IW: Chapter 269: Uncle Jiu: Why is it so cool to show off with Bai Ye?
"Didn't you two explicitly state that you were going to remain behind and guard the Mortuary Village?"
Uncle Nine turned his head slowly, his eyes narrowing into a sharp glare as he stared at the security captain and the overeager Wencai with a thoroughly deadpan expression.
If his memory served him correctly, barely a few minutes prior, both of these men had been vigorously thumping their chests. They had given him their solemn word that they would anchor themselves to this compound, even going so far as to claim that this desolate outpost possessed a bizarre, demonic attraction that spoke to their souls.
They had insisted that they had discovered their true purpose and way of survival right here within these wooden walls.
Of course, the absolute truth was that they were simply paralyzed with fear.
Even a completely secular officer like Awei had heard whispered rumors regarding the notorious reputation of Teng Teng Town. Not too long ago, a heavily armed military regiment had attempted to march into the sector to completely eradicate the nesting ghouls. That battalion, entirely equipped with modern rifles and heavy artillery cannons, had been systematically wiped out, with every single soldier perishing brutally within the town lines.
Following that catastrophic military slaughter, not a single living soul dared to venture anywhere near the area. Even the regional Taoist masters only dared to maintain defensive sealing barriers along the outer perimeter, doing their absolute best to ensure the ravenous entities inside could not breach the containment zone.
It was the steady accumulation of these terrifying events that had gradually transformed the entire town into an absolute forbidden zone.
Although the formidable master of lightning was directly leading this specific containment expedition, both Awei and Wencai were still deeply plagued by a lack of internal confidence.
Their hesitation did not stem from a lack of faith in the young powerhouse's reality-bending capabilities, but rather from a profound, realistic awareness of their own complete uselessness. They knew down to their bones that they lacked even a single shred of defensive cultivation, whereas their martial brother Qiusheng was vastly more competent than either of them.
By tagging along, they wouldn't just risk becoming a heavy logistical burden to the group—they would likely lose their lives the absolute moment their attention slipped. Naturally, their original plan had been to sit tight, fully believing that the young master alone was more than enough to handle the threat.
However, the second the young master casually dropped the detail that Ren Tingting would also be joining the march, the trajectory of their thoughts flipped entirely.
If she was going, perhaps they could find a golden opportunity to act as her personal bodyguards on the trail?
Wouldn't that give them the exact opening they had been praying for?
Fortune always favored the bold, and surrendering to fear meant losing the game before it even started.
If they chose to stay behind now, wouldn't they be flushing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity directly down the drain?
"Master, Teng Teng Town is an incredibly treacherous place! As your loyal, dedicated disciples, how could we possibly sit idly by and watch you march into the jaws of death all on your own?! Naturally, we must ride out together and face the danger as one family!"
"That's right, Master! I also firmly demand to accompany the vanguard!"
Compared to the smooth-talking security captain, Wencai lacked any real silver-tongued eloquence, leaving him completely outmatched as every single noble-sounding excuse was rapidly snatched up and spoken by his companion.
With his mind completely blank, Wencai simply couldn't formulate a grand speech.
He could only raise his hand and repeatedly emphasize his raw desire to join the ranks.
"Hehe..."
Uncle Nine let out a dry, forced chuckle, his lips pulling back into a tight, thoroughly unamused smile as he appraised his two followers.
He didn't believe a single syllable of their sudden, righteous display of filial piety. Before the young master had explicitly mentioned the young lady's involvement, neither of these two had shown even a passing interest in his physical safety.
But the very instant her name entered the conversation, they suddenly transformed into fearless warriors, their transparent motives laid bare under the laboratory lights.
"It is perfectly fine if you two absolute clowns wish to tag along, but I am stating clearly right now: if a sudden, catastrophic emergency unfolds inside that town later, I will not be held responsible for your survival!"
The veteran Taoist had initially intended to leave them behind to avoid extra baggage, but a secondary thought crossed his mind: leaving these two unsupervised in the Mortuary Village might actually invite a completely different set of disasters.
With the specialized defensive arrays the young master had already established around the perimeter, this compound was actually significantly safer when left entirely empty than when managed by incompetent hands.
Therefore, he figured there was no real harm in dragging them along. Since they were practically begging to face the fire, he might as well let them see the true horrors of the outside world with their own eyes.
It would be an excellent opportunity to let them experience the brutal, unyielding reality of rogue entities. Perhaps a taste of genuine terror would finally force them to grow up, abandon their lazy habits just like Qiusheng had, and commit their souls to proper cultivation in the future.
"Of course!"
Wencai and Awei exchanged glances. Although they didn't speak, they saw a common thought in each other's eyes: each to their own!
Though somewhat surprised, they had initially thought Ninth Uncle wasn't very willing for them to come, but now it seemed they had overthought it.
"Daoist friend, what do you think?"
Ninth Uncle hesitated, then looked at Bai Ye and asked.
Bringing two more disciples along wasn't part of the plan.
"Two more won't make much difference."
Looking at the expressions of Awei and Wencai, Bai Ye felt that if he refused, the two would probably kneel down on the spot and beg him to take them along.
After thinking about it, Bai Ye gave up.
No need.
He also didn't want to make Ninth Uncle lose face here. If Wencai and Awei knelt, it would actually be Ninth Uncle who lost face.
"Thank you."
Ninth Uncle felt as if he owed Bai Ye more and more favors.
"No problem."
"Bai Ye Daoshi, rest assured, when you tell me to go east, I, Awei, will absolutely not go west!"
"En?!"
Ninth Uncle narrowed his eyes, looking at Awei.
Whose disciple was he, exactly?
"Hehe, Master, if you say east, I won't go west either. I will absolutely obey orders!"
Awei's playful grin made Ninth Uncle abandon his plan to reprimand him.
This guy really had a lot of petty cleverness sometimes.
Ninth Uncle felt a little emotional.
"This guy sees things quite clearly."
Bai Ye glanced at Awei, then lifted his leg and walked towards Ren Family Town.
Even though Awei was sly and lazy, he was indeed clever.
He said east, and he would absolutely not go west. Why was that?
Wasn't it because Awei understood that if he went against Bai Ye, he would absolutely not know how he died?
Obeying orders gave him the greatest chance of survival.
Ren Family Town, Ren Mansion.
Ren Master looked at Ren Tingting with reluctance. Ren Tingting's return today indeed surprised Ren Master greatly.
Ever since Ren Tingting followed Bai Ye up the mountain to cultivate, he had also started doing good deeds.
The Ren Family itself was now a single-line inheritance, originally meant for Ren Tingting. At first, Ren Master was very worried that Ren Tingting wouldn't be able to hold onto the family fortune in the future, and had always wanted to pave the way for Ren Tingting.
Now, that problem no longer needed to be considered.
His family fortune would have no one to inherit it. This money would only be taken into the grave with him, so it was better to accumulate some virtue for himself and Ren Tingting.
Seeing Ren Tingting today, the old father felt quite emotional.
"Go, I've heard about the situation in Teng Teng Town. If you can resolve it, that would be a great merit."
Although Ren Master was somewhat worried about Ren Tingting, he also knew that cultivators must eliminate evil and defend the righteous path.
Besides, with Bai Ye Daoshi here, he believed that Ren Tingting wouldn't encounter any accidents.
"Mhm, I understand, Father."
Ren Tingting nodded, then walked out the door.
The moment she came out, Awei and Wencai immediately gathered around her.
So beautiful!
Even more beautiful than before!
Awei and Wencai stared at Ren Tingting like lovesick fools, their hearts filled with immense admiration.
"Bai Ye Daoshi, I'll leave it to you then."
"Rest assured, Ren Master, Tingting is my disciple. I will protect Tingting well."
Upon hearing Bai Ye's words, Ren Master felt a sense of relief deep down.
With Bai Ye's promise, Ren Master also believed that Ren Tingting would be fine, and if, he said if, even if she died in battle, he could actually accept it deep down.
The cultivation world was cruel.
Just like how he himself was almost killed by someone back then.
He wasn't even a person of the cultivation world, yet he was almost killed by a Feng Shui Master's scheme. So, there was even less to say about Ren Tingting.
Being in this extremely dangerous cultivation world was not just talk.
"Master, I can protect myself."
After leaving Ren Family Town, Ren Tingting no longer had that trace of apprehension. She twitched her nose, and her eyes looking at Bai Ye were filled with light!
Although she had Master's protection, Ren Tingting felt that she could also stand on her own.
"I can too!"
Ren Zhuzhu and Ren Qingqing quickly stated.
"Protecting yourselves isn't just about talking. This trip to Teng Teng Town is very dangerous. In short, stay behind me."
"Mhm."
She just wanted to express that she wasn't completely useless.
It wasn't that she didn't want Bai Ye to protect them.
The three of them were very clear about their own capabilities. They might even be able to deal with ordinary evil spirits now.
But something like Teng Teng Town...
They had already heard Bai Ye talk about it before going, and even Ren Master knew, so how could they not know?
Awei and Wencai on the side wanted to say something, but they opened and closed their mouths, finally swallowing their words.
Saying they could protect Ren Tingting at this moment just felt like bragging!
"We need to go to another place first."
Ninth Uncle had one more matter to attend to.
They would head to Teng Teng Town after helping to resolve that.
Following Nian Ying, Ren Tingting and the others then realized there was another girl in the group.
They had originally thought she was a new disciple taken in by Ninth Uncle or Ma Ma Di.
Later, they learned she was the younger sister of Ninth Uncle's old flame.
Upon learning that Ninth Uncle actually had an old flame, the three girls, Ren Tingting, also looked at him with strange expressions, which made Ninth Uncle quite uncomfortable.
What do you mean?!
Could he not have an old flame?
"Ah! I used to think all Daozhang couldn't marry or have children!"
Snowflake only reacted at this moment, looking at Ninth Uncle with a natural blank expression.
Back then, Snowflake was still wondering if Bai Ye had broken his vows for her.
She even felt at that time that she might not even be able to enter the Shenxiao Sect.
After all, she had caused a Shenxiao Sect Sect Master to break his vows, which was why Snowflake wanted to go and see when she arrived at the Shenxiao Sect.
Mainly, she wanted to know if she could enter. If not, then she couldn't hold Bai Ye back.
But now Snowflake realized, could all Daoists actually fall in love?!
"Actually, there are also Daoists who cannot marry and have children."
Not every sect in Taoism allows it, but there aren't many with this rule. Dao companion (Daoist companions) are called that for a reason.
So, it is certainly allowed in the vast majority of cases.
"Then, in that case, does Ninth Uncle still have to go? Wouldn't Ninth Uncle be sad to see the person he likes with someone else?"
Don't rub salt in Ninth Uncle's wounds...
Bai Ye listened to Snowflake's words, then quickly covered her mouth.
Although the previous sentence couldn't be stopped, he couldn't let Snowflake continue speaking.
How could such cold words come from a mouth at thirty-seven degrees Celsius?
The moment Bai Ye covered her mouth, Snowflake also made muffled sounds, as if she still had something to say. But Ninth Uncle was different; Ninth Uncle was completely distraught!
No way?!
If you knew I was sad, why would you say it out loud?
Do you know what it means to not expose someone's pain?
"So much time has passed, this master has long been fine!"
Ninth Uncle waved his hand, his face showing an indifferent expression.
So much time had passed.
Ninth Uncle felt that he had more or less moved on.
"You're right, it's just one woman. Master, when we go back, I'll introduce you to one!"
Awei patted his chest, guaranteeing, it was just one woman, Captain Awei would take action!
"No need, cultivators should be pure and free from desires!"
Ninth Uncle waved his hand, looking as if he had seen through everything.
This made Awei incredibly impressed, and the flattery came one after another, which also made Ninth Uncle understand why ancient emperors liked treacherous officials so much—the emotional value provided was truly abundant!
It's just...
If you don't care anymore, why are you still wearing a suit?
Commander's Mansion.
After Nian Ying led them into the Commander's Mansion, Ninth Uncle looked at the residence and felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He felt as if wearing his suit was no different from not wearing one at all.
Wasn't the life here many times better than his own?
"Dou Zhi Ying?"
"Dalong!"
Mi Qilian pulled the Commander. She was actually a bit displeased with her husband's words.
Mainly, she had invited Ninth Uncle over to help them, but her husband clearly looked down on him.
"Solve the problem quickly and leave. He was bitten by a zombie, and your father died and turned into a zombie and bit him. Go to your father's place, take out his zombie teeth, grind them into powder, drink it, and you'll be fine."
Bai Ye took a step forward. He didn't want to waste time here.
Firstly, the matter of Teng Teng Town was more important, as it involved a dragon pulse (dragon's vein).
At the same time, Bai Ye wasn't very fond of this Commander, and staying here would only bring more humiliation to Ninth Uncle.
However, this Commander and Awei really did resemble each other a bit…
"And who are you?!"
The Commander looked at Bai Ye with some displeasure. This was his and Dou Zhi Ying's business; what did it have to do with this guy?!
But then again, the few girls behind this guy were all so beautiful…
During this period, due to his wife's pregnancy, the Commander hadn't had any in that regard for a long time, so he inevitably had some impure thoughts.
However, while he was still thinking about some things, a thunderbolt from the sky directly shattered the area around the Commander.
Looking at the lightning strike that was only a millimeter away from him, and even feeling a slight electric shock from the arc, the Commander couldn't help but swallow his saliva.
This guy…
So terrifying?!
That day, the Commander finally remembered the fear of being dominated by cultivators.
He had originally thought that all cultivators were like Ninth Uncle.
With a gun in hand, he had nothing to fear.
But this guy, it felt like he hadn't even pulled out his gun before he would be struck dead by lightning the next second?!
"Master! You are the Master I've been waiting for!! Go arrange it! Arrange the best seats for the Master! And arrange that high-end cuisine for me too! Today, we must serve the Master comfortably!"
The Commander was also a shrewd person. How could someone who could climb to this position in such chaotic times not understand anything?!
He was simply terrified.
If the other party was in a bad mood here, he might instantly turn to dust.
"Holy crap?! I prepared for so long, yet it wasn't as satisfying as one lightning bolt from Bai Ye?!"
Ninth Uncle felt a surge of secret pleasure. It was so satisfying to show off with Bai Ye. He had prepared for so long; he should have known not to bother!
Damn it!
Shout!
Keep shouting!