125: Chapter 125 Brother Qin's Kindness! Soul Tax, Soul Smoke!

Early the next morning.

At the mountain gate at the foot of the Wangyue Sect.

Xiao Chang was dressed in a cyan and white Daoist robe of the Wangyue Sect, having waited here since early on.

He had pondered deeply for an entire night, but ultimately decided to take up his post.

However, before taking up his post, Xiao Chang still wanted to ask one thing.

"Senior Sister Nangong, this Junior Brother has one more question."

Looking at Nangong Yueqing, who had silver hair and crimson eyes and resembled a Fairy descending to the Mortal world, Xiao Chang asked:

"May I ask Senior Sister Nangong, why did you bring Xiao Chang along?"

Nangong Yueqing glanced at Xiao Chang, seeing right through his concerns.

It was nothing more than the worry that she wanted to use him to shackle Qin Muyuan of the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Sect.

However, Nangong Yueqing had no such intentions.

She got straight to the point and said bluntly:

"Within the Sect, because others slandered your good friend Qin Muyuan, you disregarded the risks and stepped forward to discipline that Disciple. This shows righteousness."

"When we first met, you only said someone sealed the Black Water Demon. Now that I think about it, that person must have been your good friend Qin Muyuan."

"Yet at the time, you never once mentioned knowing him, instead misleading us with vague words. Had I not discovered your close ties with Qin Muyuan, I would still be kept in the dark to this day. This shows wisdom."

"Looking across the current Southern Wilderness Immortal Cultivator world, though there are many wise people, those who value righteousness are rare. People like you, possessing both wisdom and righteousness, are even scarcer."

"Having happened to cross paths with you, the thought of making your acquaintance naturally arose."

"Do you understand?"

Hearing this, Xiao Chang's worries instantly lightened considerably.

It turned out Senior Sister Nangong did not intend to use him against Brother Qin, so he could finally rest at ease.

"Furthermore."

Nangong Yueqing continued:

"You are on good terms with Qin Muyuan of the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Sect. He possesses profound cultivation and peerless talent, and is likely from a powerful Sect outside the Southern Wilderness."

"Befriending you is equivalent to forging a bond of affinity with Qin Muyuan as well."

"Whether this cause will bear good fruit in the future, I cannot yet know."

"However, planting this cause now requires almost no cost on my part, yet it can exchange for a future possibility."

"With such benefits, why not do it?"

"So that's how it is!" Xiao Chang understood.

The reason he was able to be brought along by Nangong Yueqing was indeed thanks to Brother Qin's prestige.

Thinking of this, Xiao Chang suddenly felt an emotion he didn't know how to express.

His original plan was clearly to cultivate and grow stronger within the Wangyue Sect, and then rescue Brother Qin from dire straits.

How is it that now, even inside the Wangyue Sect, he was already receiving favors from Brother Qin?

...

Three days later.

Riding on a paper crane formed through hand incantations by Nangong Yueqing, Xiao Chang finally entered Daliang Country and arrived within Tianqing County.

As soon as he stepped into Tianqing County, he could feel the bustling liveliness within the county.

Immortal Cultivators dressed in Daoist robes of various colors such as black, white, green, and pink flew into Tianqing County from all directions, looking ethereal and filled with Immortal Qi.

Martial Cultivators with robust builds and holding all kinds of weapons entered through the city gates of Tianqing County below, their entire bodies' Qi and blood surging as hot as a stove.

However.

After witnessing the heroic postures of the Immortal Cultivators and Martial Cultivators outside the county city, when Xiao Chang followed her to fly into the city,

he discovered that the Mortals inside the county city had an attitude drastically different from that of the Immortal Cultivators and Martial Cultivators.

Mortal after Mortal walked along the streets of the county city with foolish expressions and stiff movements, looking utterly absent-minded.

Even if they encountered the Immortal Cultivators and Martial Cultivators walking on the road, they would only glance over with dull, lifeless eyes, then try their best to squeeze out a look of respect on their faces and bow with extremely slow movements.

Furthermore, according to Xiao Chang's observation, these absent-minded Mortals did not just exist in one or two households.

Instead, all Mortals along the entire street shared this same appearance of sluggish movements and foolish expressions.

"This is caused by the Luo Family's Soul Refining technique."

Seeing Xiao Chang's skeptical gaze, Nangong Yueqing said:

"One of the Eight Great Families—now the Seven Great Families of Daliang Country, the Luo Family excels in an Immortal Cultivator wondrous art known as the 'Soul Refining technique'."

"This method can add might to Magic Treasures and weapons by refining souls."

"And the souls refined are provided by the Mortals in Tianqing County."

Hearing this, Xiao Chang immediately looked at those absent-minded Mortals whose thoughts seemed to have been sucked away, and couldn't help asking:

"Then... do they not resist?"

"Resist?" Nangong Yueqing shook her head:

"Not only do they not resist, but they even actively request the Luo Family to extract their own souls."

Xiao Chang was greatly puzzled: "Why is that?"

Nangong Yueqing said:

"Every resident in the city of Tianqing County must pay a soul tax to the Luo Family who governs this place—which means having a portion of their soul extracted."

"The specific souls extracted vary from person to person, either taking one of the three souls or several of the seven souls."

"However, once souls are missing, Mortals will fall into an extreme state of emptiness."

"After levying the soul tax, the Luo Family will distribute 'Soul Coins' to the Mortals, and they can use these Soul Coins to exchange for 'Soul Smoke' in the county city."

"'Soul Smoke' can temporarily fill the emptiness brought by the lack of souls, making it an absolute necessity for soul-deprived Mortals."

"However, this Soul Smoke is just like opium in the Mortal world; once a Mortal smokes it, given their willpower, it is lifelongly difficult to quit."

"Not only that, but the Luo Family has long tampered with the water sources of Tianqing County."

"Anyone who has drunk the water of the county city will contract a soul addiction in this lifetime, destined to never be able to leave Tianqing County..."

Listening to Nangong Yueqing's explanation, Xiao Chang felt a chill run down his entire body.

Once one inhales Soul Smoke, all living beings find it hard to quit.

And after paying the soul tax, they can only survive by relying on Soul Smoke.

Even the water sources in the city had been tampered with...

Even a newly born infant, as long as it has drunk the water source, would depend on Soul Smoke for the rest of its life!

Generation after generation of Mortals were thus trapped right here, unable to escape for all eternity!

Xiao Chang followed Nangong Yueqing past a Soul Smoke house, and saw that the house was filled with swirling smoke where Mortals with distorted expressions eagerly inhaled Soul Smoke.

When leaving, each of them looked as if their livers and galls were being scorched by fire, hurriedly begging the Alchemist inside the Soul Smoke house to extract their souls once more as soon as possible to exchange for Soul Coins so they could smoke Soul Smoke.

Passing by this Soul Smoke house, Xiao Chang remained speechless for a long time.

Nangong Yueqing took in all of Xiao Chang's reactions, her expression remaining calm as she slowly said:

"We who step onto the immortal path do so originally for that sense of injustice and that yearning in our hearts."

"You must firmly remember the palpitation in your heart right now. It will become the deepest Foundation on your future cultivation path."

Xiao Chang possessed the Ice-Fire Spiritual Body, and his speed in absorbing Heaven And Earth Spiritual Essence far surpassed ordinary Cultivators.

However high his talent might be, the immortal path still required bitter cultivation and perseverance.

If he could transform his sorrow, indignation, and unwillingness at this moment into cultivation strength and diligently cultivate without ceasing, in the future he might just Breakthrough to the Purple Mansion and fight for a glimmer of a chance of survival for these Mortals.

"However, all living beings suffer; rescuing Mortals in one place is utterly useless. Even the Purple Mansion is nothing more than slightly larger ants; only a stronger cultivation Realm..."

Nangong Yueqing's expression was calm, but inwardly she thought silently.