A Celestial Maiden Sleeps Beside Me

Wang Xuan's hair stood on end. With his current instinctive intuition, how could anyone approach him without his knowing? Even in deep sleep, he would sense it. Yet in the middle of the night, he had jolted awake in terror to find a furry creature beside him, and goosebumps rose all over his body.

Especially when he lowered his head to look, those cold, shadowy eyes were already staring at him first.

"Aow..." A particularly piercing, miserable scream made Wang Xuan's eardrums ache. It was deep in the night, the room pitch-black, and that creature had suddenly howled like that. If an ordinary person had just woken up to such an experience, they would have been frightened unconscious on the spot.

Bang!

Without another word, Wang Xuan slapped at it. His palm could now not only smash a person's face flat—it could probably press their skull in as well.

The creature was agile. With a cry, it leaped away, far more nimble than a human.

Wang Xuan pulled back at the last moment because he finally saw what it was. It was actually a Great Black Cat, its fur jet-black and glossy, its eyes glowing green. It was huge, a full nine pounds, nearly as large as a half-grown dog.

How had it gotten in? He turned on the light and searched for clues, eventually discovering that the window had not been shut tightly. The Great Black Cat had forced open the gap and squeezed inside.

"Get out. If you dare come in again, I'll slap you into a meat patty." Wang Xuan opened the window and chased the Great Black Cat away.

"Meow!" After darting out, the cat leaped directly onto a branch of a large tree extending to the window. Before leaving, it let out another shrill cry at Wang Xuan and looked back at him. Its gaze was cold and shadowy, and its mouth was split in what looked like a bizarre smile.

Wang Xuan suddenly had the urge to chase after it and give it a slap. No matter how he looked at it, it seemed monstrously eerie. There was something off about that cat.

In the middle of the night, first there had been a woman in white clothes and red shoes, her hair hanging loose as bloody tears streamed down her face. Then a miserable scream had come from beneath his blanket. Who could endure that? Wang Xuan washed his face and sat there, calming himself.

He guessed that cat was probably connected to the Female Daoist practitioner as well. It might even have been sent by her. It was simply too bizarre.

"I said that once my strength permits it, I'll go to the Greater Khingan Range and help rescue your body. But right now, I'm not qualified to interfere." Wang Xuan spoke. Whether she could hear him or not, he felt it was necessary to emphasize and explain it again.

"Could someone have drawn blood from you again?" he asked suspiciously.

This was far too sinister. He had always believed that when people died, their lamps went out. Yet now, in the middle of the night, the Female Daoist practitioner was tormenting him so badly that he could not sleep. It was truly creepy.

Wang Xuan practiced the Root Method for a while, then began visualizing the Female Daoist practitioner—her face streaked with two lines of blood. Normally, this should have been the contemplation of a rosy beauty as a skeleton, but instead, he directly hypnotized himself into imagining the blood-streaked woman as serene, holy, and peerlessly graceful.

If Qing Mu had known, he would certainly have sighed that Little Wang had guts enough to swallow the sky. He was a ruthless man, capable of visualizing even a terrifying ghost as a banished fairy.

After completing his visualization, Wang Xuan dropped onto the bed and fell asleep. Sure enough, in the latter half of the night, that disheveled woman appeared again within his sleeping consciousness.

"You're here?" Wang Xuan greeted her in his dream, then promptly fell back asleep with soft snores.

The disheveled woman seemed stunned, but she did not stop. Wearing red shoes, she approached him. Bloodstains hung starkly on her snowy-white face, and she nearly pressed herself against Wang Xuan's face to stare at him from close range.

"A Celestial Maiden sleeps beside me?" Having hypnotized himself and carried out that "alternative visualization," Wang Xuan saw an incomparably beautiful face drawing near in his dream. This time, he felt no terror. On the contrary, he found those beautiful eyes extraordinarily gentle, and he reached out to stroke her.

The Female Daoist practitioner nearly exploded on the spot. What was this situation? She looked like this, yet he actually felt delighted and thought she was stunning—and he had even laid hands on her.

Boom!

A cascade of lightning fell from the heavens, snow-white and brilliant like a galaxy plunging down. It boomed within Wang Xuan's sea of consciousness, making both his ears ring as he woke with a start.

What was going on? Was there thunder and rain outside? He pulled open the curtains. Moonlight flowed like water outside, with stars scattered across the sky. How could there possibly be a thunderstorm?

He pondered what he had seen in the dream and realized that the Female Daoist practitioner had used lightning to strike him in his subconscious, waking him up.

Wang Xuan lowered his head and took a look at his right hand. He seemed to have touched a gleaming white, delicate, elastic face, but no bloodstains remained.

Now he had a clear understanding. No matter how peerlessly graceful she had once been, no matter that she had once been among the foremost experts of the Pre-Qin Daoist practitioners, she had ultimately Ascended. At least at this stage, she could not interfere with the present world. She could only travel through dreams and cast remnants of her former extraordinary methods into his subconscious.

Wang Xuan entered meditation once more. Not only did he visualize the blood-streaked Female Daoist practitioner as a Celestial Maiden, he also visualized the dazzling lightning as ethereal immortal music. On top of that, he added scenery and paired it with poetry, songs, and dances.

Then he buried his head and went back to sleep, hoping he could last until dawn this time.

The Female Daoist practitioner arrived even faster than he had expected. He had barely fallen asleep when she appeared, dressed in fluttering white, her feet not touching the ground as she hovered before him. This time, she did not dare get too close before her palm began to glow.

Yet as the lightning gradually drew near, rumbling louder and louder, the scenery around her and Wang Xuan changed as well.

In an instant, song and dance flourished in peace, fallen blossoms swirled through the air, and a fragrance filled the heavens. Amid the flickering lightning, crystalline petals continuously drifted down from the void.

Nearby, women danced, musicians played zithers and plucked guzhengs, recluses read golden scriptures, and someone chanted, "Delicate clouds play tricks, flying stars bear sorrow, the Silver River secretly spans afar. When golden wind and jade dew meet but once, it surpasses countless meetings in the human world..."

The Female Daoist practitioner stood blankly. Her snow-white gown billowed in the wind. Though her palm was glowing, she did not strike. Watching the songs and dances of this later age, she became lost in thought, her mind drifting with the performance until her spirit grew dazed.

Only later did clarity return to her eyes. She clearly understood that this was Wang Xuan's domain, and every scene had been preset by him.

She floated over to Wang Xuan, lowered her head to look at him, and let her palm glow as faint lightning flickered within it.

"You're here again?" In his sleep, Wang Xuan still regarded her as a Celestial Maiden. Though it was his subconscious at work, this was his domain, and whatever he thought or felt appeared instantly. He took hold of one of the Female Daoist practitioner's slender hands, his expression once again filled with the joy of meeting an immortal.

Boom!

The lightning in the Female Daoist practitioner's hand struck directly onto him. Wang Xuan cried out and jolted upright. He quickly examined his body, then looked inward at his Essence, Qi, and Spirit, discovering that none had been damaged.

By then, he was calm. So the Female Daoist practitioner could only do this much. She could neither harm his body nor damage his spirit.

"A Celestial Maiden sleeps beside me!" Wang Xuan said, then went back to sleep. There was nothing to fear anymore. He would simply treat it as a spiritual wandering and encounter with an immortal at the level of mental consciousness.

Though he woke several times that night, he had found his footing and became much more composed. The Female Daoist practitioner, on the other hand, seemed somewhat distracted. Before dawn, she vanished completely.

After the sun rose, Wang Xuan washed up, ate breakfast, and went to find his old colleague at the First Time. Do not be fooled by how calm he had been in his dream, shouting about a Celestial Maiden sleeping beside him.

One or two nights like this would be fine, but if it happened every night, he absolutely would not be able to take it. Although the Female Daoist practitioner could not interfere with reality, constantly being tormented awake was still a troublesome problem.

His old colleague liked peace and quiet. He had a detached courtyard outside the city, where he was practicing boxing that morning.

"Old Chen, hurry and think of something. I can't sing and dance with her in my dreams every day. Human-Immortals and immortals walk different paths; I can't keep meeting her."

Wang Xuan did not dare mention the Inner Scenery Realm. He only said that the Female Daoist practitioner had come looking for him. Two consecutive nights were one thing, but who could endure it if it happened every day?

"The Greater Khingan Range is thousands of miles from here, yet she can pursue you all the way here. And wasn't she dead for three thousand years already? Can she still stir up unfathomable trouble? It seems she truly is extraordinary." His old colleague, Chen Yongjie, sat down and pondered seriously.

"Strange. Why hasn't anything happened underground in the Greater Khingan Range?" Old Chen asked.

Wang Xuan Pondered. Don't be so anxious. This was probably caused by the spiritual energy I released from the Ascension Stone, which entered the Inner Scenery Realm. It's following me now. Might as well recover some more in the Inner Scenery Realm at some point, then seek out others in their dreams.

"Old Chen, use your connections to ask whether they've drawn blood from her again. Can they stop for the time being? I'm worried something big may happen. You know it yourself—she can already interfere with people's subconscious. Who knows when she might be able to interfere with reality?" Wang Xuan made it sound as serious as possible.

"Don't worry. I'll ask someone, and at the same time think about how to deal with it." Old Chen went to make a call and returned soon after. He nodded at Wang Xuan and said that the underground laboratory in the Greater Khingan Range had indeed drawn blood recently.

"Did you tell them how serious this is?" Wang Xuan asked. He hoped Old Chen would speak with them and tell them that the project carried a certain degree of risk. Of course, deep down, he also wanted to help the Female Daoist practitioner.

Old Chen thought for a while before saying, "I don't have that much influence with them. How about this? Behave yourself lately, and I'll give you my chance to travel to New Star on business. You can hide from her for a while. Surely she can't chase you all the way to New Star?"

Then he hurriedly added, "This isn't a permanent position for you. There's no way you can stay over there for good, so don't even think about it. It's too difficult to send anyone there now. This would only be a business trip."

Wang Xuan immediately became wary. Could this old man be deliberately using this chance to send him over there? To transfer him into some mysterious expedition?

Ever since Old Chen had given him that book, Wang Xuan had felt that the old man had been laying the groundwork.

At the same time, he thought of the goddess in his class, Zhao Qinghan, as well as Li Qingxuan, the beauty on New Star with seductive phoenix eyes. Those two women—or rather, those two families—seemed to be forming expedition teams and had both tried to recruit him.

The people on New Star, from financial conglomerates to the Life Science Research Institute, and then to all sorts of alliances and organizations, were all growing restless. Could everyone, including Old Chen before him, be eyeing that Earth Immortal Grass?

"If you go to New Star, the work used to conceal your identity this time is quite good. You have two choices. One is to serve as a bodyguard for some financial conglomerate's young heiress. The other is to be the driver for a famous, breathtakingly beautiful widow." Old Chen spoke unhurriedly.

Then, in an earnest and well-meaning manner, he added, "Young man, you need to seize this opportunity. Many famous explorers who go to New Star cannot obtain chances like this. Even if it is only temporary work to conceal your identity, plenty of people would smash their heads fighting for it."

The more Wang Xuan listened, the more something felt wrong. What financial princess? What gorgeous, wealthy widow? Why did this all sound so familiar? He stared at Old Chen and said, "Uncle Chen, you're really going all out just to get me to New Star!"

"What's wrong? Isn't it good? I'm fully considering your demands. Young, and highly skilled in Old Arts—aren't people like you fond of this kind of work?"

Wang Xuan was speechless. Where had this old man seen something that led him to such a conclusion? The more Old Chen wanted to send him to New Star, the less he wanted to go. He feared being passively dragged into an unpredictable expedition and becoming cannon fodder with one wrong step.

"Hurry up and help me solve the problem in front of me. Stop talking about all that. Even my parents can't bear to see me travel far. There's no way I'm going to New Star right now!"

"Young man, you need to grasp this opportunity." Old Chen patted his shoulder, then turned around to make a phone call.

That morning, two old monks arrived. They chanted scriptures over Wang Xuan and sprinkled him with water, tormenting him for half the day before finally leaving.

Only after they had gone did Wang Xuan ask, "What kind of water was that? Why did I get so dirty after it was sprinkled on me?"

"It seems to have been incense ash from the bronze burner before the Buddha, mixed into water and sprinkled over you." Old Chen calmly told him that the two eminent monks had been invited from that Thousand-Year Ancient Temple outside the city. They had only personally acted because of Old Chen's reputation.

Wang Xuan looked at his ash-covered, filthy clothes and was rendered speechless. He bade farewell and turned to leave.

That evening, Qing Mu called and asked whether he was going to New Star. He was preparing to transfer Wang Xuan an advance on his expedition compensation—roughly five million in old currency for the first payment.

Wang Xuan immediately became excited. He had only just graduated; when had he ever seen so much money? If he gave such a sum to his parents, then even if he left later, they would have some degree of security.

However, he quickly calmed down. Old Chen had first laid the groundwork as silently as spring rain moistening all things, then used profit to tempt him. He definitely had something in mind if he wanted to get Wang Xuan to New Star. Wang Xuan could not agree immediately.

"Ah, should I still look for Ascension Stones? Problems have already appeared on my body. If I find a few more, will several old monsters end up attached to me? Fairy Maidens, monks, Female Daoist practitioners, old Daoists, female monsters, and so on... If they all gather together, who knows what might happen!"

Wang Xuan sighed. Unless he first solved the Female Daoist practitioner's problem, he truly did not dare act rashly.

That night, the Female Daoist practitioner indeed appeared again. Wang Xuan said helplessly, "There's no use looking for me. For now, I don't have any say in this. I can't interfere with what happens at the underground experimental site in the Greater Khingan Range. You'd get more results by going to Old Chen than by coming to me."

Don't know whether the Female Daoist practitioner was reasonable, but after he explained it like that, the night became peaceful. She did not appear again, and he slept very soundly.

It was not until dawn, when Old Chen personally came knocking loudly on his door, that Wang Xuan was awakened early.

The moment he saw Old Chen's appearance, he found it incomparably bizarre. He wanted to laugh but held it in.

Old Chen had dark circles beneath his eyes and bloodshot eyes, clearly having slept badly. Most importantly, his body was covered in talismans. His eyes were spitting fire, and he could no longer maintain his calm.

"Speak! What's going on? Why has she come to torment me?" Old Chen gritted his teeth.

Wang Xuan said in surprise, "How would I know? Maybe she's realized that your words carry more weight and you're more useful than I am. Why don't you help her properly?"

Old Chen bared his teeth in a smile uglier than crying, turned around, and left. He was going to find a way to save himself.

Only after a long while did Wang Xuan come back to his senses. Had his problem been solved just like that? The rises and falls of life were truly beyond expectation.

When he went to work the next day, Wang Xuan saw that Old Chen's dark circles were severe. He was even carrying a bagua mirror, and with one hurried glance, Wang Xuan could see his clothes were packed with talismans.

"Old Chen, what happened to you?" a colleague asked.

"I've recently become interested in the I Ching, so I'm combining it with the bagua diagram for research." Old Chen answered calmly.

For two consecutive days, Old Chen's condition worsened. By the third day, he did not come in. Qing Mu called Wang Xuan directly and asked, "What did you do to my master?"

"What could I have done to him? I'm still wondering myself. He didn't come in today. Where did he go?" Wang Xuan replied.

Qing Mu sighed and said that Old Chen had run away. Early that morning, as though his backside were on fire, he had boarded an interstellar spacecraft for New Star, shouting, "There is great terror attached to that boy! This old man will flee disaster first!"

"I go!" Wang Xuan stared blankly. In the end, Old Chen had run to New Star to take refuge. Had he taken the disaster for Wang Xuan?

Wang Xuan immediately thought of the five million old currency that would soon arrive. With the trouble on his body gone, he should be able to look for two more Ascension Stones. His mood instantly soared, and he felt refreshed and invigorated.

May all readers be in high spirits every day. Calling for monthly ticket support—thank you.

Thanks to: Sui Ran 00, Chen Mi · Bai Yue, Reader 140913195823655.

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