My disciples are all villains.

Mingshi Yin smiled and said, "I know what can be used to help this young girl solve her fragile meridian vessels."

Lu Zhou's interest was piqued. 'Well, what do you know? Old Fourth seems more and more likable now. Although he can be too crafty sometimes, he never disappoints when it comes to it.'

Although Lu Zhou had a thousand years of memories and experience, he was not omnipotent.

"What item is so wonderful?"

Mingshi Yin said, "Lantian jade."

Lu Zhou stroked his beard and said, "A luxury item sought after by some merchants and aristocrats. What can it be used for?"

"This Lantian jade isn't that Lantian jade… Rumor has it that there's a type of jade in the eastern seas that exists inside the bellies of fishes. It absorbs the essence of the sea over the years and is full of spiritual Qi. A wearer of this item will find their skin as smooth as jade and their Extraordinary Eight Meridians as deep as moats. Nourishing one's meridian vessels in this way can temper them, given time," Mingshi Yin replied.

Something stirred in Lu Zhou's memories when he heard Mingshi Yin's words. He nodded approvingly. Indeed, there was such a jade in existence. However, this item was extremely rare and difficult to find.

Now that the cultivation world was in a lotus-severing frenzy, everyone was busy sprouting leaves. This was especially true for the grand cultivators who had experience wielding multiple leaves. Naturally, they were more confident in cultivating again. Every second was precious to them. With time being priceless now, nobody could spare their time looking for the Lantian jade.

Lu Zhou wanted to think about another method when he remembered Penglai Island. He remembered a rumor about the Lantian jade many years ago. Hence, he said, "Send a letter to Si Wuya. If Huang Shijie is there, have him send a Lantian jade over."

"Yes, master." Mingshi Yin turned around and left.

Lu Zhou studied Conch and remembered the diary. He wondered if this young girl shared the same origins as the person who was inside that coffin. Anyway, it was useless to ponder on these things now. Everything would become clear once she was "awakened". It was meaningless to rush things.

"Yuan'er."

"Yes, master."

"Protect Conch well," Lu Zhou said.

"I will certainly protect Little Sister Conch!" Little Yuan'er waved her fist and bared her canine teeth.

'Alright. I'll believe you since you've displayed such an attitude.'

Lu Zhou initially thought that Little Yuan'er would grow jealous with the addition of this young girl. However, it seemed like he was worried for nothing. He could not help but feel the little girl had truly grown up.

…

When Lu Zhou made his way back to the eastern pavilion, he brought the secret tomes with him.

Duanmu Sheng followed him. He bowed and asked, "Master, the coffin… What should we do with it?"

Usually, such an inauspicious object should have been discarded. However, when he thought about the unique Formation veins on its surface, Lu Zhou said, "Keep it in the northern pavilion."

Lu Zhou was about to leave when he added, "Have someone copy the Formation veins on it."

"Yes, master."

When he returned to the eastern pavilion, he did not meditate on the Heavenly Writing scrolls immediately. As usual, he checked the old parchment drawing for any changes on the map. Like before, he could see all nine provinces of Great Yan and Penglai Island in the oceanic regions.

According to the system's mission and Huang Shijie's statement; the Luo woman most likely visited Penglai Island before.

When he thought about this, Lu Zhou wondered if this Luo woman was from the same place the coffin's occupant was since she could help Yun Tianluo attain the Eight-leaf stage.

Lu Zhou opened the secret tome. He went through it again. The cultivation methods recorded in the earlier parts of the book were basically the same as Great Yan. After checking it thrice, he noticed nothing strange about it.

When he reached the part where the Nine-leaf cultivation method, apart from the smudged sentences, he saw the same words: The people here are weak, but it's very safe here.

'Weak? How is weak equated to safe?'

Also, why did the coffin's occupant wish that there would be no Nine-leaf cultivators here?

Lu Zhou had an inkling that the key to reaching the Nine-leaf stage from the Eight-leaf stage lay here. He continued to flip through the pages.

A red lotus was printed on the center of the book's back cover. The nine leaves were life-like. Perhaps, it was due to the coffin owner's hesitation, he drew a few lines over the lotus.

There was a line that read: Nobody can live forever.

There was nothing else.

When he read this final sentence, he noticed that it was written with heavy strokes that seemed to bleed to the back of the page.

"Could this be… a kind of truth that he believed in?" Lu Zhou was puzzled.

He placed the book on the table and no longer read it.

The remainder of his time should be spent meditating on the Heavenly Writing scrolls.

If the Luo woman truly had a connection with Penglai Island, Lu Zhou would have to go there.

Without the extraordinary power to keep himself safe, he would a fool to solely rely on the item cards to keep him safe.

'I won't agree to a losing deal, no matter what.'

…

In Moonlight Woodland, far away from the southwestern part of Great Yan.

A perpetual mist hung over an area that rarely saw the sun.

Only the moon was commonly seen hanging above the branches. Through the thin layer of mist, the moonlight made this place look like paradise.

Ye Tianxin, fully clad in white, stopped under a tree. She took a sip from the waterskin and hung it on her waist.

"Is it really here?"

Ye Tianxin pushed away from the ground and flew toward the depths of the forest.

The 100-meter-tall trees and the seemingly endless forest made her feel that she was in the wrong place.

"Misty Forest, Moonlight Woodland…"

This was a place away from the Other Tribes.

It was said that those who entered the Misty Forest would forever be lost until their eventual demise in the forest.

Many Other Tribesmen cultivators would only attempt to capture some low-rank beasts at the periphery of the forest.

Ye Tianxin had one objective, and that was to find Cheng Huang.

She walked and stopped in the dense forest. When she encountered massive beasts, she chose to hide and avoid them. When she encountered winged beasts that navigated the trees with ease, she chose to lay low and conceal her presence. Sometimes, she would make mistakes and had no choice but to fight the beasts. This, naturally, meant she would get hurt as well sometimes.

It had been more than ten days since she came to the Moonlight Woodland and ventured deep into the Misty Forest.

Every ten days, she would feel thirsty. That was when she would drink. As the rumors suggested, it seemed like she had already lost her way a long time ago. After resting, she continued on her journey among the tree.

Yoo!

A unique sound caught her attention at this moment. It resounded throughout her surroundings.

She frowned. Her experience in the Misty Forest told her that this was a unique beast. She slowed down and stuck close to the ground as she concealed her aura.

The mist hung in the air.

She could not see anything ahead of her. All she could do was hold her breath.

Creak! Creak! Creak!

The sound was getting closer.

Ye Tianxin felt an intense and dangerous aura approaching her. It was much more overbearing than all the combined auras of the beasts she had encountered.

At this moment, the mist of the Misty Forest was swept away.

Ye Tianxin gritted her teeth lightly. Her palms were drenched in sweat. She was like a divine flower in the grass, as white as snow. Although she was motionless, she still stuck out like a sore thumb.

'Eh?'

The beast… was not coming at her from her front, left, or right.

'Above!' Ye Tianxin's curiosity caused her to slowly look up.

The moment she looked up, she saw something that she would not forget anytime soon.

A pair of faint golden eyes could be vaguely seen through the thin mist. They were as large as soccer balls as they moved about.

Ye Tianxin's heart thumped against her ribcage. Her eyes were filled with awe.

Creak! Creak!

The vicious beast seemed to be inching closer toward her. Its huge head passed through the mist and appeared before Ye Tianxin.

What made her heart race further was that the spot on which she stood was where the beast's nose was. It seemed to be sniffing in search of food!

Ye Tianxin was only as large as its nostril! She had never seen such a huge beast before. "Sh*t!"