Chapter 265 Xiao Tian, Cycle of Life and Death
As dusk settled, lights began to flicker on Yi Shui Peak.
Inside the misty room, several Spirit Stone Lanterns illuminated the space, casting shadows on a screen by the door, revealing the silhouette of a young man bathing. Ye Anping, holding the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao in his left hand, soaked in the bathtub, his right arm resting on his right knee. He appeared quite relaxed.
Xiao Tian, with a flushed face, leaned against his chest. Her large eyes occasionally darted upwards to glance at Ye Anping’s chin.
Thanks to pills like the Face Sculpting Pill, which were not prohibitively expensive, a normal Qi Refining Stage cultivator could afford one after saving for a month or two. This led to a common saying among cultivators:
—Appearance is the least important aspect for a cultivator. If a cultivator is not beautiful, it’s simply because they don’t want to be.
However, a pleasing appearance was always a delight, and Ye Anping, with his natural beauty, was especially captivating to Xiao Tian. His wet black hair cascaded down, his focused gaze as he read, and what lay beneath the water…
Xiao Tian couldn’t help but bury her head underwater. To her surprise, Ye Anping was wearing shorts. She immediately lifted her head, mouth agape, and asked, “Anping, why are you wearing shorts to bathe?”
Ye Anping, with a detached expression, shifted his gaze from the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao back to her. “Aren’t you wearing clothes to bathe too?”
…
Xiao Tian fell silent for a long moment, contemplating his question. After a slight internal struggle, she pulled down the strap of her garment, made of an unknown material, and whispered, “Anping, if you want to see, just say so~ You don’t have to be so indirect~~”
?
Ye Anping was taken aback, not expecting her garment to be removable. He felt a flicker of curiosity about what she would look like without it. Feigning disinterest, he returned his gaze to the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao, though he discreetly peeked with his peripheral vision.
However, Xiao Tian only lowered her garment slightly, almost revealing it, before quickly pulling it back up. She giggled, “I won’t let you see! You didn’t even give me a place to stay, hmph!”
Ye Anping felt a pang of disappointment. “I’m not interested in what’s under your clothes,” he stated calmly.
“Then why were you peeking with your eyes?” Xiao Tian half-closed one eye and said, “When you pretended not to see me before, you always peeked. I saw through it long ago. You were definitely looking just now, you little tsundere!”
…
Ye Anping was speechless and simply returned to his book, saying nothing.
Xiao Tian giggled and leaned back, rubbing her hair against his chest. “Anping, why did you pretend not to see me before?”
“You were annoying.”
Xiao Tian frowned and looked up at him. “I’m asking seriously. You’re just brushing me off. What was annoying about me?”
“You talk too much.”
“I only talk a lot because besides Yu Die, there’s no one else to talk to,” Xiao Tian said, poking her fingers together pitifully. “Yu Die and I were born together. I’ve been by her side almost since her birth. But until she manifested her Spiritual Root and bloodline at two and a half years old, she couldn’t see me. For those two and a half years, no matter how much I shouted, no one paid me any mind, as if I didn’t exist. I don’t want to experience that again.”
…
“Anping, you’re the second person I’ve been able to talk to in my entire life. Please spend more time talking to me. I want to understand you more too. After all, you are now my…”
Xiao Tian seemed a little shy. After a pause, she softly uttered a title: “Master…”
Hearing this, Ye Anping put down the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao in his left hand and sighed. “I ignored you before because I didn’t want to get involved with you.”
“Why?”
“I’m a dual spiritual root cultivator with no talent for cultivation. While not terrible, I’m ordinary, a nobody in a crowd, a mere cannon fodder. You, on the other hand, are the embodiment of the Heavenly Dao. Like Feng Yu Die and Yun Kunwu, you are a genius blessed by the heavens. I don’t want to get entangled in their affairs.”
Ye Anping closed the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao and returned it to Xiao Tian. “One must know their place, without being arrogant or subservient. One must understand how to establish oneself. That’s how I was educated from childhood.”
“Anping, you’re amazing! You’re clearly underestimating yourself! The fact that you can see me means the Heavenly Dao favors you too.”
“I don’t believe in heaven; I only believe in myself.”
Ye Anping intended to tap her head with his finger, but inadvertently, his fingertip sunk into Xiao Tian’s head. Feeling a strange sensation, he quickly withdrew his hand with a dark expression and sighed. “Originally, I planned to cultivate slowly with my Junior Sister, then go to Hantian Kingdom, marry a wife, and live out my remaining years peacefully. But unfortunately, at this point, I can’t extricate myself.”
“Hantian Kingdom?”
“I heard the scenery there is nice, suitable for a quiet life.”
“But the scroll says the Demonic Beasts there are fierce, with yearly beast tides. It seems the Demon Race planted something there long ago, causing the Demonic Beasts there to be much more violent than elsewhere.”
“Is that so? This is the first I’m hearing of it.”
Ye Anping gave a perfunctory reply, then relaxed. He closed his eyes and submerged his face in the water.
He had casually flipped through the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao earlier. It was indeed like an encyclopedia, detailing past events in Zhou Xing Tian Yu and the lives of capable individuals. Moreover, many of these entries had revision marks, similar to the map of Heavenly Mystery Fortress of Seven Kill Gate. It seemed Xiao Tian had helped update its contents, pasting her own drawing over his original map.
As a spirit of an artifact, Xiao Tian was both the owner and compiler of the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao. Throughout the millennia, the experiences of the artifact spirits, accompanying each “Feng Yu Die” throughout their lives, everything they saw and heard, was recorded in this book, seemingly as thick as a dictionary. It was less of a Heavenly Dao and more of a historical record.
Historical records are compiled for posterity, and this Heavenly Scroll of the Dao was similarly compiled for future “Feng Yu Dies.” After the first “Feng Yu Die” died, her experiences would be passed down to the second “Feng Yu Die,” preventing her from repeating the same mistakes. This cycle of life and death transformed it into what it is now. This was what the Feng Yu Dies carried – thousands of years of changing landscapes and the rising and setting of the sun and moon, all contained within this small Heavenly Scroll of the Dao. And now, such a heavy burden had fallen upon his shoulders.
“Sigh—”
Ye Anping sighed, then stood up and climbed out of the bathtub.
“Anping, are you not washing anymore?”
“Mm.”
*Bang bang—*
Suddenly, two knocks sounded at the door, followed by Huang Quan’s voice: “Son-in-law~ Are you not done showering yet?”
“Just finished,” Ye Anping replied. “What is it?”
“The Eldest Miss just returned and asked me to inform you that she’d like you to join her for a cup of tea and a chat.”
…
Ye Anping paused, thinking it was time for a frank conversation. He felt a strange sense of pressure and patted his face. “I understand. I’ll come over after I change.”
Seeing his action, Xiao Tian looked puzzled. She floated to his head and perched there, asking, “Anping, what’s wrong? You seem so helpless.”
“Just settling a debt.”
Ye Anping shrugged slightly and took out a set of clothes from his Storage Bag. Without bothering to remove his wet pants, he simply pulled them on, leaving Xiao Tian stunned.
“Anping, your pants are wet! Doesn’t it feel uncomfortable?”
“Better than being called a pervert by you.”
…
