Heaven’s Shadow

Standing at the boundary between darkness and light, the faces of the two True Monarchs appeared intermittently bright and dark, with an air of uncertainty. They exchanged a few brief words before falling silent.

After a moment, True Monarch Tianlan slowly stepped forward and entered the darkness. Observing his broad back, True Monarch Bai Chen silently watched for a while before following.

Everything was very quiet, and the silence continued even when they reached the massive stone door.

The darkness was like a tide, like a vast ocean, seemingly engulfing the two of them, giving the impression of standing in the depths of the sea.

The stillness seemed to reach an extreme.

Then, suddenly, a faint sound drifted from the depths of the darkness. It was ethereal and distant, like a faint breeze blowing through the dark.

The darkness rumbled like thunder.

Their robes moved without wind.

The sound and the strange breeze passed silently, swirling and drifting, gradually becoming clearer. It was unmistakably coming from behind the enormous stone door.

True Monarch Tianlan turned to glance at True Monarch Bai Chen, who gave a slight nod. After a moment, Tianlan placed his hand on the massive stone door. A low, resonant sound emerged from beneath the door, like a devil’s call or the tremor of the earth, slowly and steadily opening.

Darkness surged forth.

Like a wild tide, the darkness overwhelmed them. Both of them were instantly enveloped in a strange protective light shield. In an instant, there was a storm of lightning and thunder, as if countless terrifying forces were crashing against the shield, producing a horrifying shriek.

The twisting electric light emitted a bright glow, illuminating their faces, revealing their solemn expressions as if they were facing a great threat.

After a while, the electric light gradually subsided, and the surrounding darkness quieted down, but the profound, pitch-black darkness behind the stone door still quietly existed.

The two of them stepped forward and walked into the depths of the darkness. The massive stone door rumbled and slowly closed behind them, sealing away the endless darkness from the world.

※※※

Although the Hundred Herbs Hall was significantly damaged in the great earthquake, the repairs were carried out effectively and swiftly. About ten days later, the numerous pits and mounds in the Liuxiang Garden, including the damaged high walls and fences, were all repaired. The spiritual fields were reorganized, with the fortunate remaining precious spiritual herbs carefully nurtured and cultivated, and the unfortunate herbs that perished or went missing were replaced with new seeds to start afresh.

Everything seemed to be returning to normal, and life resumed its previous calm and orderly routine.

Lu Chen was also assigned new spiritual plants and began to cultivate them with the same dedication as before. The same was true for the miscellaneous disciples, including He Changsheng, who found themselves in similar circumstances.

However, this tranquility did not last long. About twenty days after the Kunlun Mountain earthquake, a piece of news suddenly emerged and quickly spread throughout the Kunlun Sect and even caused a sensation in Kunwu City.

Su Qingjun, a disciple of the Master Mu Yuan from Kunlun Sect, successfully advanced to the Golden Core stage, becoming the youngest Golden Core cultivator in the history of Kunlun Sect.

A Golden Core cultivator at the age of just twenty-two!

The future prospects were so promising it was almost unimaginable. This talent and speed even surpassed what the current high-ranking Transformation Realm True Monarchs had achieved.

Although the Golden Core stage is still worlds apart from the Transformation Realm True Monarch, with an endless and arduous journey ahead, and despite countless brilliant talents failing to reach the True Monarch status and lamenting their failure, there is always hope, isn’t there?

Hope is great, isn’t it?

Kunwu City was abuzz with excitement, and the Su family was in a state of frenzy. In a short period, congratulatory messages poured in, and visitors trampled on the threshold. Even the Su family servants walked with their chests out, seemingly more confident.

As for Kunlun Mountain, being a renowned sect of cultivation, the scene was not so exaggerated. However, it was said that Master Mu Yuan, amid his joy, had rarely been so intoxicated in recent years, and his laughter could be heard from afar.

Elder generation mentors were pleased and praised, while the younger disciples of Kunlun Sect were mostly in awe and admiration. For a time, Su Qingjun became the most prominent figure in Kunlun Sect and a topic of endless discussion. Among the discussions, the most talked-about topic was whether this young woman might become the new Transformation Realm True Monarch.

Just thinking about this possibility was exhilarating!

In Liuxiang Garden, Su Qingjun also became the center of everyone’s conversation. Lu Chen, upon hearing his companions talk about it by chance, felt a sense of reflection when recalling his encounter with Su Qingjun some time ago.

The Red Amber Ginseng seemed crucial to her advancement, but it was unfortunately lost. Nevertheless, Su Qingjun still broke through successfully. Such a talented individual with great fortune is indeed vastly different from ordinary people.

Lu Chen saw Su Qingjun again several days later. That day, as usual, he was working in the Liuxiang Garden. Suddenly, he heard a commotion from a distance, as if a dispute had broken out and people were arguing loudly.

This was unusual. Usually, the miscellaneous disciples worked quietly, occasionally slacking off in their free time but never daring to cause such a public disturbance. It was well known that the area was monitored by revered figures from the Hundred Herbs Hall, whose prestige, skill, and strength were all formidable. It would be very easy for them to deal with a misbehaving disciple.

This incident was rare, and the commotion grew louder rather than subsiding, indicating that the argument had escalated. More and more people gathered around to watch, including many miscellaneous disciples from nearby spiritual fields and passing core disciples.

Curious, Lu Chen walked over to take a look. As he approached, he was taken aback to see that the argument was not between the miscellaneous disciples working in the Liuxiang Garden but rather between a group of three and a group of five core disciples, all of whom were Qi Condensation Realm cultivators. Among them, however, were miscellaneous disciples lying down or kneeling, with He Changsheng among those kneeling. His face was flushed, his body trembling, and his expression was full of humiliation.

People were discussing the situation, and it didn’t take long for Lu Chen to understand the context.

The arguing Kunlun disciples were all from prominent families in Kunwu City. The group of three were from the Su family, known as the “Three Heroes of the Su Family.” They were talented youths who had reached the peak of Qi Condensation at a young age and were highly valued by their family, even if they couldn’t match the extraordinary talent of Su Qingjun.

The other group of five came from the Lin, Liu, and Chen families, all powerful families in Kunwu City. These five had known each other since childhood and were considered friends.

The dispute arose because Su Mo, one of the Su family’s three heroes, had recently planted a precious two-patterned spirit herb in the Liuxiang Garden, asking the Hundred Herbs Hall to cultivate it. Coincidentally, one of the five, a young man from the Lin family named Lin Kuangyi, also planted the same spirit herb in the garden and asked for it to be cultivated. That person was He Changsheng.

The herb in question was the Stone Lily.

While planting the same spirit herb was not unusual, after the Kunlun Mountain earthquake, He Changsheng’s well-grown Stone Lily suddenly went missing. Similar incidents had occurred in the Liuxiang Garden, most of which were believed to be due to the collapse of barriers and wild beasts sneaking in. He Changsheng was heartbroken over the lost reward, and the Lin family’s young man felt unlucky.

However, that morning, when He Changsheng happened to walk past Su Mo’s planted field, he noticed that Su Mo’s Stone Lily was growing unusually well.

The miscellaneous disciple responsible for Su Mo’s Stone Lily was named Zhang Zhi. Zhang Zhi’s talent was inferior to He Changsheng’s, and he was not as diligent in his work. Thus, his Stone Lily had always been less impressive. However, when He Changsheng saw Zhang Zhi’s Stone Lily, it appeared almost identical to the one he had grown before.

He Changsheng immediately raised a fuss. Zhang Zhi vehemently denied any wrongdoing and made sarcastic remarks. Enraged, He Changsheng fought with Zhang Zhi, and soon, Su Mo and the Lin family’s Lin Kuangyi, among others, arrived on the scene.

Upon hearing the news, Lin Kuangyi slapped Zhang Zhi, asserting that the Stone Lily was his, and Su Mo refused to accept this. A heated argument ensued, and amidst the chaos, He Changsheng was kicked over and ordered to kneel on the ground.

From a distance, Lu Chen watched He Changsheng kneeling on the field edge, his head hanging and his face reddened with anger. For a moment, Lu Chen was silent. The young disciples from both sides, raised in prominent families and now young and impetuous, grew increasingly agitated and eventually started fighting.

The scene quickly descended into chaos. Although the cultivators were not very powerful compared to ordinary people, they were still much stronger, and soon the crowd began to scatter. Before long, the situation tilted in favor of the Lin family’s side, as the Su family’s heroes were outnumbered.

Moments later, Su Mo, in a fit of rage, shouted, “Call my sister! Call my sister!”

Someone in the crowd shouted back, “We’ve already sent for her, young master, don’t worry.”

Lin Kuangyi and the others, enraged, turned around but found the crowd in disarray, unable to identify who was shouting. They continued to fight, and the two sides were locked in combat.

Standing on the edge of the crowd, Lu Chen suddenly felt a gentle breeze pass by from behind. Turning around, he saw a woman standing behind him.

Her gaze was calm and clear, and it briefly rested on his face.

“It’s you?” she said.

“Lu Chen,” Lu Chen replied.

“Oh…” She nodded and said, “I remember now.”

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