Chapter 27
Chapter 27: Three-Thousand-Li Moon
Shao Heng’s understanding of basic spells had deepened long ago.
In her discussions with Elder Zhao, she’d confirmed what she had suspected before: the key to spells lay in frequency.
With enough practice and a sharp enough grasp of the underlying pattern, she could make the spiritual power inside her resonate with the spiritual qi of heaven and earth. Chanting and hand seals became unnecessary. The spell came the instant her intent aligned.
She swept her gaze over the six still in front of her and said coldly, “If you really want to know what Elder Zhao told me, then go to the Dueling Arena.”
“Beat me, and I’ll tell you everything I know. All of you can come at once.”
“Fine,” Ding Feng growled, broad-shouldered and brimming with resentment.
Gu Yu Sui’s soul nearly jumped out of her body.
Fine, my ass.
Her eyes went round as coins. She shook her head so hard her ponytail snapped behind her. “S-Senior Sister Shao Heng, I was rude!”
“I’ll apologize another day! I’ll take my leave now and won’t disturb you!”
The words tumbled out in a single breath. She ignored the looks the others shot her and bolted.
As she ran, panic made her thoughts stumble over each other.
That was Wind-Blowing Technique. When I cast it, I can barely lift something heavy. I can’t fling a person like that.
My sister has almost 200 cauldrons of spiritual power, and even when she demonstrated spells, it wasn’t like this.
In the Dueling Arena, as long as you don’t kill someone, you can beat them half to death. Senior Sister Shao Heng’s spells are at this level—how many lives does Ding Feng think he has, acting that cocky?!
Gu Yu Sui had already regretted coming to “pick up a bargain.” The more she thought about it, the more terrified she got—and the faster she ran.
Shao Heng snapped her fingers.
A bead of water formed out of thin air, then froze instantly into a slick, thin cord of ice.
With a soft thump, Gu Yu Sui went face-first into the ground.
She didn’t dare look back. She whimpered twice, swallowed her tears, scrambled up, and ran even faster until she vanished from sight.
For the past three months, Shao Heng had cultivated in quiet focus. Aside from consulting Elder Zhao when she had questions, she rarely appeared in public—and she was almost always alone.
So even if they knew she had completed body entry quickly, they’d never truly seen her cast spells. They didn’t believe she could have widened the gap so far in just three months.
Zhao Chuan Zhen, who had been shouting a moment ago, shut his mouth and avoided her eyes.
Lu Shao Jing, stubborn as ever, was the only one still “brave.” He lunged forward as if to attack, shouting, “Lu Shao Heng, you—”
“Bang!”
A second gust swept him off his feet. Lu Shao Jing slammed to the ground, blood smearing the stone.
Shao Heng flicked her fingers again. A Silencing Curse fell neatly over his throat.
The remaining few went pale. Fear rose before the fight even began.
“If it weren’t for sect rules that forbid disciples from killing each other,” Shao Heng said, voice flat, “so we can only fight in the Dueling Arena—do you think I’d put up with you barking at me here?”
They took a hesitant step back.
“Did I say you could go?”
Wind surged. The disciples still standing were hauled into the air and slammed down hard.
Zhao Chuan Zhen bit back a cry and forced out words through pain. “Shao Heng, you dare bully us right in front of the Wondrous Dharma Tower?! Sect rules don’t allow fellow disciples to harm each other!”
Enduring the ache, he hurriedly formed hand seals. A Blazing Flame Talisman shot toward her.
Water condensed in a blink, weaving into a net that swallowed the fireball. It hissed, spitting thick steam.
Shao Heng lifted her hand, smiling faintly. “Oh?”
“Didn’t you come here to ask me about spells?”
“I’m only demonstrating—just like you wanted.”
“And strictly speaking, you blocked me as a group, and you attacked me one after another. That’s mutual exchange, isn’t it?”
The steam thickened, twisting and condensing until it took the shape of a pale dragon.
Its long tail whipped across their faces one by one, leaving bloody lash marks where skin split.
Qin Ji and Lu Shao Jing, already flung aside earlier, earned two extra lashes each.
Shao Heng considered it, then tilted her head.
They were real brothers. If one got it, the other should too.
Lu Shao Jia took two extra lashes.
And since he had kept his mouth shut the whole time, she added one more as a “reward.”
When the mist-dragon finally dispersed, they lay face-down on the ground, pinned under the Gravity Art, struggling like fish pressed beneath a stone.
“Well?” Shao Heng’s mouth curved. “Comfortable?”
She had nothing to fear.
Lu Shao Jing and Zhao Chuan Zhen had attacked first. She had countered on the spot. By sect rules, this would be judged as a mutual brawl.
As long as no one died and no one’s cultivation foundation was damaged, even if the Law Enforcement Pavilion got involved, it would be fifty strikes each and a fine of a few spirit stones.
Shao Heng had a steady way to earn spirit stones. She didn’t care.
But could they afford to pretend it was nothing?
“Go ahead and report me,” she said, hands clasped behind her back. “Report me once, and I’ll beat you once. Not a single one of you will escape.”
Then she swaggered off.
There were always disciples coming and going in front of the Wondrous Dharma Tower. Seeing several people pinned to the ground, they only glanced twice before continuing with their own business.
The outer sect was vast and crowded. Disputes happened all the time. No one found it strange.
When the spell finally wore off, a quarter hour had passed.
Yan Ning sprang up at once, sobbing so hard snot bubbled at her nose. “I… I told you we shouldn’t have come…”
“She talks so nasty, and she’s so mean…”
She wiped her tears with her sleeve and ran off, shoulders shaking.
The remaining few were furious. Lu Shao Jia, who had taken the most lashes, covered his blood-soaked face and breathed hard.
The wounds hurt, but his bones and tendons weren’t damaged. A bottle of low-grade Rejuvenation Powder could take effect in moments; even without it, a few days of meditation and nourishing spiritual power would restore him.
But humiliation didn’t heal so easily.
He clenched his fist and slammed it into the ground.
Shao Heng walked straight to the spirit fields.
The moment she stepped into the white mist, a little golden-furred monkey hopped toward her, bouncing with excited energy.
“Ying-ying!”
Over the past two-plus months, Duo Bao was still in its little monkey form. It hadn’t grown at all, but its fur had become softer and thicker.
Shao Heng patted its head, frowning slightly. “The Beast Garden disciples said you’re the offspring of a golden-furred monkey and another kind of monkey. A mixed-breed.”
“Golden-furred monkeys reach adulthood in 10 months. Even a mixed-breed shouldn’t be this slow.”
“I’ve fed you Beast Spirit Pills and Azure Emperor spirit liquid. Your spiritual power keeps rising, but your body hasn’t grown even a little.”
She parted the fur on Duo Bao’s forehead with two fingers. The skin beneath was pale blue, and a thin silver vertical mark ran down the center.
Shao Heng wasn’t sure whether it was the effect of Azure Emperor spirit liquid or a sign of some other bloodline. When she first contracted Duo Bao and checked its body, that mark hadn’t been there.
She played with it for a while, fed it two crimson berries, then took out a chair from her storage ring and sat on the ridge of the field.
Finally, she pulled out the jade slip Elder Zhao had given her and read it with her spiritual sense.
Lower-grade immortal art: Three-Thousand-Li Moon.
Let the spirit move like empty space; let the qi move like a rainbow. This method is a top-tier escape art. Once cultivated, it can hide one’s tracks through light and shadow, and it can also absorb moonlight to condense a Phantom Body. If a cultivator brings it to great mastery, their body becomes like flowing light, and they can escape 3,000 li in a single leap.
Shao Heng couldn’t help smiling. “Elder Zhao is really afraid I’ll die in the Mystic Moon Secret Realm and waste her Moon-Inquiry Token.”
“But this method of absorbing moonlight…” Her eyes brightened. “It’s truly interesting.”
She’d already seen the Tai Yin star in that vision.
If she absorbed enough moonlight, would it awaken that hidden part of her talent?
Just the thought made excitement surge through her blood.