Chapter 1643: Sworn
Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
It was Zhang Ruochen’s first time hearing about such a miraculous Thousand-Mile Vision.
Thus, he experimented with it.
He used the illusion and Traceless 36 Changes at the same time, activating all the power of the Unfounded Pearl, but Xiang Chunan could see through it every time. His eyes were even more powerful than the Yin Yang Mirror.
Is there really such a coincidence in the world?
Zhang Ruochen rubbed his temples, feeling a headache.
Why did he have to run into the Dark Fool?
He’d finally carved three time prints onto the s.h.i.+ning Sun Arrow. But instead of killing the Thousand Star Maiden, he’d lost the fatal arrow and even alarmed her.
Now, it would be even harder to try and a.s.sa.s.sinate her.
Xiang Chunan glanced at Zhang Ruochen again and grinned. “Brother, I’m confused. Why are you spying on a group of ugly women from so far away? Why did you shoot an arrow at them? Are they your enemies?”
“Ugly women?”
Zhang Ruochen looked at Xiang Chunan strangely.
Even though he wasn’t interested in the famous Thousand Star Maiden, Fairy Tianchu and Lady Huairou, he still had to admit that they were definitely top beauties. There were countless talents who pursued them.
If they were ugly, then there probably weren’t any pretty girls in the entire world.
“Yeah, so ugly!” Xiang Chunan said. “Look at how pale they are, and their bodies have dents everywhere. They’re not round at all. And their faces hurt my eyes. The ugliest one at least knows her place and covers up half her face with a cloth. Otherwise, she’d get beaten up if she walked in our village with those looks.”
Shocked, Zhang Ruochen laughed inwardly. If the Thousand Star Maiden knew that she was being judged like this, then she’d probably chase Xiang Chunan to the end of the universe.
Coughing dryly, Zhang Ruochen asked, “Then what’s a beautiful girl to you?”
Xiang Chunan’s eyes brightened and he started drooling. Imagining something, he said dreamily, “First, their bodies have to be perfect. Their waists can’t be any thinner than a bucket. And they have to be as dark as me, need a big face, thick lips, big ears, and a short neck. And their legs—this is important. They can’t be too thin. They have to be as thick as a bowl’s mouth.”
Then he sighed. “Unfortunately, it’s too hard to find a beautiful girl like that. The girls I’ve seen after coming to the Truth Heavenly Domain are each uglier than the last. I’m in despair.”
Zhang Ruochen touched his nose and studied Xiang Chunan for a long time before asking, “Have you seen top beauties like that?”
“Of course!” Xiang Chunan said seriously. “My teacher’s wife and junior sister are all top beauties.”
It dawned on Zhang Ruochen. “So, your teacher’s wife taught you about beauties?”
“No, it’s my teacher.”
Then, Xiang Chunan continued, “Ever since childhood, he told me that his wife is the most beautiful woman of the thousands of worlds. My junior sister would be the top beauty of the next generation. Brother, I’ve never told anyone else about this secret. If you ever meet my junior sister, don’t get any ideas about her just because she’s so pretty. She’s already mine.”
Xiang Chunan was both proud and a bit guarded.
Zhang Ruochen looked pitifully at him. It was so sad. His standard of beauty had been twisted since young. His teacher was probably a pitiful man too.
This Dark Fool probably came from a diverse place isolated from the rest of the universe. His previous actions probably weren’t on purpose either.
Otherwise, instead of patting Zhang Ruochen on the shoulder from the back, he would’ve smashed his skull apart.
Zhang Ruochen didn’t continue asking. He prepared to leave and flew toward Kongling Island.
“Brother, wait!” Xiang Chunan caught up with him.
“What are you following me for?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
“Didn’t we say that we’ll be sworn brothers?” Xuang Chunan asked.
“But we just met each other.”
“If we’re fated, then why does time matter?”
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen actually didn’t know how to refute him.
The Dark Fool was extremely fast. Even if Zhang Ruochen used the Spatial Move, he could still catch up. Zhang Ruochen couldn’t get rid of him.
Thus, he stopped, preparing to talk to him.
Xiang Chunan caught up breathlessly. Seeing Zhang Ruochen waiting in the front, he grew excited. “Brother, you agree?”
Zhang Ruochen put his hands behind his back. “It’s not a good thing to follow me. I have a lot of enemies and some of them are really powerful. They’re extremely cruel. Not only would they attack me, they’d also attack the people beside me. Aren’t you afraid that you’ll die the day after you become my sworn brother?”
Zhang Ruochen really didn’t want to harm a Dark Fool who didn’t have any calculative thoughts. The sight of his senior brothers and sisters’ heads hanging on the Yin and Yang Palace’s gate was still fresh in his mind.
Xiang Chunan immediately grew furious. “Am I the type of person to be afraid of trouble? Brother, tell me who your enemy is. I’ll go kill them now!”
This Dark Fool never went according to what was normal, making Zhang Ruochen chuckle wryly. He couldn’t do anything except say, “Fine. If you want to follow me, then do it!”
Xiang Chunan happily walked to Zhang Ruochen’s side. Laughing, he said loudly, “To be honest, I don’t know anyone in the Truth Heavenly Domain. I don’t even have a place to stay, so at night, I just find a tree and sleep until morning.”
“You don’t cultivate at night?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
“I do, but you still have to sleep when needed. Otherwise, how boring would life be?”
Zhang Ruochen sighed. He suddenly realized that Xiang Chunan wasn’t the pitiful one. It was himself.
He wished he didn’t have to care or worry about anything, didn’t have to cultivate with all his life, and could sleep peacefully on a tree.
But he couldn’t even remember the last time he’d slept.
Xiang Chunan suddenly thought of something and asked, “Brother, I have a question I must ask you. Do you know what the Mysteries of Truth are?”
Zhang Ruochen stopped and looked at him. “You received the Mysteries of Truth?” he asked seriously.
“Yeah,” Xiang Chunan said in annoyance. “When I was crossing the Ocean of Truth, every time I pa.s.sed a level, a d.a.m.ned voice would ring out in my mind, saying I received some Mysteries of Truth. And then weird light would get into me. But no matter how I asked, he never told me what I could do with it.”
Zhang Ruochen shot a deep look at Xiang Chunan. Could this Dark Fool really have crossed the Ocean of Truth for the first time?
He could pa.s.s the third level on his first try?
The Moon G.o.ddess once told him that the Mysteries of Truth in the world never changed. It was always “one.” Every cultivator who possessed it would try their hardest to collect more. When they collected one percent, they would become a Messenger of Truth.
So, all cultivators with the Mysteries of Truth had to keep it a secret.
If it was revealed, people would try to kill them.
“Mysteries of Truth can help a cultivator comprehend the Saintly Way and has many benefits,” Zhang Ruochen said. “Anyway, just remember that you should never mention it to anyone, or else you’ll bring about disaster for yourself.”
“Is there a need to be so careful?”
“Yes,” Zhang Ruochen replied firmly.
Even someone like the Moon G.o.ddess had repeatedly warned Zhang Ruochen, so it was obvious that having the Mysteries of Truth was an incredible secret.
Thankfully, the Dark Fool had met him or else he’d probably already be dead by now.
Xiang Chunan didn’t know that Zhang Ruochen had the Mysteries of Truth. With his personality, he wouldn’t be a threat either, so Zhang Ruochen naturally wouldn’t go provoke him.
His main reason for wanting to a.s.sa.s.sinate the Thousand Star Maiden was because he wanted to get rid of a potential threat.
After all, the Thousand Star Maiden wasn’t the same type of person as Xiang Chunan.
“You went to the Ocean of Truth as soon as you arrived at the Truth Heavenly Domain?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
“Yeah!”
Curious, Zhang Ruochen asked, “But you seem to have very high attainment in the Way of Truth. Where did you learn it from?”
“My teacher taught me.”
Then Xiang Chunan said, “When I was really, really little, my teacher had me look at some pictures and study what they meant.”
“What pictures?”
“Some weird pictures and words carved on tables, walls, and stools. They made my head hurt, but I got beaten if I didn’t look at them.” Xiang Chunan shook his head in after-fear.
Zhang Ruochen frowned and started thinking.
According to what Xiang Chunan said, the images on the tables, walls, and stools must contain the Way of Truth.
But even a G.o.d could only come to the Truth Heavenly Domain and carve down their understanding of the Way of Truth into images. Without the Truth G.o.dly Palace’s support, even a G.o.d wouldn’t be able to make the image appear outside of the domain.
What kind of existence was Xiang Chunan’s teacher?
After that, Zhang Ruochen asked some more questions. Xiang Chunan could answer some, but for others, even he didn’t know the answer.
For example, Zhang Ruochen asked him where his village was.
Xiang Chunan only knew that it was in an undeveloped mountain.
The night before coming to the Truth Heavenly Domain, Xiang Chunan and his teacher became very drunk. When he woke up, he wasn’t in the village anymore. He was in the Truth Heavenly Domain, sleeping naked under a tree.
“The cultivators in the Truth Heavenly Domain aren’t like the ones in your village,” Zhang Ruochen said. “After coming here, you have to be careful. Don’t tell people about everything.”
“Hehe. Brother, your tone is just like my teacher’s wife. I know you’re a good man.” Xiang Chunan didn’t seem to care about Zhang Ruochen’s words. He was still grinning widely.
“People aren’t good for no reason in this world. People aren’t bad for no reason either.”
With that, Zhang Ruochen sped up. He returned to Kongling Island soon.
Then Zhang Ruochen introduced Xiang Chunan to Feng Yan. The latter was quite a good host and liked to make friends, so he quickly became close to Xiang Chunan. They had a nice conversation and had someone bring over the top wine to drink together.
“Brother Zhang, it’s so boring with only us two drinking,” Xiang Chunan complained. “Why don’t you drink at all?”
Zhang Ruochen sat in a corner of the pavilion. “It’s not that I don’t drink. It’s just that drinking ruins things. There’s no reason to drink for fun.”
Xiang Chunan pointed at the sky. “The moon is so round and big tonight. It’s a great day. How about us three become sworn brothers? From now on, we’ll share our happiness and difficulties.”
Feng Yan was moved. “With the ivory moon in the sky and a soft breeze, it is indeed a rare kind of night. How fated are we to be able to be together?”
Then Feng Yan poured a cup of wine and pushed it toward Zhang Ruochen. “If Brother Zhang deems us worthy and is willing to become brothers with us, drink this wine.”
Feng Yan and Xiang Chunan both stared at Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen frowned. Xiang Chunan was careless and it was understandable that he kept talking about being sworn brothers. But Feng Yan was a logical and smart person. Why was he getting into it too?
If they were sworn, then they would be involved with each other.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was hesitating and thinking that it was a brash decision, Mu Lingxi walked over from the distant lights. She was like a beautiful elf in the night. Her sweet voice rang out. “Since everyone is so enthusiastic and it’s a rare full moon, stop hesitating and drink this wine!”