Eternal Tale

Jin Yu gave them a deep look, feeling a sense of shock in her heart. It turned out that their cultivation path was different from that of the people in this immortal world.

“If it were anyone else saying this, I would have scoffed.” Jin Yu’s eyes showed a rare seriousness as she said in a deep voice, ”But if it’s the two of you, I certainly believe it!”

“What?! Old Ox, did you hear that?!” Chen Xun shouted excitedly, “Daoist Jin, you believe it too, right?”

“Moo?!” The big black ox’s eyes widened. Who said there was no path forward? They all believed there was.

Jin Yu smiled without speaking. She didn’t believe in the path, she just believed in them.

“After I leave, I don’t dare hope that you two will do much. I only ask that when you need something, you remember Moon Tower.” Jin Yu looked at Jiang Xuechen and with a wave of her hand, suppressed and extinguished her spiritual energy. “From now on, Xuechen will be the master of Moon Tower.”

A slight sweat appeared on Jiang Xuechen’s forehead. Wasn’t the ancestor giving her final instructions, just like her mother did back then...

“Daoist Jin Yu, we understand.” Chen Xun sighed softly, patting the big black ox. “But I’m afraid the Northern Territory has become quite dangerous. There must be quite a few Nascent Soul spirit beasts, right?”

“Moo!” The big black ox snorted angrily upon hearing the term ”spirit beasts.”

If they dared to charge from the Northern Territory to the Qian Nation and desecrate graves, it would make them regret ever being born in this world!

“Ancestor, can you not go?” Jiang Xuechen’s eyes welled up with tears, her voice was soft and heart-wrenching.

“Alive, we must see them; dead, we must see their bodies.” Jin Yu frowned deeply, with a trace of hidden anger between her brows. “Xuechen, when you entered Nine Palaces Mountain, how did my senior sisters teach you?”

Jiang Xuechen trembled, her eyes red, nodding repeatedly without daring to stop her any longer.

Chen Xun’s expression was complex. He understood that the feelings within the sect were akin to a big family, especially in a powerful faction, united in a way that was hard to imagine.

It was nothing like outsiders imagined, with constant scheming and infighting. Such factions wouldn’t last long and would destroy themselves.

“Daoist Chen, Daoist Ximen, I must set out today.” Jin Yu’s tone softened, not daring to treat them the same way she had treated Jiang Xuechen. “If Xuechen fails to serve you well, feel free to punish her.”

“You’re too kind, Daoist. Xuechen has been very considerate in her duties.” Chen Xun’s expression twitched, feeling as if he had become the ancestor of Moon Tower. “Besides, how could we dare punish the leader of Moon Tower? That would be against the rules.”

“Moo~” The big black ox wholeheartedly agreed with his elder brother. Jiang Xuechen had gone to great lengths for them, showing much care.

Jin Yu felt a slight relief, having only tested them a little. Moon Tower still had the strength to deal with Nascent Soul cultivators.

But these two—she really couldn’t find any faults with them. They seemed carefree, but their words and actions were always measured, never causing discomfort or offense.

Over the past century, not only had Moon Tower not suffered any losses, but they had also profited greatly from cultivating resources, even helping Foundation Establishment cultivators.

“Daoist Chen, Daoist Ximen.”

“Hmm?”

“Moo?”

“Please accept these two storage rings.” Jin Yu smiled kindly, taking out two storage rings from her sleeve. “Daoist Chen, please don’t refuse until I’ve finished speaking.”

“Alright.” Chen Xun was about to decline but was firmly stopped.

“These are merely tokens of my goodwill, with no other intentions.” Jin Yu said with a smile, “I have some connections with Ji Hua, the old monster from Moyu Pavilion, who sent me some Xumi ore. With nothing else to do, I crafted these two storage rings, large enough to hold a hundred-zhang ship.”

Jin Yu opened her hand, revealing the intricately patterned rings, one with a small figure and the other with a small ox.

Jiang Xuechen was shocked. Such large storage rings must have consumed a great deal of Xumi ore, and the crafting would have been extremely difficult.

It even required the power of infant fire—had the ancestor not even taken the time to recover from her injuries…

“Daoist Jin Yu, you…” Chen Xun frowned deeply. It seemed that when they stored the spiritual herbs earlier, Jin Yu had noticed their small storage rings.

He did need a larger storage ring to hold a giant flying boat, as he planned to visit Moyu Pavilion in a few years. However, he had heard that crafting storage rings was extremely complex, not something one could do casually in their spare time.

“Moo~~~” The big black ox’s eyes were already wide open, staring intently at the delicate storage ring with the small ox design.

“This is just a personal token of goodwill from me to the two of you, meant to assist you… to overcome the obstacle of Tian Duan Plains.”

“Of course, we do have a friendship.” Chen Xun smiled and cupped his hands in thanks. “Then we gratefully accept these storage rings, Daoist Jin Yu.”

Jin Yu’s eyes twinkled with a smile as she handed the rings to them. She gave Jiang Xuechen a deep look before her entire body was suddenly bathed in a vibrant sea of spiritual energy, causing the great hall to tremble.

Chen Xun and the big black ox stepped back slightly as Jin Yu’s blood and energy suddenly began to surge. His heart tightened, recalling Senior Brother Ji, who had once reverse-cultivated his vital essence.

In the sea of spiritual energy, a rainbow light outlined half of Jin Yu’s face, revealing a stunningly beautiful profile. Her collar slightly slipped back, revealing part of her graceful neck, white and delicate like carved ivory. Her silver hair was also tinged by the colorful rainbow light, giving her an indescribable gentle charm.

A young woman with silver hair slowly stepped out, her snowy, almond-shaped face with phoenix eyes filled with a smile.

Chen Xun couldn’t help but be taken aback by her beauty, realizing that this was Jin Yu’s true appearance.

“If I return, let’s meet again on the snowy peaks.”

“Of course.”

“Moo~”

Chen Xun and the big black ox nodded, feeling a bit emotional.

Jin Yu’s bright red lips curved slightly in a captivating smile before she transformed into a streak of rainbow light and vanished from Nine Palaces Mountain.

In another part of the hall, Jiang Xuechen bowed deeply, not rising for a long time. A few clear tears had already fallen to the ground.

“Senior.”

Xiang Jing appeared in the hall, respectfully bowing, slowly walking to Jiang Xuechen’s side.

“Hmm, we’ll be leaving now,” Chen Xun said with a gentle smile. This old man seemed like the steward of Nine Palaces Mountain.

“Moo~” The big black ox was feeling a bit down, still clutching the storage ring in its hoof.

After they left the great hall, they soared into the sky.

On the way.

“Old Ox, make sure to take good care of this storage ring. It carries a lot of sentiment.” As Chen Xun spoke, he slipped the storage ring onto his finger. “We should visit the Five Elements Sect in a few days. Something seems off in the cultivation world.”

“Moo!” The big black ox responded, already setting up a restriction on the storage ring before swallowing it whole.

Before long, they were sitting back in their rocking chairs on the cliffside.

The big black ox kept fiddling with the storage ring, liking it more and more, unable to put it down. Chen Xun, however, was lost in thought. He had already grasped the method of crafting the flying boat, and the cranes in the valley were growing strong.

Could a flying boat made from a 99,000-year-old crane spirit tree become a life-bound artifact? His eyes grew sharp as a grand design for the flying boat appeared in his mind, but he couldn’t avoid using spirit stones as a power source.

“Old Ox.”

“Moo?”

“If formations can use the energy of the five elements instead of spiritual energy, then why not boldly consider using the five elements to power the flying boat as well?!”

“Moo!”

The big black ox’s eyes sparkled with excitement as it looked at Chen Xun, who was leaning forward with his hands crossed, deep in thought, and nodded vigorously.

“Old Ox, do you have the confidence?” Chen Xun’s mouth curved into a wild grin. “I’ll take care of crafting the giant boat. The rest is up to you.”

“Moo~~~~” The big black ox snorted a hot breath, looking into the distance with unwavering determination.

Chen Xun’s gaze gradually deepened as he, too, looked toward the horizon.

“Old Ox, our plan to cross Tian Duan Plains officially begins.”