I’ve Reloaded the Save File! [Transmigration] 39

39: Soul Devouring

After making a full circle, Mo Xiao stopped her movements, her eyebrows slightly lowered, a hint of confusion in her eyes.

“What’s wrong? Is there something wrong with this stone?” Yun Yu asked nervously. Could it really be a problem?

Mo Xiao shook her head. “I didn’t find anything strange. The ductility and spiritual conductivity of this ore are indeed good.”

Sometimes, the absence of abnormality is the biggest abnormality. The timing of this Gold Scale Ore’s appearance was so coincidental, and it had attracted the attention of so many cultivators. It didn’t make sense for there to be nothing fishy.

“Let me see,” A hint of confusion also appeared in Yun Yu’s eyes. After taking the Gold Scale Ore from Mo Xiao’s hand, she repeated Mo Xiao’s previous actions.

“It seems there really is nothing abnormal,” Yun Yu’s tone was laced with confusion. “Are we overthinking things? Is this just a simple new type of ore?”

Zuo Wuyi stood to the side without a word, instead beginning to search for relevant memories in her mind.

“System, tell me the information about Gold Scale Ore,” Zuo Wuyi had a vague impression of this stone, but she couldn’t remember when she had seen it.

[Host, have you forgotten?] the system said weakly. [This so-called Gold Scale Ore is what you encountered when you first entered the Demon Realm…]

The system didn’t finish its sentence. After a brief reminder, it quickly retreated back into Zuo Wuyi’s sea of consciousness.

When I first arrived in the Demon Realm? Zuo Wuyi was stunned for a moment, then the expression on her face became a little strange. “Eldest Senior Sister, I seem to have seen an ore very similar to this Gold Scale Ore in a book somewhere.”

Isn’t this the thing that made me suffer a great loss when I first entered the Demon Realm? I’ve really been too comfortable, to have even forgotten this!

“Oh? A very similar ore? What’s the name of that ore?” Yun Yu asked.

Zuo Wuyi pressed her lips together, then said word by word, “Soul Devouring Stone.”

“Soul Devouring?” Mo Xiao raised an eyebrow. “That doesn’t sound like a good thing.”

Zuo Wuyi glanced around. Before she could speak, Mo Xiao directly cast a barrier around the five of them, isolating them from outside prying eyes.

Seeing this, Yun Yu seemed to have realized something. Not feeling at ease, she added another layer, making sure it could block everyone’s prying. “Little Junior Sister, you can speak now.”

“I saw it by chance. According to the records in that book, this Gold Scale Ore doesn’t seem to be an ore from the cultivation world, but something from the Demon Realm,” Zuo Wuyi said, choosing her words carefully.

She could talk about the origin of the ore, but she couldn’t reveal her own background to so many people.

“What is the function of this ore? To devour souls?” Yun Yu pressed. Yun Yu trusted her Little Junior Sister, so she didn’t delve into where Zuo Wuyi had seen it.

Zuo Wuyi hesitated for a moment. “The book doesn’t seem to have a detailed record of this, only that it is very dangerous. If a cultivator carries it for a long time, it might affect their sanity.”

Hearing Zuo Wuyi’s words, the expressions of the four people present instantly changed. Even Qiu Wu, who was a step slower to react, realized the seriousness of the matter.

“Wuyi, take a closer look. Are you sure this is the Soul Devouring Stone you mentioned?” Yun Yu asked, her expression very serious.

Zuo Wuyi nodded. “The book also said that the method to determine if it is a Soul Devouring Stone is very simple. Eldest Senior Sister, you can take a small piece and try to put your blood on it. If it can devour blood, then it is a Soul Devouring Stone.”

Yun Yu nodded, directly broke off a soybean-sized piece of Gold Scale Ore with her hand, and placed it in her palm. Then she cut her finger with spiritual energy and squeezed out a drop of blood onto it.

Five pairs of eyes stared at Yun Yu’s palm, watching as the soybean-sized Gold Scale Ore slowly merged with Yun Yu’s blood, turning from gold to red, and finally back to gold.

“There are many outside cultivators in Nanfeng City. If the Gold Scale Ore spreads from here, it will definitely not only be Nanfeng City that is affected,” Yun Yu’s face was very solemn.

“I’ll go and inform the city lord about this matter first and see if she has any countermeasures,” Mo Xiao said. This matter was of great importance. It was best not to act alone and be clever if it was just the few of them.

“Then should I write a letter to inform Master?” Yun He scratched her face and expressed her thoughts. “If the other party is a demon, isn’t it better for the major sects to join forces?”

Hearing this, Yun Yu nodded. “Junior Sister, you and Little Junior Sister will take this Gold Scale Ore to see the city lord. Yun He, you write a letter to Master, and then…”

As she spoke, Yun Yu looked at Qiu Wu. “Fellow Daoist Qiu, I have an impertinent request. Could you help us buy as many Gold Scale Ores from the cultivators as possible?”

“Whatever you spend, Fellow Daoist Qiu, I will repay you in full,” Yun Yu said.

Qiu Wu was a person who was keen on collecting artifact refining materials. This had already spread in the commercial district, so it was reasonable for her to want to buy as many Gold Scale Ores as possible.

“I can. It is the duty of a cultivator to deal with demons. You don’t have to be so polite, Fellow Daoist Yun. If there’s anything you need me to do, just tell me,” Qiu Wu said. “But the discovery of Gold Scale Ore has been for a little while now. Many of them should have already flowed out of Nanfeng City.”

Yun Yu also knew this, but their abilities were limited. Before the major sects took action, this was all she could do.

And so, Mo Xiao’s group of five split into three groups. Yun He went straight back to the inn to send a message. Yun Yu, in order to protect Qiu Wu’s safety, chose to stay by her side and assist her in buying Gold Scale Ore.

“There’s this kind of thing in Nanfeng City?!” The city lord’s face changed the moment she heard it. She stood up from her chair with a jolt. “I’ll issue a ban immediately and seal off the river!”

“City Lord, there must be a great demon behind this. Please be careful when you act,” Mo Xiao said.

“If possible, City Lord, you should first investigate in secret, or contact the nearby sects and city lords to discuss countermeasures together,” Mo Xiao said, and at the same time, proved her identity to the city lord.

Mo Xiao added, “Barring any accidents, the Inquiring Dao Sect should intervene in this matter. I hope the City Lord will not mind.”

Hearing that the Inquiring Dao Sect would intervene, the city lord was actually relieved. “So you are fellow Daoists from the Inquiring Dao Sect. No wonder you are so righteous. So that’s how it is.”

“Since you have already sent a message back, I will stay put for now. We will discuss countermeasures after the elders of the Inquiring Dao Sect arrive, so as not to alert the enemy,” With the Inquiring Dao Sect as a backstop, the city lord also relaxed.

The demons had clearly come prepared this time. First, they used the black eggs to cause the demonic beasts to become abnormal and trigger a beast tide. Then they wanted to send cultivation materials tainted with demonic energy into the hands of the cultivators. Finally, they carefully selected an ore that looked very useful but was actually a deadly poison.

One step after another. If the people of Nanfeng City had not discovered the abnormality in time, it would definitely be a huge blow to the cultivators living in Nanfeng City! It was unknown how many people would have died because of this.

“Wuyi, do you still remember what happened at this time in your past life?” After returning to the inn, Mo Xiao asked. “Or, have you heard any news about the fall of Nanfeng City?”

Mo Xiao had just carefully searched her memory. In her past life, she had not met Zuo Wuyi, so she should have chosen to go out and travel nine years ago. After traveling for seven years, she had some enlightenment, and after returning, she went into seclusion for nearly ten years. When she came out after breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage, she didn’t seem to have heard any related news.

“Let me think…” Zuo Wuyi also had no related memories in her mind. After all, in her past life, she was still very obedient to the system and diligently played the role of Rong Xue.

“In my past life, I should still be at the Foundation Establishment stage, basically cultivating all the time,” Zuo Wuyi said as she recalled. “I just remember that Xuan Min seemed to have found a good secret realm at that time and let me cultivate in it for a few years.”

“But I did go to Nanfeng City later. I don’t remember the other details, but I’m sure that the city lord of Nanfeng City at that time was a male cultivator with a very high cultivation,” Zuo Wuyi added. “And I’m sure I’ve never seen the current city lord.”

As she spoke, Zuo Wuyi looked at Mo Xiao. The two of them exchanged a look, and both understood in their hearts. If there were no accidents, in the past life, the current city lord must have perished.

“The demons’ conspiracy should have been discovered, but correspondingly, Nanfeng City must have also paid a great price,” After a long silence, Zuo Wuyi finally continued.

“Mo Xiao, if the demons came prepared, then the one behind them is definitely not an ordinary demon. It might be a Spirit Transformation stage demon general who is directing everything,” Zuo Wuyi said.

Now, the strongest among the five of them was only at the early Nascent Soul stage. The city lord of Nanfeng City’s cultivation was much higher than theirs, but she was only at the late Nascent Soul stage. If they were to face a Spirit Transformation stage demon, they wouldn’t have much of a chance of winning even if they were all together.

“I know. I won’t act rashly,” Mo Xiao said. “Yun He has already sent a message to Master. If she is fast enough, Master should arrive in Nanfeng City within seven days. We’ll make plans then.”

“Alright,” Zuo Wuyi nodded.

Although the city lord had not sealed anything off on the surface, Mo Xiao found that there were more and more cultivators who wanted to buy Gold Scale Ore. And in the past few days, there was an extra checkpoint at the city gate. When trading in the commercial district, there was also an extra registration step.

It was said to be to protect the rights and interests of both buyers and sellers, but in fact, it was to record the transaction details of every piece of Gold Scale Ore. At that time, it would be much faster to find people according to the list and recover the Gold Scale Ore.

To be able to come up with countermeasures in such a short time, the city lord’s boldness and leadership were beyond doubt.