Chapter 35 Jade Void, Golden Fan, and Radiant Lanterns: You are different from them. ...
Thanks to the efforts of the lanterns, Brother Mule escaped from the clutches of Chen Zhou and was spared the fate of being burned alive.
Brother Mule was very moved. He lay down at the foot of the streetlight and brayed weakly, clearly trying hard to suppress his voice.
Hua Deng led it on a stroll inside the palace.
This palace is called the Broken Cloud Palace, and as its name suggests, it sits high above the clouds. Every corner is imbued with a rich spiritual energy, and after walking around, one feels that even the spiritual veins have become much clearer.
No wonder Shen Zhou became so strong if he cultivated in such an environment.
She tried lying on a cloud and found that the bounce was just right, perfect for using as a bed. She then pulled another cloud over to use as a blanket, feeling like she was wrapped in cotton candy, and rode the cloud like a go-kart.
She was having a great time flying with her mule brother when suddenly the clouds beneath her started to disobey her and shot off at a speed approaching that of a roller coaster.
She tells the clouds to go east, and they go west; she tells them to go up, and they go down; they just do the opposite of what she says.
Hua Deng squinted and saw that Shen Zhou had indeed walked into the main hall at some point, controlling her cloud chariot with one finger, almost making Mule Brother vomit.
She pulled her mule off the ground, disdaining to play such a childish game.
Shen Zhou strolled over leisurely from behind: "Since you're here, why not break through to the Nascent Soul stage here?"
Hua Deng turned around, surprised, and exclaimed, "I can break through like this?"
Shen Zhou hummed in agreement and said, "It can be done today."
Hua Deng's eyes lit up. No cultivator doesn't want to become stronger, and she was no exception.
"I thought my peak Golden Core cultivation was only temporary."
Or rather, at first, she thought it was the effect of the Nine Nether Flower. But after waking up, she consulted existing books and found that ordinary Nine Nether Flowers did not have such strong effects, unless they were varieties that were over ten thousand years old.
Shen Zhou said, "It's just a Golden Elixir. What's the point of being temporary? Once you've ascended, you've ascended."
It was indeed him who did it. Hua Deng checked the spiritual palace with unease: "How did you do that? I didn't go into qi deviation, did I?"
Shen Zhou curled the corner of his mouth slightly: "Yes."
"Huh??" Hua Deng's eyes widened. Perhaps it was because her expression was too adorable, but Chen Zhou couldn't help but laugh.
"..." Hua Deng understood, and angrily accused him: "Is it fun to lie to me?!"
Shen Zhou suppressed his smile and shrugged: "I already said it's just a Golden Core stage, what are you worried about?"
Damn it, of course you, who reached the Golden Core stage at the age of five, wouldn't understand the hardships of ordinary cultivators!
But it must be said that at this moment, the streetlights did not seem to feel any hardship at all.
Her cultivation advanced too quickly, causing her to completely lose her sense of reality and even giving her the illusion that the Nascent Soul stage was within her grasp.
"Then... I'll try to break through to the Nascent Soul stage today?" she said expectantly.
“Alright,” Shen Zhou said. “As long as you experience the pain of having your bones broken and your spiritual veins reshaped three times, you can directly break through to the Nascent Soul stage. Come, let me help you with the first step. Give me your hand.”
"Wait a minute." Hua Deng suddenly came to her senses. "What...what kind of pain?"
“Bone and tendon shattered, spiritual veins rebuilt.” Shen Zhou patiently repeated, holding her hand. “If we move quickly enough, it can be finished in six hours. The first step is…”
"Then I don't want it!" Hua Deng abruptly pulled her hand back, utterly terrified. "Stay away from me!"
Shen Zhou revealed a teacher-like gaze: "These are necessary pains for cultivation. I will help you discover your potential."
Hua Deng's face fell: "Can't you think of another way? Aren't you very capable? I don't want to suffer, not even a little bit!"
Shen Zhou raised an eyebrow: "Am I that amazing?"
Hua Deng said matter-of-factly, "That's right, you are the most powerful cultivator in the world."
Shen Zhou said, "Okay, let's try a different approach, but it will take a year or two longer."
"Sure, sure," Hua Deng nodded hurriedly. "I want this slow one."
Shen Zhou smiled, raised his head and pointed lightly, and a ray of white light was injected into Hua Deng's sea of consciousness.
"Wow, what is this? So many words!" Hua Deng covered his head, utterly shocked.
“I have written three cultivation manuals for you,” Shen Zhou said. “From now on, you will complete one manual every six months, and you will be able to break through to the Nascent Soul stage in a year and a half at most.”
"I knew it! You're amazing!" Hua Deng winked with a smile and joked casually, "How come you're so skilled? Have you written for other people before?"
"Yes, I have written it."
"?" The smile on Hua Deng's face gradually faded. "How many have you written?"
"About a dozen or so." Shen Zhou roughly counted them. Jin Ze had indeed learned quite a few techniques over the past four years.
"Wow, you're really amazing," Hua Deng said flatly.
"It's alright," Shen Zhou said modestly.
You're kidding me!
Hua Deng didn't want to talk to him. She sat on the mule's back, patted it to signal it to move forward, and the mule obediently carried her forward until they reached the window.
Hua Deng lowered her head and sent a message to Su Yiqing, telling her that she and Shen Zhou would be leaving for the night and wouldn't be going back for the time being. She should contact her via teleportation device if anything came up.
Su Yiqing replied with an "I understand" emoji.
The emojis were hand-drawn chibi characters by her; Hua Deng found them cute and saved them without thinking.
Putting away the communication disc, she rested her chin on her hand, gazed at the sea of clouds outside the window, and suddenly said, "I think it should snow at this time of year."
No sooner had he finished speaking than a heavy snow began to fall outside the window.
She curled the corners of her lips and continued to mutter to herself, "Sigh, it would be even better if there were a stove. Warming myself by a stove in the snow is my lifelong dream."
A sizzling sound came from behind, followed by a warm, cozy feeling; a stove had appeared out of nowhere.
Hua Deng remained silent, saying softly, "I still want to eat Zhu Luo fruit. It's so delicious. If I could eat it right now, I would be the happiest person in the world."
She waited with a smile on her face for a while, but nothing happened.
Hua Deng: "The Crimson Fruit! The Crimson Fruit that is abundant in the Demon Realm. Although it is rare and expensive, I think I should be able to eat it."
Silence fell.
She turned away in displeasure, staring at Shen Zhou.
Shen Zhou: "Don't even think about it, it's impossible."
Hua Deng: "...Then bird's nest, shark fin, duck breast, drunken crab, roast goose, those can surely be available, right?"
Shen Zhou: "No."
Hua Deng sighed deeply: "How come your demonic sect has nothing?"
She relented: "Okay, but I want to eat something. Do you have anything to eat?"
Shen Zhou turned to the puppet and gave it an order. The puppet quickly flew out and then flew back a while later, carrying the plate.
Hua Deng curiously peered over to take a look—
Donkey meat sandwich, donkey meat soup.
Mule Brother: "...Eek!"
Hua Deng quickly covered Mule's eyes and turned to rebuke him: "Can't you have any humanity towards your pet?"
Shen Zhou remained unmoved: "Even a beast isn't worth protecting."
Just as Hua Deng was about to retort, he suddenly noticed that his mule had moved. Looking down, he saw that it had been unable to resist the aroma and had come forward to eat it, making whimpering sounds as it ate, seemingly very sad.
Hua Deng: "..."
Okay.
Since that's the case, she didn't stand on ceremony and simply sat down to the side, picked up a donkey meat sandwich and took a bite.
She was stunned after taking that bite.
No, this is so delicious! I've never eaten such delicious meat in my life!
Her eyes sparkled as she looked up: "Is it really donkey meat? Why does it taste so good?"
“It’s donkey meat, and it’s from a Nascent Soul stage donkey.” Shen Zhou glanced at her. “It’s a higher level than you.”
"Thank you, you can shut up now."
Hua Deng buried himself in his food and ate heartily. Before long, he and Mule Brother had cleaned up the whole table.
She clutched her stomach and let out a satisfied sigh.
Looking back, she found that Shen Zhou was still standing there, leaning lazily against the pillar with a faint smile on his face, as if watching her eat was an interesting thing.
Hua Deng touched the corner of her mouth, making sure there were no food crumbs on her face. Sigh, was her table manners really that bad? It even made Chen Zhou laugh.
However, she quickly put this doubt behind her and took out the cultivation method written by Shen Zhou, and began to practice it with great interest.
What surprised her most was not how strange or mysterious this cultivation method was, but that the language was quite profound yet simple, easy to understand, even easier to comprehend than the "Legend of the Rising Sun" she had in her hands.
I thought a genius like Shen Zhou wouldn't understand their pain points at all.
It's a pity that Yu Heng destroyed her ink-white fan, otherwise this technique would be perfect for the fan, and she could try it out now.
As she was thinking regretfully, a jade pendant suddenly appeared in front of her. Above the pendant was a fan handle inlaid with gold and silver, and then a fan surface with a gold base and silver edges.
In some people's eyes, this is nouveau riche aesthetics, but in Hua Deng's eyes, this is her favorite design.
She instinctively reached out and took it, opening it with a whoosh. The fan surface shimmered, and she liked it even more.
"Is this what you wanted?" Shen Zhou asked from behind her.
Hua Deng turned around, holding the fan, her eyes filled with surprise and a hint of caution: "Is this a gift for me? Or are you selling it to me? How much would you charge me?"
"One million spirit stones," Shen Zhou said.
After hesitating for a while, Hua Deng nodded seriously: "Deal!"
Shen Zhou: "...Are you really that rich?"
Hua Deng: "Hmm?"
Shen Zhou shook his head and said, "It's a gift for you, I don't want a single penny."
Hua Deng: "You should still light it, otherwise I'll be scared."
Shen Zhou clicked his tongue: "Fine, then pay me, one hundred spirit stones."
Hua Deng happily exchanged money for goods.
"Is this a return gift from the sword tassel?" she asked.
“No,” Shen Zhou said. “I’ll give you the return gift later.”
The more gifts the better, and Hua Deng certainly wouldn't refuse. She examined the fan, liking it more and more each time: "What's it called? Where did you get it?"
"The Jade Void Fan." Shen Zhou paused for a moment, then blurted out, "My sister gave it to me."
After he finished speaking, not only was Hua Deng stunned, but he himself seemed to be taken aback as well.
Hua Deng asked in shock, "You have a younger sister?"
“...There was one.” Shen Zhou’s gaze fell on the fan. “She died later, and the fan has remained in my possession ever since.”
Hua Deng paused in her fanning motion: "Wouldn't this be a bit inappropriate?" Even though she really liked it.
“You’ve misunderstood,” Shen Zhou said. “She’s a weapon crafter. She’s never used this fan since it was made, so she asked me to keep it safe and find a suitable person to give it to.”
Hua Deng opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but ultimately stopped himself from speaking.
Shen Zhou chuckled: "Stop looking, I'm not sad."
Hua Deng thought to herself, how could she not be sad? That was her own sister.
Shen Zhou replied, "It happened a long time ago. I've almost forgotten what she looks like." His expression was calm and composed, showing no sign of reminiscing.
Hua Deng had no choice but to believe it; it was probably from practicing martial arts, after all, his techniques looked rather sinister.
With weapons in hand, Shen Zhou taught her a few moves, all of which were deadly techniques. Hua Deng didn't resist at all and grasped them very quickly.
Even after Shen Zhou finished teaching, she was still practicing alone, seemingly tireless.
Shen Zhou asked in surprise, "You were very diligent today."
Hua Deng took a moment to reply to him: "Because I want to sign up for the Golden Core group's disciple competition."
Shen Zhou: "So?"
Hua Deng laughed and said, "So, of course I have to get first place."
"What's the need?" Shen Zhou said dismissively.
"Of course I am." Hua Deng raised her chin at him, looking arrogant. "Winning first place proves that I'm better than them all!"
Shen Zhou casually said, "You were always better than them."
Hua Deng was startled, incredulous: "Your illness is cured?"
Shen Zhou raised an eyebrow, instinctively sensing that what she was about to say was not a good thing.
Sure enough, Hua Deng exclaimed, "It can actually speak human language!"
Shen Zhou stared at her, then suddenly burst into laughter—a genuine laugh of being amused. Hua Deng felt a chill run down her spine and inexplicably crossed her arms, moving further away.
Gradually, night fell completely, and although the city lights were trying to stay afloat, they hadn't yet gotten used to sacrificing sleep.
In the latter half of the night, she hesitated for a while, but still went up to the cloud, buried herself in it, and fell asleep comfortably.
Before going to sleep, she called the system again, but there was still no response. The system was replenishing its energy, probably because her sudden poisoning that day had affected the system as well.
She rested her head by the window and quickly fell asleep. The stove was still burning loudly. Some time later, Chen Zhou walked over to the stove, sat down, and casually poked at the fire.
Hua Deng held the Jade Fan tightly in his hand, not letting go even when he slept, like a child who had finally gotten his favorite toy. He had done the same when he was a child.
Unconsciously recalling the past, Shen Zhou smiled slightly.
More memories flooded his mind, and he suddenly recalled a scene from when he was three or four years old.
He held his father's hand, looked curiously at the baby girl in the cradle, and asked in a soft voice, "Daddy, why am I called Zhou (Day) and my sister isn't called Ye (Night)?"
He took his mother's surname, Shen, while his younger sister took her father's surname, Chen. She was just given the name Chen Xi two days ago. At that time, as a little boy, he did not understand the meaning of this name.
The father stroked his head and laughed, "Our A-Zhou is really amazing, he even knows the difference between day and night."
Xiao Shenzhou lowered his head and smiled shyly: "My mother explained the meaning of my name."
"Did your mother ever tell you that day and night are opposites?"
"Right...?"
“Because day and night cannot appear at the same time, they never meet, they can never coexist.” The man gazed at them gently. “You and your sister are different. You are family, bound by blood, and will always be by each other’s side.”
Little Shen Zhou nodded as if he understood, "Father is right, I want to be with my sister!"
He thought he had forgotten everything, but it turns out he still remembered some things from the past.
But as he had said to Hua Deng during the day, it had been too long, so long that he was too lazy to recall what those people looked like, letting them gradually fade from his memory.
The fire crackled loudly in the stove, but he didn't turn around. His voice flowed slowly like moonlight, cold and devoid of any warmth.
"My father was a well-known swordsman. He was public-spirited, hated evil, and did many good deeds."
"Shortly after Chen Xi was born, his father passed away. When his enemies learned of this, they came to his door one after another."
“My mother was exhausted from dealing with everything and took us on many journeys. Chen Xi grew up in this environment. She was very smart and had the aptitude of a single spiritual root, so she became powerful in no time. More powerful than me.”
“When my mother died, she wasn’t sad at all. She even told me that she would follow the same path as my mother. To live for the Way and to die for the Way.”
“From that moment on, I knew that I would lose her one day.”
He did indeed lose it later.
Looking at the streetlights, he calmly stated, "You are different from them. You are very happy, and no one can change your will."
Therefore, no proof is needed.
The girl's sleeping face was peaceful and carefree in the moonlight. He chuckled very softly and said in a low voice, "Like this is fine."
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