Chapter 220: Mother & Son Bonding.

  Many unbelievable changes started to take place ever since Jing has entered the Endless Plains of Yin. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that she was single-handedly changing the ghostly biome just by walking aimlessly through the foggy forest. Well, actually, the more accurate thing to say would be that Li Li was the one changing the rules of the plane. His abilities were too potent! Some of the strongest ghosts inside this couldn't resist Li Li's strength and were forced into becoming his follower. Many of the spirit beasts he's captured as his spirit followers were being sacrificed to strengthen the new ones he's captured in the Endless Plains.

  His control and power over souls were only slowly improving the longer he stayed inside this realm. The more he saw, experienced, and fought, the stronger Li Li became. Jing had no complaints about such a thing and neither did Li Li. The two explored the Endless Plains of Yin as if it was one big game of hide and seek with the treasures and ghosts inside. As the first day of the test was coming to an end, Jing managed to find a strange stone plate being defended by a Walking Devil. A rather strong ghost for a seemingly useless item.

  Ghosts were separated into nine different realms of power just like cultivators. Wandering Spirit, Spirit Walker, Dozing Devil, Walking Devil, Spirit Emperor, Spirit King, Devil Lord, Divine Devil, and then Spirit God. Each ghostly realm was about equivalent to the immortal realms. So, a Wandering Spirit would be about as strong as a Qi Gatherer and a Walking Devil would be on the same level as a Core Stage cultivator.

  Jing didn't know why such a ghost was defending this plate but figured it would be better to keep it on herself. While she has come into the Endless Plains of Yin before, she never managed to survive long before dying to ghosts, her fellow disciples, or both. So, most of the treasures in this place are unknown to Jing. It's only because of Li Li that Jing dares to explore these lands without worrying.

"I don't feel anything special about it either, mom." Li Li said after taking a look at the plate.

  After consuming and learning so much about ghosts and soul control, Li Li no longer looked like his old self anymore. Next to Jing was a small child that resembled her greatly in appearance holding up a stone plate. It wouldn't be too much to say that the young boy next to Jing was her son based on how similar they looked. Skin as brown as an acorn, hair as white as milk, and a face that couldn't be described as handsome or ugly! However, his body was somewhat transparent, allowing those to see right through him.

"Very well. Let's keep moving then." A small smile formed on Jing's face. Water from SCP-109 was still falling from her waist. She still hasn't placed the cap on the canteen since she was followed from before.

  Hundreds of water clones were traveling through the Endless Plains of Yin to gather treasure for Jing. They would mostly leave the other disciples alone unless they had something valuable on them. This place was called endless after all, Jing didn't know if a few hundred would be enough to explore this place entirely but she still had two more days left. There's no need to rush anything.

  She's already collected so many good things since she's come here. She wouldn't feel satisfied until she could grab everything inside this place for herself. Her followers would get good usage out of these treasures if she couldn't. Instead of a test, Jing would say this is more of a vacation if anything. However, she knew the truly good stuff was still hiding deeper in the forest. As long as they take their time to fully explore before moving in deeper, Li Li should be able to grow steadily enough that the really dangerous spirits won't be able to kill them instantly.

  Several of her water clones have been defeated but it was impossible for Jing to know who and how. It wasn't as if her water clones were capable of transmitting information to her mentally. They would need to meet back up with her and tell her what happened. Like with her very first water clone, it managed to defeat the holder of the Eye of End and bring it back to her. But Jing was able to sense all the clones she made. By forming a mental map, Jing could highlight which areas of the Endless Plains of Yin were possibly dangerous for herself based on how often the water clones pop in a certain area.

  As of now, there were about seven areas that were off-limits for her clones. No matter how many clones she sent to those areas, they would be defeated somehow. Jing guessed that for the other areas, they just encountered strong disciples from the sect or powerful ghosts. When sending back clones to certain places, they wouldn't be destroyed unlike when she sent them to the seven areas. She was interested in these folks capable of defeating her water clones but it wasn't like she was able to find out who they were.

  Jing's water clones weren't anywhere near her true strength in power but that didn't mean they were weak either. If Jing had to measure their strength individually, she'd say they have about 1/10 of her total power, probably. Considering Jing's uniqueness, 1/10 isn't a measurement anyone can underestimate. Meaning that those that beat her water clones aren't just any regular person or ghost.

"I wonder is Cerulean is doing okay." Li Li chatted.

"Why wouldn't she be?" Jing kindly asked.

"I don't know. I feel kind of bad that she can't move like me and Plinky."

"If you give her some of your blood, you might be able to help her grow strong enough to move." Jing put the suggestion out there.

"Really?" He looked up at her with his black eyes shining with innocence.

"It's not impossible. Our blood is priceless. Even I don't know everything that our blood is capable of doing. So Cerulean might be able to move or even fly if you give her a drop of your blood." Jing told him.

"I can't wait to get back home!" Li Li bounced up and down as they walked.

  Jing just smiled as she thought of ways to utilize her blood as well. It might be a good reward to give to the angels after completing a task for her. But she needs to perform a few tests first before feeding her blood to them. While it worked out for Drill and Plinky, that didn't mean that it would work out for others.

"I bet Cerulean will have missed you a lot too. She'll be happy to receive a gift from you. She was sad when you and Plinky went off together that morning."

"I didn't know that. I'll have to apologize for making her feel sad." Li Li's face slightly scrunched up when hearing this news.

"It's the right thing to do." Jing nodded.

  Li Li was growing much more than she expected an owl to grow. With how intelligent he was, she needed to quickly teach him the rights and wrongs of the world. Previously she didn't plan on doing this because he was nothing more than just a pet but now, he was nearly a human. And it was very hard to treat him as if he wasn't her own son. She knew him ever since he was a little egg. He was just too cute and smart for her to keep treating him like a pet. Hopefully, he wouldn't bully Shang when he introduces the two of them.

"As a leader, it is your responsibility to make sure that you aren't mistreating those that treat you kindly. Treat them like how you want to be treated." Jing shared.

"I understand, mom. Thank you for telling me about Cerulean. I would never have known if you didn't tell me."

"A good leader also has to be aware of their follower's feelings and thoughts. You're just starting out, so it's normal to make a few mistakes. I still make mistakes from time to time." Jing didn't want him to feel like he has to be perfect. No one was perfect, not even her after living 10,000 lives. She doubted she could be perfect even with a million lives.

"This son understands." Li Li nodded as he saved Jing's words to memory.

"Now mom has a question for you Li Li." Jing suddenly showed a playful grin.

"Hmm?" He looked up at her.

"In the Endless Plains of Yin, there are no wild animals, correct?" She asked him.

"I haven't seen any..."

"So, what are we supposed to eat?"

"....." Li Li looked around. There were no wild vegetables or fruits or even insects!

"I don't know!" It's been an entire day and the only signs of life have been them or the other disciples. "We aren't supposed to eat each other, are we?"

"I wonder..." Jing grinned as she flashed her teeth at Li Li.

"You can't eat me, mom! I'm not tasty at all!" Li Li shuffled away from Jing.

"I don't know. You look pretty tasty to me." Jing licked her lips while staring at Li Li. She made her stomach growl loudly as Li Li looked at her in horror.

"Just a quick taste, please?" She moved took a single step forward.

"No!!!" Li Li ran off into the forest with Jing following behind him with a wide smile.