Past

Chapter 264: The Past

This inner landscape, existing outside of time, came from the heart of a dying old man.

Zhang Jingqing excitedly looked at Zhang Zhiwei, whose entire body was erupting with golden light, with his blue-glowing eyes.

He was now at the absolute peak of his strength within the inner landscape, yet he still could not win.

Zhang Zhiwei, wrapped in dazzling golden light, finally noticed that something was wrong.

This feeling was completely different from when he had entered an inner landscape in the past to fight his own inner demons.

Moreover, his master's demeanor and every detail did not seem like something his inner demons had transformed into.

He suddenly extinguished the golden light around himself and asked uncertainly, "Master, is that you?"

"Hahaha, you brat, you only realized it now?"

Zhang Jingqing took a few breaths. Though he laughed loudly on the surface, he knew in his heart that he did not have much time left.

Otherwise, there was no reason for him to still feel tired and out of breath within the inner landscape.

"It really is you! Master!!"

Zhang Zhiwei cried out again in disbelief, then ran before Zhang Jingqing like a child and threw his arms around him.

Thus, Lin Feng witnessed such a scene.

An elderly man was bawling his eyes out while calling another middle-aged man "Master." The sight was utterly bizarre.

"I never expected that we master and disciple would have a chance to meet again."

After briefly venting their emotions, master and disciple sat facing each other calmly and spoke of the past.

"Master, hadn't you already passed on? How did this... Oh! Was it Senior Lin's doing?"

Zhang Zhiwei studied Zhang Jingqing's appearance in confusion.

His master had died long ago. There was no way he could still be alive.

After thinking for a moment, he immediately thought of Lin Feng, since Lin Feng had brought him here.

"That man is practically divine. He can even cross time itself. I truly cannot imagine what level his cultivation has reached. Sigh."

Zhang Jingqing spoke with heartfelt admiration.

But then he changed the subject. He did not have much time left, and he was not especially curious about Lin Feng.

What mattered most to him now were his disciples.

"How have your fellow disciples been doing? What about Huaiyi?"

At his master's question about his fellow disciples, Zhang Zhiwei's gaze dimmed. "Master, look how old I am now. No matter how high their cultivation was, everyone's lifespan eventually runs out. Even I don't know how many years I have left. Now, only Tian Jinzhong and I remain."

"You rascal!"

Zhang Jingqing raised his hand, intending to knock Zhang Zhiwei on the head, but when it came down, he merely patted his shoulder lightly.

"Sigh, not bad. Not bad."

All the countless words at the tip of his tongue ultimately became nothing more than two words: not bad.

Zhang Jingqing had nothing more to say, yet a faint trace of worry lingered in his eyes.

"Huaiyi... because of the Jiashen Calamity back then, he was hunted down. Later, he was killed by the Tang Clan's Dan Shi."

Zhang Zhiwei knew what his master wanted to know. Huaiyi, his junior disciple, had been one of his master's favorites.

Huaiyi had come from a terribly tragic family background and had lived every day in anxiety.

Even in his old age, he had still been hunted down. His life could truly be called ill-fated.

"Then perhaps it was a release for him. It's fine. Seeing you like this now is enough to satisfy me."

Zhang Jingqing composed himself, and faint rainbow-colored light began to radiate from his body.

Seeing this, Lin Feng, who had been hiding in the shadows, quietly flew above them and activated his Soul Devouring ability.

This old man carried the Celestial Master Empowerment. Lin Feng had only glanced at it before and had not studied it closely.

Now that he had the chance, he might as well devour it directly and figure it out for himself.

"Looks like the time has come. I should go."

Zhang Jingqing looked at his glowing body and understood that his lifespan had reached its end. He smiled in acceptance.

"Master, Huaiyi's grandson has come up the mountain now. I've prepared a Luotian Dajiao for him, and the next Celestial Master will be passed on to him. I've also taken in many disciples. They've each established branches of the Celestial Master Mansion throughout the country. And the nation is much more peaceful now. No one has to worry about food anymore, and also..."

As Zhang Jingqing gradually faded away, Zhang Zhiwei, his eyes reddening, told him of all the good things their generation had accomplished.

At that moment, Zhang Jingqing abandoned his usual sternness. His face, which had always remained rigid, finally revealed a gratified smile.

Watching his master's final fading expression, Zhang Zhiwei could no longer hold back. He lowered his head and choked back sobs.

"You did well."

With those faint words, Zhang Jingqing's soul completely dispersed from this world.

The instant Zhang Jingqing's soul dissipated, Zhang Zhiwei returned to his body.

Lin Feng also ended the inner landscape that communicated with the past.

In the past, at the final moment before death, Zhang Jingqing let out several laughter-like sighs, and his body sagged limply.

If Lin Feng had deliberately watched this scene, he would certainly have been surprised.

After all, Zhang Jingqing's soul had already been devoured by him. Logically, Zhang Jingqing should have died immediately at that moment.

Putting aside Zhang Jingqing's brief abnormality, when Zhang Zhiwei returned to reality, he felt wetness on his cheeks.

Just as he raised a hand to wipe it away, Feng Baobao handed him a handkerchief, rice grains still clinging to the corner of her mouth. "Here."

"Thank you, young lady. Sigh, when one gets old, one can't bear to see..."

Zhang Zhiwei took the handkerchief and spoke as he wiped his face, about to lament further.

Yet Feng Baobao turned around, picked up her rice bowl, nearly buried her whole face in it, and continued stuffing herself.

Zhang Zhiwei's mouth twitched awkwardly, and he swallowed back every word in his stomach.

"Eat. Next comes my business with Baobao."

Using telekinesis, Lin Feng sent Zhang Zhiwei to the other side of the table. He tilted his head and looked at Feng Baobao, who was diligently eating.

"Baobao, do you want to find your family?"

Lin Feng suddenly asked.

Feng Baobao froze mid-bite, then clunked her bowl onto the table. Turning around, she stared at him with wide eyes and asked in authentic Sichuan dialect, "You know my family? Who's my dad? Who's my mom? Who else is in my family?"

Feng Baobao fired off several questions in a row, her huge eyes filled with urgency.

"Don't worry. I'll tell you everything that needs to be told."

Lin Feng placed one hand on Feng Baobao, whose body was nearly crawling onto him, and used his ability to calm her down.

"Come to think of it, you should call me Uncle."

"Uncle?!"

Feng Baobao froze, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

Looking into Lin Feng's golden-red eyes, Feng Baobao somehow felt that the question which had accompanied her for decades would finally be answered today.

"That was a long time ago, around the War of Resistance period. The country was in an age of chaos and conflict. You and your parents met me then, and I held you in my arms back then too. You were only this little, all soft and floppy, especially adorable."

Lin Feng gestured, but worried that Feng Baobao might not fully understand.

So he directly used an illusion to conjure Feng Baobao's childhood appearance.

Seeing what she had looked like as a child, Feng Baobao slowly went still.