Jade Pillow

Shen Luo's spirits lifted.

There was hidden mystery within this thing too!

Shen Luo set the stone ball on the ground, took the talisman from his palm, removed his outer robe, gently stroked the "stone ball" a few times with his fingers, then pressed down slightly.

Because of the small holes on its surface, the stone ball felt somewhat rough, yet it also had a little give. It did not seem especially hard.

After thinking for a moment, Shen Luo picked up a fist-sized stone from the ground nearby and cautiously scratched a spot on the surface of the "stone ball."

With a screech.

A large amount of gray powder drifted down, and a deep mark several inches long appeared on the surface of the "stone ball."

The "stone ball" was actually as soft as flour.

He froze for a moment, then was overjoyed. He immediately carried the "stone ball" to a nearby patch of grass, sat down, and began "polishing" it bit by bit with the stone in his hand.

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the stone ball had turned into a pile of powder and vanished.

In its place, a new object had appeared in Shen Luo's hands, leaving a strange expression on his face.

At first glance, the object was over a foot long and less than half a foot wide. It was rectangular, its entire body a rather pure dark yellow, seemingly polished from a single piece of material. Both ends curved slightly upward while the middle dipped down in a gentle arc. The eight corners along its edges looked quite rounded.

Shen Luo ran his hand over it. It was cold but not icy, cool but not chilling, fine and smooth. It seemed to be made from jade or some similar material. Fine linear carvings covered its surface, seemingly wave-like patterns, giving it the feel of an exquisitely crafted piece of jade.

However, it seemed to be quite old. Its surface had lost some of its luster, and there were one or two cracks around its edges, lending it an ancient, weathered air.

"This thing... why does it look like a pillow? A jade pillow?" Shen Luo muttered as he examined it.

Since the Shen family ran a medical clinic and pharmacy, he had encountered all kinds of people and seen a fair bit of the world. He had once seen a Jade Pillow in a local pawnshop, and it had looked quite similar to the object before him.

Medicine emphasized "a cool head and warm feet," and jade pillows had arisen from this principle. Sleeping on one for a long time could sharpen the mind and nourish the brain, keeping one's mind clear. Thus, princes and high ministers, even the Emperor himself, generally used jade pillows on their beds in the hope of strengthening their bodies and minds and extending their lives.

Yet jade pillows placed considerable demands on the jade used. Not just any jade could be made into a pillow, which was why they were extremely valuable and beyond the means of ordinary moderately wealthy families.

How could a jade pillow be out here in this desolate wilderness, hidden inside such a strange cave and stone ball?

Shen Luo turned the jade pillow over several times, but could not see anything particularly mysterious about it.

Still, since it could attract the white light emitted by the talisman, it was clearly no ordinary object.

Thinking that he might have encountered one of those "fortuitous opportunities" so often described in books and had truly found a "treasure," Shen Luo felt both excited and nervous.

After considering it, he wrapped the jade pillow in his outer robe, tied it into a bundle, and carried it on his back. He then blocked the broken opening with stones and pulled over nearby grass vines to conceal it, ensuring no one would notice anything unusual.

He tidied up the surroundings once more. After confirming that no one else was nearby and that he had left nothing behind, he turned and headed out of the valley.

At this hour, the temple disciples were all cultivating in their own rooms, and hardly anyone was moving about outside.

Without encountering anyone along the way, Shen Luo quickly returned to his quarters at Spring Autumn Temple. Only after entering his room and closing the door did he truly let out a sigh of relief.

He fetched a wooden basin of water and a clean rag, thoroughly wiped away the little grime on the jade pillow, then held it in his hands and began studying it again from every angle.

For a long, long time... he could not figure out anything.

Helpless, Shen Luo recalled the strange methods for identifying treasures recorded in miscellaneous books and travel journals. Though they did not seem very reliable, he had no choice but to try a few.

With that in mind, he first submerged the jade pillow in the water he had fetched for a while. Then he took out a fire starter and heated the underside of the jade pillow for some time. There was still no change whatsoever.

Instead, this made Shen Luo even more certain that the material of the jade pillow was far from ordinary.

After all, under fire, ordinary jade should at least have changed color somewhat.

Next, Shen Luo found a small knife. Gritting his teeth, he cut one of his fingers and forcibly squeezed several drops of blood onto the jade pillow.

After a short while, seeing that the jade pillow still showed no unusual reaction, he simply used the knife to try scratching its surface.

After the time it took to eat a meal, Shen Luo stared at the knife in his hand, its edge curled and chipped, sweat covering his forehead. His mouth nearly fell open.

The jade pillow remained completely unscathed!

After all that effort, Shen Luo was exhausted and could only temporarily abandon further attempts.

He casually set the jade pillow beside his bed, intending to search through the temple's books on jade materials the next day to see whether he could find out what it was made of.

If that still did not work, he planned to make a few more Minor Thunder Talismans and see exactly how the jade pillow attracted the white light.

In short, although he had yet to uncover what was unusual about the object, his earlier tests had already confirmed that it was indeed extraordinary.

But just as Shen Luo set down the Jade Pillow, he reconsidered and picked it back up, placing it on a table to one side.

Then he sat cross-legged on the bed, his hands forming a circle as though embracing something. Without moving, he slowly breathed in and out, beginning to cultivate the Minor Transforming Yang Art.

Without any better method, cultivating this technique concerned the length of his life. Naturally, he did not dare slack off in the slightest.

He cultivated until midnight.

After drawing a wisp of red thread from within his embrace into his nose and mouth, Shen Luo slowly opened his eyes, his expression somewhat gloomy.

The Minor Transforming Yang Art had only just reached the entry level, merely the first layer, yet its progress was clearly slower than before. At this rate, even reaching the second layer seemed far in the distance, much less achieving mastery.

"Forget it. I've already made some progress studying talismans. From now on, I'll tackle both at once—comprehend talisman arts while diligently cultivating the Minor Transforming Yang Art. I refuse to believe I can't find a way to survive." Shen Luo comforted himself, and his mood lightened somewhat.

By now, the night was deep. He yawned, rolled onto the bed, and lay down to rest. After running around and working all day, his body was already exhausted. He soon drifted into sleep.

The summer night was quiet. Insects chirped in rising and falling waves, and the moon hung high in the sky, casting specks of pure light outside the window. The room was pitch-black, seeming especially dim and deep...

Shen Luo was sleeping soundly when, in his haze, he suddenly felt a chill run through his body. He shivered, curled himself up, and reached toward the blanket beside him, thinking he had kicked it off in his sleep.

But his hand grasped nothing. Instead, it touched something long, cold, and damp.

Still half-asleep, he did not react at first. After mumbling something, he blindly reached to the other side with his other hand. This time, he grabbed a soft, mushy, sticky mass. Waves of piercing cold seeped into his fingertips, while a strong scent of grass and vegetation filled his nose. The faint chirping of insects in his ears also grew extraordinarily loud, as if they were right beside him.

"Something's wrong."

Shen Luo jolted awake and instantly sat upright. He brought the objects in both hands before his eyes and glanced at them. His eyes immediately widened into circles.

A new work by my good friend, the great author Wandering Toad: "Martial Transcendent Immortal."

Seek immortality and longevity, let hot blood roam free; tread lotus waves to cleanse the sword-bones, ride the wind through the void to forge a sacred soul!

The original blurb was—A martial immortal cast down from heaven, a genius at living off a woman.

Now it has been changed to—I, Quick-Handed Little Ma, relied on my own iron fists to defeat an immortal second-generation heir surnamed Wang, so that I could be born into this world with dignity.