144 - Divine Mastering Dragon System

Chapter 144: Reunion The woman in white moved silently, with such speed and grace that she covered a great distance in just two steps, appearing before the group of girls who were chattering and laughing. They hadn't even had time to react. Xiang Shi Yan had retreated into seclusion following the demon chaos in Qingyuan City over four years ago. During these years, she had remained entirely isolated in her mountain retreat, without a hint of news. Her sudden appearance now genuinely startled everyone. Xiang Shi Yan's appearance hadn't changed one bit through the years; her features were as fixed as ever. Yet seeing their master again after such a long time, Zhu Yun and Zhu Yu couldn't help but feel as if they had been transported to another era. Unlike them, He He had stealthily tracked Xiang Shi Yan's progress through their connection every day, so Xiang Shi Yan's emergence wasn't much of a surprise to her. When Xiang Shi Yan saw them, she herself was momentarily taken aback, uncharacteristically showing her emotions on her face. Children truly do grow up so fast? Huai Ye and Qin Miao had been young when they first ascended the mountain too, but Xiang Shi Yan had not secluded herself entirely over the past decade. Stuck at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage for over a hundred years, she sought external pursuits, frequently venturing into ancient remains. She often returned to the mountain every few months or even weeks, witnessing the two young men's growth. However, during the four years when her disciples underwent their most rapid changes, Xiang Shi Yan entered her death-like seclusion to fuse with the mysterious scales for her ascension. Upon reemerging, both He He and the twins Zhu Yun and Zhu Yu had undergone drastic transformations. The twins had grown increasingly like their senior sister Gong Ning, their features continuously settling into a resemblance of her. As for He He... Xiang Shi Yan halted her steps, gazing at the girl who now stood taller than her three junior sisters. If it weren't for the familiar round, puppy-like eyes that remained the same, she might not have recognized He He. He He had grown the most. Xiang Shi Yan recalled that when Zhu Yun and Zhu Yu first arrived at the mountain, He He was even shorter than them. The girl's height barely reached Xiang Shi Yan's chest and abdomen back then, while now it seemed her head would reach her nose. Upon closer inspection, the girl hadn't changed monumentally; rather, her features had matured gracefully, becoming much more refined. Those who looked at the elegant and lovely woman standing before them would find it hard to imagine she was once a village girl that Xiang Shi Yan had picked up from the mortal realm six years prior. Xiang Shi Yan noticed He He was wearing a new artificial eye, likely obtained during her seclusion with the help of Huai Ye or their senior sect brother. Even in private, she wore it well. The prosthetic eye artifacts available to near-adults were far more varied than those for children, more exquisite in design, capturing a lifelike moistness perfectly. Standing by the edge of the pavilion, He He was momentarily stunned upon seeing the flesh-and-blood Xiang Shi Yan. Though she had never ignored her master's cultivation in these years, seeing her standing there brought an entirely different feeling. Like a gust of wind, He He suddenly darted forward, colliding into Xiang Shi Yan's embrace, catching her unprepared, causing her to stagger slightly. "Master has finally come out of seclusion. I almost forgot what you looked like," the girl said, throwing one arm around Xiang Shi Yan's waist, the other over her shoulder, as if trying to meld into her. He He buried her face in Xiang Shi Yan's shoulder, savoring the familiar scent, filling her heart with warmth. Xiang Shi Yan couldn't help but frown in confusion. The last time He He had embraced her this closely, the girl's face had barely reached her chest. It felt as if she was holding a small animal, comfortingly so. Now, in just four short years, He He was almost as tall as she was, much more striking in appearance. Xiang Shi Yan inexplicably felt as if a stray pup she had adopted had grown into a full-sized tibetan mastiff overnight. The grown-up He He felt somewhat unfamiliar to Xiang Shi Yan. Instinctively, she placed a hand on He He's shoulder to push her away a little. However, not much else had changed; her hand lingered on the girl's narrow shoulder. Xiang Shi Yan's action of pushing her away paused. Her first words upon reunion, she rubbed her thumb along the sharp, delicate shoulder blade, commenting flatly, "Why are you still this thin? If you can't stomach the main peak's meals, learn to cook for yourself." The girl immediately grinned like a cat who'd licked the cream: "No, it's just that without seeing Master, I naturally waste away." "Sweet talker." She had been able to say nice things even in her youth; now, as an adult, it seemed she was even more adept. Xiang Shi Yan pushed her away, noticing crumbs on her face from the treats Xu You Qing had shared earlier, she pulled out a handkerchief and diligently wiped her clean. Zhu Yu seized the opportunity to grab Xiang Shi Yan's sleeve, her face beaming with joy, flushed with things left unsaid. Zhu Yun, meanwhile, stood not far off, carefully meeting Xiang Shi Yan’s gaze with a respectful distance between her and her elder sister and younger twin. Four years might not feel lengthy to a deeply meditative cultivator, as many might seclude themselves for decades, even a full cycle, without any contact. But for these young girls, whose ages were but a fraction of Xiang Shi Yan's own, four years were more than enough time to make her seem almost like a stranger. Before Xiang Shi Yan retreated, she had left Zhu Yun and Zhu Yu with enough medical advice and herbs to last five years. When that time neared, no matter how deep her consciousness was submerged, the system would awaken her forcefully as instructed. The spirit of the mysterious wine never ceased its schemes, and five years was the longest duration she could push. Unlike her lively sister, Zhu Yun was so much like Gong Ning. Seeing the girl from afar, it seemed as if her senior sister had come to life in her youth. With just two or three paces separating them, Xiang Shi Yan gently beckoned to her. With two fingers, she pinched Zhu Yu's cheek, lifting her small face contentedly, feeling the plushness beneath her fingertips. She then touched Zhu Yu's temple, asking, "Is your cultivation going well?" She noticed the considerable progress in Zhu Yu's cultivation; although still slow for a single-crystal root, it surpassed her expectations. Xiang Shi Yan had been prepared for the difficulty the twins might face in their training and might have to make some minor tweaks to the Jade Green Mountain's techniques. Zhu Yun lowered her eyes and moved closer, obediently lowering her head so Xiang Shi Yan could pat it. Her hair felt soft like a chick's down, and Zhu Yun's reserved gaze, now looking at her with respectful admiration, was met with a stiff demeanor. Xiang Shi Yan didn't do well with personal connection and spoke rather bluntly: "How's your health?" "Thanks to Master's blessing, there are no major issues," Zhu Yun replied respectfully. "And the techniques, are they still suitable? Have you been keeping up with the main peak's daily lessons?" Zhu Yun was about to answer when Zhu Yu interjected with a complaint, "Master has been secluded for so long, and upon meeting, all you ask about are studies and cultivation. Such a killjoy." The woman in white maintained her serious expression: "Cultivation is crucial for you both; it must be taken seriously." "Okay, okay, we know." Zhu Yu stealthily reached behind her sister's back to tickle her playfully, causing Zhu Yun's normally composed demeanor to falter, a rare grin breaking through her solemn expression. Zhu Yun, usually clever and quick-witted, became as stiff as a wood when meeting Xiang Shi Yan again. After enduring her sister's tickling for a while, she attempted to maintain her serious expression, her lips pressed together as she clutched her mischievous sister's hand, a bashful smile finally gracing her face tinged with a light blush. The trio beamed with joy upon seeing Xiang Shi Yan, initially intending to congratulate her, only to realize that her appearance lacked the transitional thunder tribulations for advancing stages, suggesting another failure in breaking through. This realization led them to awkwardly fall silent. Despite four years of seclusion, Xiang Shi Yan had failed to break through the realm. She had been stuck for many years, and wasting another four wasn't unexpected. But her frustration lingered, being so close to completing the fusion with the mysterious armor, yet unable to advance past this bottleneck, with not even the faintest of breakthroughs in sight. In the original work, Qin Miao managed to wield the artifacts with ease, reaching the Core Formation stage at twenty, the Nascent Soul at twenty-nine, eventually becoming the youngest Grand Unity cultivator in history by his thirties. This was attributed to the feedback from subduing series of artifacts, which housed lingering power from the mysterious wine's remnants, and their capacity to quickly convert spiritual energy, propelling cultivation. Plus, Qin Miao benefited from multiple artifacts complementing each other, granting synergistic advantages. Xiang Shi Yan, in her own four-year sculpting of the Scaled Armor, managed to absorb the mysterious wine's spiritual power from it. Her own spiritual power continued to grow, compressing in her Dantian and Nascent Soul, yet her 'vessel' had no increase in capacity. Despite temporarily housing this excess spiritual power within the scales, Xiang Shi Yan felt an internal strain, the influx causing her meridians to ache. If she had the chance to break through to the Grand Unity realm, perhaps she could utilize her abundant accumulation to catch momentum in ascending swiftly. But only if she managed a true breakthrough first. She had assumed that, by advancing past a significant plot point from the original story, she might exploit the artifact to expedite her cultivation like Qin Miao. But reality proved otherwise. Xiang Shi Yan, after much thought, had to admit the fox bloodline imposed significant hindrances on her path. She was on the brink of fully refining, but was uncertain whether breaking into the Grand Unity realm would come quicker than successfully merging with the Scaled Armor. No wonder pure-blooded demon foxes, despite their strength, were unable to permanently threaten the demon emperor’s position… Xiang Shi Yan had an inkling lately that if she initially relied on manipulating others' affections for cultivation, she would face this insurmountable bottleneck regardless. This obstacle could only be faced directly. Though acknowledging this, Xiang Shi Yan couldn’t simply resort to deceiving others' feelings nor entertain the mysterious wine’s prolonged requests for dual cultivation. Hence, she resolved to tread carefully, step by step. Beyond that, when she was squeezed through a fissure at the edge of a secret realm in Tianxin Realm, the subtle cracks inflicted on her Gold Core became a pivotal barrier for Xiang Shi Yan. Although her Nascent Soul had been similarly damaged, the spiritual connection she shared with He He had, in fact, provided some restoration, leaving her with no major issues. The urgency behind Xiang Shi Yan's emergence, despite her incomplete breakthrough, stemmed from the only piece of information permitted through her seclusion enchantments: intelligence from the Song He Hall indicated that the southwestern border’s black market auction would soon feature the sale of the revered Revitalization Pill. For Xiang Shi Yan, who desperately needed the Revitalization Pill to mend her fractured Gold Core, this news was critical. Thus, she was compelled to personally travel to the southwest. Upon emerging from seclusion, Xiang Shi Yan's foremost concern was whether any major events had transpired in the cultivation world during her four-year absence. "In the four years Master was away, the cultivation world has been quite peaceful," He He assured with sincerity, though she couldn't guarantee how much turmoil might lurk beneath the surface. Xiang Shi Yan nodded, feeling an inevitable heaviness settling in her heart. If the mysterious wine had unleashed chaos in the cultivation world, akin to the frenzied events in Huaihai City, she would actually be less anxious. An enemy hiding in the shadows, equipped with immense power, posed a more unpredictable threat. During her four years of seclusion, the mysterious wine had had plenty of time to grow its influence, leaving Xiang Shi Yan uncertain of what it might attempt next. "However, a guest from Tianji Sect is visiting today," Xu You Qing said, seizing the chance to interject as the master and disciples caught up. "Since Moon Hua Shishu is here just in time, perhaps you should go and see?" "A visitor from Tianji Sect?" Xiang Shi Yan asked, a hint of surprise in her voice. Tianji Sect seldom interacted with other sects; indeed, their rankings and evaluations were their primary means of external engagement, apart from participation in the Celestial Sect's council of thirteen seats. In Xiang Shi Yan's memory, it seemed that in the past three hundred years, Tianji Sect never visited Jade Green Mountain. Though the original story had instances where Tianji Sect emissaries tried to convince other sects to adopt Qin Miao’s proposals to unite against the demon race, what could be the reason now? "I heard the envoy from Tianji Sect also intended to visit Tai Xu Sect on their way here, but was refused entry," Zhu Yun said with a hint of concern in her voice. "The conflict from four years ago seems irreparable, and tensions between the two sects are only escalating." The sisters’ paths were uncertain, so they naturally hoped that no hidden threats loomed over the Celestial Sect's thirteen seats. The Zhu family, for now, still had a seat among them, but once the uproar from the Huaihai City incident subsided, that might change. Zhu Yun needed to return to the Zhu family before then. While the issue of the cauldron was temporarily set aside, Zhu Yun's divine root meant she and Zhu Yu couldn't offer much help to Xiang Shi Yan immediately. But with the Zhu family's resources… Zhu Yun's anxiety was fleeting but sufficient to catch her observant sister's attention. Under the table, Zhu Yu gently intertwined her fingers with Zhu Yun's, offering silent reassurance. Xiang Shi Yan frowned slightly: “Could the visit from Tianji Sect at this time be regarding some important matter?” The four young women exchanged bewildered glances: “We don’t know. Tianji Sect seems to have sent envoys to various sects, not just ours.” Tianji Sect’s sudden bold maneuver naturally attracted attention from all quarters, sparking a whirl of rumors that were difficult to sift through for truth. The woman pondered for a moment; without the need for further elaboration from the group, she had already guessed the identity of the Tianji Sect envoy visiting Jade Green Mountain. Author's Note: Thank you to the little angels who cast their votes or watered the nutrient solution for me between 2022-08-05 00:19:45~2022-08-07 01:01:15~ Thanks to the little angel who cast a landmine: Shan Yu Yu Lai 1; Immense gratitude for everyone’s support, I will continue to work hard! No pop-up ads on this site, permanent domain (xbanxia.com)