Chapter 288: Earnest Pondering

“Will domain?” Xu Qing murmured thoughtfully. He looked at the mainstem of the river and could just barely make out the Supreme Arbiter Immortal Society ships off in the distance.

It wasn’t his first time hearing the word. He remembered Third Princess, daughter of the Seazombie king, who had cultivated a technique related to such things. 1

“Enlightenment, huh?” He committed the information to heart, and at the same time, wished Li Zimei luck.

Things went smoothly after that. Xu Qing worked on his cultivation for more than a month, whereupon the Special Security Division from Spiritgloam Valley arrived to relieve them.

The Captain came back, and he looked very pleased. He had obviously benefited a lot while he was out. What was more, Xu Qing noticed that his skin looked especially healthy. It was almost like… he had molted. What was more, the Captain’s aura seemed stronger than before.

“Finished?” Xu Qing looked at the Captain.

“Finished!” the Captain replied complacently. “Hahaha! Let me tell you, little Ah Qing, if you and I got into a fight, it’s hard to say who would come out on top. I opened another seal.”

Xu Qing didn’t respond. The Captain was about to say something else when the officers from Spiritgloam Valley approached.

The Captain knew that Xu Qing didn’t like dealing with formalities, so he handled everything. Soon enough, the Spiritgloam Valley officers were taking over. The Seven Blood Eyes officers transferred the sect’s flag, boarded their boats, and sailed away.

The return trip went faster. For one thing, it wasn’t necessary to closely inspect the river banks. Also, the flow of the river added speed, so the ships could move more quickly. Before long, the mighty walls of the Eight Sect Coalition rose up in the distance. The officers of the Special Security Division all looked excited.

Because of the length of the mission, they hadn’t been back to the sect in a while. Everyone had benefited greatly, not only by increasing their cultivation bases, but also by reducing their mutagen levels. Most importantly was that they were now getting more familiar with Revered Ancient.

Upon seeing the familiar sight of Seven Blood Eyes, Xu Qing breathed a sigh of relief. The first thing he did was go to his berth to work on his cultivation and inspect the beetles that had consumed the immortal ice. They were still dormant, but were finally showing signs that they might wake up soon. Xu Qing was very much looking forward to that, as the beetles’ aura already seemed a lot stronger than before, but at the same time, more difficult to detect.

Xu Qing worked hard on his 111th dharma aperture, and also tried to track down as many soul pills as he could. Unfortunately, his dharma apertures had reached the point that the soul power he required wasn’t something that soul pills could provide. There were pills designed specifically for opening apertures, but even after shopping around a lot, Xu Qing couldn’t find any for sale.

One day the Captain showed up with some news. Sitting down on the deck of Xu Qing’s dharmaskiff, he said, “Xu Qing, I got in touch with Wu Jianwu. He’s on his way back from Forbidden by the Phoenix. Given his personality, I bet the first thing he does when he gets back is pay through the nose to teleport to us here.

“I got some more detailed information about the Dark Serenity Sect’s pocket realm. It’s exactly like what we learned from that engraving. Also, it’s open to disciples from all sects! The downside is it’s really expensive. You have to pay 5,000,000 spirit stones to get inside for three days!

“To people who cultivate with souls, it’s an extremely beneficial place. That means it’s especially useful for Dark Serenity Sect cultivators. Most who go in are chosen with three or four life flames, and they usually go in for breakthroughs.” Rubbing his hands together and looking very crafty, he continued, “Say, little Ah Qing, can you do your Elder Brother a favor? I really can’t afford to pay 5,000,000 spirit stones. It’s just too expensive. So… why don’t you go talk to Arch-Immortal Plumdark? You know, pout a bit. You never know, she might feel bad enough to just let you into the place for free.”

Xu Qing always got nervous when thinking about Arch-Immortal Plumdark. Looking at the Captain, he said, “Senior Plumdark wasn’t looking at me that day we met. She was looking at you, Eldest Brother. Remember? You should go.”

“Aiyaaaa,” the Captain said, sounding anxious. “You big dork. This is 10,000,000 spirit stones we’re talking about here! You think I don’t want to be the one to do it? I do! Come on, little Ah Qing, you’ve got an advantage here. Why not use it? You’re only young once, ya dummy!”

The Captain went on to make some very persuasive arguments, but Xu Qing didn’t say a word in response to any of them. He had no intention of agreeing to the Captain’s request. Though he also cared about spirit stones, he just couldn’t go along with the idea.

“Everything in this world comes down to cultivation base,” the Captain said. “No one will talk bad about you as long as you get stronger. Come on, little Ah Qing. People in this world look down on the weak, not the flirtatious!”

The way the Captain slapped his thigh to emphasize his words, while simultaneously moaning and groaning, made it seem like, if he was in Xu Qing’s shoes, he would absolutely do exactly as he was requesting.

“How can you not understand this, little Ah Qing? If I was you, I would already be in Nascent Soul, believe me. The sect would be full of my grandchildren, and in a few hundred years, the entire coalition would be mine. You need to learn a thing or two from Third Sib!”

“If it has to be done, then you do it.” Xu Qing was getting tired of the conversation.

Looking absolutely crestfallen, the Captain sighed. “If you don’t want to do it, fine. In that case, just lend me the spirit stones. No, wait. You already owe me money! You owe me 5,000,000!”

Xu Qing looked at the Captain, assessed his battle prowess, and then closed his eyes to meditate.

Feeling helpless, the Captain made a few more arguments. But when he realized that Xu Qing was in a meditative trance, he finally left, his heart twinging at the thought of paying 5,000,000 spirit stones. The next day, he was still in mental anguish over the matter as he and Xu Qing went to meet Wu Jianwu, who had arrived even sooner than they expected.

When Seven Blood Eyes moved their headquarters, the only one of the various highnesses who didn’t come along was Wu Jianwu. He had remained in Forbidden by the Phoenix. If it wasn’t for the fact that the Captain had a very extensive information network, it might have been impossible to get in touch with him. When he stepped off of the teleportation portal, it caused an immediate stir in Seven Blood Eyes. That wasn’t because he was wearing a long, silver robe and was reciting poetry. Rather, it was because of his two-flame cultivation base fluctuations.

Even more astonishing was that… he had two baby animals following him around.

They were little bears, no larger than small dogs. They were golden in color, and the moment they followed him off the teleportation portal, they emanated powerful fluctuations of godliness. Those godly fluctuations were full of an aura comparable to the great circle of Qi Condensation. These were juveniles who weren’t fully intelligent yet, so it was only possible to imagine what they would be like when they reached Foundation Establishment.

The matter attracted the attention of the entire sect. And considering that both little bears had ancient bloodlines, the beast-tamers from the Fourth Peak were completely flabbergasted.

Normally speaking, Wu Jianwu wouldn’t miss out on an opportunity to look down his nose at other people. But there was something more important to him at the moment, so as soon as he teleported in, he sent a voice message to Xu Qing and the Captain.

“Where are the ruins of Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity that you talked about. Where? WHERE? And what about the poetry. Are you serious about it? Is it real???”

Even just listening to the message on his identity medallion, Xu Qing could sense how excited Wu Jianwu was.

“Of course it’s real!” the Captain replied immediately.

However, Wu Jianwu wasn’t convinced. Apparently, he didn’t trust the Captain very much. It was only after Xu Qing made similar assurances that he finally believed them. He was so excited that he was trembling, and didn’t need any urging from Xu Qing or the Captain to want to immediately get to work.

When they told him he needed to pay 5,000,000 spirit stones, he frowned for a moment, then immediately agreed.

That shut the Captain up for a bit.

In fact, Wu Jianwu was so insistent that, the very day he arrived, the three of them went to the Dark Serenity Sect.

Xu Qing braced himself inwardly and reminded himself that this was all for the purpose of igniting his fourth life flame. As they made their way at top speed toward the pocket realm, his expression was very serious, and he tried to do everything possible to avoid attracting attention.

Wu Jianwu was also moving at top speed, but it was because he was so excited.

In contrast, the Captain didn’t seem to be in very much of a hurry. The thought of losing all those spirit stones was really keeping him down. However, Xu Qing and Wu Jianwu dragged him along until they arrived at the entrance.

There, they found a huge rock with an old man sitting atop it. He was in charge of the area.

He had six heavenly palaces, causing immense energy to roll out in all directions. When Xu Qing, the Captain, and Wu Jianwu arrived, he didn’t even crack an eyelid open, much less say anything to them.

Considering how smoothly things were going, Xu Qing breathed a sigh of relief and quickly paid his spirit stones. Wu Jianwu did the same. As for the Captain… he heaved a sigh, then stared hesitantly up into the sky as if he was looking for something. Xu Qing and Wu Jianwu stared at him until he finally trudged forward and begrudgingly paid the spirit stones.

Only when they had all paid did the old man open his eyes and wave his hands. A vortex sprang into being in front of the three of them, emanating powerful soul power fluctuations.

Xu Qing and Wu Jianwu said nothing, and were just about to jump inside when… the old man suddenly got to his feet and clasped hands toward the sky..𝘤𝑜𝑚

“Greetings, Matriarch.”

Shivering, Xu Qing rushed toward the vortex. However, he acted too slowly, as a gentle, friendly voice echoed from above.

“Don’t move, child. Turn around.”

Xu Qing’s foot stopped before it could touch the ground. He couldn’t move it. All he could do was slowly turn and look at the supremely elegant Arch-Immortal Plumdark descending from above.

She wore very different clothing compared to last time. She wore a bluegreen dress of woven silk and had a hairpin that resembled a flying phoenix. Her hair tumbled down her back like a cloak, and she smelled as fragrant as if she had just stepped out of a bath. There was a slight flush to her soul-stirring face, which made her look immaculately beautiful. The smile in her eyes seemed capable of melting anything she looked at.

Just like that last time they met at night, she walked right up to Xu Qing, except this time, from the side.

Off to the side, Wu Jianwu was so stunned he just stood there watching.

The Captain, on the other hand, blinked a few times. What’s she doing here? Don’t tell me she intentionally waited for us to pay the spirit stones before showing her face!

With Wu Jianwu looking dazed and the Captain feeling suspicious, Arch-Immortal Plumdark stopped next to Xu Qing and looked at him with eyes like bottomless pools of water. Her beautiful lips were slightly parted, and she had a faint smile on her face.

“Why are you so adept at pleasing women, child? I got the gift you sent me. I loved it.” 2

Arch-Immortal Plumdark’s voice was as crisp as the waters of a spring, and could pierce into the depths of the soul. It was both magnetic and tender, like a whirlpool that pulled the listener closer and closer to her.

Upon hearing her words, Xu Qing glanced at the Captain.

The Captain blinked a few times, then looked left and right, as if this situation had absolutely nothing to do with him.

1. The Seazombie king’s technique was described in chapter 184, which was where will domains were first mentioned. ☜

2. Arch-Immortal Plumdark refers to herself in the third person as “big sister.” I generally leave out third-person forms of address when translating, unless it’s absolutely necessary. In a romantic

/dating context, it’s common for older women to be called “big sister” (or for them to call themselves that). For instance, on occasions when my brother-in-law (Madam Deathblade’s brother), dated older women, that’s what she and my mother-in-law would call the woman. When a woman uses it as a third-person form of address for herself, it can sound a bit flirty

/seductive, although not necessarily. ☜