Chapter 405: The One-Year Pact

While crossing the abyss, the monk and Zhao Fusheng made a weird yet highly effective and wise decision.

The monk summoned his peacock Dharma again once more, this time with its tail feathers spread wide. He then clutched all the jets while Zhao Fusheng wrapped his arms around the monk from behind, using his own body to block the Hlai women’s attacks. The attacks from the entire Hlai group struck Zhao Fusheng and Zhao Fusheng only, causing him to cough up blood, but this actually increased the pair’s speed.

The monk activated the jets, and the two flew across the abyss like shooting stars. The giant mouth reappeared, but was momentarily frozen in place by the peacock Dharma’s spread tail feathers. Ultimately, they were able to reach the opposite shore by the skin of their teeth.

For some reason, Wei Yuan couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about the two men’s posture. Out of caution, he recorded this whole sequence.

Wei Yuan’s landing spot was a shallow cave—a dead end. Referring to his map, he estimated that digging a 500-zhang passage forward would lead to a natural cave that fell within the boundary of the human realm.

He immediately cast the Golden Light Water Blade spell and began digging. At the same time, he signalled to the monk and Zhao Fusheng to follow.

The monk’s face remained serene and composed throughout. However, Zhao Fusheng looked deeply conflicted. In the end, he let out a long sigh and silently followed.

In the blink of an eye, Wei Yuan had dug more than ten zhang forward. His golden Water Blades never ceased, and both the monk and Zhao Fusheng were surprised by this. Zhao Fusheng suddenly said, “Does anyone have an extra set of clothes, and can you spare me one? I’ll be eternally grateful for the favor.”

The monk silently retrieved a spare set of monk’s robes from his storage artifact. Wei Yuan carried quite a few—not only his own, but also seven or eight belonging to others. He was just rummaging through them when a mortal offered a suggestion.

Wei Yuan thought it was a good suggestion, so he removed the robes he was wearing and tossed them to Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng accepted them in astonishment, suddenly at a loss for words. Seeing this, the monk chanted a Buddhist mantra and put away the spare.

The three pressed forward in silence, with Wei Yuan occasionally taking a few elixirs to replenish his spirit qi. The monk handed him a bottle of Qi-Restoring Treasure Pills, whose potency was roughly ten to twenty times that of the ones Wei Yuan usually took. Although the monk and Zhao Fusheng possessed greater mystic energy reserves than Wei Yuan, they lacked a suitable ground-digging spell like the Golden Water Blade spell and could offer no assistance at the moment.

Moments later, Wei Yuan finally broke through the rock layer, and they all returned to the human realm. As if on cue, the Shadowless Flying Ferret suddenly appeared and landed on Wei Yuan’s shoulder.

The monk and Zhao Fusheng looked back at the long passageway behind them, their expressions both somewhat grave.

Wei Yuan patted the Shadowless Flying Ferret and said calmly, “Once we’re out of here, everything that happened here will be considered water under the bridge, and all favors and grievances will be forgotten. Whatever we’re fighting over, let us start anew.”

The monk chanted a Buddhist mantra, and Zhao Fusheng said, “This son of Zhao am not one to forget a kind—”

Wei Yuan cut him off, saying, “I saved you purely because I didn’t want two future high cultivators of the human race to perish prematurely at the hands of other races. As I said before, once we’re out of here, everything that happened here is wiped clean. From that point onward, it’s every man for himself.”

Deep within the Great Realm, the hidden dragons and phoenix chicks silently tore up the drafts they had prepared and began to rethink their positions.

The three moved swiftly. After a short while, they reached the entrance to the secret realm, where representatives from the Bao Clan were already waiting to escort them.

Moments later, Wei Yuan was led to an elegant side hall, where he found Bao Manshan and an old man he had never seen before seated across from him. Just by his demeanor, Wei Yuan could tell that the old man’s cultivation level surpassed even Bao Manshan’s.

The Avatar-stage cultivator who had guided Wei Yuan here showed no airs whatsoever. A seat had even been prepared for Wei Yuan, positioned directly across from Bao Manshan and the old man.

The old man looked Wei Yuan up and down, stroking his beard as he said, “I never thought that Old Scoundrel Chunqiu... oh, my apologies. I share some history with that old scoundrel, so even though I’m calling him such, it’s not really meant as an insult. Still, I never imagined that that old scoundrel would be so lucky as to gain such an outstanding disciple.”

“Thank you for your praise, Senior.”

The old man said, “Based on your performance this time, you’d normally be entitled to two requests. But I’ve taken a liking to you, and you don’t seem as much of an eyesore as Old Scoundrel Chunqiu, so I’ll grant you an extra request. What do you think, Manshan?”

The last remark was directed at Bao Manshan.

Bao Manshan smiled. “I think it’s a good thing.”

Wei Yuan said, “First, I’d like a year. During this time, please let Bao Yun live as she pleases.”

“The path to immortality is measured in millennia; a single year is truly insignificant. Child, you’re greatly underestimating the weight of a promise from the Bao Clan,” the old man reminded him.

Wei Yuan said, “Just one year is enough.”

The old man nodded immediately. “Very well, I agree.”

Next, Wei Yuan patted the Shadowless Flying Ferret on his lap. “Can I have it?”

“This creature is wild by nature; it doesn’t truly belong to the Bao Clan. If you wish to take it, then feel free. However, I must remind you that you have only one request left. You’d best ask for something of real value.”

Bao Manshan cleared his throat and said, “Second Elder, that’s going too far! You shouldn’t have reminded him like that.”

The old man glared at Bao Manshan and said, “If need be, I’ll pay for it out of my own pocket. Do you have a problem with that?”

“Not at all. I just think that Old Scoundrel Chunqiu would find much amusement out of it.”

The old man’s face instantly betrayed his inner conflict.

Wei Yuan struggled to suppress a smile and said, “My third request is to see Bao Yun.”

The old man paused in surprise for a second before replying, “I never joke with a junior. You may make another request.”

Wei Yuan said, “To me, this is the most valuable thing right now. As for worldly possessions, this junior will acquire them sooner or later, so I won’t waste this opportunity on them.”

Bao Manshan immediately responded, “All right! I agree.”

The old man glared at him. “Who put you in charge?”

The old man waved his hand, and suddenly Wei Yuan could no longer hear a single sound. He watched as the two great elders of the Bao Clan began a fierce argument with each other. In the end, Bao Manshan finally, reluctantly, relented.

Wei Yuan regained his hearing, and the old man said, “You wish to meet Little Yun, and I will grant it. However, it doesn’t count as a request—you may make another one. Again, the Bao Clan’s promises are not so trivial.”

But Wei Yuan replied, “Just being able to see her is already priceless. I need no additional requests.”

“Are you sure? You won’t get another opportunity like this in the future?”

“This junior has everything. It’s merely a matter of sooner or later. All I ask is that you grant me this favor.”

The old man gave Wei Yuan a penetrating look. Finally, he said, “Very well, very well. This is the first time this elder has been looked down upon by a junior. So be it!”

Bao Manshan snorted, looking as though he had seen this coming all along.

In another side hall, Zhao Fusheng addressed the three elders, saying, “Qiongshan can show even more sincerity and let the Bao Clan pick two first.”

The three elders pondered for a long time but gave no reply.

Zhao Fusheng smiled wryly. “To be honest, I’m not sure my clan ancestor would even agree to this condition. All I can say is that I’m about seventy percent confident that I can persuade him. As you know, the completion of the Floating World Dragon Diagram is primarily to pave the way for the next generation. If you take six and I take three, sooner or later, Qiongshan will be swallowed up by you. In that case, we might as well join the Bao Clan as a vassal force now. If it weren’t for the extremely high requirements for cultivating the Floating World Dragon Diagram, and the fact that we simply can’t find any other candidates at the moment, we would never have agreed even to our original terms.”

In another side hall, Mahayamuri Buddha Mother said, “If Miss Bao is absolutely unwilling to accept this opportunity, we still have other options. We could have Benefactor Wei Yuan take her place. Benefactor Wei shares a destiny with the Buddha, and in our Pure Land, the Mahāvairocana[1] still does not have a successor. If Benefactor Wei truly dislikes being constrained, there is also the King Buddha of Great Pleasure.”

...... ⅇ𝒃𝚗ℴ

An Avatar led Wei Yuan to a quiet, secluded courtyard before stepping back.

Wei Yuan knocked gently on the door. When it opened, he was greeted by a smile as radiant as spring blossoms and as refreshing as a clear sky after rain.

Wei Yuan looked at her arm. It looked terribly weak, delicate, and completely out of place compared to the rest of her body.

Bao Yun raised her newly regenerated arm and spread her five fingers before his face, like a blooming flower. She then said, “Look, I can already use it, so you need not worry about me, Big Brother. I was just born under a bad star, and I’m already used to it. Whatever miserable fate lies ahead of me, I’ll bear it all myself—”

Wei Yuan had to cut her off. “Speak properly!”

Bao Yun stuck out her tongue and ushered Wei Yuan inside. The two of them soon took their seats in the study.

“Why did you come?” Bao Yun asked.

“A few days ago, I suddenly felt an impulse and didn’t want to wait anymore. I decided to come see how you were doing, so here I am.”

“And the elders just allowed you to visit?”

“I traded a request for this.” Wei Yuan briefly recounted what had happened earlier before listing his three requests. Just then, the Shadowless Flying Ferret glided over the courtyard wall and landed on Wei Yuan’s shoulder, its round little eyes staring curiously at Bao Yun.

“The Shadowless Flying Ferret? You’ve tamed it?” Bao Yun was somewhat surprised.

“No, we just came to a temporary partnership due to circumstances that are out of our control.”

It was easy for the pearl to enter the Great Realm, but retrieving it was as difficult as scaling the heavens. How could Wei Yuan possibly move an object that weighed tens of millions of catties? Both man and ferret were temporarily at a loss upon discovering this.

The ferret knew it couldn’t carry the pearl away, yet it couldn’t bear to part with its aura. So, it had no choice but to stay by Wei Yuan’s side, relying on him to feed it a small portion of its aura each day.

The two originally couldn’t communicate, but thanks to the Beast-Taming Immortal Heart, the negotiation proceeded smoothly, with both sides reaching a resolution that they were both satisfied with. Meanwhile, the mortals in the Great Realm had begun yet another new project: to study the language of spirit beasts.

After hearing the three requests, Bao Yun praised him, “You really are the smartest, Big Brother!”

Her excessively honeyed voice and choice of words made Wei Yuan utterly uncomfortable to say the least. He said again, “Speak properly!”

Bao Yun stuck out her tongue again before finally returning to normal. “If you had set the bar too high, the elders might have tried to fob us off with something else and refused to grant us the grace period. These requests, however, left them with no choice but to agree. Mm, Qiongshan Immortal Island will likely try to raise their offer further, but I doubt there is much room for improvement. Their current terms are already ridiculously generous.”

“What terms did they offer?”

Bao Yun told him about it before adding, “From the Bao Clan’s perspective, exchanging a Bao Yun—whose Dao Foundation has been compromised—for five children of equal or even superior talent is, of course, an incredibly favorable deal. If I were the family head, I’d agree to it as well.”

“I reject this!” Wei Yuan replied without hesitation.

Bao Yun looked at him with a half-smile and asked, “In what capacity and with what authority do you reject this?”

Wei Yuan froze for a moment.

Bao Yun smiled faintly, stepped in front of Wei Yuan, and tapped his chest lightly with a finger. She said, “There’s no rush—we still have a year. Take your time to think it over, then come back when you’ve made up your mind.”

Wei Yuan wanted to say something, but Bao Yun covered his mouth with her hand and gave him a firm hug. Then, she pushed him out through the courtyard gate.

......

As he boarded the flying vessel, Wei Yuan looked back at the Bao Clan’s ancestral land, shrouded in mist and clouds. The time wasn’t right yet, and he still had a year to plan and prepare.

Considering the hustle and bustle happening in the Great Realm, one year was enough time to accomplish many things.

1. Or Great Sun Tathāgata. I may use these two terms interchangeably so that readers will not it’s related to Tathāgata. ☜