Chapter 0:97. You’re Gone
At the same time, a golden thread appeared between Ye Qishuang and Yi Chengying.
“This doesn’t seem to be what Qishuang guessed?” Zhao Xinting couldn’t help but say with a chuckle.
Ye Qishuang froze on the spot, her eyes wide with disbelief, “Wh-why is this happening?”
Yi Chengying, looking shifty, scratched her little head and finally took the blame, letting out a wry laugh.
“Palace Lord, didn’t you also say that the judgment standard would depend on the commonalities of cultivators’ techniques? And all the sisters in Mystic Maiden Palace inherited their profound techniques from you. Little Chair’s spiritual power can even be freely returned to the Palace Lord at any time, so this might be because Little Chair’s technique has too much compatibility with yours.”
“Shen Hao, you old thief, this Palace… hates you!”
For a moment, Ye Qishuang stared dejectedly at her toes, pouting, looking extremely wronged.
Qin Gou and Zhao Xinting, however, suddenly exchanged a smile. They had seen Xiao Shuang’er’s pitiable demeanor countless times since they were children. The best solution was to wait a little, and she would quickly adjust and smile cheerfully again without a care in the world.
Conversely, if one were to indulge and appease her, this wench would immediately cling to them like a boneless little vixen, non-stop! In a daze, a parental attitude of knowing her thoroughly rose involuntarily in Qin and Zhao’s hearts.
“Qishuang, remember, even if you see Shen Hao’s Remnant Soul later, don’t be too impulsive. We’ll wait for your Master and Eldest Senior Brother…”
Originally, Qin Gou wanted to give a few heartfelt admonitions, but the scene abruptly shifted, and he found himself in a wide tunnel surrounded by stone walls, with only Zhao Xinting beside him.
“The trial has officially begun?”
As soon as he finished speaking, he heard footsteps.
Two spirit puppets, moving with astonishing speed, charged towards Qin Gou and Zhao Xinting from left and right.
“What is this thing?”
“Boom!”
Zhao Xinting furrowed her dark eyebrows and casually waved her palm. Invisible spiritual power instantly sent the two spirit puppets flying, embedding them deeply into the stone walls on either side, their spiritual lights completely extinguished.
Seeing this, Qin Gou’s mouth twitched. He didn’t know if these two spirit puppets counted as the first round of the trial, but with their current strength, they would have been completely defenseless charging at Xiao Zhao, like sheep entering a tiger’s den.
“This shouldn’t count as cheating, right? Xinting, is your cultivation still not suppressed in this trial?”
“There are still some restrictions, but even before passing the mortal transformation stage, Xinting was already an opponent that was hard to find among peers in the Dharma Aspect Realm, so she doesn’t fear this so-called suppression.” However, as she spoke, Zhao Xinting seemed to suddenly recall some terrible past, and gave an embarrassed laugh, “Of course, that’s provided that, Master, you back then… weren’t exactly in the Dharma Aspect Realm!”
The terror of ‘Edicts transforming all things, one thought to the horizon’ was deeply experienced by Xiao Zhao during a certain period.
Anyone targeted by the Master of Arc-Moon Mountain, no matter how far apart, even a hundred thousand miles, would find that ethereal white feather, which would appear out of nowhere and flutter aimlessly, becoming an unforgettable nightmare for countless enemies.
“You don’t need to tell me that. I know my cultivation path has indeed been too bizarre.” Qin Gou chuckled self-deprecatingly and shook his head, “Let’s go, see what else is ahead?”
A moment later, the two, walking through the wide tunnel, almost simultaneously stopped.
“What a malicious formation. If it were an ordinary cultivator, they would be trapped in it without realizing it.” Zhao Xinting narrowed her eyes.
Qin Gou nodded slightly, “Leave it to me.” With that, he took out several array flags from his Nas, and began to break the formation smoothly and attentively.
Seeing this, Zhao Xinting waited patiently, curiously examining him and said softly, “For so many years, Xinting has never met a high-level cultivator whose attainments in formations could rival Master. I wonder why you devoted yourself so diligently to studying formations back then?”
“For the reason, don’t be moved to tears, my boy!”
Qin Gou smiled calmly, his eyes reminiscing, “I once had a dream: to make our Arc-Moon Mountain the safest and most impenetrable blessed land in the Cultivation World for my disciples. Therefore, mastering the Way of Formations was naturally the first choice… Unfortunately, the little ones all grow up eventually, and once their wings harden, they scatter to various parts of the Cultivation World to commit evil deeds… cough, shine brightly! By the time I achieved mastery in this Way, I found there was no longer any practical use for it.”
Hearing this, Zhao Xinting pondered for a moment and asked in a gentle tone, “Does Master wish for all of us to return to Arc-Moon Mountain to cultivate?”
“I’m not that unreasonable a tyrant.”
Qin Gou waved his hand and smiled slightly, “When your precious adopted daughter, Yan Qiaoyun, grows a little older, let her come and cultivate with me for a few years. Under my tireless and positive guidance, I have full confidence that I can nurture that little one into a generation of righteous and chivalrous heroes, a paragon among women!”
“Besides, if you were to teach her entirely, your doting and indulgent teaching style would definitely not work.”
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xinting said innocently, “How have I ever doted on Qiao’er?”
“The undergarment you’re wearing today must be shadow green!”
“Master?!” Zhao Xinting exclaimed in surprise, dumbfounded.
Qin Gou said confidently, “Because that’s Qiao’er’s favorite color.”
“But even so…” Just then, Zhao Xinting suddenly gritted her teeth, her pretty face blushing with shame and timidity, “How can you openly discuss such private matters of me as a woman!”
Unexpectedly, upon seeing this scene, Qin Gou’s face was filled with amusement and curiosity, and he blurted out, “Where did you learn this?”
Immediately, Zhao Xinting not only instantly restrained her shyness but instead leaned against the stone wall with an odd expression, extremely dejected, saying, “No, Xinting suddenly feels like she was really asking for it just now! I really can’t imitate these feminine manners!”
“Rascal.” Qin Gou glared at her unceremoniously, “No matter when, being yourself is the most important thing. So many years have passed, and now you’re suddenly trying to learn those girlish manners. Not only you, but I can’t get used to it either. Alright, the formation here is completely dealt with, let’s continue!”
“Yes.” Zhao Xinting nodded with a smile.
However, unexpectedly, as Zhao Xinting approached, Qin Gou reached out and smilingly hooked her fair and long neck, and said with a smile in her ear, “Of course, I hope that this little act of yours, Xiao Zhao, is not just to change the subject and try to cover up the matter of Qiao’er cultivating with me in the future. Otherwise, such a stiff tactic would shame me!”
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Xinting shuddered all over, and with a smile that was uglier than crying, she squeezed out, “Qiao’er, good luck! It’s not that your godfather doesn’t love you, but your elder is still your elder!”
…
A moment later, Qin Gou and Zhao Xinting gazed at a huge gate, and a stone spirit puppet not far away slowly opened its light blue eyes.
“One goes, one stays on this path. The one who goes first can pass freely, while the one who stays must undergo a rigorous trial from us.” The stone spirit puppet’s tone was filled with humanized mockery, and it said playfully, “Who goes first is for you to decide.”
“The trial was supposed to be for two people, but isn’t this deliberately creating conflict?” Qin Gou raised an eyebrow.
The stone spirit puppet chuckled without speaking.
“Xiao Zhao, you go first.”
“No, Xinting wants Master to go first.”
“Then, why don’t we go together?”
“I understand, Master is thoughtful as always!” Zhao Xinting suddenly smiled.
“What do you two mean? Haven’t you heard my instructions?” The stone spirit puppet was shocked and angry, “This is a trial rule, and I will never allow both of you to pass through this door together!”
“That’s right, it’s the duty of this spirit puppet friend, so you naturally won’t agree.” Qin Gou nodded earnestly.
“But what if Your Excellency never existed from the beginning?” Zhao Xinting said righteously, flexing her fingers.
The two of them, with a malicious glint in their eyes, simultaneously blocked the retreat and advanced towards the stone spirit puppet who was clearly acting as the referee.
“You, are you crazy?” The stone spirit puppet was caught off guard and said in disbelief, “If you dare to harm a single hair on my body, you will have to face the wrath of Venerable Shen Hao!”
“Xinting, did you hear that?”
“Master, this could actually provoke Shen Hao’s Remnant Soul. If we keep breaking the rules in this trial and act lawlessly, we’ll eventually lure the snake out of its hole! It’s just a shame for those who are also participating in the trial with us.”
“A shame? This is tempering, a selfless spur! You, boy, never liked to read much when you were young, and now you often speak incoherently.”
“Cough cough… No, that’s right! Master is right!”
Qin and Zhao’s eyes twinkled, looking like weasels who had raided a chicken coop.
“Madmen! I’ve lived for three hundred years, and I’ve never seen such complete madmen like you!”
For a moment, the stone spirit puppet felt the terrifying fluctuations of spiritual power, its eyes full of fear, shrinking into a corner and trembling, causing stone dust to fly everywhere.
…
Furthermore, almost identical scenes were unfolding elsewhere simultaneously.
“You’re gone, who’s going to test? Isn’t that over?”
Ye Qishuang trapped the stone spirit puppet in a dirt hole, and Yi Chengying quickly filled the hole, leaving only its struggling head. The master and servant cooperated perfectly.
“Little Chair, you must keep this a secret. Don’t tell Master and Eldest Senior Brother later.”
Hearing this, Yi Chengying nodded obediently, but was still somewhat confused.
Ye Qishuang stroked her dark hair by her ear and said shyly, “Those two are truly important figures, and they act with caution. I’m afraid they’ll think that what I did was a bit too willful and unreasonable, and would shame my two elders!”
