Surprise, helplessness…
All sorts of complex emotions flooded Lu Zhiyun’s heart in a single moment.
The physical manifestation of this was that her legs went weak…
Confronted by the “questioning” of the Demon Cultivator, Lu Zhiyun’s legs pathetically failed her, and she collapsed to her knees before him.
“Junior Sister, what are you doing?” Lin Shu was startled by the sight. Had he said something wrong?
“I… I…” Lu Zhiyun stammered, her lips turning pale, not knowing what to say.
‘If the “Lu Zhiyun” summoned by the talisman really was my future self, then she was so brave during her Jindan Stage that she directly confronted a Demon Cultivator?’
‘Lu Zhiyun, oh Lu Zhiyun! You’ve really caused me trouble!’
Just as she was wondering how to cover up her lie, Three Pure Immortaless emerged from around the corner, stretching.
“Haaa — Little Lu, what’s for breakfast today? Hmm?”
Three Pure Immortaless asked with sleepy eyes, but the scene before her instantly snapped her awake.
From her perspective, Lin Shu’s back was toward her, and through the hem of his long robes, she could faintly see someone kneeling in front of him.
That person was trembling, seemingly under some kind of coercion, with their knuckles turning white!
When Three Pure Immortaless shifted slightly and saw the face of the kneeling girl, she became even more enraged!
“You beast! What are you doing to your Junior Sister?!”
Three Pure Immortaless delivered an elbow strike, knocking Lin Shu aside. Her immortal strength almost sent him tumbling over.
“Immortaless, calm down!” Lin Shu said as he steadied himself.
Once he regained his balance, Three Pure Immortaless was already shielding Lu Zhiyun behind her, carefully checking her all over to see if she was missing any limbs, and even checking her mouth for ulcers or signs of inflammation.
Only after this routine ended did Three Pure Immortaless turn back to confront Lin Shu.
She couldn’t beat the entity inside Lin Shu’s spiritual space, but if Lin Shu really tried to do something to Little Lu, then she would… she would just run away with her!
Lu Zhiyun’s face was pale, but she suddenly thought of something and forced herself to stand upright.
If what the Demon Cultivator said was true and that body double was indeed her future self at the Jindan Stage, then she would surely survive this ordeal and live to reach that level.
“Immortaless, I’m fine.” Lu Zhiyun smiled at Three Pure Immortaless, then turned toward Lin Shu. “Senior Brother, I think I roughly understand what happened.”
“Oh? How so?” Lin Shu asked.
Three Pure Immortaless was completely bewildered by the situation. ‘Weren’t we just discussing the “Senior Brother bullying Junior Sister” drama?’
“What happened? What happened?” she asked.
Lu Zhiyun explained the situation to Three Pure Immortaless and took out the combined talisman of the Realm-Rising Talisman and the Division Law Talisman to show her.
“What? You created your own talisman while only at the Foundation Establishment Stage?” Three Pure Immortaless asked in surprise.
“Uh, I just stitched them together based on Senior Brother’s and your talismans. It doesn’t really count as a self-creation!” Lu Zhiyun said sheepishly.
She looked at Lin Shu and explained, “My future self probably entered some Secret Realm or was deceived by someone, leading her to mistake you for a Demon Cultivator, Senior Brother!”
She offered a mix of truth and lies. The part about being deceived was a lie, but being entrusted by the Imperial Diviner to investigate a Demon Cultivator was the truth!
In any case, this explanation should be enough to fool him… right?
Would a Demon Cultivator fall for it so easily?
Lin Shu closed his eyes and thought for a moment before replying, “That makes sense! Otherwise, it would be hard to explain!”
It was indeed hard to explain why his sweet and lovely Junior Sister would attack him. She must have been blinded by someone else!
How hateful!
Someone actually dared to sabotage their relationship as disciples of the same sect!
That person better hide well, or they would be in trouble if he caught them!
Lin Shu decided that once Lu Zhiyun reached the Jindan Stage, he would vigorously investigate all potential threats around her.
Seeing that Lin Shu believed her, Lu Zhiyun breathed a sigh of relief and began chatting with Three Pure Immortaless.
“Little Lu, do you have any more of these talismans?” Three Pure Immortaless asked.
“I do, Immortaless! I do!” Lu Zhiyun pulled three talismans from her Storage Bag and handed them to Three Pure Immortaless.
Lin Shu stepped forward and took one as well. “Immortaless, what do you think of this talisman?”
Three Pure Immortaless said appreciatively, “Being able to make this kind of talisman at the Foundation Establishment Stage is nothing short of being a genius. Moreover, this talisman doesn’t look like an accidental success; every stroke contains the fluctuations of the Spirit Qi of time.”
Lin Shu nodded. “Junior Sister has always been very talented!”
After all, without any transmigration experience or watching anime, she had self-taught “Cloud Breathing,” and she had completed her Qi Introduction in half an hour. These all proved her innate intelligence.
Lu Zhiyun was so embarrassed by the praise that she lowered her head shyly, completely forgetting her recent “brush with death.”
“Say, if this can summon the future version of oneself… then what would happen if we used it on ourselves?” Three Pure Immortaless asked with a mischievous grin.
“Immortaless, don’t do anything reckless!”
The effect of this talisman was to summon one’s self from the next realm. Given that the next realm for Lin Shu, a Qi Refiner, was an Immortal, it would be direct Immortal Ascension.
If an Immortal appeared out of thin air in Wu City, it would definitely cause a massive uproar.
Clearly, Three Pure Immortaless didn’t think that far. While Lin Shu wasn’t paying attention, she slapped a talisman onto his calf.
“Take this!”
Before Lin Shu could open his mouth to stop her, the talisman stuck firmly to him.
In an instant, the winds surged and the clouds shifted. A powerful pressure continuously radiated from the small courtyard.
Lu Zhiyun was all too familiar with this pressure. It was exactly like the moment Three Pure Immortaless appeared in the Qingshan Town Secret Realm.
Immortal pressure!
This also meant that Lin Shu would definitely achieve Immortal Ascension in the future!
“Heh heh heh! This is my first time seeing a cultivator who achieved ‘Ascension through Heavenly Dao’!” Three Pure Immortaless’s eyes shone as she stared at Lin Shu.
However, in less than the time it takes for a cup of tea to cool, the immortal pressure vanished like a fleeting flower, as if it had never existed.
After the light faded, only Lin Shu remained standing there with a bewildered expression, holding a shredded talisman in his hand.
“What happened?” Three Pure Immortaless stepped forward to ask.
Lin Shu shook his head. “I… maybe the power was too much to handle?”
“Is ‘Ascension through Heavenly Dao’ really that powerful? I don’t believe it!”
Three Pure Immortaless immediately pulled out a new talisman and slapped it onto her own chest.
“Immortaless! Save one for me!” Lu Zhiyun cried out, wanting to weep but having no tears. She had only drawn a few during the whole night, and now two were gone just like that.
There was another flash of light, but this time, there was no so-called “immortal pressure.” Instead, the aura was very gentle.
When the light dissipated again, a beautiful woman who looked exactly like Three Pure Immortaless stepped out.
She had a graceful posture and a tall figure. Her temperament was completely different from the currently boisterous Immortaless; she looked like a lady from a scholarly family.
If there was one difference, it was that she was a bit bigger!
Lu Zhiyun was indignant. How could someone still grow when they were already 300,000 years old?
But as her gaze drifted lower, something even more shocking appeared!
Three Pure Immortaless pointed at “Three Pure Immortaless” and asked, “Holy crap! Who got you big?!”
“Three Pure Immortaless” yawned, appearing quite calm about the surroundings.
She patted her abdomen, which looked about three months pregnant, and said calmly, “Isn’t that person right in front of you?”
Three Pure Immortaless turned to look at Lin Shu with an incredible expression, gritting her teeth before spitting out four words: “Worse than a beast!”
He wouldn’t even let a 300,000-year-old go!
Lin Shu felt wronged! He was a man of integrity!
“Three Pure Immortaless” realized her words were slightly misleading and explained unhurriedly, “I didn’t mean it like that. I went out to lunch with him and just got a bit stuffed from being fed too much!”
The atmosphere on the scene suddenly became awkward.
“Three Pure Immortaless” looked around and added, “It seems this is the past.”
Lu Zhiyun asked in surprise, “Immortaless, you know?”
“More than that! I even know I was summoned by a talisman!”
“Three Pure Immortaless” waved her hand and gave her trademark mischievous smile, saying smugly, “Do not underestimate an Immortal!”
Just as Lu Zhiyun was about to ask more, “Three Pure Immortaless” seemed to run out of strength. She dissipated once more, leaving behind only a piece of talisman paper drifting to the ground.
“This…”
It seemed the power of the paper was limited; trying to summon an Immortal was still too taxing!
The atmosphere remained awkward. Seeing this, Lin Shu simply invited the two to eat together, mentioning they would go watch his Audition Match in the afternoon.
Three Pure Immortaless laughed it off, pulled Lu Zhiyun along, and followed him.
It was just too awkward…
***
On the other side, inside the Daqian Imperial Palace.
Jiang Chenyin was bathing. Flower petals were scattered across the milky white surface of the bath. Bored, she picked up a petal to play with.
“It’s been so quiet lately. I feel like something is wrong…”
Unexpectedly, in the next moment, a mysterious power struck her Spiritual Sense like a ripple. Her heart tightened instantly, and her eyes cleared significantly.
“Is this… an Immortal?”