Cultivating with Bragging System-Chapter 646 - 295: Lianshan Ju Ling, Return to the Spiritual Turtle_2
Elder Zhou and the others were even more perplexed. What has gotten into the Saint Heir today? He's normally so amiable, even toward common outer disciples. He's always ready with a smile and puts on no airs. Could it be that he wants to establish his authority in front of the new disciples today?
...
After a long while, Wang Lianshan took a deep breath, her eyes showing extreme determination. "I've made up my mind!"
Wang Xiu looked at her, and the icy expression on his face finally dissolved, becoming as gentle and casual as usual. In an instant, the overwhelming pressure that had chilled everyone to the bone dissipated, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"Not bad. You've got a tenacious spirit," he smiled slightly and said to Elder Zhou, "I'll have to trouble you, Elder Zhou. Please take her to bathe and change into clean clothes, then bring her to my Spirit Turtle Peak."
Elder Zhou hurriedly replied, "It's no trouble at all, Saint Heir! This is my duty!"
Wang Xiu nodded, glanced at his new disciple, and turned to leave, leaving behind a room full of people with complex expressions.
"Gods, that scared the life out of me!"
"They say the Sanqing Saint Heir is always gentle and refined, polite even to the mortals at the foot of the mountain. Who would've thought he could be so frightening when he's serious!"
"What did you expect? He's destined to become a legend, after all. The Saint Heir has slain countless Evil Demons with his own hands. How could he possibly be some completely affable, good-natured pushover?"
"Oh... The Saint Heir is so handsome even when he's being icy cold! I wish he'd be fierce with me too!"
"..."
Many of the newly initiated disciples patted their chests and whispered amongst themselves. Even more gazes, however, fell upon Wang Lianshan.
"Congratulations, Junior Sister Zhang Wan! Ten years of hard work have finally paid off. To be accepted by the Saint Heir is truly a cause for celebration!"
"What nonsense are you talking about? You should call her Junior Sister Wang now! Junior Sister is truly a blessed person. We are all so envious!" 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶
"Alas, the Saint Heir was the number one prodigy of the Cangyuan Realm in his youth, so his future achievements are bound to be immeasurable. Now that Junior Sister Wang has become the Saint Heir's first disciple, her future will surely be smooth sailing, rising straight to Qingyun!"
"In the future, we'll need to rely on Junior Sister Wang's guidance!"
"By the way, Junior Sister Wang, you must be exhausted from your journey. Why don't I, your Senior Sister, take you to bathe and change? I arrived two days before you, so I know the way!"
"What could you possibly know after only two days? Let your Senior Brother do it, I'm more familiar with the place!"
"..."
Incessant sounds of envy, admiration, and astonishment filled the air, making the hall bustle with activity. This was a stark contrast to the past, when she was met with cold taunts and sneers, accused of being delusional and chasing an impossible dream.
Wang Lianshan's mind, however, was in a daze, as if she couldn't yet believe it was all real. In truth, she was just as puzzled.
Although I was resolute, I know I don't have any special advantages. My talent is decent compared to ordinary disciples, but that's it. Ever since the Sanqing Saint Heir guided a hundred thousand Heroic Spirits back to this land sixty years ago, there has never been a shortage of geniuses. I've heard rumors that he's already accepted several disciples with Sacred Bodies over the years. My own qualifications are completely insufficient to change his mind. As for my looks and figure... they're alright, I suppose. But how could the Sanqing Saint Heir possibly be so superficial? It's an unrealistic thought.
"Alright, alright, what's all the commotion about?" Elder Zhou stepped forward, waved the other disciples away, and looked at Wang Lianshan with a gratified expression. "Child, congratulations on being accepted by the Saint Heir. Do you have any idea how many people would kill for this opportunity?"
Wang Lianshan bowed. "Thank you, Elder Zhou. Without you, the Saint Heir would never have come to see me!"
Elder Zhou waved his hand dismissively. "I merely passed on a message! If the Saint Heir didn't want to come, it would have been useless even if I went a hundred times! Come, come, I'll take you to wash off the dust of your journey and see you up the mountain!"
...
「Atop Spirit Turtle Peak」
Under the ancient pavilion, Xiao Qingyu's voice carried a hint of surprise. "You took that child in?" This outcome was not what she had expected.
Wang Xiu nodded. "She was always meant to return to Spirit Turtle Peak."
Xiao Qingyu blinked. "What's going on? Is she the Reincarnation of some past sage from the Divination Sect?"
Wang Xiu shook his head. He had initially thought the same thing, but after probing Wang Lianshan's Spirit origin, he discovered that was not the case. He had personally summoned those one hundred thousand Heroic Spirits and sent them into Reincarnation, so he had an impression of nearly every single one. The mark deep within a reincarnated Heroic Spirit's soul cannot be erased, making them easy to identify.
"Then what is it?" Xiao Qingyu asked.
Wang Xiu replied, "Senior Sister, have you ever heard of the Lianshan Scroll?"
Xiao Qingyu's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly. "The Lianshan Scroll? One of the Divination Sect's long-lost, sect-guarding legacy treasures?"
The Lianshan Scroll. It was a painting, a secret manual, and a Magical Treasure all in one. From the outside, it looked like a painted scroll. Legend had it that when the founding patriarch of the Divination Sect was lost on his path, he went to the shores of the East Sea to clear his mind. While he was standing on a reef, a great Big Ao suddenly appeared, carrying a mysterious ancient scroll on its back, which it offered to him.
The scroll recorded the principles of natural law, the patterns of all things in the universe, and the trajectories of fate and time. It was profoundly mysterious. With this scroll, the Divination Sect's patriarch comprehended the world-shaking Peering Heaven Mystery Scripture, which granted him the omnipotent ability to divine the heavens and calculate the earth. It was said that by using the Lianshan Scroll to perform this art, one could know a thousand years into the past and a thousand years into the future, a truly wondrous and infinite power. It was this very scroll that laid the foundation for the Divination Sect.
Later, a Divination Sect sage chanced upon the Qing Emperor's Longevity Scripture. This scripture could mitigate nearly all side effects of revealing heavenly secrets, which allowed the Divination Sect to finally reach its zenith and become invincible. It is no exaggeration to say that the Lianshan Scroll's importance to the Divination Sect was no less than that of the Qing Emperor's Longevity Scripture. It was their very foundation. Although it was not an Imperial Scripture, nor an Emperor Armament or a Dao Armament, its value was greater, not lesser.
...
「Over a Thousand Years Ago」
That Seat Master of the Divination Sect, atop Spirit Turtle Peak, performed one final divination that cost him all his vitality. Not only did it exhaust his life force, but he also seemed to have glimpsed some incredible heavenly secret, causing the Lianshan Scroll itself to collapse, turning to ash and vanishing from the world without a trace.
From that day on, the Lianshan Scroll was no more.
Xiao Qingyu had a faint guess. "Don't tell me?"
Wang Xiu nodded. "The Lianshan Scroll... has a spirit!"
Xiao Qingyu's red lips parted slightly in surprise, but at the same time, understanding dawned on her. So that was the girl's extraordinary origin. No wonder she was so insistent on reaching Spirit Turtle Peak. The Lianshan Scroll had remained on the peak for tens of thousands of years. The bond it had formed was profound beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.
"Then how do you plan to arrange things for her?" Xiao Qingyu asked again.
Wang Xiu replied, "By my master's generation, the arts of divination in the Divination Sect were all but lost. Her return now... perhaps it is the will of heaven. I only need to teach her the skills to live and protect herself. As for the rest... I don't need to interfere."
Xiao Qingyu nodded. She suddenly remembered something, her gaze growing complicated as she said, "The passage between the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths has grown increasingly unstable. The Elders observing it from the front lines estimate that it will completely collapse in seven days at most!"
Wang Xiu flinched slightly and nodded in silence. "I know."
With that, he stepped out over the sea of clouds and vanished into the void.
Xiao Qingyu watched his departing figure, her beautiful eyes filled with complex emotions, lips parted as if to speak but holding back. The wind blew, and the soughing of the pines was endless. The woman stood alone at the cliff's edge, a solitary and desolate figure.
...
「Back at Spirit Turtle Peak」
The sunset was perfect. The fiery afterglow shone into the courtyard, making every begonia flower seem to be ablaze in a magnificent spectacle.
"Little doggy, what's your name?" Wang Lianshan asked, having already changed into a fresh set of clothes. She sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, teasing Yan Ji. "Oh, are you a girl? You look pretty sturdy... and your fur is so soft!"
Her hair was still damp, washed clean of the dust from her journey. It gave her a carefree air that enhanced her fresh, moving beauty.
Yan Ji remained lying there, motionless, and rolled her eyes. Did she just call me a bitch? If that old man hadn't told me she was Master's new disciple, I would have stopped putting up with her nonsense long ago!
Just then, Wang Xiu walked into the courtyard.
Yan Ji immediately scrambled to her feet, zipped over to Wang Xiu, and began whimpering, as if she were both seeking affection and lodging a complaint. It was as if she were saying, Look at your disciple! Isn't she annoying?
