Sleepy Dragon Seal glanced at her in tears, turned its back, and ignored her.
Dongfang Minghui presented the little bean sprouts from her space ring. The top-heavy sprouts hadn’t been seen for quite a while. There was no special reason for this, other than the ground being very unstable. Without something to stabilize them, the little bean sprouts would topple over each time they came out to bask in the sun, resulting in them eating a mouthful of dirt.
This occurrence repeated itself so frequently that the little bean sprouts started to become dispirited.
As a cultivator, Dongfang Minghui couldn’t locate a pot stronger than the Tianyin helmet, thus the issue was left unresolved in the end.
“Sleepy Dragon Seal, look—”
Dongfang Minghui placed the little bean sprouts before it, blinked, and endeavored to convey a harmless gesture, “See, don’t they look a lot like you?”
In terms of similarity…
Sleepy Dragon Seal glanced at the Little Bean Sprout with eyes swollen from crying, and surprisingly, because it was also top-heavy, it matched Little Bean Sprout perfectly.
Little Bean Sprout was vibrating vigorously, and Dongfang Minghui, holding the Tianyin helmet, was shaking it attentively.
“This is Little Bean Sprout, and no one usually interacts with it. You, Sleepy Dragon Seal, resemble it. Why don’t you come and play with Little Bean Sprout?” Dongfang Minghui attempted to entice it, but her hands ached from holding little bean sprout. As Little Bean Sprout grew heavier, the weight of the Tianyin helmet kept increasing.
The Sleepy Dragon Seal’s tiny eyes flicked towards it from time to time, humming and chirping, as if expressing great reluctance.
Dongfang Minghui sighed regretfully, “Little Bean Sprout, it seems Sleepy Dragon Seal doesn’t like you. There’s nothing you can do. Nobody wants to care for you, so you can only stay in the space ring.”
Little Bean Sprout shook its head hastily and tried to sweep its newly-grown branch across Dongfang Minghui’s fingers in a pleading gesture.
“It’s no use begging. I’ll get you a new pot when I have the opportunity in the future.”
“No!” Little Bean Sprout shook its head repeatedly.
Sleepy Dragon Seal snorted, “It clearly doesn’t want to return to your space, yet you insist on sending it back. As expected, humans are unkind.”
While Sleepy Dragon Seal grumbled, it shot a glance at Qian Wanyu. Upon receiving an indifferent look in return, it got so frightened that it hid behind Dongfang Minghui, using her body as a shield.
Dongfang Minghui blinked, realizing that in Sleepy Dragon Seal’s perception, her Seventh Sister had become a formidable figure. Not only did it dare not offend her, but it was also scared stiff. “Little Bean Sprout, just obediently stay alone in the space ring.”
“Oh—don’t.”
Sleepy Dragon Seal protested a moment too late. Dongfang Minghui had already successfully thrown Little Bean Sprout into the space ring, ignoring its objection.
“How miserable it must be to stay alone in that space. Let me take care of it,” Sleepy Dragon Seal stammered, expressing its thoughts.
“You, take care of Little Bean Sprout?” Dongfang Minghui pretended to be thoughtful, meanwhile sneaking a peek at the anxious expression of Sleepy Dragon Seal. “Are you familiar with Little Bean Sprout? Do you know how much sun it needs a day and when it should be watered…”
Sleepy Dragon Seal, having wandered outside for twenty years, was indeed quite knowledgeable, having learned much from Qian Yiling.
So when Dongfang Minghui purposely tested it with a few simple questions, it was able to respond convincingly. In the end, it added, “Even if I make a mistake, can’t you correct it?”
“Alright.” Dongfang Minghui agreed ‘reluctantly’, then took out the Tianyin helmet. During the exchange, she noticed that Sleepy Dragon Seal extended two small palms from nowhere. She deliberately released her grip.
The Tianyin helmet fell straight down.
“Oops–”
Sleepy Dragon Seal was squashed by the Tianyin helmet but managed to hold onto it firmly with its hands.
Dongfang Minghui sighed with relief. The Tianyin helmet usually stopped for a few moments after falling, rocking from side to side like a tumbler, until finally, the two flower buds atop Little Bean Sprout’s head decided which way to lean.
Regardless of the situation, Little Color’s vines were always ready to respond.
“That scared me! Sleepy Dragon Seal, thank you for catching Little Bean Sprout. Otherwise, it could have become a dead bean sprout.” As she spoke, Dongfang Minghui didn’t forget to lift the Tianyin helmet, “Are you sure it’s not too heavy for you? You seem—” She stopped mid-sentence, noticing they were all squashed.
Sleepy Dragon Seal quickly shook its head, “Not heavy, not heavy.”
It stood up and, after expanding to full size, took the initiative to hold Little Bean Sprout in its arms.
Dongfang Minghui explained a few more things in detail and after finishing, she moved to Seventh Sister’s side. Glancing back at Sleepy Dragon Seal, she asked, “Seventh Sister, what should we do next?”
Qian Wanyu, who had observed everything, responded, “Leaving Little Bean Sprout to it. Are you still worried?”
“I am a bit worried,” Dongfang Minghui admitted honestly. The issue of Little Bean Sprout having two souls in one body remained unresolved. “Little Bean Sprout’s confinement in the space is not beneficial for its growth. I want to find a more stable pot for it.”
“There is no pot more reliable than the Tianyin helmet. Have you discussed the idea of changing pots with Little Bean Sprout?”
“I suppose not.”
Dongfang Minghui had mentioned it once, but that time ended in a disagreement with Little Bean Sprout. Since then, Little Bean Sprout had remained silent in the space. It wasn’t until she noticed that the leaves of Little Bean Sprout were unwell that she remembered it had been a long time since she had taken it out for some sun.
“Then, for now, don’t change it until it dislikes the Tianyin helmet,” Qian Wanyu suggested, even though she was nearly 100% sure that Little Bean Sprout would never dislike the Tianyin helmet. If anything, it would want to make it its own.
After resting for a while, it was Dongfang Minghui who took the initiative to communicate with Sleepy Dragon Seal. “Sleepy Dragon Seal, can you tell us how many years in the past is the current Sleepy Dragon Valley?”
Sleepy Dragon Seal blinked at her, gently caressing the flower buds of Little Bean Sprout with its blurred hands.
Dongfang Minghui looked terrified, sensing a wave of heat energy emanating from Sleepy Dragon Seal. She worried that such a touch would harm Little Bean Sprout.
“Sleepy Dragon Valley… seventeen years ago.”
“What?!”
Dongfang Minghui walked back to Seventh Sister in a daze. She hesitated to speak, then stammered, “Seventh Sister… it appears that we’ve unintentionally traveled back in time seventeen years.”
“Seventeen years?” Qing Mo also frowned.
“The point is, when I was suppressed and immobilized in the deep pool, I saw centuries of memories from Sleepy Dragon Valley, especially memory fragments from Qian Mama,” Dongfang Minghui looked at Qian Wanyu cautiously.
Qian Wanyu nodded in understanding, “I learned something from Jing Ke. Twenty years ago, when Mother took away the Dragon Seal, she also locked up the Sleepy Dragon Valley.”
“Does ‘locked’ mean what I think it means?” Dongfang Minghui looked at Seventh Sister nervously. If that were the case, the person who framed Uncle Wood and Qian Mama would still be in Sleepy Dragon Valley!
“It probably means isolating the entire Sleepy Dragon Valley, preventing outsiders from getting in and the monsters inside from getting out,” Qing Mo explained.
“In that case, that guy is still in the Sleepy Dragon Valley!” Dongfang Minghui’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
“What’s going on, Ninth Sister? Who are you talking about?”
Only then did Dongfang Minghui remember she hadn’t yet informed Seventh Sister about this. “It’s Meng Ruoyu, the prophet from the previous generation of the Meng Family. He appeared to be quite friendly with Qian Mama and Uncle Mu Mu, but I discovered he intended to kidnap them into Sleepy Dragon Valley. That’s where it all began. When I saw Meng Ruoyu, he had turned into a Spiritual Master of Death. But, in the three generations mirror, I saw that he clearly loved plants and even used them to help him memorize the routes of the Qian Family’s fourth and fifth peaks…”
Qian Wanyu put her hand on Dongfang Minghui’s, listening intently to what she was saying. However, Ninth Sister was too emotional, making it hard to understand her. “Ninth Sister, tell me one thing at a time. If not, let me ask and you can just answer, okay?”
“Alright.”
“You said that the previous generation’s prophet of the Meng Family is still imprisoned in Dragon Valley. How did you find out?”
Dongfang Minghui paused for a moment, “In the memory fragments, I saw Qian Mama taking away the Sleepy Dragon Seal. Meng Ruoyu wanted to snatch it but failed. Master Qing Mo also mentioned that ‘locking’ meant closing the Sleepy Dragon Valley. So, my guess is if Meng Ruoyu isn’t dead, he must still be locked inside the Sleepy Dragon Valley.”
With the logical train of thought established, Qian Wanyu questioned further, “You mentioned earlier that Meng Ruoyu was a Spiritual Master of Death, but also said that you saw him being close to plants and using them to write down routes in the three generations mirror?”
Dongfang Minghui gave a slight nod, “Seventh Sister, you must remember that I had told you about a traitor within the Longevity Clan.”
“Yes — do you suspect this person is Meng Ruoyu?”
“No, I suspect that the person who betrayed the Longevity Clan back then was the first generation prophet of the Meng family.” The Meng family appeared in the Purple Jade Empire a century ago, later gaining favor with the royal family due to their ‘predictive’ abilities, establishing roots in the empire. A hundred years ago, the Longevity Clan was also eradicated overnight, “I saw that Meng Ruoyu was friendly with plants. When I visited the Meng’s house, I saw that this generation’s Prophet Meng also resided in a house woven from vines, full of flowers and plants. Isn’t that enough to suggest…”
“Ninth Sister.”
“Hmm?”
“You mentioned earlier that Meng Ruoyu had become a Spiritual Master of Death?”
“Yes, I did see in the memory fragments that he indeed became a Spiritual Master of Death.” Dongfang Minghui finished and couldn’t help pondering, “Back then, Qian Mama’s face and the Sleepy Dragon Seal were affected by the aura of death. How did they manage to cleanse this aura?”
“What are you mumbling about?”
“No, Seventh Sister, I really did see that he became a Spiritual Master of Death.”
On the side, Qing Mo voiced his doubt, “Meng Ruoyu’s generation only had foresight abilities, no one had awakened any spiritual powers. According to what you’ve said before, if Meng Ruoyu was close to plants, he should have been an ordinary person. But in the end, he turned into a Death Spiritual Master…”
Actually, this was not logical. The requirement to become a Death Spiritual Master demanded the dark attribute. Yet, given the other party’s affinity with plants, it was implausible for him to have a dark attribute.
“Unless—” Qing Mo murmured, “Could it be that, in order to become a Spiritual Master of Death, he willingly turned himself into an undead? That’s too horrifying!”
“What does it mean to willingly become a dead person?” Dongfang Minghui was perplexed.
Qing Mo explained solemnly, “Being willing to incarnate as a dead person means to place oneself in a death state, then to start practicing control of death after rebirth. The effect is immediate. If Meng Ruoyu truly wasn’t a Spiritual Master of the Dark element, yet became a Death Spiritual Master, the highest probability is that he chose a difficult path involving becoming undead. Some people are born to become Death Spiritual Masters. People who are born with awakened Dark spiritual power are all candidates to become Death Spiritual Masters. However there are also some extremely insane people who would choose to harm themselves to step into the realm of a Death Spiritual Master.”
Dongfang Minghui felt an inexplicable chill in her spine. She had initially thought that Meng Ruoyu was a cunning individual, but after hearing Qing Mo’s explanation, she realized that he was also a ruthless man — ruthless towards others and even more so towards himself. Such a person would be particularly troublesome.
Qian Wanyu remained silent for a long time, “Earlier, Sleepy Dragon Seal said that this place is seventeen years in the past, which would be two to three years after my mother left. If the Sleepy Dragon Valley is in a sealed state, then the people inside Sleepy Dragon Valley — could that Meng Ruoyu you mentioned earlier be in this valley too?”
Dongfang Minghui swallowed some saliva.
“He’s here.”
Suddenly, Little Color spoke up, “The man you were talking about is in the Sleepy Dragon Seal.”
“Little Color, how do you know?”
“I saw him in the memory fragments, that man is a lunatic, he’s working on refining corpse manipulation techniques…”
Little Color’s face contorted when it spoke of Meng Ruoyu, “You must find a way to eliminate him.”
Once Little Color finished speaking, it retreated and hid once more in Dongfang Minghui’s soul sea.
“Little Color, you didn’t tell us where he is, and what you saw in the memory fragments?” Dongfang Minghui tried questioning it for a while, but Little Color within her soul sea simply ignored her, “It seems that Little Color is unwilling to mention that person.”
“Let’s ask Sleepy Dragon Seal, it should know where Meng Ruoyu is hiding.”
Sleepy Dragon Seal was engrossed in playing with Little Bean Sprout, but the sunlight was blocked by two figures, casting a shadow over its head, “Don’t block the light, Little Bean Sprout can’t get any sun.”
With a large head and small body, it awkwardly held a Tianyin helmet that was bigger than its own head. The bizarre picture made Dongfang Minghui cast frequent glances its way, “Sleepy Dragon Seal, we need to ask you something, I’m not sure if you still remember.”
Sleepy Dragon Seal pouted glanced at the stoic Qian Wanyu with its little eyes, and said, “Ask.”
“We want to ask if you still remember twenty years ago — that is, the person you and Qian Mama encountered before you left Sleepy Dragon Valley.”
“Whoa!”
Sleepy Dragon Seal became unsteady, and the Tianyin helmet it was holding in its hand fell. Seeing the mishap, it tried to cushion the helmet with its leg, but ended up being squashed flat by the helmet again. Despite the pain, it shook its head even more vigorously than before, “I don’t remember, I don’t remember!”
“If you lie, heaven will punish you. Sleepy Dragon Seal, are you sure you really don’t remember?” Qian Wanyu eyed it, certain that the key knew, and likely even knew its exact location.
Sleepy Dragon Seal truly looked fearful, “Can I… can I not say it?”
“You must.”
“At the bottom of the abyss.”
Their eyes met, “How do we get to the bottom of the abyss?”
Sleepy Dragon Seal held the Tianyin helmet and hopped away on its lame leg, “I’m not going, you have to go by yourself!”
“Sleepy Dragon Seal, don’t run away, be careful of little bean sprouts.” Dongfang Minghui rubbed her forehead, Sleepy Dragon Seal was like this, and so was Little Color, “Seventh sister, looking at the reactions of Little Color and Sleepy Dragon Seal, could it be that this Meng Ruoyu is really that terrifying?”
“He’s not terrifying, just extremely disgusting.” Little Color retorted, “I don’t know how to navigate the abyss, you’ll have to take Sleepy Dragon Seal, but, that person, no, he can’t even be considered a person anymore, he’s feeding on human corpses at the bottom of the abyss.”
After saying this, Little Color couldn’t help but run off to one side to vomit. Even though it was impossible for a plant to vomit, Dongfang Minghui felt a sour sensation in her stomach when she saw it. She pressed her tongue against the roof of her mouth and tried her best to suppress her own nausea.
“Seventh sister, how come you’re not affected?”
“This kind of person should be swiftly eliminated, we can’t afford to wait any longer.” Qian Wanyu suddenly charged toward Sleepy Dragon Seal with a whoosh, causing a loud thunderous sound that almost made Sleepy Dragon Seal jump out of its skin.
“Do you still remember what you promised me under the Heavenly Dao?”
“I remember, I remember.” Sleepy Dragon Seal shrunk its head, “But—— I don’t want to die yet—”
Its fear of Meng Ruoyu had taken root deep in its bones. Twenty years ago, it had broken a leg just to survive. After all these years, it had finally managed to grow a new leg. If it encounters this lunatic again, could it survive as it did twenty years ago?
“Tell me everything that happened back then.”
Sleepy Dragon Seal didn’t dare to defy and tearfully retold the story of what happened back then.
About twenty-three years ago, a large number of individuals possessing the spirit of death surged into Dragon Valley. The valley hadn’t yet been sealed, and the group scoured every corner, ultimately setting up their base beneath the abyss. There was a water source at the bottom of the abyss, which made it highly conducive for them to refine their peculiar concoctions.
Some of those people who consumed these peculiarities died outright, while others descended into madness. As the bodies of the deceased decayed, over time, a section of land under the abyss became their chosen spot to conceal corpses, which eventually transformed into a pitch-black area. Not only did it reek of decomposition, but a black mist was also emanating from it, creating an intensely terrifying sight.
As for the humans who had gone mad, they suddenly fell silent one day, resembling puppets. If they were commanded to sit, they would sit; to stand, they would stand; to kill each other, they would slit each other’s throats…
While they were refining their peculiar substances, they were also greedily probing the mysteries of the Sleepy Dragon Valley, this band of villains.
They even dared to venture into the forbidden area of the Sleepy Dragon Valley, coming perilously close to uncovering its secret.
Sleepy Dragon Seal remembered that three years later, which was the year Qian Mama was brought in by Meng Ruoyu, its curiosity led it to secretly descend into the abyss to observe what these humans were up to. However, it was discovered at the abyss.
That was when it witnessed the humans turning against each other in order to grab it. It had hoped to seize this opportunity to escape, but unfortunately, when Qian Mama and Meng Ruoyu turned against each other, it became the apple of their eye. They demanded it to pick a side, and naturally, it chose Qian Mama who seemed more normal.
“We were heavily injured back then. To prevent those lunatics from leaving, your mother asked me to seal the Sleepy Dragon Valley.”
After Dongfang Minghui became the host, the Sleepy Dragon Seal healed quickly and immediately began planning how to use Dongfang Minghui to escape… But it hadn’t expected that what should have been a straightforward task would turn into the situation it was in now.
It was unsure who was to blame for this predicament…
Woah the mystery deepens, who is Meng Ruoyu in the end? Sus!
Thank you for the support as usual friendos