Cultivation Begins with Caring for Sister-in-law-Chapter 394: Wuya’s Final Words
Dragon Return Mountain.
In the deep forest, towering trees blocked the sun, with light filtering through the gaps between leaves and casting mottled shadows on the ground, like a variegated oil painting. The sounds of various birds and beasts and insects in the forest interwove into a beautiful symphony.
Chang En, accompanied by twenty soldiers, walked on the winding and complex mountain paths. Because the roads deep in the forest were not suitable for riding, the soldiers left their horses outside Dragon Return Mountain and continued on foot.
"Lord Chang En, have you been living in these mountains all these years?" one of the soldiers asked Chang En, who was walking ahead.
Chang En was initially not used to being addressed as "Lord" by the soldiers. He had told them to just call him by his name, but they insisted that the Marquis commanded them to follow his orders, so they had to address him as Lord.
Helpless, Chang En let them be.
Chang En nodded: "I am an orphan. It was my master who adopted me and brought me to Dragon Return Mountain. Since childhood, he taught me cultivation, learning, and literacy. To me, my master is like my own father."
"You are so skilled, so your master must be an extraordinary person, right? I’ve heard that those who live in seclusion on Dragon Return Mountain are formidable experts."
"Of course. My master is the most powerful person under the heavens," Chang En said.
"That may not be true. In my mind, the Marquis is the most powerful person in the world," another soldier said.
He had followed Chen Mo back when they were in Fu Ze Village.
While they were chatting, a beast’s roar made everyone except Chang En halt, their faces showing slight changes as they became vigilant.
"It’s a tiger."
"I heard it. It is indeed a tiger’s sound."
"Where is the tiger?"
"Don’t be afraid, there are many of us."
In a nearby thicket, a tawny tiger emerged, scanning the crowd with fierce eyes, emitting low growls as if to declare this was its territory and they should leave.
However, when its gaze landed on Chang En, the tiger’s eyes, like a king’s, suddenly showed a clear panic, and then, much like a mouse seeing a cat, it turned and fled without looking back.
"Little Kitty..." Chang En also recognized the tiger. Just as he raised his hand to greet it, he watched it flee, feeling slightly disappointed.
The soldiers breathed a sigh of relief, and the soldier who chatted with Chang En earlier asked, "Lord, do you know this tiger?"
"Yes, very well. When I was little, its mother chased me every day. And when I grew up, my junior and I would chase it around every day. At first, it was fierce, but after getting taught a lesson by my junior, it became very tame," Chang En said.
The soldiers: "..."
This lord is really bold and fierce.
...
Soon, under the lead of Chang En, the group arrived at the place where Chang En used to live.
On the mountain peak stood a small wooden house, tightly shut. Though the yard outside had pine trees, there were no fallen leaves on the ground.
"Master," Chang En called loudly.
The soldiers also helped to call out: "Old gentleman."
Chang En opened the wooden house door, and immediately, a strong medicinal scent surged out, making Chang En cover his mouth and nose and take a step back.
Upon seeing the old man seated cross-legged on the wooden bed, Chang En was thrilled: "Master, I’m back."
But no matter how Chang En called, the old man did not respond.
One soldier stepped forward to check, then turned to Chang En and said, "Lord Chang En, it seems that the old gentleman has... no breath left."
Upon hearing this, it was as if Chang En was struck by a bolt from the blue, his body swaying: "No, impossible..."
Chang En personally went to verify, calling his master while doing so. After confirming multiple times, Chang En had no choice but to believe that his master had passed away.
"Master..." Chang En knelt before the old man with a thud, crying his heart out, overcome with extreme sorrow.
"Lord Chang En, there is a letter on this table," a soldier said, looking around and noticing a letter on the table, which he then picked up and handed to Chang En.
Chang En, sobbing, opened the letter.
"Is it Chang En or Hui Cheng? Or are both of you back? If both of you have returned, I am most gratified. By the time you see this letter, I may have already gone. Life is short, and although I lingered in this world for 120 years, it still seems to have passed in a blink of an eye.
Like you, I was an orphan from childhood, not knowing who my parents were, and was taken in by an old monk. That period of being cared for was the happiest for me, but unfortunately, no one can escape the harvest of time.
I have recently felt that my time is nearing its end, but there was still something I couldn’t let go of, so I attempted one last final gamble, but I failed. Before passing, I have written you this letter.
In fact, when I forced you to leave, it was a test. Don’t hold it against me. I once painstakingly nurtured Xiaoxian, tirelessly teaching him cultivation, and even went to great lengths to find him the Overlord’s Qi, yet in return, he betrayed me and stole all my life’s savings.
Therefore, when I taught you, I kept some reserve and did not pass everything down. After reading this letter, you can go to the largest tree at the foot of the mountain, where what I left for you is hidden. Before passing, I chose a place for myself; you can bury my remains there. The world is vast and there are too many places I haven’t been, disciples, go in my stead and see them. Wuya’s final words."
"Master." After reading the letter, Chang En’s large tears fell onto the letter paper, and he wept bitterly.
Seeing Chang En like this, the soldiers all left the room.
Chang En stayed indoors without eating or drinking, until the soldiers persuaded him earnestly that he should let the old gentleman be at peace. Only then did Chang En rise, his eyes swollen and red from crying.
According to the letter’s instructions, Chang En buried the old man without erecting a monument, as requested.
The old man said he was born without a name, and even if "Wuya" were to be left on a tombstone, it would not truly be him.
Chang En heavily kowtowed three times at the old man’s grave.
It was unclear whether the old man was still nostalgic for Xiaoxian, or if he thought Chang En and Hui Cheng were no match for Xiaoxian, for there wasn’t a single word in the letter asking the disciple to avenge or set things right for him.
After burying his master, Chang En went behind the big tree.
The location was easy to find. Chang En dug only about a foot deep before discovering an iron box in the soil. Opening the box, he found an oil-paper-wrapped, yellowed sheet of paper whose worm-eaten stains along the edges indicated it had been there for a long time, a testament to its age.
This was a technique left by Wuya, obtained during his young days of training through a stroke of fortune.
This technique could briefly enhance the power of one’s Innate Spiritual Qi during battle, making the Spiritual Qi thicker and more concentrated, thereby increasing one’s strength in a short time.
