Zhou Hao fell into a patch of darkness, unable to see his own fingers.
Suddenly, slap, slap, slap... flames lit up one by one, and soon the lamps in a circle were all ablaze.
Uneasily, Zhou Hao looked around, then turned to glance at the wall he had been leaning against.
With an "Ah~," he cried out, staggered, and fell to the ground.
The reason he was so terrified was that what he had leaned against was not a wall, but a coffin.
Coming across a coffin in a place like this—if he wasn't scared, there really would have to be ghosts!
Zhou Hao froze in place for a long while. Seeing that the coffin was not moving, he finally let out a breath, patted his chest, and muttered, "There are no ghosts in this world. Don't scare yourself."
Just as his words fell, the coffin lid suddenly made a crack.
Zhou Hao stared at the coffin lid in terror, swallowing hard as he prayed over and over in his heart.
That was an illusion. That was an illusion...
Clack~
Another sound rang out.
"Ah..." Zhou Hao backed away in terror, putting distance between himself and the coffin.
At that moment, the coffin began moving more frequently. Before long, with a boom, the lid flew up. One hand appeared and gripped the edge of the coffin, followed by another hand on the other side, then it pushed itself upright.
A long-haired man rose from within the coffin, then slowly turned his head toward Zhou Hao.
Zhou Hao had already retreated into a corner. When he discovered that the "zombie" was looking at him, he was so frightened that he did not dare make a sound.
"Creak, creak, creak~~"
A chilling, eerie laugh came from the "zombie's" mouth.
The sound raised goosebumps all over Zhou Hao's body. Yet other than being afraid, there was nothing he could do, because this damn place was also a sealed chamber. Even if he wanted to run, he had nowhere to escape.
At this moment, Zhou Hao truly wanted to curse the builder of this Tomb Chamber. Couldn't they have made some proper traps? He was trapped like a bird with clipped wings.
"You're quite uninhibited."
The "zombie" spoke, his voice slightly hoarse.
Hearing a voice all of a sudden, Zhou Hao froze. Then he noticed that the "zombie's" gaze was fixed on a certain part of him. He immediately forgot his fear, hurriedly covered himself, and stammered, "W-what are you looking at?"
"Hehehe~" The zombie brushed aside his hair, revealing an aged face.
His laughter sounded far more normal now. That strange creaking laugh from before had been downright creepy.
The zombie floated out of the coffin and flew before Zhou Hao, chuckling as he said, "I never expected the one I waited for to be a brat like you."
Zhou Hao paused slightly and asked fearfully, "W-what do you mean?"
Judging by how things went in novels, this was probably where the other party would try to possess his body or something. If he were the protagonist, he could turn the tide and obtain some golden finger.
But Zhou Hao did not think he was the protagonist, so the most likely outcome was that he would be possessed, and his body would belong to someone else from then on.
While his thoughts ran wild, the zombie calmly introduced himself. "I am the founding ancestor of the Womb Cultivation Sect, Du Tianhong. Your arrival here means that the Spirit-Womb Ring has acknowledged you. That means you are already my disciple. Happy?"
Zhou Hao had no reaction at all. The reversal had come too quickly, and he had not had time to process it.
Just moments ago, he had been worried about being possessed. Now he had somehow become the disciple of someone who looked like an enormous backer. The abrupt contrast left him dazed.
"Hey, brat, could you at least react?" Du Tianhong said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh~" Zhou Hao snapped back to his senses and said helplessly, "Y-you, hello. My name is Zhou Hao."
Du Tianhong paused, then burst into laughter. "You're quite amusing, brat."
"Hehe~" Zhou Hao scratched his head with an embarrassed laugh.
Du Tianhong smiled and continued, "All right, I don't have much time left, so I'll make a long story short."
He no longer referred to himself as "I, the venerable one," which made Zhou Hao feel somewhat closer to him. There was no longer such an overwhelming sense of distance.
Zhou Hao said nothing and quietly waited for Du Tianhong to continue.
Du Tianhong went on, "The Spirit-Womb Ring was the greatest achievement of my life. Ten thousand years ago, I cast the completed Spirit-Womb Ring into the universe and let it search for a suitable owner on its own.
"To become the owner of the Spirit-Womb Ring, there is one basic requirement: one must possess talent that towers above all under heaven. It was precisely because of this requirement that the Spirit-Womb Ring had been unable to find an owner for so long.
"After my death, I returned to my homeland—this place. I used the last of my strength to keep myself asleep, waiting for the owner of the Spirit-Womb Ring to arrive.
"Now, I have finally waited for one. Unfortunately, only you came."
"There's someone else?" Zhou Hao interrupted to ask.
Du Tianhong nodded. "Of course. The Spirit-Womb Ring comes as a pair. The other Spirit-Womb Ring probably has not yet found a suitable owner.
"If it acknowledges an owner, it will teleport her here, just as it did you."
Murong's figure involuntarily surfaced in Zhou Hao's mind, and he thought, She seemed to be wearing a similar ring too. Could it be...
"Mm, mm, mm~" He shook his head repeatedly, not daring to think further. Even if beaten to death, he did not want to have anything more to do with that woman.
"What's wrong with you?" Du Tianhong asked with a frown.
"Oh, nothing." Zhou Hao touched his nose with an awkward laugh, then asked, "Right, what does this Spirit-Womb Ring do?"
"Hehe~" Du Tianhong revealed an inscrutable smile and explained, "Spirit-womb, spirit-womb—just as the name suggests, it nurtures living beings. When the owners of the two Spirit-Womb Rings unite, the child they produce will be a Divine Infant with the highest talent in the entire universe."
Hearing this, Zhou Hao's mouth twitched uncontrollably. Well, damn! So he was just a breeding tool. No wonder that shrew had demanded that he give her a child the moment she arrived. So that had been her purpose.
He rubbed his temples speechlessly and asked, "What if the two owners can't stand the sight of each other? Or what if both owners are wom—ptui, what if both owners are men?"
"Whether you like each other is beyond my control, but you definitely won't be of the same sex," Du Tianhong stated firmly.
The Spirit-Womb Ring existed to produce children. It could not possibly choose people who could not do so.
"Also, when you come into contact, the Spirit-Womb Rings will draw upon your emotions. So don't be surprised if you feel an impulse when the time comes. That is normal," Du Tianhong reminded him.
Zhou Hao froze again, recalling that unbearable memory once more as he muttered, "No wonder I was so excited back then."
"What were you excited about?" Du Tianhong looked at him suspiciously. "Could it be that you have already met the other owner of the Spirit-Womb Ring?"
"N-no." Zhou Hao flatly denied it.
Du Tianhong said thoughtfully, "I suppose that's impossible. Otherwise, the Spirit-Womb Ring should have teleported her here, unless... she was stronger than I had been at my peak and rejected the teleportation."
Upon hearing that, Zhou Hao felt even more uneasy. That woman was stronger than this old man before him? Did he stand a chance, then? That damn shrew had declared that she would come looking for him again.
Seeing his constipated expression, Du Tianhong smiled, patted his shoulder, and said, "But rest assured. If she does not come looking for you, you can go look for her. The Spirit-Womb Ring was forged by splitting a World Stone in two. As long as it has enough energy, it can send you to the other owner of the Spirit-Womb Ring.
"Unfortunately, this World Stone has one flaw: wherever you teleport from, you must teleport back to that same place. So after you teleport over, the two of you must hurry and take care of what needs to be done."
Zhou Hao broke out in cold sweat and grumbled inwardly, Who the hell wants to teleport over there? I'd rather never see that woman again for the rest of my life.
He hid those subtle thoughts away and asked expectantly, "Didn't you prepare anything for me? Like passing on several hundred years of cultivation or something?"
"No," Du Tianhong answered crisply.
Zhou Hao felt as if his heart had shattered, disappointment written all over his face.
Seeing this, Du Tianhong smiled and said, "Since the Spirit-Womb Ring has acknowledged you, your talent must naturally be peerless. Although I will not pass on several hundred years of cultivation to you, I did prepare a few things."
With a gesture of his hand, two rings flew out of the coffin and landed in his palm.
"These are Rings of Holding. One is for you, while you will need to give the other one to the other owner of the Spirit-Womb Ring on my behalf."
After handing the Ring of Holding to Zhou Hao, Du Tianhong continued, "Inside are cultivation resources I prepared for you, including cultivation methods, matching martial techniques, pills, and so on. Every item comes with instructions. Just use them according to those instructions."
Zhou Hao raised a hand and interrupted, asking, "Are there no clothes?"
"Uh..." Du Tianhong thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No."
"Sigh~" Zhou Hao sighed in disappointment. It seemed he would have to remain naked.
That was what he thought, but his eyes were fixed on Du Tianhong.
Three black lines slid down Du Tianhong's forehead. "Don't get any ideas about my clothes. After I die, I will dissolve into immortality. I won't leave any clothes behind for you."
Zhou Hao curled his lips and muttered, "Cheapskate."
Du Tianhong heard him, but instead of getting angry, he asked with interest, "Why are you completely naked? Were you teleported here while bathing?"
"What's it to you?" Zhou Hao said with a sour expression.
Du Tianhong smiled. Looking at his hands and feet, which were gradually dispersing into particles of light, he said, "It is time for me to go as well. To see the owner of the Spirit-Womb Ring in my final moments, I have not endured all this time in vain. What a pity! I never got to meet the other one."
If a few more decades passed, he did not know whether he would still be able to awaken from his slumber.
Watching Du Tianhong gradually turn into light, Zhou Hao felt a trace of sorrow rise in his heart for no reason. They had only just met; they could not even be called friends.
After a moment of silence, he looked up at Du Tianhong and solemnly promised, "Go in peace! I will find the other owner of the Spirit-Womb Ring."
In truth, he had already found her, but he did not want to see that woman. He said it only so Du Tianhong could leave with greater peace of mind.
Du Tianhong gave one final gratified smile, then completely faded away.
Before you continue