The Weight of Immortality

Dozens of miles outside Taiyang City, Qin Zhaoyu descended from the sky on her sword, disappearing into a range of towering mountains. প্রশিক্ষিত

“Hah… hah…”

She leaned against a towering ancient pine, the edges of her robes scorched and tattered.

Her face was pale, her small lips parted in ragged breaths, a picture of utter disarray.

‘I never expected…’

‘That Qian You would collude with evil cultivators…’

‘It truly is beyond belief.’

‘…’

Qin Zhaoyu extended her divine sense, scanning the surrounding ten miles. Once certain she was alone, she sat cross-legged in the shade of the ancient pine.

‘If not for my unique flames, which could suppress that sinister yin energy…’

‘I might have perished in that city.’

Although I can now fight beyond my cultivation realm, I still find myself lacking when confronting such bizarre spells and yin energy.

When their numbers grew, I was simply unable to contend with them.

‘What a disgrace to my master.’

After a long while, the internal energy within Qin Zhaoyu’s Golden Core gradually stabilized.

Opening her eyes, she looked up at the sturdy ancient pine towering above her, letting out a soft sigh.

“Alas…”

‘When will I ever reach my master’s realm?’

In terms of swordsmanship, the disparity between her and her master was like heaven and earth.

As for her state of mind, her current strength was insufficient; she couldn’t even enter the imperial palace.

She could only endure, biding her time to accumulate strength.

Regarding cultivation, she increasingly felt her master was a peerless genius.

Although she was already unrivaled among those of her own cultivation level, when facing her Foundation Establishment master who could defeat her with a single move…

She still held no confidence in her chances of victory.

That innate, absolute suppressive power was something she had only ever experienced from her master.

The enemies she had encountered over the past two years…

Regardless of whether they were of the same realm or higher, Qin Zhaoyu had never felt the absolute suppression that a single individual could exert.

Only her master, like an insurmountable peak, commanded her profound respect whenever she recalled him.

‘Master, I miss you so much…’

Qin Zhaoyu lay back on the ancient pine’s trunk, gazing at the sparsely twinkling stars.

She questioned the heavens, ‘Why won’t you even let me enter the sect anymore?’

‘Must the bond between master and disciple be severed so completely?’

Qin Zhaoyu remembered a time when spring first arrived…

She was twelve years old, and her master was meditating beneath an ancient pine tree just like this one.

Playfully, she had run to her master’s side and nestled into his embrace.

She felt his warmth, enjoying the comfort of his lap as a pillow.

She gazed at his handsome features, his face like an exiled immortal descended to the mortal realm.

It was a sight that brought both pleasure and a sense of carefree tranquility.

It was then that a thought blossomed in her mind.

‘If only she and her master could be a pair of secluded mountain lovers, that would be quite wonderful.’

Yet, she knew it was a destined fantasy, a luxurious pipe dream.

After all, she carried the deep-seated blood feud of her mother, which meant she couldn’t simply remain in Kunlun Mountain.

She had to…

…personally settle accounts with that man.

“The path of mortals is vast and obscure, while the immortal way is boundless and wild…”

****

Taiyang City glowed with myriad lights.

Zhuang Xun stood on the eaves of a tall building, sensing Qin Zhaoyu’s aura dozens of miles away from the city.

Listening to the messages carried on the breeze, a gentle curve appeared on his lips.

“She did quite well. Evil cultivators of that sort are not something ordinary cultivators can easily contend with.”

He naturally understood the strength level of the villainous cannon fodder he had written.

To kill two and gravely injure one at the late Golden Core stage was already a commendable achievement.

If it had been the two brothers at the perfected Golden Core stage, they would likely have suffered a mutual defeat, gaining nothing.

After all, if the villains weren’t strong enough, how could the protagonist grow?

“Ying~”

A fox’s cry came from beneath Zhuang Xun’s feet, and suddenly a small pink figure leaped onto his shoulder.

Zhuang Xun scratched its fluffy chin, chuckling softly. “Should I get you a Divine Speech Pill or something? All that ‘ying-ying-ying’ gets uncomfortable after a while.”

“Gurgle, gurgle~”

The pink fox purred, rubbing against his cheek.

It seemed to have fully accepted being called his spirit beast.

Just then, Shangwen and Shangwu, the two brothers, arrived on their swords, joining Zhuang Xun on the building’s eaves.

From afar, they watched the pathetic figure being beaten and pelted with fruits and vegetables by the common folk.

“Fellow Daoist is truly a prodigy, proficient even in the principles of array formations.”

Shangwu boasted without reservation, thinking, ‘We truly found the right person.’

If Zhuang Xun hadn’t still been traveling by sword,

he would have thought Zhuang Xun was some carefree grand expert leisurely wandering the mortal world.

“Just a slight understanding.”

“However, Fellow Daoist, do you truly not intend to kill such a person?”

“By mortal laws, even killing someone like this would not be excessive.”

Zhuang Xun stretched his neck, then turned and stepped onto his floating sword, remarking casually, “Let mortals handle mortal officials and their judgments. There’s no need for us to meddle in their petty rights and wrongs.”

Whoosh!

With a thought, Zhuang Xun’s figure vanished into the moonlight, leaving behind a dashing silhouette.

“Fellow Daoist, wait for us! Don’t fly so fast!”

The two brothers hastily mounted their swords and gave chase, no longer paying any mind to the dazed Qian You, who, at their hands, had been beaten half to death.

****

The night was hazy.

Along a wide, forested road.

Jingling~

A lavishly decorated carriage moved steadily along the road.

Trailing behind it was a convoy of ordinary carriages, seemingly transporting household goods.

Inside the opulent carriage, a slightly young and tender female voice spoke.

“Mother, we’ve been traveling for so long, why haven’t we reached Yuelong County yet?”

“Ah, nearly there. We’ll arrive in about three days.”

Inside the carriage, a mature, beautiful woman, whose purple hair was tied with a white ribbon at the ends, sat gracefully on a silk brocade cushion.

Her enchanting face, capable of making fish sink and geese fall, exuded an air of mature elegance.

Her full, alluring figure was draped in an elegant, ethereal gown, making her seem like a ripe, succulent peach.

She was enough to make any man intoxicated with longing.

She extended a pair of soft, white hands, untouched by the dust of travel, and gently stroked the silver twin ponytails of a cute, eleven or twelve-year-old girl.

Her beautiful eyes, adorned with tear moles, overflowed with doting affection.

“But Mother, you said ‘three days’ yesterday too…”

“There’s nothing for it. Yuelong County is nearly ten thousand miles from the Jade Spirit Kingdom. Even immortals need a few days to travel that distance.”

“Then when Li Shuang grows up, I want to become an immortal too!” The little girl’s ice-blue pupils sparkled with hopeful anticipation. “That way, wherever Mother wants to go, I can take you there.”

The beautiful woman smiled, saying nothing, simply continuing to stroke her with gentle hands.

Not long after.

The little girl soon fell asleep in her arms, and the woman’s expression finally turned forlorn.

In a voice only she could hear, she murmured to herself, ‘Cultivators of immortality have long lifespans; mortals, in comparison, are but a drop in the ocean.’

‘Though you are my adopted daughter, I truly don’t wish for you to embark on this path.’

‘Once you go, there’s no turning back.’

‘Alas…’

‘Even if you return, time will have flown by like white clouds changing into grey dogs.’

‘Whether I, your mother, will still be alive is an unknown.’

The beautiful woman slowly lowered her eyelids, a wave of desolation emanating from her tone.

RUMBLE!

Suddenly, the convoy of carriages transporting household goods behind her all crashed and overturned.

Various goods were scattered across the ground, and even the horses lay on their backs, stiff and lifeless.

Two black-robed figures, wearing ghostly masks, emerged from the surrounding bushes.

One of them announced loudly, “Madam Jiang Ningwan, our young master wishes to invite you to his residence for a gathering. Would you be so kind as to grace us with your presence?”