Chapter 4 Floods and Beasts: You Can't Do Anything But Be My Daoist Partner...
In the original novel, Shen Zhou never took off his mask, which led Hua Deng to suspect that he had some physical defect, such as a birthmark or burns.
Thinking about all this, Hua Deng couldn't help but show a look of regret.
She didn't want to hurt Shen Zhou's pride, nor did she want to ruin their cooperative relationship.
Fortunately, her worries were unnecessary. When she cautiously raised her eyes, she found that Shen Zhou didn't even bother to reach out and stop her.
He was as indifferent to his own face as he was to a corpse he had executed, letting others look at him as they pleased.
The lantern blinked, her eyes slowly focusing, and the moment she saw his face clearly, her pupils contracted, and she even forgot to breathe for a moment.
Before this, she had not only imagined Shen Zhou to be ugly, but also that he would be very handsome. But now, she realized that even the most handsome face she had ever imagined was not nearly as good-looking as the one before her.
The carriage was quiet, and the warm yellow light overhead illuminated the man's indifferent eyes.
Perhaps because he entered the industry early, his appearance is more youthful than his age, looking like he is in his early twenties, or even under twenty, with a charm that is a blend of adult man and boy.
Her facial lines were smooth and her contours were beautiful, but her features were quite the opposite—sharp and deep-set, exuding a flamboyant aura. Her lips were pale red, and her nose was high and straight with a slight hump in the middle of the bridge, making her unforgettable.
Every part is beautiful.
Especially those eyes, now that the mask was gone, were completely exposed.
Hua Deng had never seen eyes like these before. They were like a sword slicing through ink, their shape exquisitely beautiful, reminding her of the feathers of a black bird. The corners of the eyes were upturned, and the pupils were jet black.
Yet, those eyes held a depth of cold, desolate, and chilling light, like a deep, still pool.
After being stared at quietly for a while, Hua Deng immediately felt short of breath and was enveloped in an indescribable sense of oppression.
She obediently offered the mask with both hands, pretending nothing had happened: "Sorry, you can keep wearing it. I just had an itch to do it."
Shen Zhou put it back on indifferently.
He had seen this kind of reaction far too many times.
He was probably ugly, so everyone who saw him looked at him as if they had seen a monstrous flood.
*
The carriage returned to peace and continued flying all night, following the direction of the Medicine Purification Sect.
During this time, Shen Zhou followed Hua Deng's instructions and changed into an indigo blue robe with wide sleeves. Hua Deng couldn't help but steal glances at him whenever she was reading.
She was initially a little annoyed about spending money to support an ancestor, but now it's different. As an absolute sucker for good looks, she's happy.
She happily flipped through the storybook in her hand, eating snacks and drinking tea, feeling quite content. Before long, she became drowsy, her fingers almost unable to hold the book.
Suddenly, a loud noise jolted her awake, and the storybook fell to the ground with a thud; the scene seemed familiar.
The carriage lurched and swayed again. Hua Deng took a deep breath, pulled down the window, and leaned out.
"Who's blind? If you bump into me again, you'll have to pay for it!"
He was about to say a few more words when his voice abruptly stopped.
Because she saw that what had crashed into her this time was not some blind cultivator, but an arrow emitting a ghostly blue light that nearly pierced through the carriage!
At the same time, a middle-aged man's loud shout came crashing down from above.
"Evil cultivator Shen Zhou, today is your death day! Quickly prepare to die!"
Its imposing presence and overwhelming power are like the sea.
Hua Deng quickly shrunk his head back.
"They're looking for you." She pointed out the window and said, "Who is it? Can you beat them? If you can't, you'd better go out and die." Don't drag me into this.
She didn't say the last four words, but the meaning was very clear.
Shen Zhou: "Wait a minute." He didn't even lift his eyelids.
Hua Deng: "???" You'd better go out and ask your brother if his sword is waiting for anyone!
“It’s normal for someone who cultivates immortality to have a few enemies. Don’t be afraid. You should face them bravely,” Hua Deng encouraged him.
"Yes, I know." Shen Zhou nodded perfunctorily.
Seeing that he was not in a hurry and even had the mind to complete the last cycle of the Heavenly Cycle, Hua Deng really wanted to pack him up and kick him out.
"Is it ready yet? My carriage can only hold off Nascent Soul cultivators; I really can't handle this outside!"
She had the system scan her just now, and it showed that the irritable guy's cultivation level was at least at the Nascent Soul stage, making it easy for him to crush them.
The curses outside had changed from "Shen Zhou is doomed" to "I know you're in there! If you don't come out, I'll destroy this carriage and I won't pay for it."
Exhausted, Hua Deng reached out and grabbed Chen Zhou's arm.
It was obvious that Shen Zhou would never let anyone touch him. He suddenly opened his eyes and nimbly dodged to the side.
Hua Deng smiled and said, "Can I go out now, sir?"
"I'll take care of them." Shen Zhou remained calm, his voice as even as ever. "You continue on your way. I'll come find you within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea."
He moved swiftly and appeared outside the carriage. After taking two steps, he casually tossed a palm-sized golden bowl into Hua Deng's hand without looking back.
"What's this?"
"A defensive artifact, more than enough to protect your carriage."
The words carried far, and Shen Zhou stopped lingering and confronted the hot-tempered man directly.
Seeing that he was finally willing to come out, the irritable guy breathed a barely perceptible sigh of relief.
This carriage bears the sign of the Immortal Alliance, so it's hard to say whether Shen Zhou stole it from somewhere. If it gets damaged, he'll have to pay for it, and judging by the looks of it, it'll cost at least several hundred thousand spirit stones.
Just kidding, where would a sword cultivator get the money? There's absolutely no way they'd pay up.
Seeing people made things much easier. The old man gathered his strength, raised his sword, and shouted, "Everyone present, listen to my command! Kill the evil cultivator Shen Zhou to avenge the shame of my sect!"
His voice boomed like a bell, and with his command, the drifting clouds and mist around him suddenly stopped and then dispersed with the wind.
A dense mass of figures emerged from behind the clouds, stretching across half the sky and seemingly endless.
Shocked, Hua Deng suddenly realized why he felt like he was going around in circles. It turned out they had already fallen into a trap, and it was all a smokescreen.
Now that the illusion was gone, the carriage could finally continue its journey, breaking through the hazy morning light and rushing into the distance. A group of people tried to hunt her down, including two Nascent Soul stage cultivators, but they were all driven back by the golden bowls in their hands.
After much struggle, they finally gave up the pursuit and turned back to fight against Chen Zhou together.
The chaotic and ear-piercing sounds of fighting drifted faintly in with the wind. Hua Deng peered out of the car window, and the familiar figure in the distance grew smaller and smaller until it was almost just a black dot.
She sighed: "The crescent moon is full, stop here, don't go any further."
The carriage is equipped with a defensive array, so if Shen Zhou can't hold on, the employer can help him out as needed. This is the employer's self-discipline.
Lost in thought, the battle had already entered a fierce stage.
The Foundation Establishment cultivator's eyesight was nearing its limit at this distance. Hua Deng squinted, trying hard to see Chen Zhou's figure.
The attackers came in round after round, but he stood silently in the center of the encirclement, his body motionless, his wide sleeves fluttering in the wind.
From a distance, the situation looked critical, but he didn't even bother to lift a finger.
Naturally, he did not draw his sword.
No one could get close to him; with just a glance, an enemy several meters away would be shattered to pieces, creating a scene that was quite surreal.
Hundreds of Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and Deity Transformation cultivators died at his hands as easily as cutting melons and vegetables. Later, two powerful cultivators who had reached the Integration stage suddenly appeared and attempted to ambush him, but they also screamed and vanished into thin air the moment he drew his sword.
His sword even has magic attached to it, ensuring that the enemy is torn to pieces without a single drop of blood spilling out, making it very clean and environmentally friendly.
There are also environmentally unfriendly aspects, such as the large number of deaths at the scene, with people falling in droves, which makes the streetlights very worried about the mental state of the people below.
The most gruesome death was suffered by a melee assassin who dared to touch Shen Zhou's shoulder, leaving a bloody mark. Shen Zhou instantly killed him by causing him to explode, the scene of blood splattering everywhere making Hua Deng nauseous several times, and he threw the snacks in his hand aside.
However, this incident confirms that Shen Zhou doesn't have any "will die if touched" buff; he's simply overly sensitive, like the Princess and the Pea.
Before long, the commotion had completely subsided. Shen Zhou sheathed his sword and walked towards the carriage.
Hua Deng's vision blurred for a moment, and then he was already standing in front of her.
Apart from the bloodstain, his body was clean, with only a faint, almost undetectable, smell of blood.
But that was enough to make the streetlights frown.
Seeing her reaction, Shen Zhou was in a good mood and said slowly, "Once you've signed the contract, it's too late to regret it."
Hua Deng: "...That's not what I meant."
She said, "Could you please change your clothes? And don't leave that sword outside; it's filthy."
After staring at her for a couple of seconds, Shen Zhou didn't say anything and turned to change his clothes.
While he was in the inner room, Hua Deng let out a sigh of relief, picked up her teacup, and gulped down two cups. When Shen Zhou returned, she acted as if nothing had happened.
As the employer, you absolutely cannot lose in terms of presence!
“These are all your private matters,” she said, adopting the air of a boss. “You can handle them yourself; I won’t interfere.”
Shen Zhou closed his eyes and regulated his breathing, then calmly responded.
The outfit he was wearing was personally chosen by Hua Deng; it was a black, elegant robe that perfectly suited Hua Deng's aesthetic.
She softened her tone and asked casually, "Who were those people just now? They looked pretty formidable."
“From the Beidou Palace,” Shen Zhou said.
"Why is the Beidou Palace chasing you?" Hua Deng asked, even more curious.
As one of the five major sects in the cultivation world, the Beidou Palace, which ranks above the Yaoqing Sect, actually managed to hunt down a rogue cultivator with an unyielding and relentless spirit. This is truly unbelievable.
Shen Zhou said, "I don't know, maybe it's because I killed their former temple master and elder."
...Isn't that clear?
After a long silence, Hua Deng said in a complicated tone, "You're quite good at killing."
No wonder there was a bounty of 78 million.
Shen Zhou opened his eyes: "Are you scared?"
Hua Deng immediately replied, "Afraid? How could that be? You can handle the Beidou Palace even if all five major sects attack together. I believe in you!"
A good boss must learn to promise his employees a bright future.
Besides, Shen Zhou wasn't a good person in the book, so she had already made ample preparations.
“But how did they know you were here?” she asked again.
“There are people in the Beidou Palace who are skilled in divination. I left behind quite a few things, and they can use any one of them to calculate my approximate location.”
"They're too confident. They didn't even ask any questions and weren't afraid of picking the wrong person..."
She paused for a moment, then suddenly realized something and understood.
"So that person deliberately bumped into us to make sure you were here?!"
Shen Zhou: "Not too stupid."
Hua Deng grabbed a cushion and threw it at him: "Why didn't you say so earlier!"
"There's no need." Shen Zhou perfectly dodged her attack, his expression unchanged. "You might dodge this time, but there will be a next time. If you don't want to keep encountering this kind of thing, you should find out my identity sooner rather than later."
"Why didn't I check?" Hua Deng retorted, she had already read the novel three or four times.
"And did I say you could leave? I want you to stay. For the next three months, you can do nothing but be my Daoist partner!"
When she said this, her eyes were direct and clear, as if she was completely unaware of how domineering her attitude was.
They were also unaware of how dangerous his statement was, and how easily they had believed it.
Shen Zhou remained silent for a moment, then stopped dwelling on the topic and said, "I have reinforced the magic array on the carriage. If you encounter something like this again, you can escape with peace of mind."
Upon hearing this, Hua Deng reached out to touch the carriage. The magic array covering it had indeed become much more complex. Although she couldn't understand it, she had no doubt about Chen Zhou's abilities.
I just don't know when he finished it, and...
“I didn’t intend to run away… I wasn’t waiting here just now because I was afraid of being ambushed by pursuers on the way.” She said awkwardly, “I just felt that I couldn’t abandon my partner and run away.”
After listening to her finish speaking in silence, Chen Zhou's lips tightened slightly, and he lowered his eyes: "I understand."
Hua Deng wasn't sure if he believed her or not, but she had said everything she needed to say, and then went off to the side to happily read a storybook, putting the bloody scenes that had just disturbed her out of her mind.
Shen Zhou's methods of killing were too ruthless, which undeniably frightened her. Fortunately, she had enough money to keep this evil god in check.
It's good to be rich.
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