Xiao Man took out a jar of wine from her storage bag, opened the seal, and the rich aroma of wine instantly spread. Elder Xia’s mouth watered, and he reached out to snatch it, taking a big gulp. “Good wine, young friend, where did this wine come from?”
“I brewed it myself. If senior likes it, I’ll brew more for you another day.”
“You brat…” Elder Xia glared at Xiao Man, thinking how cunning he was, not old but as full of schemes as a sieve. “On Cang Xuan Continent, there were originally four cultivators at the Deification stage. Now, only one remains.”
“One? Where did the other three go?” Xiao Man was somewhat surprised.
“A thousand years ago, there were only three cultivators at the Deification stage on Cang Xuan Continent: the Sect Master of Heavenly Sword Sect, the Sect Master of Heavenly Spirit Sect, and the Old Ancestor of the Qin family. The Old Ancestor of the Qin family suffered a demonic deviation while refining artifacts and died. The Sect Master of Heavenly Spirit Sect is said to have traversed spatial rifts to another continent. Only the Sect Master of Heavenly Sword Sect remained at the Deification stage on Cang Xuan Continent.”
“Didn’t you say there were four? Who was the other one?”
“A hundred years ago, Heavenly Profound Sect produced another peerless genius, arguably the youngest cultivator at the Deification stage on Cang Xuan Continent. Only a hundred years old, and already at the Deification stage. Heavenly Profound Sect’s prestige soared. Alas, it’s a pity…” Elder Xia took a sip of wine and shook his head.
“Senior, did this genius from Heavenly Profound Sect perish?”
“Not perish.” Elder Xia’s eyes were filled with regret. “Do you know what Heavenly Profound Sect is most skilled at?”
“Deduction.”
“Yes, deduction.” Elder Xia’s tone was a little strange. “But deduction and prying into the Heavenly Dao can easily incur backlash from the Heavenly Dao. Thirty years ago, that cultivator from Heavenly Profound Sect must have pried into something, as he suffered backlash from the Heavenly Dao, his cultivation dropping to the Nascent Soul realm. He hasn’t been able to return to the Deification stage since.”
“Isn’t that too much of a pity?”
“Yes, it’s too much of a pity.” Elder Xia sighed and took another drink. “A cultivator at the Deification stage at a hundred years old! Unprecedented! Even the one from Heavenly Sword Sect only reached the Deification stage at nearly eight hundred years old. What a pity, such a great pity.”
“How is that cultivator from Heavenly Profound Sect now?”
“Since suffering the backlash from the Heavenly Dao, he has never appeared in public. No one knows how he is now.” Elder Xia gazed into the distance. “Most people from Heavenly Profound Sect possess extraordinary intelligence, far surpassing ordinary people. But their wisdom is also their downfall. Heaven bestowed upon them unparalleled intelligence, yet took away their normal lifespan. Normal cultivators at the Deification stage can live for three thousand years, but cultivators at the Deification stage from Heavenly Profound Sect can only live for a thousand years. Their lifespan is one-third of that of normal people.”
“That cultivator from Heavenly Profound Sect should be over two hundred years old now.”
“Yes, over two hundred years old. I wonder if he will be able to witness himself return to the peak of the Deification stage in his lifetime,” Elder Xia said softly.
“I believe he can,” Xiao Man said with certainty. “With their intelligence, they will surely know how to avoid offending the Heavenly Dao. With diligent cultivation, they should be able to return to the peak of Deification quickly.”
“Let’s hope so.” Elder Xia closed his eyes, his head drooping, already quite drunk. Xiao Man was not willing to give up, as she had not yet obtained any news about the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder.
“Senior, if one is injured by the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder, how can they survive?”
Elder Xia suddenly opened his eyes, and the coldness in them made Xiao Man feel a chill down her spine. Just for a moment, Elder Xia returned to his persona of a drunken, slightly confused old man.
“Expel the power of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder from the body, and one can survive.” Elder Xia smacked his lips and mumbled, “Easier said than done, but who can expel the power of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder?”
“How to expel it?”
“It is said that by transferring the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder power within one’s body to another person, one can exchange their life for another’s.” Elder Xia turned over and began to snore.
Xiao Man’s expression shifted. Was exchanging one’s life the only way to survive?
“Elder Xia, are there no other methods?”
However, the only answer Xiao Man received was Elder Xia’s increasingly loud snores. Xiao Man sighed in frustration. Just then, Fan Ting rushed in.
“Young Master Xiao, something bad has happened. The child you brought back is in trouble.”
“What?” Xiao Man was alarmed and immediately rushed out.
As soon as they left, Elder Xia opened his eyes. “Asking about methods to expel the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder for no reason. Could this little brat have offended the Heavenly Dao and been struck by it?”
When Fan Ting brought Xiao Man over, Ze Fang was screaming.
“What’s going on?” Xiao Man hurried forward and grabbed Ze Fang’s hand. “Little Seven, what’s wrong?”
“My head hurts, my head hurts so much.” Ze Fang wished he could open his own head.
Xiao Man pondered for a moment, then knocked Ze Fang unconscious with a palm strike, fed him a pill, and picked him up. “I’ll take him back to my room first.”
“Boss, we were just teasing him. We didn’t expect him to react so strongly.” Poison Lady quickly explained. If the boss’s son had any accident, the boss would probably go crazy with her.
“It has nothing to do with you. He’s just sick.” Xiao Man held Ze Fang in her arms. Although she didn’t know why the child was injured by the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder, she absolutely couldn’t let others know that he had been injured by it, lest it attract unnecessary trouble.
“Is it very serious?” Yan Yan asked worriedly.
“It’s fine, he’ll be cured.” Xiao Man carried him back to the room and looked at the sleeping Ze Fang, whose brows were still furrowed and his expression pained. Such a young child, to endure such torment. Was the Heavenly Dao too cruel?
“Old Ancestor.” Su Dan Novel Network
“You want to go to the Land of No Return.” Old Qin saw through Xiao Man’s thoughts. “Are you crazy? I know you want to save this child, but you don’t have to risk your own life! Now, you know what is being suppressed in the Land of No Return.”
“I know.” Xiao Man said calmly. “Ultimately, it’s a path, and one must try.”
Old Qin frowned, disagreeing with Xiao Man’s suicidal behavior, especially for a child she didn’t know. If that child were Xiao Man’s own, he might understand, but he wasn’t.
“Are you sure you want to risk your life for a child you don’t know?” Old Qin asked calmly. “Your mother, aren’t you saving her? Your friends, aren’t you looking for them? And your child, don’t you want them either? Have you ever thought about what would happen to them if something happened to you?”
Xiao Man fell silent. She deliberately avoided thinking about it, for fear of wavering. This child had stirred up her longing for her own child, but it was far from enough for her to risk her life for him to find a way out. Yet, for some reason, whenever she saw those expectant eyes, her heart ached.
“Old Ancestor, I don’t want to regret it,” Xiao Man said slowly after a long silence. “I don’t want to look back one day and regret not saving him. This might become a lifelong regret for me.”