There in front of the barrier was an incorrectly exploded explosion that ended up not into a dying-out firework, but rather into an old man. I heard the two were only slightly different from explosions, so nothing that can't be fixed, but it was still wrong.
****
"An Abyss ghost? What a rarity, just like my own. What a misfortune," the floating figure said with a slight shock, followed by a moment of silence.
Shen Ling stared back at him with a peculiar look on her face. Under normal circumstances, she would have shrunken away in fear, but there was a type of warmth evident in the figure's eyes that made her feel… at ease.
"Old man, could I please have the piece of cloth that's on the pillar there behind you?"
"Old man?" The floating figure turned his attention to Long Di, when not long after, an expression of even greater shock showed on his face.
"Incredible! How are…!? No wonder you are able to come here! What are you truly!?" The figure's body trembled as he stared at Long Di.
He didn't notice Long Di in the beginning. After all, there was a secret between this man and the Abyss Ghost race that caused him to reminisce, however, when he noticed Long Di and scrutinised the young man. The few things he could see terrified him.
"Old man?" Long Di called again.
"Tch! Do I look that old to you?"
"I'm eleven years old. You could be 25 years old and I would still be well within my right to call you old. But let's tip that Jenga tower shall we, are you even 25?" Long Di asked, his expression still as impassive as ever.
"How foolish! We are cultivators. Even if someone hits one hundred years old, they would still be considered young. What more 25 years old or even worse at eleven such as yourself?"
"Oh, I apologise for my audaciousness." Long Di feigned regret by covering his mouth with his hand as if to hold his tongue, though it failed because of his unchanging expression.
He then asked, "and may I ask how old you are?"
The figure's expression darkened when he heard this question.
Long Di wasn't stupid, he was at least 93.27% sure that this wasn't an incorrectly exploded explosion, as for the remaining 6.73%… well, everyone needed a margin of error didn't they?
After all, an explosion exploding into an old man wasn't THAT farfetched, was it?
In any case, for the majority of Long Di's assumption, the figure before him was none other than the Peach Blossom Sage who lived countless years ago… really, there was no surprise there.
Though he retained a youthful appearance, who here didn't know about a cultivator's ability to one-up every single wrinkle-free cream known to man… or woman in this case? And utilise the cultivator's equivalent of a spiritual moisturiser. At this stage, it wouldn't be inaccurate to call it Aveeno on steroids.
Nonetheless, the 'assumed' Peach Blossom Sage didn't answer Long Di's question. Why would he?
If he did, it would be tantamount to him admitting that he was wrong and that he lost in a verbal bout with an eleven-year-old. Oh, the shame.
The figure stared at Long Di for a while before he asked. "You said you wanted the piece of cloth right?"
And just like that, he managed to change the subject in the most barefaced way possible. By just bringing up something else.
Fortunately, Long Di was also interested in the piece of cloth, so he didn't mind the crude subject change and went along with it. "Yeah, I do. Just give it here."
Long Di held his hand out, waiting for the figure to give him the cloth. It's not like ghosts needed pieces of cloths nowadays, right?
"Long Di, you can't do that," Shen Ling said in a hushed tone.
"Eh? Why not? I have never, in all my days, seen, read or watched a situation where the MC did NOT take everything of utmost importance in any relic or inheritance," Long Di pointed out.
"B—Because…"
"Because you are not willing to take my inheritance… aren't you?" The 'assumed,' Peach Blossom Sage answered for her.
Any normal cultivator would be delighted for the opportunity to gain the inheritance of some who reached the Star Creation realm.
However, Shen Ling was aware of Long Di's current cultivation technique, though she didn't know of its origin, just his practising of it was enough to rob the breath of her and Feng Yu.
Sure, she didn't have much experience in the matters of the world, but still, she had never even heard of another cultivation technique coming remotely close to doing what Long Di's did.
Though it was presumptuous of her to assume, she would dare to say that Long Di's cultivation technique was even more powerful than the one the figure before used when he was alive. Though she wouldn't dare to say it out loud.
The 'assumed,' Peach Blossom Sage, on the other hand, didn't have such reservations and said it outright. "Your cultivation technique is much more powerful than mine. I know you're not an idiot and you have no intention of settling for less. It's obvious that you're not intending to take my inheritance, well, not like you would be able to."
Long Di's brows furrowed when he heard this. "What do you mean? Aren't relics left behind by powerful experts (saying powerful experts with a grain of salt by the way) because they want to leave behind their techniques?"
"When did I ever say this was a relic?" The 'assumed,' Peach Blossom Sage mysteriously smiled when he asked this. Seemingly pleased with himself for one-upping Long Di for once.
Long Di, noticing this, responded. "You feel proud of one-upping an eleven-year-old don't you? Well, to each their own."
The 'assumed,' Peach Blossom Sage's face twitched upon hearing this. This child wasn't going to let him win anything!
Where was the atmosphere that was supposed to exist between the wise and knowledgeable elder and the eager-to-learn young cultivator? There was none of that here!
Long Di knew what he did. He was petty, and he accepted, nay, embraced that. Might as well live by the philosophy of 'being the best at what you are.'
"S—Senior?"
"Call me Peach Blossom, child," the now 'confirmed,' Peach Blossom Sage's eyes warmed considerably when he spoke to Shen Ling.
"The Peach Blossom Sage!?" Shen Ling was considerably surprised. This was the master of this relic, the same figure who roamed the world many thousands, maybe even tens of thousands of years ago!
Long Di looked at the Shen Ling with a look of… disappointment?
Shen Ling, noticing this, questioned him. "What?"
"How in the world are you surprised that this is the Peach Blossom Sage?"
"Y—You're not!?" Shen Ling was truly impressed by Long Di's mental fortitude!
It seemed that very little things in this world could move him despite his young age.
"Maybe, just maybe, I would have been surprised should I not have known, but the only way that could have happened is if I lost 97% of my IQ."
Shen Ling noticed something when he said this. "Wait, are you saying that my IQ is-"
"First of all," Long Di continued, not giving Shen Ling a chance to retort. "We reach a room no one is in where a piece of cloth on a pedestal that practically screams 'ultimate treasure,' is being protected by the quintessential grain of salt over there. How does that not give it away for you?"
When the Peach Blossomed Sage heard this grain of salt description, he wordlessly worded to himself. "Is he talking about me?"
"Secondly," Long Di didn't end it there, he went on. "He is a GHOST, in the PEACH BLOSSOM SAGE Relic, protecting the PEACH BLOSSOM SAGE's treasure, only appearing when I tried to take such treasure at the behest of a barrier created, most likely mind you, by the PEACH BLOSSOM SAGE."
"But to actually deduce that he's the Peach Blossom Sage himself, I—I just didn't see that coming!" Shen Ling tried to defend herself.
However, Long Di stared at her as if he was staring at the heart of all things wrong with the cultivation world.
"Look at him." He pointed in the direction of the Peach Blossom Sage. "He literally has Peach Blossoms fluttering around him."
Indeed, the Peach Blossom Sage did have countless Peach Blossoms floating around him the moment he appeared. Considering that the relic belongs to someone called the Peach Blossom Sage, this isn't just hitting the nail on the head anymore, this is more like a bludgeoning blow to the head with a 2x4.
"You know," the Peach Blossom Sage said to Shen Ling while looking around at himself, "when he says it like that, it is kind of obvious."
The young abyss ghost's face reddened in shame when she heard this.
"Oh, no ya don't," Long Di said, shaking his head at her shame. "You're not gonna use your shyness to shy away from this. I am going to be the Morpheus in your life and liberate your mind. If you're gonna hang around with me, you will learn to look at the obvious tropes that are quite literally staring at you in the face most of the time and just bring it up."
"Now back to you." Long Di turned his attention back to the Peach Blossom Sage, leaving Shen Ling in what could possibly be the most enlightening process that she would ever go through.
The Peach Blossom Sagen was a bit frightened when he saw Long Di turn back to him, but he couldn't back down in front of an eleven-year-old child, so he reluctantly remained to face him.
"You brought up a subject that interested me," Long Di started. "You said that Shen Ling, being an Abyss Ghost, is a misfortune. Why?"
The Peach Blossom Sage's expression changed when he heard this. "Are you willing to love and accompany this young one from now till forever?"
"I'm eleven," Long Di pointed out, his expression unchanged. "She's at best, a friend, regarding if she moves beyond that, then let come what may I say. However, she'll be accompanying me on my journey, so I'll need to know to be ready."
"Understood," the Peach Blossom Sage said. "Then I shall recount my tale, for the journey ahead."
Luckily, Shen Ling was still stuck in her rumination so she didn't hear Long Di's declaration, which would have compelled her to freak out.
"Do you know why you and the young one here were able to come here?" The Peach Blossom Sage asked.
Long Di shook his head to indicate he didn't.
"This place isn't a Relic, it's a declaration of love for my love." The Peach Blossom Sage's expression changed to one of melancholy as he continued.
"She," he pointed at Shen Ling. "Came here because the rules of this place bade it so. However, you came here because of… something else."
Long Di nodded when he heard this. "At first you had my curiosity, now you have my attention. Please continue," he motioned with a hand gesture.
The Peach Blossom Sage nodded his head in return before he continued. "I had a lover once, and she too was a—an Abyss Ghost. I say this to you now, if you don't grow stronger than you are now, this world will destroy her."
"Ominous."