light. The Xiuyaoists then go back into the ravine one by one, but Li’er is still looking in Qin Yu’s direction. There is a hint of disappointment in her eyes at the moment.

  “Sis Li’er, you don’t like to be separated from him, do you?” Yan Zi says laughingly on one side of her. On the other side, Xiao Jin also begins to kid her.

  Li’er regains her normal composure in an instant.

  “Humph, the 2 of you even dare to poke fun at me. Now Qin Yu has gone, I need someone else to play chess with. All right, then I’m going to play with you two.” She makes a wave of her hand. Yan Zi and Xiao Jin are unexpectedly immobilized at once. Li’er returns to the ravine right afterwards. Surprisingly, Yan Zi and Xiao Jin automatically float after her.

  If Qin Yu were to see this move, he would be dumbfounded.

  This is really the power of a Jindan stage Xiuzhenist?

  “Sis Li’er, you’re very merciful so please forgive us. We already know that we were wrong. We can’t play chess. It’s too complicated and headachy for us.” Yan Zi cannot move her limbs so she can only use her mouth to say nonstop. Xiao Jin, who is suffering the same fate, is also begging unceasingly.

  “If you can’t play chess then I’ll teach you. Qin Yu taught it to me but now I’m even better at it than him.”

  Li’er giggles and totally ignores Yan Zi’s and Xiao Jin’s appeals.

  At the entrance of the ravine,

  Uncle Lan is standing here. Li’er and the others have come back into the ravine. Hearing the conversation between Li’er, Yan Zi and Xiao Jin, he gives a faint smile.

  He then looks in the direction of Qin Yu’s departure and says to himself: “Am I right or wrong to let Li’er and Xiao Yu be together? Just like when I didn’t die with her at that time to live out this worthless life, was I right or wrong?”

  “If I had another chance …”

  He sighs quietly: “Perhaps I’d choose the other path even if it would lead to death.”

  “Everyone chooses their own path. I can’t force Xiao Yu to follow a certain path.” He turns into nothingness after saying this and enters the bamboo house in an instant. This is the legendary Teleportation.

  ……

  Inside the Blood-red Cave,

  “Oh?”

  Qin Yu is standing outside the entrance leading to the underground secret floor in the artificial mountain. His face slightly changes color. He immediately says to the guard
s on patrol nearby: “All of you come here.”

  Hearing the order, that patrolling guard squad runs up to him extremely fast at once. The guards in the squad then get down on one knee, saying: “Cave master.”

  “Say, when was this secret floor rebuilt into this state?” Qin Yu shouts a question at the squad leader. There is even a note of anger in his tone.

  That squad leader immediately says in terror: “About a half year ago, 2nd master said that this secret floor had been reduced to a mess by that fierce battle and ordered guards to rebuild it.”

  When Qin Yu hears this, his face darkens. The squad leader continues: “Cave master, this underground secret floor was such a mess. Perhaps 2nd master also thought that it was graceless so he ordered us subordinates to rebuild it.”