Centuries ago, Wu encountered a great catastrophe. This led the Mainland, Eastern Sea, and the Western Desert to collaborate. There Shen Mo met Hu Xuejia. Even though they hadn't seen each other for more than ten centuries, Hu Xuejia was able to recognize him in her memories. They caught up with the lost times and arrived victorious after the phenomena. Before his departure, Hu Xuejia pushed her luck and asked him to create a treaty of the Mainland and Eastern Sea. Shen Mo agreed and as the Wu Patriarch, the powerful forces have no say.
Spring Blossom Sect and Tao Supreme Sect then have a good relationship. Hu Xuejia was then careful around Shen Mo and everyone else in the Eastern Sea. If they pissed him and he retrieves the treaty, the whole Eastern Sea will have no protection.
Yet, for a mortal girl, Sect Leader Hu Xuejia will ask such a thing?
Wu Patriarch almost owns the whole world. The final step is for him to declare he is the ruler of Wu which he never did. No one can rival him, maybe the gods could?
But the point is, a mere mortal girl won't be a loss so why risk your life for it?
"Xuejia, I know you pity this girl but this concerns the rest of the world."
Shen Mo and the girl vanished without a trace. Hu Xuejia has no way to find them aside from heading straight to his sect. However, she can't risk leaving Spring Blossom Sect.
The girl opened her eyes when she felt the temperature drop sharply. She felt so cold, her body trembling terribly. The only warmth left was Shen Mo's hand holding her wrist. Unfortunately, the little warmth also disappeared as he let her go.
"You have the guts to fool the Will of Heaven and got Xuejia attached to you."
Shen Mo spoke in an algid tone. The girl fell for being weak and her eyes never left him. She was feeling something sour and her eyes are stringing but she doesn't know how to express them.
"Where did you come from?" Shen Mo asked. He conducted Soul Search on the girl but he found nothing. Perhaps confronting the Chaos Bringer head-on will reveal some clues.
The girl knew nothing and the extreme coldness tormented her. Her previous clear eyes dulled without life as she fell on the snow-covered ground. Shen Mo waited for a few more seconds but he sensed something wrong.
"Crap! Is she really just a mortal?!"
"Hey, little girl, don't die!"
Shen Mo panicked the instant. If this was a Chaos Bringer who can annihilate millions of people in a second, it would have attacked him. He was then convinced the girl knows nothing. Whether she is a Chaos Bringer or not, she is equal to a blank sheet of paper. He has a chance to undo its demeaning future by guiding her to the right path.
Without a choice, Shen Mo brought the girl back to the Eastern Sea. He booked an inn for them to rest.
The girl remained still on the bed, she was barely breathing. She Mo sighed in guilt. He acted too rashly like the Will of Heaven. To wash away his mistake, he healed the girl by transferring not even one percent of his Vital Qi. The girl showed signs of awakening when she felt a rush of comforting warmth in her body.
Upon seeing Shen Mo, she felt nothing even when she recalled how he purposely tormented her in that snowy field.
"It's strange she isn't crying." Shen Mo thought. He even recited a very nice speech in his head so he can coax her if she cries. Alas, that brainstorming went to nothing.
"Mrs. Shen...?" The girl asked.
Shen Mo remembered she doesn't know how to speak. It is troubling to communicate with her but...
"Who is Mrs. Shen?"
Is she calling him Mrs. Shen or what?!
"Mrs. Shen." The girl repeated and held his hand.
An image of Hu Xuejia appeared in Shen Mo's mind. His nose bled since the Hu Xuejia she saw looked coquettish as she taught the girl to call her Mrs. Shen.
"She's not Mrs. Shen." He asserted in a trembling tone.
Shen Mo quickly covered his nose and turned away. His view on Hu Xuejia was different. Like his buddy, he will never think of her that way!
But the girl gave him a new perspective. He never knew Hu Xuejia can be so enchanting!
"Ah, what am I thinking?! How did this girl do that?" For a mortal to manipulate an immortal's mind, it's so strange and very impossible. Shen Mo had never encountered this.
"This girl doesn't know our language and only learned a few words from Xuejia. If I want her to be righteous, I must keep an eye on her. Maybe I can keep her as my disciple too." He thought. Shen Mo cleared his throat and faced the girl. "I will teach you how to speak properly and learn immortal arts from our world. But, you must address me as your master."
There was no response and the girl wore the same pokerface. Shen Mo sighed again. Maybe he should teach her their language first so he can communicate with her fluently. It's like he is talking to a stone that has no life.
To hide from Hu Xuejia, Shen Mo deliberately slowed down their travel and chose the ways of mortals. Carriages made him sick. He forgot this sensation since the last time he experienced carriage rides was almost two thousand years ago. In the end, he was weaker than a withered willow when he stepped out of the ride.
"I'm so old I can't even remember what can kill me slowly..." Shen Mo lamented while holding back another urge to throw up.
Other than that matter, Shen Mo patiently taught the girl the language of the Mainland. There are three main languages in Wu. Each is commonly used in the Eastern Sea, Mainland, and the Western Desert. For Shen Mo, it's a trifle to learn all the dialects in Wu. He is confident he can teach the girl easily with the Mainland's speech, but it surprised him she learns quickly. In a few days, the girl mastered the three main terminologies.
Since he can speak to her, he doesn't know what to address the nameless girl. He simply granted her the name 'Cai' because he used to call her 'girl'.
"Master, tea is here." Cai informed and peeked from the slightly opened door. She saw Shen Mo struggling to get up on the bed.
They are onwards the Mainland through an airship. Two months ago, he wanted to try ships that sail the sea but in the end, he regretted it for getting seasick. Shen Mo then decided to travel through an airship. It was less troubling for him and he only vomits twice a week.
He said he is an immortal unrivaled under the heavens but seeing him so feeble on the bed with a sickly appearance made Cai wonder if she was scammed by a fat liar.
"Master, your tea will get cold."
She entered the room and assisted Shen Mo to get up. Shen Mo suddenly rushed to the window and opened it. Cai pursed her lips, not knowing whether to pity him or what. He chose to travel like this instead of using his immortal skills.
"Ugh... I feel so weak..." Shen Mo murmured in tears as he leaned on the sill.
Fortunately, he mustered up enough strength to go out and drink tea. There is a mixture of herbs too that can help him recover.
"Ah! This is much better!" Shen Mo's complexion turned bright and his uncomfortable feelings were gone with one cup of tea.
"Master, don't be so loud." Cai reprimanded which made Shen Mo freeze.
For over one thousand years, no one nagged him other than the Will of Heaven. This girl doesn't know how to fear him.
"Cai, you're always serious. I've never seen you smile or laugh for once." Shen Mo thought something must be wrong with the Chaos Bringer. Its body must be defective.
Cai is smart and serious. Shen Mo knew it was because her body was refined through the souls and physiques of everyone in Qin. Furthermore, Qin has great practitioners. Its king is a Nirvana cultivator at the peak. It is also rumored the first princess of Qin have a special physique and at a young age, she reached Foundation Building. Not only the princess, but the crown prince is also wise that even the old ministers were tongue-tied facing a debate against him. With their abilities gathered in the body of Cai, she is a terrible genius.
The problem left was Cai's qi sea. Her meridians are blocked too. Shen Mo had decided to take her in as his direct disciple but he hadn't taught her any arts yet.
"Cai, come here."
He patted the space next to him. Cai doesn't suspect him and sat beside Shen Mo.
"I already mentioned that I will teach you the path to immortality. The first step is to open your eight meridians through basic meditation. The meridians are responsible for spreading and gathering external qi into and outside your body. Once you open all eight of them, your dantian will form. A dantian is the same as qi sea. It is where you can store the qi your meridians refined. If you can form a qi sea, you can cultivate further. Eh? Are you listening?!"
Shen Mo just opened his eyes to check on Cai if she is attentive but he discovered she had her eyes closed too!
It was the first time a disciple dared to ignore his teachings. Before he can get angry, he felt the surge of qi being attracted into Cai's body. He was impressed but his amazement was replaced by fear. Almost all qi in their surrounding was refined by Cai!
"Master." Cai looked at the terrified Shen Mo. She opened her hand and bright energy formed on her fingertip. Shen Mo was even more bewildered. "Is this qi refined by the dantian?"
"How the hell did you do that?!" Shen Mo was surprised by her over and over.
When he was a boy, he opened his eight meridians a couple of months and that speed already scared the elders of Spring Blossom Sect. Yet, Cai only took a few seconds to create a qi sea!
Now he knew the feelings of despair the Will of Heaven felt when encountering the unfairness of the world...
"Master said I must meditate to find my meridians. I unblocked them and reached a realization. Thus, I can form a qi sea. Speaking of which, my qi sea is strange." Cai looked down to her abdomen. She found her qi sea which condensed impure energies to a dark power of some sort.
"Let me check."
Shen Mo opened her hand and let their palms touch. He let his qi travel the meridians and finally reached her qi sea. Cai's qi sea is not normal. It was formed into a yin-yang symbol that gathers different qi and distinguishes it.
"Well, my dear disciple, you are indeed a genius." Shen Mo smiled in pride and gave his verdict.
Her qi sea is a one in a billion talent. She can attract the dark, light, and neutral attributed main elements. Cai will be someone unstoppable in the future but there is one problem.
"You have the talent called Prodigal Daoist. It is either something you can be proud of or not. Being a Prodigal Daoist, you can cultivate the eight main elements and be unbeatable. However, for you to make a breakthrough, you must balance all eight elements. If not, you will reach a difficult bottleneck. I'm afraid for you to reach my level, it will take you five thousand years at most..."