Chapter 120: A Promise Between Men

  He sighed and said, "A person fails, as long as he doesn't give up, he can't always fail. Xiao Dou, you've persisted for 500 years, it's time to transition from an ordinary person to a dragon and phoenix among humans. Everything has cause and effect. Now that you've reached the Great Dao period, I can remind you of some things first!"

  Qian Xiaodou burst out laughing excitedly: "Speak! What's my big secret? Is it that my innate divine skill was somehow strange back then? Alas, I and Shui Xian went to various places to search for books, but didn't know who tore away the pages about me. This is infuriating!"

  The faint smile said: "Yuan Fei Shizun really likes you, this little disciple. I'll just remind you of one thing about the undead tribe. I'm the one who's killed the most of them, so I have the most say in this matter."

  "Zombie?" Qian Xiaodou scratched his head and asked: "What's the big deal about zombies? Except for Little Snow, they're not scary at all!"

  Neither deceiving nor caring about him, he said to himself:

  "Zombies, born from the accumulated resentment of heaven and earth, impure energy, and evil energy. They do not age, die, or perish, and are rejected by the three realms of heaven, earth, and humanity, outside of the six paths of reincarnation. Drifting aimlessly, without a place to call their own, their bodies have no feeling towards anything in the world. The only thing they can feel is the sole attachment from their past life. If this attachment dies, it's not that all of them die, but rather that they feel there is no meaning to living anymore and kill themselves. Understand?"

  Qian Xiaodou's face turned pale as she asked loudly, "I know, I was a zombie for a while too, but what if that zombie reached the Tianren stage of Daoshi? It would be invincible! How terrifying, can't she feel anything in the world?"

  Han Leng sneered and said, "The blood curse of the zombie clan will never change. However, if it reaches the Tian Ren realm, as long as the master is not dead, she can still feel everything in the world. If the master dies, then he will be like many zombies, unable to live for more than 500 years. The reason is only one - lonely death!"

  Qian Xiaodou wiped away cold sweat and exclaimed, "Scared me to death! If Little Snow only has feelings for me, then I can forget about being romantic. Hmm... she's a little princess and a Tianren Period Grandmaster after all. There must be many boys chasing her, and in this world with so many people, there are definitely more handsome guys than me who she'll like!"

  A big eye and a small eye airway:

  "Pig! I've told you so much, it's to make you think of women, don't you ever wonder, the unbeatable, unchanging blood curse, why doesn't it work on you?"

  "It goes without saying!" Qian Xiaodou laughed with a sense of naturalness: "I am - the invincible and unparalleled Super Great Master, passionate and unrestrained, with an aura that pierces through the sky. As long as I have Xiaofei in my heart, heaven and earth, I am the only one who is supreme!"

  "Don't cheat! A flying kick roared: 'Super Invincible Big Fool, get out of here, I'm not playing with you anymore!'"

  "Alas..." Qian Xiaodou thought for a moment and said: "Where to go? According to the original plan, I should go back and wait quietly for several hundred years, but it feels wrong. Little monk, give me some hints!"

  Cold smile said: "Fool, after a few hundred years, your master is gone, what are you worth? There will be people who can rob you in the mountains and seas. I won't mention this point. You should go ask Tianji about his plan for life's journey. He is much more formidable than me, especially after meeting you, my feeling has become even stronger!"

  Qian Xiaodou nodded and said, "Okay, it just so happens that Wudang Mountain is near here, I'll go find him to play for a few days. By the way, what do you lack in your cultivation? Tell me, this rich man, today I'm in a good mood, I'll reward Little Monk with some!"

  "Look into brother's eyes, oh~ spiritual stone! A lot of spiritual stones, brother, lend some money, I'm about to starve to death!"

  Qian Xiaodou smiled wryly and said, "I really admire you guys. Here, take these two bags of high-grade spirit stones and use them as you see fit. If you run out, go to the Tian Dao Alliance's trading conference, and I'll tell those two little rascals that Master has a need, and we'll spare no expense to help you!"

  He patted Xiao Dou's shoulder and laughed loudly: "At the critical moment, you are really a good brother, unlike those bastards who ran away with their tails between their legs when I fell into trouble!"

  Qian Xiaodou smiled and turned to leave Shaoshi Mountain, heading to the ancestral home of Taoism, Wudang Mountain's Sanqing Temple. After going through a lot of formalities, unexpectedly, he met Tianji and Meng Xuetian together!

  Three friends, led by Tianji, arrived at a secluded mountain stream. Looking around, they saw that the surroundings were elegant and quiet, with an abundance of spiritual energy, dense foliage, and lush leaves. Tianji, the host, nodded in satisfaction, turned around, and smiled:

  "What a coincidence! Two fellow Taoists have come to visit me together. Come, let's sit on the ground and talk freely about the world, isn't that delightful?"

  The two of them immediately sat down with Tianji, and Meng Xiao Tian said with an uncomfortable expression:

  "Xiao Dou, you're truly a genius at cultivating immortality! In just a few short years, after going through some trials and tribulations, your strength has skyrocketed, advancing three stages in a row, and you've actually reached the initial stage of the Great Dao. As your older brother, I'm ashamed to the point of having no place to hide!"

  Qian Xiaodou smiled lightly and said, "Having a good master is just being lucky, and encountering some opportunities. If you knew my cultivation experiences when I was young, I'm afraid you would laugh your teeth off!"

  Tian Ji smiled and said: "I won't hide it from you, Xiao Dou. We've already investigated clearly. Your legend is truly shocking!"

  Meng Xiao Tian took a deep breath and suddenly said loudly:

  "Xiao Dou, I consider you a brother, so let's just be straightforward with each other. You can't just save face in front of me, you're alone and at most have some friends backing you up, but I'm carrying the hopes of the entire Shu Shan's future on my shoulders, I won't lose!"

  Qian Xiaodou smiled leisurely and said: "Oh~ I'm very curious about your next plan, so?"

  Meng Xiao Tian said directly: "So in the future, if there's any organization that goes treasure hunting, you disappear and don't show up. If you really want something, I'll come back and share it with you. And - I will cancel my engagement with Xiaofei!"

  Tianji smiled and said, "To advance or retreat, to grasp the subtleties of the universe, while being able to do what one can, without losing brotherly affection - truly a great king! I wonder how you will choose, little bean?"

  Qian Xiaodou nodded sincerely and said: "Xiaodou has been promoted to the third stage, but recently I've been uncertain about my future path. I came to find Tianji elder brother to enlighten me, now I really can't grasp the pulse!"

  "What's there to think about? Xiaofei is such a good girl, you've always wanted her, haven't you? Marry her and you'll have everything. Whatever you want in the future, I'll give it to you. Isn't that great?"

  Looking at Qian Xiaodou's serious, convinced, admiring and hopeful eyes, Tianji let out a long sigh and said:

  "Alright, Xiao Dou, since you called me 'older brother' and trusted me so much, I have to tell you the truth. Your view on this is completely different, don't blame Tian Ji!"

  Looking at the two of them not speaking, Tian Ji's wise eyes gazed into the distant horizon and smiled comfortably.

  "Little bean, big brother will impart a sentence of the fifth layer of innate divine skill's ultimate truth to you - when opportunity knocks, seize it!"

  When the opportunity arises! Qian Xiaodou took a deep breath and smiled lightly with a tired expression:

  "Thank you, elder brother, for your guidance. I understand now, Xiao Tian. I know your difficulties, but I also hope you can understand mine. Master will probably leave within less than five hundred years, in other words, my own glory will only last a few hundred years."

  Every time he thought of Master leaving him, Qian Xiaodou's heart felt suffocated. The instructions given by Tianji were to seize the opportunity and occupy everything that could be obtained while Master was still present, but afterwards...

  "After Master leaves, I'm afraid that a fallen phoenix is not as good as a chicken. At that time, I won't come out to lose face in front of this person either. Only for the next few hundred years, I will try my best to avoid your shadow, and even in large gatherings, I won't go to force you to save face. I have self-awareness, offending you, my future days will not be easy!"

  "Alright, Xiao Dou! Since you've said it to this extent, I'll make a promise to you. In big gatherings, half of my earnings will be secretly sent to your little shop. And in small gatherings, I won't attend any of them. You can still collect resources for cultivation as usual, Tian Ji is right here after all! I'll make another guarantee: after your master leaves, I'll protect you. Whoever dares to bully you even a bit, I'll take care of them!"

  Tianji Lang laughed and said, "In that case, isn't everything fine now? Hehe, we men, actually don't need to fight and kill each other. You scheme against me, I scheme against you, sit down and talk it out. As long as there's a bit of rationality, any words can be spoken openly. Why must we resort to violence? However, Xiaodou, you still can't lack experience. Life's experiences, great joys and sorrows, life and death, the more you understand, the more hope there is to break through the Yuan Ying period!"

  Qian Xiaodou scrunched up her face and said: "Every time I go through a trial, it feels like... oh! It's just that there's this feeling that never stops. I know it's not good, but Master is here to help me bear everything. You guys don't know, for the second time, more than 20 days of tribulation, a Daqi period great master came looking for trouble with me. Ah~ my Qilin armor was looted by a post-tribulation period master on the last five days when Yuan Ying period masters were forbidden from going out. What bad luck I have!"

  Tian spoke in a cold voice, "These cultivators who have passed the Tribulation, one by one, when facing the Heavenly Tribulation, are more timid than mice, without any heroic spirit. They go around robbing and doing evil, disregarding all rules and laws. Lunatic, Xiao Dou, what did the person who robbed you look like? I'll help you take revenge in the future!"

  "Nothing else!" Meng Xiao Tian said with a painful expression: "Xiao Dou, I'm sorry. When I reported the journey event to our sect, I leaked that you have a defensive spiritual treasure - Qilin War Armor. The one who robbed you is my Shu Shan Sect's Xia Feng Shibo. Don't worry, after he passes his heavenly tribulation, he will definitely return it to you. He's not a bad person!"

  Qian Xiaodou's expression was neither sad nor happy as she said: "Oh ~ I see, it's like that. It doesn't matter, as long as we know he's there!"

  "I knew it, I told you this matter, you would all suspect me of being malicious, but I really didn't have that intention. Tian Ji knows, my old man's style is to do things with absolute precision, not a single mistake is allowed."

  Looking at Qian Xiaodou's cruel face, Meng Xiao Tian hastily grabbed her and said:

  "Good heavens! Xiao Dou, what do you mean by saying you know where he is? Are you going to use the Heaven-destroying and Earth-extinguishing Thunderbolt to launch a sneak attack and kill Xia Feng Shibo? No way, this absolutely won't do. It will spark conflict between the two factions. Today, you must sell me the Heaven-destroying and Earth-extinguishing Thunderbolt. I cannot let you commit this mistake!"

  Qian Xiaodou shook her head and smiled lightly: "You've been scared by me a few times, are you all frightened out of your wits? Let me tell you, except in life-or-death crises, my master doesn't allow me to use this. Because on the edge of the Divine State's territory, an extraordinary insect demon has appeared. It's said that he is the only one in 5,000 years who can transcend the Tribulation period and destroy the Heavenly Tribulation period - a ghostly genius! This... is specially prepared for him!"

  Tian nodded seriously and said:

  "What Xiaodou said is right, a cultivator in the late stage of Tribulation has already eliminated two Heaven Man period great cultivators. This is truly an unimaginable strength. Our Sanqing Guan's ancient master once said that where there are insect demons, one should retreat thousands of miles. And these Heaven Man period seniors may all be preparing to eliminate the insect demon's means!"

  Meng Xiao let out a sigh and said, "Xiao Dou, don't be so calm, that gaze of yours makes my heart skip a beat. Alright, are you going to the Bangkok jungle trip or not?"

  Qian Xiaodou shook his head and smiled faintly, "Didn't I say that you wouldn't go to such big gatherings? I'm preparing to organize a few people, bring my little apprentice, and make a trip to the Lianyun Mountains to find some spiritual grass for the Great Dao Period Dan medicine!"

  Meng Xiao Tian laughed and said: "Alright, brother, I'll leave Xiaofei to you then. Take good care of her. Honestly, if I were to let someone else have her, I'd feel uneasy in my heart, but letting you have her, little Dou, makes me feel at ease!"

  Qian Xiaodou hastily urged: "Don't hurt Xiaofei, even if you want to tell her something, be careful with your words. If you see that she's too heartbroken, then don't say it!"

  Tianji smiled bitterly and said, "It's strange if you don't feel heartbroken. For this kind of thing, Xiao Tian, it's better to cut off all hope at once. Don't leave any hope for the girl, otherwise, looking back on history, it's just another tragic event. However, giving up such a good girl like Xiaofei, just don't regret it later!"

  Meng Xiao Tian Lang smiled and said: "Xiao Tian is a common man, can't see the future, but in this life, I only love Lin Qing Er!"

  After their conversation came to an end, the three of them parted ways. Qian Xiaodou and Meng Xuetian flew out of Wudang Mountain together, each returning to prepare for their next adventure!