Chapter 18 The Soul Lamp Went Out How did my master's soul lamp go out?
The longevity noodles smelled delicious. Just smelling them made her mouth water uncontrollably. After taking a bite, she burst into tears.
"Is it really that bad?" Lin Jinshui had spent the whole morning making this bowl of longevity noodles, which he thought was perfect in color, aroma, and taste. He was even waiting for her to praise him after she ate it. But instead of praising it, she cried because it was so bad.
"It's delicious," Lin Jianyu said.
"That's not what you're saying." Making her eat a bowl of noodles was like she'd suffered a terrible injustice; her little face was streaked with tears. He felt incredibly sorry for her. "If it's not good, then don't eat it. I'll have your senior brother Yun Dan make you another bowl."
"It's delicious, really." Lin Jianyu emphasized, "I'm so happy, I'm practically crying tears of joy."
"You're crying tears of joy. Have you even been studying properly?" It's been a year, and you haven't made any progress at all. "Also, little girl, don't keep talking about your penis all the time."
"It's not hung up all the time, it's just hung up occasionally."
Even occasional crashes are not allowed.
"Oh," Lin Jianyu replied perfunctorily. "Did you yell at me just now?"
"Nothing of the sort, don't try to scam me." Lin Jinshui wiped away her tears. "Okay, don't cry. It's your birthday today, be happy."
“I’m very happy,” Lin Jianyu said.
"If you're happy, give your teacher a smile."
Lin Jianyu smiled at him in a very cooperative manner.
Lin Jinshui smiled back: "Eat your noodles! They'll get soggy if you don't eat them soon."
Lin Jianyu obediently took a bite of noodles, and after finishing, asked him, "Did you make these noodles for me?"
"Hmm." Lin Jinshui nodded. "You can tell by the taste?"
"To be honest, I couldn't tell because it tasted so good." When she ate it, she thought it was made by Yun Dan.
Lin Jinshui: "..."
If you can't taste the difference, fine, but what's with the "it tastes so good" part?
"So you mean I can't make noodles this delicious, right?"
“I didn’t say that, you said it yourself.” Lin Jianyu said, slurping up another mouthful of noodles. “It’s so delicious.”
"Let me try some too," Lin Jinshui said.
"You made the noodles yourself, haven't you tasted them yourself?"
"I didn't taste the noodles, I just drank a sip of the soup." Yun Dan taught him how to make longevity noodles. There was only one noodle in a bowl, so he couldn't really taste it, but he did taste the soup. It was fish soup that had been simmering for more than an hour, and it tasted delicious.
"Then you can have a taste." Lin Jianyu generously pushed the bowl in front of him.
Lin Jinshui took a bite, and it tasted just as good as he had imagined.
"I do have a knack for cooking."
"Don't say this in front of Senior Brother Yun Dan, I'm afraid he'll laugh at you," Lin Jianyu reminded him.
"He wouldn't dare! I'm his senior martial uncle."
Lin Jianyu thought of the sign Yun Dan had posted on the kitchen door: "Beware of fire, theft, and your uncle." He said, "He seems pretty daring."
"I won't bother with someone who has no respect for his elders."
...
Yun Dan, who disregarded elders but loved his fellow disciples, prepared a large feast for Lin Jianyu's birthday at noon.
This was Lin Jianyu's first birthday in her life, and also her happiest birthday.
After their birthdays, it was about time for them to head to South Vietnam.
Before going, Lin Jianyu specifically asked Yun Dan to teach her how to make fried dried fish, fearing that Lin Jinshui might not be able to eat it after arriving in Nan Yue.
Well, Lin Jinshui was worried about her going to study in Nanyue alone, so he planned to go with her to accompany her.
He would continue his cultivation once he was certain that her body would not have any problems without him.
After the start of the school year in September, Lin Jianyu and Zhu Liu became proud elementary school students.
Neither of them had ever been to school before. After hearing Zhu Jiang say that going to school was a very interesting thing, they happily carried their schoolbags to school, and then went home crying.
Going to school was utterly pointless. Attending classes in the classroom was even more unbearable than cultivating in the Taoist temple. On their first day, the two of them exclaimed that they had been tricked.
They thought Zhu Jiang had gotten caught in the rain himself, so they wanted to hold an umbrella for them. Little did they know that he had gotten caught in the rain himself, so he wanted to tear their umbrellas to shreds.
Two years have passed in the blink of an eye.
In the past two years, Lin Jianyu's body has not undergone any further changes, which shows that the Soul Jade still has a suppressive effect on her body. Unfortunately, the Soul Jade only has a suppressive effect on her body; her talent has not been activated and remains completely untapped.
I don't know if two years is too short to see results, or if she is destined to be an ordinary person for the rest of her life.
Once he was certain that her body wouldn't have any problems without him, Lin Jinshui decided to continue his cultivation.
He never forgot what Shen Siming had told him two years ago.
In the past two years, although he was accompanying Lin Jianyu in her studies, he did not slack off in his cultivation at all, and was more diligent than in any year of the past ten years.
However, his cultivation level did not improve much.
Because long-term cultivation requires spiritual energy, and the spiritual energy around him was very thin.
Upon learning that he was going to cultivate himself, Lin Jianyu immediately decided to drop out of school and go with him, but he ruthlessly refused.
"You stay in Pengcheng and study obediently. I will come to see you when you have a holiday."
"No." Lin Jianyu hugged him tightly and wouldn't let go. "I don't want to be separated from Master."
"I don't want to be separated from you either, but only by becoming stronger can I stay with you for a long time." Only by becoming stronger can his blood suppress the mutation in her body for a long time.
Otherwise, as his second senior brother said, his blood would one day be unable to suppress the mutation of her body.
At that time, her body will not be able to withstand the energy contained in his heart's blood, and she will explode and die.
He didn't want her to explode and die, so he had to become stronger.
"If I go with my master, won't my master become stronger?"
"Yes, but it will be slow. I'm afraid I won't have time," Lin Jinshui said. "Besides, I hope you study hard and can acquire a skill in the future."
The door to metaphysics is currently locked for her; he can only guide her toward scientific development to prevent her from ending up accomplishing nothing and being utterly useless.
"I don't want any special skills, I just want to be with Master. I will be good and won't interfere with Master's cultivation. Master, please take me with you, okay? Please," Lin Jianyu said with tears in her eyes.
Lin Jinshui couldn't bear to see her like this, and almost nodded in agreement. But when he thought that she might only ever be an ordinary person, he hardened his heart and said, "How about this, if your talent is awakened, I will guide you in your cultivation. If not, you should study hard."
"You're basically rejecting me in a roundabout way." Talent isn't something that's easy to unleash, and besides, she firmly believes that spiritual energy doesn't exist in this world.
"Will you listen to your teacher?"
"I won't listen."
"If you don't listen to me, why should I take you with me?"
"Then I'll be obedient."
"If you're obedient, stay in Pengcheng and study. I'll come to see you when you're on vacation."
Lin Jianyu: "..."
In the end, Lin Jinshui left Pengcheng alone to pursue his cultivation.
When he left, Lin Jianyu cried as if the sky were falling. Afterwards, she was depressed for a long time, and Huo Chenyin was afraid that she would have psychological problems.
Fortunately, things will get better after this period.
She began to study desperately, trying to skip grades so she could finish her studies as soon as possible and go on a cultivation journey with Lin Jinshui.
The underachiever cried even harder.
He could accept that his junior sister was three years older than him, because he had no choice but to accept it. But he couldn't accept that while his junior sister had finished her studies, he was still struggling as a student at school, crying and studying hard every day. Lin Jianyu skipped a grade, so he skipped a grade too.
The two quickly caught up with Zhu Jiang, who was a few years ahead of them.
Zhu Jiang couldn't accept that his junior brothers and sisters had finished their studies while he was still struggling to be a student at school, so he studied desperately and tried his best to keep up with them.
Time passed day by day, and they grew up day by day. Before they knew it, it was 1995.
In ten years, Lin Jianyu grew from a little girl into a little boy... That's impossible. She grew from a little girl into a graceful young woman, and from a proud elementary school student into a college student about to graduate.
The people around her have also changed to some extent.
The biggest changes were seen in Zhujiang and Zhuliu, who grew up with her.
Secondly, there are her other senior brothers, who have all grown to varying degrees.
Next was her master.
The biggest change in Lin Jinshui over the past ten years is probably the fading of his childishness, transforming him from a handsome young man into a refined and upright youth like Shen Siming.
Over the past ten years, he has spent most of his time cultivating in the mountains, which has greatly improved his cultivation level and made him increasingly otherworldly.
The bond between the master and his apprentice did not weaken due to their long separation; on the contrary, it grew stronger.
Even when Lin Jinshui was busy with cultivation, he would leave the mountains and forests every winter and summer vacation and during the season when peach blossoms were in full bloom to spend the New Year with Lin Jianyu, celebrate her birthday, take her to the peach blossom forest in Xiyue to eat peach blossom cakes, or bring her peach blossom cakes from the peach blossom forest in Xiyue.
Lin Jianyu would also make his favorite dried fish, spend the New Year with him, and celebrate his birthday.
Lin Jinshui's birthday is the 22nd day of the second lunar month, which happens to be the season when peach blossoms are in full bloom. Lin Jianyu didn't know this at first, but later she found out and celebrated it for him every year.
The least changed were her three senior uncles.
Wen Boyan remained at the Taoist temple. Lin Jianyu, Zhujiang, and Zhuliu would return to the temple every summer to be scolded by him. They might not return during the shorter winter vacation. His biggest change was probably that he became stricter with them as they grew older.
Besides exorcising ghosts, catching demons, and consulting feng shui masters, Shen Siming also cultivates in places rich in spiritual energy, just like Lin Jinshui. He would go there for a year or two at a time, and his biggest change was probably that he became more handsome.
Lin Jianyu was always amazed by him every now and then.
Huo Chenyin's business has grown bigger and bigger, and he is now extremely wealthy. His entire sect depends on him for their livelihood. His biggest change is probably that he has become richer.
Everything else remains basically unchanged.
Especially their appearance.
Lin Jianyu discovered that they not only did not age with the passage of time, but they also became younger.
Every time she sees their faces, unchanged for ten years, her unwavering faith is shaken.
Especially after Zhu Liu told her that his master was already eighty-eight years old, she was completely devastated.
Her third senior uncle looked to be at most in his twenties, but his actual age was certainly not the eighty-eight years old that Zhu Liu had told her. After she opened the box, she looked at his ID card, which showed that he was thirty-five years old.
Although he looks more like 25, 35 is acceptable.
She didn't know how old her eldest and second eldest uncles were, but they should be around the same age as her third eldest uncle.
In 1995, when the peach blossoms were in full bloom, Lin Jinshui, as in previous years, brought peach blossom pastries from Xiyue Peach Blossom Forest to visit Lin Jianyu.
Since Lin Jianyu started junior high school, she has never gone to the peach blossom forest in Xiyue with Lin Jinshui to eat peach blossom cakes. Every year, Lin Jinshui would bring them to her, from Nanyue at the beginning to the capital later. No matter how far away they were, he would bring them to her.
After eating peach blossom pastries and celebrating Lin Jinshui's birthday, the master and apprentice were separated once again.
This will be the last time the master and disciple are separated, because Lin Jianyu will graduate from university this summer and can go to the mountains to cultivate together.
As for work...
As a wealthy woman with a car, a house, money, and even a piece of the sea, she doesn't need to work at all. The wealth given to her by her third uncle is enough for her to squander for a lifetime.
At the end of June 1995, Lin Jianyu finally ended her university career.
The same applies to following the river and the current.
She, Zhu Jiang, and Zhu Liu all attended the University of Finance and Economics. Zhu Jiang and Zhu Liu went to the University of Finance and Economics to make a fortune with Huo Chenyin, while she went to the University of Finance and Economics because Zhu Jiang and Zhu Liu, two academic underachievers, couldn't get into Peking University.
After graduating from university, the three of them returned to South Vietnam together.
Back in Nan Yue, Zhu Jiang and Zhu Liu began to learn business from Huo Chenyin. Lin Jianyu did not go with them; she stayed at home all day waiting for Lin Jinshui to come and pick her up.
After waiting for more than half a month, instead of Lin Jinshui, I received a call from Yun Dan.
Huo Chenyin answered the phone. Lin Jianyu didn't know what they talked about, but she knew that after Huo Chenyin finished the call, he told them to set off for their sect immediately. Shen Siming's aura was lower than ever before, and she felt a chill just standing next to him.
Her intuition told her that something serious had happened to their sect.
When she asked Huo Chenyin, he didn't tell her. He said that once she got to her sect, she would know.
It takes a day to travel by train from Nanyue to Nanzhao.
By the time they arrived at their sect, it was already the next day.
Upon seeing them, Wen Boyan and the others all looked unusually serious. Even Yun Dan, who was usually jovial, had a stern face today, as if something major had happened to their sect.
An ominous premonition arose spontaneously.
"What happened?" Lin Jianyu couldn't help but ask.
Upon hearing this, Wen Boyan glanced at her with a complex expression, then said, "Let's talk inside the hall." Without waiting for anyone's reaction, he turned and walked into the hall.
Lin Jianyu felt a chill run down her spine from that look, and her ominous premonition grew stronger.
Seeing him turn and leave, she was the first to step forward and follow him.
Wen Boyan led them to a relatively remote hall.
Lin Jianyu had only been to this hall once, more than ten years ago, when she officially joined the sect. Inside were the soul lamps of all the members of their sect.
Upon entering the main hall, her gaze instinctively fell upon the soul lamps. She noticed that two of them were extinguished. One of them belonged to her grandmaster; it had been extinguished when she first entered the sect. The other was…
"Why did my master's soul lamp go out?"
Her words caused a huge stir.
Those who, like her, were initially unaware of the truth all changed their expressions drastically.
When I first entered the school, Wen Boyan's words, "As long as the lamp is there, the person is there; when the lamp goes out, the person dies," still resonate in my ears.
What it means when the Soul Lamp goes out is something that everyone except Lin Jianyu, a materialist, knows perfectly well.
Wen Boyan didn't know that Lin Jianyu was a materialist, but he knew that she didn't believe that the extinction of the soul lamp meant that the person was dead. Just like before, when he had just told her that as long as the lamp was there, the person was alive, and when the lamp was extinguished, the person died, she mischievously blew out the soul lamp.
As the only person in her sect without cultivation talent, it's normal that she couldn't sense the existence of spiritual energy, couldn't detect the aura of the Mountain and Sea Clan, and couldn't see the spirits of the deceased Mountain and Sea Clan members.
What's more, she herself had blown out her own soul lamp.
He didn't know if she would ever discover her talent, so he hadn't tried to instill any ideas about it in her over the years, and he had also privately instructed the other members of his sect not to do the same. However, he had taught her everything he needed to.
If she is fortunate enough to discover her talent in the future, she will find these skills useful; if she fails to discover her talent, learning these skills will not harm her.
But whether she believes it or not, it doesn't change one fact:
"Our junior brother, the sect leader... has passed away."
Although Lin Jianyu didn't believe in these things, she hadn't forgotten his words: "As long as the lamp is there, the person is there; when the lamp goes out, the person dies." Hearing his words, she wasn't surprised or greatly shocked. Instead, she calmly asked him, "What makes you so sure? The soul lamp?"
“Yes.” Wen Boyan nodded.
Given Lin Jinshui's cultivation level, if he were to die, his body would surely be completely destroyed. Unless he witnessed it with his own eyes, he could only determine this through the Soul Lamp.
“I don’t believe it,” Lin Jianyu said. “I don’t believe that the extinction of the soul lamp means that the person is dead.”
“I know you don’t believe it, and I don’t want to believe it either, but it’s the truth,” Wen Boyan said.
“No, that’s not true.” Lin Jianyu insisted. “I don’t know if you remember, but my soul lamp went out once, but I’m still alive and well.”
“You are an exception,” Wen Boyan said.
“My master is an exception.” Lin Jianyu said, walking directly towards Lin Jinshui’s soul lamp, picking up the tinderbox on the table and relighting it.
When Wen Boyan saw this, he wanted to say that the soul lamp could not be relit once it went out, and that she was truly an exception. However, before he could say anything, he saw her relight Lin Jinshui's soul lamp.
That's...outrageous!
Lin Jianyu didn't find it outrageous; she thought it was perfectly reasonable.
Although she was not as calm as she appeared when she lit the soul lamp, her hands trembled slightly involuntarily, fearing that she might really be an exception.
As it turns out, the idea that "as long as the light is there, the person is there; if the light goes out, the person dies" is utter bullshit.
She was terrified.
"See? I told you my master was an exception." As she said this, the corners of her mouth were always turned up, as if she were proud or happy, but only she knew that her smile was more because she had survived a disaster.
Wen Boyan: "..."
Wen Boyan's worldview remained unshaken, but he was shocked.
After the initial shock, he immediately thought of the forbidden technique Lin Jinshui had mentioned.
If nothing unexpected happens, that forbidden technique should be the main reason why their soul lamps malfunctioned.
He knew that the forbidden technique existed, but many others present were unaware of it. They were all greatly shocked to see Lin Jianyu relight Lin Jinshui's soul lamp.
After being shocked, Zhu Liu blurted out, "Why?"
"Why what?" Lin Jianyu looked at him and asked.
“The soul lamp has gone out, how can it be lit again?” Zhu Liu said.
"Didn't I say that my master and I are exceptions?" Lin Jianyu considerately did not shake his worldview.
"She is an exception" was said by Wen Boyan. Zhu Liu believed Wen Boyan and had personally witnessed her blowing out the soul lamp and then relighting it. But he didn't know if Lin Jinshui was an exception, so he subconsciously looked at Wen Boyan with questioning eyes.
The other disciples also turned their gazes to Wen Boyan without prior arrangement.
After receiving their gazes, Wen Boyan said, "Your sect leader's junior uncle should also be an exception." The reason he said this was probably because he had not yet met Lin Jinshui and dared not make a conclusion.
"Did Junior Brother say when he'll come back to find you?" It was Shen Siming who asked this question.
"He didn't say exactly when, but he will definitely come back before my birthday." Lin Jinshui celebrates her birthday every year.
"Then let's wait for him to come back." Only when he sees Lin Jinshui back safe and sound, alive and well, can he finally put his mind at ease.
As for what it means when the soul lamp goes out and is then relit...
He didn't know either.
But he was willing to believe that Lin Jinshui was an exception.
"Okay." It's already mid-June in the lunar calendar, and her birthday is just over half a month away.
After she finished speaking, everyone prepared to leave the main hall.
Just as she was about to put the tinderbox back in its place, she suddenly caught a glimpse of the only extinguished soul lamp in the hall, which belonged to her master. For some reason, she lit that soul lamp as well.
She wasn't surprised that the Soul-Seeking Lamp was lit, but she felt a little embarrassed.
The moment the soul lamp was lit, everyone else in the hall turned their gazes to her, and there seemed to be a faint sound of something being destroyed.
If she's not mistaken, it should be about worldview.
"Um... would you believe me if I said I didn't do it on purpose?"
No one said whether they believed it or not, and no one hit her on the head, because Lin Jinshui was not there, and the surroundings suddenly became eerily quiet.
After a long pause, she finally spoke again and asked, "You said my grandmaster has passed away. Could it be that you also determined this through the soul lamp?"
Yes.
Like Lin Jinshui, they did not witness it firsthand and could only judge it through the soul lamp.
"Was my grandmaster an exception?" Zhu Liu asked Wen Boyan.
Wen Boyan did not answer. Although his worldview was not shattered, it was shaken.
"The Soul Lamp went out, and our Grandmaster never came back." Regardless of whether the extinguishing of the Soul Lamp meant death, their Grandmaster had indeed never returned since the Soul Lamp went out.
"Can the sect leader's junior uncle still come back?" Zhu Liu asked.
"Yes," Lin Jianyu replied. "My master will definitely come back."
She believed that Lin Jinshui would definitely come back, and she had to believe that Lin Jinshui would definitely come back.
Wen Boyan and the others were the same.
When Lin Jianyu and the others left the main hall, Wen Boyan and his two fellow disciples did not follow.
Wen Boyan walked to the place where Lin Jinshui's soul lamp was placed, gently blew on it, and the soul lamp went out. He picked up a tinderbox and relit it, then blew out the soul lamp that belonged to their master, and relit it. Then he tried to blow out his own soul lamp, but no matter how he blew, he couldn't extinguish it. He tried to blow out Chen Siming's soul lamp as well, but none of them could be extinguished.
Lin Jianyu's soul lamp had indeed gone out, but she had blown it out herself many years ago, so it wasn't surprising that it went out again. After relighting the soul lamp, he said to Shen Siming and Huo Chenyin, "It must be that their soul lamps have failed."
He didn't know why it failed.
"Perhaps, Master once used that forbidden technique." Lin Jinshui saw that forbidden technique in their master's room, and their master himself may have used it.
"Perhaps!" Wen Boyan couldn't think of any other reason besides this explanation.
They couldn't possibly be both sect leaders, could they? But Lin Jianyu isn't a sect leader; she's at most part of the sect leader's faction.
More than half a month passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
Unfortunately, Lin Jianyu did not get to see the master she longed for.
Yun Dan's words, "The soul lamp went out, and my master never came back," echoed in her ears like a curse.
This was the first time she had ever felt such hatred for the fact that everyone in her sect was a jinx.
"I'm going to find my master." After waiting for several more days and still not seeing Lin Jinshui return, Lin Jianyu decided to go find him.
“Okay.” Wen Boyan didn’t stop her. “However, before you go, you must first assume the position of sect leader.”
"I don't want to," Lin Jianyu refused. "My master isn't dead, why should I succeed as the sect leader?"
“Your master is not dead, but he may be like your grandmaster, never to return,” Wen Boyan said. “The position of sect leader cannot remain vacant forever.”
"Then you guys can be the leaders, I'm not going to." She had no interest in being the sect leader.
“We’re not your master’s disciples.” The four brothers each had their own responsibilities. Lin Jinshui was responsible for the inheritance; his lineage was also known as the sect leader lineage. His disciples, like him, had the duty to succeed him as sect leader. “Your master only has one disciple, so you must succeed him as sect leader. Or would you like me to take on another disciple for your master?”
Just as Lin Jianyu was about to say she didn't want to, she heard Shen Siming say, "Junior Brother once said that he would only have her as his disciple in this lifetime."
Lin Jinshui had only said this to Shen Siming, and Lin Jianyu was unaware of it. When she was suddenly brought it up, Lin Jianyu was first taken aback, and then felt a lump in her throat, and an indescribable emotion spread through her heart.
She thought that her master must know she didn't want him to take on any more disciples.
"Does one have to be my master's disciple to succeed as sect leader?"
“Yes.” Wen Boyan nodded.
"What if my master doesn't have any disciples?" Lin Jianyu asked.
“I will take on an apprentice for him,” Wen Boyan said.
"I can temporarily assume the position of sect leader. When my master returns, I will return the position to him. We can skip the ceremony." She was simply holding onto the position for her master.
“There is no ceremony,” Wen Boyan said.
Lin Jianyu: "..."
Sure enough, the position of sect leader is dispensable in their sect.
No wonder her master kept running away after taking over as sect leader, and so did her grandmaster. Neither of them frequented the sect, and they both disappeared while running around.
This must be a coincidence, right?
Lin Jianyu thought about how many people in their sect were safe and sound, whether they stayed at the Taoist temple, pretended to be gods and ghosts, cheated and swindled, or engaged in business and made money. Only the sect leader, who was always running away, had disappeared twice. Suddenly, he felt that being the sect leader was a high-risk profession.
I wonder if I'll ever be able to come back?
Fortunately, she wasn't worried about not being able to come back, because not being able to come back would mean that she had gone to her master's side.
Thinking about it this way, succeeding as the sect leader doesn't seem like such a bad thing.
that is……
"If I can't come back either, will you also..." Before she could finish speaking, Yun Dan, who was next to her, reached out and covered her mouth.
As he did so, he kept spitting under his breath, saying, "Stop cursing yourself. Don't forget that everyone in our sect has a bad mouth." After spitting, he pressed her head down and bowed to the statues of the Three Pure Ones in the main hall, muttering, "Children say the darndest things, don't take it personally."
Lin Jianyu was "moved" by his actions and said, "Senior Brother Yun Dan, you still care about me the most. I've made up my mind. If I can't come back either, you will be my disciple."
Yun Dan was also "moved" and raised his hand to give her a hard knock on the head.
Lin Jianyu said she was going to find Lin Jinshui, intending to go alone, but her senior uncles clearly didn't think so. She had neither spiritual power nor the ability to survive alone in the wild, so going to find Lin Jinshui alone would be tantamount to suicide.
As her senior apprentices, how could Wen Boyan and the others possibly send her to her death?
They each assigned a disciple to accompany her, so that she could search for Lin Jinshui while also protecting and taking care of her.
The disciples were Yun Dan, Xuan Zhan, Zhu Jin, and Zhu Liu, who stubbornly insisted on following along.
Zhu Jiang wanted to go too, but Huo Chenyin didn't agree.
He needs people right now, and with Zhu Jin missing, someone has to fill in.
Zhu Liu is still young, so going together can be considered as a learning experience; there's no need for Zhu Jiang to come along.
After the selection was finalized, the group packed up and set off.
Our first stop was Minyue, which is next to Nanyue.
When Lin Jinshui and Lin Jianyu parted, Lin Jinshui mentioned that he might go to Minyue. Whether he actually went or not is unknown, but at least it gave them a direction, which is better than searching blindly.
All matters on the road were handled by Zhu Jin.
As one of Huo Chenyin's right-hand men, he was no longer the naive young man Lin Jianyu first met. He had grown into a worldly and shrewd businessman just like Huo Chenyin.
With him around, Lin Jianyu and the others basically didn't have to worry about food, clothing, shelter, or transportation.
"I didn't expect you to come along too," Lin Jianyu said to Yun Dan after boarding the train to Minyue.
As someone who was obsessed with cooking and had no interest in spiritual cultivation, Yun Dan had hardly ever left Nanzhao in the past twenty-odd years. Lin Jianyu really didn't expect that he would come along.
"There's nothing I can do about it, I have a lot of experience in wilderness survival!" Yun Dan said.
"Isn't it because of my master?" Despite his frequent bickering with Lin Jinshui, their relationship is actually quite deep.
"No." Lin Jin shook his head decisively.
Lin Jianyu would be a fool to believe him.
"What about you two?" she asked Xuanzhan and Zhujin. "Is it because of my master?"
“No.” Xuanzhan and Zhujin also shook their heads.
Lin Jianyu scoffed, clearly still not believing it.
"Why didn't you ask me?" Zhu Liu couldn't help but try to make himself feel important after she fell silent after her "tsk".
“You don’t need to ask, it’s definitely because of me,” Lin Jianyu said without hesitation.
"Bullshit, it's because of the sect leader's junior uncle," Zhu Liu said.
Lin Jianyu: "..."
The ship of friendship can sink at any moment.
Once you enter the mountains and forests of Minyue, it becomes the domain of Yundan and Xuanzhan.
Yun Dan has extensive experience in wilderness survival, so can Xuan Zhan lead them to a place rich in spiritual energy?
Lin Jianyu watched Xuan Zhan toss a coin at the crossroads for the nth time and expressed his doubts.
After the N+1th time, she finally couldn't help but ask Yun Dan, "What is Senior Brother Xuan Zhan doing?"
"When in doubt, consult metaphysics first," Yun Dan said.
Lin Jianyu: "..."
It's really unreliable.
"Don't worry, Zhanzhan is a professional at tossing coins."
Lin Jianyu could tell that Xuanzhan's method of tossing copper coins was very professional, but could he really find a place with abundant spiritual energy this way?
Do places with abundant spiritual energy really exist?
"Of course," Yun Dan replied without hesitation. "Otherwise, why do you think we'd go through all this trouble? To deceive ourselves?"
"What? A self-proclaimed chicken-man?" Zhu Liu, who was lost in thought, suddenly looked up at Yun Dan.
Completely confused.
Lin Jianyu, whose dark past was unexpectedly brought up, remained indifferent!
"We didn't put in much effort," they said, tossing coins around.
"What about Shui Shui? Why did he go through all that trouble?"
Lin Jianyu thought of Lin Jinshui, who had been searching for a place with abundant spiritual energy to cultivate. To be honest, she didn't know what he was wasting his time on.
To say he's deceiving himself is pointless; doing the same thing for over a decade is unnecessary.
Moreover, she knew him; he wasn't a self-deceiving person.
But as a staunch materialist, she found it hard to believe that spiritual energy truly existed in this world unless she saw it with her own eyes or experienced it firsthand.
Even though there are many unscientific things within their sect.
For example, the ageless appearance of Wen Boyan and his two fellow disciples.
For example, there were the talismans that Yun Dan drew that could keep food fresh, and the mysterious and esoteric arts that Wen Boyan taught them.
...
"Why don't I have talent!" If she had talent, she wouldn't have to be separated from her master.
“Now that spiritual energy is depleted, pure-blooded humans with cultivation talent are only a very small minority, so it’s normal that you don’t have any.”
“But you all have it.” She was the only one in the entire sect who didn’t have the talent.
"We are different from you."
“What’s the difference? Aren’t we all human?” Lin Jianyu said. “It’s impossible for this thing to be sexist, right?” The biggest difference between her and them is their gender.
"Of course not." There are plenty of powerful female cultivators out there. "You are a pure-blooded human, while most of us are mixed-blood."
"Mixed-race? What kind of mixed blood?" Lin Jianyu asked, puzzled.
“The Mountain and Sea Clan!” Yun Dan said, stepping forward to catch up with Xuan Zhan.
Seeing him leave, Lin Jianyu quickly followed, asking as she walked, "Are you serious?"
What good would it do me to lie to you?
"It doesn't seem to have any advantages, but it doesn't seem to have any disadvantages either."
"Then just consider it a lie I made to you."
The more he said that, the less Lin Jianyu could believe he was lying to her, but she also couldn't trust him because he was an untrustworthy person.
"Senior Brother Xuanzhan, is what Senior Brother Yundan said true?"
"Mmm." Xuan Zhan, who was leading the way, heard her call him and took a moment to reply.
"Are you all of mixed race from the Mountain and Sea Clan?"
"Mm," Xuan Zhan replied again.
"My master is one too?"
“No.” Xuan Zhan finally stopped just saying “hmm” and said, “The sect leader’s junior uncle is a pureblood.”
This answer was somewhat unexpected for Lin Jianyu. She thought Lin Jinshui was also of mixed race, after all, he was very talented.
“He omitted two words,” said Zhu Jin, who was walking behind.
"Which two words?" Lin Jianyu turned to look at him.
“Sea Clan,” Zhu Jin said. “Our Sect Leader’s Junior Uncle is a pure-blooded Sea Clan member.”
Lin Jianyu: "..."
Lin Jianyu suddenly remembered that when she was a child, she had asked Lin Jinshui what the Mountain and Sea Clan was like. His answer was that they were like him. At the time, she thought he meant that the Mountain and Sea Clan looked exactly like humans. Now that she thought about it, he was probably using himself as an example.
Of course, this is on the premise that he is truly a pure-blooded sea creature.
But is that even possible?
She began to recall every moment she had spent with Lin Jinshui over the past ten years.
Lin Jinshui actually has many unusual qualities.
First, there is his blood.
When she was little, she didn't understand anything and thought it was just because she was ignorant. Now that she thinks about it, human blood could not possibly have such an effect.
Next, there's the soul jade he used to encapsulate the blood beads.
She used to think it was candy, but it wasn't. It was an unknown substance, extremely hard and impossible to break, but it would easily melt if you put it in your mouth for a few minutes. Out of curiosity, she had secretly tested it with an instrument, but it didn't detect anything.
Then, there was his natal sword.
She examined those two natal swords meticulously countless times and was almost certain that there were no mechanisms on the swords, yet only he could pull them out.
...
She was lost in thought, so lost in thought, that she only snapped out of it when she bumped into Yun Dan's back.
"What's wrong?" Seeing that Yun Dan and Xuan Zhan, who were walking ahead, had stopped, she looked a little confused.
"There's the aura of sea creature spirits around here," Yun Dan said calmly.
"Where?" Lin Jianyu perked up immediately upon hearing the word "sea creatures." He looked around, but there were no birds or insects around except for flowers, trees, and plants. Where could there be any sea creatures?
"I don't know," Yun Dan said. "I can only sense his aura, and it's very strong."
As he said this, Xuan Zhan, who was walking at the front, had already drawn the copper coin sword from his back.
“Here I am,” he said.
"Where?" Lin Jianyu saw them drawing their swords and taking out talismans, so in order not to seem out of place, he also took a talisman from Yun Dan.
Just as she held the talisman in her hand, a strong gust of wind suddenly swept in from her right, almost causing her to drop the talisman. Fortunately, Xuan Zhan and Yun Dan immediately changed positions to shield her from it.
After securing the talisman, she subconsciously looked in the direction from which the strong wind was coming. She did not see the legendary sea creatures, but she did see several talismans standing in mid-air.
That scene was... quite mysterious.
For a moment, she was not sure whether the shocking talisman was used in this way or whether it could stand steadily in mid-air.
While she was still in shock, Xuan Zhan had already charged forward with his copper coin sword, Yun Dan was still protecting her, and Zhu Jin and Zhu Liu behind her also joined the battle.
She could tell they were fighting fiercely, because Zhu Liu was being sent flying backwards, but what about the sea creatures? Why couldn't she see anything? Xuan Zhan and the others seemed to be fighting against the wind.
"Can this sea creature become invisible? Or is it just that I can't see it?" she asked Yun Dan in front of her.
“These are the spirits of the sea race, they have no physical form, you just can’t see them,” Yun Dan replied.
Lin Jianyu: "..."
Very good, the world where only she is blind has been achieved.
"Do you want to go and help them?"
Yun Dan hesitated for a moment before saying, "Take care of yourself." Then she went straight up, taking the talismans that were standing in mid-air with her.
Without the talisman to block her wind, Lin Jianyu stumbled. She thought to herself, "At least leave the talisman to shield me from the wind," but Yun Dan had already run more than ten meters away from her.
Fearing she would be blown away by the wind, she could only temporarily find a big tree to use as shelter.
The big tree was some distance away from her, and she struggled to move towards it against the wind.
Halfway there, she suddenly heard Zhu Liu calling her name.
"Junior sister, hurry up and go."
Lin Jianyu watched as he flew backward again, crashing into the big tree she had her eye on. When he landed on the ground, blood was still on the corner of his mouth. She thought to herself, "How can I leave! I should...run!"
Without hesitation, she turned and ran. Because of the wind, she ran very fast. By the time she realized the wind direction had changed, it was too late to brake. A strong gust of wind came from the front of her, accompanied by the sound of a sharp blade cutting through the air. She saw a copper coin whip blocking her and the strong wind, cutting off the wind.
She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she seemed to smell a very faint fishy smell mixed with the stench of money.
Before you could even smell it properly, you were already falling to the ground due to inertia.
Soon, a pair of hands reached out from behind her and helped her up; it was Zhu Liu.
"Didn't I tell you to hurry up? Why did you rush up there?!" I've never seen such a reckless person.
Lin Jianyu walked quite fast, almost running, but it seemed he was going in the wrong direction; the world of the blind is just that difficult.
"This undead is very strong. You should leave here first to avoid being accidentally injured." After saying that, he picked up his peach wood sword and rejoined the battle.
Lin Jianyu, who is blind, wanted to leave first, but which way should she leave?
Which way should I leave?
"Behind." The person who answered her was Zhu Jin.
Upon hearing his words, she immediately turned and ran away.
As she was running... suddenly a strong force struck her lower back. It didn't hurt, but she was thrown into the air, very high.
She looked down and felt that she was about to die.
The expected feeling of weightlessness quickly followed. Before she could scream, she was falling rapidly. Just when she thought she would be crippled if she didn't die, the expected pain did not come.
Don't get me wrong, no one saved her.
She just happened to fall into a bottomless crevice in the mountain.
Holy crap, hole-in-one!
As she fell into the crevice in the mountain, she vaguely heard Yun Dan and the others calling her, but it was quickly drowned out by the howling wind.
After that, all she could hear was the whistling wind.
Until she landed on the ground with a loud "bang".
Unexpectedly, she did not feel any pain. She only heard a cracking sound coming from her body. She subconsciously looked down and saw the Soul Jade that her master had given her.
The Soul Jade was emitting a pale blue light, with a clear crack in the middle. The crack was red, like blood. Before she could examine it closely, the Soul Jade, which originally had only one crack, suddenly turned into two beams of light and disappeared into the ground beneath her.
One strip of pale blue, the other of blood red.
She instinctively reached out to grab it, but grabbed nothing.
It was at this moment that she realized that what she was standing on was not the ground she had thought it was, but a... ice coffin.
There seemed to be a person lying inside the coffin, but she couldn't see the face clearly. She could only vaguely make out a red outline, as if the person was wearing red clothes.
-----------------------
Author's Note: Please add my upcoming novel, "Transmigrating into a Historical Novel as a Comparison Character with My Nemesis," to your collection.
When Xu Youyu woke up, she found herself transmigrated into the body of a spoiled female supporting character in a period novel.
The female supporting character serves as a contrast to the female protagonist in the book.
The female protagonist comes from an ordinary background and has an average appearance, but she is hardworking, capable, kind to others, and manages both her family and work.
She, on the other hand, came from a wealthy family and was outstanding in appearance, but she was lazy, spoiled, and willful, and squandered her good fortune.
Xu Youyu thought she was in the reverse scenario, until she discovered that her husband in the book was her nemesis, Lu Xinian.
Xu Youyu: "..."
The control group can be given the vaccine, but Lu Xinian must die!
When Lu Xinian woke up, he found himself transported to the 1970s and had become a soldier on a mission. After surviving numerous close calls, he returned home only to find not unfamiliar family members, but his familiar nemesis, Xu Youyu.
His arch-nemesis, Xu Youyu, not only became his wife, but was also pregnant with his child.
Looking at Xu Youyu, who was heavily pregnant and still acted out as always, I could see her being incredibly difficult and capricious.
Lu Xinian: "..."
Let's just make do, what else can we do but divorce!
My upcoming novel, "The Little Darling Wife of the 1970s [Transmigration]," is available for pre-order in this column. Please add it to your favorites.
When Mu Chenyu was eighteen, she saved a person in the mountains.
The man was dressed in rags and covered in wounds.
She treated his wounds and led him down the mountain, only to find him leaving without saying goodbye halfway down the way.
We met again at her home.
He was dressed in military uniform, exuding a heroic air, and she, experiencing her first stirrings of love, secretly fell in love with him.
Later, they married with the help of her sister.
Later, she discovered that the person he loved was actually her sister, and that he only married her because her sister wanted him to marry her and treat her well—a belief she held dear.
A few short years of marriage had worn away all her affection for him.
Just as she was about to end this marriage that should never have started, she died.
Only after her death did she learn that she was actually a supporting female character in a book.
The female protagonist in the book is her younger sister, and the male protagonist is her bedmate.
The two were originally in love, but because of her interference, they missed each other for several years until she died and they finally got together.
Reborn back to when she was eighteen, Mu Chenyu looked at the male protagonist in front of her, who was dressed in rags and covered in wounds. She raised her foot and kicked him hard twice, thinking to herself, "Male and female protagonists, this is all I can do to help you."
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