Let Me See!

Inside the wooden hall, Wu Wang had finished telling the little story of the Northern Wilds trial and lay on his back in a hammock in the corner, his arm beneath his head.

The old senior seemed genuinely angry, his expression rather frightening.

Perhaps this was what it meant to be the Human Emperor.

Though it had not reached the point where one burst of anger left corpses floating for a thousand miles, the fury rising within him now still made people tremble in fear, not daring to meet his gaze.

The old man stood before the medicine cauldron for a long while. With a soft sigh, he turned around, raised a hand, then lowered it again. Looking toward Wu Wang in the corner, he said:

"Wu Wang, how do you think this matter should be handled?"

Wu Wang blinked. Was this... testing whether he possessed the wisdom to become the Human Emperor?

Sorry, forgive me, you were a good senior.

If he did not absolutely have to step forward to save the world, Wu Wang would still rather return to the Northern Wilds after curing this strange illness and live freely and happily.

—If he could bring his parents and future wife along to live for tens of thousands of years, that would be even better.

Wu Wang smiled calmly and said, with clear diction and concise words:

"I don't know."

Shennong Shi immediately revealed a gentle smile, and his gaze upon Wu Wang held a little more appreciation.

"Not bad. At a time like this, it is best not to know, not to ask. I never expected you to have such deep and unfathomable scheming... But today, I must still give them a few knocks on the head."

Wu Wang could not help raising a hand to his forehead as he sprawled in the hanging basket.

Whatever. It was all fate.

Shennong Shi nodded with a smile. The sleeve on his right side fluttered, and a mass of mist appeared ahead. The mist swiftly condensed into more than ten phantom figures.

The true bodies of these phantoms were unknown distances away. There were Daoists with youthful faces and white hair, old generals clad in armor, an elderly woman leaning on a serpent-headed cane, and several somewhat younger middle-aged military commanders standing farther back. Every one of them bore an extraordinary bearing.

They were merely phantoms, without any aura, yet the realms they displayed made Wu Wang—whom the phantoms could not see—feel an overwhelming pressure.

Wu Wang secretly marveled. Eight or nine out of ten of these ministers beneath the Human Emperor were stronger than his own father...

Shortly afterward, the more than ten phantoms bowed to Shennong Shi in unison and called out:

"Greetings, Your Majesty."

"Mm."

Shennong Shi waved his hand and said slowly:

"I have conveyed my thoughts to your souls today for two matters.

"First, do not continue conducting trials for the younger generation. You will not find those of great destiny this way, and will only waste the Human Domain's fighting strength.

"Second, from today onward, you may not openly or secretly contact human forces outside the Human Domain. Those who voluntarily seek refuge in the Human Domain may be accepted; those who do not do so voluntarily must not be coerced or beguiled."

The more than ten elders answered in unison, "This minister obeys."

An elderly woman said worriedly, "Your Majesty, your lifespan... Using perilous matters to temper the younger generation was also meant to find people blessed with powerful fortune and great providence.

"If Your Majesty wishes to assign blame, this old woman is willing to accept punishment."

"You need not worry about my lifespan. I already have a solution."

Shennong Shi said, "I had not made up my mind before, but now I wish to live a few more years and see whether our human race can welcome a prosperous age."

An old general rejoiced. "Your Majesty, if you had a way to extend your life, why did you not say so sooner!"

"Hehehe," Shennong Shi laughed. "I have spent these years deeply studying medicinal principles, so naturally I have gained something. I did not have much confidence before, but now I do."

Wu Wang's brow twitched slightly. Though he had not known the old senior for long, he could clearly sense that Shennong Shi was lying.

Either he was lying about the limit of his lifespan;

Or he was lying about the method to solve it. What Shennong Shi intended to rely upon was definitely not ordinary spiritual medicine or treasured medicine.

Otherwise, why had the incomparably powerful Human Emperors Suiren Shi and Fuxi Shi failed to live until today?

Wu Wang watched from the side for a while as Shennong Shi listened to his ministers report on the Human Domain's recent circumstances, then waved his hand and dispersed the mist.

"Senior, how much normal lifespan do you have left?" Wu Wang asked.

"A little over three hundred years."

Leaning on his cane, Shennong Shi slowly walked forward and smiled. "I must give the new emperor at least a thousand years to grow. These old bones of mine must struggle on for a few more years."

"Mm..."

Wu Wang pondered for a moment, then said, "If there is anything I can do regarding Senior's lifespan, you may directly instruct me. Consider it repayment for the favor of diagnosing my strange illness."

"Good."

Shennong Shi answered with a smile. He walked to the window and quietly gazed at the scenery outside, speaking slowly:

"This old man still has several matters weighing on his heart, but there is not much you can help with.

"After your journey to Women's Country, go to the Human Domain. Whether this Human Domain is worth protecting is for you to judge yourself.

"Wu Wang, what do you think people spend their entire lives busily rushing about for?"

"I think it is three words."

"Oh? Which three words?"

"You, me, and them," Wu Wang said slowly. "You represent those whom one wishes to protect, those one must protect. Me is oneself. Them are those whom one can influence."

Shennong Shi looked at Wu Wang with some surprise and praised, "You could actually have such insight."

He had read it in a book in his previous life.

Wu Wang smiled, closed his eyes, and his voice gradually softened:

"Senior Shennong, I can tell that you devoted your entire life to the Human Domain, to the path of medicine, and to the great undertaking of the human race's rise.

"But in the process, did you forget something?"

A faint look of reminiscence surfaced in Shennong Shi's eyes. His expression grew slightly wistful as he smiled.

"What? Do you want to see this old man weep tears of old age?"

"Ai, you are overthinking it."

Wu Wang wore a thoroughly solemn expression as he quietly put the Storage Treasure beneath him into another Storage Treasure.

There was not much inside—only several jars of the Northern Wilds' finest wine, an erhu, and several concept sketches he had drawn earlier for "Shennong Tasting the Hundred Herbs."

Respecting the elderly was a traditional virtue of the flower-growing people of Blue Star. How could he possibly want to see someone cry?

Vulgar.

Shennong Shi said gently, "Wu Wang, after you arrive in the Human Domain, you must beware of two forces."

"The Ten Gods Cult and the Ten Evils Cult?"

Wu Wang immediately perked up, deliberately getting one of the names wrong.

Shennong Shi shook his head slightly and smiled.

"The Ten Gods Cult is the Ten Evils Cult. They call themselves the Ten Gods Cult, while others call them the Ten Evils Cult. They are a force secretly established within the Human Domain by enemies of the Human Domain who infiltrated it, and they worship the Ten Evils God.

"Over the past two thousand years, conflicts between immortals and demons within the Human Domain have become increasingly fierce. The Ten Gods Cult has secretly done quite a few good deeds.

"Unfortunately, they are quite scattered and possess methods to control people's minds. Not only are they difficult to eradicate, they often rise from the ashes after being destroyed. In recent years, there have even been signs of them infiltrating the Human Domain's major sects."

Wu Wang smiled. "Does the Human Domain have no method to inspect people's souls?"

"Of course it does," Shennong Shi said slowly, "but it is difficult to find any abnormalities."

"It seems that the methods of Immortal Cultivation do not hold an advantage in every respect," Wu Wang said seriously. "I suggest that the Human Domain invite a group of priests above the Great Star Sacrifice level from the Northern Wilds to conduct an investigation there.

"The Star Invocation Technique has a soul-observing art. I previously used it to discover the abnormality in Wang Lin's soul."

"Oh?"

Shennong Shi's eyes lit up, and he slapped a large hand onto Wu Wang's shoulder.

"Since that is the case, I will leave the matter of uprooting the Hall of Ten Evils to you.

"When necessary, you may seek out any sect. Display this Flame Emperor Token, and experts will immediately be gathered to assist you."

Wu Wang silently slapped himself across the mouth.

Shennong Shi said slowly, "However, I do not particularly recommend displaying the Flame Emperor Token."

Wu Wang raised a hand and rubbed his brow. "Because the previous several hundred holders all died young?"

"Smart."

"Besides the Hall of Ten Evils, which other force must I beware of?"

"Ai, it is the Four Seas Pavilion, which this old man personally established back then."

Shennong Shi's expression darkened somewhat. With a sigh, he said, "The person who just asked to receive blame is the Pavilion Master of the Four Seas Pavilion, and also a disciple whom I once trusted greatly.

"There is no problem with her nature. She is utterly loyal to the Human Domain. But the two words 'power and authority' truly can wear away at a person's heart.

"The Four Seas Pavilion now bears too many of the Human Domain's vital arteries, and has instead become a restraint upon the Human Domain."

Wu Wang immediately said, "Do not come to me for this. I am the young lord of the Northern Wilds; I cannot straighten out the Human Domain's great powers."

"I am merely telling you to beware, so that you do not suffer their jealousy.

"I have already chosen another young fellow and sent him to reform the Four Seas Pavilion.

"In the end, the Four Seas Pavilion merely has some problems. It has not yet reached the point where it must be cut away. This old man cannot destroy his own city walls."

Shennong Shi smiled calmly. He took two Storage Rings from his sleeve and suspended them before Wu Wang, then added:

"The ring on your left contains the Classic of Herbs. The ring on your right contains a bottle of pills for healing wounds and preserving life, along with several bottles of pills that can save your life at critical moments.

"Choose one of the two."

Without even thinking, Wu Wang directly chose the ring on the right containing the pills.

Shennong Shi's face darkened.

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach him to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. Don't you understand such a principle?"

"Of course I understand," Wu Wang said with a smile. "But I do not enjoy pill refinement. Besides, Senior's Classic of Herbs surely would not hide anything. Even if it is a rare pill-refining art within the Human Domain, there are other ways to obtain it.

"But even with the same pill formula, the results produced by different people are not entirely alike.

"The pills refined by Senior are treasures difficult to find in this world.

"Though they may seem like nothing more than individual treasured pills, to a little shrimp with such shallow cultivation as this junior, they are life itself!"

Shennong Shi immediately smiled until his eyes narrowed, then casually tossed that ring to Wu Wang as well.

"Take them. The two rings are yin and yang. Wearing them simultaneously on your left and right hands can conceal your aura and break some low-level formations. Put them on first."

"Thank you, Senior!"

Wu Wang simply refined the rings, placed them on the fingers of both hands, and put all his other Storage Treasures inside them.

A treasure bestowed by the Human Emperor truly was good stuff. The space inside could be described with a single word—vast!

He asked somewhat suspiciously:

"What? Looking at Senior's manner, are you about to send me away already?"

"Meditate."

Shennong Shi said gently, "This old man is about to set out to seek a method to break the limit of my lifespan. I will give you an Anointing and help you step into the Core Condensation realm."

Wu Wang frowned. "Will Anointing have any aftereffects? This junior thinks that advancing steadily through cultivation is the proper way..."

Shennong Shi smiled. "Calm your mind."

Wu Wang actually slowly closed his eyes as though unable to control himself. He sat cross-legged on the spot, and an aura began circling around him.

Shennong Shi raised a hand and summoned the Flame Emperor Token floating behind Wu Wang. He drew a fiery-red character, and the Flame Emperor Token instantly blazed with light, turning into a ball of fire that drilled into Wu Wang's chest.

Clear and dim, drifting and hazy.

Wu Wang 'opened his eyes,' only to find himself surrounded by white mist, as though seated among clouds within a dream.

Strands of firelight gathered from the clouds beneath him, then emerged from the mist and formed the Flame Emperor Token before him, wrapped in pale white flames.

In that instant, layer upon layer of insight arose within Wu Wang's heart. His Dao Fruit was like fully ripened red dates in autumn, waiting for him to pluck at will.

Not only that, the Magic Power circulating within his body became even purer. Strands of pure Fire Attribute Spiritual Power gathered from his sea of qi, then swept through his entire body like a storm.

Huff—

Countless tongues of flame burst forth from every part of Wu Wang's body. His robes nearly turned to ash in an instant, yet his hair remained unharmed.

"Wu Wang, remember this.

"If the day comes when the strange illness within you erupts completely, and you still have not reached the Ninth Level Realm—or can no longer reach the Ninth Level Realm...

"Learning to enjoy yourself would not be so bad either."

Wu Wang abruptly opened his eyes and glared at the kindly old man before him, whose eyes crinkled with a smile. Just as he was about to say something, the old man pressed a palm against his chest.

The ashes all over his body immediately scattered away. Faint ripples suddenly appeared through heaven and earth.

Before Wu Wang could say a single word, the light and shadows around him stretched away. Darkness filled his vision, and all six senses were cut off.

Splash!

Wu Wang, who had been sitting cross-legged, suddenly fell into water. The force from the old senior's shove had not yet fully dissipated, yet heaven and earth had already turned upside down, and he had been transported an unknown number of miles!

Wu Wang instinctively raised his hands toward both sides and immediately grabbed two smooth Wooden Planks. After choking on two mouthfuls of water, he shot out from the not-so-deep surface.

This was... a bathing tub?

Wu Wang sat upright and felt that he was completely naked. Instinctively pressing a hand against the necklace on his chest, he was just about to take out clothes and put them on when his Spiritual Consciousness spread in all directions.

This was an artificially excavated cave residence. Blue-green curtains hung from the stone walls on all sides. The bathing tub he occupied was behind a screen, and its location was fairly secluded...

Just then!

His Spiritual Consciousness suddenly caught a blue-green bolt of lightning shooting toward him from the cave entrance!

Wu Wang reacted in an instant. His ring flashed with faint light, and a Crystal Ball flew out at high speed before exploding apart in a moment.

Starlight flashed explosively, and an ice wall formed out of thin air!

But the ice wall exploded apart the instant it formed. A spear sent layers of ice shards flying, trailing afterimages as it stabbed straight for Wu Wang's throat!

Clang!

No spray of blood appeared. Instead, the spear was knocked flying with a few sparks!

A thin layer of ice crystals appeared around Wu Wang's body.

Yet these ice crystals were blue-green. Struck head-on by the spear carrying the force of wind and thunder, they only showed a few faint marks.

Looking to the other end of the spear, a slender hand gripped it one-handed. Its owner—the woman in armor—had sharp ice spikes pressed against her face, ankles, neck, and waist. Any slight movement would leave her seriously wounded.

Wu Wang coughed, secretly relieved that after failing to catch his mother's necklace last time, he had spent a great deal of time devising several emergency defensive plans.

Make the defense flawless from every angle.

It was just that his entirely bare body was somewhat shiny right now.

Wu Wang was a young man who loved learning, especially discovering the strengths of friends around him. His current calm composure had been learned from Ji Mo—Brother Ji.

He revealed a gentle smile and looked upward along the armored battle skirt, seeing the face of a woman currently staring at him with furrowed brows.

He had to say something.

"Cough, I am Wuwangzi, a minor cultivator from the Human Domain. As for why I am sitting in your bath barrel, miss, I think you can give me a moment to come up with a proper excuse."

Clang!

Clang-clang~

The spear in the girl's hand suddenly slipped and fell to the floor.

A ring of pale golden light surged around her, and the ice spikes shattered outright. A warning blared in Wu Wang's heart.

An expert?

Uh, an expert woman with wide eyes, heavy breathing, and a death grip on the spot between his legs...

Wu Wang hurriedly added several more layers of ice crystals around himself, instantly turning the bath barrel into an ice barrel. He flipped into the corner and yanked a robe from his Storage Treasure, holding it before himself.

"Miss, my innocence is innocence too!"

The female expert's voice trembled slightly. "You are... a man?"

Wu Wang's old face reddened. "Obviously. If our definitions of the word 'man' are not mistaken, then I should be..."

Then he suddenly thought of something.

Could it be that Shennong, that senior, had sent him straight to the Women's Country?

Colors swirled in the armored woman's eyes as she asked steadily, "Where did you come from?"

"From the eastern lands—ptui, from the Human Domain."

"That is not important!"

She actually boomed, "Melt the ice off yourself and let me see!"

Wu Wang: ...

Male cultivators roaming the Great Wilderness had to protect themselves at all times.

He drew breath into his dantian and rebuked her in a firm voice:

"Fellow cultivator, that request is somewhat excessive. The human race should honor civilization and education; the distinction between man and woman is the beginning of human culture!

You and I are of opposite sexes, and this is our first meeting. How can you so directly look upon another's body?"

Seeing how serious he looked, the armored woman was actually bluffed. She curled her lip and snorted.

"It is only a man. You do not look that different from us. I will just turn around."

"Please!"

Wu Wang shook out his arms. The woman stepped back several paces over the ice shards and turned around.

Hearing rustling sounds behind her, the woman frowned slightly, suddenly recalling something.

No, this was her home!

"You ran naked into my home, and you still—"

The woman whirled around, only to see that the man before her had already put himself in order... He wore a long azure robe, gold-trimmed cloud boots, and his long hair was bound beneath a Daoist crown. The folding fan in his hand swayed gently.

It swayed with graceful elegance.

It shook with refined gentility.

"Fellow cultivator, is this the Women's Country of the Western Plains?"