Carriage Conversation, Xuanwu Kingdom's Emperor Nears the End of His Lifespan

Inside the spacious carriage, Chen Changsheng quietly held a book and read it with great care.

Seeing this, Zuo Xinghe immediately praised him. "Sir is learned enough to fill five cartloads, yet you still never put down your books."

"Such an attitude truly earns Xinghe's utmost admiration."

"On this trip to Chang'an, Xinghe should have arranged a high-ranking Magic Beast as Sir's mount."

"But given the special circumstances, being too conspicuous might bring Sir unnecessary trouble."

"Once we reach Chang'an, Xinghe will certainly give Sir a proper welcome feast."

Hearing this, Chen Changsheng silently put away the book in his hand and said,

"If there's something you want to ask, then ask."

"I didn't speak with you before because I had no desire to meddle in the mire of the Xuanwu Kingdom's imperial family."

"Now that I've agreed to help you, I naturally won't be stingy."

"As the First Prince of the Xuanwu Kingdom, if you can't even resolve this little trouble, wouldn't that make you a laughingstock?"

With his little scheme exposed, Zuo Xinghe merely smiled and offered no defense.

Traveling to Chang'an on a Magic Beast would take no more than half a day.

But that would greatly reduce the time he could spend alone with Chen Changsheng.

Ten years ago, Chen Changsheng had saved him in the Demon Beast Mountain Range. That night, Chen Changsheng had chatted with him until dawn, and he had benefited immensely from that single night.

Yet after he regained his identity and sought Chen Changsheng out again, Chen Changsheng had never discussed anything with him anymore.

Now that the opportunity had presented itself once more, how could Zuo Xinghe possibly let it slip away so easily?

Thinking of this, Zuo Xinghe carefully chose his words and said,

"Sir, there is a question that has troubled me for a long time."

"As everyone knows, a person's energy is limited. The same is true for cultivators."

"Yet not only is Sir's cultivation formidable, you are also proficient in alchemy, formations, Medical Skills, Dragon Seeking and Acupuncture Point Location, and many other things."

"With so many things to learn, how did Sir manage to master them all, and become proficient in every one?"

Chen Changsheng smacked his lips and said,

"How old are you this year?"

"Xinghe has just turned one hundred this year."

"To possess your level of cultivation at the age of one hundred, you can indeed be considered quite talented."

"You have just turned one hundred, which means you have already lived for a hundred years since leaving your mother's womb."

"Let's count the first twenty years as a time when you were young and ignorant, so you did not learn much."

"But what did you do during the eighty years afterward?"

"There are three hundred and sixty-five days in a year. Eighty years amounts to more than twenty thousand days and nights—a rather long stretch of time."

"For ordinary people, eighty years might very well be an entire lifetime."

"But unlike ordinary people, eighty years for cultivators is more valuable than eighty years for mortals."

"Ordinary people inevitably waste most of their time on illness, hunger, fatigue, and all manner of other factors."

"Cultivators, however, are not affected by such things. They can abstain from food and live by absorbing World Spiritual Energy."

"The illnesses that plague ordinary people do not befall cultivators either, and cultivators can also replace sleep with meditation."

"Yet after all this time, what have you gained?"

Faced with Chen Changsheng's question, Zuo Xinghe pondered seriously for a while before answering,

"Over these eighty years, I gained cultivation, power, and a beautiful Dao companion."

"That's a very apt summary. But aside from those things?"

"A day has twelve double-hours. Did you spend all your time on those matters?"

"If I'm not mistaken, apart from spending time on those three things, you also spent some time on other matters."

"For example, traveling for pleasure, romance beneath the wind and moon, competing for supremacy—such things likewise occupied most of your time."

"I am no genius, nor have I had any incomparably powerful master."

"I merely picked up the time you all threw away. That is all."

"To cultivate oneself, one must first cultivate the heart. If your state of mind is lacking, how can you sing at full throat upon the path of cultivation?"

After hearing this, Zuo Xinghe let out a long breath, and the admiration in his eyes for Chen Changsheng grew even stronger.

"What a line—'That is all.' Sir's single sentence is enough to make cultivators across the world ashamed to show their faces."

"With talent as great as Sir's, the Xuanwu Kingdom is willing to treat you as a state luminary. What does Sir think?"

Faced with the olive branch Zuo Xinghe extended once again, Chen Changsheng smiled, waved his hand, and said,

"Forget it. My heart isn't in such matters."

"Besides, the fact that you paid such a great price to invite me out this time means the situation in Chang'an City is already far from optimistic."

"How much longer can your Father Emperor live?"

Hearing this, Zuo Xinghe sighed. "Father Emperor is the strongest ruler in the history of the Xuanwu Kingdom."

"But no matter how high his cultivation or how profound his divine abilities, Father Emperor ultimately cannot overcome the Five Signs of Decay."

"Father Emperor now has less than a year left of his Lifespan."

"Some time ago, Father Emperor issued an edict: whoever could locate the Dragon Lair would inherit the Imperial Throne of the Xuanwu Kingdom."

Hearing this, Chen Changsheng frowned and said,

"Emperor Zuo has lived for two thousand three hundred years. I imagine the Xuanwu Kingdom has already tried every method capable of extending one's lifespan."

"Now that Emperor Zuo is so urgently seeking a burial ground, I imagine he is not looking for a Dragon Lair, but for a place that can let someone live another life in reverse."

"Such a place is not easy to find."

Seeing Chen Changsheng directly reveal the hidden truth behind the matter, Zuo Xinghe gave a bitter smile.

"If such a place were so easy to find, Xinghe would not have come to ask Sir to leave your seclusion."

"My imperial brothers have all found experts to aid them. I truly have no confidence in defeating them."

"With no other choice, Xinghe came to disturb Sir's quiet cultivation."

"I only wonder how certain Sir is about this matter."

"I wouldn't dare claim complete certainty, but I have a fifty to sixty percent chance."

Zuo Xinghe:???

The moment those words left his mouth, Zuo Xinghe was utterly dumbfounded.

He had visited countless reclusive masters throughout the Xuanwu Kingdom, yet most of their answers had been that they had no confidence, or at most half a percent confidence.

So how had Chen Changsheng casually produced a fifty to sixty percent chance?

If he did not understand Chen Changsheng's character, Zuo Xinghe would have assumed that Chen Changsheng was boasting.

"Sir, do you truly have such confidence?"

"I am confident I can find that place, but finding it does not mean success."

"Whether you can succeed will depend on how great a price your Xuanwu Kingdom is willing to pay."

"Also, don't blame me for not warning you. Living another life in reverse is something everyone nearing the end of their Lifespan dreams of."

"But those who can accomplish it are few and far between. You would do best to persuade your Father Emperor to abandon this notion."

In response to Chen Changsheng's advice, Zuo Xinghe's face was filled with bitter helplessness.

Of course he understood this reasoning, but how could Father Emperor's will be changed by another?