Master, don't tease me, you can't handle three of them.

Xiao Jingshu lay on the bed, holding a jade slip in his hand, hesitating whether or not to communicate with his master.

Jing Shu would definitely be unhappy if he found out, but he already said so, and I can do whatever I want with the rest.

Xiao Jingshu suddenly sat up in bed. That way, he wouldn't know, right? I'm so clever!

Xiao Jingshu made up his mind, held the jade slip, and prepared to send a message. After thinking for a long time, he finally sent two words.

[Master]

After the message was sent, the jade slip went silent.

Xiao Jingshu's ears drooped. Was his master busy with the lack of replies?

Han Luo, who had already returned to Hanfeng, had just told his two disciples about Jing Shu's trip to gain experience and told Gu Meng not to disturb Jing Shu when his jade slip lit up.

"..."

Han Luo told the two to go back and rest, while he sat on the soft couch and began to read the jade slip.

Han Luo was puzzled when she saw the message, which contained only two words, but quickly realized what it meant.

It probably wasn't Jing Shu; Jing Shu wouldn't send a "Master" message out of the blue. Han Luo's mind conjured up the image of the child who liked to hug her while sleeping, and whose tail always wagged. This must be him, right?

[Hmm] Han Luo replied.

The message came back quickly: [Master!]

It really was him. Han Luo glanced at the extra symbol, a smile playing on his lips, and replied with a simple "Mm."

[I miss my master so much!]

Han Luo imagined Xiao Jing Shu's tail wagging from side to side, and her heart softened.

[When will you be back?]

This time, the reply was very slow.

[I don't know, Master]

Why does she look so wronged? Han Luo found it somewhat amusing.

It's late, go to sleep early.

[Yes! Goodnight, Master!]

Han Luo put down the jade slip, tapping her fingers lightly on the table, her eyes filled with unfathomable thoughts.

The next morning, Xiao Jingshu set off with Zheng Hongliang.

Zheng Hongliang was about to say that he was only a mortal and couldn't be as fast as Jing Shu when little Jing Shu handed him a handful of talismans. Zheng Hongliang looked down and saw that they were all speed-enhancing talismans.

"..." Although ordinary people can use it, using it so many times is just too much suffering...

Xiao Jingshu understood Zheng Hongliang's look and patted him on the shoulder reassuringly, "Don't worry, I can fix your legs even if you break them from running."

Zheng Hongliang forced a smile that looked worse than a grimace and said, "Thank you so much."

Although Zheng Hongliang thought this way, he didn't slack off in his actions.

In just two days, the two arrived at their destination. Zheng Hongliang secretly breathed a sigh of relief; thankfully, they had arrived. It wasn't that he couldn't endure hardship, but Xiao Jingshu had been taking him to eat chicken—all kinds of chicken! He felt like every burp now tasted like chicken. But Jingshu ate with a blissful expression, so he couldn't say anything.

Xiao Jingshu decided to go to the Secret Realm again tomorrow because he sensed that Jingshu was about to wake up.

Sure enough, Jing Shu woke up just as they were about to go out for dinner that evening.

"You're finally awake!" Xiao Jingshu returned to the ancient jade and looked at Jingshu excitedly.

Jing Shu slowly opened his eyes and looked at Xiao Jing Shu with a puzzled expression. "So excited? What happened during the few days I was in meditation?"

Xiao Jingshu smiled guiltily and shared all her memories with Jingshu, except for the one she sent a message to Han Luo that night.

"Don't be angry. Whatever you say, I'll do it."

After receiving the memories, Jing Shu said helplessly, "You've already caused me trouble in just three days."

Zheng Hongliang is the son of the sect leader of Yaoyang Sect, one of the six major sects. Unlike his father, who possesses a golden spiritual root, he has a mixed spiritual root. It is commonly said that he has all kinds of spiritual roots, making his cultivation speed extremely slow. It is said that he is not favored by his father.

Based on the memories shared by Xiao Jing, the rumors are true. Moreover, Zheng Hongliang was ostracized by his fellow disciples, who even wanted to kill him, and his father did nothing about it.

"Huh? Is he in trouble?" Xiao Jingshu only knew from that eavesdropping incident that he had been betrayed by a fellow disciple, and he hadn't asked about anything else. Now that Jingshu had said this, Xiao Jingshu couldn't help but worry.

"Yes. But since he has already sworn an oath, he is one of us. Let me see if he can still cultivate. If he can, he can avenge himself; if not, we will help him." There is no reason for him to be bullied by others.

"Alright!" Xiao Jingshu replied, "Then I'll leave him to you. I'm going to start cultivating!"

This is the person he saved; he must also cultivate diligently to support him!

Jing Shu rubbed little Jing Shu's head, then turned and left Gu Yu.

In Zheng Hongliang's eyes, it was as if Jing Shu had suddenly stopped moving.

"Jing Shu?" Zheng Hongliang asked tentatively, waving his hand in front of Jing Shu.

There's no response, what's wrong?

Zheng Hongliang was about to pat Jing Shu, but before he could even touch him, Jing Shu grabbed his arm.

"What are you doing?" Jing Shu looked at Zheng Hongliang and said calmly.

"No, nothing, I just saw you suddenly freeze and wanted to pat you on the shoulder." Zheng Hongliang looked at Jing Shu's gaze and felt something was off.

Previously, Jing Shu's eyes were always clear yet tinged with a hint of foolishness, but now, there's a feeling that he's been seen through.

Why is this happening? Could it be that I've been possessed?

Jing Shu naturally saw the doubt and wariness in Zheng Hongliang's eyes, and thought to himself that he was not too stupid.

"Stop looking, it's me. Weren't we going out to eat? Let's go." Jing Shu left the room, preparing to go downstairs for dinner.

Zheng Hongliang followed him downstairs. "Now can you tell me where we're going?"

"Secret Realm." Jing Shu chose a seat by the window, took the menu from the servant's hand, and handed it to Zheng Hongliang.

"Order whatever you want to eat. For the next few years, you'll probably only be able to eat fasting pills."

"No need to play PUBG anymore?" Zheng Hongliang said subconsciously, only realizing after he finished speaking that he had said what was on his mind.

"..."

"Hey waiter, bring us all your signature dishes." After dismissing the waiter, Zheng Hongliang abruptly changed the subject.

"Jing Shu, what are you doing there?" Zheng Hongliang naturally knew about the Secret Realm. No one, whether a cultivator or an ordinary person, wanted to go there unless they were being hunted down.

As the second disciple of Immortal Venerable Hanluo, he shouldn't be hunted down, right?

“Cultivation,” Jing Shu explained, not caring whether he believed it or not. “Stretch out your hand and let me see.”

Zheng Hongliang extended his right hand as instructed, and Jing Shu used his spiritual power to begin probing Zheng Hongliang's body.

“Your cultivation is completely destroyed, your meridians are blocked, and your spiritual root is damaged. If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have survived at all.” Jing Shu withdrew his hand and said in a calm tone.

"Yes." Zheng Hongliang naturally knew this, but hearing it again, it would be a lie to say he wasn't sad. "But I'm sorry, I'm a cripple now, and I have nothing to repay you with except my life."

"Do you want revenge?" Jing Shu suddenly asked.

Zheng Hongliang was taken aback for a moment, then forced a smile, "Of course I want to, but my abilities don't allow it."

"Since you've acknowledged me as your master, I'll give you two choices. First, I'll help you take revenge. Now that you're mine, it won't be difficult for me to get justice for you. Second, you can do it yourself, and I'll help you cultivate again, but rebuilding your spiritual root might kill you. Which do you choose?" Jing Shu looked at him and said slowly.

Zheng Hongliang was stunned for a moment after hearing this. He could clearly hear himself swallowing and say calmly but with a hint of madness, "Of course, I choose option two."