“What’s wrong?”
Little Color remained silent, and his resentful eyes were ever-present.
Dongfang Minghui sensed the abundant spiritual power in Little Color’s body. She noticed changes in it: its chin had become sharper, and clothes had shortened. “Congratulations, Little Color, you’ve finally regained your strength from the seal.”
Seeming sullen, Little Color rolled up its sleeves, rushed at the phantom without a word, and engaged in combat as if venting. After a move went awry, it slid past Dongfang Minghui and fell heavily.
Annoyed, Little Color remained down for some time.
“Little Color.”
Dongfang Minghui sensed that the other’s mood was off. It didn’t resemble the joy that should follow a promotion. “Shouldn’t you be more powerful after your promotion? How could you be repelled by that phantom in one move? Has he been hiding his strength?”
Contemplating this, Dongfang Minghui’s perception of Senior Phantom shifted, heating up with anticipation. “Little Toothless should have a bright future under such a strong mentor.”
Little Color rose quickly and observed her in silence.
Wondering if she had inadvertently offended Little Color, Dongfang Minghui cautiously inquired, “What’s wrong with you, Little Color?”
“Dongfang Minghui, tell me the truth. Are you hiding something from me?” Little Color asked with a rare serious expression, invoking both her first and last names.
Taken aback, Dongfang Minghui responded, “Why would I hide anything from you? We’ve always been together; we’ve never been apart. Why do you ask?”
“Really?” Little Color hesitated. “Well, let me try entering your sea of souls.”
With a whoosh, Little Color entered her Sea of Souls, encountering no resistance.
“Was it the power of the seal that prevented me from returning to the Sea of Souls?” Little Color mused.
“Perhaps,” Dongfang Minghui replied. “We are bound by contract; why would my Sea of Souls bar you from entry?”
Little Color continued to ponder the situation. Whether the power of the seal could be activated depended on the host’s spiritual strength. If the criteria weren’t met, the seal would remain inactive. “I should be elated. After Dao Lei struck me down, I used the blood contract to revive myself, just for this moment. So why does the seal favor others?”
Little Color remained sullen. Both it and Dongfang Minghui kept their thoughts to themselves.
Dongfang Minghui lingered, watching. “If I want to see Toothless, I have to defeat Senior Phantom first. Toothless, practice hard; I’ll be back.”
“Mo Ce.”
Mo Ce examined her with unclouded eyes. “Congratulations on your promotion.”
Floating up, enveloped in a water shield, Dongfang Minghui noticed that her inexplicable urge to cry had vanished. She glanced at Seventh Sister, who was scribbling on the stone steps. The scene was reminiscent of their time in Longxian Village, where Seventh Sister tirelessly studied the celestial patterns.
Dongfang Minghui had once tried to comprehend Seventh Sister’s work but got entangled in a complicated train of thought. Not only did she fail to understand, she almost lost her way entirely.
“Has the Seventh Sister been doing this all the time since she came up?”
“Yes.”
Mo Ce soaked in the deep pool for a while. The other party cherished the items on the ground so much that the area that was only as big as a palm had all available spaces occupied by scribbles leaving not even a place to stand.
Dongfang Minghui took a look, then shifted her gaze to Mo Ce. “Mo Ce, do you want to find your mother?”
Mo Ce nodded indifferently. He had lived beside Cheng Feng since he was a child. According to Cheng Feng, he was an orphan abandoned by his parents and a pariah rejected by the entire Seven Colors Continent. He was trained to kill by Cheng Feng from a young age. If he refused or performed poorly, he would occasionally be whipped.
“Of course, since seeing Cheng Song’s letter, I’ve known that Cheng Feng is a complete liar.”
Dongfang Minghui noticed that he sometimes took out the handbook. Thinking that the Seventh Sister had already informed him about Mo Ce’s life history, she found it surprising. “Mo Ce, do you want to go to the elf forest?”
Mo Ce looked up slightly. “I want to, but it’s said that the elves have isolated themselves from the world, making it difficult to pinpoint their exact location.”
“I thought you had already been to the elves. Isn’t the Hun Tian Pill, which conceals your identity as a secret Death Spiritual Master, comprised of a medicinal ingredient exclusive to the elves?” Dongfang Minghui asked.
Mo Ce was taken aback, causing ripples to form in the deep pool’s water.
“Wait you don’t know?” Dongfang Minghui added forcefully. “Cheng Feng has been using the Hun Tian Pill to control you. This pill has severe side effects. If consumed excessively, it will cause internal demons.”
She closely observed Mo Ce’s expression, confirming that he had been deceived by Cheng Feng. She further pressed, “Cheng Feng obtained the holy spring water of the elves. Just follow her, and you might uncover the truth about why she took you away from Cheng Song.”
Mo Ce remained silent, then spoke hesitantly. “You seem to know a lot.”
“Correct.”
“Then if I follow you, will I find the answers I seek?”
Dongfang Minghui hesitated, her attention diverted by the advancing Seventh Sister. “We had an agreement that, after leaving Sleepy Dragon Valley, we would go our separate ways. Don’t you remember, Mo Ce?”
Mo Ce smiled, revealing a grin brighter than the sun. “I can trade some useful information.”
“It depends on the information’s value.” Dongfang Minghui replied.
“If this information benefits you, you must allow me to accompany you. If one day you go to the elves, you’ll have to take me with you.”
Qian Wanyu, who had stopped her activity, interjected, “Let’s hear it.”
“You all know that Cheng Feng commands a group of Dark Spiritual Masters. These masters are all family outcasts who harbor resentment toward the Spiritual Masters of the Seven-color Continent. In fact, I was planted in the Blood Fiend Alliance by Cheng Feng, and I’m not the only one.”
Dongfang Minghui gasped. “What does she want to do?”
Qian Wanyu understood Mo Ce’s implication. “What’s your bargaining chip?”
“I’ve been with Cheng Feng since childhood. Although she often beats and scolds me, I’ve handled many things for her. I know the list of people who have infiltrated various empires.” Mo Ce had not expected that holding back information would actually prove useful.
Qian Wanyu chuckled lightly and shook her head. “There are countless people who have sneaked into the three empires and even the major tribes, not only those people in Cheng Feng’s hands. We don’t need a list. What bargaining chip do you have? If not, that’s the end of the transaction, Mo Ce. You should think carefully; after all, you can follow Cheng Feng and find the way to the land of the elves. Why follow us? Our journey is full of dangers.”
Dongfang Minghui looked at Seventh Sister thoughtfully and felt that she still had another trick up her sleeve.
Mo Ce found it hard to back out. If he could follow Cheng Feng, he would naturally do so, but Cheng Feng was cautious, suspicious, and not easily trusting. It was difficult to get anything past her. Not to mention, there was an obvious shortcut: to follow them.
“Cheng Feng has been looking for someone for many years. The other party is a high-level Death Spiritual Master who can control corpses. He helped her once when she was young. She wants to successfully turn the Dark spiritual masters in her hands into Death Spiritual Masters that can control corpses like him.” Mo Ce spoke calmly, as if discussing a simple matter. “The alchemy formula you stole from the secret room was given by that senior Death Spiritual Master.”
“Crazy woman…” Dongfang Minghui muttered under her breath. She hadn’t encountered Cheng Feng when she went to steal the alchemy formula last time, but from Xuan Zhu’s behavior, it was clear that the other party was a ruthless person. Even Mo Ce was wary of her. “Has she found that person?”
“I don’t know,” Mo Ce had only overheard a conversation between her and other people outside. Later, he was dispatched to the Blood Fiend Alliance and happened to be picked by Wei Junlan, coming all the way from the Seven Colors Continent to the Beast Tribe.
Months have passed; maybe Cheng Feng has found what she was looking for.
“I only know so much,” Mo Ce said, rubbing the hilt of his sword subconsciously.
“Alright, write down that list for me,” Qian Wanyu was never one to make a bad deal. “Since you want to follow us, be prepared to take risks at any time.”
Mo Ce merely nodded in response.
Dongfang Minghui felt a mixture of emotions and handed his sketchbook to Mo Ce. “Write down the list first. Don’t worry; Seventh Sister keeps her promises. Since she agreed, she will definitely let you follow us.”
“Thank you.” Mo Ce replied quickly, eager to jot down the list.
Dongfang Minghui glanced at it and was shocked. “This Cheng Feng has great ambitions. Does she actually want to start a war with the Seven Colors Continent using a group of Death Spiritual Masters? She’s insane.”
“Seventh Sister, what are you thinking?”
“Reincarnation,” Qian Wanyu murmured, preventing Dongfang Minghui from getting out of the deep pool. “The cycle of time and the cycle of life and death.”
Dongfang Minghui’s eyes widened. “Does this have something to do with the reincarnation art you often practice?”
“Naturally—” Qian Wanyu’s thoughts collided with her words, sparking insights. She sat cross-legged on a pile of symbols she had drawn. “Samsara; life is death, and death is life. Qing Mo, I know now… our so-called memories are still trapped in the cycle of reincarnation, lost in the passage of time.”
“In the cycle of reincarnation…” Qing Mo muttered. “It would be impossible to find them again.”
Everything was predestined.
Qian Wanyu sat on the side, closed her eyes, and began to refine her spiritual power. The magical arrow formed by her spiritual energy appeared and disappeared intermittently.
Dongfang Minghui couldn’t understand what Seventh Sister was doing. She observed the magical arrow appear and disappear repeatedly. Eventually, her gaze shifted to Mo Ce.
Mo Ce was still scribbling in the drawing book and handed it to her after about the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn. “This is the roster. Cheng Feng sometimes leaves town, and there are quite a few refined Heavenly Pills. So, I really don’t know how many Dark Spiritual Masters she controls who are like me, parentless orphans.”
Cheng Feng typically planted a seed of hatred in their hearts during childhood, waiting for it to grow and ferment, before finally dealing a hard blow.
Dongfang Minghui skimmed the densely packed list; Mo Ce had circled some names and added others later. Even staff from the royal families of the three empires were on it. She finally understood why Xuan Zhu had feared Cheng Feng, “I will give this information to Seventh Sister. Thank you.”
They spent another night near the stone gate. During the night, she watched Seventh Sister toss and turn; however, each time, the newly condensed spiritual power in the phantom arrows solidified, appearing more real.
“It’s the hope of life.” Dongfang Minghui and Mo Ce heard Qian Wanyu suddenly say.
“Seventh Sister, what did you discover?”
“I see now.” Qian Wanyu stood up. “Dragon Seal, open the stone door.”
The Sleepy Dragon Seal was not as obedient as before, shaking its head, it retreated, displaying great resistance. “No, I won’t go out.”
Feeling that someone was trying to come in from outside, it displayed the words “very dangerous” on its head and wrapped its arms around Dongfang Minghui’s neck like a pendant, saying, “Don’t go out; it’s dangerous.”
Qian Wanyu didn’t push it. She looked at the word-covered walls and instructed Mo Ce and Ninth Sister, “Come, help me destroy all these things.”
“All of it?”
“Yes.”
Having recorded everything in her mind, she added, “Don’t leave any marks behind.”
They quickly erased all the marks, leaving the wall as clean as when they arrived.
Dongfang Minghui felt nearly strangled by the Sleepy Dragon Seal behind her when the stone door rumbled.
They heard the dragon’s chant piercing through the door and their eardrums, causing Qian Wanyu to frown. It seemed eerily familiar.
“Seventh Sister, will this stone gate collapse?”
“Absolutely not,” said the Sleepy Dragon Seal, retreating behind Dongfang Minghui, who sensed it trembling.
After the door stopped shaking and the dragon’s chant subsided, they sighed in relief. But then, Sleepy Dragon Seal let go of Dongfang Minghui and leapt into the deep pool, vanishing without a trace.
“Hurry up!”
Ello new chappie guys~