Chapter 40

Chapter 40

The young man and his attendants happened to walk onto a plain, where visibility was less than two meters ahead, causing the group to scatter like headless flies.

The wind was so loud that they had to shout to be heard, "Young Master, hold on a little longer."

The young man's vision blurred, his whole body powerless. He regretted not listening to that man's advice.

If they had delayed by a day, they could have avoided this disaster. He had escaped the assassin's blade, only to face death in this calamitous storm.

Two more attendants fell, instantly freezing into ice sculptures, followed by others collapsing one after another. In the end, only the leader in black robes and the young man remained.

The young man feebly leaned on his man, "Qiao Yi, don't worry about me, quickly leave and find shelter."

The two were close, though the young man's voice was faint and difficult to hear over the wind, Qiao Yi understood his young master wanted him to escape alone.

Qiao Yi pretended not to hear, as he was an orphan with no ties. He had been rescued by the lord in his youth, which led to his current position. He considered this life a debt to repay.

He fought desperately to protect the young man, but mere human effort could not defy nature's might.

The two leaned on each other as they fell into the snow, instantly buried under the accumulating drifts, erasing all traces.

The howling plain sounded like the heavens in a rage, intent on destroying the earth.

Not only the young man and his attendants were buried in this blizzard, but half of those traveling to Lingnan rushed out of the mountain caves when the snow stopped, eager to continue their journey.

They had run out of food and could not wait for the snow to melt, hoping to reach the next town quickly.

Some chose to wait for the snow to melt, patting their chests in relief at narrowly escaping death.

Village Chief Yang led his people, heeding the warnings of the two clan elders, avoiding this disaster.

The blizzard raged for three full days and nights before gradually weakening into moderate snowfall.

This snow lasted two months, during which the villagers had to clear the accumulation three times.

By the fourth month, it snowed for three days, then stopped for a day, or snowed for two days, then stopped for half a day. Many families in the village had run out of food, and the previous harmony had dissipated.

Some began venturing into the deep mountains in search of food, despite the dangers—those who did not freeze to death became prey for vicious beasts.

At the moment the purple light descended, Chang Le fell into a deep slumber, or rather, everyone in the village except Chang'an and her father fell unconscious. Even the animals hiding in the deep mountains cowered in fear and trembled.

Miraculously, no one outside the mountains could see this purple light that only shone for three breaths.

Chang'an was speechless, realizing the jade pendant's slow reaction time.

A nine-clawed purple dragon formed from the purple light and entered Old Gu Six's brow, vanishing along with the light. Old Gu Six sat motionless with his eyes closed.

As Chang'an approached to check on him, an invisible force pushed her away, merely preventing her from touching Old Gu Six.

Chang'an sat watching Old Gu Six, intending to ask him about the situation once he awoke.

She waited until late at night, struggling to stay awake and occasionally adding firewood to the pit.

She did not want the person lying on the ground to catch a cold, as falling ill during such times would be especially troublesome.

Just as Chang'an was about to doze off from exhaustion, Old Gu Six awoke, a purple flash flickering across his eyes before fading.

Seeing him awake, Chang'an's drowsiness vanished, and she excitedly grabbed Old Gu Six's hand, asking, "Father, how are you feeling? Is anything amiss?"

"I'm fine, it's just that there's a purple dragon in my mind," he said, a bit bewildered. Others might curse one for having a brain full of fish, but in his case, his mind housed a dragon.

Chang'an: "...Dad, that's the Sea of Consciousness," not knowing whether Old Gu Six would want to go through the trials again after regaining his memories and recalling his current foolish state.

"Oh, I can't get rid of it," Old Gu Six said with a hint of grievance, for who wouldn't be concerned if a foreign entity suddenly appeared in their mind?

"Why would you want to get rid of it?" Chang'an, unaware of Old Gu Six's train of thought, asked in confusion.

"I'm afraid if it stays in my mind, I'll become an idiot," he said worriedly. What would his daughter do if he became a complete fool?

Chang'an tried to reassure him, for someone who seemed so clever, how could he be so daft at times? Was it perhaps an aftereffect of failing the trials five times?

"It won't harm you. The fact that you were able to open that jade token means you're destined for it. It might even protect you."

The purple dragon in Old Gu Six's Sea of Consciousness propped its massive head on its front paws, watching as Old Gu Six acted foolishly.

Tsk, these were all Old Gu Six's embarrassing past moments. It had to record them so that it would have a chance to turn the tables on him in the future.