by Fang Xiang
Yao that formed their yao mansion were called Rahula yao and could be counted in the ranks of experts in the yao world.
Zuo Mo's talent in yao arts was actually very good, but compared to the even more amazing mo physique, it was slightly lacking. Leaving Pu Yao to feel that although Zuo Mo was his student, Wei had taken the glory. Now that Zuo Mo had formed his yao mansion, it meant that he could pass more yao arts to Zuo Mo.
Also, Archaic Wasteland Sacrificial Art was more suited to Rahula yao!
However, Pu Yao did not say this. He was busy doing some other things.
———
Some strange messages appeared in the corners of Ten Finger Prison.
The messages were worded strangely and the sentences incomprehensible. They were also posted in remote places that were not attention-catching. But if those with intentions searched, they would find to their shock that there were similar messages at every level of Ten Finger Prison.
"Will this work?" Wei asked Pu Yao.
"Don't know." Pu Yao's bloody pupil was deep. "It has been too long. I don't know if they still remember, let's just try."
"I don't know how many of Master's supporters still remain," Wei said calmly, "I have sent out the blood summons."
Pu Yao's eyes flashed with a reckless light, a cold smirk at the corner of his mouth. "No matter how powerful time is, it will leave some remnants behind."
"You plan on having A Zuo inherit all of this?" Wei looked at Pu Yao.
Pu Yao shook his head. "He may not be willing to inherit."
"Our thoughts are the same." Wei nodded.
"However, he needs power." Pu Yao's robes moved despite the lack of wind, his voice became deep. "He doesn't understand himself, and we cannot truly understand him. His enemies most likely are far more powerful than even he imagines, he only has one path."
Wei suddenly gave a small smile. "Very similar to how we were."
Pu Yao's memories were stirred by this, a reminiscing expression in his bloody pupil. He quickly calmed down. "Also, it will not be unprofitable for them to follow him. Families that stood guard for thousands of years and did not give up should return to glory!"
Wei sighed. "I do not know how many still remain."
Pu Yao also became silent. He also did not know.
———
Zuo Mo suddenly stopped his cultivation. He detected someone was approaching. His body turned towards the people approaching and stood between them and A Gui, shielding A Gui behind him.
Two figures appeared like ghosts nearby.
"It's you!" Zuo Mo's gaze focused and he was shocked inside.
In the night, Ceng Lian'er's exquisite and beautiful features looked more mysterious. Her black opal like eyes held an indescribable light. There was also a woman standing next to her. Looking at her attire, it should be Ceng Lian'er's maid.
She stopped at a distance of five zhang from Zuo Mo.
"You are going to Nether Spring Jie?" the serene voice drifted over with the wind.
Zuo Mo who had not lowered his guard suddenly focused his gaze. He asked in a deep voice, "How do you know?"
"This is Shattered Stone Jie." Ceng Lian'er did not pay attention to Zuo Mo's wariness.
Zuo Mo understood. Most likely, his search for Reverse Shadow Spirit Silkgrass had caught Ceng Yi's attention. This outrageously beautiful woman in front of him gave him a great sense of danger. Even though a part of his breakthrough was owed to this person, and the other's silver shen power had been one of the main causes of his breakthrough.
But he could not get the measure of this woman's power or intentions.
"I cultivate moon shen power." Ceng Lian'er's seductive face became slightly dazed. She raised her face, and the moon above her head brightened slightly. A ray of moonlight fell on her face, illuminating her delicate features.
The long eyelashes, the warm lips, the flawless face, under the illumination of the moon, it seemed to shake the soul.
"Moon shen power?" Zuo Mo finally understood why the other's shen power would have power resonance with his shen power.
"I will go with you to Nether Spring Jie," Ceng Lian'er said serenely.
"You'll go with me to Nether Spring Jie?" Zuo Mo heard this and stopped for a long time before he reacted. He felt it was humorous. "Haha, what are you saying? You are going with me to Nether Spring JIe? Haha."
"Yes," Ceng Lian'er looked at Zuo Mo with her calm eyes.
Zuo Mo heard the determination in the other's voice and his humor receded. He frowned. "This joke isn't funny, I'm not familiar with you."
Ceng Lian'er's voice was extremely pleasing to hear. "Because you cultivate sun shen power, and I cultivate moon shen power."
"Don't understand." Zuo Mo shook his head.
"If we cultivate together, our shen power will grow even more quickly," Ceng Lian'er explained.
Zuo Mo finally understood. "You mean power resonance?"
"It is also called paired cultivation," Ceng Lian'er said lightly, "it is very beneficial to you."
Zuo Mo was not persuaded. "I do not need it."
"Because of your right hand?" A hint of mirth rose in Ceng Lian'er's pupils.
However, Zuo Mo did not find it funny. His heart shook. The other's familiarity with his secrets surpassed his expectations… to even know about the whirlpool of shen power in his hand.
This woman … …
"I do not have any malicious intentions. The whirlpool in your right hand is growing, and you can only absorb a small amount. When it reaches a certain level, you will lose control of it."
She stared at Zuo Mo and said, "Paired cultivation can solve this problem."
Zuo Mo spread his hands. "Why should I believe you?"
"Because when your shen power awakened me, it left an imprint on my body. If you die, I cannot live," Ceng Lian'er said as though it was nothing. "If I die, your shen power will also crumble."
"Ha! You are a good liar!" Zuo Mo laughed coldly.
"The paired cultivation… when it began it decided our fate. If I channel shen power, you will be able to feel it." As she spoke, the moonlight around Ceng Lian'er brightened.
Zuo Mo's expression changed drastically. His shen power was moving against his will!
"This is the power resonance you speak of. If you channel shen power, my shen power would also resonate." Ceng Lian'ers words burrowed into Zuo Mo's ear.
Damn it!
"I think that it is much safer to follow you, so that I do not die mysteriously one day without knowing the cause."
Ceng Lian'er didn't look at Zuo Mo as she slowly walked to his side. She sat down, and her maid knelt down next to her. In a blink, a little wooden table appeared, an exquisite tea set, a small stove, and she started to boil tea.
Sea of consciousness.
Zuo Mo urgently asked Pu Yao and Wei, "This woman is truthful?"
The one that explained was Wei. "It is true, the paired cultivators in the ancient era usually lived and died together!"
"Screw live and die together!" Zuo Mo swore with a terrible expression.
"Actually, this isn't a bad thing … …" Before Wei finished, Zuo Mo angrily turned and left the sea of consciousness.
"Moon shen power?" Pu Yao was thoughtful.
Translator Ramblings: I really want a prequel with Pu Yao and Wei. They have such interesting lives. Is Pu Yao from one of the major clans, which I don’t think he is, or was he a “commoner” that was seriously talented and made his own way up to become a sky yao and essentially the battle general of the yaomo? What was Wei’s clan like? How many masters did he go through with the gravestone?
Also, the chapter title is a nice pun. It can be interpreted two ways. One is ‘screw “live and die together” and the other would be “screw, live and die together.”
Chapter 558: Light
Zuo Mo was furious about the situation but Ceng Lian'er didn't even bat an eyelid. She slowly lifted her teacup and elegantly drank. Under her long eyelashes
, her bright black eyes were shrouded in the steam.
A Gui sat disaffected by Zuo Mo's body. She was like a puppet, wooden and lifeless.
In front of A Gui, Zuo Mo looked warily at Ceng Lian'er, his brow locked in a frown. He didn't know what to do with this woman that suddenly popped out.
Having recovered his calm, Zuo Mo started to ponder this matter. But no matter which angle he thought about this from, this matter was not anything good for him.
He wasn't interested in something like paired cultivation at all. Yet he had entered what was going to be a long period of attempting high level power increases. He also found it hard to accept that he had to now live and die together with an unfamiliar woman.
Also, if the other encountered danger, it meant that he would also encounter danger. In an instant, his risk of danger had doubled.
The damned paired cultivation!
Zuo Mo felt especially aggrieved when he saw the other's calm state.
Zuo Mo shook his head and decided to not waste any more time on this topic. He started his cultivation again, but out of consideration for safety, he shielded A Gui behind him. Even he didn't notice that he had done this unconsciously.
A faint gold light came out of Zuo Mo's body and was eye-catching in the darkness.
Almost the moment Zuo Mo started channeling shen power, Ceng Lian'er's body shook and faint moon essence shrouded her body.
Zuo Mo instantly detected the change in Ceng Lian'er.
The shen power inside his body was unusually active. The shen power that usually delved into his blood and fixed to his flesh seemed to be drawn out instead. The rate that the power whirlpool in Zuo Mo's right hand was spinning at slowed and the shen power from the whirlpool flowed out of his right hand, and merged with the shen power that floated out of his blood and flesh to circulate around Zuo Mo's body.
Observing the path that the shen power took in circulation, Zuo Mo unconsciously recalled the contents of the gold leaf and a kind of epiphany occurred.
The golden leaf recorded the cultivation method for the sun shen power, but due to the gap in eras, it was hard to understand the contents. Zuo Mo was confused by many parts. Now that shen power was circulating through his body in this novel manner, he seemed to understand many of the cryptic phrases on the golden leaf.
Immersed in the joy of understanding, Zuo Mo completely forgot the flow of time.
The golden light that Zuo Mo released was restrained but Ceng Lian'er's moon essence nearby was so thick it was almost tangible.
The moon moved, the night gradually faded. Dawn silently arrived and the sky started to turn white.
The moment the sun came up out of the horizon, Zuo Mo's body suddenly shook. It gave off blinding golden light as though it was a sun, responding to the sun in the horizon!
Boom!
The Sun Crystal Seed inside Zuo Mo's body suddenly gave off a great amount of flames. The golden flames criss-crossed and wrapped around the Sun Crystal Seed. Following that, a dash of golden liquid charged forward on the path that Zuo Mo's shen power took.
The golden liquid did not move quickly, but was extremely hot and felt as though it was bruning. What shocked Zuo Mo the most was its domineering nature! It was the utmost domineering! As though nothing could stop it!
As though it was howling, full of dissatisfaction!
Like it had a dream that one day, it could be like the sun that was rising on the horizon, to hang in the sky!
In this moment, strange scene played out in front of him. Inside an empty and black void, a thread of celestial fire formed, and it grew with time, forming a ball of fire. After millions of years, it grew even bigger, so big until it was almost the size of a true sun.
Suddenly, a hand reached into the void, a hand that looked very normal. This hand only grasped lightly, it a terrifying power that never had been experienced before. The hand squeezed from all directions.
The sun's enormous body was forcibly compressed to become the Sun Crystal Seed … …
For some unknown reason Zuo Mo suddenly understood. He understood its dissatisfaction, the dissatisfaction of not being able to be in the sky!
The burning golden liquid suddenly passed into Zuo Mo's heart. Zuo Mo's body suddenly shuddered and his chest felt as though it was burning. The complex sun mo matrix at his chest slowly lit up.
Boom!
Blinding golden light sprouted from Zuo Mo's chest.
A domineering and vast power filled Zuo Mo's body. In this moment, Zuo Mo had a feeling he looking down on the world. Even those massive mountains and endless deserts were specks under his feet.
This feeling came quickly and passed quickly.
The sun mo matrix at Zuo Mo's chest seemed to come alive and slowly spun. Zuo Mo could clearly feel that the golden liquid turned into a ball of fire when it reached his heart and was spinning endlessly.
A feeling of unprecedented fullness spread through his entire body!
The first sun of Ten Crow Celestial Apparatus had formed!
The moon essence dissipated with the sun, Ceng Lian'er glanced at Zuo Mo. Her face was filled with shock and held none of the ease she had previously! It was as though she was looking at a strange monster!
He had actually had a breakthrough!
Even though she was unable to detect the exact changes inside Zuo Mo's body, she could clearly feel that Zuo Mo's power had reached a whole new level.
The moon shen power inside her body also had grown considerably with the paired cultivation but compared to the other, it was an insignificant increase.
Her face surprised, her black onyx eyes were filled with disbelief.
What she cultivated was moon shen power. Unlike Zuo Mo, she had inherited a complete inheritance. In reality, she had guessed long ago that Zuo Mo's shen power came from a fortuitous encounter. Zuo Mo's shen power cultivation methods had many areas that were irrational and he didn't even know about how they had entered paired cultivation.
But a person like this had had another breakthrough in the span of one night!
In reality, when she had come to Zuo Mo, she had been shocked when she first saw him again. It had just been a few days since she had first seen him, but Zuo Mo's power had clearly increased.
Breaking through the boundary between brigadier and general, her power was also in a period of accelerated growth. She had worked hard on her cultivation in these few days, and her power had leapt ahead. Even when Master had been alive, Master had always praised her outstanding talent and for being the most talented and accomplished disciple of the lineage for more than a thousand years. She had believed in that.
But … …
Looking at this freakish person, her confidence started to waver.
She looked at Zuo Mo as though she was admiring a great masterpiece.
———
"How many more days?" Shu Long asked. Behind him, the hardship guards still moved uncompromisingly in their military formation.
"If it all goes smoothly, then ten days!" Ye Ling tried to stay alert but his voice was filled with tiredness.
In these days, they hadn't rested at all. They had moved at the fastest speed that was safe. What was most irritating were the occasional battles along the way. Since the war between xiuzhe and yaomo had begun, security in these areas had declined and bandits could be found everywhere.
When they encountered bandits, Shu Long wasn't soft-hearted. If they encountered any bandits, they would kill all of them.
Later on, Ye Ling thought of an idea. He put up a flag on the caravan with a the character "Guard" written on it. After winning the next few battles, the name of Butcher Guard Camp spread, especially when someone discovered that Shu Long's group was the battalion that had killed three thousand bandits in Eminent Mountain Jie with only one hundred people. This bit of information instantly caused waves.
This also caused bandits to disappear from where Guard Camp was passing by. Even the local factions ignored this terrifying hundred person
strong battalion. They definitely did not dare to provoke the caravan.
Luckily, Shu Long and the others moved quickly and did not linger. People paid attention to this and secretly speculated that Guard Camp was probably on a special mission.
Consequently, Guard Camp's travelling speed suddenly increased.
Shu Long was full of praise for Ye Ling's idea. He didn't care at all about getting famous. His mind was completely filled with getting to meet Daren as soon as possible.
"Ten days!"
Everyone's morale rose. This was the longest journey that Guard Camp had ever taken since it was established. They didn't even know how many jie they had crossed.
Fortunately, Ye Ling had brought along enough mo bei. This meant they could use the blood pools. The blood pools of the mo and the yao doors of the yao, were like the transportation formations of xiuzhe, and similarly there were tolls to be paid.
Otherwise, it would take years to fly to their destination.
Nan Yue, Cang Ze and the others were also exhausted. However, their wills and hearts were more steeled compared to the past. All of them cultivated powerful yao arts to start with, and the fighting had been of great aid to their training. They were completely different people now.
In ten more days, they would be able to see Daren, everyone found themselves filled with energy!
———
Golden Crow Camp was filled with light but unusually silent.
Xiuzhe were lying askew in the enormous room. The snores were like the beats of a drum. Master Sun Bao was also in a corner and drooling as he slept. Master Ji Wei also was robbed of all dignity, his legs spread on the stairs as he laid with his limbs spread out, his mouth wide as his snores roared.
Each of them were sleeping sweetly. Many people had lingering excitement on their faces.
Not one of them was awake.
They were extremely tired. They hadn't rested for one moment in so many days. When they were tired, they would throw back a ling dan for energy and continue to work! Just by relying on a pile of ling dan, they did not sleep nor rest as they studied the mo matrixes and what Daren had sent back, about engraving, and activating mo matrixes.
