Chapter 2797: Holy Maiden

“You take the bed. I’ll sleep on the floor.” Zu An reacted fast to the situation. It would appear suspicious if he requested another blanket from Huang Rong, but it was no big deal for a martial artist of his level to do without a blanket.

Tingxue shook her head. “There’s no need for that. I have an idea.”

White silk shot out from her sleeve and pierced the wall, forming a hammock. She gracefully leaped into it. “Xiaolongnu taught me this. I thought it was interesting.”

Seeing her rest on the silk hammock, Zu An was briefly dazed. He felt as if he was looking at the legendary Xiaolongnu in person.

Just then, the window opened. Zu An and Tingxue looked over and saw Firework sneaking in.

Tingxue nearly slipped off her silk hammock. “What are you doing here?”

Firework laughed. “It wasn’t easy for me to create an opportunity for you two, but you’re squandering it just like that?”

Tingxue huffed, “Look at the mess you have made!”

While covering up for Firework, she'd suddenly become the Guo Clan’s daughter-in-law. Somehow, she found herself unable to return to her usual composure. Emotions swayed her much more easily. She had never felt like this before.

“We’re friends. Shouldn’t we help each other out?” Firework replied with a grin.

Tingxue coldly replied, “What are you doing here so late at night? Are you here to mess around with him again?”

“It’s called training,” Firework corrected her.

Tingxue was speechless.

She wasn't so dense as to be unable to tell that Firework was intentionally getting intimate with Zu An in front of her to provoke her. What kind of perverted inclination is that? She wasn’t about to play along with this nonsense, so she got up and went to the neighboring room.

But Firework grabbed her hand and exclaimed, “Where are you going? I won’t be able to explain it if others see me sharing a room alone with him.”

It would invite controversy if Zu An and Firework, who were siblings in this world, were spotted spending the night together. However, they could still explain it if Tingxue was here as well.

Tingxue’s eyelids twitched. “You want me to stay here to watch you?”

It was one thing back when we were in different rooms, but you’re going too far now. She wrapped her hand around her sword sheath.

“I’m just teasing you.” Firework laughed. “Since we’re about to part ways, I’m here to discuss things with you two.”

Zu An burst into laughter. Since our time in the ancient tomb, Firework has reverted to the bubbly girl I met on the spaceship. Could she be suffering from dissociative personality disorder?

“Do you find their plan feasible?”

Zu An replied, “I have to say that they've thought things through. I don’t think we could have done it any better.”

Firework frowned. “But none of the countless challengers before us has cleared this trial. Is there an intrinsic flaw in the plan itself, or is the difficulty in accomplishing the plan greater than expected?”

Tingxue finally expressed her view. “There’s no point thinking so much right now. All we can do right now is to do as we were told and attempt to craft the Heavenly Sword and the Dragon Slaying Saber first.”

“What if it’s a trap?” Unable to be as nonchalant as the Nebula worshiper, Firework turned to Zu An and asked, “You’re familiar with this world’s background, right? Did the plan succeed or not?”

“There were some twists and turns, but in the end, the plan succeeded.” Zu An summarized the story of ‘Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber’ for the two of them.

“What could the problem be?” Firework was perplexed. “Based on what you have shared, I am the future founder of the E’mei Sect, so it makes sense for me to head to E’mei Mountain right now. That seems to be an inevitability of fate.”

“It doesn’t seem likely that you’ll face significant danger during your journey to E’mei Mountain, but you mustn’t let your guard down. Anything involving fate has to be taken seriously.”

“Don’t worry, Tingxue and I should be fine. What’s more worrying is your journey to the Ming Cult.” Firework had already learned about the Ming Cult’s association with Old Man Shanzhong, and the latter had proven himself to be a formidable assassin.

“I’ll tread carefully,” Zu An replied.

They continued their discussion through the night, but they still had no clue how to tackle this trial.

The following day, when Guo Fu called them out for breakfast, she saw them sleeping on the same bed and shouted in shock. That jolted Zu An and the others awake.

Tingxue shot to her feet, whereas Firework was unfazed.

“We chatted too late into the night, got tired, and fell asleep like that.”

The three of them were bound to mortal bodies in this world. Consecutive days of traveling had caused fatigue to build up in them. When the sky darkened, they fell asleep before they realized it. Needless to say, nothing happened among them.

Guo Fu huffed, “Xiang’er, you aren’t young anymore. You shouldn’t be fooling around like that.”

She didn’t suspect anything because Tingxue was around as well. Her little sister had always been eccentric from a young age, so it was normal for her to not maintain the usual boundaries between men and women.

Before embarking on their journey, the three of them first paid a visit to Guo Jing and Huang Rong.

As Zu An rushed northwest to Kunlun Mountain, he couldn’t help replaying the conversation they had the night before parting ways. Based on what I remember, the Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber Plan succeeded in the end, so why has no one succeeded in the trial to date?

He didn’t think that those who had come before them wouldn’t be able to obtain the Sacred Fire Token and the Thunderbolt Bombs.

Is the Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber Plan not the crux of the trial? Or has this world’s future changed, making the plan doomed to fail? How did the other universal deities tamper with this world?

Zu An had several conjectures in mind, but they needed confirmation. He continued heading toward the Western Regions.

Around a month later, he finally arrived at the foot of Kunlun Mountain. The long journey made him realize how accustomed he was to flying around. It felt frustrating for him to have to travel by foot like that.

Soon, he found the Ming Cult’s home at the vast Kunlun Mountain.

The Ming Cult of the present era was nowhere as powerful as they would be in the future. He encountered some guards along the way, but none of them could stop him. He snuck his way toward the Radiant Peak, only to find fewer guards around. Huh? Shouldn’t there be more guards as I approach the Radiant Peak?

He soon learned the reason by eavesdropping on the cult members’ conversations. A holy maiden from the Persian headquarters had graced the Ming Cult, so Cult Leader Shi had gathered all important figures at the main hall to welcome her.

Zu An was surprised.

A holy maiden from the headquarters? Could it be Purple Dress Dragon King Daiqisi? But that can’t be. That’s a character from ‘Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber’, so she hasn’t even been born yet.

He secretly knocked out a cult member, changed into his clothes, and snuck into the main hall.

A crowd was gathered in the main hall—they were likely all in the Ming Cult’s upper echelons. Seated on the highest chair was a brawny old man. Judging from his clothes and the respect accorded to him, he was Cult Leader Shi.

Cult Leader Shi coldly said, “Treasure Tree King, the Central Plains Ming Cult may have descended from the Persian Ming Cult, but it has been centuries since we have laid our roots here. The Mongols seek to conquer the Central Plains, and we have sworn to fight them to the bitter end. So, how can we obey the Persian headquarters’ unreasonable order to serve the Mongols?”

Zu An swiftly understood the situation.

The Persian headquarters must have sent an envoy down to persuade the Central Plains Ming Cult to surrender to the Mongols, but Cult Leader Shi refuses to obey the order. He’s a righteous person.

Zu An was initially worried for the Central Plains Ming Cult for defying the Mongols, but on second thought, they were located in the middle of the remote Kunlun Mountain. The Mongols’ army of hundreds of thousands wouldn’t be of much use here. It was no wonder they were fearless.

A Persian with a sharp nose and distant eyes replied, “We have different aspirations. We won’t force you to comply since you aren’t willing to do so. I just hope this matter doesn’t impair the goodwill between us.”

The Persian was so understanding that Cult Leader Shi felt embarrassed. The Central Plains Ming Cult did have deep ties with the Persian Ming Cult, after all.

The Persian continued, “Actually, we have another objective here. A respected elder from our Persian headquarters passed away a year ago. He was from the Central Plains, but he migrated to Persia and joined our Ming Cult. He contributed greatly to our Ming Cult and married a Persian lady, and the two of them had a daughter.

“That respected elder missed his homeland even on his deathbed, and he wished for his daughter to return to the Central Plains. Our cult leader respects his will and commanded me to escort his daughter to the Radiant Peak, hoping that the Central Plains Ming Cult would take good care of her.

“Isabella, come here and pay respects to Cult Leader Shi.”

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