Chapter 71 The Incomprehensible Him Ten Thousand Years Ago.

When Hua Deng opened her eyes, she found that the place she went to was not quite the same as last time.

Last time it was a cold cave, but this time it is clearly a palace, but it is still built underground. Looking around, there are only eerie lights.

She suspected that Shen Zhou was a vampire in his past life and couldn't stand the sunlight, which was why he liked to stay in the underground palace so much.

The underground palace was quite vast, but fortunately she could fly and pass through walls, and soon found Shen Zhou in the palace in the very center.

Ten minutes left.

To avoid being caught by Chen Zhou again, she set the time short enough to escape this place.

The door was tightly shut, but she floated inside.

The palace was empty, bathed in the glow of the setting sun, half in a golden hue, half in darkness. The magnificent, golden pillars, carved with dragons and phoenixes, stood tall. The lamps squinted, and through the pillars, a figure could be vaguely seen.

The man stood by the window, his black robe trailing on the ground, his back long and slender. The setting sun outside was like fire, dyeing the sky red, and the afterglow cast his long, menacing shadow onto the wall.

Almost at the same moment the streetlights stepped inside, the figure slowly turned around. Backlit, he was tall and thin with long, flowing hair, looking like a vengeful ghost.

Hua Deng guessed that he "saw" himself, and that he was stronger than before.

The man's face remained expressionless as he gazed in her direction, his voice low and deep: "It's you again."

This surprised Hua Deng, and she was slightly taken aback.

He shouldn't remember.

The system says she is an observer, not a time traveler, and that there is a spacetime barrier between her and this era.

But considering Shen Zhou's behavior, it doesn't seem surprising. His strength was already beyond imagination.

She couldn't help but wonder, what timeline is this?

Yin Zejing and Chen Xi should be dead, and the Heavenly Tribulation is gone too.

What is his identity?

As she was thinking, she saw the man walk up to her.

He lowered his eyes slightly, his gaze arrogant and indifferent, his expressionless face different from later, appearing extremely pale.

However, those eyebrows and eyes still looked familiar, only now they were more sinister and cold, sending chills down one's spine.

He spoke, his tone flat and emotionless: "Do you really think I can't kill you?"

The moment the words left his mouth, Hua Deng felt a change occur in his body.

Strictly speaking, she didn't have a "body" at all, but Shen Zhou conjured one up for her.

She was imprisoned by some kind of force, a force that shaped her, contained her, and actually allowed her to step out of the river of time and stand before Shen Zhou like a living person.

Throughout the entire process, he simply watched without blinking. Hua Deng had no way of knowing what he did, and the system couldn't analyze it either, emitting a sharp beep.

The streetlights were put into hibernation mode.

Having a physical form is good, she still has some things she wants to say to Shen Zhou. After the initial shock, she easily accepted this fact, even thinking, "I knew it would happen again."

She glanced at the countdown timer; seven minutes remained.

Shen Zhou said, "Why aren't you running away? Do you think you can defeat me?"

Hua Deng carefully crafted his words: "Actually, I am..."

"Shhh."

Shen Zhou casually stopped her.

The last time they met, he had a smile on his face, and he was curious about who she was and where she came from. But this time, his eyes were only deathly still, filled with a cold killing intent.

He said slowly, "Whoever you are, you can die now."

A wisp of sword energy flew from his fingertips and disappeared into Hua Deng's shoulder.

But she was perfectly fine and didn't feel any pain at all.

Shen Zhou slowly lowered his head and looked at his shoulder.

Blood gushed out there, from the wounds torn by his sword energy, which were even ten times more powerful than the moves he had just used.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been hurt so badly.

“…A counter-kill curse.” He looked at the pattern that appeared between Hua Deng’s brows. “Why do you have a counter-kill curse that I set?”

Hua Deng: "Because I traveled from the future, we will meet in the future."

Shen Zhou seemed to realize something: "You mean I'll meet you in the future and set up a counter-killing curse to protect your safety?"

"yes."

Shen Zhou stared at her, then suddenly laughed, a laugh that was extremely cold and contemptuous.

“That’s a real shame,” he said. “He lied to you.”

He raised his right hand, blood seeping from his fingertips. He used this blood to trigger the counter-killing curse on Hua Deng's body, gradually breaking it.

"Even if it's a counter-killing curse I set myself, it would only take half an incense stick's time to break it. Do you think you can escape from me?"

Five minutes left.

Hua Deng patiently waited for him to explain.

Sure enough, his face soon darkened, and a storm brewed in his eyes.

Hua Deng then said, "Last month you upgraded the counter-kill curse, and now you probably won't be able to break it for at least two hours."

"Oh, no, that's not right."

She said innocently, "You should be weaker now than you will be in the future, which means it will take longer, maybe two days or two months?"

Shen Zhou ignored him and continued his spell. More blood flowed from his fingertips, but no matter how much blood there was, it would eventually be devoured by the counter-killing curse.

After a long while, he fluttered his eyelashes and stopped moving.

He looked at the streetlights, and the streetlights looked back at him.

Those unfathomably dark eyes were finally stirred by her.

"Who are you? Why should I stop myself from killing you?" he asked.

"What do you think I am to you?" Hua Deng retorted.

Chen Zhou calmly pondered.

There is only one answer to the question of whether someone can possess both his counter-killing curse and true energy.

But he didn't believe that such a person couldn't exist. No, perhaps she simply didn't exist.

Hua Deng had no idea what he was thinking, but he slowly replied, "It's my inner demon."

Hua Deng: "..."

Were you always this imaginative?

She sighed and said helplessly, "It's your Daoist partner."

Shen Zhou remained expressionless: "Impossible."

Hua Deng: "It's true."

Shen Zhou said, "Do you know who I am?"

Hua Deng nodded: "I know."

Shen Zhou looked down at her with an arrogant disregard for everything else.

“So it’s impossible,” he said decisively. “I will die here, with no future, and I will never meet you.”

Besides, what a damned Daoist partner.

Hua Deng gave an "Oh," with little reaction: "If you don't believe me, there's nothing I can do."

Her attention was entirely focused on Shen Zhou's eyes. Because he was possessed by a demon, his pupils glowed with a faint red light, giving him an eerie and ghostly aura. Staring at them for too long would make one's scalp tingle.

She didn't notice that after she finished speaking, Shen Zhou's expression became even colder, and his whole being was shrouded in an aura of irritability and gloom.

“Answer me—” he said, “who sent you?”

The puppetry technique forced Hua Deng to open his mouth and tell the truth: "It was my own idea to come."

What are you doing here?

"I've come to see you. I want to see you."

When she spoke, her gaze toward him was gentle and earnest.

As if I had looked at him many times before.

Wanting to see him... what kind of reason is that?

Shen Zhou turned around indifferently and stepped out of the palace gate.

Hua Deng felt a lightness in his throat as the puppetry technique vanished.

She lifted her skirt and followed him, saying, "Don't worry, I really just came to see you. But... now that I've seen you, I should go."

As she spoke, she stopped and waved with a smile.

Goodbye, Shen Zhou. I can't keep you waiting too long in the future.

The system has started the countdown.

Ten, nine, eight, seven...

When the mechanical voice announced the number "five", Shen Zhou returned to her.

"Are you here to say goodbye?" she asked, looking up at me.

"Saying goodbye?"

His cool fingertips brushed against her throat, and he chuckled softly, asking, "Do you think you can still escape?"

In that instant.

The sounds of wind, breathing, and system announcements all ceased.

There was nothing there.

Only his words, with their crushing force, crashed down heavily.

"Aren't you his Daoist partner?"

"—What will he do if he can't find you?"

Those sharp corners of his eyes revealed undisguised malice.

“I’m very curious,” he said with a half-smile.

The city lights blared incessantly amidst the sirens.

[Warning, the system has lost connection. Please respond...]

[Warning, the host has lost vital signs. Warning—]

Finally, her mind fell silent; she had never experienced such peace.

I've even lost the urge to swear.

All those words can be summed up in one sentence: "System, you really are trash!"

*

The streetlights were forced to remain in this time and space.

She was a little worried because all she could see about Shen Zhou's future was that she would never wake up.

But then I thought about it again. That Shen Zhou was much more mature than the one in front of me. Even if I was a little worried, I wouldn't do anything inappropriate. I would try to find her as soon as possible.

Even if the system is useless, it's not completely without solutions; she can go back sooner or later.

And so, another figure appeared in the once empty and desolate palace.

Shen Zhou sat cultivating, and she moved a chair over and sat down beside him, staring at him blankly.

"Please let me go back quickly, I can't do anything here," she said kindly.

Shen Zhou simply asked, "When is the future you're referring to?"

Having no other choice, Hua Deng replied, "Ten thousand years from now."

Shen Zhou closed his eyes, made a hand seal, and asked again, "Which incarnation of mine is that?"

The streetlights seemed bewildered: "What do you mean, 'which generation'?"

Shen Zhou opened his eyes and said with interest, "You don't know?"

The method of reincarnation cannot be implemented precisely because it has many limitations. The soul carries memories and power, which will inevitably cause the reincarnated person to collapse due to the influx of power, resulting in an extremely short lifespan.

With his power, he couldn't possibly live past thirty years after reincarnation. Therefore, he will definitely not only reincarnate once; he will surely be reincarnated many times, and each time he will not have a good end.

She didn't know.

Shen Zhou almost burst out laughing.

If he just tells the truth, he'll be able to see the expression of heartbreak and pain on that innocent face.

She shouldn't have come here, shouldn't have trusted him, and certainly shouldn't have spoken to him or smiled at him.

Because he was different from that person, he only wanted to see her despair and plead.

Just as he was about to reveal the truth, he heard the woman let out a soft "hmm" and extend a hand towards him.

He reacted immediately, intending to break her wrist, but then remembered the existence of the counter-killing curse, and the action of twisting her wrist turned into grabbing her hand.

After a moment of silence, he calmly released his hand.

She seemed oblivious, as if she had long been accustomed to being around him, and pointed at his somewhat empty eyes, saying, "Are you using your third eye right now?"

Shen Zhou's expression turned extremely cold in an instant.

But the voice continued: "Your five senses haven't recovered yet, have they?"

A clear killing intent flashed in his eyes.

"...He actually told you."

He actually revealed all his weaknesses to others.

“Stupid,” he uttered.

Hua Deng rested her chin on her hand and said regretfully, "Then you won't be able to see what I look like?"

Shen Zhou was still pondering how to kill her: "Do I need to see this?"

Hua Deng said, "Actually, I'm quite good-looking."

She leaned closer to take a look, and just before he was about to make a move, she made a precise retreat, offering a sincere comment: "You look quite good even now."

Shen Zhou remained unmoved: "Are you insulting me?"

Hua Deng: "..."

Isn't this an obvious compliment? This person's thought process is hopeless.

He continued his cultivation, while she sat beside him, chatting idly.

"How long has it been since I last came here?"

"Twenty years."

What is your current cultivation level?

"Transcending tribulation."

Where am I?

"You talk too much."

"Where am I sleeping tonight? You can at least ask me that, right?"

Shen Zhou finally looked at her, frowning slightly: "Do cultivators need to sleep?"

Here we go again! The King of Curls always thinks everyone in the world is as curly as him.

Hua Deng smiled and said, "I think it's necessary."

Shen Zhou's face showed a mocking expression, and he casually pointed to the only bed in the palace: "If you can sleep, then go."

Hua Deng immediately ran over, reached out and pressed it twice; it was a bit hard, but it would do.

She turned to look at Chen Zhou: "If I sleep here, what will you do?"

He had just been there, but now he suddenly appeared behind her, startling her.

Taking in her expression, Shen Zhou seemed satisfied, his agitation subsiding slightly. He said slowly, "What else are you afraid I'll do to you?"

"No, that's not it. I was worried you wouldn't have anywhere to sleep," Hua Deng said, hugging her blanket.

She clearly meant well, but Shen Zhou's face darkened again, as if he had a strong opinion about her answer.

He said in a chilly tone, "If you can fall asleep, this bed is yours."

Hua Deng was acting strangely. No one can sleep in bed, especially since Chen Zhou's deathly gaze was a source of pressure for others, but it had a sleep-inducing effect on her.

And so, under Shen Zhou's gaze, she soon curled up in the blankets and fell peacefully asleep.

Shen Zhou: "..."

She actually fell asleep.

Right here, right under his nose, in front of someone who could kill her at any moment.

Shen Zhou leaned down and pulled her hand out from under the blanket. She didn't react, only mumbled something indistinctly.

He saw the ring on her hand, glowing bright red, which meant that his power was stored in it.

What practitioners pursue throughout their lives is nothing more than power, and he was no exception.

But in the future, he gave his power to this girl, squandering it like dirt.

There was another reason he didn't remove the counter-kill curse: he felt threatened by the ring when he cast the spell.

The ring's power is of the same origin as his; once he makes a move, it will immediately attack him.

Even he couldn't escape unscathed.

But he still wanted to kill her.

He wanted her to struggle under his control, and he wanted the person of the future to lose everything.

He should be able to do whatever he wants. He is already above the world, so why should he be subject to restrictions?

Thinking this, Shen Zhou raised his hand and grabbed her throat from a distance. She was completely unaware, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly because of her sweet dream.

He used a little force, and she turned over, making a patting motion, murmuring, "Chen Zhou, stop fooling around, go to sleep..."

The day was dark.

He hadn't heard that name in a long time.

What name does he use now? The one with the surname Chen, or the one with the surname Yin?

There are several people with the surname Shen, but none of them are the one she's talking about.

After a brief standoff, Shen Zhou released his grip and turned away expressionlessly.

This person is ignorant, naive, and weak.

And in the future, he would become her Daoist partner, love her deeply, and cherish her like a precious treasure.

Incomprehensible.

Because she's so unreasonable, let's keep her here for another day.