29. A Different Story

Although being carried to success feels great, practicing on one’s own is far more practical.

"Senior Brother, I’m just glad you’ve woken up." Lin Jiuge let out a sigh of relief, followed immediately by a wave of soreness throughout her entire body and a throbbing headache that made her wince.

"Junior Sister, you tricked me." After saying this, Zhou Yan closed his eyes and began to circulate his cultivation technique. Lin Jiuge had laid a solid foundation for him; he could clearly feel that his cultivation speed was ten percent faster than before. With a complex mix of emotions, he realized he was truly the first person to be "carried" to success by a Junior Sister.

Once Lin Jiuge was certain that Zhou Yan could cultivate on his own, she prepared to enter meditation to recover. However, the nameless sword in her sea of consciousness began to act up again, rapidly etching a line of text.

"Your younger sister possesses a Flawless Constitution. She can consume the Purified Water. It won’t have much effect now, but the results will be very apparent as she cultivates in the future."

Lin Jiuge did not move. She had nearly blinded herself with the stuff earlier and dared not experiment on her sister.

"It’s true, believe me." Seeing Lin Jiuge’s doubt, the nameless sword grew anxious.

"You’re an ancient sword; how do you know so much?" It hadn't rusted; it had clearly become a sentient spirit. This "spirit-possessed" object had finally stopped letting the Golden Sword take the blame and was stepping onto the stage itself.

"You said it yourself, I’m ancient. Isn't it normal for me to know a lot?" The nameless sword scribbled away, and Lin Jiuge inexplicably sensed a tone of grievance.

"Really, Fu Zai-er won't be affected if she takes it now." The nameless sword was practically swearing to the heavens.

"I swear it to the Heavenly Dao." It immediately followed up with that vow.

"I’ll believe you for now." Lin Jiuge felt that if she didn't agree, her sea of consciousness would be turned upside down.

"Jiuge is the best." A blatant attempt at flattery.

Quite the character, she thought. Lin Jiuge picked up Fu Zai-er and dropped a bit of Purified Water into her mouth. Lin Jiuge’s sister merely smacked her lips and continued to sleep.

After waiting for a long time, nothing happened to Lin Jiuge’s sister. Lin Jiuge anxiously checked her with her spiritual sense and found no issues. Her sister actually had a special constitution.

"See, she’s fine, Jiuge," the nameless sword continued to carve in her sea of consciousness.

"Who exactly are you? Why are you in my sea of consciousness?" Lin Jiuge asked the question that had always piqued her curiosity.

"I have lost many memories. I only remember that my name contains the character 'Zhu' (Punishment), but I am very powerful," the nameless sword continued to write.

"Why are you in my sea of consciousness? Because you are my fated person," it wrote with complete self-assurance.

"Can a person have two fated immortal swords?" Lin Jiuge had not forgotten about the Golden Sword.

"That broken sword is not. Only I am." The nameless sword seemed rather irritable, and its carving became sloppy.

"The Ten Great Famous Swords are 'broken swords'? They seem much better than you." Lin Jiuge looked skeptically at the gleaming Golden Sword, then back at the mottled, nameless blade.

"I am domineering! Once I am repaired, I will be majestic, ten thousand times better-looking than that broken sword, and far more practical." The nameless sword shook, feeling indignant. It let out a fierce sword-hum directed at the Golden Sword, causing the latter to tremble slightly.

Lin Jiuge knew this sword was overbearing, but she hadn't expected it to be *this* overbearing.

"Jiuge, you need to find more spiritual items like the Purified Water so that I can regain the ability to speak to you," the nameless sword revealed, sounding both aggrieved and expectant.

"What exactly is the Purified Water?" Lin Jiuge didn't quite understand why she had been burned so badly while her Senior Brother had nearly frozen into an ice sculpture.

"It's a rare treasure. This place hasn't been discovered for at least a thousand years, which is why so much has accumulated. Outside, this substance is extinct. It takes a thousand years to form a single drop, and the conditions are extremely harsh. Only 'Weak Stones' can store it, but those are also nearly extinct." The nameless sword’s writing seemed to droop.

"Weak Stones?" Another new term; she didn't recognize it.

"They are symbiotic with Purified Water. Purified Water, Weak Stones, and Ice Marrow exist together; one cannot be without the others," the nameless sword continued, feeling quite exhausted!

"Symbiotic? Then, what is this?" Recalling the nameless lake-blue crystal she had collected, Lin Jiuge took it out to ask.

"This is a Weak Stone! You actually have one, Jiuge?" Although it was just text, Lin Jiuge could almost taste the surprise in its tone.

Given the situation, Lin Jiuge didn't disturb Zhou Yan. She took out the Golden Sword, carved another icicle, and sealed it along with the Weak Stone into a jade box.

Using her eyes, she discovered a few more Weak Stones. She parted the water surface and retrieved two smaller ones. Her movements during this time did not disturb Zhou Yan in the slightest.

Feeling that Zhou Yan would need more time, Lin Jiuge carried Fu Zai-er around to explore. The pool seemed to be the end, but something felt wrong to her.

After circling three times, her eyes finally locked onto one spot. Something wasn't right there.

Having found the location, she didn't act rashly but waited for Zhou Yan.

Outside, although Senior Brother Li Yun and the others knew their disciples were at the Ancestor’s collection site within the sect, they remained worried. Nearly a day had passed, and the three had yet to appear. Frustrated by not knowing exactly where their disciples were, their irritation was rising rapidly.

"Those three little brats... when they return, I’m putting them in solitary confinement!" the Sect Leader declared fiercely.

"Just lock up the two elders. Keep them there for a good while," added Venerable Wudao. What would a nursing toddler like Fu Zai-er know? It was all the fault of those two reckless junior nephews!

"Before locking them up, I’ll loosen their muscles and bones first." Having learned only a little, they dared to be so arrogant. They must be given a clear lesson in reality!

"Achoo!" Lin Jiuge rubbed her nose. Who was cursing her so intensely?

Zhou Yan circulated his technique, staring at the drop of water in his dantian. He could feel its energy, but he couldn't figure out why it had ended up in his dantian. No one could answer this, so he didn't dwell on it; his Junior Sister was still waiting for him.

"Junior Sister."

"Senior Brother, have you absorbed it?" Why was there no change?

"Not yet. We'll ask the Grand Martial Uncle when we return. Shall we leave?" Zhou Yan shook his head and asked.

"Wait a little longer before heading back," Lin Jiuge replied, shaking her head.

"Isn't this the end?" Zhou Yan asked, confused.

"There is another spot. Although it fits perfectly with this place, there is still a slight sense of incongruity." Lin Jiuge turned her body toward a specific direction.

"Over there?" Zhou Yan understood instantly.

"Exactly. Senior Brother, let’s go." Lin Jiuge nodded.

The two walked over. Zhou Yan held a talisman in his left hand and exerted force with his right. They heard a grinding sound as the stone shifted, revealing a small, two-square-meter secret chamber.

They entered slowly, and Lin Jiuge wedged a stone into the crevice just in case.

The chamber was silent. On the stone platform before them sat three boxes, all with identical patterns, though their contents remained a mystery.

They didn't move, staring at the boxes, unsure how to choose, fearing that one wrong move would be their undoing.

Just as they hesitated, a wisp of white smoke drifted up.

"Hahaha, at last, I have waited for my descendants!"