Chapter 55
[Lingzhu Zhenren originally thought Shi Hua would reassure her.]
[Instead, Shi Hua told her she had never known the little monkey existed.]
Lou Yuqing tapped open the audiovisual projection.
A massive screen unfolded before everyone.
Within the image, Lingzhu Zhenren's eyes were slightly red. The hand clutching the communication stone trembled uncontrollably.
"Shi Hua... I know I was wrong," she said, her voice carrying an almost desperate humility. "I was an irresponsible mother. Please stop joking with me now. Just tell me where the little monkey is."
"I promise I'll take good care of him from now on. I won't abandon him ever again. Please... tell me, alright?"
Her voice gradually broke apart.
By the end, she could barely force the words out through her sobs.
Perhaps, in that moment, she had already sensed the truth. But she still clung stubbornly to the final shred of hope left in her heart.
And then, that last hope shattered completely.
Shi Hua plainly told her that the sect had never received any message regarding the little monkey.
Clatter.
The communication stone slipped from Lingzhu Zhenren's fingers and hit the ground.
Everyone watched her hand freeze midair.
She seemed to want to grab onto something—anything at all—but in the end, her fingers closed around nothing but empty air.
The grief pouring from the image was almost suffocating.
The atmosphere gradually sank into silence.
"No... The little monkey will be fine. Shi Hua is lying to me. I trusted her so much. I entrusted my child to her... She wouldn't do this to me."
A terrifying determination slowly appeared in Lingzhu Zhenren's eyes.
And the moment everyone saw it, a chill crawled down their spines.
None of them had ever witnessed what a mother driven to desperation could become.
But they already knew what was coming next.
The Medical Sage turned toward Shi Hua, concern obvious in his expression.
"Junior Sister... Lingzhu's mental state is unstable. She may do something irrational next. You—"
Shi Hua interrupted him softly. "So what?"
Her voice was so faint it seemed as though it might scatter with the wind at any moment.
"When Yuqing mentioned the little monkey being kidnapped, I already imagined everything. I prepared myself mentally long ago."
Lingzhu may not have been a qualified mother... but she had never lost her maternal instincts.
Anyone who harmed her child would inevitably face her retaliation.
Shi Hua knew Lingzhu would not truly attack her, because she herself had done nothing in this matter.
But even so—their relationship could never return to what it once was.
Because the little monkey had become a calamity that shattered everything between them.
Shi Hua slowly straightened her back once more.
Like green bamboo standing firm against winter frost, her figure carried a quiet resilience that words could not describe.
"Senior Brother," she said softly, "keep watching."
The Medical Sage nodded.
Outwardly, he continued watching the projection screen.
Secretly, however, he kept observing Shi Hua's expression.
Meanwhile, Lou Yuqing's thoughts continued.
[Lingzhu Zhenren and her Dao companion, Zaomo, traveled day and night without rest.]
[They arrived at the Wendao Sect in an extremely short amount of time. The matter alarmed the upper echelons of the sect.]
[Everyone gathered at Xuantian Peak, where they confronted each other inside the main hall.]
[The conversation ended on terrible terms.]
As Lou Yuqing's thoughts echoed out, the scene on the projection screen shifted instantly.
Lingzhu Zhenren and Shi Hua stood facing one another.
Everyone else faded into the background.
Lingzhu's face carried unconcealed indifference.
Shi Hua looked at her as though she wanted to salvage something, but after opening her mouth, no words came out.
Only grief remained in her expression.
Their relationship had already shattered beyond repair.
Lou Yuqing watched the scene with mixed emotions twisting inside her chest.
Fate truly was cruel.
[Originally, none of this would have happened if Senior White Turtle had still been alive.]
[The little monkey would not have been tortured to death by the Beast Taming Sect.]
[Lingzhu and Elder Shi Hua would not have become strangers to one another.]
[Who could have imagined that shortly after agreeing to Lingzhu Zhenren's request, Senior White Turtle would passively fall into hibernation?]
[And even after awakening, he forgot everything. Worst of all, not long afterward, he turned into a stone statue forever.]
[The entire chain of events fit together perfectly, as though manipulated by an invisible hand.]
[In the end, Lingzhu Zhenren could not blame anyone. So she blamed herself for everything.]
[After leaving the Wendao Sect, she never returned. And thus, two of the sect's guardian spirit beasts disappeared.]
Everyone's hearts tightened violently.
That ending was far too painful. Even hearing it secondhand felt suffocating.
Sect Leader Qingxuzi secretly let out a breath of relief.
Fortunately... this was only the fate that should have happened.
Reality had not reached that point yet.
As Sect Leader of the Wendao Sect, he naturally cared for his fellow disciples. But above all else, he cared about the sect itself.
Guardian spirit beasts were one of the sect's greatest pillars.
Losing two at once would have been an immeasurable blow.
Even now, just imagining how to replace that level of strength gave him a headache.
After all, not every spirit beast qualified to become a guardian spirit beast.
Take Shi Hua's natal spirit beast, for example—the Nine Heavens Azure Phoenix.
Its wind-element divine arts were unrivaled, and its speed bordered on terrifying.
Could such a creature become a guardian spirit beast?
No.
Only after awakening its bloodline inheritance and obtaining an innate divine ability would it truly qualify.
Guardian spirit beasts represented more than strength alone.
They symbolized glory, status, and the foundation of the sect itself.
Shi Hua quietly sighed.
After cultivating for so many years, she had once believed her heart had become steady enough to face anything.
Now she realized she was still lacking.
Beside her, the Medical Sage carefully observed her condition. Seeing that she appeared relatively calm, he turned toward the others.
Zeng Xuangan sat nearby, expression composed, seemingly unaffected by everything he had heard.
The Medical Sage couldn't help sighing inwardly.
Junior Brother Zeng truly was a man of few words.
He rarely spoke normally, but unexpectedly, among all of them, he appeared to be the calmest.
If Zeng Xuangan knew what the Medical Sage was thinking, he probably wouldn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The only reason he remained this rational was because the events revealed in the inner voice had little to do with him personally.
If this had instead involved the incident surrounding Uncle-Master Zixiao accepting disciples... he absolutely would not have remained this composed.
After all, the person exposed for deceiving Uncle-Master Zixiao and stealing his pills had been a junior from his own clan.
And worse—he had personally introduced that junior to Uncle-Master Zixiao.
Every time Zeng Xuangan remembered Zeng Changfeng, he wished they had never met.
Meanwhile, the Primordial White Turtle silently observed everyone.
The stars within his eyes shifted faintly before finally settling on Lou Yuqing.
This little girl... was quite unusual.
From the sidelines, he had seen everything clearly.
Everyone's attention subtly revolved around her, as though she were the center of some unspoken secret.
But what could possibly be so special about a mere Qi Refining disciple?
The Primordial White Turtle slowly closed his eyes.
In the distant past, whenever he encountered something he did not understand yet wished to comprehend, he would always do this.
When he opened his eyes again—his pupils had transformed into a crystalline snow-white color, pure as flawless jade.
The Primordial White Turtle stared directly at Lou Yuqing.
Three breaths later, his pupils returned to their original amber hue.
Because everyone's attention remained fixed on Lou Yuqing's thoughts, no one noticed the change.
"This aura..." the Primordial White Turtle murmured softly.
A moment later, realization surfaced in his eyes.
"So that's it. It's an aura equal to space. This little girl carries the aura of time."
Because in this world—only time stood on equal footing with space.
Lou Yuqing remained completely unaware of what the Primordial White Turtle had discovered.
She was still scrolling through the system panel while continuing her speculation.
[Senior White Turtle forgot more than just the little monkey.]
[There was another extremely important matter too.]
[He once arranged a duel with the Thunder Python Demon in the Land of Desolation.]
[The two planned to settle, once and for all, whether offense or defense was stronger.]
Thunder Python Demon?
A trace of confusion surfaced in everyone's minds.
Sect Leader Qingxuzi pondered silently.
Senior White Turtle clearly represented defense.
Then this Thunder Python Demon must represent offense.
Judging by the name, it probably specialized in lightning techniques.
Lightning-element arts were indeed renowned for overwhelming destructive power... but Senior White Turtle's shell was absurdly terrifying as well.
If the two truly fought, Qingxuzi instinctively believed victory would still belong to his own side.
Naturally, he subconsciously favored Senior White Turtle.
Lou Yuqing's thoughts continued.
[Back in the Primordial Era, cultivators once argued fiercely over whether offense or defense was superior.]
[Humans argued. Demonic beasts argued too. And eventually, they stopped arguing and simply started fighting.]
[Senior White Turtle and the Thunder Python Demon were one such pair.]
[Their first battle ended in a draw.]
[Afterward, they fought countless times, but none of those battles ever produced a victor.]
[Then the Primordial Era declined.]
[Both sides lost the desire to continue competing and eventually went their separate ways.]
[Until five hundred years ago, when Senior White Turtle accidentally encountered the Thunder Python Demon again.]
[The two agreed to meet once more in the Land of Desolation five hundred years later.]
[There, they would fight one final battle using everything they had. They would decide a true winner.]
[But according to the original fate, Senior White Turtle ultimately forgot the agreement entirely because of his complete memory loss.]
[He fell into eternal slumber instead.]
[The Thunder Python Demon waited in the Land of Desolation for a very long time. But Senior White Turtle never appeared.]
[Thinking the other party had grown timid and deliberately broken the appointment, the Thunder Python Demon intended to come to the Wendao Sect personally to mock him.]
[But before he could do so, his lifespan finally ran out. He died alone in the Desolate Spirit Lands.]
Si Nidie abruptly grabbed at her sleeve.
If it were her—she would never get over such a thing.
They had been so close.
Just a little closer, and they could have fulfilled their promise.
What a cruel regret.
The Thunder Python Demon had waited bitterly in the Desolate Spirit Lands for the ultimate clash between offense and defense... all while Senior White Turtle had already forgotten everything because of Alzheimer's.
Sect Leader Qingxuzi's expression shifted.
No matter what, he had to find a way to help Senior White Turtle recover his memories.
Otherwise, even if he survived until the end, he truly would leave this world filled with regret.
Lou Yuqing was thinking the exact same thing.
Besides the little monkey and Lingzhu Zhenren's request, Senior White Turtle probably still had many other unfinished matters buried in the past.
She hoped he could leave this world with clarity—not confused and regretful, like before.
"System," Lou Yuqing called inwardly. "Come out."
Lou Yuqing ignored the row of ellipses that appeared on the panel.
"Do you have any way to help Senior White Turtle recover his memories?"
Lou Yuqing replied calmly, "You can even display the entirety of Senior White Turtle's past. A small matter like restoring memories shouldn't be difficult for you. Tell me your conditions. As long as I can fulfill them, we can negotiate."
The system fell silent for a moment.
Then suddenly—a rough, savage mechanical laugh echoed out, sounding almost like the roar of some wild beast.
Yet to Lou Yuqing, it sounded more heavenly than anything else.
Because the system said: