Chapter 70: A Sickly Little Dog, Beating Up the Kindergarten
Chapter 70 – A Sickly Little Dog, Beating Up the Kindergarten
Having discerned Ye Hensheng’s true purpose, Chen Changsheng felt utterly repulsed in his heart.
This so-called Heavenly Talent Assembly was clearly a chaotic quagmire. Given his cautious nature, he naturally harbored zero desire to wade into it.
Just as he formulated an excuse to dismiss the youth, Ye Hensheng spoke once more.
“Brother Chen, the Heavenly Talent Assembly is an unprecedented convergence of providence. With your profound cultivation, do you truly not wish to witness it?”
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng abruptly paused.
Measured by mortal years, he possessed no right to participate in any gathering of the younger generation; after all, his soul had traversed the mortal realm for nearly a millennium.
Yet, his situation defied the natural Dao. The esoteric providence bound to his existence had permanently locked his bone age at a mere twenty years.
Thus, measured by the physical laws of heaven and earth, he was undeniably a legitimate peerless talent.
At this realization, a bright, predatory gleam flashed in his eyes.
He might not possess the absolute might to butcher the ancient monsters of this era. However, dismantling a gathering of fledglings who had barely begun walking the Dao? That would be utterly effortless.
The prospect of mercilessly thrashing a literal “kindergarten” of cultivators was profoundly exciting to imagine.
Furthermore, if his memory served him correctly, A-Li’s true name was indeed Wu Li.
Separated by centuries of slumber, Chen Changsheng genuinely wished to see the youth he once knew.
Feigning deep contemplation, he slowly spoke.
“Brother Ye, to speak truthfully, my Master actually divined this matter long ago.”
“Is that so?”
“Then when shall the esteemed Senior emerge from seclusion?”
“Well, it is like this. My Master decreed that such a trivial gathering does not warrant his personal descent. I shall simply accompany you.”
Ye Hensheng: ???
Hearing this brazen claim, Ye Hensheng’s eyes clouded with profound disbelief.
The Heavenly Talent Assembly was a nexus of monstrous cultivators, with Dao Protectors as numerous as the stars. To step into that maelstrom without a sovereign guardian was to court a violent death.
“Brother Chen, did the Senior truly say that?”
“Indeed! My Master declared that a true heaven-chosen requires no Dao Protector. With merely a pair of iron fists, one must carve out a path of blood and bones.”
“Those who cower behind Dao Protectors are, in his eyes, nothing but spineless waste.”
Listening to this reckless arrogance, Ye Hensheng felt a massive headache throbbing at his temples.
Any fool could spout such grandiose rhetoric, but the cruel reality of the Dao was not so accommodating!
Attending the Heavenly Talent Assembly devoid of protection would genuinely invite total annihilation.
Unable to accept this suicidal logic, Ye Hensheng pleaded, “Brother Chen, perhaps you should seek an audience with the Senior once more. This endeavor is profoundly perilous.”
“Brother Ye, how can a grown man cultivating the Dao be so timid and long-winded?”
“Master’s edicts are absolute and unchangeable. Do not waste your breath. Besides, he mentioned he has laid down hidden arrangements for critical moments, so your worries are misplaced.”
Driven into a corner by these claims, Ye Hensheng was rendered utterly speechless.
When the heirs of ancient lineages attended the assembly, their Masters and Patriarchs practically moved mountains to escort them, terrified their foundation might suffer the slightest crack.
Yet, look at his miserable providence: his Master was sealed in a life-or-death retreat, the State Preceptor was equally isolated, and he had been callously tossed to this enigmatic Undertaker.
And to compound the misery, this Undertaker was clearly a lunatic, casually casting his sole disciple to brave the assembly alone. When had the cultivation world become this absurd?
While Ye Hensheng inwardly cursed his fate, Chen Changsheng vanished back into the grand Formation, soon emerging with a small, white dog cradled in his arms.
Staring at the sickly, trembling beast, Ye Hensheng asked.
“Brother Chen, what is this creature?”
“My little dog has contracted an illness. I intend to bring it to the Middle Heavens to seek a physician.”
“I will have you know, do not be deceived by its frail shell. It possesses profound intelligence.”
“Once its vitality is restored, its prowess will absolutely shock you.”
Hearing such bold claims, Ye Hensheng instinctively swept the creature with his Divine Sense.
Upon confirming it possessed the pitiful life force of a common mortal hound, his mind went entirely blank.
Ye Hensheng: “…”
What heinous karmic sins did I commit in my past life to be surrounded by such lunatics?
…
“Brother Ye, we are not manually flying the entire distance, are we? The Middle Heavens and the Eastern Wasteland are separated by millions of miles!”
“Brother Ye, where are we directing this vessel? This astral trajectory does not align with the Middle Heavens!”
“Brother Ye, the flow of Qi in your meridians is rather unorthodox. Did your Master pass down this Secret Art as well?”
Ye Hensheng’s eyelid twitched violently. Ever since stepping onto the flying spirit boat, Chen Changsheng had chattered incessantly without drawing a single breath.
At this moment, it felt as though a swarm of a million demonic locusts were burrowing into his eardrums.
Sensing his Dao Heart on the absolute verge of shattering, Ye Hensheng took a slow, agonizing breath to suppress his turbulent Qi.
“Brother Chen, our current destination is the Xuanwu Kingdom.”
“In this era, the supreme hegemons of the Eastern Wasteland are the Xuanwu Kingdom and the Night Moon Country.”
“To cross the void to the Middle Heavens, we must rely upon a supreme teleportation array, which is securely anchored within the Xuanwu Kingdom.”
“Furthermore, aside from myself, there is another Fellow Daoist from the Night Moon Country who shall attend the Heavenly Talent Assembly.”
“If Brother Chen finds himself bored, feel free to pace the deck of this spirit boat.”
Leaving those words hanging, Ye Hensheng ducked into the cabin and sealed the door shut, projecting an absolute refusal to interact with Chen Changsheng for the foreseeable future.
Watching the youth flee in disarray, a cold, calculating smile curled at the corner of Chen Changsheng’s lips. He lowered his gaze, gently stroking the “little dog” cradled against his chest.
In truth, this pitiful canine was the very entity he had coaxed from that ancient, lifeless egg.
Although he had exhausted the earth’s providence to force its incubation, the shell had withered in death for too long. The embryonic spirit within had suffered catastrophic damage to its innate foundation.
Consequently, the creature’s vitality was akin to a flickering candle in the wind, threatening to extinguish completely at any moment.
A significant reason Chen Changsheng deigned to travel to the Middle Heavens was to plunder its heavenly treasures and earthly wonders to reforge this beast’s ruined core.
As the absolute nexus of the five great continents, the Middle Heavens boasted an unfathomable wealth of cultivation resources.
…
Xuanwu Kingdom.
“Brother Ye, it has been too long!”
A young cultivator draped in an opulent python-patterned robe stepped forward, clasping his hands in greeting.
Judging by their seamless rapport, the two possessed a deeply rooted camaraderie.
Following a brief exchange of pleasantries, the python-robed youth shifted his gaze to Chen Changsheng and raised an eyebrow.
“Brother Ye, who might this be?”
“I am Chen Changsheng. I am the aid invited by the Night Moon Country.”
“Ah, by the way, are we not destined for the Heavenly Talent Assembly?”
“When do we depart?”
Scrutinizing Chen Changsheng’s profoundly naive expression and pathetically weak aura, the python-robed youth frowned sharply. He immediately dragged Ye Hensheng aside.
“Brother Ye, what is the meaning of this?”
“This child looks as if he has just taken his first steps into the martial world.”
“Furthermore, Brother Ye, where is your Dao Protector for this trial?”
Under the weight of these entirely reasonable questions, Ye Hensheng’s lips twitched violently.
“Brother Su, it is a bitter tale. Allow me to explain.”
Without hesitation, Ye Hensheng began to violently vent the grievances suffocating his Dao Heart.
A quarter of an hour later, the python-robed youth’s lips had also begun to spasm.
For no matter which angle one viewed it from, this entire situation was fundamentally absurd.
“Brother Ye… you have truly suffered.”
…