CH 4

“Gather the Aura of the Earth and turn into Thunder! By the orders of God, punish all Evil! Form an Array!

“Ten thousand Swords are united by the entourage of the Heart of the Sword! Come forth!”

……

Jian Xingzi sat on the ground, smashing down one array after another. 666 was in his shihai. From the initial panic, now 66 only watched him like one watching an idiot.

“Daojun,” 666 was weary from watching him, “Just give up. We’re not in the same dimension. Stop wasting your energy.”

Jian Xingzhi ignored 666. Though, he was indeed a litte tired. He bent over and put his hand on his knees, panting lightly. He began to ponder. 

He had attempted all the ways to explore his shihai but he could not see nor touch this so-called System. However, this ‘System’ could talk to him and show him things. It says ‘Dimension’ something… what is dimension?? Is it another world?

Jian Xingzhi’s brain worked hard. Meanwhile, 666 yawned, utterly helpless with him.

Jian Xingzhi heard 666’s sound. He mulled it over and simply decided to meditate. He restarted his search for 666 in his shihai.

When 666 was yawned again, Jian Xingzhi condensed the primordial spirit of his Sword and aimed it fast at the source of the sound.

The Sword Intent[1] slashed straight to the edge of the shihai. It was actually a dangerous move on his part. If it was not stopped and crashed in his shihai, his shihai would inevitably be damaged. Yet, after a loud bang, his shihai wasn’t damaged. It was deathly still. Even the yawning sounds faded, making the surrounding area quiet. 

Jian Xingzhi realized something. He galloped in the direction where the sword had just struck and he discovered that the place he thought was the “edge” of his shihai was retreating wildly at a faster speed than he could track. 

This is not the edge of his shihai!

Jian Xingzhi instantly comprehended that the so-called Dimension said by the System may truly be another world and that world was connected to him by his shihai. Most likely, there was a barrier between them. This barrier was disguised as the edge of his shihai. The System could see through the barrier, but he couldn’t. That meant, as long as the barrier was split……

Jian Xingzhi condensed his sword again. 666 had enough of it and shouted, “Da Lao! If you have something, use your words, don’t use brute force!”

“What if I want to?”

“Da Lao,” 666 quivered, “I’m just saying this, but you don’t want to experience another Heaven Tribulation… do you?”

666’s words made Jian Xingzhi recall the pain he experienced when he tried to stab Jun Shu with a sword.

His heart shook but there was no fear on his face, “Do you believe I don’t dare to kill you?”

“You dare,” As the sound came, a yellow emoji wearing a small pink hat leaped out of the void. It landed and knelt down before Jian Xingzhi.  It raised its head, showing its tearful eyes, “Where in the world are there people you dare not kill? It’s just, it’s detrimental for you to kill me. If you kill me, you will lose your chance to go back to your previous life.”

“It’s not that I want to have bad blood with you,” Jian Xingzhi reacted coldly. “But there is one thing that you must not do, and that is to electrocute me like that.”

“Da Lao, I’m merely a worker,” 666 confessed bitterly, “In this world, rules are bound by Heaven and Earth, and I also have to listen to the rules given by my superior. We can’t mess around.”

“Then, what use are you?”

Jian Xingzhi swung his sword. 666 quickly hugged its head and shouted, “I’m useful! I’m pretty useful!”

Jian Xingzhi’s sword paused and 666 shuddered heavily. “I can help import your data from another world for you. I can help you legally evade the rules and regulations. I can help一”

“Speak human words,” Jian Xingzhi cut in. 666 halted and changed its words, “What I mean is, I can help you get back all your cultivation base from the Immortal Realm. I can also help you find ways to circumvent the rules. But, in general principle,” 666 stressed, “You are still obliged to act in line with Jian Zhiyan’s character.”

“What is the general principle?”

Jian Xingzhi frowned. 666 was quick to answer, “You can’t disturb the main plot. People who shouldn’t die must not die. Lastly, you must not let people discover that you are not Jian Zhiyan.”

“Then, what’s the difference between that and before?”

Jian Xingzhi lifted his sword up again and 666 shook her head madly, “It’s different! Very different! Da Lao! Look at this way, one of the principles is that people who shouldn’t die must not die, but that means, if they become disabled, it is still considered fine!”

Once again, Jian Xingzhi paused. 666 rushed to clarify, “You can’t let people discover your true identity, but it doesn’t mean you can’t do anything else. Outside of the plot, you are still the Big Boss! I will take care of these things for you and I promise I won’t let the Main System strike you down with the Heavenly Thunder!”

Jian Xingzhi understood and he nodded in satisfaction. “Good.”

In a blink, the sword in his hand vanished into the palm of his hand, “Then, I will spare your life this time.”

“Thank you! Thank you for your benevolence!”

666 stood up and wiped its sweat. Jian Xingzhi put his hands behind his back, “Now that I plan to go up the mountain to snatch Qin Wan away, what’s the best way to do it?”

“How about you pretend to be another person and sneak in, and then secretly一”

“Make it simple.”

Jian Xingzhi interrupted it and glanced back at Wen Xin Sect, “I can’t go back there directly using a spell, can I?”

“Of course, you can’t,” 666 reluctantly wrung out a smile. “Jian Zhiyan is a mortal, after all. You are not allowed to use any spell.”

“So I can only utilize my physical strength?”

Jian Xingzhi furrowed his brows. After a moment of thinking, 666 hesitated, “Or…”

“Or?” Jian Xinzhi’s voice contained a warning on it.

“Dig…” 666’s voice was shaking, “Dig a tunnel?”

Jian Xingzhi was taciturn. 666 sweated coldly and shivered, “If you dig a tunnel, you can avoid the mountain protection array without using any spell. Currently, it is the most feasible scheme for Jian Zhiyan to appear at the mountain gate. Still, digging a tunnel is time-consuming. It is not easy for an ordinary person to dig a tunnel outside the mountain gate into the Sect gate in only a few days…”

“Am I an ordinary person?”

Jian Xingzhi narrowed his eyes at 666 and 666 jerked its head left and right within a beat. Jin Xingzhi’s gaze shifted to the Wen Xin Sect and he hissed, “Isn’t it just a tunnel. Watch me, I will dig the tunnel to Wen Xin Sect within a day!”

Jian Xingzhi swore to do it, then he would definitely do it. He took a short break to recuperate his energy. Then, he used a spell to turn the vine into a hoe and immediately started working on it. 

While Jian Xingzhi was starting his Mighty Tunnel Project, Qin Wanwan was ready for sleep. She just laid on the bed when she heard the System’s indifferent prompt, “Host, it’s time for you to cultivate.”

“Ah?!”

Qin Wanwan didn’t believe her ears, “Cultivate?”

“Yes, you heard it right,” The System confirmed, “As the Great Female Lead, you have strict regulations and tasks. If there is no task, then you must at least cultivate for six shichen[2]. Your body had not recovered before, but now, you have recovered! You must start to work hard!”

“Six shichen… Isn’t that twelve hours?!” Qin Wanwan cursed, “Do you think I am a worker?!”

“A worker doesn’t necessarily work for twelve hours,” The System said with righteousness and strictness, “We are a very humane System.”

Qin Wanwan, “……”

“Quick, start it,” The System urged, “If you didn’t cultivate for enough time, there would be 10,000 volts of electric shock waiting for you……”

“Roger, Sir!” The moment Qin Wanwan heard “10,000 volts”, she fixed her clothes at once. Without passion or willingness, she guaranteed, “I will cultivate! I will cultivate it right away!”

She sat cross-legged on the bed and began to recall the things her mother had taught her. Still, in the end, in the Immortal Realm, she could only cultivate her physique and couldn’t cultivate her mind.

In this cultivation world, Qin Wan’s physique could be said to be a perfect Immortal physique. Although she, Qin Wanwan, was born with an Immortal body in the Immortal Realm, she had no Spiritual Roots nor did she have a Golden Core. Her parents created a “Fake Elixir” for her with lots of Spiritual Treasure, but a fake was a fake, her Golden Core was far inferior to those who have real Golden Core. 

And now, she merely used some Mind Cultivation Method from the Immortal Realm and instantly sensed the Spiritual Aura pouring in.

She had never entered the state of meditation before, but at this moment, when she closed her eyes and cultivated her mind, she entered it and lost track of the time. 

She was in a trance, as if in a dream. Just like the previous dream, she vaguely heard a dragon chant. She looked around and found herself standing on an island.  She lifted her head and saw a ladder connecting the ground to the sky. At the end of the ladder, there stood a sparkling golden gate.

She stood on the island and studied it from a distance. Suddenly, Qinglong poked its head out of the sea beside her and leaped back into the sea.

Along with the dragon chant, a ballad came from a distant place,

“The Exquisite Jade opens the Immortal Gate; The White Jade is broken to pieces, the suffering of all living creatures; A place where all Swords rest, a place to wait for someone who won’t return.”

Qin Wanwan listened to the ballad with a vacant look. She turned her head and looked at the increasingly large Longdan. It hung in the sky like a huge sun, exuding an azure light. 

For a whole day and night, Qin Wanwan meditated. At night the next day, a golden light rose to the sky from Qin Wanwan’s room. The whole Wen Xin Sect shook from it.

Song Xiniang, Jun Shu, and the others rushed to Qin Wanwan’s room together. Song Xinian blasted the door open and caught sight of Qin Wanwan covered with dirt. Everyone froze in their place. Qin Wanwan unhurriedly opened her eyes when she sensed the arrival of the outsiders. 

The dirt slipped from Qin Wanwan’s body bit by bit. Song Xinian was blank for a long time before he finally uttered some words, “Shi… Shimei…” 

He pulled out a forced smile, “You… have built the Foundation Establishment?”

Qin Wanwan had just turned into a waste who lost all her cultivation base in one night. Many expected that she required at least one year before she could recultivate into a Foundation Establishment.

Yet, she meditated only for one day, and voila! It took her only one day!

She skipped the Qi Condensation Realm and went straight to Foundation Establishment?!

Everyone’s eyes and mouth were fixed.[3] Even Jun Shu was no exception. He was staring at her in bewilderment the instant he understood the situation. 

Qin Wanwan was not surprised by her progress, though. After all, in the Immortal Realm, many built the Foundation Establishment in one day. 

She even heard that Jian Xingzhi was born with a Golden Core. 

Still, while she was not surprised, she was not really confident with this progress. She scratched her head from embarrassment, “That… Foundation Establishment in one day,” She raised her head and gave a humble smile, “Is not a really big deal, isn’t it?”

None answered her words. They all had some complications in their heart.

Even Jun Shu took half a year to build the Foundation Establishment and he was the fastest person to build it.

Regardless, Jun Shu was quick to react. He adjusted his expression and threw a careless smile, “Building the Foundation Establishment in one day, it seems that Wan’er many secrets that we don’t know.”

“People,” Qin Wanwan showed a generous expression, “Who has no secrets? Just like you like Su Yueli, but Su Yueli doesn’t like you. This secret, how many people know about it?”

“You!”

Jun Shu’s expression warped in an instant and Qin Wanwan turned to Song Xinian for help with panic in her eyes, “Shixiong!”

“Jun-shaozhu!”

Song Xinian let out a warning shout and the three of them formed a perfect closed loop.

The three of them were in a stalemate. Jun Shu broke it out and sneered, “How eloquent of you, I wonder just how long you can laugh in the end.”

Jun Shu flicked his sleeves and departed.

After Jun Shu left, Song Xiniang became aware that Qin Wanwan needed to wash. He directly gave her space and followed the others out.

When everyone was gone, Qin Wanwan rose to her feet. The dirt discharged from her body crackled and dusted to the ground. Qin Wanwan felt a little uncomfortable by her current situation and moved fast to the bathroom.

In the cultivation world, the water in the bathtub was generated and cleaned automatically, and thus, Qin Wanwan kept cleaning herself until she was satisfied with the result. After ten times rinsing the bathtub, she finally deemed herself clean enough and lay inside the bathtub to enjoy the pleasure of bathing.

At this time, Jian Xingzhi had dug a tunnel for a day and a night and he flourished to dig a tunnel to Qin Wanwan’s yard.

He held the shovel and took a little break. He surveyed the situation above with his shenshi. When he confirmed that there was no one outside, he poked the last bit of soil with the shovel and leaped up into the yard.

Qin Wanwan was humming a song in her bath. 

Jian Xingzhi carried a shovel. The surface of his face was dirtied with soil. And at this point, his previous appearance couldn’t be seen and one could mistake him for a ghost.

He stood outside and probed Qin Wanwan’s window. 666 repeatedly reminded him, “You have to remember to maintain your image. You are Jian Zhiyan, a male pet. You should be delicate both in your speech and movement. You can’t call her Qin Wan, you have to call Master…”

“You are getting on my nerves.”

The thing Jian Xingzhi desired the most at this time was to kill the System with this shovel in his hand, though it was not an easy feast. For the sake of shutting up this noisy System, he assured it, “Fine. I got it. I will call her Master.”

666 shut up at once. Its task was done and it dare not talk too much.

Jian Xingzhi fumbled outside Qin Wanwan’s window. He was a window away from her. He knocked on the window, pinched his throat, and began to articulate in a low voice, “Master~”

The flash he opened his mouth, he rolled his eyes and pushed down the urge to vomit.

Qin Wanwan was in her bath when she heard a horrifying “Master~” sound from the outside. She froze. All kinds of ghost stories she had heard in the past rushed to her mind in a beat.

Her mind blanked and she slowly cracked her head towards the window. The window gradually opened with a squeak. A black face covered with soil popped out from the window. She was scared silly and raised her hand to slap that face in a reflex. At the same time, she cried out in fear, “AHHH!!!!!’

The water droplets shone, reflecting the splendor of the fair skin. Thus, Jian Xingzhi received a slap square on his face in a daze. 

Soon afterward, he came back to his senses and realized what had happened. Though, when he heard the voice of disciples rushing in, he made a decision and jumped into the bathtub without delay. He covered Qin Wanwan’s mouth with his palm before she could make another sound.

He propped one hand on the bathtub and covered her mouth with the other. They were close at hand. His shadow towering over her, as if she was completely shrouded by him.

The sound was like a stone plunged in clear spring, creating ripples in the heart.

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Footnotes

剑意 – jiàn yì; Sword Intent. It contained the belief of the sword and this power was displayed through mental energy to slash through the void.When one had comprehended something similar to the Sword Intent and mastered it, they were the bane of mental energy techniques.↵

时辰 – shí chen. 1 shichen = 2 hours..↵

目瞪口呆 – mù dèng kǒu dāi; lit. Eyes and mouth are fixed. Terrified; be struck dumb with astonishment; stare openmouthed↵

Lei’s Corner

Happy Lunar New Year! May you have a lucky year this year! Gong xi fa cai, xin nian kuai le~!

Guess what will happen next. Doki Doki time? (Spoiler: No, it’s not. What do you expect from Jian Xingzhi?)

Also srrrahim, I don’t know if you will read this, but the extra chapters are out! 8 Chapters to be exact. 1 Extra about Qin Wanwan’s parents. 2 Extra about Qin Wanwan and cs’ life in the Immortal Realm after the main text. 1 Extra about the OG Qin Wan and Jian Zhiyan. And the other 4 Extra I won’t mention because of spoilers! It does contain things about the latter character such as the best ML, Xie Gutang, and the unfinished love story of a certain predecessor.