Shui Miao was worried that he would be killed by the thousand-year-old female ghost, and all his divine powers would be wasted.
Therefore, he was in a hurry to exhaust all his divine energy.
He thought that the thousand-year-old female ghost possessed unfathomable magical powers, far beyond what an ordinary human like him could resist. No matter how hard he tried, he would never be able to defeat the ghost.
So he chose neither to resist nor escape.
He feared that resistance would only provoke the ghost’s anger, bringing disaster upon his loved ones and friends.
At that moment, he held his own life lightly, but valued others greatly.
“Shui Miao Ge…”
Fox spirit Qi Mei approached Shui Miao, looked at him earnestly, and said, “I know what you’re thinking. Just like how I wanted to find my little master who loved and protected me, I was willing to die for her, willing to give up everything for her. But only after my physical body died did I realize I was wrong!”
Fox spirit Qi Mei had been deeply indebted to Shui Miao, and wanted to share with him the lessons she had learned in life.
Shui Miao couldn’t help but frown, “Wrong?”
“Mm!” Qi Mei nodded firmly. “The world won’t stop turning just because we no longer exist. Our death changes nothing, and helps no one. Take you for example—you’re willing to sacrifice yourself for your friends and family, but have you ever thought about whether they would truly be happy after your sacrifice?”
“…”
Qi Mei’s words startled Shui Miao’s heart.
He had thought that everyone would be fine after his death, but now, thinking deeper, he realized it was merely his own subjective assumption. Perhaps they would be very sad, or many things might go in the opposite direction! If that happened and everyone suffered again, who would come to their aid?
“I’ll tell you this—they won’t be happy. So you’re wrong! You must find a way to survive, survive by any means necessary, and become stronger and stronger. Only then can you better protect them.” Qi Mei lowered her head. “In fact, that’s exactly what I did. When I encountered someone stronger, if they treated me well, I became their friend. If they mistreated me, oppressed me, or exploited me, then I would do everything in my power to eliminate them, no matter the cost!”
Qi Mei’s emotions shifted, and at this moment, she was entirely thinking about Shui Miao.
“So what should I do? You saw just now, her power is unfathomable!” Shui Miao was at a loss.
Seeing that Shui Miao was persuaded, Qi Mei felt happy and became more spirited. She whispered into his ear, “That’s easy. Have all your family leave here and go on a trip thousands of miles away. As for dealing with that Han Baisheng and Li Jiazheng, just leave it to me. These two days, Shui Miao Ge, you find a place to cultivate diligently and build up your strength—you might even break through to a higher realm!”
“Breakthrough!”
A sudden thought struck Shui Miao, reminding him of that cracked heavenly gate in his inner vision! Perhaps, with just a little more effort, he could break through the gate and his soul could ascend to the Immortal Realm?
At this moment, Fox spirit Qi Mei continued, “Shui Miao Ge, in theory, your cultivation level shouldn’t be afraid of a thousand-year-old female ghost.”
“Why do you say that?”
Shui Miao’s heart stirred again, feeling as if Qi Mei was constantly opening new doors of unknown realms for him.
Qi Mei pondered, “When I was little, my mother told me something about cultivation. She said that we spirits and humans are actually equal, standing on the same starting line. Humans have an advantage in physical form, but we spirits are much better at understanding spiritual energy. She also said that it’s extremely difficult for humans to cultivate divine power, and once they do, they become half-immortals—beings capable of entering the Immortal Realm. My mother also told me never to provoke half-immortals because they usually have many immortal friends. But Shui Miao Ge, you don’t seem to have any immortal friends. Why is that?”
“Immortal friends!”
“Heavenly Gate!!”
“Ahh!”
Suddenly, Shui Miao felt as if he had been struck by enlightenment, and everything became clear. He excitedly muttered to himself, “How could I be so stupid! That heavenly gate in my inner vision had already cracked open! Why didn’t I try to send my spiritual awareness into it? Maybe that’s the Immortal Realm!”
“That’s right! Shui Miao Ge, so you had already seen the heavenly gate!”
The fox spirit also became excited.
But immediately, Shui Miao’s eyes turned, and he quickly shushed her, lowering his voice, “Come on, let’s leave here first. Find a place, you guard me, and I’m going to take a look at the Immortal Realm.”
“Okay, okay! Shui Miao Ge, do you know that once your soul enters the Immortal Realm, your body will become empty? If something urgent happens during that time, can I temporarily take over your body to help you handle some things? Also, the Immortal Realm has nine heavenly layers. When you go there, remember that time in the first heaven flows the same as here, but the higher you go, the faster time passes. A single day there might equal many days here. Also, also, I heard from my mother that the first heaven is governed by the Thunder Deities. Since the thousand-year-old female ghost is so powerful, even the Thunder Deities might not be able to subdue her. You should go to the second or third heaven to seek help from celestial soldiers and generals!”
“Hmm, okay, I’ll figure it out as I go when I get there!”
Shui Miao felt nervous and excited, yet slightly uneasy. He hadn’t even been abroad before, and now he was going to the Immortal Realm—something he had never even dared to imagine.
※※※
Back at the hotel, Shui Miao met with Jiang Zhihao, Sun Hao, and Jiang Tao again. He told them he needed to go into retreat for two days, and if anything happened during that time, they should handle it as they saw fit. After his retreat, he would teach them cultivation techniques. Upon hearing this, the three were extremely excited and immediately agreed, promising to handle any situation and to rally Qian Wanke, keep Li Jiazheng stable, and suppress Han Baisheng.
With the assurance of these three major business tycoons, Shui Miao felt at ease. That night, he left the Sanya Hotel and headed for Jing Shuicun Village. On the way, he called Chen Meiling, Director Zhang, and his mother, telling them to go on a trip to Tibet first thing tomorrow morning and return after three days. As for the reason, Shui Miao didn’t explain, only saying there would be a surprise after they returned. Whatever it took, he just needed to get them out of the way first.
Then, Shui Miao entered the dry well cave, placed a meditation cushion on the platform in midair inside, and sat cross-legged in deep meditation.
Outside, Xiao Shitou was guarding him, while inside, Fox spirit Qi Mei and Golden Toad Zi were also keeping watch. With this arrangement, Shui Miao felt at ease. He calmed his mind, entered his inner vision, gazed at the heavenly gate within, and slowly extended his consciousness toward it…
“Whoosh!”
As soon as Shui Miao’s consciousness reached the crack in the heavenly gate, he suddenly felt his body become light, and in an instant, he was transported to a completely new world… Here, immortal energy filled the air, and mountains floated in seas of clouds, mysterious and ethereal, stretching boundlessly. Looking down, he found himself hovering above a cloud…
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