"A personal female bodyguard?" Zhang Rongfang was slightly taken aback, wondering when he had acquired a female bodyguard. Recalling Heavenly Maiden Tong Zhang's neurotic behavior, he guessed that he might be doing something wrong!
Suddenly, he remembered something and quickly touched his chest.
The handwritten Scripture Silk was gone. A chill ran up his spine.
Recalling the ruthlessness of Heavenly Maiden Tong Zhang, Zhang Rongfang immediately felt that he was doomed.
However, he quickly calmed down. In fact, from Tong Zhang's final coercion, he had already realized that she probably knew about his situation.
Given Golden Wing Tower's intelligence capabilities, his cover-ups were likely already known long ago.
Therefore, the final coercion is both a test and a punishment.
The fact that he is still alive, even though the Scripture Silk manuscript is no longer available, is the best proof of that.
He made the right bet.
My mind was at peace at that moment.
After thinking it over carefully, Zhang Rongfang felt relieved. After all, he had handed over the original Scripture Silk as soon as possible, which was a great service.
If they still want to kill their meritorious officials on the spot, then there's no point in building the Golden Wing Tower.
Without a sound reward and punishment system, any organization will eventually destroy itself.
When two Black women came forward to help him change his toiletries and clothes, Zhang Rongfang realized that both women were blind.
Not only are they blind, but they can't even speak. When they open their mouths, all that can be heard are remnants of their severed tongues.
"They are descendants of sinners, and they need to atone for their sins for three generations in order to eliminate their guilt," Wei Li explained in a sweet voice from the side.
"They gouged out their eyes to prevent them from revealing secrets. They cut out their tongues because their master preferred quiet."
Zhang Rongfang felt a chill run down his spine. Listening to the girl speak cruel and cold words in her innocent and delicate voice, his understanding of the Heavenly Maiden Tong Zhang became more comprehensive and three-dimensional.
She changed into a light white long coat with silver and blue floral patterns, and cinched her waist with a silver leather belt.
Her black hair was tied into a high bun, with a White Jade Peacock Hairpin inserted into the side and gently secured.
A silver Taiji Diagram plaque is placed on the front of the hair bun.
Wearing white boots and trousers with flowing sleeves, this style of dress was somewhat unusual for Zhang Rongfang, who usually preferred close-fitting outfits.
But when he was fully dressed and stood in front of the huge glass mirror, he could hardly recognize himself.
The man in the mirror didn't appear to have a burly physique at all; instead, he exuded a pure and tranquil aura.
The strong muscle lines exposed on his arms added a touch of masculinity to his appearance.
He vaguely exudes the air of those elegant young masters from movies and TV dramas from my past life. "How is it? Isn't it very handsome?" Wei Li asked with a smile from the side.
"Hmm, very good." Zhang Rongfang had no reply, but since he was already here, he might as well go along with the host.
Of course, now that he's changed his clothes, he feels much more at ease.
The Heavenly Maiden Tong Zhang arranged so many things for him, so it's clear she didn't have any malicious intent.
Now, it remains to be seen how she will reward or punish herself.
After changing his clothes, he followed Wei Li out of the bedroom and through the spacious hall outside.
Only then did he realize that the place he was in seemed to resemble the structure of a temple, but there was no trace of any Buddha statues in the place.
Beyond the main hall lies an open-air courtyard.
There is a large circular lake in the courtyard.
A small pavilion was built on the island in the middle of the lake.
From afar, by the waterside pavilion, the Heavenly Maiden Tong Zhang, dressed in white, was kneeling on a long, narrow black stone.
Opposite her was a dilapidated stone tablet.
She carefully used a cotton cloth to dip something in a wooden basin and smear it on the stone tablet.
There was a small boat by the lake. Wei Li jumped onto it, used the pole to row over, and let Zhang Rongfang get on.
While rowing the boat, Wei Li sang a little tune in an unknown language.
The tune carried a certain religious undertone, as if a pure young girl were praying to the gods for happiness.
Sometimes joyful, sometimes devout.
Before long, the two arrived at the island in the middle of the lake.
Zhang Rongfang disembarked and slowly walked behind Heavenly Maiden Tong Zhang, stopping on the stone floor of the waterside pavilion.
"Sir." He suddenly didn't know how to address him.
The Heavenly Maiden had her back to him, her white robes billowing in the wind, highlighting her slender and perfect waist and hip lines.
She was once chosen as Heavenly Maiden Ming Consort by the Buddhist School.
In terms of figure, she was arguably the most perfectly proportioned woman Zhang Rongfang had ever seen.
"Look."
She stretched out her finger and pointed to the stone tablet in front of her.
Looking from behind, Zhang Rongfang shifted his gaze from her figure to the stone tablet.
The gray-black stone tablet was covered with names of all sizes, written in clumsy strokes.
These names are mostly written in Ling Script, and each one looks like a child practicing calligraphy, crooked and illegible.
"What is this?" Zhang Rongfang asked softly.
"I guess you could call it missing someone?" Tong Zhang replied.
She put down the cotton cloth, stood up, stretched her body slightly, and then turned around.
"It seems that you are healthier than I thought."
Her stiff face was expressionless, but her eyes were quite lively, revealing a hint of relief.
"Thank you for your concern, sir. I was a little out of line before." Zhang Rongfang recalled his previous behavior and still felt a little scared.
The simultaneous eruption of five Heavy Mountain, the explosive power of that technique, combined with five bursts, the destructive force of which he himself was not even clear.
At the time, I felt confident that I could do it, so I started doing it.
Fortunately, they won in the end; otherwise, if they had missed their target, he would have been dead.
"That was actually a good thing," Tong Zhang said with a smile in her eyes. She walked closer gently.
"Ye Bai said that your potential has been exhausted, and I don't believe it. But what's strange is that I checked it myself last night, and the result was the same as hers."
What the hell? A personal inspection? What kind of inspection?! Zhang Rongfang felt a chill run down his spine and immediately became somewhat uneasy.
Seeing that his face was slightly flushed, Tong Zhang laughed.
Laughter, like wind chimes, drifted far away on the breeze.
Wei Li and the other maids, who had been hiding in the distance, stared at this side as if they had seen a ghost.
They hadn't seen their owner smile genuinely in far too long.
I never expected Zhang Rongfang to be able to do it.
"Are you shy?" Tong Zhang's smile faded. "It's nothing. I'm old enough to be your mother. As for the checkup, I'll personally take care of all your injuries and cleansing after you come back. Don't worry about it."
She turned around again, reached out, and gently stroked the stone tablet.
Zhang Rongfang felt a chill run down his spine. This was the first time he had ever encountered such a situation, both in his past and present lives. In an instant, he felt unclean. "I burned the things you hid for you," Tong Zhang's voice continued.
"The contents of this Secret Scroll must not be passed on to anyone. Otherwise, you will surely suffer a terrible fate. You must remember this from now on."
"Yes." Zhang Rongfang felt completely relieved.
This means: I'll let it go this time and handle it for you, but please don't do it again next time.
"How are you feeling now?" Tong Zhang continued. "I've applied special Fish Glue all over your body, and with the Jade Balance Dew you've taken, the combination of internal and external treatments will be enough to minimize your bleeding immediately."
"It's much better now," Zhang Rongfang replied.
"That's good. You used an extremely heavy Overlapping Breaking Limit Skill, which put a great strain on your body, yet you only suffered such minor damage. It's clear that your physique is incredibly strong."
"I will stay here for a month, during which time I will specifically teach you the Golden Roc Secret Record."
Zhang Rongfang was taken aback for a moment, then his heart leaped with joy, and he bowed respectfully to the other party.
"Thank you, sir."
"No need to thank me. I have my own selfish reasons for teaching you," Tong Zhang said softly.
She pressed one hand against the stone tablet.
"I can grant you the power and privileges of Spirit Grade being, and give you the strength of a Prefectural City's elite soldiers. I can help you skip many hardships and reach heights that ordinary people cannot even imagine."
But all of this is contingent on you leaving Tanyang and being transferred to another location. Are you willing?
Leave?
Zhang Rongfang was taken aback.
"Do I know where to go?"
"Go to a safe place. Don't you have an older sister? She's been transferred with her husband; you can go to her place."
"She's been looking for you. She's been very worried about you." Tong Zhang smiled.
"What is my official position and status here?"
"You can be transferred there together. You can focus on recovering from your injuries and then study martial arts carefully," she replied.
"Can I ask you a question?" Zhang Rongfang recalled everything that had happened and couldn't help but ask, still feeling puzzled.
"Go on," the Heavenly Maiden said, seemingly devoid of her previous ruthlessness and cunning. She spoke gently, like an ordinary elder.
"Your subordinate has always had a question." The first thing that came to Zhang Rongfang's mind was the strange scene he encountered when he tested people after obtaining the Statue.
Tong Zhang's attitude was so good at this moment, which confirmed his future position.
I'll just take this opportunity to ask what the purpose of that Statue is.
"To be honest, I once pieced together a complete Dao Gate Statue. But I encountered a strange thing because of it."
"What strange thing is going on?" Tong Zhang asked softly.
"That was it, that Statue." Zhang Rongfang still finds it hard to believe when he thinks back on it now.
He suddenly realized that he needed to explain how he knew how to activate the Statue.
If an ordinary person were to receive a Statue without knowing anything about it, they would not devoutly worship it.
Moreover, he specifically hired people to test him and to worship him.
This would undoubtedly reveal that he knew the secret of how to activate the Statue beforehand.
"Your subordinate, there's an inexplicable problem with the Statue we pieced together earlier."
"What happened to the Statue? Did it disappear?" Tong Zhang asked.
She seemed completely unsurprised that something would happen.
"Yes, it was completely shattered later. I watched helplessly as a person turned into..."
"You've misread it," Tong Zhang suddenly interrupted him.
"It must be because you're too tired, that's why you're hallucinating." She slowly walked up to Zhang Rongfang, reached out, and gently stroked his face.
"You are still young. You have already taken that crucial step. Now, just follow the steps and you will reach a higher level."
"But now, at least for now." She stared at Zhang Rongfang intently.
"Don't investigate or think about these things."
Zhang Rongfang sensed a certain worry and concern in her tone.
He couldn't imagine what there was to worry about given Heavenly Maiden Tong Zhang's terrifying skills.
But at this moment, the worry in her eyes was completely genuine.
"Just like all the servants here, I gouged out their eyes and cut out their tongues, but Non-Self was cruel and tyrannical."
But it was me who didn't want them to die.
Zhang Rongfang's solemn face was reflected in her eyes.
"Go to your sister's side, take good care of your injuries, and don't get involved with the Statue bait or anything related to Secret Teaching."
Look at Silver Masked Cicada; all the people he cared about died because of him.
And now, he doesn't even know what he's doing. This world, this world...
Her voice lowered.