Chapter 117: The Legend of the Luo Ring

After a long, exhausting night, Fatty and I were finally free. Since Fatty had nowhere else to sleep, he stayed in the same room as me. The poor guy was utterly worn out; he fell asleep almost immediately, snoring thunderously, which made it impossible for me to drift off.

Lying there, my mind wandered endlessly. I wondered what Wan’er next door was doing. That girl didn’t seem to need much sleep—she was probably out playing. I really wanted to go keep her company, but felt too shy to do so. Of course, it wasn’t about anything else; I just wanted to chat with her. Arriving in a strange place, she might not be adapting well.

But I was embarrassed to go, fearing that Fatty or Li Jinglian might see and misunderstand my intentions.

So I forced myself to stop thinking about Wan’er and instead thought of Wang Ying, my mother, my second uncle, and Wei Qi. Today had been a disappointment—I had hoped Fatty was Wei Qi. If only that were true. I missed him a bit; when I was with him, I didn’t have to worry about much.

I needed to focus on my cultivation. No matter how hard it got, I had to start from the basics and master the highest-level techniques so I could find everyone I needed.

Lost in these random thoughts, I suddenly heard a faint voice. Listening closely, it came from my soul urn: “Brother Dachen, Brother Dachen, please let me out!”

I suddenly remembered that Qingting was still inside the urn. I hurriedly opened it, and she crawled out. I hadn’t seen her for days, and the little rascal had lost some weight. I’d been so busy I had completely forgotten about her.

“Qingting, hungry, aren’t you?” I bit my finger and gently offered it to her.

“Brother Dachen, I might need to drink more of your blood this time,” Qingting said, looking into my eyes.

“Drink as much as you want.” Since Li Danian was dead, she naturally belonged to me now. No matter the hardship, I had to treat her well.

Qingting drank from my finger for a while before raising her head. “Brother Dachen, there’s something I want to tell you.”

“Go ahead.”

“Grandpa left behind a book called The One-Line Scripture. It’s a rare and mysterious text. Grandpa once said he couldn’t cultivate it because he lacked the aptitude. I don’t know if you could try?”

“Qingting, why are you telling me this?”

“I want to avenge Grandpa, but I don’t have the ability; I can only rely on you now.” Qingting spoke seriously. I understood her meaning—her grandfather was killed by villains, and she deserved revenge. I also wanted to personally strike down Xing Yun, but I lacked the strength. Li Danian’s cultivation was so formidable, yet he couldn’t master the One-Line Scripture. I probably had even less chance.

“Qingting, don’t worry. I’ll avenge you. I also want to cultivate the One-Line Scripture, but I have no real skills yet. So, after I learn from Auntie and master my techniques, I’ll seek out the One-Line Scripture, okay?”

“Okay! When the time comes, I’ll take you to find it. It’s late now; you’ve been practicing for half the night. You should get some rest. I’m going in too.” Qingting’s figure trembled and, in a flash, she slipped back into the soul urn with incredible speed—so fast I could hardly believe my eyes. Such speed boded well for her future.

It was late, and Fatty’s snoring was deafening, grating on my nerves. Just as I was wondering how to fall asleep, Wan’er came knocking at the door. Seeing her outside, I quietly slipped out and entered her room.

“Wan’er, it’s the middle of the night. What’s up? I was just about to fall asleep.” At this moment, I couldn’t help but sound a little coy.

---

“Brother, I found out the exact location of Luoshui Temple. It’s still there. Shall we go look for the Luoshui Ring?” Wan’er whispered.

My whole body shuddered. “Really? That’s great.” Though I’d never seen the Luoshui Ring, Wan’er had told me about its immense power. It was exactly what I needed. With it, my cultivation would surely advance to the next level. Now, I was willing to do anything that could improve my skills.

“Let’s go! I’ll take you there now.” Wan’er took my hand and gently led me out.

Outside, the moon was full, casting a silvery glow over the world. Walking through the streets felt quite pleasant. After crossing a few blocks, we reached the Lu River in front of the village. Under the moonlight, the river sparkled beautifully.

“Who’s there? Come out!” As I pondered how to wade across the river, Wan’er called out behind us. I hadn’t noticed anyone approaching, but when I turned, I saw Fatty grinning as he slipped out from the side.

“Heh heh, Dachen, where are you two lovebirds off to in the middle of the night?”

Damn it. When I left the room, Fatty was snoring like a pig. Now he’d silently followed us.

“Climbing the mountain. You coming or not?” I smiled.

“Nope. But you two aren’t really climbing, are you? Planning to sneak some edamame from halfway up the mountain and roast it?” Fatty chuckled.

“Come on, we’re not stealing edamame. We’re looking for something good. You in or not?” I thought it’d be safer and braver with an extra person.

“Alright, I’ll tag along.” Fatty ran up behind me, keeping a wide distance from Wan’er—he was still scared of her.

After crossing the stream, the three of us began to climb. The water was the Lu River, the mountain Lu Mountain. Bathed in moonlight, we quickly reached the mountainside, where we saw a deep pool.

“Brother, see? Luoshui Temple hasn’t collapsed; it sank right here,” Wan’er pointed to the pool.

“Sis-in-law, how do you know? That’s a legend, hardly anyone knows about it. Only my aunt and her people do,” Fatty said.

Apparently, Fatty did know a bit.

“Fatty, what legend?” I asked.

“This pool is called the Black Water Pool. There was once a temple called Luoshui Temple, built by some emperor for a general named Zi Hou. After he died, his remains were buried there. His son, Zi Yi, also a general, went on an important mission but never returned. Before leaving, General Zi Yi left a ring here. Later, a heavy rainstorm caused the earth to collapse, forming this deep pool, and the temple sank into it... but it’s just a legend. When I was a kid, I swam here and even dived underwater but found no temple. I thought if there was really a temple underwater, I could grab some artifacts, which would be valuable, but I found nothing. So, the legend’s probably false.”

Hearing Fatty’s story, I was filled with mixed emotions. Zi Yi, Zi Hou—two thousand years ago. It was incredible.

Wan’er nodded. “Fatty, you really went in?”

“Sis-in-law, I wouldn’t dare lie to you!” Fatty looked at Wan’er with terror in his eyes. It seemed he was naturally afraid of ghosts.

“That’s good, that’s good. Can you go in again tonight?”

“Well, I don’t think so. That was when I was a kid. Now I’m a bit scared. There must be water snakes and such,” Fatty said, staring at the shimmering water.

“Buddy, come with me. I have important business.” I said seriously.

“Ah! Really? I’m kinda scared!” Fatty shook his head.

“Fatty, will you go or not? If you don’t...” Wan’er stuck out her tongue, twisting it sinuously like a snake in midair.

“Brother, let’s talk this out. Put your tongue away!” Fatty rushed over and hugged me, terrified.

“Wan’er, stop joking. Fatty’s scared of you.”

“Fatty, if you help me and Dachen, I’ll introduce you to a pretty ghost girl,” Wan’er giggled.

“Sis-in-law, I’ll go down with Brother Dachen, but I don’t want pretty ghost girls. My high school classmate Xiaohong promised to wait for me,” Fatty said pitifully. I didn’t know if Xiaohong was made up, but it seemed he really feared ghosts.

Wan’er smiled. “Thanks, Fatty.”

“Fatty, you can come down if you want, or stay on the shore with Wan’er. I’ll go down alone if you don’t want to.” I had principles—I wouldn’t force anyone.

“Brother, staying on the shore with sis-in-law isn’t as good as going down with you. Being with you is safest. But if I help you today, can you waive my living expenses for a month?” Fatty was quite cunning.

“Deal! Take off your clothes and get in.” I said, peeling off my shirt.