Chapter 059
Chapter 59: Thank You, Mother, for Granting Nannan’s Wish
Meng Xi Yu glanced at the woman stumbling desperately toward them, then slowly loosened his grip on Shi Zi Chu’s wrist.
The woman who suddenly appeared had a face nearly identical to Shi Zi Chu’s. Her stunning beauty, weathered by hardship, carried a weary tenderness that only a mother could possess.
“Nannan! My dear Nannan!” the woman cried, rushing toward them with joyful sobs, overwhelmed by the happiness of regaining what had once been lost.
Shi Zi Chu reached out to catch the woman, delight blooming on her lovely, delicate features as she sincerely called, “Mother!”
“Oh, my Nannan!” The woman held Shi Zi Chu tightly, her voice thick with tears.
Tears welled in Shi Zi Chu’s eyes. She clung to the woman, throat tightening as words became trapped behind her tears.
Meng Xi Yu watched coldly as mother and daughter embraced in heartfelt sorrow.
[It seems her acting has improved quite a bit over the past few years.]
“You’ve finally returned, my Nannan! My precious child!” The woman clung even tighter, as though afraid Shi Zi Chu might vanish again at any moment.
Shi Zi Chu wept quietly, appearing to cry tears of joy.
The woman suddenly released Shi Zi Chu and grasped her arms tightly, pleading desperately, “Nannan, please don’t leave Mother again!”
With watery eyes, Shi Zi Chu asked softly, voice thick with tears, “Mother, do you love your Nannan?”
As if hurt by such doubt, the woman hurriedly reassured her, “Of course! Of course Mother loves Nannan!”
Shi Zi Chu’s peach-blossom eyes, tinged with redness, held a gaze impossible to interpret clearly. Voice trembling slightly, she continued, “Then, Mother, would you grant Nannan’s wish?”
“Of course! Ah—!”
A sharp sound pierced the air as a blade suddenly plunged deep into the woman’s flesh. Painful surprise and disbelief flooded her gentle face.
Shi Zi Chu tenderly supported the woman’s falling body, calmly pressing the water blade deeper.
“Nannan must leave Mother now and explore the wider world,” Shi Zi Chu said sweetly and innocently, smiling as kindly and cheerfully as a devoted daughter. “Thank you, Mother, for granting Nannan’s wish.”
Eyes wide with shock, the woman could scarcely believe the sweet and harmless Shi Zi Chu could become like this.
But Meng Xi Yu, gazing into Shi Zi Chu’s serene, indifferent eyes, wasn’t surprised in the slightest.
A sound like shattering glass echoed as the illusion broke apart. The woman in Shi Zi Chu’s arms dissolved into glittering stardust.
A piercing roar suddenly filled the air.
The illusion faded halfway, revealing a Nightmare Beast whose shrill, ear-splitting roar slammed directly into their spiritual seas.
Unfortunately for the beast, Meng Xi Yu was a soul master who cultivated soul force, and as for Shi Zi Chu—her soul force was powerful enough to imprison a system within her spiritual sea. In other words, she was practically invincible.
Thus, the unlucky Nightmare Beast was instantly obliterated, leaving behind not even the smallest trace.
Standing close by, Meng Xi Yu clearly sensed how astonishingly strong Shi Zi Chu’s soul force was.
“Shh,” Shi Zi Chu hushed him playfully with a finger to her lips.
Meng Xi Yu withdrew his gaze, pretending to notice nothing unusual. “This is probably a relic left by an evil cultivator.”
Though he spoke calmly, his thoughts lingered on Shi Zi Chu’s eyes, their watery depths still faintly tinged with red—so innocent yet cunning.
“How dangerous,” Shi Zi Chu remarked absently, turning to find a way out.
Meng Xi Yu silently followed after a moment’s hesitation, joining her search for an exit.
After a while, Meng Xi Yu stepped forward naturally, taking Shi Zi Chu’s wrist in his hand, “This way.”
A hidden mechanism in the wall clicked open, revealing a narrow stone doorway. The two slipped through and descended deeper.
Leaving the Nightmare Beast behind, another endless passage appeared before them.
Meng Xi Yu expanded his spiritual sense, cautiously examining the path ahead. His instincts warned of danger.
“We should leave quickly,” Meng Xi Yu advised.
Relics left behind by evil cultivators seldom contained inheritances, but danger was plentiful.
“Yet we shouldn’t return empty-handed,” Shi Zi Chu replied gently, unhurried and warm.
They had come this far; returning with empty hands made no sense.
Meng Xi Yu glanced back and noticed the glint of ambition in her eyes. He said nothing more.
As they passed through a downward-sloping corridor, the temperature gradually dropped.
A vast space soon appeared ahead.
In this perfectly square chamber, rows of human-sized bronze statues stood silently along the walls on either side.
“Puppets,” Meng Xi Yu announced coldly.
The moment his words fell, the bronze statues suddenly awakened, their eyes snapping open, locking gazes upon them.
Meng Xi Yu stretched out his right hand, and his life-bound sword appeared.
Shi Zi Chu raised her hand, eyes gleaming with fighting spirit. “Half each.”
Without waiting for a reply, she withdrew her wrist and shot forward.
Unarmed, Shi Zi Chu moved swiftly through the bronze statues, dodging their long spears and blades effortlessly.
Meng Xi Yu followed, sword drawn.
Side by side once again, they fought with perfect harmony.
Soon, countless fragments of bronze littered the floor.
Shi Zi Chu rubbed her wrist thoughtfully, eyes lingering on the scattered bronze shards. “These materials must be worth quite a bit.”
Though she wasn’t lacking spirit stones, who would ever complain about having more?
Meng Xi Yu ignored her comment, asking bluntly, “Where’s your life-bound sword?”
Ever since entering the Evernight Forest, her life-bound sword had never appeared.
Shi Zi Chu froze slightly at the sudden question.
Meng Xi Yu approached steadily. Noticing her expression grow somewhat distant, he quickly guessed the truth. “Destroyed or stolen?”
Shi Zi Chu lowered her eyes, covering her face with one hand, sorrowfully whispering, “It’s my fault for being so useless, unable even to protect my own sword.”
Her life-bound sword was called Yu Sheng, meaning rebirth. Xing Lan had gone to great lengths to recover this sword, which possessed its own spirit.
When the Female Villain System had controlled her body, ‘she’ had tortured and abused Yu Sheng, causing the spirit sword to be rescued by the heroine and joyfully abandon Shi Zi Chu for its savior.
Losing her life-bound sword caused Shi Zi Chu’s cultivation to regress dramatically. Alongside the Female Villain System’s obsession with pointless rivalries, it took four long years for her to barely regain her previous strength.
Meng Xi Yu bluntly exposed her pretense, “You don’t need to act so pitiful in front of me.”
He had always known Shi Zi Chu was far from kind, and events afterward only proved it further.
Shi Zi Chu frowned slightly, pouting unhappily, “This is me sincerely grieving.”
Losing her life-bound sword really did hurt! Truly!
Speechless, Meng Xi Yu turned away to gather the scattered bronze pieces.
After collecting them, Meng Xi Yu shoved the storage pouch into her hands and pulled her along to find another mechanism.
Shi Zi Chu, preparing to follow as decoration, quietly walked behind Meng Xi Yu.
After a moment of quiet, mischief danced in her eyes as she teased softly, “A’Yu, asking so much—does your heart ache for me?”
Meng Xi Yu responded indirectly, “Have you already dealt with that soul-possession beast?”
At Chu Zhi Rou’s discipleship ceremony, Shi Zi Chu had been oddly unlike herself. Those who knew her could easily notice something wrong.
Now that the familiar Shi Zi Chu had returned, Meng Xi Yu guessed that beast possessing her had been thoroughly handled.
Shi Zi Chu glanced down at the large hand gripping hers. She subtly moved her fingertips, softly brushing Meng Xi Yu’s hand like feathers tickling the skin.
She felt his hand stiffen instantly, and smiling brightly, she teased again, “A’Yu cares so much for me?”
“I’ve found the mechanism!” Meng Xi Yu said abruptly, shifting the subject coldly.
Though his voice was chilly and distant, somehow, it betrayed an innocence and awkwardness he couldn’t hide.