Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 508: Gradually Uncovering the Truth

The next morning, several young maids arrived after an arduous journey of many li to attend to their queen and the sacred envoy. They all wore forlorn expressions.

Who could understand the plight of the working class?

It sounded generous for them to have been allowed to return and rest, supposedly being permitted to take it easy and slack off, but in reality, they did not dare be absent the next day. They did not even dare to think of the consequences—even if there was nothing for them to do, they had to be present. And with the journey spanning hundreds of li, even though they all had some form of movement art or used agility-enhancing gu, the journey left them utterly exhausted.

To arrive on time, they had to rise before dawn.

They would have honestly preferred it if they had just been allowed to stay the night. If that were the case, they could have at least finished their work and then had a proper rest afterward.

Grumbling inwardly, they arrived at their destination, only to see the window open, with Sisi sitting by the window, gazing into the mirror, while Zhao Changhe stood behind her, watching as he combed her hair.

Seeing their queen’s face brimming with delight, the young maids glanced at one another, not daring to approach to offer greetings or disturb them. It felt like their presence was entirely superfluous.

“What are you all skulking around for?” Sisi called out lazily. “One of you, go fetch our map of the secret realm.”

The maids thought to themselves. Why don’t you just let us sleep? Even if you made a racket that the whole sacred mountain can hear, no one would laugh at you.

At that moment, the spirit of rebellious camaraderie, forged in their various tribal villages, awoke within the maids. They were ready to be traitors if necessary.

But then Zhao Changhe stepped outside, handing each of them a small orb made of some kind of weird jelly.

The maids held the bouncy orbs in confusion. Is this supposed to show us what Her Majesty’s chest feels like?

Zhao Changhe offered an apologetic smile. “I appreciate your hard work, but there are specific reasons why we’re staying here, making it inconvenient to move to another location. This should be the last time we trouble you with such errands. Afterward, you need not come again. There’s plenty of food here, and we can manage ourselves. These energy crystals will aid your cultivation. Think of them as a token of compensation.”

The young maids’ eyes lit up. Before they could respond, Sisi emerged from the house, protectively looping her arm around his, almost as if guarding her claim. “Don’t be spreading your goodwill like this—your kindness won’t do any good. Our Spirit Tribe subscribes to monogamy. Don’t even think about turning this place into a brothel!”

The young maids turned their heads, clearly aware of their queen’s attempt to steer them away from the sacred envoy.

Monogamy? That’s something you tell commoners to fool them. All the tribal leaders have multiple wives, while the poor commoners are the only ones who believe that and think they’re so virtuous.

Technically, in terms of formal practice, it was true. The tribe’s system did mandate one husband to one wife, and wives even held a high status. Given the openness and lack of restrictive traditions between tribes, once mutual attraction occurred, they would invite each other into their tents, and bonds were often sealed with a Heart-Bonding Gu.

Whether Her Majesty has used such a gu is a mystery... Perhaps she doesn’t dare to do that to the sacred envoy. But if she doesn’t, then what will become of her if she ends up being discarded? Wouldn’t that be tragic?

Still, having accepted the sacred envoy’s bribe, the young maids could not just spout criticism. Instead, they felt rejuvenated, eager to compete for the opportunity to fetch the map. This showed that work was not the problem, they just needed to be paid the right amount.

Zhao Changhe returned to the platform and resumed his meditation. He remained convinced that this platform was not here just for show and that it must hold some deeper significance. Spending more time observing and meditating on it, he felt certain that, eventually, the truth would reveal itself.

Sisi approached him from behind, her hands gently combing through his long hair before she tied it up. “You never gave me any of those energy crystals...”

“...You’ve already been filled to the brim like a cream puff, you still think you haven’t had enough?”

“What’s a cream puff?”

“It’s like your flower cakes and insect pastries, except filled with fresh cream.”

It took Sisi a moment of contemplation before she grasped his meaning, and then she laughed, leaning against his back as she whispered in his ear, “Don’t tell me that energy is your crystallized essence. Does that mean you were flirting with them when you gave it away?”

“Pft, what the hell are you thinking?” Zhao Changhe chuckled. “It’s actually energy crystallized from a particular treasure. I absorbed a lot of it, and the dual cultivation we did basically amounts to sharing it with you. But I haven’t done anything with them, have I?”

“Heh... Don’t even think about it. Those girls are sharp. If you go through with it and get caught by their gu, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Zhao Changhe finally turned his head to look at her.

Sisi bowed her head as she tied his hair, speaking nonchalantly, “I’ve put a gu on you too, you know.”

“Oh? When did you do that?”

“Not that day, but yesterday. Consider it payback for filling me up like a cream puff. What, are you regretting it now?”

Zhao Changhe did not seem particularly concerned, simply smiling. “What kind of gu?”

Sisi was disappointed that he did not react with shock, so she pouted and said, “A gu you’d like.”

“The Pain Transfer Gu?”

“It’s a Sharing Gu... It simply allows me to feel your pain,” Sisi said casually, as if it were a matter of no importance. “You’ll have to leave someday, and I won’t be able to go with you. But no matter where you are, I want to know if you’re hurt or in trouble, just as if I were by your side. And if you die from pain, I’ll die with you.”

Zhao Changhe watched her, her fingers deftly tying his hair, and remained silent.

Recently, he had come to learn more about the so-called Heart-Bonding Gu. This gu allowed both parties to feel each other’s every emotion—joy, sorrow, even thoughts—intensely. With the more extreme Life-Sharing Gu, if one person died, the other would die as well. Both types of gu reflected a kind of twisted possessiveness.

But this Sharing Gu was different. This specific gu was one-sided. No matter how much she suffered, he would not feel it, but if he was in pain, she would feel it, even from thousands of li away.

With a heart so deeply entwined, there was no play-acting left to be done.

Zhao Changhe sighed. “Why do you put yourself through this?”

Sisi shrugged as if it were nothing. “I never used it before, so I didn’t realize it would share more than just pain. Now I know. Didn’t you enjoy pinching yourself just to watch me jump up in pain? I’m just fulfilling my master’s little whims, that’s all...”

As she spoke, she finished tying his hair. She leaped backward and laughed. “I’m going to get you some cakes to eat—full of insects, enough to stuff you full.”

* * *

A morning of meditation yielded no results.

However, this secluded cultivation was not without its benefits. Zhao Changhe had always grown through combat, and this kind of quiet meditation and settling of energy had been relatively rare for him. In the past, his primary focus had been on his external cultivation, so it had not mattered much. But now that his internal cultivation had advanced, quiet introspection had become a crucial aspect.

He could distinctly sense the intertwining energies, spiraling together, increasingly forming a true helix.

At first glance, such a shape might appear ordinary, yet it held profound significance.

In ancient Chinese mythology, there were depictions of Fuxi and Nuwa intertwined in a spiral, and modern science had confirmed that human DNA also had a helical structure.

This form could represent an essential origin and fundamental form of life, while also being a concrete manifestation of the yin-yang philosophy.

Zhao Changhe could keenly feel that he was just a hair’s breadth away from breaking through to the second layer of the Profound Mysteries. He even had a premonition that, even without any special circumstance, through continued meditation and cultivation for a year or so, he might break through naturally.

After all, not every barrier required a sudden epiphany. Accumulation could likewise result in transformation. It was simply that his focus had always been on speed and efficiency, rarely allowing for this process of gradual accumulation.

Sisi was also cultivating quietly beside him, processing the energy she had received from him the previous night.

Generally speaking, dual cultivation brought mutual benefit, but her current progress lagged far behind Zhao Changhe’s—she had just broken through to the first layer of the Profound Mysteries, whereas Zhao Changhe was on the cusp of the second layer. The disparity was substantial, and in their cultivation together, she offered little to Zhao Changhe, while he provided her a significant boost. Consequently, Sisi no longer harbored a desire for romantic interludes, opting instead for peaceful cultivation.

By midday, the map fetched by the young girls arrived, and Zhao Changhe spread it out to compare it with the map in the Atlas of Mountains and Rivers.

Due to the differences in accuracy, the two maps did not entirely match, yet it was still possible to see the general correspondence between them.

Indeed, it seemed that, since the previous era, the Black Tortoise had known the shape of the Spirit Tribe’s secret realm—or, at least, in their eyes, this particular section was the Spirit Tribe, and anything beyond it was not necessarily so.

What was the basis for the ancient Black Tortoise’s judgment? Could it be some kind of tectonic plate?

Zhao Changhe frowned, closely examining the two maps side by side. In the background, he could hear snippets of conversation between Sisi and the maids.

“Off you go, all of you—next time, change your clothes. If anyone dares to expose their waist or ankles in front of him, I’ll beat you senseless!”

“Geez... Shouldn’t you ask the sacred envoy if he’s fine with it first? Maybe he likes to look. We all noticed him secretly looking at your feet.”

Zhao Changhe: “...”

“That’s because he likes looking at mine. What does it have to do with you?” Sisi retorted stubbornly. “With your meager charms, even if you take off your clothes and lay there completely still, he wouldn’t spare you a glance.”

“Really? I don’t believe it. How about we test it out tonight?”

“Get lost, unless you think I can’t burn you alive...”

Zhao Changhe’s expression gradually changed.

Laying completely still?

As he studied the two maps side by side, something clicked—they resembled the outline of a person lying down.

“A grand shaman, holding the sun in one hand and the moon in the other, their breath creating hurricanes...”

The Spirit Tribe’s ancestor might not be buried in the mountain, nor above the nine heavens.

If this entire small world was some transformed form of the Spirit Tribe’s ancestor, then wouldn’t that explain everything?