Hibernation

The old Daoist left.

Su He's cultivation art needed no improvement. After the old Daoist passed down a piece of "Dream Entering Dao Mysteries," the divine sense within the stone statue dispersed. He was guarding the Azure Origin Disciples in the Three Rivers Wasteland and dared not divide his attention for too long.

Da Zhuang followed behind Su He toward Listening Sea Lake in a foul mood.

What a loss! Su He had snatched its exotic beast crocodile yet had not given it any wine! That crocodile could have been carried to Evergreen Peak and traded, fair and square, for plenty of wine.

And when it asked that turtle to steal wine with it, he refused! He would not share hardship, only wanted to monopolize wealth and glory—what kind of good turtle was that? The camel felt wronged.

Su He sighed. Sure enough, a turtle with a conscience was no good! Back when he robbed the Giant Salamander and the crocodiles, who had dared voice an objection? He had merely quietly taken the camel's crocodile. He had not beaten it or scolded it, yet a dignified Profound Moon Exotic Beast was trailing behind him all aggrieved—what was that supposed to mean? Why not beat me up and let me enjoy this crocodile with a clear conscience?

It added four points of quality!

The camel looked utterly aggrieved.

In the end, Su He could not get past the hurdle in his heart. He dragged out the Three-Star Green Crocodile he had hunted from Turtle Mountain and tossed it to the camel. The camel immediately cheered up, hoisting the crocodile and huffing excitedly as it bounced and skipped toward Evergreen Peak.

The Yellow Turban Warriors in Listening Sea Lake worked tirelessly. At most, the cultivation ground would be completed in another ten days.

There were fewer crocodiles at Crocodile Beach. The crocodiles that had already prepared to hibernate had gone to the wetlands to dig burrows. They, too, were about to hibernate.

Listening Sea Lake suddenly grew busy.

Su Hua Nian had already left. Once she finished designing the formation diagram, she naturally departed. Su He found a reef, sprawled lazily atop it, basked his shell, and gnawed on crocodile meat.

The Three-Star Green Crocodile had added four points of quality. Su He did not even dare take out the entire crocodile, instead controlling Silver Needle to carve it up within the Turtle Mountain Cave Mansion, taking out one piece at a time to eat.

It took a full five days for him to swallow the whole crocodile. He did not even spare its hide. Once he had finished eating, Su He lay motionless atop the sunning rock, except when he needed to relieve himself.

At some point, Su He's excretions had gradually become less frequent. Now, he only went once every three or four days.

Downstream from Listening Sea Lake was a waste-disposal area specially built by the warriors—not for Su He, but for the entirety of Listening Sea Lake. There were countless living creatures in the lake, and its spiritual power was mixed and chaotic, making it far from an ideal place for cultivation.

The warriors used formations to forcibly purify the Water Essence Spiritual Power. Other spiritual powers, vital energy, killing intent and bloody filth produced by underwater hunting, and the like became impurities. Those impurities were diverted here, dispersed anew, and flowed into Elephant Water.

The construction of Listening Sea Lake did not mean that the entire hundred-li water region was under construction. Elsewhere, formations were merely set down in scattered patches, mountains moved and islands arranged. Only the central ten-li radius was being rebuilt inch by inch—from the sediment at the lakebed to the water grass, mountain rocks, and more.

If Listening Sea Lake was a cave mansion, then this stretch of ten li was Su He's quiet chamber for secluded cultivation.

Once the formations were complete, the vegetation and mountain rocks would be restored to their original appearance. From the outside, Listening Sea Lake would seem almost unchanged, with lush water grass and abundant fish and shrimp.

The cultivation ground was completed on the eighth day, but Su He waited another five days before reaching its core. By then, his stomach and intestines had been emptied, and the temperature had dropped to an extreme low. It was time to hibernate.

Yesterday, he had visited Su Hua Nian's pond. Great Snow had already fallen there, sealing the mountains beneath a vast expanse of white. Ya Ya had yet to awaken; the Little Girl truly seemed to be hibernating.

After greeting Su Hua Nian and reporting to Xia Da Li, Su He returned to Listening Sea Lake. He sank to the lakebed and lay at the center of the cultivation ground, swallowed a Four Gentlemen Pill, and slowly closed his eyes.

This year, he no longer needed to burrow beneath mud and sand to hibernate. The temperature underwater was better, and Su He was not afraid of feeling stifled.

The crocodiles hibernated before Su He did. Su He hibernated out of evolutionary need; the crocodiles hibernated out of a need to survive.

Listening Sea Lake suddenly became quiet.

The Azure Origin Disciples had already received an order: Listening Sea Lake was where the sect's divine beast resided. During the Dragon Turtle's hibernation, no one was permitted to approach, except Green Snake.

Green Snake had yet to take Humanoid Form. Once the Great Snow fell, she too became weak and listless. At last unable to endure the cold, she took leave and returned to Snake Valley to lie dormant in hibernation.

She had her own small courtyard in the Azure Origin Sect, but hibernating there was not as reassuring as Snake Valley.

Su He slept deeply.

The Dream Entering Dao Mysteries newly imparted by the old Daoist was not a cultivation art, but more like a seed. It allowed Su He to retain a thread of clarity during hibernation. That thread of clarity was insufficient to form complete consciousness; it could only simply operate the Turtle Longevity Breathing Art without pause, absorb Spiritual Energy, and circulate spiritual power through a Great Circulation.

The days grew colder by the day, while Su He lay motionless on the lakebed.

The Water Essence Spiritual Power in Listening Sea Lake grew ever more concentrated. Even in winter, a thin layer of mist drifted over the water's surface above Su He. This was Spiritual Energy condensing.

Snow began to fall without anyone noticing.

Azure Origin Mountain was rich in Water Vapor. Whether rain or Falling Snow, it always came in generous measure. After three days of Great Snow, the lake finally froze over. At a glance, the entire world was Dressed in Silver.

The ice on the lake surface accumulated ever thicker.

Every day, a camel would occasionally come swaying drunkenly to Listening Sea Lake. It would step atop the ice above Su He, stamp about for a while to make certain Su He was unharmed, then wander off again.

Sometimes it came alone, but more often it was being chased there by Evergreen Peak disciples, who shouted things like "wine thief" and "robber" as they pursued it—words the camel could not understand.

But as long as it reached Listening Sea Lake, no one dared continue the chase. This place was forbidden ground for the winter.

The camel had found a backer even more reliable than Old Daoist Ge. After getting dead drunk stealing wine outside, it would come to Listening Sea Lake for a lovely sleep, then go back to being a thief once it had rested enough.

With the old Daoist gone, there was not even anyone who could restrain it. The disciples ground their teeth in hatred, but there was nothing they could do. They could not beat it, could not catch it, and could not afford to provoke it!

The steward in charge of brewing wine on Evergreen Peak simply set out a huge vat at the Foot of the Mountain and filled it with wine every day. All he asked was that Master Zhuang drink his fill, be satisfied, and leave quickly, rather than go up the mountain and wreak havoc on those spiritual plants.

The camel was exceedingly cooperative.

Another half month passed. When the camel came again, Feng Ya Ya was actually riding on its back. The Little Girl had finally awakened. She swept the snow off the ice above Su He, lay on the ice and stared down for a long while, then ran back crying out loudly.

"Mother, Mother! The big turtle got smaller!" She spread her hands wide, then drew them close and rubbed her thumb and forefinger together, leaving a distance about an inch long. "It got smaller by this much!"

Su Hua Nian watched her excited daughter, a faint smile touching the corner of her mouth. "That means the big turtle has gained something from his secluded cultivation."

Su He was conditioning his body and digesting the progress he had made over the past year. The excess impurities within him were slowly expelled, and his skeletal structure was adjusting, so naturally he would shrink somewhat.

Feng Ya Ya seemed to understand, yet not fully. She only knew that the big turtle was getting better, and that was enough.

From then on, Feng Ya Ya came to Listening Sea Lake every day. She would sit atop the ice and watch the Black Shadow below, chattering away for most of the day. When bored, she would build a snowman above him, then run off to break the ice and catch a couple of fish.

Days passed one after another. Before anyone realized it, more than a hundred snowmen of all sizes had been set up across Listening Sea Lake.

"Mother, Mother, the great turtle turned in another direction, but he still hasn't woken up!"

"Mother, Mother, the ice on top of the great turtle is so hard! Ya Ya can't even smash it!"

"Mother, Mother, a little fish got sucked into the great turtle's nostril, then sprayed back out!"

"Mother, Mother..."

Every day when Feng Ya Ya returned, she would report the day's observational discoveries to Su Hua Nian. Su Hua Nian sat as still as a Fairy, listening serenely.

The years were peaceful and beautiful.