Chapter 14

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Chapter 14

When she awoke again, it was already early morning, three quarters past the hour of the rabbit.

The eldest senior sister had returned to the heavens before dawn, leaving Gong Wu alone in Tianhua Palace, its emptiness now more palpable than ever.

After rising and washing her face, Gong Wu belatedly remembered that she had died once yesterday.

The recent events had been so overwhelming that they seemed to have swept away the mundane years of her past life.

She tentatively attempted to channel her spiritual energy, curious to see if her abilities had undergone any changes.

After dying three times, she had ascended from an unknown minor figure to the fifth rank of the Yaoguang realm, a level of cultivation that many in their twenties could scarcely dream of achieving.

Her Master had offered a brief explanation, merely stating that the child had finally come to her senses.

If one were overly eager for victory, they might have plunged into the Poisonous Swamp repeatedly, hoping to die a hundred times for immediate ascension.

Gong Wu, however, was afraid of pain and always dreaded such a prospect.

Both death and life brought too much pain; she preferred to avoid them altogether.

The young girl stood alone in the empty courtyard, closing her eyes to sense the depth of her Spiritual Sea.

…No change.

What she was before death remained the same after death.

When she opened her eyes again, she felt a bit disoriented, thinking that her method of confirmation might be flawed. After trying once more, it was still the same.

It shouldn’t be this way; could it be that this strange constitution had lost its effect?

Her realm had not changed, and even the spiritual energy accumulated within her had not increased.

Gong Wu felt a bit puzzled, summoning a broom as she swept the floor and pondered her questions.

Having been absent for a few days, the servants who attended her Master had gone to assist in another palace.

Both inside and outside the great hall were covered in dust, requiring a thorough sweep and wipe down.

Skipping breakfast, she gathered up fallen leaves and dust into the medicine basket and then sat down before soaring again towards Wan Shi Pool.

In the past, it took a long time to reach this place, but today she flew high above the treetops, seeing many new disciples looking up at her with the same envy she once had.

Gong Wu waved to them from afar, carrying her medicine basket as she flew ahead.

She landed at the edge of the poisonous swamp and saw the poisonous salamander lying on its back, sleeping.

That creature had recently been fed plenty of medicine dregs and was now too disdainful to eat the rotten leaves.

After dumping the trash, Gong Wu flipped the basket over to shake off the dirt. Just before leaving, a daring thought surged in her mind.

—What would happen if I touched the poisonous swamp?

Many had done such things in the past.

Some were careless, while others had simply acted out of mischief.

The milder cases realized the pain after a small burn, but there were those who foolishly grabbed a handful of the gooey toxic mud and ended up with their hand bruised, lying in bed with a high fever for several days.

This purple-black muddy pool felt wrong to anyone who approached it; reaching out always led to trouble.

Guided by instinct, she crouched at the edge of the pool and stretched out her hand, gently touching it as if she were testing the water, pulling away in an instant as if struck by lightning.

Nothing happened.

…It must have been her swift movement just now.

Gong Wu thought that she might as well jump in again to avoid getting a fever, this time submerging half of her finger.

Nothing happened.

The texture felt like bean paste, which wasn’t unpleasant, though it smelled a bit foul.

Feeling something was off, she decided to press her whole hand down into the goo.

If it were someone else, even other disciples of the Yaoguang realm wouldn’t dare attempt such a thing lightly.

The highly toxic substance could burn through clothes, let alone soft skin.

Last time Gong Wu fell in, several layers of her robe were scorched to tatters, and there were holes in her bony hand.

But now, she had completely buried her wrist without feeling any pain at all.

Gong Wu quickly pieced together that she had died once more in Jin Yan Tuo, making her body much more resistant to poison.

It wasn’t until she dipped deeper, where the toxicity intensified, that she felt the familiar sensation of pinpricks and swiftly pulled her hand back.

Aside from a slight blue tint at her fingertip, her skin showed no other changes.

After a while, even the blue hue faded away, as if nothing had happened.

Just then, the group of young disciples finally arrived, all pouring leftover medicine dregs into the poisonous swamp.

"Gong Senior Sister! Good morning!"

"Gong Senior Sister can actually fly on a broom, how amazing!"

Gong Wu smiled, feeling a bit shy.

The poisonous salamander showed no interest in the new food, swimming closer to sniff and cautiously lick the clumped medicine dregs, then suddenly coughed.

The young disciples, hearing a fish cough for the first time, gathered curiously to watch.

In the next moment, the poisonous salamander seemed to choke on something in the dregs and opened its mouth to expel a large amount of murky substance.

"Ugh—"

"Watch out!!"

Gong Wu instinctively flew forward to push them away, her back taking a large splash of toxic liquid, causing her clothes to burn and melt like they had been placed on hot coals, producing a hissing sound.

"Senior Sister, your back!!"

"I can’t worry about that; you all need to go!"

She pushed forward with her hand, using her broom to move the two closest little medicine boys away, dodging the unidentified substance that sprayed toward her face with a quick motion. She cursed inwardly.

Why was it that every time she came back to this place, her robe ended up ruined? She would have to pay a fine when she returned!

The poisonous salamander burped up all the food it had eaten, feeling extremely relieved, and let out a loud belch that echoed through the valley.

"Goo—"

Its face appeared to be squinted with a satisfied smile, and it happily patted its snowy white belly with its short claws, then spun around to swim into the deep pool, its tail splashing the water.

The little medicine boys rushed over to check if Gong Wu was injured, and one sharp-eyed boy exclaimed loudly, "Be careful not to step in the poisonous liquid; you might burn your shoes and the soles of your feet—hey? What’s that glowing thing?"

Gong Wu turned her gaze and saw several clumps of murky substances scattered on the ground, mingled with large pieces of sheep bones, undigested herb roots, useless leaves, catfish heads, cat tails, and large chunks of metal that shimmered faintly in the sunlight.

She plucked a few stiff leaves and brushed away the noodle-like grass from the black iron piece, carefully wiping the surface of the metal.

…Could it be some kind of treasure?

The children chimed in unison, "Senior Sister, just throw it away! If we take this trash back, Master will scold us!"

"It’s fine, my master has been taken away."

"…!!"

Gong Wu picked up the thick iron piece and returned with them.

As fate would have it, as they made their way back from the back mountain, they encountered Ji Yang and the Daoists from Zhi Bai Guan returning as well.

Among the crowd, six or seven tall Daoists were clad in seven-treasure robes and wore ruby-soled shoes, exuding a dignified and semi-immortal aura.

Ji Yang walked in the middle of the group, adorned with an amber hairpin and dressed in a deep blue robe, and immediately caught sight of Gong Wu.

He stood out among the crowd with his strikingly handsome and elegant demeanor, like a young nobleman who had wandered through mountains and rivers, radiating an air of grace.

"Little Wu?"

Gong Wu had borrowed a young medicine boy’s cloak to cover the hole in her back, offering a somewhat awkward smile as she greeted him.

The Daoists noticed someone on the path ahead and paused to observe.

Ji Yang stepped forward calmly, saying, "The mountain wind is chilly; you’re still recovering from your illness, and you don’t even dress warmly."

He had already removed his outer robe and wrapped it around her, bending down to tie it in a double knot, whispering softly, "Have you been hurt again?"

Gong Wu was momentarily dazed by the fern scent and felt a pang of sadness upon seeing him.

"Master and the others are locked up in Jin Yan Tuo; Senior Sister is still warning us to be cautious of him."

Ji Yang took the medicine basket from her back and carried it himself.

"Have you had breakfast yet?"

"Not yet."

"Worried about them… at least take care of yourself first." The young man sighed gently, his voice tender, "Leave those matters to me; let’s head back first."

The two groups merged into one, heading toward the valley.

The Daoists all held Ji Yang in high regard as a talented youth. They had befriended him when they ventured out to aid the villagers, sharing laughter and camaraderie.

Seeing Ji Yang carry a dirty medicine basket for a little girl and drape what was said to be a gift from Master Ancestor over her shoulders, they looked on with puzzled expressions.

"Subei, who is this?"

"This is my junior sister, Liu Feng."

"It seems you truly care for her," someone chuckled, "It’s the first time I’ve seen a higher-ranking disciple carry such a dirty medicine basket. Aren’t you afraid it will soil your clothes?"

Gong Wu felt her face flush, as if she had done something wrong, and insisted, "I can carry it myself."

She reached out to grab it, but Ji Yang gently held her hand.

"If it were someone else, I wouldn’t even touch it," Ji Yang said lightly, "But she is different."

The Daoists laughed, "To be so willing shows the harmony between you siblings; it’s truly enviable."

Gong Wu was snugly wrapped in her outer robe, guiding her senior brother down the winding mountain trail. She cast a sidelong glance at the grimy medicine basket slung over his back.

"Senior brother, I’m not a child anymore," she thought to herself, though she couldn’t help but suppress a smile.

The little medicine boys, each with their own medicine baskets, were brimming with energy.

"Senior Brother! Senior Sister just saved our lives!"

"She’s incredible, soaring through the sky with such grace!"

"Oh, and we found something odd. Gong Senior Sister, should we show it to these Daoists?"

Initially, Gong Wu had planned to consult the valley’s master cauldron maker, but the suggestion seemed sound. She unwrapped the cloth and presented the cleaned iron piece to the Daoists for examination.

The object appeared hefty, and lifting it confirmed its weight—over ten pounds. Its form was irregular, its surface marred with indentations.

"If it’s just scrap iron, I could give it to Master Mo for casting; it might still serve a purpose," she suggested.

The nearby Daoists initially paid little heed, but a cursory glance prompted them to frown and summon their peers.

They murmured among themselves, poking and prodding the object, even tapping it with their swords.

Ji Yang, amused by their unusual demeanor, chuckled, "What could a giant salamander possibly expel? North Sea Xuan Iron?"

"I’m not entirely certain; it should be appraised by a master," one Daoist admitted.

The Daoist returned the item to Gong Wu, nibbling his thumb in deep thought.

"I recall seeing something like this in my uncle’s diagrams, but I’m unsure about the actual item…"

"So?"

"So, it might be a star," the Daoist declared, pointing skyward with a solemn gaze. "A fragment fallen from the heavens."

Gong Wu, covering her nose, whispered, "It smells unpleasant."