Chapter 176: Dispelling Doubts

When Zhou Qing was drawn into the strange stone, a dazzling light burst forth within the stone chamber. Hong Yun noticed this unusual radiance, which led her to this place along the path. However, upon arriving at the stone chamber, she found neither Zhou Qing nor the Swiftflame Beast.

“It seems there are hidden mysteries left behind by that celestial being within this cave,” she mused, glancing around the stone chamber. Hong Yun gently brushed her hand across the peculiar stone, then departed alone toward the mouth of the cave.

…

After being absorbed by the stone, Zhou Qing found himself in a place both eerie and unfamiliar. At that moment, he stood beside a small lake, facing a grove of peach trees. Far in the distance, beyond the peach grove, a fiery red mountain loomed.

Zhou Qing gazed at the peach grove and the mountain for a while, noting that there was neither sun nor moon overhead; only a layer of white mist hung in the sky. “What is this place?” he murmured in confusion, unable to discern his whereabouts. He had followed his ancestor’s instructions, wearing the prayer beads on his wrist and touching the strange stone, but he had no idea why it had brought him here.

Standing at the edge of the peach grove, Zhou Qing took a look around, then followed a narrow path into the trees. The peach blossoms here were nearly identical to those outside, both in fragrance and color. The fiery mountain beyond was some distance away; Zhou Qing walked through the grove for a long while, but the mountain remained far.

As he walked, the peach trees thinned out, and soon, when not a single tree remained, he realized he was much closer to the mountain. Near its base, he spotted a small thatched hut. Inside, he saw a figure.

At first, Zhou Qing was uncertain, for the person within the hut was not corporeal—his form was as hazy and insubstantial as an evil spirit, yet upon closer inspection, he was not a spirit. Zhou Qing observed him carefully from a distance: the figure wore black robes and had black hair, sitting motionless upon a straw mat in the hut.

After a moment’s scrutiny, Zhou Qing drew a deep breath and walked toward the hut.

---

Drawing near, Zhou Qing paused once more, studying the black-haired, black-robed youth. Up close, he saw that the man appeared barely past twenty, and possessed none of the sinister aura typical of evil spirits, confirming he was not one.

The young man’s features were strikingly handsome. His eyes were shut tight, and he sat unmoving in meditation upon the straw mat, as if practicing breath control.

“Greetings, friend,” Zhou Qing said, after carefully examining the youth. As he spoke, the young man’s long hair and the hem of his robe began to move in an uncanny way, despite the absence of wind. Even if there were wind, it shouldn’t have affected the ethereal form of this figure.

Perplexed, Zhou Qing’s curiosity deepened, yet he felt no fear, for his ancestor had guided him here; thus, he trusted the place to be safe.

“Greetings, master,” he said, changing his address.

Still, the black-robed youth remained motionless, his hair and robe swaying strangely. After two greetings with no response, Zhou Qing wondered to himself, “Why the airs?”

Just as he felt a slight disdain for the youth in the hut, the ethereal figure suddenly flickered like a ghost, rising from his seated posture to stand in the blink of an eye. At the same time, his tightly closed eyes opened.

The youth did not speak, but fixed his gaze upon Zhou Qing. Their eyes met, and Zhou Qing felt a strange sense of kinship in the depths of the young man’s gaze—a feeling he could not explain, but which stirred within him nonetheless.

“What is your relationship to Liao Chen?” the black-robed youth asked after sizing him up.

Hearing this, Zhou Qing began to surmise the youth’s identity, and studied him again in astonishment.

---

“Disciple-grandson Zhou Qing, pays respects to Ancestor,” he declared, kneeling to salute his ancestor.

Tian Yizi gave a soft grunt, then waved his hand through the air. An invisible force lifted Zhou Qing, and Tian Yizi returned to his seat in the hut.

“Ancestor, why are you here? My master once said you had already…” Zhou Qing began.

“Come, sit down, child,” Tian Yizi said, smiling as he beckoned Zhou Qing to sit opposite him. He continued, “In this world, I am indeed dead. What you see now is merely a remnant soul I left behind.”

“A remnant soul?” Zhou Qing echoed, finally understanding. No wonder his ancestor’s form was as insubstantial as an evil spirit, but lacked any sinister aura.

Having identified his ancestor and grasped his nature, Zhou Qing proceeded to voice his doubts one by one: why Tian Yizi had left behind a remnant soul, why he had hidden messages in the miscellaneous notes, and other mysteries.

Tian Yizi answered each question in turn. From his ancestor’s words, Zhou Qing learned that the remnant soul and the hidden messages were meant to bestow a great opportunity upon future generations. Clearly, this fortune had now fallen to Zhou Qing.

After resolving Zhou Qing’s questions, Tian Yizi extended his ethereal hand and waved it before Zhou Qing’s forehead. Instantly, a blue and a red orb of light emerged from Zhou Qing’s brow and were taken into Tian Yizi’s grasp.

Zhou Qing was startled, for these were the Water Spirit Pearl he had found in the ancient tomb near Li Tang Village, and the Fire Spirit Pearl he had obtained outside. From what he’d heard from Wuchang and Hong Yun, these pearls had remained untouched for thousands of years—yet his ancestor had seized them effortlessly.

This made it clear that Tian Yizi could also claim these otherworldly spirit pearls, or perhaps the five pearls had always belonged to him.