Chapter Ninety-Four: An Inexplicable Monologue

High in the vault of heaven!

Beneath a pitch-black night sky strewn with glittering stars, a colossal creature, a thousand zhang in length, was now weaving through the brilliant firmament. Like a meteor streaking past at nearly the speed of light, it carved a dark arc across the far edge of the horizon.

"This is... exhilarating!"

Buffeted again and again by the wild, howling currents, Tianming stood with his face to the wind and his eyes shut, while his heart swelled with tears.

After Sect Master Xiao had finally revealed the last of the results, the one hundred slots for the competition were completely settled. There were many familiar names on the list, and among them Tianming found one that was even more familiar: his own.

And what mattered most was this: after Xiao Tianji finished speaking, he actually summoned an ancient beast of the Golden Immortal stage.

The ancient beast was entirely black, like wrought iron. To Tianming, though, it looked more like a giant turtle. Yet it was not quite a turtle, because those enormous wings, spreading wide enough to blot out the sky, gave it away at once.

The beast was unimaginably huge, occupying nearly a tenth of the gathering square. One had to remember that the square alone could hold more than ten thousand disciples. Its sheer scale was evident from that alone.

Its appearance stunned many of the disciples, who stood there with their mouths agape, staring at the monstrous creature.

Even Tianming was no exception. He had never seen such a living thing before. Even if a tyrannosaurus were alive again, in the eyes of this ancient beast it would amount to nothing more than a flock of children. Of course, in the vastness of heaven and earth, even this giant might seem somewhat small...

This journey to Heaven Sword Sect would be led by the Third Elder, with the Fourth Elder, Sixth Elder, and Seventh Elder accompanying them. Add to that one hundred inner sect disciples and the same number of outer sect laborers, and the total came to more than two hundred people. It was indeed a display worthy of a great sect.

Ahem.

At that moment, a soft cough sounded behind him.

Noticing the movement, Tianming turned around and saw a delicate young woman walking toward him.

"What are you doing here by yourself?"

Looking at Tianming standing alone in the wind, the graceful young woman hesitated for a moment before asking curiously.

"Shumeng, why are you lowering yourself to follow me?" Tianming scratched his head and asked in surprise.

Originally, she had not been on the list of participants. But just as Xiao Tianji announced the names, Shumeng had suddenly come to him and asked to serve as his errand helper. Tianming had not really wanted that, but he could not bring himself to refuse, so in the end he went through back channels and had Xiao Tianji make an exception for him.

"Nothing much. I just want to bear witness to the rise of a shining new star, like the brilliant light among the stars in this night sky..."

Her eyes gleaming, Shumeng said with a smile.

Her delicate and lovely face, together with that clear and melodious voice, left Tianming momentarily entranced by the beautiful scene before him.

...

Huff.

Taking a deep breath, Tianming quickly came back to himself.

"You flatter me too much. Even the brightest stars eventually have their moment of dimming and vanishing! Let me ask you this bluntly: how did you know I had that kind of potential? What if I ended up dying halfway through, or could not even move an inch?" He sat down somewhere nearby, looking at Shumeng with a wry smile as he asked.

Although Tianming was curious why Shumeng would say such things, he was even more curious about how she viewed him. Back then, they had no connection at all, and yet she had actually blocked an attack for him. That simply did not make sense.

"In all of history, who has ever reached the sixth rank of the Spirit Void stage in such a short time, and become such a thorn in the side of the Black Demon Clan?"

Shumeng did not answer Tianming's question. Instead, she smiled and spoke to herself. But those words carried an entirely different meaning to Tianming. The more he listened, the more shocked he became; he had not expected her to see through him so clearly.

"Heh... other than admiring you, to be honest, I really do not know what else to say." Tianming gave her a thumbs-up and said with a helpless smile.

"You do not need to say anything. Just know that this is all one-sided on my part."

Shaking her head, Shumeng showed no great change in expression, as though she were long accustomed to this.

"Another impertinent question: are you really called Shumeng? In this world of clan surnames, is there a Shu family?" Tianming nodded. His curiosity toward this exceptionally delicate and mysterious woman only grew stronger. Why was she deliberately drawing near to him?

Yet Shumeng still did not answer. As though she had heard nothing at all, she looked out toward the horizon and said, "The wind is strong outside. Why not come into the tent and rest for a while?"

"I did not expect you to be so considerate."

Tianming was slightly taken aback at her words, and his impression of her rose even higher.

"Nothing much. I am merely doing the duty of an errand worker who pours tea and brings water. Do not read too much into it."

After speaking in that clear and pleasant voice, Shumeng withdrew her gaze and turned as if to leave, heading toward a tent not far away.

"Was it really nothing at all?" Tianming murmured.

Shumeng's astonishing words had made this night impossible for Tianming to forget. Of course, what surprised him most was that in this world of cultivation, tents actually existed. This only strengthened his conviction that the age of civilization and technology would one day be replaced by the age of cultivation.

...

Once he stepped into the tent that had been assigned to him alone, Tianming felt a little awkward. The tent was not large. It was no problem for two people to fit inside, but if the two of them were to rest together, some degree of bodily contact would be unavoidable. Even if separated by clothing, Tianming still felt it was improper...

Only then did he understand why, when he had made the request earlier, Xiao Tianji had worn that slightly lewd smile.

"Wait a moment!"

Seeing Tianming come in, Shumeng carefully poured tea from a blue-and-white porcelain pot into a small cup. Then she took small steps over to him, her face carrying a faint, enigmatic smile.

"Please have some tea."

"Thank you."

Tianming quickly wiped his hands on his clothes, then nodded and took the cup.

Meeting Shumeng's expectant gaze, Tianming did not hesitate any longer. He drank it all in one gulp.

In an instant, a warm current flowed through his heart... not only through his stomach, but all the way into the deepest part of him, filling Tianming with gratitude.

"Here. I did not expect your tea-making skills to be this good. Whoever marries you will truly be blessed."

Handing the cup back to Shumeng, Tianming gave a meaningful smile. Then, without waiting for her reply, he simply sat down cross-legged where he was.

"As long as you are happy."

At that, Shumeng placed the cup on a small table and also sat down cross-legged beside Tianming.

Tianming...

Sensing a gentle breeze mixed with a faint fragrance drifting over from beside him, Tianming glanced sideways. When he saw Shumeng sitting there, he could only shake his head in helpless wry amusement.

So she really intended to cling to him.

Still, Tianming did not mind. He merely closed his eyes and let his mind sink inward.

Out of sight, out of mind, and the heart no longer troubled by distractions.

More or less, that was how it went...