Journey to the West: Signing in for 500 Years-Chapter 312 - 306 Top-tier Innate Treasure Tai Chi Diagram【Requesting Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets】_1
Sha Chen was at a loss for words as he regarded the choice before him.
To refuse was one thing, but to have him question the sage Laozi?
He didn’t have enough lives to pay for the consequences.
In his heart, Sha Chen thought, it wasn’t for Yuan Feng’s True Blood, but purely for his daughters to find a good mentor who could make them stronger!
After all, a father is still a father.
The daughters remained daughters, and becoming disciples of another wouldn’t change that he was their father!
Sha Chen had made up his mind as he comforted his tearful three daughters, wiping away their tears.
Then he said, "In fact, the Saint is right. Following me, you can only cultivate to the level of a Quasi-Saint, just like your aunt—at most, like that Uncle Three-eye from before."
Bai Luan was the most sensitive. Hearing Sha Chen’s words, she sensed something amiss.
Anxiously, she said, "Daddy, you’re not going to send us away, are you? Don’t! We’ll behave; please don’t send us away!"
Sha Chen said, "Didn’t you all want to leave? Now you have the chance. You can leave this place, be free outside, and even have a Saint as your teacher. Then, no one will bully you again."
Bai Luan said, "Daddy, we don’t want to leave anymore."
Qing Luan also threw herself into Sha Chen’s arms, tears and snot streaming down her face as she cried most sorrowfully, "Daddy, we don’t want to go! Please don’t abandon us!"
Hong Luan sat on Sha Chen’s lap, sobbing bitterly. At that moment, all three girls were like children abandoned by their parents.
The sage Laozi watched, his expression unchanged, even wearing a faint smile.
Because it was clear Sha Chen had agreed, and that was enough.
Even though the Phoenix sisters hated him now, he believed that in time, they would be grateful to him. He even believed he would eventually surpass Sha Chen in their hearts!
Li Er was very confident about this.
But Sha Chen was even more confident. He felt that no matter what Li Er did, he would always come first in his daughters’ hearts. The deep affection he had cultivated with the Phoenix sisters over the decades couldn’t be changed by an outsider’s intervention. The companionship of their younger years was paramount because those memories were the hardest to forget, already etched deep into their hearts.
Unless Sha Chen did something to wrong them, Li Er could forget about changing Sha Chen’s place in their hearts.
Sha Chen looked at Li Er and said, "Please forgive them, Saint. They don’t know any better at the moment. Please grant me some time to persuade them properly."
Li Er said, "No problem. I have time, so I’ll stay here for a while. You can take your time to persuade them."
He knew that a melon forcibly twisted off its vine wouldn’t be sweet; they needed enough time and space. This would also show his magnanimity.
Actually, Li Er himself was quite surprised. He only had one personal disciple, Master Xuandu. Yet now, he was suddenly about to take three, which surprised even himself. But they were worth it.
Li Er is going to stay for a while? A glint of sharpness flickered in Sha Chen’s eyes. This couldn’t be better!
He then comforted the three sisters, assuring them that they wouldn’t be sent away for the time being—because they weren’t Daluo Golden Immortals yet!
The sisters didn’t want to leave and refused to cultivate, as they didn’t want to reach the Daluo Golden Immortal realm.
Since Sha Chen had agreed, he could now extract the ten drops of Yuan Feng’s True Blood from the system. He didn’t hurry to extract it but instead summoned the Golden Dragon Scissors.
The Golden Dragon Scissors were a previous system reward, even more powerful than Yunxiao’s Golden Jiao Scissors, forged from a true dragon slain by the Daoist Ancestor.
The sage Laozi saw a golden light fly in from outside, transforming into two dragon shadows and finally into a pair of Golden Dragon Scissors, which landed steadily in Sha Chen’s hands.
He was taken aback for a moment.
"Golden Dragon Scissors!?"
"I had no idea you possessed my Master’s Golden Dragon Scissors. Your fortune is truly enviable."
Sha Chen said, "The Saint jests. In your presence, who would dare claim to be fortunate?"
Li Er said, "There’s no need for modesty. I’m aware of a thing or two about you."
"The Plantain Fan also ended up in your hands. Hehe, you really are lucky. It was originally hanging in Tushita Palace when Tianpeng broke in. The Buffalo knocked its shelf over, and the fan fell into the Alchemy Furnace, burning away my mark. To save itself, it flew out." His voice was calm as he continued, "And through a series of unlikely events, it ended up in your Flowing Sand River, falling into your hands."
Sha Chen’s face turned various shades of embarrassment; he hadn’t expected the origins of the system’s rewards to be so clear. Fortunately, there was an explanation. Otherwise, the Saint might have killed him outright, demanding to know how he’d tricked the Plantain Fan into his possession!
However, why is the Saint bringing this up now? What does he mean?
Sha Chen said quietly, "So that’s how it happened. I wondered how I got so lucky. Since the Saint has come, I’ll return the Plantain Fan to you right away."
Although he said he would return it, he showed no sign of actually doing so. He even put away the Golden Dragon Scissors.
Seeing that Sha Chen had no intention of bringing it out, Li Er chuckled. Then he said, "Enough. It was in the hands of Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad and was nearly burned to ashes in the Alchemy Furnace. After it left Tushita Palace, it never returned. It seems their destined connection has ended."
"Since you’ve acquired it, it’s yours. Keep it."
Sha Chen was immediately delighted and smiled, "Then this junior won’t stand on ceremony. Thank you for your generous kindness, Saint."
Li Er chuckled. "You really don’t want to let go of any benefits! The Plantain Fan is yours. But, regarding the *Tao Te Ching*, do you have an explanation for this old man?"
The first part of the statement was fine, but when Li Er mentioned the *Tao Te Ching*, Sha Chen suddenly felt a chill. It was as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
He had thought Li Er was so easy to talk to that this matter was over. But unexpectedly, Li Er had remembered it all along. Not mentioning it before, only to bring it up now—it was just as lethal!
Sha Chen even felt the smile on Li Er’s face disappear. His face was expressionless; no one could discern Li Er’s thoughts at that moment.
Sha Chen was terrified, his scalp tingling. He had been wracking his brain for excuses, but now that the moment had come, he found none of them useful. Thus, he hesitated, wanting to speak yet stopping, ultimately having nothing to say.
Li Er spoke again, "So, you’re not planning to explain things to this old man?"
"The host has been asked by the sage Laozi to explain the situation regarding the *Tao Te Ching*. You have the following choices:"
"Choice One: Explain the entire sequence of events clearly. Reward: Top-grade Innate Treasure [Tai Chi Diagram]. (Tai Chi Diagram: This is a top-grade Innate Treasure imbued with infinite power, the foundational Magical Tool of the Human Religion.)"
"Choice Two: Be deliberately mystifying and deceive the sage Laozi. Reward: [*Tao Te Ching* Scroll]. (*Tao Te Ching* Scroll: This is the complete transcribed text of the *Tao Te Ching* written by the sage Laozi, encompassing upper, middle, and lower sections. It discusses the insights of Da Luo cultivators and below, as well as Quasi-Saints and a few Sub-Sages.)"
Confronted with these options, Sha Chen was dumbfounded.
There were choices for this too? Moreover, the rewards were so incredibly rich they were utterly inconceivable, hard to believe!
However, telling the truth to the sage Laozi was impossible; he couldn’t reveal his biggest trump card and secret—the system.
After hesitating for a long time, he decided to mix truth with lies—perhaps nine parts truth to one part falsehood.
He seemed to shrink back slightly and said, "Actually, when this junior arrived at the Flowing Sand River, I stumbled upon some serendipity. I didn’t expect to find a volume of the *Tao Te Ching* here."
Li Er frowned. "My *Tao Te Ching* has never left my side. How could a copy linger here?"
Sha Chen said, "If the Saint doesn’t believe it, then this junior has nothing more to say."
Li Er said, "Take out the *Tao Te Ching* you obtained. Let this old man have a look first before deciding whether to believe you."
Sha Chen, however, countered, "If the Saint doesn’t believe me, this junior cannot produce it."
"Moreover, this junior now has reason to suspect whether the *Tao Te Ching* was truly authored by the Saint, or if it has always existed independently."
Li Er smiled. "If the *Tao Te Ching* wasn’t written by this old man, could it be that you wrote it?" Then he continued, "The complete *Tao Te Ching* was written one hundred thousand years ago, long before the Divine Enthronement battle even started, when Buzhou Mountain still stood."
"To expedite the end of the Great Sorcerer Wars, I decided to support the Realm of People and benefit the world. That’s why I wrote down the *Tao Te Ching*, recording all my insights and experiences, intending to pass it on to the most outstanding figures of the Realm of People."
Sha Chen asked, "Then, did the Saint pass it on?"
Li Er replied, "I have. However, very few are qualified to be taught the *Tao Te Ching* by this old man, and they would not disseminate it. For it to fall into your hands—it definitely wasn’t from their teachings."
Sha Chen said, "This junior truly wasn’t taught by anyone. Rather, upon arriving here, I discovered the rubbings. I have absolutely no intention of deceiving the Saint." He looked straight at Li Er. "The Saint should trust that if this junior had any intention to deceive, I would have been immediately exposed."
Li Er looked at Sha Chen, remaining silent for a moment. Then he said, "I believe you. Take out the *Tao Te Ching* you obtained so I can have a look!"
Sha Chen was also silent for a moment. He realized the system hadn’t yet signaled that he could receive the reward.
This proved his bluff hadn’t succeeded. Since it hadn’t worked, he naturally couldn’t produce a complete volume of the *Tao Te Ching*. Therefore, he couldn’t plausibly explain its origin.
At this moment, Sha Chen decided to reveal another of his trump cards, although he wasn’t sure if the sage already knew about it. Revealing it now seemed reasonable.
After hesitating briefly, Sha Chen took out a piece of jade, smooth, bright, and lustrous.
The moment Sha Chen presented the jade, even before he could ask Li Er or offer any explanation, he received the system prompt: task completed!
Internally smiling, Sha Chen quickly extracted the [*Tao Te Ching* Scroll] and began to cultivate it. As a system reward, he grasped the basics with ease.
However, because he already had a foundation in the Da Luo and Quasi-Saint sections from before, he mastered these parts directly upon receiving the scroll. The Da Luo section reached Great Perfection, and the Quasi-Saint section advanced from a superficial understanding to basic mastery. As for the Sub-Sage section, Sha Chen had only glanced at it and hadn’t yet had time to comprehend it. Ease of initial comprehension didn’t mean he could achieve full understanding without contemplation; the system wasn’t *that* heaven-defying.
The jade piece Sha Chen had taken out was as large as a small table—it was the Wordless Heavenly Scripture!
This was actually one of Sha Chen’s trump cards, one he had kept hidden for fear the sage would find out. But now, he had revealed it.
The moment he revealed it, the sage Laozi believed him without needing further explanation.
And then, Sha Chen received the reward.
