Chapter 160: Heavenly Stele

"Grandpa Bai, Tian Laoshi didn't invite you."

In the ride-hailing car heading to Tian Laoshi's house, Tang Lingwu said helplessly to the old man Bai.

"Invite or not, since my old friend has come, can't I have a meal?"

In the front passenger seat, Bai Lao snorted, quite dissatisfied.

"She said... let me and Zheng Fa have a meal, and specifically said not to bring you."

"Could she stop me at the door?"

Bai Lao said very persistently.

"Grandpa Bai, do you like Tian Laoshi that much?"

After exchanging a glance with Zheng Fa beside her, Tang Lingwu couldn't help but ask curiously.

"Not exactly, I am quite loving."

"Then why do you...?"

"Don't you two have to blame yourselves?"

"Ah?"

Bai Lao raised his eyes and looked disdainfully at the two of them through the rearview mirror: "Eating too much dog food, even eunuchs want a partner."

"Besides, there are only a few people in this nursing home; who knows if the people who come in later will suit my taste? I have to find someone who looks good and has some affection in advance, right?"

"..."

"What if Tian Laoshi doesn't welcome you?"

Bai Lao patted the snake-skin bag at his feet and smiled somewhat proudly: "Didn't I bring a gift?"

"..."

Tian Laoshi's house is in a relatively remote suburb of Jingcheng.

A place that looks like an urban village.

The place isn't small: three single-story houses and a small courtyard.

It just looks a bit old.

As soon as they got out of the car, Zheng Fa saw Tian Laoshi running out holding a cleaver.

"Why are you here?"

"Why can't I come?"

"Didn't I tell you not to come to my house? I can treat you outside... go, go, go!"

Seeing the cleaver in Tian Laoshi's hand, Zheng Fa looked back at Tang Lingwu.

Both of them had the same look of confusion on their faces.

Does Tian Laoshi hate Bai Lao that much?

Why didn't I notice it last time?

"Who's here?"

An old woman who looked quite aged came out and asked while holding onto the door.

"Mom!"

Seeing the old woman come out, Tian Laoshi seemed to give up and stopped driving Bai Lao away.

As soon as she saw Bai Lao, Tian Laoshi's mother beamed with joy, obviously quite familiar with Bai Lao.

"Xiaobai is here? Come in, sit, come in, sit!"

She warmly welcomed the three of them into the house.

On the contrary, Tian Laoshi, as if resigned, walked into the kitchen on one side to cook.

There was a stone table in the courtyard, and several round stone stools beside it; Zheng Fa, the other two, and the old woman sat by the stone table and started chatting.

Bai Lao called her Grandma Wu, so Zheng Fa and the other two followed suit.

Grandma Wu must be around ninety years old, but she looked quite healthy, not deaf and not blind. She just spoke a bit unclearly, as if she had lost many teeth.

After the few of them chatted a bit about nothing, Grandma Wu rolled her eyes and said to Bai Lao as if by accident: "Aren't you going in to help?"

"Hmm?"

"Go!"

Hearing this, Bai Lao's eyes lit up, and he ran in eagerly.

Hearing him come in, the Tian Laoshi inside didn't look surprised, only looked helplessly at Grandma Wu outside the window, and then let Bai Lao stand aside.

But she didn't seem to want to pay much attention to him.

Zheng Fa and the other two understood then why Tian Laoshi drove Bai Lao away as soon as she saw him.

Obviously, it was because of a mother who liked playing matchmaker.

"Grandma Wu, are you... trying to matchmake Grandpa Bai and Tian Laoshi?"

"Matchmake?" Unexpectedly, Grandma Wu sighed and said: "Although Xiaobai is not very reliable, he has a kind heart. I used to want to matchmake them."

"Now..."

"Now that she has this illness, if I matchmake these two, wouldn't I be burdening poor Xiaobai?"

"Then you, old lady...?"

"I just thought, whether they are together or not, it's a good thing that Xiaobai is willing to come and accompany my daughter... I can also chew on some candy."

"Chew?"

Zheng Fa turned his head to look at Bai Lao and the other two inside, then looked at the enthusiastic Grandma Wu, and found it hard to believe the word he had just heard.

"Don't understand?" Grandma Wu grinned, smiling with a hint of arrogance: "Chewing candy! Shipping couples! Got it?"

"..."

"I understand, but you're ninety... still so trendy?"

Wu Laolao took out her mobile phone and turned on the screen.

Sure enough, it had shopping apps, social apps, and even food delivery apps; not a single one was missing, more complete than what was on Zheng Fa's phone.

"You really keep up with the times."

"I didn't understand any of this before; I didn't even have a phone. Now I'm thinking... if I know a bit more, my daughter will feel more at ease."

Zheng Fa and Tang Lingwu fell silent for a moment.

Then they heard Wu Laolao laugh: "But I suppose I learned too late!"

"..."

"Phones are really fun!"

"..."

Speaking, Wu Laolao held up her phone and took two photos of the two old men inside.

After taking the photos, she put the phone down and looked at the pictures with a hint of disdain: "This Han Xiaobai can't say a word. If you have nothing to talk about, send a small gift or something; find what they like and you'll have something to talk about, right?"

"..."

"Oh right! Grandpa Bai brought something for Tian Laoshi!"

"Has Han Xiaobai improved?"

Wu Laolao laughed, watching as Zheng Fa came from the doorway carrying a large snake-skin sack.

Four large characters reading "XX Cement" were written on the snake-skin sack.

"Looks like he hasn't improved much..."

Looking at the sack, Wu Laolao muttered again.

Zheng Fa handed the snake-skin sack to the old man in the kitchen.

The old man patted his forehead, opened the snake-skin sack, and revealed the gift inside.

It was a flowerpot, and inside was carefully planted a single grass plant—a grass plant dug up from the nursing home.

"This grass? Why does it look so familiar?"

When Zheng Fa returned to the chair in the courtyard, he heard Wu Laolao muttering; as she spoke, she also looked toward the corner of the courtyard—there, there was an identical one, just looking a size smaller.

"Not sending flowers is one thing, but sending a grass plant?" Wu Laolao slapped her thigh, disappointed: "If you're going to send grass, send grass, but why send a weed? Is Han Xiaobai missing a brain cell?"

"..."

In the kitchen, Tian Laoshi also seemed stunned upon seeing the grass.

She didn't show disdain; instead, she carefully examined the shape of the grass's leaves for a moment, as if discovering something wrong. Tian Laoshi quickly walked out of the kitchen, fetched a small shovel from the corner of the courtyard, and returned.

She dug open the soil in the flowerpot, carefully extracted the root system inside, and observed it closely for a long time.

While looking, she also spoke enthusiastically to the old man beside her about something.

"This works?"

Wu Laolao in the courtyard paused, looked blankly at Zheng Fa and Tang Lingwu, and said somewhat confusedly: "Is this some new online trend? I don't understand the romance of these two young people."

Looking at the two inside, who added up to one hundred and twenty.

Zheng Fa felt that the term "young people" in that sentence had the style of the Xuanwei Realm.

Xuanwei Realm.

The Sect Master summoned Uncle Pang and Zheng Fa's group again.

"Huang Shimei has sent news again."

"Good or bad?"

Uncle Pang asked urgently.

"Good."

"Found Zhao Shimei Zhang?"

"Not found."

"Then what kind of good news is that?" Uncle Pang snorted, looking very dissatisfied.

"She found a Heavenly Stele."

Uncle Pang's face froze; his eyes were first a bit blank, then after a while, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up, but halfway up his eyebrows furrowed again—his entire face crumpled into a ball.

This mix of joy and sorrow was like a face-changing performance.

"Heavenly Stele?"

He seemed not to believe it and asked again.

"Yes."

"This news... is too good."

Zheng Fa could hear that in Uncle Pang's "too good," there was a deep undercurrent of worry.

"It is too good." The Sect Master's face was exceptionally serious: "I have already sent messages to the other Nascent Soul sects of the Baixian Alliance immediately."

Uncle Pang's face looked reluctant, his expression very pained, but he did not oppose the Sect Master's action at all in his words: "It should be so."

"What is a Heavenly Stele?"

The few people nearby listened in confusion; Senior Sister Yuan couldn't help but speak up and ask.

The Sect Master looked at the few of them and said: "This matter is also related to you; the Heavenly Stele... is an ancient spiritual treasure."

"Ancient?"

"It should be said that legends of the Heavenly Stele existed even before the previous previous calamity."

"..."

"Legend says the Heavenly Stele contains supreme Dao rhymes; if one comprehends them, one becomes invincible under heaven."

"Does anyone actually believe that?"

"It's not that people believe it; it's that someone actually did it."

A name suddenly popped into Zheng Fa's mind.

"Tianhe Zunzhe, legend says, comprehended a sword Dao Heavenly Stele of the Tianhe Sect, enabling him to suppress Xuanwei."

"..."

Zheng Fa and the others now understood the value of this Heavenly Stele.

Their spokesperson is Tianhe Zunzhe!

"What is the origin of this Heavenly Stele?"

"Unknown. Legend says it was created by ancient great powers who perished in history, but since no records were left—some also say it was formed by heaven and earth."

"Senior Brother." Pang True Person, standing nearby, interrupted the Sect Master's explanation and spoke: "Which Heavenly Stele is this?"

"Huang Shimei guessed in her letter that it is the Thunder Dao Heavenly Stele. Lei Chi was also formed by this Heavenly Stele, which is why its power is so terrifying."

"..."

Zheng Fa understood in his heart why Senior Uncle Pang felt both joy and worry upon hearing this news.

This Heavenly Stele thing, with Tianhe Zunzhe as its spokesperson, sounds very formidable.

And Taiyang Commandery is, after all, within Jiushan Sect's sphere of influence; this truly counts as a miraculous treasure descending from the heavens.

But...

Since Lei Chi is so uncontrollable, Jiushan Sect cannot hide the existence of this Heavenly Stele.

If they encounter someone unreasonable, it could easily bring death upon them.

"Senior Brother, are you thinking..."

"Such a spiritual treasure belongs to the virtuous. I will send messages to all Nascent Soul sects of the Baixian Alliance, opening Taiyang Commandery for them to comprehend it—of course, our own disciples may go as well."

"..."

Understood: set aside disputes, develop jointly.

"I fear people from all five Wu Sects will come."

Senior Uncle Pang sighed and said.

"Then what do you suggest we do? Can we forcibly block them?" the Sect Master said, giving up.

Zheng Fa suddenly spoke: "Master, shouldn't we open a new market around Lei Chi?"

"Hmm?" The Sect Master's eyes lit up: "Tell me."

"What I mean is, coming to Lei Chi to comprehend the Heavenly Stele is fine, but we must ensure the safety of our market, and also guarantee that there is only our one market near Lei Chi."

"... How did your mind come up with that?" The Sect Master fell silent for a moment, then suddenly sighed.

How it came up.

Gold miners don't necessarily get rich, but those who sell shovels all get rich.