Chapter 166: Tianshan Child-Grandmother

"What is this?" A child, seemingly eight or nine years old, frowned as she gazed at the black notebook that had appeared before her out of nowhere.

She was certain that the notebook hadn't been there just a moment before, and in the blink of an eye, it had appeared.

Tianshan Child-Grandmother Wu Xingyun frowned, eyeing the black notebook with caution.

Her immediate thought was her mortal enemy, Li Qiushui.

However, she then realized that Li Qiushui simply didn't have the strength to hide from her.

Although Tianshan Child-Grandmother had been possessed by Li Qiushui, her body had been damaged, permanently resembling an eight or nine-year-old girl, preventing her from reaching the Grandmaster realm.

However, despite this inability, the Eight Desolations and Six Directions, Unique I Am Supreme, skill she cultivated was so powerful that, even without achieving Grandmaster status, she possessed a combat power comparable to that of a Grandmaster.

Li Qiushui, however, was stuck at the ninth level of the Grandmaster Realm due to her temperament, unable to break through. Although both possessed the ninth level of Grandmaster cultivation, Li Qiushui's combat prowess was far inferior to that of the Child-Grandmother of Tianshan.

The Child-Grandmother of Tianshan and Li Qiushui had battled for years. Most of the time, Li Qiushui remained like a coward, daring not to show her face. Only when the Child-Grandmother of Tianshan was dispersing her power would she resort to various means to find her and kill her.

Now, with some time remaining before the Child-Grandmother's power was dissipated, Li Qiushui dared not even appear before her, not even approaching the Tianshan Mountains.

Therefore, the Child-Grandmother of Tianshan quickly excluded Li Qiushui.

Given the Child-Grandmother's strength, she believed that someone at least at the ninth level of the Grandmaster Realm, or even at the Celestial Realm, would be able to place the diary there without her noticing.

"Could it be Master?" A flicker of excitement flashed in the Child-Grandmother of Tianshan's eyes.

Tianshan Tonglao's master, Xiaoyaozi, was initially disillusioned by his disciples' preoccupation with romance, even leading to internal strife over so-called love affairs. Disappointed with his three disciples, he abruptly left with the youngest, Li Canghai.

Xiaoyaozi never appeared again after his departure, with Li Canghai returning only once. When Li Canghai returned, he discovered the Xiaoyao Sect was practically extinct, and he too left in disappointment. It had been decades since he'd returned.

Tianshan Tonglao, now at her age, has become more open to the idea of romance. She no longer harbors any real love for Wuyazi. Perhaps all that remains is a refusal to admit defeat, or perhaps she's furious with Li Qiushui for plotting against her while she was practicing. Therefore, Wu Xingyun refuses to lose to Li Qiushui at any cost.

Looking at the black notebook that appeared in the blink of an eye, Tianshan Tonglao suspects it must have been given to her by her master, Xiaoyaozi.

"Master, Master, where are you? Master, please show yourself—" Tianshan Tonglao couldn't help but shout a few times to the surroundings, but Xiaoyaozi didn't show up at all. Instead, the four sword servants beside her—Plum Sword, Orchid Sword, Bamboo Sword, and Chrysanthemum Sword heard the noise and walked in.

"My Lord—"

"Get out!" Tianshan Tonglao frowned.

"Yes, My Lord!" Plum Sword, Orchid Sword, Bamboo Sword, and Chrysanthemum Sword retreated again.

Tianshan Tonglao was the only one left in the room again. At this time, Tianshan Tonglao couldn't help but sigh. She felt that the reason why her master didn't show up was that he still refused to forgive her.

After sighing, Tianshan Tonglao picked up the black notebook and flipped through it.

"Huh? What is this? A diary?" Tianshan Tonglao was a little surprised. She didn't understand why this black notebook was actually a diary.

Speaking of which, Tianshan Tonglao had no interest in other people's diaries.

Due to her physical condition, the Child-Lao of Tianshan has become somewhat erratic and eccentric. While kind to those within the Tianshan Vulture Palace, she is particularly harsh towards the Thirty-Six Caves and Seventy-Two Islands she forcibly reclaimed, using life and death talismans to instill fear in them. However,

despite her erratic nature, the Child-Lao is not inherently bad. Most of the people in the Thirty-Six Caves and Seventy-Two Islands she conquered were involved in shady practices, engaging in murder and looting.

After being subdued by the Child-Lao of Tianshan, they were prevented from committing crimes, so the Child-Lao of Tianshan's actions served as a form of protection for the region.

With such a personality, the Child-Lao of Tianshan is not particularly curious about other people's diaries. If she hadn't believed this diary was placed before her by her master, Xiaoyaozi, she wouldn't have even opened it.

Now, believing that this diary was given to her by her master, Xiaoyaozi, and that it must contain information she should know, she began to leaf through it,

examining the entries one by one. Tianshan Child-Grandmother's face remained expressionless, and even her heart remained calm.

After all, hypocrites and ambitious individuals were so common in the martial arts world that she didn't find them anything unusual.

At most, she felt a flicker of emotion when she saw that the Sword Manual of the Exorcist and the Sunflower Manual required castration to practice.

"The Sword Manual of the Exorcist and the Sunflower Manual require castration to practice. Is it because their cultivation methods are extreme, channeling excess yang, thus causing heat to form? It's an extreme yet quick-to-master technique." Tianshan Child-Grandmother had practiced for many years. Although her health prevented her from reaching the Grandmaster realm, her years of experience and understanding of the Xiaoyao Sect's numerous martial arts had honed her martial arts prowess. With just the phrase, "To practice this technique, one must first castrate oneself," she was able to decipher some of the details of the Sunflower Manual and the Sword Manual of the Exorcist. Given more time, she might even be able to create a martial art similar to the Sword Manual of the Exorcist or the Sunflower Manual.

It's fair to say that Tianshan Tonglao's ninety years of cultivation experience weren't given in vain.

Indeed, even at a young age, she was able to modify the Eternal Spring Technique into the Eight Desolations and Six Directions Unique I-Supreme Technique, specifically for her own cultivation. This demonstrates her exceptional comprehension. If it weren't for Li Qiushui's murderous hand, Tianshan Tonglao would have been able to restore her body to normal by the age of twenty-six and advance to Grandmaster status.

In fact, Tianshan Tonglao refrained from killing Li Qiushui for all those years, merely scratching her face—a gesture of consideration for her master's affection. Unfortunately, Li Qiushui, obsessed with love, was confused and believed that Tianshan Tonglao couldn't kill her because she was so skilled at hiding that she couldn't find her.

In other words, Tianshan Tonglao is truly quite tolerant.

From the age of twenty-six until now, at the age of ninety-six, a full seventy years, she had been forced to constantly hone her zhenqi, then constantly dissipate it and cultivate it again. Although her pure and vast zhenqi gave her the combat power of a Grandmaster, she had never been able to break through.

She was clearly the most insightful and talented among her fellow disciples, and she could have become a Grandmaster at the age of twenty-six. In fact, if nothing unexpected happened, at this age, she might have reached the threshold of the celestial realm, or even broken through. But

now, she was stuck at the ninth level of the Grandmaster realm, unable to break through no matter how hard she practiced. If it were anyone else, they would have been driven mad by now, and even if they hadn't gone mad, they would have been chasing Li Qiushui all over the world.

However, apart from slashing Li Qiushui's face, the Tianshan Child-Grandmother spent most of her time sitting at the Tianshan Lingjiu Palace, awaiting her master's return, and made no attempt to pursue Li Qiushui. She even repeatedly tolerated Li Qiushui's disruptions during her periods of retreat.

This Tianshan Child-Grandmother was truly exceptionally generous towards her fellow disciples.

Given her savvy and talent, creating a Sword Manual of Exorcism or the Sunflower Manual based on the condition of self-castration wouldn't be all that difficult.

"The person who wrote this diary has a rather unusual grammatical convention, giving the impression of foresight?" After reading a few entries, the Tianshan Child-Grandmother's expression flickered with surprise.

However, she suspected the writer might be

deliberately being cryptic. Continuing to read, she saw the Divine Illumination Sutra in the diary, and her eyes widened.

"Master, did you give me this diary because of this Divine Illumination Sutra?" The Tianshan Child-Grandmother felt she understood her master's purpose.

"The Divine Illumination Sutra can heal internal injuries. Even with a pierced scapula, she's still intact. I wonder if it can even regenerate severed limbs—" Tianshan Tonglao pondered, wondering if the Divine Illumination Sutra would be effective for her situation.

Over the years, Tianshan Tonglao had searched for healing techniques, even creating some of her own. However, her situation was unique, and conventional healing methods proved ineffective.

So, she gradually gave up hope. Now, seeing the Divine Illumination Sutra recorded in her diary, she felt a sense of hope, but not complete conviction.

"Since my master gave me the diary, I must give it a try."

"Jingzhou City? Dingdian?" Tianshan Tonglao noted the location and name, then continued flipping through the diary, unsure if the Divine Illumination Sutra had been acquired by the Huashan Sect.

From then on, she flipped through the diary at a much faster pace, skimming through many pages without seeing any mention of the Divine Illumination Sutra.

"Northern Sea Divine Art? The person who wrote the diary actually knew about the Northern Sea Divine Art, and even knew where it was?" Tianshan Tonglao frowned.

The Northern Sea Divine Art was the martial art practiced by her junior brother Wuyazi. Although the Northern Sea Divine Art could absorb the martial arts of others and make it his own, Wuyazi had never absorbed the skills of others. Instead, he practiced step by step on his own.

Speaking of which, Wuyazi was able to endure the power-absorbing ability of the Northern Sea Divine Art and instead practiced step by step on his own. His perseverance was already very strong.

"Duan Yu!" Tianshan Tonglao silently memorized the name.

"I don't know what Junior Brother Wuyazi's situation is like now - forget it." Tianshan Tonglao shook her head and put the thought aside. For so many years, she had only had a simple obsession with Wuyazi, an obsession born out of Wuyazi's choice of Li Qiushui. Apart from that, she had never paid attention to any information about Wuyazi.

Because of this, Tianshan Tonglao still didn't know that Wuyazi had been betrayed by Li Qiushui and crippled by Ding Chunqiu.

"Huh? Rama's body, Rama's inner strength? It can actually regenerate severed limbs!!!"

"Unfortunately, Rama's body was far away in the Ming Dynasty, and no news of it reached them at the time." Tianshan Tonglao shook her head again. At the same time, she once again memorized the Rama's inner strength.

The Divine Illumination Sutra and Rama's inner strength, both of which were miraculous healing techniques, Tianshan Tonglao didn't want to miss out.

However, when Tianshan Tonglao saw the back of her mind and discovered that Rama's body contained no Rama's inner strength at all, she couldn't help but sigh and shake her head in disappointment.

"So, it's still the Divine Illumination Sutra?" Tianshan Tonglao pondered.

Of all the entries in the diary, the Divine Illumination Sutra was the only one Tianshan Tonglao remembered most vividly. As for the others, she didn't care much.

She also didn't care about the rewards Ye Xiu mentioned in the diary. Because she hadn't yet witnessed the diary's magical power, she even thought it was just an ordinary diary.

"There's still a month until the next dispersal of power. It's a good time to go to the Ming Kingdom and search for the Divine Illumination Scripture."

"It's also a good time to avoid that bitch Li Qiushui."

At the mention of Li Qiushui's name, a gloom flashed in Tianshan Tonglao's eyes.

Tianshan Tonglao truly hated Li Qiushui.

In her youth, she had ruined her love and her future, and even then, she wasn't satisfied, determined to kill her.

If Tianshan Tonglao hadn't been concerned for her master Xiaoyaozi's sake and worried that a fight would displease him, she would have slapped Li Qiushui to death long ago. She wouldn't have let Li Qiushui continue to roam around her like she was now.

So, Tianshan Tonglao announced that she would be in seclusion for a period of time.

Everyone in Lingjiu Palace wasn't surprised by Tianshan Tonglao's seclusion; after all, she often practiced in seclusion.

The Child-Grandmother of Tianshan, who had declared herself in seclusion, quietly left Tianshan alone and headed towards the Great Ming Kingdom.

She was going to Huashan in the Great Ming Kingdom to ask the Huashan Sect for the Divine Illumination Scripture.

In reality, if it weren't for the two great masters, Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue, with her strong personality, she would have gone straight to the Huashan Sect to ask for it.

However, if the relationship between Dongfang Bubai, Yaoyue, and the person who wrote the diary was true, then the Child-Grandmother of Tianshan would have had to be more tactful.

...

Ye Xiu and his group walked leisurely down the road, chatting, laughing, and playing around, making it quite lively.

Qu Feiyan, in particular, was the one who knew what was going on in her little head. She would always do something ridiculous or even try to commit suicide, which often made Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue look at her with a bit of coldness.

For example—

"Ye Xiu, I say you're too cowardly. I'm not afraid, so why are you afraid?" Qu Feiyan whispered beside Ye Xiu.

"It's not about courage or not, I'm just not interested in the place you're talking about." Ye Xiu couldn't help but shake his head.

"Nonsense, I've heard it said a long time ago that as long as you're a man, there's no man who isn't interested in brothels. The only difference is whether you have money or not, whether you have courage or not. I finally saved up some money and wanted to treat you to a date, but you actually refused. Do you know how hard it was for me to save this little money?" Qu Feiyan said confidently.

"Fei Fei, those you're talking about are just ordinary people. Ordinary men. Look at me, look at all the beautiful women around me, which one isn't better than the women in the brothels? Why would I go to a brothel when I have all these people around me? Am I crazy?" Ye Xiu shook his head.

Of course, Ye Xiu was indeed somewhat curious about brothels. Or rather, most men, and even women, who visited ancient times were drawn to places like brothels. They didn't intend to go there for anything, but simply wanted to see what it was like inside and satisfy their curiosity.

However, Ye Xiu hid these thoughts as he looked at Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue, who seemed completely oblivious to his situation.

"Tsk, as the saying goes, a wife is not as good as a concubine, a wife is not as good as a secret lover, and secret love is not as good as not being able to have sex. Aren't all men like that? You're still pretending with me. Ye Xiu, I'm telling you, if you really keep pretending, I really won't invite you," Qu Feiyan couldn't help but say. She'd asked

Ye Xiu to go to the brothel countless times, and he hadn't agreed once. If Qu Feiyan hadn't truly wanted to repay Ye Xiu for saving her and her grandfather's life, she wouldn't have insisted.

Snap—

a force struck Qu Feiyan's forehead, knocking her to the ground and leaving her with a mouthful of dirt.

"Pfft..." Qu Feiyan was helpless. Who had done it again? Dongfang Bubai or Yao Yue?

Qu Feiyan felt wronged. She really just wanted to repay Ye Xiu. How could it be so difficult?

Besides, men obviously liked that kind of place, but Ye Xiu kept being so secretive, so unresponsive.

Looking at Qu Feiyan's expression, everyone else couldn't help laughing.

Qu Feiyan was young and didn't know anything, but she kept insisting on inviting Ye Xiu to the brothel.

At this moment, Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue's expressions suddenly changed. Then, Ye Xiu and the others also smelled a bloody smell.

The bloody smell was a bit strong, and it looked like there should be dead people in front, and there should be more than one or two dead.

Although Ye Xiu and the others didn't want to cause any trouble, they were a group of people, two grandmasters, and then a grandmaster, so they didn't need to be afraid of ordinary troubles.

So in order to avoid trouble, they were asked to take a detour? This was something Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue would not accept.