Twin Dimension Yin-Yang Mirror: Attaining immortality through the martial path-Chapter 859 - 661 Divine Statue + - 662 Space Channel_3

"Miss Shang, why aren’t you staying in the Water Residence overseeing affairs? What brings you to Linhai? Could it be that you’re also intrigued by Zhou Ping’an’s skills?"

Chu Wenli turned his head and glanced over, his brows arched with surprise. The annoyance in his heart dissipated significantly. He quickly welcomed Shang Siqi to sit and have tea.

"Bah, I’m nothing but old bones now, and you’re still calling me ’girl’?"

The elderly woman shot him a glare and replied irritably, "You clearly understand what’s going on but choose to feign ignorance. Zhou Ping’an’s capabilities now are something even Zhongshan and Zhao Ji, those two ancient figures, hold in fear. Can we ordinary people even dare to plot anything concerning him? Knowledge has no precedence, and those who achieve more are considered masters. If we could leverage some past connections to request one or two techniques from him, it would be a benefit that we’d never exhaust."

Saying this, Shang Siqi’s face betrayed a regretful expression. The last time Zhou Ping’an visited Linhai, she had prided herself on her status and didn’t go meet him for a chat, nor did she present any gestures of goodwill.

On the other hand, Chu Wenli, for reasons inexplicable, chose to gift the partial manual of the "Heart Sutra of Vast Cold." Though the cultivation technique was an incomplete relic from historical ruins that was exceedingly difficult to master and not particularly worthwhile as a gift, it had still established a modicum of goodwill between them.

How enviable.

If this goodwill could serve as a bridge to build relations, perhaps she and their peers, who were stuck at the King Level bottleneck, might finally break through to the next tier and extend their life spans.

"Is it worth all that trouble? Cultivation is ultimately personal; others truly can’t assist much." Chu Wenli cast a look at his longtime friend of sixty years, sighed, and remarked.

"Do you not understand or are you pretending not to?" Shang Siqi turned her head to peer at Chu Wenli, her gaze filled with equal parts frustration and pity. "That black demon fox emerged from the Sky Hawk Alliance’s domain. Even Luo Lin and her peers couldn’t stand its power—they were utterly routed, narrowly escaping death. Such creatures have already surpassed the level of National Guardian prowess."

Her expression carried a trace of fear as she envisioned encountering such a frightful being. Were she, as a Town Defense Commander, to face that demon fox, she suspected she wouldn’t even endure a single blow before being utterly obliterated.

"For demon beasts so overpowering that even National Guardian-level individuals are outmatched, Zhou Ping’an managed to slay it effortlessly. Think for a moment—how many levels stand between us and him?"

Shang Siqi was acutely self-aware. She possessed greater clarity and ambition than Chu Wenli.

Even at over eighty years old, she refused to let go of her daily energy cultivation regimen, holding on to hopes of one day transcending to Emperor Level, the echelon equivalent to National Guardian strength.

Previously, she had believed that the pinnacle of power in this world was the National Guardian level, with no higher tier possibly existing.

But now, she wasn’t so sure.

Perhaps she had always been a frog trapped in the well, glimpsing only the small patch of sky visible from the well’s mouth and entirely oblivious to how vast the world truly was.

Zhou Ping’an’s blade—One Slash to Part the Sea and One Slash to Slay Demons—was so indomitable that even watching the footage made her heart race with fear. It felt like witnessing myths and legends come alive anew.

Meeting such a godlike figure and failing to build rapport while instead remaining an outsider was a crime against herself and her nation.

As for the whispers from the capital attempting clever tricks angling for some benefits, she thought disdainfully about how some figures in high places had occupied their positions for so long that their minds had turned to mush, utterly blind to the reality before them.

"The heavens... are about to change."

"Alright, spare me the lecture. I’ll follow your advice. Even if I have to cast aside my old face, I’ll go humbly plead with my little brother and beg for his help to elevate us."

Chu Wenli felt somewhat embarrassed being lambasted.

He had spent his life avoiding entanglements, never seeking favors or self-improvement, content to merely drift along. This lifestyle was admittedly comfortable. However, he absolutely couldn’t endure Shang Siqi’s nagging.

After all, she was his "White Moonlight."

A dream spanning a full sixty years.

Being lectured by her—so what?

It made him happy.

"Putting that aside, Miss Shang, you’ve guarded the Water Residence for years. Surely you’ve accumulated a fine collection of rare secret manuals and prized treasures. Go check your inventory for significant items whose origins we can’t discern but seem extraordinary, and we’ll offer them as our gift."

"Naturally, I’ll take a look." Shang Siqi laughed heartily, her eyes narrowing cheerfully.

Years of serving as Town Defense Commander had certainly afforded her an impressive trove.

As she sifted through her collection, a middle-aged man hurried up from the mountain below. Standing outside the courtyard, he called out loudly, "Lord Protector, there’s crucial news from the Sky Hawk Alliance that requires your immediate attention in person."

"Come in."

Chu Wenli’s demeanor changed instantly, adopting a serious and dignified composure.

Before his subordinates, Chu Wenli maintained a measure of respectability, exuding the persona of an esteemed figure. Losing that authority would lead to insubordination, which could spiral into chaos.

"Our spies report that at Red House’s Seventy-Ninth Base, ongoing research into the space channel that spawned the black fox is showing preliminary results."

"What? Is the news reliable?"

Chu Wenli immediately opened his phone.

A series of chiming notifications—plink, plonk, plink—caught his attention. He reviewed the latest ten or so messages, noting that even his confidential channels had begun circulating this intel.

"It’s true, Lord Protector. The Sky Hawk Alliance members have always been daring beyond measure. Witnessing the black fox’s immense power—and also catching glimpses of Zhou Jing and Si Zhuyu—

it’s only natural they’d feel tremendous pressure. Their desperation would surely incline them toward studying the space channel, hoping to extract some advantage from it. This course of action is entirely plausible."

...

Updat𝓮d from freew𝒆bnovel(.)com