Chapter 0 34. From Nothing to Something
“So that’s the truth.”
By the time Tang Simin recovered, her spiritual energy was depleted, leaving her greatly weakened.
At the same time, she finally realized how badly she had been deceived.
The Master of Arc-Moon Mountain in that vision, his demeanor and speech, wasn’t it exactly the familiar Master Qin?
Instead, the Black Robed one, who once possessed fearsome might, seemed to be some kind of avatar.
Absorbing spiritual energy and consuming pills, Tang Simin quickly regained some strength. She then stood up, dismantled all the grand arrays, and walked out of the room, determined to inform Cult Master Zhao Xinting of the matter in person, no matter what.
“Bang bang bang.”
It was late at night. Tang Simin lightly tapped on the bamboo door and asked softly, “Has Cult Master Zhao retired for the night?”
“Not yet.”
Tang Simin gently pushed the door open and entered. The moment she saw the person before her, her face instantly turned red, and she cried out in surprise, “Cult Master Zhao, why aren’t you wearing any clothes?”
At this moment, Zhao Xinting was completely naked. What was even stranger was that he was peeling off a treasure robe from his right arm, which was exactly the same as his own skin. If it detached from his true body for more than three seconds, the skin-like material would transform into a cloud-white sleeve.
If one didn’t observe with their own eyes and instead relied on their divine sense, even a cultivator at the Dharma Aspect Realm like Tang Simin wouldn’t be able to distinguish between the treasure robe and Zhao Xinting’s true body. Her divine sense would be deceived, making her believe that Zhao Xinting had actually severed a piece of his own flesh and blood, rather than simply taking off a layer of clothing.
“It’s nothing. This Seat doesn’t wear clothes when resting alone, and it just so happened that I wanted to see if the renowned Living Buddha Miaoyin of Hanzhou is truly as detached from everything as the rumors say.” Zhao Xinting looked at the blush on Tang Simin’s face and chuckled slyly, “It seems the reality is not the case.”
So he was deliberately teasing her…
Tang Simin shook her head, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. She suddenly realized that this Cult Master Zhao, when he was with her Master, behaved like a completely different person compared to how he treated others. The pushover seemed to have become impatient all at once.
Then, she subconsciously glanced downwards.
Tang Simin’s eyes widened in surprise, and she exclaimed in shock, “Zhao, Cult Master Zhao, how do you have that?!”
“What?” Zhao Xinting followed Tang Simin’s gaze and couldn’t help but chuckle. He said matter-of-factly, “Of course, this Seat refined it myself. Didn’t Saint Aunt see men before becoming a nun?” As he spoke, he covered his lower body with a ball of white mist.
“This… can be refined too?!” Tang Simin was dumbfounded, completely frozen in place.
“From nothing to something is the necessary path for every man.” Zhao Xinting couldn’t help but feel a bit disgusted by her astonishment, saying, “Hmph, women! What do you know?”
For a moment, Tang Simin gasped. This close-fitting treasure robe of Cult Master Zhao could transform into a perfectly flawless male physique. The key point was that this was ultimately a fake, with no practical use. It was equivalent to wearing an extra set of clothes and pants more than others, and it would be taken off when sleeping…
This could be said to be the most grandiose and useless female disguise in the Cultivation World.
It consumed the most rare materials and its craftsmanship was exquisite, yet it was only used to deceive himself… and even so, he still wouldn’t doubt her true gender.
“Originally, this nun had some things to tell Cult Master Zhao, but it seems now would be a more appropriate time to find another occasion.” As she spoke, Tang Simin, with a dazed expression, left Zhao Xinting’s room.
Now, Tang Simin had finally personally experienced the overbearing and terrifying power of the Fate-Changing Soul technique.
She had never expected that such an evil method, originally used to create loyal and fearless dead servants, would be so casually employed by the Master of Arc-Moon Mountain, purely to dispel his own disciple’s doubts and completely cut off any possibility of lusting after beauty or harboring ulterior motives. And he had acted against her so decisively and ruthlessly.
As it turned out, Qin Gou hadn’t misjudged. Even without any cultivation back then, Cult Master Zhao had displayed a wild nature far beyond that of ordinary people, immediately pledging to share wine in this lifetime.
The Cultivation World always rumored that the Master of Arc-Moon Mountain and his disciples had harbored grudges for many years and had long since turned against each other. But in Tang Simin’s current view, such claims were baseless.
Just based on A’Qin’s first meeting with Cult Master Zhao at that time, one could infer. If their roles had been reversed, she would probably have revered that young man in the green shirt, who was like a savior in her destiny, like a god for her entire life.
“It’s a pity that in this matter, this nun probably can’t help at all.”
The one who tied the bell must be the one to untie it. Although Qin Gou did leave a weakness in the Fate-Changing Soul technique that could break it, it required the strict condition of ‘lips touching lips.’ Given the current pure and innocent master-disciple relationship between Qin Gou and Zhao Xinting, it was highly unlikely to be achieved in this lifetime.
It was also worth noting, when exactly did that scene take place?
So many long years ago, the Master of Arc-Moon Mountain, Qin Gou, already possessed the astonishing cultivation to easily perform the ‘Fate-Changing Soul’ technique. Then doesn’t that mean now…
At this moment, Tang Simin couldn’t help but empathize with Old Qin’s disciples. That young man in the green shirt, who was sometimes refined and sometimes acted like a scoundrel, was so unfathomable and unpredictable.
…
“Achoo.”
The Spellcasting Battle Arena on Twin Fangs Mountain.
Qin Gou, sitting in the spectator stands, sneezed for no apparent reason.
Li Yuanzhen, standing behind him with her sword in her arms, perfectly playing the role of a sword-bearing female attendant, teased with a smile, “Someone must be badmouthing A’Qin, right?”
Qin Gou waved his hand and chuckled, “Don’t ask. If you ask, it’s definitely Little Zhao! When we meet again, this Master will fight him for three thousand rounds.”
Hearing this, Li Yuanzhen couldn’t help but sigh, “The friendship between A’Qin and Cult Master Zhao is truly deep.”
“You definitely have a misunderstanding of ‘deep friendship’.” Qin Gou couldn’t help but shake his head with a smile. “Let’s not talk about that. The most important thing now is that several days have passed, why is Wan Lianxiao still not showing up?”
“Perhaps he’s too far away?”
“Let’s hope he hasn’t become suspicious.” Qin Gou nodded slightly and casually asked, “After these few days of personal experience, what do you think of Twin Fangs Mountain?”
Li Yuanzhen’s beautiful eyes sparkled. “It’s very good. This humble Daoist really likes it here. It feels like coming home.”
Qin Gou immediately shot Li Yuanzhen a look of disappointment, “Your stance is too unstable. You need to understand that we are here as undercover agents. How can you be so easily corrupted by the decadent world of this shameless evil sect?”
Li Yuanzhen looked dumbfounded. So, doing something like A’Qin, becoming the boss directly, was also considered ‘undercover’?
“What about A’Qin? Don’t just talk about this humble Daoist, what do you think of Twin Fangs Mountain?” Li Yuanzhen couldn’t help but ask.
Upon hearing this, Qin Gou paused for a moment. Then his expression darkened, and he rubbed his nose with a dry laugh, “The same as you.”
