Yama Reborn-Chapter 514 - 511: [Eating Too Much, Indigestion]

Chapter 511: Eating Too Much, Indigestion

When Wu Daodao awoke in the early morning, he got out of bed groggily and slipped into a pair of cloth-bottomed slippers before stepping out of his bedroom. Just as he reached the doorway, opening his mouth to yawn and stretch...

Suddenly, his gaze caught something, and the yawn died in his throat. The Sect Leader of the Qingyun Sect nearly choked on his own stifled yawn. He stood there, red-faced and gasping; it took several breaths before the air flowed smoothly again.

It was because in the courtyard of their Qingyun Sect, right under the eaves of the western side-building, a girl with bright eyes and pearly teeth sat before a small dining table, sipping cornmeal porridge and nibbling on shredded pickled vegetables.

Beside her bowl lay a salted duck egg, already more than half-eaten.

Wu Daodao rubbed his eyes hard, squinting to look again and again before he approached, trembling.

Not daring to act rashly now that he was closer, he stood with his hands clasped, asking in a low, cautious voice, "Um... you... erm, are you that esteemed senior, or are you Sun Keke?"

The girl lifted her eyelids to glance at Wu Daodao. That cold, indifferent gaze made a shiver run down his spine. As the Eldest Senior Brother, he was quick-witted, immediately bowing deeply, nearly snapping his old back in the process.

He exclaimed, "Esteemed Senior, I, Wu Dao, an unworthy disciple of the Qingyun Sect, pay my respects to you!"

The chill in Yun Yin’s gaze softened slightly. She slowly put down her bowl and chopsticks, looked Wu Daodao up and down, then shook her head and sighed.

"Sect Leader of Qingyun, for you to hold this position, you’re truly a first in our sect’s history. You haven’t an ounce of strength in you. Given your state, I won’t even comment on your household. You... you probably can’t even defeat your own disciples, can you?"

Wu Daodao swallowed hard and blinked, a sudden idea striking him. "How about... I offer the position of Sect Leader to you, Senior? What do you think?"

Yun Yin’s expression darkened. "Useless! As a Sect Leader, you lack ambition and are content to lag behind!" Then she shook her head. "If I had wanted to be Sect Leader, I would have done so two hundred years ago. It wouldn’t have waited until today."

Wu Daodao’s face turned pale as he forced a smile.

Just then, the middle-aged woman finally emerged from the kitchen at the other end of the courtyard.

Seeing his wife approaching, Wu Daodao immediately threw her meaningful glances, his face full of confusion.

"Stop looking. I asked her to bring me back. I am a member of the Qingyun Sect. Is there anything wrong with returning to my own sect?"

"Perfectly fine! Perfectly fine!" Wu Daodao hastily retracted his gaze, forcing a laugh. "The return of our esteemed ancestor... Ah, no! Not ancestor! Our Foremost Ancestor! The return of our Foremost Ancestor is something this junior couldn’t even dare to hope for!!"

The middle-aged woman walked over. Seeing her husband’s demeanor, she sighed and said slowly, "The Senior returned last night. I didn’t wake you. After I finished speaking with her, she said she wanted to stay at the sect for a short while..."

"Of course! Stay as long as you like!" Wu Daodao nodded eagerly like a chicken pecking rice and added with an obsequious smile, "Shall I have the main house cleaned up and vacated for you today?"

"No need." The middle-aged woman hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "The Senior said she’s going to stay in the old residence on the back mountain."

Wu Daodao was startled.

The old residence on the back mountain? That place is just a pile of ruins now, all rotting wood and broken tiles. It would be a struggle to piece together even one habitable room from the original eight. How could anyone live there?

Wu Daodao looked troubled as he thought and thought. "How about this," he suggested, "I’ll go to the village later, find some craftsmen, and have them repair a room on the back mountain..."

"No need."

Yun Yin had already risen. "Just deliver three meals a day to the back mountain. Also... since you are the Sect Leader of Qingyun, you will accompany me. Stay by my side and serve me. I will also take this opportunity to train you properly."

"Your abilities are far too poor. If you were to encounter anyone outside, you would disgrace the Qingyun Sect. During my short stay here, you will cultivate with me!"

Wu Daodao went pale.

Me? Go to the back mountain with her? To cultivate properly? If I were capable of cultivation, would I have needed to learn those unorthodox Spells? Would I be unable to even defeat my own disciple? I... damn it all... I’m just not cut out for this!

"One more thing!" Yun Yin’s cold gaze shifted to him. "You are not to tell anyone about my presence here. Especially... Chen Nuo!"

"Yes! I won’t tell! I absolutely won’t tell!" Wu Daodao hastily slapped his chest in assurance.

Yun Yin gave a smile that wasn’t quite a smile. "You can tell him if you want. If you inform Chen Nuo, it will take time for him to rush here from Jinling to save you. I, however, am right here. With a flick of my finger, I can shatter every bone in your body."

"You should be able to weigh the consequences yourself."

"I understand! I understand perfectly!"

In the afternoon, the middle-aged woman carried an old woven-bamboo basket through the forest to the ruins of the old residence on the back mountain.

As she stepped over the collapsed gate of the old residence, she saw her husband, Wu Daodao, sitting cross-legged under the sun on the training ground.

It was unclear what methods the Senior had used, but a clearing had been made on the ruined training ground, swept clean of broken tiles and rubble.

Wu Daodao sat there cross-legged, eyes closed as if in cultivation. But having been married for many years, the middle-aged woman could tell at a glance that her husband was merely putting on a brave front. Though he sat there, his mind was clearly not calm; the muscles around his eyes twitched, and his thoughts were in turmoil.

Just as she was about to approach, she heard Yun Yin’s cold voice declare, "If you cannot rein in distracting thoughts during mental cultivation, you deserve to be beaten!"

SWISH! A whip shadow lashed out, striking Wu Daodao.

Wu Daodao cried out in pain and rolled on the ground.

"Do not get up. Continue your meditation," Yun Yin ordered coldly, sitting on a broken stone pillar nearby.

Wu Daodao could only abandon any thought of struggling and resume his cross-legged position, not daring to get up.

Yun Yin’s posture was identical to Wu Daodao’s; they both sat cross-legged in meditation, one on a higher perch than the other.

The middle-aged woman approached, placed the basket down, and stood there quietly for a while. Then she sighed and said, "Senior, the meal is in the basket. I’ll come again in the evening."

Seeing that Yun Yin did not respond, the middle-aged woman turned and left.

After the middle-aged woman had left, Yun Yin opened her eyes. She glanced at Wu Daodao, who was squirming like an insect. Her face remained cold as the whip in her hand lashed out again.

The whip moved deftly, landing squarely on Wu Daodao’s back and drawing another cry of pain from him.

"Can you... can you please not bully Senior Brother Wu like this?"

Within Yun Yin’s consciousness, Sun Keke’s faint plea emerged.

Yun Yin snorted and remained silent, but thought coldly, I am disciplining a junior of my sect. What concern is it of yours?

"But... but Senior Brother Wu just doesn’t like cultivating. Why must you force him like this? Senior Brother Wu is a good person."

Yun Yin sneered. "I enjoy doing it this way! If he meditates for less than three hours a day, I’ll whip him thirty times! He must recite one hundred verses of the Inner Breath cultivation method; for every verse he misses, I’ll whip him once!"

"During the evening practice, I won’t use my true power when I spar with him. He must withstand my attacks for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. If he fails, he gets another ten lashes."

Sun Keke was furious. "Isn’t this just bullying?! Senior Brother Wu isn’t young anymore. He’s middle-aged, and you’re forcing him to cultivate so harshly now. He definitely won’t be able to do what you’re demanding!"

Yun Yin replied flatly, "Then you can take his place."

"What?"

"You take his place. I will grant you control of this body for three hours each day. You will meditate and circulate your Inner Breath! If you fail, I will whip him."

"Every day, I will have you recite a hundred lines of the mnemonic verses. If you make a single mistake, I will whip him!"

"During the evening practice, I will give you control of the body to spar with Wu Daodao’s wife. She won’t use her true power. If you cannot last for the time it takes an incense stick to burn, I will also whip Wu Daodao!"

Sun Keke suddenly came to a realization.

"You... you’re trying to force me to cultivate?!"

"Hmph."

"Why?"

"No particular reason. I just feel like it!"

Two days later, talk of the recent thunderstorm in Jinling City had already died down.

The city’s residents no longer discussed it in their spare time.

Chen Nuo had searched all over the city for Sun Keke, considering every place she might be, but found no trace of her.

He understood that Yun Yin must be controlling Sun Keke’s body and had found a place to hide.

Fortunately, the Sun family hadn’t noticed anything amiss, still believing their daughter was away teaching in the countryside.

What left Chen Nuo even more dismayed was that the lazy cat had also vanished without a trace. He didn’t know if it had truly left Jinling or was hiding somewhere.

He suspected the latter was more likely. The lazy cat needed to absorb its host’s mental energy to sustain itself, so it probably wouldn’t want to go far. It had most likely hidden itself out of timidity and fear.

On the fourth day, Chen Nuo, who had been as anxious as an ant on a hot griddle, suddenly received a call from Yun Yin using Sun Keke’s mobile phone.

The call lasted a mere ten seconds. Yun Yin simply told Chen Nuo that she had gone into hiding and he needn’t look for her. Sun Keke’s body was under her control and would not be in any danger.

After she hung up, a text message quickly followed.

The content was just two words: "Twenty Days."

What did this mean? "Twenty Days." Was this a time limit? Did it mean she would return in twenty days? Or contact him again in twenty days?

Chen Nuo immediately tried calling back, but the phone was already switched off.

However, the call did momentarily ease Chen Nuo’s mind. No matter what, Yun Yin needed Sun Keke’s body to survive. Even for her own sake, she wouldn’t let Sun Keke come to harm.

Moreover...

Chen Nuo had already carefully gone over the events with the three girls, especially Niveer and Li Yingwan. They recounted in detail their attempt to intercept Yun Yin that day.

According to their descriptions, two distinct spiritual consciousnesses had clearly been vying for control within Sun Keke’s body at that time.

Meaning... Sun Keke’s consciousness was still present in her body!

After much thought, Chen Nuo could only surmise that Sun Keke’s consciousness was weaker than Yun Yin’s powerful one and was therefore suppressed, unable to gain control.

Three days passed after Yun Yin’s "Twenty Days" message.

Chen Nuo pondered where Yun Yin might have gone.

The first possibility he considered was that Yun Yin might have left Huaxia and gone into hiding. Could she have gone to Europe to find The Fourth Seed? After all, the connection between a Seed and its Chosen One was a strong one.

But The Fourth Seed had been severely injured by Seed that day. Given Seed’s confident demeanor at the time, The Fourth Seed was likely in no condition to be concerned about Yun Yin.

Then he thought of London. When she was Yun Yin (in Lu Xixi’s body), she had lived in London. But such speculation was useless. If Yun Yin was determined to hide, searching for her in the vast sea of people would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Naturally, Chen Nuo had also considered Qingyun Sect.

He had called there, and Wu Daodao’s wife answered. The middle-aged woman, cold by nature, informed Chen Nuo over the phone that everything at the sect was normal.

When asked about Wu Daodao, she said he went down the mountain to play mahjong.

Since there was nothing suspicious in her tone over the phone, Chen Nuo didn’t dwell on it.

This continued until three days after the "Twenty Days" period should have ended.

That evening, an anxious Chen Nuo finally encountered the person he had been desperately waiting to see!

At dinner, Chen Nuo sat at the table. Lu Xixi, who had accompanied him on his searches several times in the past few days, knew he was worried. She was especially considerate of his feelings, speaking gently and trying to console him during the meal.

Suddenly, Chen Nuo sensed something. He abruptly put down his bowl and chopsticks and looked up sharply at his front door!

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

After three knocks, Chen Nuo took a deep breath, rose, and strode over to pull open the door. His expression changed instantly as he stared, wide-eyed, at the small figure standing outside.

The brown skin, the curly hair, the pitch-black eyes...

But...

"Seed?" Chen Nuo asked with some hesitation.

"Hmm," Seed nodded.

Chen Nuo’s eyes widened further, and a "What the hell?" almost escaped his lips.

He examined Seed incredulously from head to toe.

"Were you beaten black and blue? Or did you eat yourself into a pig in just a few days?!"

Seed at the door let out a sigh.

His physique had undergone a dramatic transformation from that of a thin little boy—he was now at least three times his previous size.

His shoulders were bunched up so high they almost touched his chin, making his neck nearly invisible.

His once thin, boyish face was now as round as a large serving bowl from Chen Nuo’s kitchen. His cheeks were so fleshy they squeezed his normally large, dark eyes into mere slits.

Looking at his body—he resembled a barrel!

Hmm... and yet, strangely, he looked almost... springy.

"What happened to you?"

"I ate too much, and I couldn’t digest it," Seed sighed.

Chen Nuo was speechless. "?"

Seed shook his head. "A few days ago, at your place, didn’t I absorb half of the tree’s Life Force..."

Chen Nuo: "!!!"