Chapter 99: After Binding the Child-Bearing System, Becoming a Winner in Life Chapter 99: The City Lord's Minor Concubine (41)

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Protagonist:

Shen Yao

Compared to the cultivation advancements of her several children, Shen Yao was practically the embodiment of an academic slacker.

Fortunately, Shen Yao was open-minded about it herself, and the children also didn't like rubbing salt in the wound.

Overall, their daily interactions were very harmonious and affectionate.

Shen Yao also inquired about Jin Xiu Sheng's dragon-phoenix twins, who had already turned eighteen years old and reached Foundation Establishment; the boy had a Single Earth Spirit Root, the girl a Single Wood Spirit Root.

Their Spirit Root Purity wasn't as high as Jin Xiu's, but cultivating step by step, they still had a very high probability of forming a Nascent Soul.

"Mother"

Jin Xiu looked at Shen Yao, her expression full of gratitude; she was able to give birth to twins, and she owed it all to the pills Mother had given her.

Jin Xiu couldn't explain the pills' specific effects, but she knew that being able to produce Single Spirit Root offspring meant the pills were definitely a crucial factor.

One must know that many Great Power cultivators, despite being outstanding themselves, have their lineage directly severed in their descendants.

Her Dao Companion was the Crown Prince of Qian Kingdom, and also a High Level figure in the Piaomiao Sect.

Their union had affection, but also political significance.

Jin Xiu liked Baili Xuan Yin well enough, while simultaneously looking forward to her own children even more.

The current ending was very good, whether for the Tianjian Sect, Qian Kingdom, or the Piaomiao Sect.

"Between us mother and daughter, there's no need for formalities."

Shen Yao hoped all her children would live well, regardless of whether they would have Dao Companions in the future.

After the heart-to-heart talk ended, Linlang chose to enter closed-door cultivation to form her Nascent Soul; the time she would emerge was undetermined.

Jin Xiu needed to return to Qian Kingdom first, because the Emperor of Qian Kingdom was about to abdicate and pass the throne; as the Crown Princess, she needed to worship Heaven and Earth together with the Crown Prince and ascend the throne for coronation.

Shen Yao saw off her two daughters, then welcomed her three sons.

Fu Zexuan and the others were growing older, and the things they could talk about with Shen Yao were becoming fewer and fewer.

Coupled with the stimulation from Fu Zening, this genius Younger Brother, Fu Zexuan and Fu Zeyu immersed themselves in cultivation all day long, either in closed-door cultivation or traveling abroad for experience.

What could Shen Yao say to them? Nothing more than some words of care.

"Sigh, sometimes thinking about it, a life of smooth sailing is really a bit too boring."

Shen Yao once again boasted to the System in her mind, after all, the cubs she gave birth to were truly too outstanding.

She didn't need to make any effort herself at all; she only needed to peacefully live out her remaining lifespan, die of old age, and she could close her eyes and collect the rewards.

Roughly estimated, this time the System would probably have to bleed heavily compared to before.

"Host, why don't we go to the other few continents for training, and conveniently collect more Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

Be prepared for any eventuality; the System believes the Host can do even better in this regard."

After holding it in alone for half a day, the System finally spoke, but unfortunately its words were very suspicious.

Shen Yao tapped the tabletop, "System, are you hiding something from me?

Is it about the situation in the next world? Why do you still want me to continue collecting Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures."

Could it be that what's stored in her space still isn't enough? At least it's enough for her to use for a long time.

System:...

Being counter-questioned preemptively by its own Host like this, the System's first reaction was a flat denial.

Of course it couldn't admit it was true; moreover, the next few Interfaces were important to it, the information was classified, and if revealed prematurely, the entered world might be temporarily adjusted, which would greatly affect it.

"The System only cares about the Host; please, Host, do not engage in wild thoughts and random suspicions."

Shen Yao:...

She just said it casually, and the result was the System exposing its own guilt right here.

Tsk tsk tsk

It feels like it would be wrong if there weren't a problem.

Unable to resist narrowing her eyes, Shen Yao gave up on continuing to press the question; she knew that once the System made up its mind, she wouldn't be able to pry anything useful out of it.

But since the System still wanted her to collect treasures, she would just follow its inclination and go out for a stroll.

Anyway, a hundred years had already passed in the outside world; the events that originally happened in Yunzhong City had long since faded into the river of time.

Shen Yao was now just a late-stage Foundation Establishment minor cultivator; going out to travel mountains and waters, not deliberately making enemies, normal people wouldn't form enmity with her.

Pa—

Said and done, Shen Yao stood up to find Fu Hengyan, telling him her plan to go out.

"Where do you want to go?"

Fu Hengyan raised an eyebrow, didn't ask the reason, just as light and reliable as before.

"Southern Continent"

The Buddhist Cultivators' territory; everything in the surroundings, including architecture and population, had an inseparable connection with Buddhism.

Shen Yao and Fu Hengyan arrived smoothly in the Southern Continent two years later.

No choice, although the Eastern Continent and Southern Continent are adjacent, a Heavenly Moat Broken Cliff separates them in between.

The Broken Cliff is so deep that ordinary cultivators cannot cross it; Shen Yao didn't want to challenge the difficulty, so she chose to borrow a path through the Central Continent with Fu Hengyan, entering the Southern Continent.

Of course, since they had come all this way, Shen Yao also conveniently went to Qian Kingdom to take a look at Jin Xiu and her pair of children.

Not to mention, the pills the System provided were indeed useful; Jin Xiu giving birth to this pair of children not only solidified her status as Crown Princess in Qian Kingdom, but also won the attention of the Qian Kingdom Imperial Family and the Piaomiao Sect.

Currently Jin Xiu is cultivating peacefully, planning to stabilize her cultivation and then enter closed-door cultivation to form her Nascent Soul.

Once she achieves Nascent Soul, the status of her son and daughter will rise even higher, and even the title of Imperial Great-Grandson — which has never appeared in the imperial family — will be directly applied.

Shen Yao:... The Qian Kingdom imperial family, their ability to hug thighs is truly pure and unpretentious.

Seeing that Jin Xiu Sheng was living well, Shen Yao set her mind at ease; when she left, her face carried a smile that did not truly fade even after she reached the Southern Continent.

Shen Yao:... When life is a smooth road, it's nice — even the emotion of unhappiness cannot rise up.

System: Enough, really enough

"Cheng Qi, Buddhism truly flourishes here in the Southern Continent; temples are numerous."

Almost every three steps there is a small Buddhist shrine, every five steps a small Buddhist hall.

The travelers encountered on the road — not a single one failed to wear various Buddhist ornaments.

From small pendant ornaments to kasaya and staff, one would have thought they would look mismatched, yet every face was devout, and a faint scent of sandalwood drifted around each person.

Passing through a village on the way, the two people spent spirit stones to stay one night.

As a result, even the room for rest enshrined a Buddhist scripture, constantly emitting a Buddhist light halo outward.

"The Southern Continent is known as the land where the myriad Buddhas' karmic origins arise; the Buddhist temples here are too many to count.

They do not force the common people to cultivate Buddhism, but after staying in the Southern Continent for a long time," Fu Hengyan shook his head, the rest of his words went unsaid, but Shen Yao could understand.

Isn't it just daily brainwashing like boiling a frog in warm water, with endless methods?

Although Buddhist cultivators' territory professes belief in Buddhism, that does not mean Buddhist cultivators are all benevolent and gentle.

On the contrary, for the sake of various orthodoxy disputes, Buddhist cultivators strike more ruthlessly than other cultivators.

The most typical example was some years ago, when the Southern Continent was still a place of all kinds of chaos.

It could be said to be a replica of the Endless Sea.

Later, the Buddhist temple's people acted, directly fighting from start to finish, suppressing all forces in the Southern Continent with iron-blooded wrists, causing the Buddhist Gate to gain over ten million followers in just over a year.

Buddhist cultivators?

Shen Yao sometimes thinks about it and feels these Buddhist cultivators are more like wrathful vajras. Compared to Buddhist conversion, they prefer martial suppression.

Resting simply in the village for a day, Shen Yao and Fu Hengyan continued journeying toward the central region of the Southern Continent.

On the road, occasionally encountering spiritual objects with good effects, Shen Yao would still spend spirit stones to buy them, even though the spiritual objects here were mostly still related to Buddhism.

Like exorcism and evil-warding attribute spiritual objects rarely seen on other continents, in the Southern Continent they became common goods.

Who made Buddhism innately skilled at restraining these; even a single flower or blade of grass before a Buddhist temple gate carries Buddha nature.

Whenever Shen Yao found something interesting, she did not stand on ceremony, accepting them all with a smile, stashing them all into her storage bag (actually her own space) to become her collection.

Shen Yao's purpose in coming out was that she felt staying in the Tianjian Sect was too boring, and with the System constantly beating the drum beside her, she thought to go out for a walk and look around while conveniently collecting some attribute spiritual objects she currently lacked.

The first stop was set in the Southern Continent because Shen Yao was rather interested in the legendary Buddhist cultivators — better to see once than hear a hundred times.

"Tsk tsk, so the true face is actually like this," broadened her horizons.

Shen Yao and Fu Hengyan stood beneath a bodhi tree already a thousand years old, facing an ancient forest temple.

"Cheng Qi, is this Wanfo Temple?"

The first time the two went out traveling, they had once used a Xiguang Liuming Flower on the road to Rong City.

That flower was a gift Fu Hengyan received for helping Wanfo Temple in the Southern Continent, sent by Jing Chen Zhenren.

However, according to Fu Hengyan's recollection, at that time Jing Chen Zhenren was at Golden Core cultivation; by now he has long since advanced to Nascent Soul.

"It is Wanfo Temple; the origin of the myriad Buddhas is connected to the temple's enshrinement of the Buddha Ancestor, claiming the title of Myriad Buddhas.

Pure Dust Master should not be in the temple," because the Swastika Jade Ring in his hand had not lit up as expected.

This is an important token for their meetings; only those with a good relationship would receive it.

Shen Yao turned her head, "Shall we go in for a visit?"

Fu Hengyan nodded; having come all this way with difficulty, who knew when the next time would be.

The two walked to the Buddhist temple gate and knocked; a gray-clothed young novice monk came out, and they hurriedly stated their purpose for visiting.

"It is Patron Fu and Patron Shen; please follow this little monk to the guest room to rest for a while.

When Uncle Master Pure Dust went out, he left a letter, saying old friends would arrive."

The little novice monk spoke as he walked, incidentally showing them around the simple and dignified Buddhist temple.

Shen Yao gazed at the internal scene of the Buddhist temple; different from the grand and majestic image in her imagination, it had quite a quality of washing away worldly glamour and returning to simplicity.

"The guest room has arrived; please stop here, two patrons."

After leading them to the place, the little novice monk turned and left; not long after, he brought two palm-sized wooden boxes and handed them to Fu Hengyan and Shen Yao respectively.

Shen Yao: Hm?

"Is it for me?" Shen Yao was surprised; she and Jing Chen Zhenjun seemingly had never formally met.

The little novice monk smiled, "Please accept it, Patron Shen; Uncle Master Pure Dust said it is a congratulatory gift for you, Patron."

Congratulatory gift?

Shen Yao put away the wooden box and looked up at Fu Hengyan, who had already opened his wooden box.

Fu Hengyan held a bamboo slip in his hand, on which was a line of characters.

'Worry not, disturb not, vex not, annoy not. Follow nature, and you will attain the end. Let go of attachments, and you will attain ease.'

Shen Yao:...

This is chicken soup for the soul? 'So Buddhist cultivators also walk the path of spiritual mentors?'

Shen Yao couldn't help complaining to the System, especially since Fu Hengyan's complexion was calm, but he had not spoken for a good while, even ignoring her gaze when she looked over.

The last point is important — you must know Fu Hengyan's gaze has always been on her.

This kind of situation before her eyes had not appeared for a very long time.

The little novice monk had long since left; the empty, simple guest room now held only the two of them.

Shen Yao decisively opened the wooden box in her hand, only to find that what was inside was actually Bodhi Seeds.

Each Bodhi Seed was dark brown, with a swastika character carved upon it.

Even beneath the Bodhi Seeds was an extremely beautiful string of beads.

Also made of Bodhi Seeds, deep red in color, each bead round and plump, with a faint magic artifact light halo upon them.

Wow, this meeting gift is quite grand.

Leaving aside the many uses of the Bodhi Seeds, just speaking of this string of beads that can repel all evil, this friend Fu Hengyan has indeed made a good choice.

Feeling moved in her heart, Shen Yao did not forget to put this string of beads on her hand.

Lifting it to admire for a while, she saw that Fu Hengyan, who had been standing blankly in place, had already walked over.

Huh? He has recovered.

The bamboo skewer in his hand had already been put away by Fu Hengyan, who gazed at the oblivious Shen Yao for a long time, finally smiling with relief.

Pure Dust Master... said it well, he should let go of the obsession he ought to let go of.

Even though he knew that after his death he could still be reincarnated in this world.

Whereas Shen Yao, when a person dies the lamp goes out, and she will never return to this world again.

Long before leaving, Fu Hengyan had once asked his master to request his grandmaster to leave seclusion, to help with divination and deduction.

The result obtained did not differ in the slightest from these words left for him by Pure Dust Master.

A hint of bitterness spread across the corner of his mouth, and the look in his eyes as he gazed at Shen Yao was filled with reluctance.

Fu Hengyan closed his eyes slightly, and when he opened them again, his emotions had already calmed, showing not a trace of fluctuation.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Pure Dust Master is not here, we should prepare to leave."

"Leave now?"

"Didn't you say you wanted to go to Nan Zhao to see? Going now happens to allow us to participate in the Bathing Buddha Festival."

That is a traditional festival of Buddhism, and also an annual tradition of the Southern Continent.

Whether they are lofty cultivators or ordinary commoners, all will participate, and bathe under the boundless holy light of the Buddha's birthday, praying aloud for the True Buddha to descend.

As for whether the True Buddha will descend? Anyway, Shen Yao has never heard of it.

Rather, there are not a few Buddha Sons claiming to be reincarnations of the True Buddha constantly appearing.

Pity that after Fu Hengyan's popularization, Shen Yao understood that these Buddha Sons are merely signboards deliberately created by various Buddhist temples; whenever a great war (the Human-Demon War) occurs on the Xuantian Continent, Buddha Sons appear in unexpected numbers.

Calculating the time, nowadays it is less than a hundred years until the next Human-Demon War.

The surrounding atmosphere of the Xuantian Continent should also begin to become solemn.

Sigh.

It seems they cannot stay outside for too long, otherwise they might have to worry about their lives.

Fu Hengyan also did not know that Shen Yao's thoughts could jump from a Bathing Buddha Festival to the war about to begin.

He brought Shen Yao away from Wanfo Temple, and then traveled swiftly all the way straight to Nan Zhao.

The two finally arrived at Nan Zhao smoothly three days before the Bathing Buddha Festival began.

At this time, the number of people rushing to Nan Zhao from all places was countless, and Shen Yao and Fu Hengyan simply could not find an inn where they could stay overnight.

Fortunately Shen Yao had the Spirit Mushroom House in her hand; she found an empty space to put it down, and then set up several arrays to protect safety.

Staying continuously in the Spirit Fungus Room for three days, until the sky burst forth with dazzling golden radiance.

Petals of the Xiguang Liuming Flower, revered as a holy flower by Buddhism, fell from the sky, drifting onto the ground.

Shen Yao came out of the Small Courtyard, stretching out her hand to cup the petal that had fallen onto her hand.

It was actually real?

She thought it was an illusion technique, but did not expect these were truly petals of the Xiguang Liuming Flower.

Buddhist Cultivators, truly deserving of being famous tycoons on the Xuantian Continent!