Mortal: Fifteenth Realm Sword Cultivator

A dignified Nascent Soul cultivator would actually use himself as bait to do such a shallow thing.

Qi Yu put the two memory beads into his storage bag.

Despite her inner turmoil, she stubbornly suggested in a low voice:

"It's best if this matter... is not carried out within the Baibi Mountain area. If the traces are too clear, it will arouse suspicion. In my humble opinion, the farther away the location, the better, and the more ambiguous the scene, the more authentic it will be."

Perhaps we should find a pretext to take that senior to a secluded place a hundred miles away from White Cliff Mountain. At that time... Madam may need to make a slight gesture, even if it's just a brief moment of close proximity, it would seem much more natural and believable than doing it deliberately within White Cliff Mountain..."

For a long time, so long that Qi Yu almost thought that the lady would not speak again.

"Do as you say. If the demonic forces discover this in advance, perhaps we won't need these underhanded tricks."

However, given Liu Dao's personality, even if he was fully aware of the situation, he could not possibly remain completely indifferent. He could simply adapt to the circumstances; if it succeeded, great; if not, there was no need to force it.

Qi Yu immediately bowed and said in a deep voice, "This servant understands."

Several days passed in this way.

Lu Jianghe slowly opened his eyes in a quiet room, and the turbulent energy around him finally calmed down completely.

Nearly two-thirds of the thirty-six acupoints in the body are completely dry.

He couldn't help but frown slightly.

To escape Tianfeng's clutches, he forcibly cleared a path with his sword, which consumed a tremendous amount of energy.

It takes a considerable amount of time to refill the acupoints with pure spiritual energy.

This place is ultimately someone else's domain; we are unfamiliar with it.

Let's stay here.

It's inevitable that this will disturb the host's peace of mind, making it difficult for them to even sit down and eat.

Lu Jianghe casually tied his hair up with a wisp of sword energy and walked out of the quiet room.

There were maids waiting outside the door. When they saw him come out, they hurriedly went to greet him as if they had been waiting for a long time, and respectfully said, "Greetings, Senior."

Lu Jianghe asked with a faint smile, "Has your teleportation array been repaired?"

The maid bowed her head respectfully and said softly, "Replying to your question, senior, we are unaware of such important matters."

Lu Jianghe nodded slightly: "Where is your wife?"

Upon hearing this, the maidservant placed her hands in front of her abdomen with a respectful posture, "Madam has instructed that if you ask, I will lead you to see her."

The maid stepped aside to make way and gestured for them to proceed.

Lu Jianghe didn't say a word, but stepped forward to follow.

The maid led him through several corridors. Along the way, all he saw were female cultivators. When they saw him, this strange male cultivator, they all cast curious or aweful glances at him, and then quickly lowered their heads to avoid him.

The air was filled with a faint, ethereal fragrance of flowers and trees, and there was no trace of saltiness or dampness.

Upon reaching an elegant waterside pavilion perched on a cliff, the maid stopped and bowed to the inside, saying, "Madam, Senior Lu has arrived."

"Please come in."

A clear, cool voice, like that of an icy spring, came from inside the waterside pavilion.

A maid lifted the beaded curtain for Lu Jianghe.

He stepped inside and saw that the woman in the black robe had changed into an elegant moon-white dress with cloud patterns and was kneeling behind a low table.

She looked up at Lu Jianghe, her gaze calm and unwavering. "Greetings, fellow Daoist."

Lu Jianghe sat down cross-legged opposite her, his gaze sweeping over her as he cut to the chase: "Has there been a conclusion regarding the teleportation array?"

The woman did not answer, but instead asked, "Fellow Daoist Lu seems eager to return home. Is there something urgent happening in Tianxing City?"

Lu Jianghe didn't hide anything, "There are some things that still need to be dealt with. If it goes on for too long, things will inevitably become inappropriate."

"I see. My surname is Zhuang, and my given name is Huayi. This place is my Daoist temple, 'White Wall Mountain.' Have you heard of it, Fellow Daoist Lu?"

The woman responded with a forced smile, which was still stunning, though it carried a slight awkwardness and unnaturalness.

Lu Jianghe seemed to be deep in thought, then asked in return, "Are there any female Nascent Soul cultivators here with the surname Wen?"

Zhuang Huayi frowned slightly, wondering to herself whether the other party was truly unaware or pretending not to know.

She had already told him frankly.

I initially thought he was some reclusive elder of the Star Palace.

Now we can rule that out.

Even after a long period of seclusion, the Star Palace will compile a book containing information on the basic structure and famous figures of both the righteous and demonic paths, as well as the outer seas.

Although Nascent Soul cultivators in the Chaotic Star Sea are extremely rare, over the past hundred years, it has remained largely the same group of people, with no new faces.

"I am the only Nascent Soul cultivator here. Fellow Daoist Lu, are you perhaps mistaken?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Jianghe felt a sense of relief.

The woman before him could perhaps be aptly described as "Madam Wen".

This title likely originated from her later marriage to a Nascent Soul Stage Six Paths Supreme Saint, after which she adopted her husband's surname.

Having figured this out, Lu Jianghe looked at the woman in front of him who called herself "Zhuang Huayi".

She probably hasn't yet formed a dual cultivation partnership with the Six Paths Supreme Saint.

However, judging from this timeline, it has been less than a hundred years since the Void Heaven Palace opened.

It must have been in this short period of time that the woman embarked on that predetermined path.

Thinking of this, Lu Jianghe couldn't help but feel a pang of emotion.

Such a woman of exceptional beauty, aloof and proud, what was her ultimate fate...?

Although it cannot be called a perfect and peaceful end, at least it left a glimmer of hope in the cycle of reincarnation.

Lu Jianghe chuckled lightly, "Perhaps I've misremembered."

The soft laugh exploded in Zhuang Huayi's ears.

The Six Paths Demon is surnamed Wen!

Only then did she belatedly realize...

The other person, who was lost, didn't know that there was a mountain master surnamed Zhuang in Baibi Mountain, and instead asked "the one surnamed Wen".

Have the rumors circulating outside become so rampant?

That soft laugh seemed to say, "You, Zhuang Huayi, are already someone else's possession."

"Are you making a fuss about me?!"

Zhuang Huayi's voice suddenly rose, and her beautiful face turned frosty.

Lu Jianghe remained silent.

"So, it seems you've been feigning ignorance and playing tricks on me all along!"

Seeing that the other party remained silent, Zhuang Huayi asked a series of questions.

"Do you think we women are nothing more than playthings in the eyes of you great cultivators?!"

Lu Jianghe was speechless for a moment.

I felt a rare sense of embarrassment.

This explains the predicament Zhuang Huayi has been forced into by the Six Paths.

This was the first time he had been questioned so bluntly by a woman since he came to the human world.

"I was quite offensive with my words just now, I hope Fellow Daoist Zhuang will forgive me."

Lu Jianghe didn't explain anything.

Apologize immediately.

Besides, he didn't want to argue with a woman.

Zhuang Huayi's chest heaved violently, and her breasts bulged even more.

She wanted to say something more, but seeing Lu Jianghe's decisive and efficient manner surprised her.

I took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed my surging emotions.

The surroundings fell silent for a moment.

Seeing that the atmosphere had eased a bit, Lu Jianghe spoke up at the right time: "I wonder if the teleportation array has been repaired properly. I am willing to pay double the price as an apology to Fellow Daoist Zhuang."

"There's no need for an apology. It's just that some time ago, during a beast tide, the teleportation array was unfortunately damaged by a seventh-tier demon beast, the Nine Netherworld Chapter. Although it escaped by being slashed by my sword, it still requires several precious materials to repair."

Zhuang Huayi's tone softened considerably.

Looking directly into the eyes of the person in front of him, his gaze was clear and honest, without the slightest pretense, showing that he was genuinely eager to leave.

If that's the case...

She couldn't let him leave so easily.

Since it was you who said you wanted to apologize.

Then let's use our reputation to offset it.

Anyway, I didn't force you.

Having a Nascent Soul Realm woman by your side, you're definitely not at a loss...

Lu Jianghe's expression turned serious. "Fellow Daoist Zhuang, approximately how many days will it take to repair the teleportation array?"

If it really takes a year and a half, he might as well just find the direction of Tianxing City and cross it with his own body.

Zhuang Huayi didn't want the other party to notice anything amiss, so she responded in a detached voice.

At the same time, he quickly calculated in his mind and came up with a number that was closest to the other party's limit, but still left some room for ambiguity.

"Now all we lack is a star-fixing plate to calibrate the celestial orbits and time. It will take at least three months, and at most half a year. Of course, if Fellow Daoist Lu is in a hurry, you can also cross the star sea with your physical body. From here, head northwest. With the speed of a Nascent Soul cultivator traveling day and night, you should be able to reach Tianxing City in about a year and a half."

Lu Jianghe had no way of verifying the truth of her words, but he estimated in his mind that the time difference was roughly correct.

It took more than a month to fly from Kuixing Island to Tianxing City.

Given the distance, crossing this place physically would only take longer.

After Zhuang Huayi finished speaking, she stared straight ahead with her clear, cold eyes, as if waiting for an answer.

If Lu Jianghe were to calm down now and use his "mind to see the world," he could reconstruct the course of events.

One can clearly see that beneath the other person's calm gaze lies a sense of unease and urgency.

Perhaps, one can actually discern a hint of scheming in it.

However, Lu Jianghe was already "biased" at this moment.

He believed that his slip of the tongue had caused Zhuang Huayi to develop a dislike for him.

So no one would have guessed that the woman's real purpose was to make him stay at White Wall Mountain for a while longer.

He even went so far as to personally damage the teleportation array.

There's really no need to worry too much about this.

The safest approach is to wait here for several months until the teleportation array is repaired before leaving. This is much safer and less unpredictable than physically crossing the vast starry sea.

However... staying here will ultimately leave one indebted to others.

After a moment's thought, Lu Jianghe probed his storage bag with his divine sense.

Spirit Stone?

As a Nascent Soul cultivator and the lord of this mountain, the other party would probably not be interested in ordinary spirit stones, and would instead appear perfunctory.

With a slight shift in his mind, a flash of inspiration struck him, and a pill quietly floated at his fingertips.

This pill is entirely emerald green, with a warm, spiritual glow flowing across its surface. Wisps of vitality emanate from it, refreshing and invigorating.

The moment the pill appeared, even the surrounding air seemed to become a little fresher.

"This pill is offered as an apology for my earlier offensive words, and as a small token of my gratitude for troubling you with the use of the teleportation array."

Lu Jianghe continued calmly, "This is called 'White Bone Regenerating Flesh,' which has miraculous effects on treating severe injuries to a cultivator's body."

Zhuang Huayi's gaze fell on the emerald green pill, her eyes sparkling with a delightful surprise at how easily she had obtained it.

(P.S.: I redesigned the character of Madam Wen, which was quite a brain drain. I've tried my best to stay true to the original novel and keep the plot logical. If there are any inconsistencies, please point them out or offer suggestions, and I'll revise accordingly.)