Azure Water Empress

Chen Heng and Wen Ning exchanged a glance, then stepped forward together and arrived beneath the relief.

Looking closely, they saw three jade slips glowing with blue light placed beside the azure cushion!

A line of writing remained on the ground beside them: Whether I live or die on this journey, I shall never return to this place. I have specially left behind three jade slips as gifts for those fated to find them.

Other than that, there was nothing else in the cavern hall.

"It seems these three jade slips are the true inheritance left behind by that Water Wood Hermit," Chen Heng said softly.

As soon as he finished speaking, Wen Ning, with considerable awareness, stepped forward of her own accord. Her surging mana swept the three jade slips over, and she offered them to Chen Heng with both hands.

Although they had encountered no harmful mechanisms, restrictions, formations, or other arrangements along the way—whether in the cave abode above or the cavern hall below—Wen Ning's action still greatly pleased Chen Heng.

It seemed that after making the Dao Vow, she had become very clear on her own position.

Perhaps this was how Rogue Cultivators survived.

Chen Heng accepted the three jade slips, pressing them to his forehead one by one and probing their contents with his spiritual sense.

After reading them, he cast a strange look at the delicate, blossoming young matron beside him.

Seeing this, Wen Ning could not help pinching the corner of her skirt. Though she had never known a man, she had still lived a full thirty-two years and should have been roughly a generation older than this bargain young master of hers.

That look just now clearly meant he had some strange thoughts about her.

Under the current circumstances, all she could do was submit to him. As a mere maidservant, could she possibly resist?

What a pity. If it was here, they could only use heaven as their mat and earth as their blanket, making a wild mess of things...

Chen Heng gave a light cough, cutting off Wen Ning's wild thoughts. Feigning calmness, he said, "The three inheritance jade slips left by Water Wood Hermit respectively record a Foundation Establishment cultivation art suited to those with water and wood spiritual roots, called the Azure Nether True Essence Art."

"One is a text containing knowledge related to water-method artifact forging, the Water Forging Secret Canon."

"And one is a dual cultivation secret art called the Gui Water Vitality Cultivation Art."

Wen Ning: "..."

When she had recounted her past earlier, she had already explained her circumstances. She possessed a fifth-grade water spiritual root, so both the Azure Nether True Essence Art and the Gui Water Vitality Cultivation Art should suit her cultivation quite well.

No wonder he had looked at her that way after reading the jade slips...

So he wanted her to serve as his cultivation cauldron.

A cultivation cauldron it was, then. So long as she could continue living in the future, that was enough.

Chen Heng narrowed his eyes. At a glance, he saw through the thoughts of his bargain maidservant and explained, "This Gui Water Vitality Cultivation Art is a special dual cultivation technique."

"After a woman with a water spiritual root cultivates it, her primordial yin will become more abundant. Dual cultivation with her can help increase one's cultivation and may even add several points to the chance of breaking through a realm."

"It is an orthodox dual cultivation secret art, not what you are imagining."

After hearing this, Wen Ning's beautiful eyes shifted as she merely said softly, "Whatever Young Master says."

Seeing this, Chen Heng said irritably, "Go make copies of those two jade slips and read them yourself."

After saying that, he tossed the jade slips containing the Azure Nether True Essence Art and the Gui Water Vitality Cultivation Art to the still daydreaming Wen Ning and ignored her.

As for having Wen Ning cultivate these two arts, one reason was to raise her strength, while the other was indeed born of selfish motives.

Having lived two lives, Chen Heng naturally understood that as a minor cultivator, one had to seize every opportunity to climb upward.

One had to know that on the path of cultivation, one step slow meant every step slow.

Moreover, this dual cultivation secret art was not some harvesting technique that harmed others for one's own benefit.

If the need arose in the future, he naturally would not stand on ceremony with Wen Ning.

He was also greatly interested in the water-method artifact forging recorded in the Water Forging Secret Canon. He could study it during his spare time, and he could also submit it to the Lineage in exchange for merit rewards.

There were many cold springs on Jade Spring Mountain, making it exceptionally suitable for water-method artifact forging.

Not long afterward.

With a flushed face, Wen Ning returned the two jade slips to Chen Heng.

Then she retreated to one side, eyes watching her nose, nose watching her heart.

Her expression was shadowed and unreadable, and no one knew what she was thinking.

"Wen Ning, don't you find this relief somewhat familiar? It feels as though I've seen it somewhere before," Chen Heng asked, stroking his chin.

"Ah!?"

Wen Ning cried out in alarm, then hastily covered her mouth. Seeing that Chen Heng did not particularly care about her lapse, she joined him in carefully examining the relief.

"It does seem a little familiar, but I can't remember where I saw it. It feels like the memory is rather distant," she muttered softly.

Some time passed again.

Chen Heng was already preparing to leave. After all, if Luo Yu Lei woke up, matters would become troublesome.

Furthermore, the spiritual energy here was rich, reaching the concentration of the second tier. Water Wood Hermit had presumably arranged a spirit-gathering formation in the cave walls, gathering all the spiritual energy of Bamboo Branch Mountain into one place.

At present, only he and Wen Ning knew the method of entering and leaving this cavern hall. They could fully keep it for future use as another cultivation residence.

As for Luo Yu Lei, Chen Heng had a way to make him never want to return to Bamboo Branch Mountain for the rest of his life.

He merely needed to sell images of the man's naked body. If Luo Yu Lei still wanted any face, he presumably would never come here again.

Of course, if he was truly thick-skinned enough to invite his own Foundation Establishment Ancestor to investigate this place and discover the underground cavern hall—

Then Chen Heng simply would not come here in the future. It was not as if he would suffer any loss.

At that moment, he suddenly thought of an unlikely possibility and said in disbelief, "Could this relief depict the Azure Water Empress, one of the Five Great True Persons of the Southern Profound Domain?"

Upon hearing this, Wen Ning also came to her senses. After examining it closely, she murmured, "It really does seem to be that peerlessly elegant Azure Water Empress."

The Southern Profound Domain had five great cultivation sects: the Azure Profound Sect, which occupied the Moon Gazing Mountain Range; the Myriad Beast Sect, which danced with demon beasts in the Myriad Monster Mountain Range; and the sacred land of sword cultivators, Hidden Sword Pavilion, whose cultivators underwent bitter cultivation in the Taichong Mountain Range.

There was also the Nether Spring Sect, whose mountain gate neighbored the Southern Sea and lay in the complex terrain of the Dragon Nether Marsh, where three waters converged. It was also the only demonic-path force openly acknowledged in the Southern Profound Domain.

Last was the Azure Water Palace, located at the mouth of the Li River where it entered the sea, along the shores of the Eastern Sea.

The Five Great True Persons of the Southern Profound Domain referred to the strongest Golden Core cultivators of these five great cultivation sects—the sect, the school, the pavilion, the palace, and the faction.

The Azure Water Empress was the strongest Golden Core True Person currently within the Azure Water Palace.

At the same time, she was the only female cultivator among the Five Great True Persons of the Southern Profound Domain.

As for these Five Great True Persons, all manner of recorded-image rumors, curious tales, and anecdotes flew through the Southern Profound Domain like filling the sky. Naturally, the two of them had heard some of them.

They simply had not thought in that direction at first.

After their shock faded, Chen Heng sighed. "I never expected Water Wood Hermit to be a disciple of the Azure Water Empress. In that case, the three inheritances he left behind should be his own inheritances."

"They most likely did not originate from the Azure Water Palace."

Most cultivation sects and Lineages required their disciples and members to make Dao Vows forbidding them from privately passing on core cultivation arts, much less the Azure Water Palace, one of the five great sects.

After sighing over it, Chen Heng and Wen Ning carefully searched the underground cavern hall. They even dismantled the cushion to inspect it, and after confirming there was nothing left undiscovered—

The two returned to the cave abode above, where Luo Yu Lei and the other man had still not awakened.

Seeing this, Chen Heng gave them a few more muffled clubbing blows.

To prevent her identity from being exposed, Wen Ning burned Wang Yi, Li Zheng, and the others' remains to ashes with a single fire.

This left the impression that they were unwilling to offend the Luo Family to the death.

After a brief discussion, the two exchanged tokens, agreed on a method of communication, and returned separately to Southern Foothills Market from different directions.

Who knew how long after they had left, Luo Yu Lei, awakened by the cold, slowly opened his eyes.

Bone-piercing chill instantly spread from his back through his entire body, followed by excruciating pain. The several huge bumps on his head throbbed with every beat.

He instinctively tried to curl up, only to feel empty and cold all over.

Lowering his head, he looked.

"Ah—!!!"

A heart-rending scream, filled with humiliation, fury, and rage, suddenly tore through the peace of remote Bamboo Branch Mountain.

Luo Yu Lei jerked upright and discovered in terror that he was completely naked, with only a pair of white socks barely hanging from his feet!

The memories of that recent "treasure hunt" surged back into his mind like an icy tide—the ambush he had been lured into, the deaths of the guards, the chaotic battle... and that unexpected muffled clubbing blow amid the hazy mist!

Who was it?! Who was bold and vicious enough to do this?! Humiliation! This was absolutely naked, utter humiliation!

He was the dignified direct descendant of the Luo Family, a future disciple of the Azure Profound Sect, yet someone had stripped him bare and thrown him into this corner!

"Ah—!"

Another roar, carrying endless venomous resentment.

Luo Yu Lei's eyes were bloodshot, and he looked like a madman.

He frantically tried to cover himself with his dust-stained hands, but the humiliation of cold air stabbing his skin nearly drove him insane. He suddenly looked at Luo San Shi, who was also unconscious beside him but still wore his clothes, and viciously kicked him.

"Trash! Useless thing! Get up!"

Luo San Shi was kicked awake. He was dazed for a moment, then also let out a howl of mingled shock and fury.

Suppressing his towering rage and bone-deep shame, Luo Yu Lei hurriedly stripped off his guard's rough gray robe and wrapped it around himself.

After calming down, he immediately ordered Luo San Shi to search for any traces the thieves might have left behind.

But unfortunately, Chen Heng and Wen Ning had left behind no traces at all. Even the corpses of Wang Yi, Li Zheng, and the others had been burned completely to ashes.

Luo Yu Lei calculated inwardly, I was probably set up. That old map should have been bait laid by Wang Yi, Li Zheng, and the others.

But another person—or another group—learned of their plan.

That bastard first hid in the shadows and watched the show. After Li Zheng, the others, and I fought each other to the death, he finally came out to clean up the mess.

What a fine tactic of letting the snipe and clam fight, then reaping the fisherman's profit.

He did not kill the two of us outright. Was it because he did not dare offend our Luo Family?

He feared that the Foundation Establishment Ancestor stationed by our Luo Family in Southern Foothills Market and Little Bamboo Peak would come knocking, bringing disaster upon him.

No one knew how long passed.

Like two sinister gusts of wind, the pair raced all the way back to Southern Foothills Market, covered in disarray and carrying rage with nowhere to vent, heading directly for the Garrison Mansion.