Thousands of humanoid skeletons made from blood-colored hairs all said the same thing, then circled around Xu Qing’s spirit cruiser and led the way forward. Ripples flowed out on the surface of the water.

Wu Jianwu was left trembling.

Seeing that, the Captain sidled over to him, threw his arm around his neck, and quietly said, “See, I wasn’t lying, Big Jianjian. Now, do you want to be like that one day?”

Wu Jianwu definitely did want to be like that one day, and that was why he was doomed to never escape the Captain’s clutches. Before long, the Captain had dragged him off to the side and was whispering into his ears. Wu Jianwu’s eyes glittered with both struggle and excitement, but eventually, the excitement took over.

“Moron!” Ning Yan muttered.

Xu Qing ignored them all, as he was focused on the river spirits.

These river spirits were living beings, so unlike the situation with the Nightshade divine likeness he had encountered in Holytide territory, he could sense reverence within them. What was more, after activating his violet moon nascent soul, he realized he could sense a very faint medicinal energy coming off the river spirits. Eyes glittering, he sent his violet moon nascent soul over his head, where it not only emanated pressure, but also, it started absorbing that medicinal energy. Slowly but surely, the energy left the river spirits and flowed into the violet moon nascent soul’s mouth. A pleasant sensation spread through Xu Qing’s mind and heart, and the violet moon nascent soul shivered and slowly started growing. As the river spirit’s medicinal energy was absorbed, their expressions grew more pious.

Xu Qing’s heart pounded. He could sense that the medicinal energy was something very beneficial, and was about to start absorbing more when, all of a sudden, a sensation of impending danger swept through him, prompting him to stop.

This place is a pasture for the red moon. Since the red moon can absorb anything here, theoretically speaking, so can I. However, doing so will increase the chances of me being noticed. And if that leads to an early awakening….

Xu Qing sighed inwardly and abandoned any further tests. He figured he would wait until he was actually in the Moonrite Region before making any further decisions.

And thus, it was with an escort of thousands of river spirits that Xu Qing’s spirit cruiser rapidly crossed the Yin Sacrifice River toward the opposite shore. It was a shocking scene that was bound to attract notice.

Xu Qing and his group weren’t the only ones going into the Moonrite Region. There were many local cultivators who could go in for trading purposes. Even now, there were dozens of ships on the river, all of whom were required to give offerings to be allowed passage. When they saw what was happening, they were stunned. All the ships stopped in place, and the cultivators on them looked over and speculated among themselves about what they were seeing.

“Escorted by thousands of river spirits…? Who could that possibly be?”

“Don’t tell me it’s someone from the Red Moon Cathedral? Maybe someone with really high standing there?”

“There’s only one possibility. It has to be someone with a very high status in the Red Moon Cathedral.”

“People from the Red Moon Cathedral rarely make public appearances. In fact, I think this is the first time I’ve seen someone from there.”

The speculations led to lingering fear in the hearts of the observers. People like them who traveled to and from the Moonrite Region knew the details of the curse. They realized that the living beings in the region were like livestock, and that it was the mighty Red Moon Cathedral that harvested them for the god. All of them bowed their heads and waited for the river spirits to pass before looking up again.

Two more days passed in which Xu Qing and the other swept across the Yin Sacrifice River. Eventually, they saw the other shore, which was the Moonrite Region proper.

The soil was black. The sky was like an evening sky, with no sun; there was only sourceless moonlight that spread out like a mysterious veil over the dark lands. Birds flew in the night sky, letting loose occasional mournful cries, while rotting corpses were visible here and there on the ground.

Xu Qing and the others made landfall on a bare hill. Xu Qing put away his spirit cruiser. As soon as he was on land, the thousands of river spirits bowed to him, then sank back into the water.

The Captain looked around, his eyes glittering with reminiscence. He sighed. “It’s been so many years. I’m finally back. Alright, little Junior Brother, we’re fairly safe now. Crimson Mother is asleep, so as long as we don’t blow our cover, we’ll be fine.”

Xu Qing nodded. For all intents and purposes, there was no one here who could possibly know them.

The Captain patted Xu Qing’s shoulder. “Now we split up. I’ll go handle my business, and I’ll take Little Ningning and Big Jianjian with me.”

A pained expression could be seen on Ning Yan’s face, while Wu Jianwu seemed very excited. Clearly, the latter felt very important.

This was the plan they had agreed on. They were currently in the eastern part of the Moonrite Region. By heading a bit further east, Xu Qing would eventually reach Heavenfire Sea.

Xu Qing glanced at Wu Jianwu and Ning Yan, wished them well in his heart, then turned to the Captain. “Take care of yourself, Eldest Brother!”

“I’ll be fine. With Little Ningning and Big Jianjian to keep me safe, who would dare to mess with me?”

The Captain blinked a few times at Xu Qing, then reached up and smacked himself on the top of the head. He instantly transformed, turning into an elegant middle-aged cultivator. He actually looked quite a bit more handsome than before. What was more, his smile and facial expression made him seem somehow more wicked.

Smiling enigmatically, he smacked Ning Yan’s belly, causing him to shiver and transform into a servant girl. Ning Yan had apparently been aware that this would happen, as he didn’t seem surprised. The scowl that stayed on his face now that he was a servant girl made him seem like the kind of person who suffered a lot of bullying.

Wu Jianwu was all smiles as the Captain gave him similar treatment. With a smack, he transformed Wu Jianwu into a young boy.

Xu Qing wasn’t even curious at how the Captain did all of this. The more seals the Captain undid, the more strange and unusual abilities he seemed capable of.

“I’ve prepared a secret identity for you as well, little Junior Brother.” The Captain tossed a jade slip to Xu Qing. “Going forward, you’re a wandering disciple from the Yin-Yang Betwixt Flowers Sect, known as Master Heavengreen. That’s your identity slip, and will also serve as your travel permit. There are all sorts of nations and species in the Moonrite Region, so you’ll need something like that to find your way around. The Yin-Yang Betwixt Flowers Sect is in charge of the sacrificial dances for the Red Moon Cathedral. They’re a very big sect, and that means, being a member will offer you a lot of protection!” 1

Xu Qing took the jade slip. He was really getting a sense of how much work the Captain had put into the preparations. He was clearly dead set on devouring the red moon.

“And now the time has come to part ways. We’ll meet up at Mount Heavenly Ox in the Unfinished Mountains. Whoever gets there first will wait for the other. And if one of us doesn’t show up, the other will surreptitiously go looking for the other.”

The Captain reached out and pulled a fan out of midair. Opening it with a snap, he fanned himself a few times in a very leisurely fashion. “Remember, little Junior Brother. My secret identity is that of Master Unfinished! I’m also a disciple of the Yin-Yang Betwixt Flowers Sect, and I’m your Eldest Brother! In a few months, that name is going to be famous throughout the Moonrite Region. You’ll likely hear it while you’re out and about. Now, let’s go!”

The Captain waved to Xu Qing. Xu Qing bowed. And thus, the Captain took Ning Yan and Wu Jianwu off into the distance. It seemed that Ning Yan would rather have stayed with Xu Qing, as he kept looking back helplessly.

Xu Qing pretended not to realize that as he watched them leaving.

About ninety meters away, the Captain suddenly stopped in place. It looked like he had just remembered something. Turning back, he called, “If you have a chance, little Ah Qing, you should really go visit the Yin-Yang Betwixt Flowers Sect. Your identity is legitimate. They emphasize the harmony between yin and yang, and the way they complement each other. I bet you could learn some things from them. Considering your aptitude, you’d probably master their teachings quickly. That way, if you happen to run into any seductive girls, you’d have some additional methods to keep yourself safe, and won’t be taken advantage of!”

When Ling’er heard that, she immediately stuck her head out of Xu Qing’s sleeve. “With me here, Big Bro Xu Qing won’t run into any seductive girls!”

The Captain was about to say something further when Xu Qing expressionlessly produced a peach and took a bite.

The Captain’s eyes widened into a glare. Muttering to himself, he turned and led Ning Yan and Wu Jianwu away.

Xu Qing watched them go. When the Captain had disappeared into the night, Ling’er looked at him with bashful anticipation in her eyes. “Big Bro Xu Qing, does this count as our first date?”

Xu Qing chuckled and nodded. Then he turned and sped away. As he did, his facial features changed, making look less extraordinary and more like a random person.

***

For an entire night, Xu Qing sped through the Moonrite Region. He passed a lot of corpses, from a variety of species, most of whom had died from explosive mutation. Some of them had been killed in fighting. It all was what Xu Qing had expected. Given the unique circumstances in the Moonrite Region, it was a place rife with death and evil.

There were some places that Xu Qing passed that made him pause.

They were corpse pits. Upon nearing the edge of the first one, Xu Qing saw that it was some 30,000 meters wide, like a massive crater full of piles of bones. From the markings on the bones, it was obvious their flesh had been stripped off and used for food.

Ling’er said nothing.

Xu Qing took it in and felt the need to be even more vigilant. Eventually dawn came in the form of artificial light in the dome of heaven. The lands were no longer pitch black, but instead, like dusk. That dusky darkness was how daytime usually was in the Moonrite Region.

Eventually, Xu Qing found himself on a barren mountaintop, looking off into the distance. Taking out the map the Captain had given him, he identified his current location.

This area is called Lesser Shrine. It’ll take half a month to pass through here. The next area is controlled by the Twofold Alliance. Once I get to the other side of that, I’ll be at the Heavenfire Sea. 2

Xu Qing put the jade slip away and continued traveling.

Days passed. Half a month later, he reached the other side of Lesser Shrine and neared the territory controlled by the Twofold Alliance.

After traveling through Lesser Shrine, he now understood where it got its name. There were over a thousand corpse pits there, and they were arrayed in the shape of a crescent moon. In the very middle was an old shrine that was roughly the size of a city. Xu Qing had kept his distance from it, as he could sense the lingering aura of the red moon. It made him think of the alternative name for this region. Spirit Garden. .

With that, he entered the allied species’ territory. The moment he did, he stopped in place. Not too far ahead of him, he saw beams of light shining out of a host of irregularly shaped mirrors. They were pointing at Xu Qing. The mirrors were about the size of an ordinary person, and their surfaces were blurry and cracked. However, he could see his reflection in all of them. What was most strange was that his reflections all had vicious gazes. And then they spoke in cold voices.

“Present your travel permit now!”

1. The ‘green’ part of the daoist name ‘Heavengreen’ is the Qing character from Xu Qing. Incidentally, that same character can be rendered in different ways, including cyan. It’s the same character as the “Violet and Cyan” combo from the country and crown prince of the same name. ?

2. The name of the Twofold Alliance in Chinese makes it obvious that it’s an alliance of two species. My translation choice is for the sake of succinctness. ?

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