Chapter 131: 175, 176

A Ting, sixteen years old by lunar reckoning, is tall and cold, much like an extremely frigid jade statue.

Her jet-black, supple long hair drapes straight down to her waist, and her pupils are as cold as the lonely stars in the sky of a harsh winter.

Unlike her younger brother's social butterfly nature and unrestrained behavior, A Ting only ever hunkers down in the Song Prince Mansion and goes nowhere; it is precisely because of this "shut-in" attitude of hers that Tong Niangzi became "careless," and why she would smile happily every day watching her son stay out all night, feeling that he was not repeating his sister's mistakes.

On the other side, An Chenyu is also anxious.

Over these years, she has issued secret orders for the Yin Gui Society to investigate whether there are any more secret agents bound to "North-Falling Master Sect."

As it turned out, after checking, she really did find quite a few.

Back then, even though she forcibly severed the existence of "North-Falling Master Sect," many secret agents had already developed feelings for it, because those little animals used for reconnaissance that could also talk were simply too useful; not only were they useful, but they had also saved them by providing early warnings, and this kind of bond contained both a bit of the "Pikachu and Ash" sentiment and a bit of the "entrusting one's life to another" camaraderie.

How could those secret agents easily let go? It took a great deal of effort for Eldest Miss An to completely separate North-Falling Master Sect from the secret agents.

In her heart, if A Ting no longer mingled with these dark, blood-stained secret agents, she would naturally want to make friends with peers outside.

Yet on the other hand, An Daxiaojie is also very curious.

What have A Ting and the secret agents been doing all these years? After receiving the investigation results, An Daxiaojie was stunned for a long time, because those secret agents most frequently visited mass graves, cemeteries, and ancient ruins including "ancient tombs"—in other words, A Ting might be looking for dead people.

That very night, An Daxiaojie asked A Ting, "What are you looking for dead people for?" A Ting simply remained silent.

An Daxiaojie brandished a ruler, "slap, slap," and angrily demanded, "What are you secretly doing every day?" A Ting still did not speak.

It was thanks to Song Cheng intervening in time that An Daxiaojie dropped the ruler and ran off.

"Don't make your mother angry," Song Cheng said.

A Ting said indignantly, "She provoked me first."

"That is your mother."

"But I am doing my own business; she shouldn't have provoked me for no reason!"

"A Ting."

"."

After a long while, the young girl lowered her head to admit her mistake, then honestly confessed to Song Cheng.

"Dad, my little animals have changed again.

As long as the skin I use to sew the animals is powerful, the little animals will also become powerful. Last time, a Qi Realm expert died, so I had the secret agents cut off his skin to bring back, and then..."

"It's not just that; even without skin, as long as I use any part of that expert's body, even the bones, it can achieve the same effect..."

A Ting chattered on, her eyes shining; it was clear that her having the secret agents explore ancient tombs was truly to search for "the remains of ancient experts."

But as she spoke, she became filled with grievance and fear again.

She knew that what she was doing was actually very dark; if she said it in front of her mother, her mother would skin her alive.

She did not know how her father would react.

Looking at his daughter, Song Cheng felt a connection to a character from an anime he had watched before crossing over: "The former Seven Warlords of the Sea from One Piece, Moonlight Moria." That Moria was also searching for the remains of powerful ancient beings.

A Ting was also searching for remains.

Song Cheng knew his daughter was special—calling her a "monster daughter" would not be an exaggeration—and for this reason, he took out the "Feng Tianshi remains," the "Shengtianshuo Shihai" he had managed to find, and... the "Su Houzhang remains."

Then he took a bit of finger bone from each for A Ting to sew her animals.

Seeing such top-tier remains, A Ting was extremely happy.

At this moment, her father instantly became "one of her own."

The things she had originally been doing in secret suddenly gained a certain "legitimacy."

Song Cheng told her again: "Power has no good or evil; only the people who use power do. Do not do evil, do not kill the innocent indiscriminately, but for enemies, and for some remains in ancient ruins... we can still make use of them."

A Ting's "gloomy" mood improved a lot; she had originally felt she was a big monster, but after receiving her father's approval, she also began to face herself.

Subsequently, under Song Cheng's cover, she spent a few days sewing three little milk rabbits.

When the little milk rabbits opened their eyes, the "Feng Tianshi remains," "Shengtianshuo Shihai," and "Su Houzhang remains" seemed as if they had been drained, instantly withering as if a powerful, supernatural force were extracting all the essence from those bodies.

And above the heads of these three little rabbits, three sets of terrifying data appeared: 300~610, 560~1125, 620~1245.

Although these three sets of data could not compare to the power of the original owners while they were alive, they were only a small level weaker.

Looking at those three doll-like, cute little milk rabbits, and then looking at the data above their heads, even Song Cheng felt an inexplicable chill—because the data floating above A Ting's head was a black "0~0."

This meant that A Ting was fundamentally just an ordinary person, yet an ordinary person could casually create power that far exceeded her own.

Moreover, this might not be the upper limit.

Suppose one were to give A Ting a more powerful set of remains to sew; would A Ting casually sew a monster capable of defeating even him? What, in the end, is A Ting? In the eyes of others, A Ting is just like Xiao An, belonging to the category of "problem children."

But in Song Cheng's eyes, it is far from that.

While pursuing his own power, he also looks forward to supporting his daughter, helping her develop her power, and at the same time cultivating a good personality for her.

"Your daughter won't be able to get married."

An Daxiaojie turned on the couch to face Song Cheng and muttered this sentence.

And after the matter of Tong Niangzi's Xiao An was "exposed" these past few days, her mood became increasingly complex; although she did not want her own daughter to be that promiscuous, she couldn't just be a stone-cold woman either, right?

"A Ting is different from Xiao An," Song Cheng said. "Xiao An follows the path of the imperial dynasty, while A Ting's path requires exploration together with me..."

"Without becoming a Soul, one is ultimately short-lived. A Ting doesn't have a shred of talent for martial arts; she can't even enter the Force Realm. Looking at how frail she is on a daily basis, how do you think she can explore with you?"

An Daxiaojie sighed softly, then turned over again.

Song Cheng opened his arms and, with extreme familiarity, pulled this woman, who is now a First-Rank Lady of the Great Shang, into his embrace.

"There are quite a few young heroes who have come to the Song Prince Mansion to pay a visit and deliver portraits. Why don't we... meet a few, and let A Ting hide behind the window to peek. What if she takes a liking to one?" An Chenyu suggested again.

Song Cheng thought for a moment... although as a father, he was always reluctant to see his daughter marry, he also knew this was not good for A Ting.

A Ting should have her own life, her own family.

He nodded and said, "Tomorrow we go to Jilei Mountain. After we return from Jilei Mountain, we will agree to let some young heroes visit our Song Mansion... Speaking of which, who are some of the decent young men outside these days?"

An Daxiaojie thought for a moment and said, "A branch of the old Yan family has produced a genius who can observe the weather and terrain, lead troops to suppress bandits, and is invincible..."

"Wait," Song Cheng said, "Why are there still bandits now?"

In his understanding, national taxes were currently very low, farming was encouraged, and with Zhao Hua's capabilities, the common people should be living reasonably well—if they were living reasonably well, why would they still turn to banditry?

Young Miss said, "There are always places that can't be reached, and there are always those who harbor ambition."

"Then why doesn't the Yin Gui Society just send people to take care of the ringleaders? In this world today, the path to advancement for the strongest is in our hands; even if there are bandits, what can they do?"

Song Cheng compiled a series of books, and Zhao Hua also improved the "Xuegong" of the Imperial Capital, merging it into the Xuanwu Temple.

Therefore, any student of the Xuegong could be called a "Xuanwu Disciple."

These people were either Song Cheng's medicine-men or believers in the Xuanwu Emperor.

And clearly, this group of people who practiced Song Cheng's techniques were bound to be the strongest among their peers, not to mention the Yin Gui Society.

The limit for ordinary people to practice was the Qi Realm, and "receiving the Emperor's blessing to enter the Pseudo-Xuan" was the only opportunity in the world to advance further.

Song Cheng did not understand how, under such circumstances, there could still be chaos.

Young Miss said speechlessly, "You're dodging the subject again. In any case, that genius from the old Yan family is quite good; his name is Yan Rugui. Once we return from Jilei Mountain, we can meet him. There is also a direct descendant of a noble family from the Yu Prefecture Zhao Family, named Zhao Shenxiu, who is also very good."

Young Miss lay in her man's arms, counting off potential future sons-in-law on her fingers.

As she counted, she suddenly let out a soft cry, then hugged Song Cheng's waist tightly in a coquettish manner and said, "We're already an old married couple, yet you still launch a surprise attack."

One night passed. Song Cheng looked at Young Miss in his arms.

A young girl has the benefits of a young girl, but Young Miss at her current age also possesses the charm of this age.

The familiar posture, the familiar warmth, the familiar person; in the morning light, the two opened their eyes with mutual understanding, looked at each other in silence, and even their eyelashes were clearly visible. All of this made Song Cheng feel at peace.

After waking up early, he used his internal energy to help An Chenyu regulate the Gang Qi in her body, hoping she would break through the Qi Realm soon.

Afterwards, the two got up and had a meal.

A Ting had already packed the luggage.

Young Miss had also long since prepared the carriage.

The "plan to go to Jilei Mountain" had been set long ago, so Tong Niangzi brought her daughter-in-law to see the two off; as for Tong Niangzi, she had to stay home to watch over Song An.

However, after receiving a "heavy blow" from his father, Song An had been in a state of diligent effort these past few days, and without needing Tong Niangzi to watch him, he very consciously devoted his energy to practicing techniques and contemplating the art of war.

As for the Su sisters, they placed the Ice Coffin in the underground secret chamber of the Song Prince Mansion.

During the day, both body and Soul were in the coffin, and when midnight arrived, the Soul would leave the body to gaze at the moon and practice.

Song Cheng waved goodbye, then acted as the driver, driving the carriage out of the Song Prince Mansion's Huangcheng gate, where many people came to see them off.

Although Song Cheng was extremely low-key, many big figures knew exactly who the Great Shang Dynasty belonged to now, so they also came extremely low-key to see the Song Prince off.

Those standing before the Huangcheng gate, one by one wearing simple clothes, were either the head of this family or the ancestor of that family; they looked like ordinary people, but if you picked any one of them out, they were all figures capable of dominating a region.

Song Cheng glanced at the crowd and cupped his hands.

To tell the truth, he did not recognize many of these people; some he only knew by name, and more were his medicine-men.

He was a person who feared trouble very much, and clearly, interpersonal relationships were the biggest trouble.

Therefore, he made himself come into contact with as few people as possible.

Except for old acquaintances, his principle for making friends or even recognizing people was the same as for his spouse: if not necessary, never add.

The carriage drove through the streets of the Imperial Capital.

Stopping and going.

Whenever Song Cheng saw or heard of a delicacy that A Ting might like to eat, he would stop, buy some, and then send it into the carriage.

In this way, the carriage spent a full half-day before leaving the Imperial Capital.

After traveling west for a while, they turned southwest.

The prosperity gradually faded, and the scenery rapidly receding around them began to appear desolate.

The roads were muddy, and vegetation grew wildly.

But Young Miss's mood became joyful and free; she leaned against her girl and smiled gently, "A Ting, what did you bring in your luggage?"

A Ting said obediently, "It's some small animals I made myself." Young Miss said softly, "Then let them out; don't let the animals get stifled."

Coming out to play, Young Miss controlled her temper, trying her best not to get angry anymore.

After all, she still had to find an opportunity to tell A Ting about "watching the young master through the window." A Ting opened the bundle.

As if by magic, small birds flew out of the bundle, and rabbits ran out.

The rabbits leaped over walls and climbed roofs, drilling directly out of the carriage window and climbing onto the roof of the carriage.

Song Cheng glanced out of the corner of his eye at the "Saint Heavenly Buddha Rabbit" and "Ji Family Ancestor Rabbit" behind him, and couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. However, he estimated that An Chenyu really couldn't accept this, so he could only secretly hide it from Young Miss along with A Ting.

"Wheat field, wheat field!" A Ting suddenly shouted happily.

Song Cheng looked to the side and saw a golden sea of wheat, with the scent of wheat even drifting in the wind, while the farmers on the paths between the fields wore smiles, looking at this year's harvest.

The setting sun stretched across the distance, a few pale clouds appeared extremely heavy, and the horizon was plated with a dark, rose-red hue.

The wind passed through the wheat field, then through the gaps in the trees, as if someone were playing a horizontal flute.

Withered leaves flew down like butterflies, spinning in circles.

It was very beautiful, and also very tranquil.

It was a kind of tranquility that made one feel as if they had escaped the noise and clamor from the bottom of their heart.

Young Miss was also smiling.

Seeing that it was getting late, Song Cheng changed his family into the ordinary clothes of people from the Imperial Capital, then strolled around this village, found a nice farmhouse, and spent money to stay for the night.

Song Cheng was usually low-key, and those who recognized him were all big figures, so not a single person in this village recognized him.

This also gave him enough tranquility.

At nightfall, the bright moon hung in the sky, and the family of three sat by the field.

Time seemed to have slowed down.

Song Cheng sat in a relaxed, sprawling manner, while Young Miss hugged her knees, looking from time to time at her daughter drawing in the moonlight.

A Ting was drawing the wheat field.

Besides drawing small animals, she also draws landscapes.

However, she has never drawn a person.

An Daxiaojie watched her daughter draw for a while, and seeing her focused, she went to chat with Song Cheng.

"Wood Crystal is truly useful; it can stimulate seeds on its own, and if crushed and ground into powder and poured into a field, it can turn that land into fertile soil. The noble families of the world have stored quite a lot; they kept it hidden before, but now that they have brought it all out, it can be considered a true blessing for all the common people of the world.

It's just that I don't know how long these Wood Crystals will last."

"The noble families say they obtained them from certain ruins in the north. In the lands of the Ghost, there are often Five Elements Crystals. If they run low, I will have people go take another look."

Song Cheng replied casually.

Now that he has gained control over the noble families of the world, as well as those who were once behind the scenes, doing these things is not difficult.

"Mm."

An Daxiaojie responded, leaning against his shoulder, and then she and Song Cheng watched A Ting draw in silence.

On that small drawing board, there were wheat fields and a moon, but uniquely, no people. That night, the three of them slept in the farmhouse for the night.

The next day, they continued their journey at a steady, unhurried pace.

Just like that, three days passed in a flash.

Because they were not rushing, Jilei Mountain was still far away.

The sky has its overcast and clear days.

Dark clouds gathered abruptly.

A desolate, drizzling rain suddenly arrived with the west wind, pattering as it dampened the dust, knocked down withered leaves, and silenced all the insects of the world; at a single glance, everything was desolate.

Seeing that there was no village in front and no shop behind, Song Cheng was not in a hurry; he tied the horse to an old tree and prepared to go get something to eat.

With that carriage full of "small animals," he felt this carriage was safer than the Gugong.

"What do you want to eat?"

He looked at An Daxiaojie and A Ting and asked.

"Meat," A Ting said concisely.

An Daxiaojie said, "I want to eat something vegetarian."

Song Cheng said, "I'll be back in a moment."

Having said that, Song Cheng took a bamboo basket bought in a previous village and left in a hurry. He ran across the wilderness, hunted a deer according to his daughter's request, and picked edible wild vegetables everywhere according to An Daxiaojie's request.

He was busy and happy.

And just as he was about to finish, he suddenly frowned.

At the end of the distant rain and wind, there was the sound of horse hooves.

The *da-da* sound of horse hooves was like small flowers floating in this desolate rain—tiny and crisp; yet the rapid drum-like beat revealed the urgency of the arrivals.

Song Cheng closed his eyes slightly, and his Dharma image suddenly appeared in the mountain hollow. His perception expanded to a range of over a hundred miles in an instant; within this range, any scene was as clear to him as if he were standing right there, seeing it with his own eyes.

He saw three fast horses traveling quickly through the rain along the official road. The riders were dressed in black garments with green scale patterns, their expressions anxious, and the galloping hooves spread ripples of rapid sound, breaking through one curtain of rain after another.

These were Zhao Hua's Green Dragon Guards.

And it was very clear that the Green Dragon Guards who had tracked him down this official road were likely looking for him.

The Green Dragon Guards were indeed ordered to find the Song King.

The Regent had only said that by following the official road west, one would certainly meet the Song King.

The Green Dragon Guards had therefore whipped their horses and traveled west day and night.

At this moment, as they were traveling, the horses suddenly let out uneasy neighs, and the Green Dragon Guards felt a vast, mountain-like aura appear abruptly not far away. The three looked up and saw a man standing in the wind and rain, holding deer meat in his left hand and a bamboo basket of wild vegetables in his right.

The rainwater bounced off his body instantly and evaporated, making the figure appear somewhat misty.

The Green Dragon Guards saw the man clearly in the rain and mist, dismounted, and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Song King."

Song Cheng said, "You came in such a hurry, what is the matter?"

The Green Dragon Guards hurriedly said, "There is news of the Immortality Medicine. King Zhao said this matter must be reported immediately..."

Having said that, the Green Dragon Guard took a letter with an unbroken wax seal from his bosom and presented it respectfully.

Song Cheng took it and opened it; there were two sheets of paper inside.

The first sheet was the process of Zhao Hua interrogating the alchemist over the past few days. In this process, Zhao Hua had even turned the alchemist into a medicine man, and at the end, a line was written: The world contains heavenly treasures that can simulate the Immortality Medicine; there is an old Flat Peach tree on the peak of Jilei Mountain, which blooms every thousand years and bears fruit every thousand years, and now is the time.

The second sheet was an appended map, on which the terrain of Jilei Mountain was drawn, with "Yaochi Peak" marked at a certain spot.

"Where is that alchemist?"

Song Cheng asked again.

The Green Dragon Guard said, "King Zhao is keeping him in the manor under strict guard."

Song Cheng nodded, waved his hand, and said, "You have worked hard, return to the capital."

"Yes!"

The three Green Dragon Guards bowed respectfully and then left.

Song Cheng held the letter and looked at it thoughtfully.

That night, he cooked the deer meat and made wild vegetable soup, accompanied by coarse grain steamed buns; dining in the wild had its own unique flavor. After eating, he used his consciousness to possess the Young Boy at Xuanwu Temple, went to King Zhao's manor for a tour, and checked on that alchemist.

That alchemist had the strength of the Jin Realm and a favorability of 100; it was clear he had already become a medicine man, so in this situation, the information he provided was definitely what he believed to be correct.

Song Cheng returned to the side of his wife and daughter.

By this time, it was already dawn.

An Chenyu was cutting the leftover deer meat from last night and had grabbed a handful of millet she brought along, preparing to boil deer meat porridge, while A Ting continued to draw the scenery before her.

Seeing Song Cheng just open his eyes, the two were not surprised.

After chatting casually for a few sentences, Song Cheng closed his eyes and began to ponder.

"Is it really a coincidence?"

"I was just about to go to Jilei Mountain, and then someone told me that there is a Flat Peach on Jilei Mountain that ripens every two thousand years, and eating it is comparable to the Changsheng Bulao Yao."

"That alchemist might not have been lying, but what if he was deceived by someone else? After being deceived, he sincerely believed in the accuracy of this information, and thus came to the Imperial Capital to present the treasure and seek a future."

It must be said that this information really struck a chord in Song Cheng's heart.

He had been searching for the Changsheng Bulao Yao all along, all for the sake of letting his family live a little longer.

And now, a "Flat Peach" had suddenly appeared, and it even came with a map; how could he not be tempted? A normal person, upon receiving such information, would certainly be unable to resist taking a peek, as it was, after all, just to see if it was true or false.

Yet, after thinking it over again and again, Song Cheng decided not to go.

The more coincidental something was, the less he would go.

The more it was a pie falling from the sky, the less he would eat it.

He thought for a moment, and taking advantage of another night, he returned to the Imperial Capital, found Zhao Hua, returned the location of "Yaochi Peak" drawn by the alchemist, and then said: "Huazi, spread this news, let everyone in the world know that there is a Changsheng Bulao Yao on Jilei Mountain, that the Flat Peach ripens every two thousand years, and that it is about to ripen soon; those who consume it can not only transform their Soul into a ghost, but also achieve Chang Sheng Bu Lao."

"Also say that the many Form Realm, and even Qi Realm, demonic beasts on Jilei Mountain are guarding it and unwilling to leave precisely because they are waiting for the Flat Peach."

Zhao Hua was stunned for a moment and said: "Big Brother, is this true?"

Song Cheng said speechlessly: "Of course I made it up."

"I haven't even seen that peach, how could I know if it's true or false?"

"I'm doing this because I'm afraid that many people will go there unprepared and end up being crushed by those many demonic beasts before they even reach Yaochi Peak... I'm letting them have some preparation and some motivation."

A fiery look flashed in Zhao Hua's eyes, and he said: "Understood, Big Brother."

(End of this chapter)