Inheritance

"Where is Uncle now?"

Song Lingxue fell silent for a moment, worry faintly surfacing between her brows. "Could I have dragged Uncle down with us?"

The worst outcome had originally been only one family dying. But if Uncle's family was implicated as well, she truly would not be able to rest in peace even in death.

"There is no need to worry too much. Going to seek refuge with your uncle is the last resort."

Song Tonghai shook his head. "Your uncle is not in Great Zhou, nor is he even within the Four Directions Kingdoms. The people here cannot stretch their hands that far."

"Three hundred thousand li southeast of Great Zhou's eastern border lies a country called Giant Marsh. Its territory is mostly islands, its situation chaotic, and it is presently in troubled times."

"Every three years, your uncle and I correspond. Three years ago, he had already made contact with the local immortal sect, Jade Pavilion. He was preparing to spread his wings and make great achievements, to establish an enduring legacy. He should be short of manpower."

"Great Zhou is truly far too distant from Giant Marsh. The letter I sent him the month before last is probably still on the road..."

The more Song Tonghai spoke, the more desolate his expression became.

This would be a long migration. Simply reaching Giant Marsh Country would take several years, amounting to a complete abandonment of the Song Family's current foundations.

And along the way, who knew what storms and upheavals they might encounter.

Song Lingxue listened in silence. Great Zhou possessed a hundred thousand li of territory and was already vast beyond measure. Yet after leaving its borders, they still had to travel another three hundred thousand li to reach Giant Marsh.

No matter how she heard it, it sounded like a fantasy from the heavens. Whether they could even make it there alive was entirely unknown.

"If matters truly cannot be defied, take Song Yun with you. You will have someone to look after you. As for that Chu Zheng..."

At the mention of Chu Zheng, Song Tonghai paused slightly, then shook his head.

"If you like him, bring him too. I will find a few seasoned old Martial Masters to accompany you and help handle miscellaneous affairs. On the road, try not to show your face."

Immortal sects were not all secluded immortals beyond the mortal world. There were also many Evil Demons. Even within Great Zhou, Demonic Cultivators existed.

When traveling outside, even a Grandmaster had to remain cautious at all times. Song Lingxue was too young and possessed some strength; if she drew too much attention, she would easily be targeted.

Listening to Song Tonghai speak as though arranging his final affairs, Song Lingxue pressed her lips together slightly. Some words did not need to be made too explicit.

When the moment came for the family to fall apart, someone would naturally have to draw away attention and help her escape alive.

She said nothing childish like living and dying together. With her current cultivation, staying at home would be like striking a stone with an egg. That was called stupidity.

There was still a long road ahead. Only by preserving her life would there be a chance to speak of revenge in the future.

If she died as well, when Ling Qing returned, there would not even be anyone left to find among their enemies.

Thinking of Ling Qing, her eyes suddenly brightened. "Father, can we ask the Phantom Spirit Sect for aid?"

"Do you know where the Phantom Spirit Sect is? Do you think the people of the Phantom Spirit Sect are unaware of our situation?"

Song Tonghai shook his head, an unmelting bitterness in his eyes. "Your life and mine are worth less than a coin in the eyes of those Supreme Immortals. Their only value may be to use us to threaten Ling Qing."

"The Phantom Spirit Sect acted this time. What about next time?"

"If I were a member of the Phantom Spirit Sect, I would wish for the Song Family to turn to ashes right now, settling everything once and for all and saving Ling Qing some trouble."

Heavenly Gifted Immortal Bone. The Immortal Dao was merciless.

The Storehouse had been cleared out almost completely, and Chu Zheng returned to the place where he was originally supposed to be.

On one side of the Storehouse was a small room. It had originally been piled with cabinets, beds, stools, and benches. Only after Song Lingqing had been selected by the immortal sect had it been cleared out to collect antiquities specifically.

These objects passed down from ancient times were only enjoyed by high officials and wealthy nobles. Not only were they of little use, they were also exceedingly expensive.

Over the years, the Song Family had spent no small amount of silver collecting these things.

Chu Zheng was extremely interested in everything stored here. If it were not against the rules, he would have wanted to live directly inside the Storehouse and accumulate restoration experience as quickly as possible.

The Grand Cycle Qi Circulation Compendium Upper Chapter required a thousand restorations. With the Panel as it currently stood, it would take two hundred days—truly far too long. Clearly, he could not simply wait idly forever.

The Introductory Chapter was already enough for Chu Zheng to cultivate for a long time. There was no need to rush into restoring the next Cultivation Method. He wanted to raise his Restorer level first and see whether the Panel might undergo some new changes.

The Great Sun at the horizon was gradually swallowed by the mountains. As the final wisp of sunset glow vanished, Chu Zheng stepped beneath the moonlight and returned to his residence.

Midnight had not yet passed, so he still could not circulate his qi through the Grand Cycle. For a while, Chu Zheng felt bored again.

Over the past dozen or so days, he had nearly finished studying the books Song Lingqing had left him.

Introduction to the Immortal Path went without saying, while Travels of the Long Rainbow Sword Immortal did contain some strange tales and curious incidents.

But this Long Rainbow Sword Immortal merely called himself an immortal. His cultivation was only at the fourth realm of the Immortal Dao, Soul Condensation, still a hundred thousand li away from a True Immortal.

Most of the travelogue was self-glorification: on some day of some year, he slew demons in some place, fought spells with someone, endured a fierce battle, and finally emerged victorious, and so on.

It also described many wondrous sights within Secret Realms, but the writing was far too pale and colorless. Some unfamiliar, bizarre phrases left Chu Zheng completely unable to imagine the details.

Hundred Manifestations of the Heavenly Stars was even more outrageous. It was truly a miscellaneous book through and through, recording all manner of great calamities supposedly caused by shifts in the positions of stars, as well as methods of using stellar signs to divine fortune and misfortune.

In Chu Zheng's view, most of it was rather forced. He did not particularly believe in the word fate.

From the Ancient History he had read, every development had a traceable course. At its ultimate root lay people's own choices, not some predetermined path.

Annals of the Northern Snow Heavenly Lord was the thinnest of the four books, yet it was the most exaggerated biography.

Heavenly Lord was a title bestowed upon True Immortals. This Northern Snow Heavenly Lord had once ruled a thousand domains and ten thousand kingdoms, crushed the world beneath him, borne Heaven's mandate for a million years, then vanished without a trace.

True Immortals could hold the sun and moon in their hands, overturn seas with a glance, and sever rivers of stars with a thought.

Yet in the Annals of the Northern Snow Heavenly Lord, he had slain no fewer than ten True Immortals. After reading the whole thing, only the two words "invincible" remained.

Based on Chu Zheng's impression of the scale of stars, it was truly difficult to imagine what sort of living being could reach such a level. It was rather abstract.

If a lifeform at that level could use its power for shared development, how many ordinary people could it support?

That was Chu Zheng's first thought after finishing Annals of the Northern Snow Heavenly Lord.

But making True Immortals farm was clearly not very realistic.

As he flipped through what he currently had in hand, Chu Zheng's gaze suddenly sharpened, and his interest rose.

Aged Journal (Zero Order / Damaged): A diary written by a martial artist surnamed Song. After restoration, you can use it to pass the time.