Chapter 43: Glimpsing the Secrets of Human Creation!

On the other side, Xu Xing and Chi Jiuyu continued upward after leaving the Iron-Tooth Crocodile Garden.

"Hurry up, Uncle!" Chi Jiuyu called from higher up.

Xu Xing always moved at a leisurely pace, so she often had to stop and wait.

After several such pauses, the two finally reached the summit.

The summit was flat and wide, a vast square that looked as if half the mountain had been cleanly sliced away.

In fact, that was exactly what had happened: when the place was first built, the owner had specially hired a Nascent Soul sword cultivator to cut off half the mountain with a single sword strike.

It was the hottest part of the day; the scorching sun beat down, and even the mountain breeze carried a hint of dry heat.

Around the square grew trees whose bark resembled overlapping scales, and their fruit hung like golden-scaled dragon eggs.

These were Dragon Scale Fruits—a fruit tree with no relation whatsoever to dragons.

Chi Jiuyu moved swiftly, raising her hand to release her sword, which shot like a falling star to sever the stems of two Dragon Scale Fruits, then caught them mid-fall with the blade and brought them back to her side.

Because the admission fee was expensive, all the fruits inside were free to eat.

After all, they weren't spiritual fruits; just sprinkle more Soul-Replenishing Elixir at night, have a few cultivators skilled in Spring Wind and Rain Magic cast a spell, and they'd grow back by morning.

"Here, this one's for you, Uncle."

She sheathed her sword and handed one of the fruits to Xu Xing.

Xu Xing did not refuse, taking it.

Peeling back the scale-like skin, he revealed the tender white flesh inside; Chi Jiuyu took a bite, then pointed ahead.

"Uncle, there seems to be a Sword-Riding Race up ahead—let's go watch!"

"Alright." Xu Xing gave a slight nod.

The Sword-Riding Race was one of the park's most popular events; even tourists could join after signing a liability waiver.

In the past, some had protested: why call it a "Sword-Riding Race" when the competitors weren't just sword cultivators?

The park's response was:

If you beat a sword cultivator in the race, your occupation becomes whatever you are.

Yet after all these years, the name remained unchanged.

"Uncle, how about we join and give it a try?" Chi Jiuyu was eager.

"Restricted to Foundation Establishment realm."

"Huh?"

She glanced at a nearby notice board and only then noticed a small line of text in the bottom-right corner.

【Restricted to Foundation Establishment cultivators only】

If someone were higher in realm, any conflict would be harder for the park to manage.

Seeing Chi Jiuyu's disappointment, Xu Xing smiled lightly: "But once we return to the sect, I could gather the younger generation from all sects for a competition."

"Huh?!" Chi Jiuyu's eyes lit up. "Don't worry, Uncle—I'll win the championship!"

She had no influence of her own, but her uncle was no ordinary person! If he wanted it, he could make it happen!

"Good that you have confidence."

It would also be interesting to see how much the sects' teleportation arts have improved over the years.

"Uncle, can I borrow your phone? I want to take a few more photos."

As for her own phone…

She'd just angered her master, and now she was too nervous to take it out.

"Here."

After taking the phone, she fiddled with it for a moment, opened the camera app, and prepared to take a photo.

Suddenly, a message popped up.

The sender's nickname was… "Ye Shijie."

Ye Shijie?! That was her master!

Chi Jiuyu's hand trembled, and the phone slipped from her grip—luckily, Xu Xing caught it.

"What's wrong?" Xu Xing asked with a smile.

Glug!

Chi Jiuyu swallowed hard.

"U-Uncle, how do you have my master as a friend?!"

"She's my senior sister—I adding her as a friend is perfectly normal. And why worry? She doesn't even know it's you."

That's right! Master doesn't know it's me! Realizing this, she reached for the phone again—but this time, he didn't give it to her.

"I know exactly what you're trying to do," Xu Xing said.

"..."

No, Uncle, we're family—don't be so formal!

…………

In the evening, Xiao Fan returned home.

After work, he visited his older brother at the hospital and handed his salary to his mother, who was caring for him; his father, on night shift, had already left.

He stood silently for a long while before closing the door and stepping inside the empty house.

After drinking a glass of water, he went straight to his bedroom.

His old apartment had been sold; now he lived in a rented one, so his bedroom was tiny—after placing a bed, there was barely room to move.

A sliver of sunlight streamed through the window, revealing countless floating dust particles.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he took out the jade box from his chest again.

The jade was smooth, translucent, and milky white, utterly seamless—unless you noticed that extremely fine crack, you'd never realize it was a jade box.

Maybe… open it and take a look?

Once the thought arose, it could no longer be suppressed.

Even if it turned out to be nothing but a cruel joke, wouldn't that be better than clinging to impossible fantasies forever?

He gritted his teeth and applied slight pressure with his right hand.

Uh… it didn't open.

Huh, is it stuck this tightly?

Xiao Fan stood up, gripped the jade box with both hands and strained—his entire face flushed red, yet the jade box showed not the slightest sign of opening.

What the hell is this thing! I'm Foundation Establishment, even if only a fake one—surely I shouldn't be unable to open a mere box? This thing isn't ordinary! Realizing this, he frowned, then walked out of the bedroom to fetch his flying sword, wedging its blade into the jade box's crack, trying to pry it open.

But even when the flying sword's blade began to bend, the jade box remained utterly unmoved.

He set down the flying sword and examined the jade box closely—none of that exertion had left even a single scratch on it.

"Could this… really be some kind of treasure?"

After thinking for a moment, Xiao Fan summoned a thread of true qi and attempted to channel it into the jade box.

Like a clay ox sinking into the sea, the thread of true qi vanished into the jade box without triggering any reaction whatsoever.

This doesn't work either? Just as he was about to set the jade box down and fetch his flying sword to perform blood recognition, a powerful suction surged from the jade box.

"Shit!"

Xiao Fan was startled and jerked his hand violently—but he couldn't shake it loose.

Within his dantian, in that subtle and fragile Dao foundation, a wisp of energy was drawn out by the suction, traveling along his meridians, spreading to his palm, and entering the jade box.

Crack! A soft sound echoed—the suction vanished, and the jade box rolled to the floor.

Huh? Xiao Fan froze, staring at the jade box on the ground—and saw that it was now half-open.

Opened? After hesitating two seconds, he still stepped forward to pick it up. I'm just a hopeless waste—what could anyone possibly want to scheme for?

With a self-deprecating thought, he tried opening the jade box again—and this time, it opened effortlessly.

He hurried to look inside—and froze.

Inside was… a drop of blood?

It was a crystal-clear drop, as if faint pulses could be heard, resembling red fei jade.

What is this thing? Before he could ponder further, the drop of blood suddenly came alive, transforming into a streak of crimson light that shot into his third eye.

His vision blurred, and within his soul, a vast, ancient voice echoed.

"Today, we shall glimpse the secret of humanity's creation!"

Accompanying this voice was a pain as if his entire body had been crushed and sliced by a thousand blades!

"Aaaah!!!"

Xiao Fan collapsed to the ground, curling up as he screamed in agony.

Yet at that moment, a figure appeared on the empty sofa—ordinary in appearance, gentle in aura.

He gazed at Xiao Fan writhing on the floor, a faint smile appearing on his face.

"Seize the wind when fortune favors you, rise with the current—the opportunity lies before you; whether you grasp it is up to you."

Please collect, please follow! (Chapter end)