Zhou You's expression turned uglier than if he had eaten shit.
It wasn't that he minded the name, but the official dialect in this scenario differed from reality. Here, "Heaven-Piercing Sword" sounded more like "Heaven-Poking Sword," turning a tacky nickname into a downright vulgar one...
The monk, however, seemed not to notice and continued.
"To think I would meet you here, Heaven-Piercing Sword... Ever since Master Chenghua sank the Five Aggregates Temple into the Yin Road, you've vanished without a trace. There were even rumors in the martial world that you'd gone down with it..."
Zhou You pressed his temples, decided to deliberately ignore the title for now, and spoke.
"Something went wrong earlier, and I got trapped in a hidden realm. I only escaped recently... When I came out, I discovered I wasn't where I'd started, either... Right, how long has it been since the sect master sank himself into the Yin Road?"
Recalling the chess piece from earlier, the monk nodded in understanding.
"I see. That vajra manifestation must also be a legacy left by that senior. Judging by its appearance, it isn't a mechanical puppet, but something infused through a naturally derived secret art... The workmanship is a little crude, but it certainly blazes a new trail..."
"Ahem."
Zhou You coughed twice before the monk came back to his senses.
"My apologies, my apologies. Force of habit... Right, Heaven-Piercing Sword..."
"...Just call me Daoist Zhou." "How could I presume... Very well, Daoist Zhou. You were asking how much time had passed, weren't you?"
Zhou You nodded.
The monk thought for a moment, then held up five fingers.
"To be precise, it should be five years, four months, and twelve days."
—That long?
Zhou You frowned slightly.
Honestly, he had been terribly busy in the Blood Rain Record,