Inside the bamboo residence, Ji Rujun and Du Wujin, two old friends, had been fighting and bickering with each other for quite some time. Their childish squabble finally came to an end when a disciple arrived to deliver a letter, interrupting their ridiculous behavior.
After the disciple set the letter down and departed, the two men finally felt too embarrassed to continue their quarrel. At last, they were willing to sit down and exchange a few words like civilized adults.
Du Wujin was in a particularly foul mood when he spoke. After all, he had lost their earlier fight.
“You really can sleep soundly at night, can’t you? I honestly don’t know whether you’re his biological uncle or whether I’m his biological master.”
“Didn’t you fail to stop him, too?” Ji Rujun replied, refusing to accept that the entire responsibility rested on his shoulders.
More importantly, he needed to shift at least part of the blame onto someone else. That way, when his elder sister eventually came to hold him accountable, he would have a better chance of escaping with his life.
Du Wujin found his argument utterly ridiculous. They had known each other for so many years. Why was Ji Rujun pretending to be an outsider now?
“When have I ever managed to stop him?”
Shi Zhaorong had been entrusted to his care when he was only six years old. Back then, he had been such a tiny, soft, adorable little dumpling, clever and obedient in every way. From that moment onward, Du Wujin had never once managed to harden his heart enough to be strict with his own disciple.
He had originally hoped that his unscrupulous uncle might possess some unconventional trick or underhanded method that could dissuade Shi Zhaorong from leaving. Unfortunately, the man had proved completely useless in this regard.
Ji Rujun attempted to comfort his friend, though he was also trying to reassure himself.
“There really isn’t any need to worry too much. Although Zhaorong doesn’t understand the ways of the world very well, he isn’t foolish.”
“Besides, his selfless Dao heart, while pure and immaculate, allows him to advance through cultivation at an astonishing pace. Yet it also has a fatal weakness: he lacks the worldly aura that comes from experiencing mortal life.”
“The higher his cultivation realm becomes, the greater the danger of merging his very being with the Dao.”
“Although we’ve been suppressing Zhaorong’s cultivation progress all this time, that only treats the symptoms rather than the root of the problem. It’s rare for him to develop any interest in entering the mortal world and experiencing ordinary life. Since he’s finally willing to do so this time, perhaps letting him go out and experience a little worldly life will do him some good. He might even return with a little more of that worldly aura.”
Even Ji Rujun wasn’t certain whether this approach would work. However, since things had already reached this point, there was nothing they could do except look on the bright side.
Du Wujin, however, deeply disliked this particular theory because it had originated from a certain Golden Immortal who was nothing more than a charlatan.
That old fraud had practically come right out and declared that Du Wujin’s disciple wouldn’t live very long. The prediction had left a lasting bitterness in Du Wujin’s heart, and he had never been able to let it go.
The weakness of Shi Zhaorong’s selfless Dao heart was real, but Du Wujin didn’t believe that entering the mortal world was the solution.
After all, he himself had come from the mortal world. Wasn’t he perfectly aware of what it was really like, both its good and its bad?
“You’ve been agreeing to things in public while doing the opposite in private. Aren’t you afraid of your elder sister?”
If there was anyone capable of keeping Ji Rujun in line, it could only be his elder sister, Shi Qingcheng.
Shi Qingcheng was Shi Zhaorong’s mother, Ji Rujun’s biological elder sister, the ruler of Lingdu, and the person who had slain the vicious beast Xuanqi. She was the youngest person ever to attain Sainthood, the most beautiful and ruthless woman in the entire Great Wilderness, and also the woman who was best at making money.
She was a woman who had spent her entire life fighting against fate itself, determined to wrest her destiny from the heavens.
Ji Rujun immediately grew anxious.
“Oh, come on! Let’s get one thing straight. What do you mean, agreeing in public while doing the opposite in private?”
Du Wujin snorted coldly. “Hmph. You know perfectly well what I mean.”
With Ji Rujun’s eight hundred twists and turns of a cunning mind, if he had genuinely wanted to stop Shi Zhaorong, was it really possible that he would have been unable to do so?
“I think it’s because you’ve never suffered any real hardship yourself that you’re so willing to let the child go out and suffer unnecessarily.”
Du Wujin had been born a mortal. He had never studied under a renowned master, never joined a prestigious sect, and had relied entirely on his own efforts to climb step by step until he reached the Great Ascension Realm and became a grandmaster of the sword.
In the eyes of others, he and Ji Rujun were a classic pair of opposites. Ji Rujun came from an aristocratic family, had cultivated within an Upper Sect, and possessed a Saint as his elder sister. His life had been smooth sailing, and he had eventually become the sect master of one of the Upper Sects.
Ji Rujun adopted a gesture of surrender.
“All right, all right. I’m the bad uncle, and you’re the good master. Let’s just keep playing our respective roles from now on, shall we, Little Wujin?”
Du Wujin gritted his teeth.
“Stop taking advantage of me whenever you get the chance! You’re not that much older than I am!”
Ji Rujun let out an exaggerated sigh.
“One hundred and twelve years, three months, five days, and one hour! And you call that not much older?”
He actually remembered my exact birth date down to the hour just so he could lord his age over me?
What an immature man.
Du Wujin retorted, “Whether the difference is large or small depends on what you’re comparing it to. At our current ages, a hundred years isn’t all that significant.”
Ji Rujun smiled and remarked thoughtfully, “You know, one of the typical characteristics of young people is that they don’t like being treated as young people.”
Du Wujin shot back, “And do you like being treated as a young person?”
Ji Rujun nodded. “I quite like it.”
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have continued going about in his current youthful appearance.
Whenever a new batch of disciples joined the sect, they would often mistake him for someone of their own generation. That was one of Ji Rujun’s favorite parts of the whole experience.
Du Wujin had no comeback left. He couldn’t beat the man in a fight, and he couldn’t win an argument against him, either. It would be better to find something useful for the troublesome fellow to do.
“Didn’t someone deliver a letter just now? What does it say?”
Only then did Ji Rujun open the letter that the disciple had brought. It turned out to be an invitation.
“Hmm…”
“Mount Lingxiao is going to hold a Sword Trial Assembly and has invited the Xuanzhen Sect to send representatives to attend the ceremony.”
Mount Lingxiao was located in Qingzhou and was a subordinate sect of the Xuanzhen Sect.
Whenever an important event took place, these subordinate sects would send invitations to their superior sects. It was a way of demonstrating that they still acknowledged their allegiance to the Upper Sect, while also borrowing the superior sect’s prestige and presence to enhance their own standing.
The timing of this invitation was truly unfortunate.
Ji Rujun sighed. “What a pity. If this letter had arrived just a little earlier, Zhaorong could have gone in our place.”
The Xuanzhen Sect followed an elite focused approach and did not recruit disciples indiscriminately from the outside world. Even now, its total number of disciples was fewer than three hundred, making it one of the smaller sects among the Seven Upper Sects.
Sending a disciple of too low a status would be inappropriate, but sending someone of excessively high status would be equally unsuitable. After considering everyone in the sect, there were very few people who could attend the event on their behalf.
If he sent a message ordering Zhaorong to change his travel plans, the young man would undoubtedly lower his uncle’s credibility in his eyes.
That would be disastrous.
His credibility was already quite low as it was.
Just as Ji Rujun was struggling to decide what to do, a tall, handsome young man strode into the bamboo residence. He stopped outside the bamboo curtain and bowed respectfully.
“Master, this disciple has returned to report the completion of his mission.”
Noticing that Du Wujin was also present, he turned and bowed to him as well.
“Peak Master Du.”
Ji Rujun’s eyes immediately lit up.
“Jueli is back! Perfect timing. You can go in his place.”
As he spoke, he tossed the invitation over to him.
Jueli’s full name was Wei Jueli, and he was Ji Rujun’s only disciple at present.
Du Wujin gave him a sympathetic look.
Poor Jueli. He’s only just returned, and before he can even have a drink of water, he’s being sent away again. That fellow treats his disciple like a workhorse.
Ji Rujun responded with a smile in his eyes.
When there’s work to be done, disciples should naturally serve their masters. Otherwise, why would I have gone to all the trouble of teaching him in the first place?
Du Wujin turned his head and muttered something under his breath. Judging by the movement of his lips, it was two words.
Black hearted.
Wei Jueli caught the invitation and glanced at the cover before accepting the assignment without hesitation.
“Yes, Master. This disciple will certainly fulfill the mission and will not disappoint you. I still have other matters to attend to, so I won’t disturb you and Peak Master Du any longer.”
After receiving Ji Rujun’s approval, Wei Jueli hurriedly departed, leaving just as quickly as he had arrived.
Ji Rujun sighed. “Sigh, the old man really isn’t as likable as his junior brothers and sisters.”
His pretentious demeanor prompted Du Wujin to silently criticize him. Just wait until he actually sits down to discuss the Dao with you. You’ll be wishing he would go spend time with his junior brothers and sisters instead.
“Did you tell him that Zhaorong has left the sect?”
Ji Rujun thought about it for a moment. “I forgot.”
The two men spoke in unison.
“Oh no!”
“Oh no!”
*
The moon slowly traversed the night sky, while the chirping of insects rose and fell in waves.
After accepting the system’s suggestion, Shi Zhaorong instructed Chenbi and Yinruo to hide at a considerable distance. They were not to intervene unless he encountered an opponent he couldn’t handle himself. As for Shi Zhaorong, he found an elevated spot with a clear, unobstructed view of the surroundings, concealed his aura, and waited patiently.
The system lay at his feet. While doing its best to minimize its presence, it began reviewing the original character settings in its mind.
In the original novel, the author had explicitly described Shi Zhaorong as someone of “exceptional beauty.” His appearance was exquisite and magnificent, and although his face was as beautiful as a woman’s, he possessed none of the coquettish charm that might have accompanied such features.
The reason the author, A Big Goose Stewed in a Milk Pot, had given a male supporting character such an appearance wasn’t because of some peculiar personal preference. Rather, it was meant to introduce another peerless beauty into the story: Shi Zhaorong’s mother, Shi Qingcheng.
She was the ruler of Lingdu, a woman whose beauty, wealth, and ruthlessness were all at their absolute peak. She was also a female Saint of the Great Wilderness.
Although the immediate reason for killing off Shi Zhaorong had been the dissatisfaction of certain readers who thought the supporting character carried himself with too much grandeur, the real reason was that A Big Goose Stewed in a Milk Pot had suddenly been struck by inspiration while taking a bath. He had decided that making Shi Qingcheng the main antagonist would be an excellent idea.
The simplest and most effective way to create an irreconcilable conflict between Shi Qingcheng and the male lead was to kill Shi Zhaorong.
The author had been extremely pleased with this idea. He deliberately kept all relevant information tightly under wraps, eagerly anticipating the moment when he could deliver a tremendous shock to his readers.
Unfortunately, before he could shock the readers, he was struck by 220 volt alternating current. When he opened his eyes again, he had become a goose.
For the system in its current state, everything else had become secondary. The real priority was to help Shi Zhaorong win over the male lead, or, to put it another way, to help the male lead win over Shi Zhaorong.
To become a formidable rival to a cheat powered, heaven defying Long Aotian male lead, Shi Zhaorong naturally needed a cheat of his own.
No, not a cheat.
His innate talent was called the Selfless Dao Heart.
He had attained the state described by the words, Empty yourself to the utmost, and preserve stillness with unwavering devotion. His nature was pure and sincere, and his cultivation allowed him to enter a selfless state with remarkable ease. In that state, he could communicate with the intentions of the Heavenly Dao and merge with his surroundings until he became one with the environment itself.
That was precisely why even Ji Rujun, a Golden Immortal, had been unable to find his nephew during their games of hide and seek.
A sudden sound of wind tearing through the air reached them.
Someone was coming?
The system poked its head out to take a look. However, Shi Zhaorong lowered his golden folding fan and gently pressed the goose’s head back down before it could expose itself.
Several figures appeared at the edge of the opposite cliff, directly across from the Tempered Jade Flower.
There were four people in total, and one of them was carrying a sack over his shoulder.
After reaching the cliff’s edge, they threw the sack onto the ground and cut it open.
To their surprise, there was a living person inside.
The man leading the group ordered the other three, “Stop dawdling! Hurry up and set up the formation. We need to lure that snake demon out!”
Their conversation could be heard clearly through the voice transmitting jade talismans they were using. Once Shi Zhaorong realized that they intended to use a living person as bait to set up their formation, his brows drew together.
Worried that Shi Zhaorong might reveal himself and frighten the male lead away before the latter had a chance to appear, the system hurriedly whispered, [Boss, don’t rush. The male lead will take action himself. Even if he doesn’t show up, there’s no need for you to intervene until these people actually attempt to kill someone.]
Shi Zhaorong glanced at the goose and replied softly, “I know.”
The system recognized these four men. In the original novel, they were nothing more than cannon fodder who competed with the male lead for the spiritual herb.
They had also discovered the Tempered Jade Flower early on, but they lacked the confidence to confront the demonic snake guarding it directly. Therefore, they had captured a living person from one of the nearby villages and planned to use the unfortunate victim to set a trap for the snake demon.
Unfortunately for them, the mantis stalked the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind it. While the four men and the snake demon fought until both sides were severely weakened, the male lead would seize the opportunity to intervene and emerge as the ultimate victor.
After setting up their trap, the men cut open the bait’s arm to draw blood, then retreated into hiding and waited for the snake demon to appear.
However, after waiting for a long time without seeing any movement, one of them began to grow impatient.
“Big Brother, what’s going on? Could that snake demon have left?”
Shi Zhaorong listened to their conversation and wondered whether they were waiting for the little snake he had casually chased away earlier.
The man leading the group replied, “Snakes are cunning creatures. We mustn’t let our guard down. That beast has guarded this Tempered Jade Flower for several years. It has finally waited until the flower is mature, so there’s no way it would abandon it so easily.”
Meanwhile, a pair of eyes hidden in the bushes was also calmly observing the situation along the cliff.
The young man to whom those eyes belonged was at an age difficult to define. Calling him a boy would make him sound a little too old, while calling him a fully grown man would make him seem a little too young. He stood at that delicate point of transition between youth and adulthood, possessing a handsome yet cold and severe appearance, like the icy edge of an ancient blade.
He, too, was wondering where the demonic beast guarding the spiritual herb had gone.
Among the four people competing with him for the Tempered Jade Flower, one was at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, while the remaining three were at the Qi Refining stage. Given his current cultivation, it would be difficult for him to obtain the spiritual herb unless he waited for the four men and the demonic beast to weaken each other in battle.
Just as Meng Shu was weighing his options, an eagle’s cry suddenly rang out from the sky.
A gigantic eagle, roughly the size of an adult human, circled overhead before swooping toward the four men hiding behind the rocks.
Seeing this, Meng Shu finally relaxed a little. He put on his face covering and prepared to act at any moment.
The system wasn’t surprised by the appearance of the giant eagle.
Everything in the world would somehow arrange itself within reasonable limits to help the male lead. That was the sort of luck a Long Aotian protagonist possessed.
Unlike the snake demon, the giant eagle had the advantage of superior vision. It had spotted the trap and therefore avoided the bait entirely, choosing instead to attack the four men directly.
Unfortunately, it was weaker than the snake demon. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been circling the area and waiting for the snake to leave before approaching the spiritual herb.
Before long, the giant eagle began to fall into a disadvantageous position.
Meng Shu rapidly calculated the changing circumstances of the battle, carefully waiting for the right moment to strike.
Now!
After killing the giant eagle, the four men had just begun to relax following their victory when hidden weapons suddenly flew toward them from the side.
They deflected the incoming projectiles, only to find that the attacker’s blade was already following close behind.
Using a secret technique, Meng Shu swiftly closed the distance between himself and the four men. He targeted the one with the weakest cultivation, who was also the only ranged attacker among them. Drawing his blade, he struck without warning and cleanly eliminated his opponent before the man had time to react.
However, the remaining men were also ruthless fighters who had survived countless life and death encounters. After a brief moment of confusion, they quickly summoned their weapons and prepared to fight back.
Meng Shu evaded a palm strike coming from his right, then swung his blade backward and killed another opponent.
At the same time, he hurled an Explosive Talisman that he had concealed in his palm toward the enemy on his left. Taking advantage of the brief flash of flame produced by the explosion, he withdrew his blade and thrust it forward again, striking the target’s vital point.
However, this move also prevented him from immediately bringing his blade back into position.
The cultivator at the early stage of Foundation Establishment seized the opportunity and brought his own blade down from behind Meng Shu.
The blade struck its target.
Yet no blood splattered into the air.
Meng Shu’s figure vanished, and scraps of paper fluttered in every direction.
This was Meng Shu’s unique secret technique: the Paper Doll Substitute.
It allowed him to instantly exchange positions with a paper doll.
In the next moment, the vanished Meng Shu appeared behind the Foundation Establishment cultivator. A cold flash of light pierced forward, striking directly through the man’s heart. The spiritual light in his eyes faded, and he died on the spot.
It was obvious that Meng Shu had calculated every move his opponents might make, along with the methods he would use to counter them, even before the battle had begun. In just a few short exchanges, he had slaughtered every opponent who stood against him.
Magnificent!
Hidden in the darkness, Yinruo couldn’t help admiring the young man’s extraordinary combat instincts and tactical brilliance.
What a pity that Lingdu didn’t accept male disciples.
After efficiently stripping the four corpses of their valuables, Meng Shu turned his attention toward the cliff.
The moon had reached the middle of the sky, and the petals of the Tempered Jade Flower had fully unfurled. A refreshing, intoxicating fragrance spread through the night air.
Just as Meng Shu was about to reach out and pick the flower, his spiritual perception suddenly sensed an impending threat.
He immediately withdrew his hand and retreated.
Unfortunately, he was still a fraction too slow.
The rock wall beneath his feet crumbled and collapsed, and an enormous snake’s head burst through the stone from below the cliff.
Meng Shu reacted quickly. Reversing his grip on his blade, he plunged it into the rock wall and suspended himself in midair.
The demonic snake turned its head, its cold, vertical pupils fixed on Meng Shu.
After Shi Zhaorong had driven it away, the snake hadn’t gone far. Instead, it had hidden among the surrounding rocks, hoping to find an opportunity to reclaim its spiritual herb.
Later, after hearing the sounds of battle, it had returned to the area.
Seeing the four men fighting desperately against one another, and noticing that the formidable human who had driven it away earlier was nowhere to be seen, the demonic snake became convinced that Shi Zhaorong had already departed.
Therefore, once the battle ended, it seized the opportunity to attack the humans who had dared covet its spiritual herb.
Anyone who dared covet its possessions deserved to die!
The demonic snake opened its enormous jaws and lunged toward Meng Shu.
Meng Shu’s current position was extremely unfavorable. He released his grip on the blade and, at the instant the snake was about to bite him, his figure vanished.
At the same moment, he exchanged positions with the substitute paper doll he had secretly thrown onto the snake’s back while falling into the chaos.
Drawing his short blade, he stabbed toward the snake’s seven inch vital point.
Unfortunately, his weapon wasn’t sharp enough. The strike failed to inflict a fatal wound, and instead served only to enrage the beast.
The demonic snake violently twisted its enormous body, flinging the human on its back toward the edge of the cliff. It then turned its head and opened its jaws to bite him again.
Meng Shu had exhausted nearly all his methods. He had already used his final substitute paper doll during the previous exchange, leaving him with no other choice but to fight desperately for survival.
Gripping the short blade in his hand, he waited for the uncertain, fleeting opportunity to turn the tables and launch a counterattack.
At that critical moment, a streak of golden light shot through the air at incredible speed.
Carrying the righteous, powerful force of spiritual energy, it pierced straight through the snake’s head.
Blood poured down like a waterfall.
The demonic snake immediately lost its vitality. Its enormous body convulsed twice before plunging into the abyss below.
Meng Shu raised his head and looked upward.
A young man was suspended in midair, holding a golden bow in his hand. His red robes fluttered gracefully in the wind, and his appearance was so magnificent that it seemed almost otherworldly. A brilliant red lotus pattern adorned the space between his brows, making him appear as though a divine being had descended into the mortal world. Even the bright moon hanging directly above them seemed reduced to a mere backdrop in his presence.
[Author’s Note:]
None.