Scritch, scritch, scritch.
On the empty table lay a wriggling, milky-white larva of some kind... perhaps a maggot? Chu Liang regarded it with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
After diligently nurturing it for so many days, did I really hatch a maggot in the end?
Accepting this reality was really difficult.
The sense of accomplishment of being a male mommy vanished instantly.
In the realm of immortal cultivation, whether scouring the skies for five thousand years or delving deep beneath the earth for five thousand years, it was impossible for any cultivator's spiritual companion to be a maggot.
The larva crawled on the table, its movements sluggish, and the short distance seemed like a vast wilderness to it. Nevertheless, it persisted, occasionally changing direction as if searching for something.
Is it hungry? Chu Liang speculated.
But what should I feed a little maggot...
Chu Liang pondered for a moment, wondering if he should just release this maggot into the toilet and set it free.
In the moment of distraction, Chu Liang blinked and found that the hardworking larva had disappeared from the table.
Huh?
It had been moving so slowly just now. Did it fly away?
Chu Liang looked around, puzzled, before finally noticing where it was located. There was a hole in the table that was as small as a needle's eye and was barely noticeable. With a sweep of his divine sense, he realized that the larva had already burrowed into it.
This little creature is like a needle. It sure likes to burrow into holes.
Chu Liang smiled and carefully used a strand of foundational qi to gently lift it out. Holding it on his fingertip, he was afraid of accidentally squeezing it.
He placed the larva on the table again. This time, it seemed to have found a path, immediately burrowing downward on the wooden surface, disappearing into a small hole it created.
This tiny creature looked soft, and it was a mystery how it could burrow like that.
However, Chu Liang soon noticed something unusual.
As its upper half burrowed into the wooden table, there was immediately a small strand of golden dust emitted from its rear. Because it was so tiny, it was scattered around by the slightest breeze in the air.
But its burrowing action did not stop, and the golden dust continued flying out.
What is this?
Chu Liang speculated whether it was not actually burrowing but foraging instead. Perhaps it didn't have anything to eat, so it resorted to gnawing on wood?
With this idea in mind, he fetched a porcelain bowl and once again sucked the larva out from the wooden table, placing it into the bowl. He was about to feed it to the larva to see if it would do as predicted.
But the larva, once again, burrowed downward.
It continued gurgling from the beginning until the end at an unexpectedly fast speed. It instantly burrowed through the porcelain bowl, with its lower half now inside.
This time, the golden dust appeared again from its rear, looking more substantial, forming tiny particles that connected into a golden thread.
It could penetrate even hard porcelain? Chu Liang was slightly astonished.
Looks like this little thing isn't an ordinary larva. It has very strong teeth! Chu Liang thought to himself.
Not only does it have very strong teeth, but it can also immediately digest wood and porcelain after swallowing them, which is quite a terrifying digestive ability.
If it were a large spirit beast like a Golden-Furred Hou, it wouldn't be surprising for it to chew on two pounds of raw iron, Chu Liang mused. This larva had just been born and doesn’t seem to show any special characteristics, so it's quite astonishing that it could suddenly do something like this.
But even if you are powerful, can you eat something normal please?
Chu Liang lifted the porcelain bowl and placed it on an iron plate to prevent it from burrowing through again. But before he could feed it anything else, to his astonishment, the larva burrowed through the iron plate!
Ah? It ate through the iron plate?
Chu Liang frowned and took out his green leaf artifact, activating the defensive array pattern and opening the green leaf umbrella.
The umbrella surface could even withstand at least the ordinary attacks of a fifth-realm cultivator, unquestionably solid in that regard. Chu Liang placed the larva on it, wanting to see what it could do next.
The larva had just been born and it seemed that its first lesson had been to find food by burrowing downwards. It did so without hesitation as its head had moved straight down.
Then, its upper body burrowed into the surface of the green leaf umbrella.
It can even do that?
Chu Liang hastily used his hand to channel his foundational qi to suck it out, afraid it would really damage the array pattern on the surface of the green leaf enchanted tool.
He lifted this tiny creature on his finger. Worried that it might start burrowing into his fingers, he remained extremely careful. Just the thought of it burrowing into his fingers felt extremely terrifying.
Upon closer inspection, he found that this little thing had actually grown!
When it had burrowed through wood, porcelain, and iron plates, its size didn’t change much. However, after it had burrowed into the green leaf artifact, its size doubled.
Of course, because it initially had the width of a needle, it still wasn’t considered big now.
Yet the speed of its growth was quite astonishing.
Chu Liang guessed that it was because the material of the green leaf artifact contained a lot of spiritual energy. It seemed to be growing by consuming this spiritual energy.
He took out a Golden Vein Berry and placed the larva on top of it. Without hesitation, the larva burrowed into it again. Given the fruit's soft surface, it could easily pierce through.
It appeared that it consumed not only hard objects but also soft ones.
Before long, it had burrowed through the entire Golden Vein Berry. Although it hadn't completely consumed it, Chu Liang noticed that the golden patterns on the surface of the fruit had disappeared.
This meant that all of the spiritual energy contained within this fruit was gone. It was now just a normal, tasty fruit.
This larva can absorb all the spiritual energy while it's eating the treasure of nature?
That’s a bit powerful.
Currently, Chu Liang was thinking that there was nothing this tiny creature wouldn’t eat and there wasn’t anything that it couldn’t bite through.
If that was the case, where should he keep this creature?
With how enthusiastic it is burrowing downward, if he had left it on the ground, he might see it emerging from the other side of the world in a few years.
After pondering for a while, he tried to bring the larva back to the White Pagoda.
As a brilliant light flashed, the larva actually appeared in the space within the White Pagoda. However, the moment it entered the space within the White Pagoda, it seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep and wasn't moving at all.
Chu Liang had assumed that since it was born from the beast egg rewarded by the White Pagoda, it should also be able to return to the White Pagoda. Just like the Golden Vein Berries grown from seeds rewarded by the White Pagoda, they could be stored in the space within the White Pagoda.
This saved him a lot of trouble.
It seemed that in the future, he should find more items with spiritual energy to feed it and help it grow quickly.
The sense of disappointment he felt in the beginning completely vanished. A larva that could eat anything seemed amazing!
He looked forward to witnessing the evolution of this larva in the future.
It wouldn't really turn into a fly, would it?
...
After fussing around for quite some time, it was getting late, so Chu Liang decided to rest.
The next morning, Lin Bei came knocking on his door.
Chu Liang looked at Lin Bei with curiosity. "Why are you here so early?"
"Naturally, there's something important," Lin Bei said with a smile. "Do you know that I've recently become an attendant in the Foreign Affairs Hall?"
"I had no idea." Chu Liang shook his head and said, "Congratulations!"
On Mount Shu, besides the four Guardian Elders and their halls, there are actually quite a few other elders and halls in charge of various affairs, although their status may not be as high.
Take Elder Shen from the Sword Exchange Pavilion.
Elder Shen would be the supervising elder of the Sword Exchange Pavilion.
The supervising elder of the Foreign Affairs Hall was the elder ranked right below the four Guardian Elders. The Foreign Affairs Hall, as the name suggested, was the hall for handling affairs outside of the sect.
Aside from significant events that require the presence of the sect leader and the four guardian elders, the routine matters involving interactions with other sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten, as well as the minor affairs, were all managed by the Foreign Affairs Hall. This included tasks such as distributing letters from other sects and overseeing construction projects aimed at enhancing the image of the Mount Shu Sect in the realm of immortal cultivation.
Moreover, in comparison to other halls within the sect, the competition for the position of attendant in the Foreign Affairs Hall was the fiercest. The Foreign Affairs Hall frequently interacted with the imperial court and other immortal sects, making it the sect's least dangerous hall to serve but one with tasks of high prestige and substantial potential returns.
Chu Liang stared at Lin Bei and recalled his remarkably impressive social skills. He thought that entering the Foreign Affairs Hall was indeed a suitable placement for him, allowing Lin Bei to make the most of his talents.
"But I didn't come to bring you good news today. Right now, I'm just on probation, and it's not confirmed whether I'll get to stay in the Foreign Affairs Hall permanently," Lin Bei explained. "I'm here to inform you that there's something that requires your assistance."
"Why does the Foreign Affairs Hall need me?" Chu Liang asked in confusion.
"Specifics are unclear. It's a task assigned by the Foreign Affairs Master[1], and all I know is that the individuals involved are from the Greater-Yin Cult," Lin Bei explained.
"Greater-Yin Cult?"
Chu Liang couldn’t fathom any connection between himself and the most mysterious immortal sect. Nevertheless, since this was an order, he had no choice but to accompany Lin Bei on this journey.
"Anyway, we'll find out what's going on when we get there," Lin Bei suddenly asked with a mischievous glint. "Do you know why I joined the Foreign Affairs Hall?"
"Because you talk a lot?" Chu Liang replied.
"..."
Lin Bei was momentarily speechless before he answered, "It's because the Foreign Affairs Hall gives me the opportunity to engage with disciples from other sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten. Naturally, there are sects like the South Melody Conservatory and the Greater-Yin Cult with their assembly of beautiful women. There are too few senior and junior sisters on Mount Shu, and besides, they're all local beauties. In the future, I'll need to broaden my horizons."
"...Hope you get what you wish for." Chu Liang said.
"My first task today is to liaise with the members of the Greater-Yin Cult. This is a golden opportunity bestowed upon me." Lin Bei said, "Previously, you snatched my chances with Miss Song and Miss Xue. This time, I am determined to be one step ahead."
Chu Liang immediately looked around and said, "You better not talk nonsense on Mount Shu. What chances did I snatch away?"
"The chance to know them first? What were you thinking?" Lin Bei responded puzzledly.
"Nothing." Chu Liang shook his head and quickly changed the topic. "I heard that the members of the Greater-Yin Cult all follow the cultivation path of the Supreme Mind and are extremely cold and ruthless. Are you sure you can do it?"
"Not everyone can master the cultivation of the Supreme Mind. There were many cultivators of the Greater-Yin Cult who ended up getting married." Lin Bei said confidently, "Even if she's an ice queen, I'll just melt her with my warmth," Lin Bei said confidently.
As they spoke, the two arrived at the Heaven-Reaching Peak, where a quiet room had been prepared for the Foreign Affairs Hall.
As soon as Lin Bei entered the room, his eyes lit up.
A young woman, dressed in black with her hair tied up, sat in the room. Her skin was as fair as porcelain, and her features emitted a heroic vibe. Despite the clean appearance of her brows and eyes, she exuded a faint air of indifference.
Before coming, Lin Bei hadn't seen this disciple from the Greater-Yin Cult, but now that he laid eyes on her, he couldn't help but feel that her appearance and demeanor were indeed befitting of her background.
"Hehehe!" Lin Bei approached with a cheerful laugh, "Hello, hello, hello! I presume you must be the disciple of the Greater-Yin Cult. I've heard that the Greater-Yin Cult is renowned for producing beauties, and today, seeing you confirms the rumors are true."
"This is Chu Liang, the person you are looking for! I'm Lin Bei," Lin Bei approached again.
He continued smiling as he said, "After we're done here, do you have some time? How about we grab a meal together? You can't come to Mount Shu and not try our spicy and fragrant hot pot! Or maybe you'd like to enjoy the romantic moonlight on Mount Shu tonight?"
Chu Liang was very observant.
He saw her lips move twice, appearing to be forming the word "idiot."
However, Lin Bei remained oblivious and, seeing her silence, continued with a laugh, "Don't be afraid. The disciples of Mount Shu have always been very friendly."
The lady in black finally couldn't tolerate it anymore. Her eyebrows furrowed tightly as she opened her mouth, and with a deep, manly voice, she coldly spat out every single word, "Get lost."
1. Please keep in mind that this is also an elder ☜
Scritch, scritch, scritch.
On the empty table lay a wriggling, milky-white larva of some kind... perhaps a maggot? Chu Liang regarded it with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
After diligently nurturing it for so many days, did I really hatch a maggot in the end?
Accepting this reality was really difficult.
The sense of accomplishment of being a male mommy vanished instantly.
In the realm of immortal cultivation, whether scouring the skies for five thousand years or delving deep beneath the earth for five thousand years, it was impossible for any cultivator's spiritual companion to be a maggot.
The larva crawled on the table, its movements sluggish, and the short distance seemed like a vast wilderness to it. Nevertheless, it persisted, occasionally changing direction as if searching for something.
Is it hungry? Chu Liang speculated.
But what should I feed a little maggot...
Chu Liang pondered for a moment, wondering if he should just release this maggot into the toilet and set it free.
In the moment of distraction, Chu Liang blinked and found that the hardworking larva had disappeared from the table.
Huh?
It had been moving so slowly just now. Did it fly away?
Chu Liang looked around, puzzled, before finally noticing where it was located. There was a hole in the table that was as small as a needle's eye and was barely noticeable. With a sweep of his divine sense, he realized that the larva had already burrowed into it.
This little creature is like a needle. It sure likes to burrow into holes.
Chu Liang smiled and carefully used a strand of foundational qi to gently lift it out. Holding it on his fingertip, he was afraid of accidentally squeezing it.
He placed the larva on the table again. This time, it seemed to have found a path, immediately burrowing downward on the wooden surface, disappearing into a small hole it created.
This tiny creature looked soft, and it was a mystery how it could burrow like that.
However, Chu Liang soon noticed something unusual.
As its upper half burrowed into the wooden table, there was immediately a small strand of golden dust emitted from its rear. Because it was so tiny, it was scattered around by the slightest breeze in the air.
But its burrowing action did not stop, and the golden dust continued flying out.
What is this?
Chu Liang speculated whether it was not actually burrowing but foraging instead. Perhaps it didn't have anything to eat, so it resorted to gnawing on wood?
With this idea in mind, he fetched a porcelain bowl and once again sucked the larva out from the wooden table, placing it into the bowl. He was about to feed it to the larva to see if it would do as predicted.
But the larva, once again, burrowed downward.
It continued gurgling from the beginning until the end at an unexpectedly fast speed. It instantly burrowed through the porcelain bowl, with its lower half now inside.
This time, the golden dust appeared again from its rear, looking more substantial, forming tiny particles that connected into a golden thread.
It could penetrate even hard porcelain? Chu Liang was slightly astonished.
Looks like this little thing isn't an ordinary larva. It has very strong teeth! Chu Liang thought to himself.
Not only does it have very strong teeth, but it can also immediately digest wood and porcelain after swallowing them, which is quite a terrifying digestive ability.
If it were a large spirit beast like a Golden-Furred Hou, it wouldn't be surprising for it to chew on two pounds of raw iron, Chu Liang mused. This larva had just been born and doesn’t seem to show any special characteristics, so it's quite astonishing that it could suddenly do something like this.
But even if you are powerful, can you eat something normal please?
Chu Liang lifted the porcelain bowl and placed it on an iron plate to prevent it from burrowing through again. But before he could feed it anything else, to his astonishment, the larva burrowed through the iron plate!
Ah? It ate through the iron plate?
Chu Liang frowned and took out his green leaf artifact, activating the defensive array pattern and opening the green leaf umbrella.
The umbrella surface could even withstand at least the ordinary attacks of a fifth-realm cultivator, unquestionably solid in that regard. Chu Liang placed the larva on it, wanting to see what it could do next.
The larva had just been born and it seemed that its first lesson had been to find food by burrowing downwards. It did so without hesitation as its head had moved straight down.
Then, its upper body burrowed into the surface of the green leaf umbrella.
It can even do that?
Chu Liang hastily used his hand to channel his foundational qi to suck it out, afraid it would really damage the array pattern on the surface of the green leaf enchanted tool.
He lifted this tiny creature on his finger. Worried that it might start burrowing into his fingers, he remained extremely careful. Just the thought of it burrowing into his fingers felt extremely terrifying.
Upon closer inspection, he found that this little thing had actually grown!
When it had burrowed through wood, porcelain, and iron plates, its size didn’t change much. However, after it had burrowed into the green leaf artifact, its size doubled.
Of course, because it initially had the width of a needle, it still wasn’t considered big now.
Yet the speed of its growth was quite astonishing.
Chu Liang guessed that it was because the material of the green leaf artifact contained a lot of spiritual energy. It seemed to be growing by consuming this spiritual energy.
He took out a Golden Vein Berry and placed the larva on top of it. Without hesitation, the larva burrowed into it again. Given the fruit's soft surface, it could easily pierce through.
It appeared that it consumed not only hard objects but also soft ones.
Before long, it had burrowed through the entire Golden Vein Berry. Although it hadn't completely consumed it, Chu Liang noticed that the golden patterns on the surface of the fruit had disappeared.
This meant that all of the spiritual energy contained within this fruit was gone. It was now just a normal, tasty fruit.
This larva can absorb all the spiritual energy while it's eating the treasure of nature?
That’s a bit powerful.
Currently, Chu Liang was thinking that there was nothing this tiny creature wouldn’t eat and there wasn’t anything that it couldn’t bite through.
If that was the case, where should he keep this creature?
With how enthusiastic it is burrowing downward, if he had left it on the ground, he might see it emerging from the other side of the world in a few years.
After pondering for a while, he tried to bring the larva back to the White Pagoda.
As a brilliant light flashed, the larva actually appeared in the space within the White Pagoda. However, the moment it entered the space within the White Pagoda, it seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep and wasn't moving at all.
Chu Liang had assumed that since it was born from the beast egg rewarded by the White Pagoda, it should also be able to return to the White Pagoda. Just like the Golden Vein Berries grown from seeds rewarded by the White Pagoda, they could be stored in the space within the White Pagoda.
This saved him a lot of trouble.
It seemed that in the future, he should find more items with spiritual energy to feed it and help it grow quickly.
The sense of disappointment he felt in the beginning completely vanished. A larva that could eat anything seemed amazing!
He looked forward to witnessing the evolution of this larva in the future.
It wouldn't really turn into a fly, would it?
...
After fussing around for quite some time, it was getting late, so Chu Liang decided to rest.
The next morning, Lin Bei came knocking on his door.
Chu Liang looked at Lin Bei with curiosity. "Why are you here so early?"
"Naturally, there's something important," Lin Bei said with a smile. "Do you know that I've recently become an attendant in the Foreign Affairs Hall?"
"I had no idea." Chu Liang shook his head and said, "Congratulations!"
On Mount Shu, besides the four Guardian Elders and their halls, there are actually quite a few other elders and halls in charge of various affairs, although their status may not be as high.
Take Elder Shen from the Sword Exchange Pavilion.
Elder Shen would be the supervising elder of the Sword Exchange Pavilion.
The supervising elder of the Foreign Affairs Hall was the elder ranked right below the four Guardian Elders. The Foreign Affairs Hall, as the name suggested, was the hall for handling affairs outside of the sect.
Aside from significant events that require the presence of the sect leader and the four guardian elders, the routine matters involving interactions with other sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten, as well as the minor affairs, were all managed by the Foreign Affairs Hall. This included tasks such as distributing letters from other sects and overseeing construction projects aimed at enhancing the image of the Mount Shu Sect in the realm of immortal cultivation.
Moreover, in comparison to other halls within the sect, the competition for the position of attendant in the Foreign Affairs Hall was the fiercest. The Foreign Affairs Hall frequently interacted with the imperial court and other immortal sects, making it the sect's least dangerous hall to serve but one with tasks of high prestige and substantial potential returns.
Chu Liang stared at Lin Bei and recalled his remarkably impressive social skills. He thought that entering the Foreign Affairs Hall was indeed a suitable placement for him, allowing Lin Bei to make the most of his talents.
"But I didn't come to bring you good news today. Right now, I'm just on probation, and it's not confirmed whether I'll get to stay in the Foreign Affairs Hall permanently," Lin Bei explained. "I'm here to inform you that there's something that requires your assistance."
"Why does the Foreign Affairs Hall need me?" Chu Liang asked in confusion.
"Specifics are unclear. It's a task assigned by the Foreign Affairs Master[1], and all I know is that the individuals involved are from the Greater-Yin Cult," Lin Bei explained.
"Greater-Yin Cult?"
Chu Liang couldn’t fathom any connection between himself and the most mysterious immortal sect. Nevertheless, since this was an order, he had no choice but to accompany Lin Bei on this journey.
"Anyway, we'll find out what's going on when we get there," Lin Bei suddenly asked with a mischievous glint. "Do you know why I joined the Foreign Affairs Hall?"
"Because you talk a lot?" Chu Liang replied.
"..."
Lin Bei was momentarily speechless before he answered, "It's because the Foreign Affairs Hall gives me the opportunity to engage with disciples from other sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten. Naturally, there are sects like the South Melody Conservatory and the Greater-Yin Cult with their assembly of beautiful women. There are too few senior and junior sisters on Mount Shu, and besides, they're all local beauties. In the future, I'll need to broaden my horizons."
"...Hope you get what you wish for." Chu Liang said.
"My first task today is to liaise with the members of the Greater-Yin Cult. This is a golden opportunity bestowed upon me." Lin Bei said, "Previously, you snatched my chances with Miss Song and Miss Xue. This time, I am determined to be one step ahead."
Chu Liang immediately looked around and said, "You better not talk nonsense on Mount Shu. What chances did I snatch away?"
"The chance to know them first? What were you thinking?" Lin Bei responded puzzledly.
"Nothing." Chu Liang shook his head and quickly changed the topic. "I heard that the members of the Greater-Yin Cult all follow the cultivation path of the Supreme Mind and are extremely cold and ruthless. Are you sure you can do it?"
"Not everyone can master the cultivation of the Supreme Mind. There were many cultivators of the Greater-Yin Cult who ended up getting married." Lin Bei said confidently, "Even if she's an ice queen, I'll just melt her with my warmth," Lin Bei said confidently.
As they spoke, the two arrived at the Heaven-Reaching Peak, where a quiet room had been prepared for the Foreign Affairs Hall.
As soon as Lin Bei entered the room, his eyes lit up.
A young woman, dressed in black with her hair tied up, sat in the room. Her skin was as fair as porcelain, and her features emitted a heroic vibe. Despite the clean appearance of her brows and eyes, she exuded a faint air of indifference.
Before coming, Lin Bei hadn't seen this disciple from the Greater-Yin Cult, but now that he laid eyes on her, he couldn't help but feel that her appearance and demeanor were indeed befitting of her background.
"Hehehe!" Lin Bei approached with a cheerful laugh, "Hello, hello, hello! I presume you must be the disciple of the Greater-Yin Cult. I've heard that the Greater-Yin Cult is renowned for producing beauties, and today, seeing you confirms the rumors are true."
"This is Chu Liang, the person you are looking for! I'm Lin Bei," Lin Bei approached again.
He continued smiling as he said, "After we're done here, do you have some time? How about we grab a meal together? You can't come to Mount Shu and not try our spicy and fragrant hot pot! Or maybe you'd like to enjoy the romantic moonlight on Mount Shu tonight?"
Chu Liang was very observant.
He saw her lips move twice, appearing to be forming the word "idiot."
However, Lin Bei remained oblivious and, seeing her silence, continued with a laugh, "Don't be afraid. The disciples of Mount Shu have always been very friendly."
The lady in black finally couldn't tolerate it anymore. Her eyebrows furrowed tightly as she opened her mouth, and with a deep, manly voice, she coldly spat out every single word, "Get lost."
1. Please keep in mind that this is also an elder ☜
