Chapter 155: Cause and Effect are Real

Cause and Effect are Real

"Young Master Chong is quite good to me. Rather than saying he offended me, it would be more accurate to say that you offended me. From now on, do not send any more incarnations that have romantic entanglements with others to see me. Otherwise, the 'you' I see will not be the real you, and I won't be able to muster even a shred of intimacy in my heart."

People of the Demon Sect have always been willful and reckless. Ruan Ci was still afraid that Qu Qu Tan Yue was only agreeing with his words while privately dealing with Young Master Chong and Yue'er, only to come back and claim credit from her later. She hurriedly urged, "And don't kill the other ladies either; just stop seeing them, that will be enough."

This incarnation of Qu Qu Tan Yue had a gentle personality and was even more taciturn than before. If it were a previous incarnation, he might have said, "My lady is truly magnanimous, worthy of the demeanor of a primary wife." This incarnation merely lowered his eyes and said, "Good," without any further words. Even the smile he often wore was now only revealed occasionally, making it appear all the more precious. Looking into Ruan Ci's eyes, however, his gaze was filled with affection and was extremely focused, as if simply looking at Ruan Ci was enough to make him feel very joyful.

If he wasn't plotting some other scheme, then it was almost a certainty that Qu Qu Tan Yue had begun to be backlashed by the Love Seed. Ruan Ci couldn't describe the feeling in her heart. Previously, she had occasionally thought that if someone were to admire her, it would surely be very interesting, and she hadn't failed to notice the slight goodwill of others, but that was mostly just a trace of sentimentality from accidental connections. But now that someone was truly enamored with her like this, Ruan Ci only felt that the power of the Love Seed was truly hair-raising. Qu Qu Tan Yue, Young Master Chong, Meng Lingyue, and others, regardless of their cultivation level, had their affections and natures quietly altered under the influence of the Love Seed, and their clear spiritual platforms didn't even have the slightest awareness of it. This Love Cultivation is truly one of the most terrifying methods in the myriad heavens and worlds.

Looking at Qu Qu Tan Yue again, she felt that this incarnation's personality was likely close to the original body; the original body was probably just such a taciturn person of peerless appearance. In the past, both were acting, so she didn't feel anything, but now that Qu Qu Tan Yue was revealing his true self and treating her with deep affection, Ruan Ci still had to pretend not to notice, which was truly exhausting to act out. She couldn't help but be curious in her heart: if Qu Qu Tan Yue's original body had such a personality, why would he choose to cultivate such a technique?

Because Mo Shenai was nearby, and this Cold Rain Marsh now didn't know how many Grotto-Heaven cultivators' divine senses were gathered, it wasn't easy to ask, so she could only suppress it for the time being and head toward the Merman Small Market together with Qu Qu Tan Yue. Along the way, Mo Shenai stared unblinkingly at Qu Qu Tan Yue, and Ruan Ci couldn't help but tease her, "If you also want to be the Young Madam of the Profound Soul Gate, I think the gentleman is quite willing. Why don't you take this opportunity to ask him."

Young Master Yue acted as if he hadn't heard, only moving a bit further away from the two women. Mo Shenai's face burned red, looking even more like a monkey. She raised her hand, pretending to hit Ruan Ci, "If it weren't for this Expectation-Nurturing Ring today, I would fight you to the death."

Ruan Ci laughed, "Then I'll take back the Expectation-Nurturing Ring and see if you have the guts."

Mo Shenai let out a loud cry, jumped a few steps away while holding the Expectation-Nurturing Ring, and complained, "You really don't leave any leeway at all, wanting to do everything to the extreme. If you take back this monkey ring, I won't fight you; I'll run away immediately, run far away, so that even if you meet Brother Zhong, you won't be able to get your sister back."

She was as good as admitting that she couldn't beat Ruan Ci, but this wasn't strange; Ruan Ci had a Universe Magic Treasure in hand, and although Mo Shenai's talent was miraculous, it naturally couldn't compare to the Donghua Sword during a fight. Ruan Ci laughed, "Oh, you covet my gentleman right in front of me, and you still say I don't leave any leeway."

She curled her finger and scraped it across her face a few times, shaming Mo Shenai, "What thick skin."

Mo Shenai wasn't flustered, glancing over with a smile. Ruan Ci actually felt as if she had been seen through, but Mo Shenai didn't point it out. Although this woman looked naughty and mischievous, when it came to the skill of observing words and expressions, she was truly much stronger than Ruan Ci. At this moment, she only defended herself, "You don't understand—in your eyes, in this cultivation world, almost everyone is a handsome man or a beautiful woman, so even if your gentleman's appearance is outstanding, it's nothing strange, and there's no need to stare straight at him. But what these eyes of mine see is the true appearance, do you understand? It's the look before entering the Dao, the look they should have today. Those Jade Face Pills and beauty-nurturing techniques can indeed make others look delicate and moving, and even slight defects in appearance can be slowly resolved by the nourishment of the techniques, but when I look, these are all useless. Like your gentleman and you sisters, who are naturally born looking this good, so what if I like to look a few more times!"

Only then did Ruan Ci know why Mo Shenai didn't look very good; thinking about it, when she looked at herself, it was naturally always her true appearance, so any technique to improve appearance could only deceive outsiders, and for Mo Shenai herself, it was ineffective.

This woman's talent was actually so miraculous, which was also astonishing. Ruan Ci couldn't help but say, "If so, wouldn't you be unable to face a Grotto-Heaven True Person in their true body?"

Mo Shenai said, "That wouldn't happen. When you observe a Grotto-Heaven true body, your divine sense will be scorched, but it's not like that when I look. It's hard for me to explain clearly, but I've been playing under my father's seat since I was a child, and whether it's Grotto-Heaven or Nascent Soul, looking at them is no hindrance to me, and I can even see many other things."

Ruan Ci was very curious and wanted to ask in detail, but Mo Shenai refused to say more, only saying, "If I told others everything I saw, I really wouldn't be alive today. Father often says he wants to send me to the Buddhist Sect to learn the Silent Zen; he says I don't need to cultivate my eyes anymore, but it's true that I need to cultivate this mouth."

The Langhuan Zhou Tian is so vast that unless one is a person who has reached the pinnacle, low-ranking disciples have almost no way of knowing. Ruan Ci had never heard of the reputation of True Person Cuiyun before, but hearing Mo Shenai speak of him now, he was indeed a compassionate father who was worldly-wise and understood the ways of the world. Since he had the affinity to take Mo Shenai as his foster daughter, his weight in the Taiwei Gate was probably not light. Because of this, she said, "I won't ask about other things, but regarding the gentleman, it's the same if I ask him; you surely won't have any scruples. What did he look like when you saw his female form before?"

Mo Shenai laughed, "Ah, I understand. Then it's no harm to tell you that. His female form is a void in my eyes; almost all incarnations are like this, only a bit of cause and effect is real. As for this incarnation today, besides cause and effect, the skin is also real—his original body really does look like this."

Qu Qu Tan Yue happened to raise his eyes and look over from not far away, his gaze deep. Ruan Ci felt her heart jump slightly from being looked at by him, so she didn't dare to ask any further, changed the subject, and laughed, "Then isn't this divine eye of yours amazing? If someone wants to use an incarnation to stir up trouble, you can see through it at a glance, and if you can also distinguish cause and effect, I'm afraid many conspiracies and tricks would have nowhere to hide in front of you."

Mo Shenai cried, "Wow, so you were just fishing for information from me!"

Ruan Ci covered her mouth and laughed, "Didn't you say you don't consider me a friend at all? Since everyone is an enemy, what's strange about me fishing for information from you?"

There was almost never peace between Mo Shenai and Ruan Ci; they were always provoking each other. At this moment, Mo Shenai was at a disadvantage, so she was naturally puffed up with anger. After pondering for a moment, she turned triumphant and laughed, "What are you afraid of? Even if you know, you won't go around spreading it—if you dare to talk about my affairs, I'll go everywhere talking about yours."

This threat of hers was extremely effective. Ruan Ci immediately shut her mouth. Qu Qu Tan Yue let out a light laugh in the distance. Mo Shenai said loudly, "And you're the same! If you dare to talk about my affairs, don't let me see your incarnations in the future!"

Her saying this was as good as implicitly admitting that she could distinguish the cause and effect of incarnations. As long as she had seen an incarnation and recognized the original body, then all the divine senses transformed by the original body in the future, even if their appearance changed, could still be recognized at a glance. Moreover, this woman was protected by Grotto-Heaven and it was almost impossible to kill her. Just imagine how high her future achievements would be? Ruan Ci also secretly called it amazing in her heart, saying half-truthfully, "Gentleman, hurry and transform another divine sense over to take her down. How can such a future be missed?"

Qu Qu Tan Yue laughed lightly, "Why bother? Having you is already enough."

His original body had already connected with Ruan Ci, and to marry Mo Shenai, he could only simulate an incarnation to come. With Mo Shenai's status, she naturally couldn't agree, not to mention that at this moment Mo Shenai was only admiring his beauty, and it was far from enough to truly get married. If Qu Qu Tan Yue only used the Love Seed to stir up the affections of many ladies, it probably wouldn't work on Mo Shenai. Mo Shenai's divine eyes might even be able to see through the Love Seed—

Ruan Ci's heart stirred, but now that Qu Qu Tan Yue was at her side, it wasn't easy to ask Mo Shenai to distinguish it on her behalf, so she had to suppress it for the time being and not mention it. However, she already understood why Mo Shenai was so at ease about her own safety; thinking about it, her foster father would never give up on her no matter what, and even Ruan Ci herself, not to mention whether the two were compatible, couldn't bear to kill her at the moment.

She was the most inquisitive, and Mo Shenai was the most talkative. The two women had countless words together. Ruan Ci wanted to ask Mo Shenai how many true beauties she had seen in her life. Mo Shenai counted on her fingers and said, "You two sisters are both born looking like this; the techniques are nothing more than nourishing the temperament. I think your sister is more beautiful, but you are not bad either. And your gentleman, Young Master Yue, um, let me think, your Shangqing Gate also has a Young Lady Xu, I've seen her, and she doesn't look bad at all. In our gate, True Person Qingshan also looks good—"

Ruan Ci interrupted, "I've seen True Person Qingshan, but at that time he was in a female form."

Mo Shenai laughed, "That's True Person Qingmiao's appearance. True Person Qingshan doesn't look like that, but for thousands of years, he has always shown himself in True Person Qingmiao's appearance. His true body is also very handsome, but I think Young Master Yue looks better."

She had lived in Grotto-Heaven for a long time, and there weren't many cultivators that both of them knew. After finishing talking about a few, she talked about the mermen and cloud maidens raised in Grotto-Heaven, saying, "These spirits and monsters are born from the essence of the heaven, earth, and five elements, so they are naturally born looking better. Among them, mermen are the most beautiful, so in every Grotto-Heaven, as long as there is water, they like to raise mermen. Not only are they good-looking, but they also have many uses. They can regulate the essence of water and protect heavenly materials and earthly treasures. Many water-attribute precious medicines in Grotto-Heaven need to be carefully cared for by Nascent Soul mermen to grow. Even the mermen in this Cold Rain Marsh are said to have been moved here by a Grotto-Heaven cultivator before, and only after a long time did they multiply on their own and develop many changes."

The three of them talked as they walked, and had gradually moved upward, getting further and further away from the Black Water Domain. The water quality also became clearer and brighter, as if gradually carrying a trace of crystal light. In the distance, faint singing sounded again, clear, sweet, and distant, as if it were threads trembling in the water. The three of them followed the threads, and after walking for a few more days, the singing became clearer and louder, still singing ancient and prehistoric ballads, such as "The North Wind is Cool" and "Guan Guan Ju Jiu." At this time, the surrounding momentum field was no longer uninhabited. Although the distance between each other was still vast, one could still faintly feel the momentum of cultivators in the surroundings constantly changing, all heading toward a certain point. Thinking about it, that must be the Merman Small Market.

Because Ruan Ci had already revealed her identity at the Floating Cloud Pier and didn't want to cause extra trouble, she put on the mask she had obtained from the Hengze Heaven and transformed into a male form. Mo Shenai was very interested in this mask and wanted to trade with Ruan Ci, saying, "This is not an object of this Zhou Tian, and it doesn't even belong to this universe; the Dao rhyme is different. I know you are not short of spirit jade—in fact, even if you want it, I don't have any on me right now. You give me the mask, and I will concentrate my energy for you, look three times, and I will tell you everything I see exactly as it is, and I will never tell a lie again."

Ruan Ci was very moved by her proposal, but in the end, she couldn't bear to part with the mask, shook her head and said, "This is something I obtained from Hengze Heaven, and there are no more. Moreover, since you want it so much, it shows that you can't see through this mask, so this mask is very useful when dealing with you, which is why you want it. I cannot give it to you."

Before Mo Shenai could speak, Qu Qu Tan Yue suddenly smiled slightly. Just as Ruan Ci was wondering, Mo Shenai had already laughed loudly, "I indeed cannot see through this mask, which is why I want to collect it. But you say this mask is extremely useful for dealing with me, and I have to laugh. How many things in the world can I not see through! Since I know this treasure is in your hands, then as long as I look over and find that I cannot see through this mask, wouldn't I be able to guess it's you?"

Ruan Ci thought about it carefully and it was indeed so. Among all the things she could see through, a face she couldn't see through naturally attracted Mo Shenai's attention even more. She rarely said something stupid, and her face couldn't help but turn red. She didn't blame Mo Shenai, but blamed Qu Qu Tan Yue, "What are you laughing at!"

Qu Qu Tan Yue looked at her and smiled again. This incarnation of his really had very few words, but his eyes were full of affection, as if he could understand her words. At this moment, his eyes were fixed on Ruan Ci, and the affection in his eyes was infinite, as if he were saying, 'I'm not laughing at you for being ridiculous, but laughing at you for being cute.'

Ruan Ci's heart stirred slightly, and she no longer vented her anger on Qu Qu Tan Yue. She went around to Mo Shenai's side, took out a veil to put on her. This veil could also somewhat conceal a cultivator's aura, and could even cover the collar on Mo Shenai's neck.

Qu Qu Tan Yue also didn't seem to want to reveal his true face at will, so he put on a bamboo hat and lowered the brim. The three of them were dressed and followed the singing. Not long after, they saw a black shadow in the distance. Looking closer, it was a kind of water grass often seen in the Cold Rain Marsh. In the cold water, this water grass only had a faint black shadow, often covered by the water light reflected up and down, and it couldn't be seen at all from a distance. Before one knew it, one would be entangled by hands and feet. The mermen had collected countless of them and woven them into houses, and only then could the black lines no longer be hidden, vaguely reflecting the appearance of houses, tables, and chairs, swaying endlessly in the water.

The signs and furnishings of this Merman Small Market were all woven from black-line grass, soft and swaying like flowing water. Even if the house doors were closed, the scene inside could be vaguely seen. Among the dozens of houses, about a hundred cultivators were coming and going, talking. Mermen were constantly swimming through everywhere, occasionally making singing sounds, looking leisurely and carefree. Regardless of whether they were male or female, they were all extraordinarily handsome, with bare upper bodies, and their hair was like water grass, swaying in the water. The mermen here were mostly silver-haired, their eyebrows and eyes were very light in color, and their fish tails also showed a light silver color. From a distance, they almost merged with the water color, which was different from what Ruan Ci had seen in the various Grotto-Heavens in the gate. Mo Shenai said, "When I came, someone showed me a portrait and said this is a unique change of the Cold Water Mermen. Hmm, mermen are all good-looking."

She held her chin and looked intoxicated. Ruan Ci rolled her eyes at her, and seeing that these mermen were mostly at the Foundation Establishment cultivation level, she couldn't help but be curious, "Won't their cultivation grow? If they are above Golden Core, can they still live here often?"

Mo Shenai didn't know in such detail. Qu Qu Tan Yue said, "Above Golden Core, there are other places to live. Although there are some dangerous places here, there is a large array to protect it, and it is ultimately calmer than other places. Cold Water Mermen have always liked to use this as a place to raise their young. They love to pick and eat the miscellaneous branches and aerial roots of the Cold Rain Flower, which can invisibly protect the flower fields. The Remote Mountain Sect is also happy to see this happen."

On the market stalls, there were also more than a dozen spirit flowers placed, with pure white and light silver colors. Looking at them, they hadn't been picked for long, and their vitality was still vigorous. There was also an indescribable aura, as if it were a strange aura mixed with the essence of water vapor and the aura of the wilderness. Ruan Ci couldn't help but close her eyes and sense it for a long time, only then curiously asking, "If it can be bought, why send so many disciples to pick it when the flowers bloom?"

Qu Qu Tan Yue smiled slightly, "Why don't you ask about the price?"

This incarnation of his only occasionally revealed such a trace of cunning. Ruan Ci was surprised, "Is it just spirit jade? I don't think so, there must be other restrictions."

Just as she was about to ask about the price in detail, her heart stirred, and she looked back, only to see Mo Shenai leaving without saying goodbye, walking toward the corner of the street with small steps.

Ruan Ci flew behind her, patted her on the shoulder, and scolded, "If you want to run away, put some thought into it."

Mo Shenai pulled her sleeve back and said, "You came at the right time. Hurry and come with me. Those guests in front are very interesting. Hurry, let's follow them and take a good look."

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Sorry for keeping everyone waiting for so long, I'm really sorry, I'm an hour and a half late. Actually, I don't know why I didn't sleep all night last night, I guess I didn't fall asleep until after ten this morning... so my family didn't wake me up and let me sleep until I woke up naturally just now.

Sorry, I'll send red envelopes to everyone in this chapter. I'll release two chapters at once, and there is another chapter below. ===== CHAPTER 156 =====