Calamity of Tomorrow

Sun Jingping finished speaking, and with a sweep of his long sleeves, a batch of Healing Pills had already flown in front of Yan Hui, "Treat your injuries with the medicine and then head back; the rest of this matter is no longer your concern."

After saying that, Sun Jingping planned to leave, but after a moment's thought, he turned back. He knew that the sky-reaching, earth-piercing column of light had probably attracted more than just himself.

"As a fellow human, I cannot let you die here."

Thus, Sun Jingping grabbed at the air, and with the power of his Primordial Spirit, he enveloped Yan Hui. With the speed of a flash, he sped off in the direction of South Mountain City.

As he left, in the nearby woods, a mysterious woman coldly watched this scene play out, her eyes flickering with a murderous intent that was uncertain, "That statue, that statue is the mutation that caused this anomaly."

"But…" Confusion flashed through her eyes, "The feeling he gives me is strange, both like life and yet not like life."

Wei Cang, concerned that the woman might act too impulsively, advised, "Attacking Sun Jingping now could affect our upcoming cooperation with the Evil Sect."

The mysterious woman slowly withdrew her gaze, "Don't worry, I know how to measure my actions."

Wei Cang nodded slightly. Ever since her severe defeat at the hands of Zhou Bai, the woman before him had indeed matured quite a bit. If this had been in the past, she might have already acted without regard, directly intervening to save the mutant that she saw.

But the current mysterious woman had learned patience and sacrifice.

Mysterious woman: "Let's go. We'll return to South Mountain City. After all, as long as the mutant is in Sun Jingping's hands, we'll sooner or later have the opportunity to snatch it back."

...

In the middle of the night, Zhou Bai couldn't summon Jing Xiu, Lin Muqing, and others to bestow upon him a facial pressure blessing, so he decided to first check out the cultivation content of the five major Divine Skills, ask Jiaojiao which Twilight Taoist Skill to choose, and also see how many laziness points he would need to use without the facial pressure blessing.

Coming before the greatly respected Jiaojiao, who he hadn't seen in a long time, Zhou Bai felt a flash before his eyes as Jiaojiao's youthful appearance entered his vision.

The Jiaojiao before him was clad in white gauze, her black hair drifting carelessly, her tone unpleasant as she looked at Zhou Bai, "You finally remembered to come and see me?"

Zhou Bai: "Great Elder, why have your eyes grown larger again? The people who say the stars in the sky are beautiful surely haven't seen your eyes."

Jiaojiao glared at him and said, "What nonsense are you talking about? I'm directly transmitting my facial features; what does it have to do with my appearance? But since I looked like this when I was young, what you're saying isn't wrong either."

Zhou Bai: "So this appearance really exists? I thought Great Elder, given your profound mastery of spells, you might have just made it up."

Jiaojiao smiled faintly, then her expression became stern once more. She said in a displeased tone, "Stop flattering me." She went on, "The trouble you caused in West Mountain City was really something. Do you know the Plague Department has set its sights on you? Do you have any connection with Gu Tianle or not?"

The gemstone's Time Reverse had been used a few days before in West Mountain City and was still cooling down. Naturally, Zhou Bai dared not speak recklessly and simply denied, "I don't know him at all, really don't. I took a big loss this time; I got swindled out of everything."

Jiaojiao sighed, "Zhou Bai, your talent is incredible, but you still need time to grow. Before reaching the 9th realm, try not to associate too closely with those divine beings."

Zhou Bai nodded, "That's why I've returned to cultivate the Twilight Taoist Skill. I want to cultivate another one of the five major Divine Skills, and I was hoping, Great Elder, that you could help me choose which one would be best."

The Great Elder, being the strongest and highest in realm within the Three Pure Dao Sect, and having mastered all five major Divine Skills, had Zhou Bai's utmost trust in her discernment.

Jiaojiao nodded in approval, looking at Zhou Bai with a sense of satisfaction. Unwittingly, she saw in him both the young Zhao Shouyi and the small, crippled girl Pei before their sacrifices, filling her eyes with anticipation.

She smiled and said, "You performed very well at the four sects' grand competition. You gave Dao School a victory to be proud of.

And that battle against the Heavenly Demon in West Mountain City was even better; what a morale boost. It's been many years since such a big victory, do you know? That victory has inspired so many people. I can gradually feel more vitality throughout Dao School; more children now want to cultivate and fight the Heavenly Demons.

But are you sure about that move, the one that repelled the Heavenly Demon? You said it came from your understanding of the Primordial Scriptures?"

Zhou Bai already had an explanation for this; whenever there was something unclear or he didn't wish to discuss, he would attribute it all to the Primordial Scripture, to Doctor Zhuang:

"Yes, it was while cultivating the Primordial Scripture. I was practicing, and suddenly I just knew how to do it. I can't really explain how I learned it, I don't know how it works; it's just an intuitive feeling."

Jiaojiao seemed to deeply understand, expressing thoughtfully, "The skills cultivated from the Primordial Scripture are better used less. Remember, your own cultivation is the most important, the most reliable."

Zhou Bai couldn't help asking about something that had been bothering him, "Great Elder, about that girl Pei…"

"I've already heard about what happened to Pei." Jiaojiao sighed, seemingly recalling the little girl who used to visit her, "I remember the first time she saw me, she was so frightened she immediately burst into tears."

"Later, afraid that I would be upset, she came to see me every day, talking to me…"

Jiaojiao sighed softly, never anticipating that the little girl from those days would end up like this. She couldn't help but think, if it had been a time of peace, perhaps Pei's fate would have been entirely different.

Nevertheless, Jiaojiao asserted firmly, "What happened to Pei is a regret. But the reason it's a regret is that it can never be undone. As cultivators, we must take responsibility for our choices. The path was hers to choose, and whatever the outcome, you need not worry."

Zhou Bai looked at Jiaojiao before him, thinking of the sacrificed Zhao Shouyi, of Pei's deceased parents, of Pei whom he had killed, suddenly feeling a pang of heartache for the now solitary Great Elder.

Zhou Bai suddenly remembered a question and asked, "Great Elder, that Zhao Haomiao, is he a relative of yours?"

Jiaojiao: "He is of the Zhao Family. But the Zhao Family… their relation to me has grown distant. Mostly, they reside in Central City now. If that Zhao Haomiao has caused you trouble, don't consider my feelings; do what you must."

Jiaojiao's family, the Zhao Family, was a family of cultivators with a history that, although never having produced a deity, has had several strong practitioners of the 9th realm and was once a grand cultivation family.

Moreover, they had very close relations with the Three Pure Dao Sect. Many talented descendants from generation to generation of the family almost always entered the Three Pure Dao Sect for study.