Chapter Eighty-One: The First Mission

“What do you want from me?” This time, Feng Ke’er was the first to speak.

She was busy, after all. Her voice remained unhurried as ever: “I have a task for you.”

Feng Ke’er straightened her back instinctively. “What task?”

“Oh, nothing much. Starting today, at midday every day, you’re to soak in the cold pool for three hours,” came a humming reply.

What! That’s when the green-haired turtles take their bath! I’m not a green-haired turtle! Feng Ke’er protested, “Why? The water there is freezing!” Last time, when she snuck in to attempt an assassination, she’d passed through a curtain of water whipped up by the money carp. She’d even put on her fire ant armor, but the water still seeped in, icy to the bone. Soak in there for three hours? Damn it, I’ll be frozen into a human popsicle.

A soft laugh drifted from across the thick mist. “Nonsense, if it weren’t cold, why would you bother bathing in it?”

Feng Ke’er shivered. “That water can temper the body, can’t it?”

“Hmph. Just go and soak, you’ll find out soon enough. Why should I tell you everything?” The voice cleared its throat. “Remember, the Heart-Cleansing Chant can ward off the cold. Soak for three hours at midday, for nine days straight. That should suffice, and your task will be done.”

Old bastard! Feng Ke’er suddenly thought of another pressing issue. “Master, that water is filthy, isn’t it? Hasn’t it been contaminated? There must be loads of viruses and bacteria in there.” There were no clinics in this place—if the bath gave her a rash or something, what then?

The voice was thoroughly impatient now. “Stop being so delicate! Go on, off with you, don’t disturb my rest.”

At the same moment, a gust of palm wind swept out from the mist. Feng Ke’er couldn’t dodge in time. Her vision blurred, and when she came to, she found herself elegantly expelled from the mist, once again standing atop the giant banyan’s thick branch.

Damn, does the old man even know what dangerous work means? What if I slip and end up as carp food down below?

Muttering under her breath, she stroked her chin and started pondering the first task assigned by the Master of the Heavens: three hours of soaking every day, nine days in a row? Clearly, it was meant for body tempering.

She already practiced the Heart-Cleansing Chant three times a day, which took nearly three hours. Since the master said the chant could ward off the cold, the freezing water problem was more or less solved.

Now, the issue was that this was exactly bath time for the green-haired turtles.

Should she transform into a green-haired turtle and blend in? Worth a try. Besides, midday to early afternoon was the warmest part of the day. The money carp preferred the cold, hated “high temperatures,” and so, during those three hours, they all hid under the gray rocks, enduring the waterfall instead. In other words, of all times in the day, those three hours were the safest in the cold pool.

No sooner thought than done. Down below, the money carp were still hunting. Most of the green-haired turtles timidly poked out just a bit of their tongues—the timing was perfect! Both sides were too busy to pay attention to their new, suspicious neighbor. Besides, after this hunt, it would be just under two hours until noon—miss this chance, and she’d have to wait till tomorrow.

Feng Ke’er leapt to the opposite bank, once more lowering herself slowly down the waterfall with a rope.

Two creatures, each with seven spines on their backs, clearly noticed her. But, just as she’d expected, under the pressure of the money carp, these cunning yet timid fellows only flicked out their tongues and ultimately didn’t attack.

She slid down the sheer cliff, sticking to the rock face. The money carp were too busy hunting to bother with her, and their “tails” couldn’t reach her anyway.

So, in just five minutes, Feng Ke’er safely reached the edge of the cold pool.

No sooner had her feet touched the ground, before the two big turtles beside her could flick out their long tongues, she activated her transformation spell and spun around, elegantly becoming a green-haired turtle with nine spines on its back, identical to the one who’d self-destructed before.

The two big turtles beside her had only seven spines each. Sensing her aura, they both clumsily retreated over two meters, yielding the rock beneath their feet to her.

Feng Ke’er ignored them, focusing her attention on the pool. From here, the view was even better than from the banyan above the waterfall. She could clearly see how the money carp hunted the green-haired turtles.

Unfortunately, this time the carp’s efforts were in vain. After half an hour of commotion, nearly all the blackfish in the pool were knocked out. The turtles on the bank had completely lost their appetite. The money carp, helpless, quickly called it quits and retreated under the gray rocks. One, closest to the shore, flicked its huge tail in frustration as it left, smashing a big boulder on the bank and scaring the nearby turtles back into their shells.

But this was just a minor incident. What caught Feng Ke’er’s attention was what happened under the gray rocks. Unlike the grayish surface, the underside glimmered in the shadows! There was something there! Unfortunately, the light was too dim and she was too far away; all she could see were countless little protrusions, like natural crystal formations, but she couldn’t identify what they were.

Once the money carp were back under the rocks, they began licking those small protrusions. She’d seen them like this before, after an unsuccessful hunt: all heads facing the rock, tails outside, huddling underneath. She’d wondered if they were reflecting on their failures. She hadn’t realized they were just starving and eating their emergency rations.

This only piqued Feng Ke’er’s interest in the gray rocks—she resolved to investigate them up close someday.

Soon, the sun was at its zenith—it was turtle bath time. Every single one turned their heads, flicking out their long tongues, “watching” the nine-spined imposter on the big rock.

Damn! It wasn’t so easy being the boss. These guys were waiting for her to take the plunge first.

Feng Ke’er was exasperated. As a seasoned infiltrator, she always preferred to keep a low profile. But these turtles’ beady eyes were useless—they identified everything by scent, and she only knew the scent of that nine-spined boss turtle!

Despite almost an hour of mental preparation on shore, the sight of the greenish water and the blackfish floating in a stupor made her stomach churn.

Master of the Heavens, you’d better hope this bath works wonders, or I’ll… I’ll break the deal unilaterally and never speak to you again!

Under the expectant gaze of the turtle crowd, she began circulating her energy, practicing the Heart-Cleansing Chant, and steeled herself to climb into the pool.

But no sooner had her right hand touched the water than she shuddered violently—Mamma mia, cold, it’s so cold! Why wasn’t the Heart-Cleansing Chant helping at all?

She paused, then added all her spiritual energy to shield her body. Now, her skin was encased in a faint, misty glow.

It seemed better, like taking a cold shower in late May. Feng Ke’er parted the surface, took a deep breath, and slid into the water.

The green-haired turtles were extremely nearsighted, so they ignored her. The money carp under the gray rocks, however, noticed her oddness, but with the sun shining straight to the pool bottom, they dared not come near, only widening their eyes and speculating.

Once in the water, Feng Ke’er found her spiritual power draining fast. At this rate, she’d be exhausted in less than an hour! If she ran out, the transformation spell would fail immediately. She’d become a feast for both turtles and carp.

But she remembered she had a bottle of Spirit-Restoring Pills in her storage pouch. If she really couldn’t hold out, she’d just have to take one. She rarely used elixirs, so she didn’t know how effective they were. And supplies were limited—if it took several pills for each bath, what would she do for the remaining days?

For the first time, Feng Ke’er felt truly uneasy, her heart in turmoil. Just then, to her delight, she discovered that practicing the Heart-Cleansing Chant actually restored spiritual power! Although the recovery rate was just a little over two-thirds of the consumption rate, the net loss was much slower. She calculated she could just barely make it through three hours.

A heavy weight lifted from her heart, and Feng Ke’er began to “enjoy” her cold pool bath. Since she’d finally made it in for firsthand experience, she was determined to observe her surroundings carefully.

Once she was in the water, she realized it wasn’t nearly as dirty as she’d thought. The so-called green particles were only visible because her vision was now at a microscopic level. To an ordinary person, the water would just seem beautifully green—maybe even worthy of being called “a pool of jade” or “icy jade.”

As for the floating blackfish, they weren’t a problem. From her observations, they were only ever stunned for four or five hours at a time—poor creatures, forced to spend most of each day unconscious, four times a day, each lasting four to five hours. So, in their brief lives, more than two-thirds of their time was spent in a stupor, and the rest in constant danger of being killed—such is the fate of the weak, surviving in the cracks.

Alas, it wasn’t just blackfish. How many of the world’s weak didn’t live this way? How many times in a lifetime are they truly in control of their fate? Most of their days are muddled and aimless, and the rest spent struggling just to survive.

Feng Ke’er shook her head, slapped the surface, and for the first time in her life, felt an overwhelming urge to become stronger—not to live like a blackfish. Her fate, she would decide for herself! Whether or not she could return to the modern world, she would become a powerhouse, a mighty being, a true immortal!

Somewhere in the mist, someone let out a breath of relief: Stubborn brat, you finally have some self-awareness. Time waits for no one. If you keep muddling along, you really will be hopeless—won’t even be as good as a blackfish. Heh, your epiphany is an unexpected delight. This is what’s called a seed sprouting by accident, not even the main point of the task this time. (To be continued)