It had been ten days since their return from the treasure trove.
The ten days seemed to have passed quickly. The group led by Zanxing went to search for the Sacred Tree fruit, and the disciples in the sect thought they would be delayed for a long time. Unexpectedly, they returned much earlier than expected.
Shaoyang Zhenren and several others, including Yue Qin, had gone to the secret realm of Li’er Country to investigate the traces left by the demonic aura. Accompanying them were Sect Leader Rong Shuang and several disciples from the Xiang Ling Sect. As a result, Gufeng Mountain was temporarily a bit deserted.
All the Sacred Tree fruits they brought back were handed over to Li Danshu. Li Danshu planned to use these fruits to refine elixirs for Gu Baiying. His attendant specifically instructed everyone not to disturb him during his alchemy process unless necessary.
Even if he hadn’t said so, Zanxing had no intention of visiting his hall lately. Ever since returning from the treasure trove, she had been paying special attention to the flower mark on her palm.
The flower now seemed complete and had become more vivid, resembling a begonia flower. Zanxing tried showing it to others but discovered that no one else could see the begonia flower. This clearly had some deeper meaning. However, this situation was unsettling, and Zanxing felt increasingly uneasy.
“Miss, why are you staring at your hand again?” Hong Su approached, holding a bowl of spirit elixir mixed with rice for Mimi, and spoke earnestly, “Ever since you returned this time, you’ve shut yourself in your room and rarely go out. How can this be good? Now, Master Mu is wavering between Miss Liu and Fairy Meng, and there’s also a disciple from the Xiang Ling Sect eyeing Master Gu. Miss, even if you don’t want to have many options, you should at least secure one. You can’t let all the fish slip away!”
Zanxing: “…”
She sighed, “Hong Su, if you were to raise fish, you’d surely be an expert.”
The young girl was initially puzzled but then somewhat proud, “Of course, my mother told me that our ancestors were fishermen in the river.”
Zanxing remained silent for a moment, about to warn her about the danger of such thoughts, when suddenly she heard Hong Su exclaim, nearly dropping the bowl in her hand.
“What’s wrong?” Zanxing asked, leaning halfway out of her chair.
“Mimi brought back something from outside again,” Hong Su replied, stomping her foot and crouching down to clean up the mess on the floor. The culprit, however, jumped onto the chair, only to be caught by Zanxing by the tail.
Zanxing held Mimi’s chin and pulled the item out of its mouth. “What’s this?” She was taken aback at first glance.
It was a tattered book, wet from Mimi’s saliva and crumpled. At first glance, one might mistake it for a few sheets of waste paper. The book wasn’t thick, just a thin volume of about ten pages. On the cover were four crooked characters: “The Peerless Heart Sutra.”
The Peerless Heart Sutra?
Wasn’t that name a bit too straightforward?
Zanxing brought the book close to her nose and sniffed. A damp, earthy smell mixed with a familiar floral scent wafted towards her. She hesitated for a moment and then instinctively looked at Mimi beside her. “Did you dig this out from under the pile of bones beneath the Liu Huan Grass?”
Mimi stretched out its paw with an air of elegance.
Zanxing: “…”
The sweet floral scent from the Liu Huan Grass still lingered on it, albeit faintly. Zanxing remembered using her Panhua Staff to pry under the Liu Huan Grass, uncovering many cultivator remains and some leftover items. She had deliberately avoided touching those things, fearing she might accidentally seize some opportunity she shouldn’t. She hadn’t expected Mimi to sneak back with one.
Mimi let out a few delicate cries, seemingly urging her to open it quickly.
Zanxing looked down at the book in her hands. The Xiao Yuan Pearl showed no reaction, suggesting the book wasn’t dangerous. However, the four characters on the cover were neither strong and powerful nor ethereal and graceful, the writing was extremely ugly, resembling the scribbles of a child learning to write.
Could this really be the Peerless Heart Sutra?
If it were truly a legendary Heart Sutra, she would naturally avoid keeping it with her. Not to mention that the Xiao Yuan Pearl had transformed from a spiritual treasure into an evil artifact. Who knows if the damned Heavenly Dao might have set another trap for her? What if this Peerless Heart Sutra turned out to be some kind of heretical text?
Deciding that if it was indeed a secret manual or something similar, she would simply pass it to Master Mu Cengxiao. This way, she could get rid of a hot potato and also do Mu Cengxiao a favor. After all, a Heart Sutra shouldn’t cause any anomalies in the hands of a main character.
With this thought, Zanxing opened the tattered book.
Upon opening it, the first thing she saw was a line of crooked small characters: “This technique is special and not suitable for ordinary cultivators. To practice this technique, one must first discard all their cultivation and start from scratch.”
Zanxing: “…”
Hong Su looked at Zanxing curiously. “Miss, why does your face look so strange?”
Zanxing snapped the book shut with a bang. What a joke! How was this any different from ‘to master this divine skill, one must first castrate oneself’? Who in their right mind would discard all their cultivation for a dubious technique? What if the book was a fraud? Was it possible that the remains in the pile became flower mud because they believed in such nonsense and discarded their cultivation, unable to withstand even the floral scent of the Liu Huan Grass?
Zanxing took a deep breath, pondered for a moment, and then reopened the book, flipping to the second page. It was still written in the same crooked script: “This Heart Sutra is absolutely true, with no falsehood. It is worth a try, and you will not suffer any loss. Practicing this Sutra will allow you to dominate the three realms, fear no gods or demons, and ascend to immortality.”
Zanxing closed the book with an expressionless face. There was no need to read further. This was clearly a joke of a book. Whoever believed it was a fool. The exaggerated claims sounded like a sales pitch for a scam, and the messy handwriting was worse than what might be written with ink smudges on the paper.
She casually tossed the book “The Peerless Heart Sutra” into her Qiankun Bag, deciding to keep it herself rather than give it to Mu Cengxiao. If she gave it to Mu Cengxiao, who knew what he might think? If Gu Baiying saw it, he would surely act all superior and criticize her for believing in such a dubious text.
Speaking of Gu Baiying, Zanxing then remembered she hadn’t seen him for a while. Previously, he had recklessly used his qi to enter the spiritual domain in the treasure trove, causing his already congested spiritual veins to worsen. Since returning to the sect, he had been in seclusion to heal and wait for Li Danshu to finish refining the elixirs. He hadn’t been seen in the Elysium Hall nor encountered Zanxing.
She should check on him.
Zanxing stood up and said to Hong Su, “I’m going out for a bit.”
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