Chapter 340: The Contents of the Ring

Chapter 340: The Contents of the Ring

When Xia Chichi spoke harshly of the Fire Serpent of Yi’s dress, it was just because she saw the other party as a rival and wanted to put her down. In truth, Yue Hongling’s red attire was chic and elegant, and the red ceremonial robes of Vermillion Bird and the Fire Serpent of Yi were equally mysterious and enchanting—they were not at all tacky or gaudy, and they were actually quite stunning.

However, the current set of clothes before her was genuinely gaudy. If it were a wedding dress, it might be forgivable or understandable, but this was supposed to be regular clothing, yet it somehow managed to look like a wedding dress. Xia Chichi could not fathom where Venerable Vermillion Bird had found such a thing. If she were to wear this outside, she felt that the cult members outside would surely laugh at her.

The venerable must be getting old... What kind of taste is this?

Despite feeling pitiful, Xia Chichi bathed and put on the “lovingly chosen” red clothes that her master had given her, feeling that she still had to show her appreciation for the gift.

During dinner, Vermillion Bird took small bites of rice, glancing at her disciple every now and then, “Not bad, not bad. Chichi, you look quite pretty in that red dress.”

Xia Chichi forced a smile. “Venerable, you’ve got great taste.”

Seeing her poor disciple wearing something she clearly did not like but still having to express gratitude was quite satisfying, but not entirely.

Her comment about Chichi looking quite pretty was not completely sarcastic. To her surprise, Xia Chichi really did manage to still look quite good even in such gaudy clothes. The Earth Deer of Liu and the other cult members just found it a bit odd since the saintess usually did not wear red, but they did not think much of it otherwise.

Vermillion Bird was not familiar with terms like “buyer’s show” and “seller’s show.”[1] A beautiful person could make pretty much any outfit look good. Unfortunately, because of how beautiful Xia Chichi was, the effect that Vermillion Bird wanted to achieve was not quite achieved, and so she did not feel as satisfied as she had expected to be.

Instead, she even felt a bit envious.

This little witch really is beautiful. Her youthful vigor alone is enviable. No wonder he likes her so much. I’m getting old... I’m already turning twenty-nine this year.

The thought of crossing the thirty-year mark was enough to send chills down a woman’s spine.

He was right. She had not really lived for herself much. In the blink of an eye, her youth had passed, and she had not even gotten to taste certain pleasures of life.

Unconsciously, Vermillion Bird’s mind drifted to the intimacy she shared the previous night—that domineering advance as he held her...

“Umm... Venerable?” Xia Chichi’s cautious voice from across the table interrupted her thoughts.

Vermillion Bird snapped back to reality, glaring at the little witch across her with fierce eyes, “What is it?”

“I... I’ve finished eating. I’m going to copy down the scriptures.”

“Mm.” Vermillion Bird collected her thoughts and sighed. “Chichi...”

Now, with his spirit stronger and more refined than before, he could observe the space inside the ring more clearly and in greater detail. The interior seemed to be in an independent vacuum state, with all items floating in mid-air. Dragon Bird occupied the central position, arrogantly claiming the prime spot. Zhao Changhe had initially worried it might clash with the sword, but it seemed to completely ignore it.

No wonder it paid it no attention, the sword isn’t even a proper sword. It’s just an unrefined blade.

Using the Crane Controlling Art, Zhao Changhe nudged the massive Dragon Bird aside from its central position. His true qi extended like a physical arm, but it lacked the dexterity of his own hands. Its movements were extremely rough and consumed a significant amount of energy.

This level of awareness in using the technique was something he had not even previously considered. He truly had to practice this technique a lot in order to achieve better control of his true qi. At a certain point, it could even prove invaluable in combat situations.

Zhao Changhe even had a vague feeling that this might be a prerequisite for sword-controlling techniques or perhaps even flying on a sword.

Leaving that for later contemplation, Zhao Changhe cautiously enveloped the half-forged sword with his true qi and swiftly extracted it from the ring. He noted that even this simple task had nearly completely depleted his true qi. If he wanted to perform more complex maneuvers, how much more true qi would he require?

Shaking his head, he shifted his attention to the sword.

Since it was an unfinished sword, it naturally did not have any engravings or patterns, and it lacked a spirit to even provoke Dragon Bird’s pride. However, Zhao Changhe still quickly noticed that the forging was top notch; with the will of the heavens and the stars laid within, the groundwork for sword intent was already prepared.

This ring had been enshrined on an altar inside the Black Tortoise Secret Realm. It made sense for it to contain the will of the stars, as it was likely a sword that the Black Tortoise of the previous era forged for themself and it was left unfinished due to the cataclysmic collapse of that era.

Zhao Changhe wondered if he should hand it over to the Four Idols Cult, but it seemed pointless to do so. After all, it was an unfinished sword. Finishing it was likely a complex task, and those of the current era were unlikely to possess the ancient methods and capabilities to do it. Moreover, Black Tortoise already had the ancient sword of the Dragon Emperor. He thus felt it best to keep it for now and consider if he should hand it over to them later.

Zhao Changhe put the unfinished sword back into the ring and took out the book that looked like a manual.

He expected it to be another thing related to the Black Tortoise, but he was surprised to find that it was not even a manual at all.

It was actually titled Atlas of Mountains and Rivers.

Flipping through the pages, he found that each page depicted bizarre landscapes and recorded strange beasts and treasures, most of which were unknown in the current era. The locations of the mountains and rivers were largely unrecognizable, and the creatures unknown. The only familiar entry was the Dragon Elephant Blood Ginseng, but it was simply noted to originate from Kunlun.

Zhao Changhe’s first thought was that it resembled the Classic of Mountains and Seas of the modern world.[2] However, unlike the Classic of Mountains and Seas, this Atlas of Mountains and Rivers seemed to document actual places and creatures from the previous era.

His eyes fell on one particular page, which read, The Shiwan Mountain, home of the Gu Tribe. They call themselves the Spirit Tribe, practicing witchcraft and gu arts. Their methods involve mysterious blood and flesh rituals, and their techniques are strange and difficult to defend against. They possess an essence of origin that is worth studying. Their customs differ greatly from those of the Central Plains. When a man and woman fall in love, they use the heart-bonding gu. If one party becomes unfaithful, the resulting death is horrendous to behold.

1. There isn’t really a proper translation for these terms into english, so I just went with a direct translation for them. If you’re wondering, these terms are 买家秀 and 卖家秀. It’s basically just good-looking people acting as live advertisements for certain products. ☜

2. This is a Chinese classic text and a compilation of mythic geography and beasts ☜