Chapter 2

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

“Ah!”

Chu Chen screamed, waking up from the endless darkness. All the things he saw in the darkness felt too real.

That withered figure sitting in the darkness gave him a strong impression, That was the Great Primal Daoist! The legend that split heaven and earth and ascended as the Heaven’s Path, the supreme being! Yet he had fallen on that ancient celestial mountain!

“Brother Chu, you’re awake!”

He heard a shout and a faint scent of a young woman was picked up by his nose, snapping him back to attention, seeing a beautiful tender looking face appear before him.

The girl whimpered, “I thought…I’ll never see you again!”

“I-i-it’s fine. I just had a slightly longer dream.” Chu Chen patted her head and wiped the tears from the girl’s face, feeling sorry. “Meng’er, you saved my life again. How many times have you saved me over the years? Big brother is really useless…”

The girl jumped into Chu Chen’s embrace and hugged him tightly, fearing that he would disappear the moment she let go.

Chu Chen teared up a little. This stupid little girl had done too much for him, which he knew full well.

Despite being a rare cultivation genius, she had not only faked her own cultivation stage but also intentionally slowed down her cultivation speed, fearing that she would be separated from him if she were taken in as an internal disciple.

She thought he was kept in the dark, but every time he thought of those matters, he would feel guilty for being a burden to her.

Back when they first joined the sect, nobody cared for her when she was sick due to her unkempt appearance. Only he stuck around and took care of her without minding her dirty looks.

Who would have thought this naive little girl would decide to follow him for life. However, he was just a useless person. How was he worthy of having her follow him for life?

At that point, Chu Chen could not help feeling depressed.

“I knew that Brother Chu was a lucky guy and would overcome ill fate. You just recovered from sickness and your body is still weak. Lie in bed and rest up.”

Chu Chen realized that ever since his junior sister Tong Meng got out of his arms, she had been standing in front of him as though trying to keep something out of his view, unwilling to move her body.

“Meng’er, please move aside.”

Under Chu Chen’s insistent request, the girl begrudgingly moved away, letting Chu Chen witness the mess in the house, where clothes and books were thrown all over the place.

“Where’s my spade?”

“S-s-senior Brother Zhang borrowed it…” the girl’s face turned scarlet from nervousness.

“The bronze trunk I brought from my hometown?”

“I-i-it’s borrowed away.” The girl’s eyes were filled with tears as she repeatedly shook her head.

“What about my malachite sword? Where did the natal sword assigned by the sect to every disciple go?” Chu Chen’s eyes were filled with sadness. His fingers on the bed grabbed tightly as though they were trying to sink into the bed.

The girl could no longer hold back, bursting into tears. Her pretty, tear-stained face shook non stop. “Brother Chu, don’t worry. They will be recovered.”

“Meng’er, just tell me the truth. Was it Eldest Senior Brother Yao Jinghai who ordered it done?”

Tong Meng hesitated for a moment before finally nodding.

Chu Chen felt his chest tightened, causing him to breathe laboriously. He knew the external eldest senior disciple, Yao Jinghai, had always viewed him as a thorn by his side. Yao Jinghai had tried to have the highly talented Tong Meng be his Dao partner, but he was always rejected without hesitation.

After he learned that Tong Meng liked Chu Chen, Yao Jinghai had tried to find all sorts of opportunities to get him expelled from the sect.

“Senior Brother Yao got wind that Brother Chu Chen’s improving health, so…” Tong Meng muttered, “so while I was not around, he sent someone over to throw all over Brother Chu’s items and sword away. He said…since Brother Chu wouldn’t be able to fill the herb quota, you will surely be gone…so he can clear up this residence that you’re staying in…”

Bang!

Chu Chen punched forcefully on the wall, immediately causing him to bleed from the back of his palm. He did not feel any pain from his hand, only the congested feeling in his chest.

“Brother Chu, don’t worry. I’ve already asked people to search for the things at the trash field in the hills. I’ll go look for them personally as well.” The girl was wiping her tears, unsure of how to console Chu Chen.

“It’s fine. You’ve been taking care of me all this while. You must be tired. Go back and take a good rest.” Chu Chen let out a long sigh and rested his forehead on the bedpost.

“I’m not tired.” The girl shook her head, her eyes revealing a stubborn glint. She then sat next to Chu Chen and took his pulse, only standing up slowly after making sure his body was fine.

“Brother Chu just recovered from a severe illness. Your body is still weak. Please stay in bed and rest properly. I’ll go out for two days to hunt some wild game for you to nourish your body. Be good and wait at home for me, okay?”

After making several examinations on Chu Chen’s condition, the girl’s expression relaxed visibly and got ready to leave.

“Wait.”

“What’s wrong, Brother Chu?” the girl asked softly while turning around.

“Meng’er…you’re not going for some hunt. Instead, you’re helping me collect herbs right? You’ve not filled your own herb quota…just forget about me. I’ll think of something myself.”

Looking at the girl’s petite figure, Chu Chen’s gaze was filled with pain. He did not want to be a parasite, nor did he want to be a burden to her.

The girl was stunned for a moment with a gloomy look on her face. However, it disappeared as quickly as it came. She replied with a smile, “Don’t worry, Brother Chu. You don’t have to worry about anything about the herb quota. The most important thing now is to take care of your body. I’ll be back very soon.”

Having said that, the girl darted away as though trying to escape being captured by Chu Chen. Her beautiful body quickly vanished from his sight.

“Meng’er, you stupid little girl…”

Chu Chen sighed, feeling frustrated. It was only five more days to the deadline to submit his herb quota. Although his junior sister already gave him all the herbs she collected, he was still off by one catty.

That month, both their luck was especially bad. If nothing out of the ordinary happened, they would not even be able to collect enough for a single person’s portion.

With the junior sister helping him in the previous month, it already attracted the attention of the external elder. Moreover, his junior sister is once again refusing to fill her monthly herb quota for him. He really should not burden her any longer. 

Although Chu Chen was still firm on his stance for cultivation, after the life and death experience, he no longer felt the same stubbornness for remaining in Crystal Spring Sect.

However, he could not afford to leave. The external senior disciple, Yao Jinghai, was a legendary genius that only used a year of cultivation to reach the Spiritual Droplets Stage. If Chu Chen was expelled from the sect, Yao Jinghai would surely make a move on his junior sister. 

‘No matter what happens, I can’t be expelled. Otherwise, what would happen to my junior sister?”

Other people were able to condense spiritual droplets in a year, yet he was still stuck at the second level of Spiritual Mist Stage. The difference was like heaven and earth!

He was touched by the black fog, which should have killed him. He even experienced his soul leaving his body, yet he had miraculously come back to life.

Oddly enough, his body did not show any signs of discomfort apart from the slight exhaustion.

Having survived a disaster, Chu Chen felt that he should endure further no matter how hard it gets.

His body felt uncomfortable after lying in bed for a long time. He finally decided to continue what he did every time he got out of bed—cultivate.

Cultivation seemed to be a waste of effort for him. No matter how hard he tried, he would still be stuck at the second level of Spiritual Mist Stage.

However, Chu Chen’s heart was clear. His insistence on cultivation might give him the slim chance of growing stronger, but giving up cultivation will make that impossible.

Chu Chen sat cross-legged and slowly shut his eyes. He then started activating the Spirit Drawing Mantra and quickly fell into a meditative state.

His surroundings turned eerily quiet. Something felt wrong. It felt horribly wrong. Previously, whenever he entered a meditative stance, the air around his body would be filled with countless air currents like a hurricane that quickly drowned him out.

This time, however, the ferocious air currents were all gone. He could feel countless spots of light in the air around him. Spiritual energy was all around him like the stars in the sky.

‘What happened? Did my senses change after the fall?’

Chu Chen activated the Spirit Drawing Mantra once more. His Qi ocean seemed to have transformed into a black hole, sucking in all the star-like spiritual gleam from his surroundings into his Qi ocean.

Chu Chen felt an unexplainable comfort. Spiritual energy continuously entered his body. One part of them refined his skin, body, blood, and bones. Meanwhile, a bigger portion of that energy was transformed into his innate essence in his Qi ocean.

In less than six hours, a blinding white spiritual light burst out from his body, signifying a breakthrough of his stage.

Chu Chen almost went crazy. ‘I’ve broken through just like that?’

That was too unrealistic. Was he dreaming? What had gone wrong!?