Ze Shen

"You two look like new faces. Are you outsiders from beyond Yunmeng Marsh, or from another village?"

At the entrance of the village, an old woman basking in the warm sun looked with a smile at Chen Baiqing and Cui Hao, who had just arrived.

This village was the closest one known to the tiger demon.

The tiger demon was being guarded by Lu Lingyi, while Lin Chuan and Li Zhuhua followed the weasel spirit that Cui Hao had tricked. They did this firstly to see if the weasel had truly been fooled, or if it had noticed something amiss and was planning to report them.

Secondly, they wanted to figure out the exact relationships between the monsters in this area.

By working their way up the hierarchy, they would naturally know which lucky target to seek out when the time came.

Meanwhile, Chen Baiqing and Cui Hao came to inspect the village and see who was collecting the power of faith in this area.

Yunmeng Marsh had been developing for nearly a thousand years, so the relationships within must be intricately complex. It was best to first find a clue and plan slowly.

Chen Baiqing did not choose to sneak in, but directly approached the old woman sitting at the village entrance basking in the sun.

Cui Hao did not quite understand Chen Baiqing's choice.

However, even if he didn't quite understand, Cui Hao didn't dare raise any objections.

Furthermore, Chen Baiqing was not a reckless person.

Hearing the question, Cui Hao smiled and stepped forward:

"Are there still outsiders who dare to enter Yunmeng Marsh?"

The old woman smiled at his words, then slowly nodded and said:

"Naturally. The glory of the Marsh God is not something just anyone can bathe in."

Cui Hao smiled in agreement, raising his gaze to look at the village gate constructed of simple wood. Above the gate hung an engraved plaque—Huaze Village.

The material of the plaque was still quite new, showing a stark color contrast with the old village gate.

The gate was old, but the plaque was new.

Holding a walking stick lightly in her hands, the old woman asked with a smile:

"Where is it that you can no longer survive? If that's really the case, then come here. There will always be a bite to eat."

Cui Hao lowered his gaze, seeming to understand something as he said:

"There's a way to survive here?"

The old woman's smile remained:

"Am I not the answer? Haven't I lived perfectly well to such an age?"

Listening to the conversation, Chen Baiqing's expression gradually turned cold.

The reason was simple: there were barely any old people in this village to begin with, and one of them was sitting right at the village entrance intercepting people.

"It's just that..." The old woman suddenly lowered her voice. "This place can only serve as a temporary resting spot for you young people. Once you grow older, you can only rely on yourselves, not the Marsh God."

Cui Hao looked at the old woman with considerable surprise, then tentatively said:

"Actually, we heard there is a way to survive outside Yunmeng Marsh, and we want to go outside."

The old woman smiled and shook her head:

"Some people have gone out, but they eventually return. Either you are not born in Yunmeng Marsh, or you can never leave it for the rest of your life."

Cui Hao asked, "Why?"

"Young man, I see you are quite handsome, and it's been a long time since anyone chatted with me. It wouldn't hurt to say a bit more today."

The old woman reached out and patted the large stones acting as chairs on either side of her, gesturing for the two of them to sit.

Cui Hao hesitated slightly before sitting down, while Chen Baiqing did not.

The old woman didn't mind and continued:

"Born in Yunmeng Marsh and raised in Yunmeng Marsh, we are already different from the people outside."

"Outside, there is no protection from the gods. There are floods, droughts, diseases, and suffering. I've heard there are also cruel officials who exploit the people, devouring them without spitting out the bones."

"But inside Yunmeng Marsh, one only needs to revere the gods as if they are present."

"Moreover, our actions and behaviors are different from those outside. They cannot understand us, and we cannot understand them."

"Outside, we are not considered normal people, but rather like neurotic madmen."

"What traps us is not this place, but that... indescribable something planted in our hearts."

Cui Hao remained silent for a moment before asking:

"It seems you have been outside?"

"Yes, when I was still young." The old woman smiled, her eyes narrowing. "Outsiders cannot stay in Yunmeng Marsh, and the people of Yunmeng Marsh cannot stay outside."

"So, the difference between people from inside and outside the marsh is very obvious. You can even tell just by smelling them."

Hearing this, Cui Hao smiled. "We don't have the scent of incense on us, right?"

The old woman nodded straightforwardly and said:

"Yes. In all likelihood, you are not people from just outside the marsh either. Are you two from the Great World? Are you the legendary cultivators?"

Cui Hao did not answer, but instead turned his gaze toward his senior sister.

Chen Baiqing looked at the old woman calmly and said:

"You should understand that sometimes, the less you know, the longer you live."

The old woman chuckled softly, looking at Chen Baiqing with a leisurely gaze.

"You two are cultivators. If you didn't want me to know, you naturally have your methods. Since you chose to meet me, why shouldn't I dare to ask?"

Hearing this, Chen Baiqing also chuckled softly:

"No wonder you've been able to live this long and still sit so leisurely at the village entrance."

The old woman nodded in agreement. "That is why, besides living longer by knowing less, useful people also live longer."

"Go tell your Marsh God that we have a cooperation to discuss with it."

Chen Baiqing lowered her eyes and took out a transparent crystal from her spatial ring. A trace of faint red energy swam within it. She continued:

"This is the item for our cooperation. If it wants to cooperate, it should stay in its own temple here. When the time is right, I will naturally go find it. If it is not there when I go, then the opportunity will be voided."

"Additionally, it should know that people from the outside have already started making deals with the other gods of Yunmeng Marsh."

"Opportunities are only given to those who are prepared."

As Chen Baiqing spoke, she handed the crystal in her hand to the old woman.

She had once personally participated in matters of the divine path of incense. The way Emperor Taizu of Zhou used the power of faith was far more advanced and outrageous.

Later, it was said to be related to Principle; no matter how one thought about it, it had to be stronger than this crude divine path of incense.

Chen Baiqing had analyzed it before. Although she did not understand the underlying principles, she could still imitate its Dao rhythm.

In short, this was a complete and utter fake.

After all, she didn't actually have the real thing, and even if she did, she wouldn't really take it out.

However, this was enough. She was currently at the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm.

An ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator definitely wouldn't be able to see through it, and even a Soul Formation cultivator would be confused by it.

As for the even higher-level Body Integration demons who also cultivated the power of faith, their influence probably wouldn't extend to such a desolate place that even a tiger demon dared to casually eye.

If they really wanted to find accurate information within Yunmeng Marsh, they would probably still have to rely on these demons who had styled themselves as gods.

And the most reliable method was naturally cooperation, as well as the conflicts that arose for the sake of that cooperation.

Minor demons had their uses, and major demons had theirs.

Chen Baiqing glanced at the old woman, her eyes still holding a hint of disgust.

Her thoughts were deep, dark, and profound.

Seemingly sincere, but actually overgeneralizing.

The old woman took the crystal and was just about to speak again, only to find that the two people who were in front of her a moment ago had completely vanished.

She slowly lowered her head to look at the crystal again. Whether it was an illusion or not, she felt as if she could sense the power inside it right through the crystal.

The old woman caressed the crystal in her hand over and over again.

Finally, she reluctantly put it away.