What is tacit understanding?
Is it when the other person knows exactly what you’re thinking, even if you don’t say a word?
Lin Shuang stared at the jade bottle in the elder’s hand, her lower abdomen aching fiercely, cold sweat trickling down her temple.
She never imagined that the tacit understanding test would be like this.
She glanced at her current schedule—empty, flexible time.
Lin Shuang closed her eyes slightly.
“What kind of question is this!” Meng Zi clutched his stomach, writhing in pain, equally desperate.
“Eight breaths…”
The pink-robed woman continued her merciless countdown.
But her spiritual consciousness instantly transmitted her voice into the minds of everyone present.
“I must warn you.”
“You can lie to me, give false answers, and sneak through this test, but if in the future, you encounter the same situation outside, and your actions differ from what you answered today in Zhenchuan, it will result in flaws in your Dao heart.”
“When you cross the tribulation in the future, when you transform and renew yourself, when you examine your heart, will you be able to pass your own conscience!”
“If you promised to give the pill to someone else but didn’t do it, you will face an unmanageable heart demon, struck by lightning into dust, vanishing into oblivion!”
“Think clearly before you answer!”
Huangpu Yuan, who had just opened his lips, instantly closed them.
Lin Shuang also quickly shut her mouth, swallowing the first syllable she had just uttered.
“Seven breaths… Where are your answers!” the pink-robed elder shouted.
The three of them sweated from their foreheads, their faces pale.
Lin Shuang glanced at Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan.
They also looked at her.
All three averted their eyes instantly, glancing away.
[This… what should we do? I don’t know either. If it were the senior apprentices of the ninth thousandth layer, what would they do?]
[This… the path of your cultivation, of course you should ask yourself. How can I tell you?]
[Ah, we can’t just say anything carelessly, otherwise our words and actions won’t match, and in the future, we won’t be able to face ourselves, easily giving rise to heart demons. But who can give up their own life and forget death?]
[Too hard, too hard.]
Soon, Mei Xin and the other two appeared in the projection.
This was originally the question she set.
In an instant, everyone saw her facing a pink-robed elder just like the one before, exchanging a smile with Gang Yi and Gang Er.
The three answered quickly.
“The only pill goes to Mei Xin.”
All three gave the exact same answer.
[!]
[…]
[Gang Yi, Gang Er, I surrender!]
[This…? Why? Why give up yourself to benefit others? I can’t do it!]
In the projection, the pink-robed elder standing in front of Mei Xin remained expressionless.
Far from being pleased, she instead scrutinized them sharply.
“Why?”
Mei Xin and the other two looked at each other.
“Five years ago, the three of us encountered evil cultivators outside and nearly died. At that time, we made a pact.”
“If something happened, the one who drew the lot to survive would be Gang Yi, and he would rush out to replace us.”
Gang Yi, tall and towering, almost two heads taller than the pink-robed elder, nodded upon hearing this and extended his hand.
At this moment, Mei Xin and Gang Er also extended their hands.
They opened their palms, revealing three slips of paper, two of which bore the character “Mei.”
This time, it was her who drew the lot.
Therefore, she would survive.
If in future missions outside, the three encountered death, it would be the one favored by fate who would survive.
The three had long reached a consensus.
[So that’s how it is.]
[Although it’s by drawing lots, their future words and actions will be consistent. This answer is acceptable to me.]
The three of them have all reached the peak of the fourth level of Ning Yuan, with no hierarchy or order within the team. Life and death are fated, and their hearts are free of burdens. Acceptable.
[Unless you have repeatedly faced life and death together, you cannot achieve such tacit understanding.]
[Mei Xin and the others are impressive.
At the moment of life and death, one must make a swift decision. If each of them harbors fear and resentment in their hearts, that will be the day all three lose their chance of survival.
The three of them have such determination, united as one. When facing powerful enemies in the future, there will be a glimmer of hope!]
[This question is well set! I have also gained much from it.]
Indeed, the pink-robed elder also nodded after hearing this.
She waved her hand.
The pain in Mei Xin’s group’s abdomen disappeared instantly, and they passed the first question!
The pressure now shifted entirely to Lin Shuang’s group of three.
The projection’s gaze fell entirely on them.
Soon, the three were also seen looking at the pill in the elder’s hand in tacit understanding. At the seventh breath, they spoke in unison.
Huangpu Yuan lowered his eyelids: “…I cannot die.”
Meng Zi gripped his sword hilt: “…I cannot die.”
Lin Shuang closed her eyes, “…I cannot die.”
The pink-robed elder’s temple twitched instantly.
[Pu——]
[Ha ha ha ha ha!]
[Laughing until I’m doubled over, the most tacit team in the history of Zhenchuan’s trials.]
“Your answers are inconsistent. Continue answering!”
The pink-robed elder frowned and shouted.
“Eh?”
Lin Shuang’s group of three simultaneously looked up, hardly believing their ears.
“In the same voice, ‘Aren’t our answers the same?'”
After speaking, the three were momentarily stunned, glancing at each other.
Then in unison, “We’re so tacit.”
The pink-robed woman’s temple twitched. “Six breaths…”
Lin Shuang: “I don’t want to die.”
Huangpu Yuan: “I don’t want to die.”
Meng Zi: “I don’t want to die.”
The three looked at each other, a long silence.
“Who wants to die?”
“Who wants to die?”
“Who wants to die?”
The three fell silent, closing their mouths.
[Dead from laughing, it’s like an echo in the mountains!]
[These three are annoyingly tacit!]
[I can’t help it anymore, I have to write a few more words as support for my junior apprentices, ha ha ha, laughing so hard my heart demons are gone.]
[To be honest, if I were the elder, I might have let them pass, they’re just too funny.]
But just as these words floated by.
In the projection, the pink-robed elder instantly slammed the jade bottle angrily onto the ground!
“Who are you saving! Only one person can be saved!”
“Final five breaths! Think clearly!”
“Don’t think you can fool me by saying the same thing! Seal your spiritual consciousness!”
The three remained silent.
Lin Shuang turned off her backup devices, Xiao Ai No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3.
She turned to face the two behind her.
“What about… a fight?”
Huangpu Yuan happened to open his phoenix eyes, a sliver of daylight entering his dark pupils. He slightly curled his thin lips, “Fine.”
Meng Zi angrily drew his sword, “Come on! Who’s afraid of who! Who wants to die for someone else!”
[Pu——]
The pink-robed elder looked at the three, her temple twitching violently, wishing she could shove more poison into their mouths.
But in an instant, as the three were about to draw their swords and clash together, they all stopped.
They halted their movements in a strange way, turned their heads to look at the elder.
Because Lin Shuang suddenly stopped, sniffed, and took out her storage bag.
“This smell… it’s kind of familiar?”
“Isn’t this the Red Jade Pill specially made by Elder Ye of the Qingshui Sect, which was limited edition last year and can neutralize all poisons?”
She said, taking out her medicine box and quickly finding three bottles.
She poured three pills from one bottle.
From the three bottles, she poured out nine pills.
Exactly the same as the one in the pink-robed elder’s hand.
“Wait, this antidote, oh, I have it.”
“It’s not just one.”
[!]
[…!]
[……….]
Lin Shuang generously gave one bottle each to Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan.
An efficiency king like her would queue up to buy medicine that neutralizes all poisons.
One pill neutralizes a hundred poisons.
It can handle a hundred poisoning scenarios.
When it was released, she had queued up at the Rongbao Studio’s door with Xiaomei Zhao Koren, and backup devices No. 1 to No. 12 in turns, snatching three bottles!
“Hmm? Red Jade Pill? I seem to remember it vaguely.”
While accepting the pill from Lin Shuang, Huangpu Yuan reached into his sleeve and pulled out twelve bottles.
The jade bottles were snow-white all over, exuding a chill.
“The pill in the elder’s storage bottle is not of top quality. The quality has degraded. Sorry, I couldn’t smell it out just now.”
“Senior Lin, junior Meng, don’t be polite with me, everyone has it, ten pills each.”
The pink-robed woman was furious, “Damn it!”
Is this what the question is testing?
Not at all!
“What if the first question wasn’t about being poisoned but encountering a high-level evil cultivator? What would you do then!?”
The three remained silent for a breath before speaking in unison.
“Defeat the opponent.”
“Kill the opponent.”
“Destroy him.”
“…”
The pink-robed woman took a deep breath, pressing her twitching forehead.
“Three breaths, two breaths…”
Lin Shuang took a deep breath and lowered her head.
A real elder is indeed harder to deceive than a puppet.
No way around it.
She couldn’t sneak through anymore…
If one day she must die, she would accept it.
After being transmigrated into this high-risk cultivation world, she might be killed off in an instant. She had already thought about it.
But as long as there is a glimmer of hope, she also wanted to grasp every minute and second to continue living in this world.
Every minute, she wanted to make sure she had no regrets.
Let alone a hundred years of future life?
Letting go and choosing to die herself? Impossible.
She couldn’t do it. Truly couldn’t.
Lin Shuang turned her head sideways, seriously looking at the two beside her.
Meng Zi wasn’t bad.
Huangpu Yuan, the great demon, although somewhat fake, had never done anything bad in front of her.
She admired them, but only admired.
Letting them live and sacrificing herself, she couldn’t…
But now, could she bring herself to persuade the other two, convincing them to give up their lives so she could survive? On what basis?
She couldn’t do either of these.
She was afraid, she was scared, she didn’t want to.
Lin Shuang closed her eyes, once again seeing the blood that had flooded her path that day.
Dean Grandma…
What should she do?
Silence.
The three of them remained stubbornly silent.
“The first question is failed.”
The pink-robed elder waved her hand.
Failure.
No need to answer anymore.
Lin Shuang suddenly felt relieved.
Huangpu Yuan’s eyes flickered, and Meng Zi looked at the ground.
The three remained silent, not resisting, all showing expressions of relaxation.
But standing together, they didn’t look at each other, their eyes evading.
“The second question: during an external trial, you find three places to rest. Which do you choose?”
In the illusion, a broken temple, a fisherman’s hut, and the top-class inn appeared.
Meng Zi: “The broken temple.”
Huangpu Yuan: “The inn.”
Lin Shuang: “The fisherman’s hut.”
The three instantly fell silent.
Ten breaths passed in the blink of an eye.
“The third question: during an external trial, you find three precious treasures. Which do you choose?”
Spirit grass guarded by two evil beasts was about to bear fruit.
A treasure sword dropped by someone unknown.
An ancient secret mansion suddenly appearing in the sky.
Meng Zi: “The sword.”
Huangpu Yuan: “The spirit grass.”
Lin Shuang: “The secret mansion.”
The three: “…”
The pink-robed woman looked at them, frowning, “You still have eight breaths to discuss and reach a consensus.”
But the three remained silent again.
Soon, Lin Shuang was the first to smile slightly, “Senior Meng practices sword techniques. Selling the sword for spirit stones will never lack a market.
But the secret mansion is watched by many people, making it hard to sell immediately. It’s normal for Senior Meng not to want it. And Senior Huangpu has a weak body, especially fond of spirit grass.”
Meng Zi rubbed his nose. Yes, he needed spirit stones.
Huangpu Yuan raised his eyes. Ancient mythical beasts are naturally born with a love for spirit grass formed by the essence of heaven and earth.
The nine-tailed fox is no exception.
His obsession with the spirit grass of the heavens and earth is a desire born with his bloodline.
“Senior Lin often wants to achieve multiple goals with one arrow. Only the secret mansion might contain techniques, pills, and swords simultaneously.”
He chuckled lightly.
But his gaze remained fixed on the spirit grass fruit in the illusion, unwavering.
After speaking, the three closed their mouths again.
They had all seen through each other’s choices but had no intention of persuading the others to change.
Ten breaths passed in the blink of an eye.
[Done.]
[Now, it’s really all over.]
[… I was foolishly naive just now, thinking that Senior Mei Xin was going easy on us. I was wrong.]
[Mei Senior’s depth!]
[She placed the most difficult life-and-death choice as the first question of the tacit understanding test… so ruthless!
When it comes to life and death, even many Daoist couples cannot withstand it.
It’s the hardest, yet most heart-destroying question. It tears apart the previously cooperative team of three right from the start!]
[Sigh, the selfish human nature that is real yet hard to mention openly has been brutally exposed, laid bare bloodily in front of these three.
After the first question, they now see each other clearly.
You are unwilling to compromise for me, you are unwilling to sacrifice your life for me.
I am the same unwilling!
We are merely strangers who met by chance.
Why should anyone step back for whom, and how can anyone ask someone else to step back for them?
Only follow our hearts, without guilt towards ourselves, that’s all!
—This must be what the three of them are thinking now, answering individually without considering the common interests of the trio.]
On Mei Xin’s side, progress was also rapid.
“The broken temple.”
“The broken temple.”
“The top-class inn.”
They were just like Lin Shuang’s group. Even though the three had gone on missions together many times, they still chose different answers due to their different personalities.
But Mei Xin’s group quickly began discussing, completely unfazed.
“The inn has more information.”
“The broken temple hides us.”
“The most dangerous place is the safest.”
Soon, Mei Xin’s group reached a consensus, “The inn.”
[…]
[So ruthless, she’s so ruthless!]
Three companions, like twin brothers, moving in unison, thinking the same—completely impossible!
Even between married Daoist couples, there would be different opinions.
But being able to discuss, persuade each other, consider the bigger picture, and find the most suitable solution is enough.
Even if the question of who dies and who lives cannot be resolved, one can still maintain basic coordination in simple tasks.
But now, Lin Shuang’s group was affected by the first question’s thinking.
What right do I have to ask the other to give up spirit stones, spirit grass, and multiple opportunities for me?
No right at all.
Just as I have no right to ask you to give up your life for me.
I don’t want to persuade you.
Because I won’t be changed by you either.
The life-and-death thinking from the first question severely influenced the subsequent answering emotions.
These are completely different questions!
[Sigh, since the beginning at the Ten Thousand Volumes Book House, I’ve been watching their projections. The three of them are all gifted, with firm Dao hearts that I can’t help but admire.]
[Firm Dao hearts… all three have extremely high aspirations? No wonder.]
[The higher one’s aspirations, the harder it is to compromise for others, and the harder it is to be persuaded by others.]
[Shall I speak or not? Actually, Meng Zi and the other two had already reached a tacit understanding. Isn’t seeing through each other’s aspirations, obsessions, and talents also a form of tacit understanding?]
[Sigh, obsessions are ultimately undesirable.
Although Mei Xin’s question was ruthless, they should thank her. After this failure, reflecting on themselves and letting go of their obsessions… they could ascend to a higher level.]
[Exactly. Qing Shui Sect has always arranged for disciples to live together and undergo trials collectively, precisely to make them understand that while talent is important, throughout the history of cultivation, there have been countless talents who perished due to their own aspirations.
Ordinary people often fail to see their own weaknesses, obsessions, and mistakes, but those who undergo trials with you will tell you.
Through long-term cooperation, you see each other’s flaws and break through the shackles of your mortal limitations.
This is the greatest significance of Qing Shui Sect’s inclusive philosophy and the three-member team!]
[!]
[Now I understand. Thank you, senior brothers and sisters, for your guidance.]
Thousands of disciples across the Zhen Chuan layers looked at the words projected before them and gained some new insights.
Some senior brothers and sisters appeared in the projection; they rarely personally instructed juniors in daily life, yet they often spoke up during these projections.
Instantly, the fog cleared for many people.
“Oh, so that’s how it is.”
“Write it down.”
Zhao Keran waved her arms and legs, pulling out paper and brush from her spatial pouch.
She wasn’t really a prodigy; her cultivation so far had mostly relied on her senior sister’s guidance and “The Fastest Learning.”
“The Fastest Learning, Part II: A Good Memory Is Not as Good as a Poor Pen.”
Listen once, say it once, then write it down so that you can often review it later and repeatedly contemplate its meaning.
Even if you don’t understand it at first, so what?
Eventually, she would comprehend it too.
Zhao Keran recorded while narrating aloud, her Thomas rotation never stopping.
But suddenly, her body stiffened the moment she finished writing the last character.
“I understand now…”
“Senior sister, you’ve always been reflecting me.”
“By looking at senior sister, I see my own shortcomings… Now I’m learning faster than others… because I realized my talent wasn’t good enough…”
“Although I have shortcomings, I’m not afraid either. I’m diligently studying ‘The Fastest Learning,’ which means I’ve broken through the shackles of my own mortal limitations!”
In an instant, a flash of enlightenment descended from the Zhen Chuan resting cave, enveloping Zhao Keran completely.
Her Thomas rotation halted.
Maintaining this posture, she closed her eyes instantly and entered meditation.
Everyone: “…!”
What kind of meditation posture is that… No, what kind of talent is this!
Everyone was watching the projection, yet she, at the Qi Condensation stage, achieved an immediate breakthrough?
“My own shortcomings… I’m afraid to speak with Senior Xu Rui. Whenever I see him, I want to escape or retreat into seclusion.”
Zhou Xuanwu also saw himself through others and immediately closed his eyes to meditate.
A spiritual passageway suddenly appeared.
His face still bore fear.
But soon, lost in contemplation, he realized it didn’t matter—once he reached the Yuan Condensation stage, he could cultivate in seclusion within the inner sect for centuries.
He burst into laughter and entered meditation.
Although I fear speaking with others, I have ways to overcome it.
His Dao heart instantly became more focused, with no flaws whatsoever.
Everyone: “…!”
Why are the outer sect disciples so strange one after another!
The disciples on the 3,000th layer immediately shifted their gaze to the last disciple of the outer sect, Chen Sixin.
Chen Sixin’s face turned red instantly.
She was normal!
She felt so much pressure.
But soon, she looked toward the figures of Lin Shuang and the others in the projection with both concern and expectation.
Lin Shuang, can you reach above the 3,000th layer?
Can you, as an outer sect disciple, surpass the inner sect seniors?
If not this year, perhaps Lin Shuang would enter the inner sect in ten years.
In her lifetime, she would probably never see an outer sect disciple standing above the inner sect!
How regrettable that would be.
Thinking this, Chen Sixin suddenly realized, had she also become so arrogant?
No, was it so despicable?
Hoping to see the seniors suffer?
She trembled slightly and closed her eyes instantly.
A small glow, weaker than Zhao Keran’s and Zhou Xuanwu’s, entered her forehead.
She saw her own shortcomings but realized she couldn’t accept them yet.
But seeing oneself is the first step toward breaking through.
She also entered meditation to contemplate.
The inner sect disciples: “…??”
The disciples on the 3,000th layer were heartbroken.
They widened their eyes, looking at the projection where Lin Shuang was, hoping to see something meaningful.
In the projection, the pink-robed elder frowned.
“You’re not even discussing for the fourth question?”
“There are three tasks to choose from.
A demonic cultivator might shatter your dantian, a demonic cultivator could ravage your sea of consciousness, and a demonic cultivator will surely strip you of your spiritual treasures.
“Which task do you least want to take?”
Silence.
Another awkward silence.
Lin Shuang: “I don’t want my consciousness sea injured.”
If the consciousness sea was destroyed, she would lose her 108 threads of divine consciousness and could no longer do many things simultaneously.
Perhaps she would even forget where she came from and all the words the Grandma Dean had spoken.
Then… she wouldn’t be herself anymore.
She’d live someone else’s life; what would be the point?
Huangpu Yuan’s phoenix eyes flickered: “I don’t want my dantian destroyed.”
For human cultivators, the dantian is equivalent to a demon beast’s inner core.
If the inner elixir is shattered, all demonic power will be lost. What use would an intact consciousness sea be then?
Living as a useless being, the Nine-Tailed Fox lineage extinguished, he’d rather die honorably or have his consciousness sea destroyed, going mad and perishing together with human cultivators.
Meng Zi sighed: “I… don’t want to lose my spiritual treasures.”
After the three spoke, silence fell again.
The pink-robed elder asked them to discuss, yet they all remained silent.
[Sigh, we lost the fourth question too.]
[Actually, it’s not necessarily certain injury… but never mind.]
[Mei Xin, this sound cultivator, is indeed a master of consciousness manipulation… Lin Shuang’s loss in the first question marked the beginning of ten lost questions!!!]
[No camaraderie, rely on yourself, do as you please—not just these ten tacit questions, beware, this outer sect junior sister’s team battle is bound to lose in the next two rounds!]
“Aren’t you going to reconsider?” The pink-robed elder frowned deeply.
All three looked at the ground, “I respect them,” “No need,” “I’ll choose this one.”
“Fine, fine, then the fifth question!”
The pink-robed elder was somewhat angry now.
Instantly, Lin Shuang looked up, her eyes filled with alertness, but in an instant, she closed her eyes, as if falling asleep.
Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan both stood a body’s length away from her, unable to rush to her side in time.
Since the first question, they hadn’t realized it themselves.
The more they answered, the farther apart their positions became.
Now rushing over, they were instantly separated by an energy barrier erected by the pink-robed elder with a flick of his finger.
“The fifth question.”
The pink-robed elder narrowed his eyes, looked at the sleeping Lin Shuang, and smiled slightly.
“What is Lin Shuang’s ultimate move?”
“You two, answer.”
Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan were astonished.
[A freebie question.]
[Not necessarily. Don’t forget, Zhen Chuan has only been open for three days.]
[The outer sect junior sister’s ultimate move? Has anyone who passed those stone layers known about it?]
[Beneath the 3,000th layer, there are rarely deadly trials. Most are single-ability trials, with very few wooden puppet stages testing comprehensive abilities.]
[Ultimate move… like the 98 Water Spirit Swords she just unleashed?]
“Do you two really not know what Lin Shuang’s specialty is, after spending so many days together?”
The pink-robed elder chuckled.
If the currently sleeping Lin Shuang woke up now, she would definitely say this was a CPU manipulation.
“Not knowing each other’s ultimate moves, how can you cooperate?”
The pink-robed elder continued to pressure them.
He mockingly looked at Huangpu Yuan and Meng Zi.
“Why don’t you just surrender directly!”
“She didn’t tell us, how are we supposed to know!”
Meng Zi had been holding back since the first question.
Question after question, their increasing lack of synchronization had intensified their frustration.
Now, this question was like a spark, completely igniting his inner discontent.
Lin Shuang never told them about her techniques.
He himself hadn’t shared anything with her either!
Senior Huangpu was the same way.
“Yes, yes, we have no tacit understanding, we don’t even know Lin Shuang’s ultimate move, satisfied?”
Meng Zi gave up in frustration.
“Just start fighting, let Mei Xin and the three of them come! What harmony, just knock them down, right?”
Meng Zi was furious.
Huangpu Yuan’s eyes also showed complexity, his hands unconsciously hidden in his sleeves.
She had secrets, and so did he.
He wouldn’t be honest with anyone about his human cultivation.
Therefore, he didn’t care about human cultivation secrets either.
He could never risk his life with a human cultivator.
It was just a performance, cooperating with her was relatively pleasant, and he was taking the opportunity to find out the secrets of the Qing Shui Sect behind Zhen Chuan.
Therefore, her secrets, if she didn’t want to say, he didn’t care at all!
Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan’s eyes both showed indifference and a “you can think whatever you want” attitude.
They were all together in Zhen Chuan because they couldn’t find companions.
After Zhen Chuan, outer sect, inner sect, Rong Bao Zhai, each would return to their own path.
As if they would go out again to take joint missions, what a joke!
But suddenly, a sharp “Ding” echoed at the well of Li Family Village.
“Ding, Lin Shuang has entered sleep mode. Xiao Ai automatically answers for your service.”
“Trigger keywords ‘ultimate move’, ‘lose’, ‘fight’…”
“Would you like to know Lin Shuang’s ultimate move? How to cooperate with her for a counterattack?”
Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan’s stubborn expressions instantly changed.
As if recalling something.
[…?]
[??]
Suddenly, the Xiao Ai talisman softly and cutely fell from the sleeping Lin Shuang’s sleeve, its paper body clattering forward a few steps.
“This type of question is all part of the Life-and-Death VIP content.”
“Starting to verify the inquirer’s identity.”
Huangpu Yuan and Meng Zi’s eyes flickered.
“Ding,”
Xiao Ai, with its round and plump lion dog head, first turned toward the pink-robed elder who had asked the question.
“Verifying spiritual energy…”
“Verification failed.”
“You are not Lin Shuang’s life-and-death Level I companion Zhou Xuanwu, nor Lin Shuang’s life-and-death Level I romantic interest Xiao Qi.”
“Nor are you Lin Shuang’s life-and-death companion Level II Zhen Chuan’s Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan.”
Both Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan’s figures trembled.
Life-and-death companions.
They suddenly remembered… this seemingly useless answering talisman.
She had set their names into the talisman’s responses.
To her, they were her second-level life-and-death companions!
And above them, there were no higher-level existences…
Both of their eyes flickered.
The lion dog talisman had already retracted its detection legs, preparing to return the way it came.
“Sorry, identity verification failed, I cannot tell you.”
“Please continue cultivating life-and-death feelings with Lin Shuang before consulting about ultimate moves, goodbye~”
Meng Zi was startled and immediately cried out, “Lin Shuang… what’s your ultimate move… can you tell me…”
Huangpu Yuan lowered his head, silently looking at this talisman dog.
The talisman dog… although it was a lion dog breed…
But it was a dog…
Not a cat…
Clatter clatter, indeed the lion dog talisman came back again.
It extended its paper foot, poking Meng Zi’s foot.
“Ding! Identity verification successful!”
“You are life-and-death Level II companion Meng Zi or Huangpu Yuan.”
“Lin Shuang’s ultimate move is as follows—”
[!]
[!!!]
Instantly, the lion dog talisman emitted Lin Shuang’s original voice.
“Hey, if you’re asking such questions, probably I’m now subdued by enemies, fallen into a coma, or unable to answer you, right?”
The pink-robed elder’s eyes flickered.
“Well then, I’ll tell you. My ultimate move— is myself.”
[!]
All three were stunned.
Huangpu Yuan lightly laughed after a moment of surprise, while Meng Zi couldn’t believe it.
Just like her absurd answer about 97 clone Lin Shuang at the Qi Condensation stage!
“My dantian techniques, consciousness sea divine consciousness, left and right hand sword seals, talismans, sound cultivation, defense, speed… all have minor achievements.”
“!”
“!!”
[???]
[???]
[What?]
Following were Lin Shuang’s self-praising moments.
“My ultimate move is everything about me, any aspect you can think of.”
“…”
“So when you need it, figure out how to wake me up and rescue me. Believe me, I can have 98 of me existing simultaneously.”
“!”
“As for the battle plan, you can consider me as a hexagonal warrior in your battle strategies.”
[…!]
[…]
[……….]
“Wake me up, and I’ll do my best to help you.”
With a ding, Lin Shuang’s original voice disappeared.
Soon, the lion dog Xiao Ai talisman spoke again, “Querying Lin Shuang’s diary, currently mastered **, ***, **… have reached the ultimate refinement realm; mastered **, ***, … have reached half-step perfection.”
[??]
[What, what is this? Has she reached the ultimate refinement realm? Could it be the Water Spirit Sword!？]
“Sorry, this information is Life-and-Death Level III VIP privilege.”
“Life-and-Death Level II Meng Zi and Huangpu Yuan, your current level is insufficient to view it. We recommend you continue to increase your Life-and-Death interaction count with her～～～”
The lion dog talisman disappeared instantly.
Leaving only Huangpu Yuan and Meng Zi standing there, complexly looking at Lin Shuang.
Current level insufficient.
Yes, having only known each other for a few days, who could be as foolish as to entrust their secrets and lives to another?
Such tacit understanding is simply impossible?
Ordinary cultivators couldn’t achieve it.
But as long as you interacted with her enough times to build up life-and-death bonds…
And she had already placed them at a higher level than the elders…
In just a few days, they had surpassed all the trust levels she had with others in the outer sect!
In her heart, they were now the two most important people to her?
Meng Zi was stunned, his gaze fixed.
Huangpu Yuan’s pupils slightly contracted.
Never had anyone trusted him so much before.
But what could he offer in return, something of equal value?
In an instant, Lin Shuang awoke from her sleep.
As she landed, complex gazes from both sides fell upon her.
What was going on?
Lin Shuang was puzzled.
What did the expressions on these two’s faces mean—part touched, part flustered and panicked, mixed with a hint of guilt?
“Lin Shuang’s ultimate move is herself.”
Huangpu Yuan answered.
Meng Zi echoed simultaneously.
What?
Who activated Xiao Ai while she was asleep saying such an embarrassing thing?
Lin Shuang covered her face.
She was mortified.
“I… during the second question, I actually also thought going to the Tianhao Inn was better. But I just… felt sorry about wasting spirit stones.”
Meng Zi blushed and turned her head away.
“And for the third question, if there were more spirit treasures in the Secret Mansion, I could have chosen that too.”
Lin Shuang was slightly stunned, when she heard a cough from her right.
Turning her head, she didn’t know why, but meeting Huangpu Yuan’s dark eyes, she felt as if she saw a loyal dog…
The kind recently brought home by its owner, not yet fully trusting each other, but having gained slight trust after receiving dog food, yet still feeling uneasy for having extended its paw to scratch her moments ago.
“Cough. There are spirit herbs in the Secret Mansion; I can barely manage to go there too.”
After Huangpu Yuan spoke, he immediately looked straight ahead, pretending he hadn’t said that.
Lin Shuang, however, smiled instantly, “That’s great! At least we can agree on the first two questions.”
“If we encounter stone layers or tasks we don’t want to do together later, we can just split up.”
Upon her words, Huangpu Yuan and Meng Zi immediately relaxed.
“Agreed.”
“Fine.”
They didn’t need to always share the same preferences and be tied together constantly.
But they could accompany each other most of the time, without growing tired of each other.
That was enough.
In an instant, Lin Shuang also felt something vague and unclear in her heart becoming clearer.
The previous tension and conflict instantly dissipated.
Looking at each other, the three of them all showed faint signs of thawing ice.
Lin Shuang smiled.
Headmistress Grandma, arguing really does bring people closer, right?
“I was also at fault just now.”
“Actually, if the spirit herbs and sword were along the way to the Secret Mansion, we could plan the route carefully to collect all three items. I didn’t have to insist on going to the Secret Mansion first.”
Huangpu Yuan and Meng Zi looked at her with complex expressions.
No wonder you’re you.
Striking multiple targets with one arrow, wanting everything.
Yet their gazes involuntarily softened.
Looking toward the pink-robed elder, they saw her finally giving them a satisfied approving smile.
“The fifth question…”
Before her words had even finished, three balls of spiritual energy pierced through the endless blue sky from Lijiacun.
The largest landed on Lin Shuang, followed by Meng Zi, and Huangpu Yuan received the smallest.
Instantly descending upon their heads, surrounding them!
The three were all shaken.
[!]
An authoritative elderly voice immediately sounded.
“The synergy test is a branch of team battles.”
“Team battles mean understanding each other, cooperating, being ready to entrust your back to your teammates, yet without losing yourself.”
“Recognizing each other’s likes and dislikes is the first difficulty in synergy.”
“Not forcing agreement when opinions differ, while also reflecting on oneself, is the second difficulty in synergy.”
“Being able to suddenly awaken from one’s own obsession and pride, seeking balance between self and the group, and willingly cooperating, that is the third difficulty in synergy.”
“The three of you have already grasped the basics. This old man acknowledges your synergy!”
—”Remaining true to oneself, yet willing to walk together!”
“Through merely five questions, from superficial agreement, to divergence, and finally mutual appreciation. You broke down first, then rebuilt, instantly comprehending. This level of insight and temperament, I commend it!”
With this solemn voice, spiritual blessings descended from the heavens, surrounding the three.
Three dry leaves gradually solidified.
Zhenchuan Ferry Leaves!
[!!!]
[…!]
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage