OUTSIDE OF TIME

488 Life Is Like This

The first rays of the morning sun shone on the black Forbidden Sea, reflecting a dark halo. Under the blue sky, the magic warship left.

Xu Qing watched the departing warship for a long time. He only retracted his gaze when he couldn’t see the magic warship.

Huang Yan had been uncomfortable ever since he came to the Yinghuang Province. It was reasonable for him to leave. Xu Qing respected Huang Yan’s choice and also wished him and Second Senior Sister a brighter future in the Nanhuang Continent.

“Wish you all the best,” Xu Qing mumbled softly. He then turned and left the port, heading all the way to the Seven Blood Eyes’ mountain.

He wanted to pay his respects to Lord Sixth.

He was supposed to go yesterday but he was brought into the Demon Snake Secret Realm by Purple Mystic Fairy.

At that moment, as he walked on the steps of the mountain and faced the wind, Xu Qing felt very calm.

In the early morning, most of the disciples in the sect were undergoing early cultivation. From afar, waves of chanting echoed. This was caused by the changes in the Seven Blood Eyes after coming to the Alliance.

They were cultivating their minds.

Xu Qing only found out about it at the banquet yesterday.

Old Master Seventh was the one who suggested that the cultivation of the mind be popularized throughout the sect.

This matter had also caused many disciples to be surprised. After all, before this, everyone only cultivated spells and had no cultivation of mind.

Xu Qing fell into deep thought. This was because according to the time, his master seemed to have done this after studying the god specimen.

With these thoughts in mind, Xu Qing walked down the steps and arrived at the back mountain.

On the way, all the disciples he met were extremely respectful when they saw him. They would stop and greet him.

Not long later, at the back mountain of the Seven Blood Eyes, Xu Qing saw a grave in the bamboo forest.

There were tributes placed in front of the tomb and incense sticks were lit.

There were also two middle-aged cultivators there who were silently staring at the words on the gravestone.

Xu Qing had seen these two people before. They were Lord Sixth’s disciples.

They also noticed Xu Qing’s arrival. They glanced at him before cupping their fists. There was a hint of sigh in their expressions.

“Junior Brother Xu, congratulations on becoming a Sword Holder.”

Xu Qing silently walked over and cupped his fists in return.

“The two of us have orders to head out. We came here to pay our respects to Master before we left. Sigh, the world is unpredictable. In the blink of an eye, a year has passed.”

“Junior Brother Xu, we won’t disturb you from paying your respects. Goodbye.”

The two of them sighed with emotion and didn’t say anything.

“I wish the two senior brothers a smooth journey.” Xu Qing had a serious expression as he bowed.

The two of them waved their hands and left with dejected expressions.

Although the deceased was gone and life was like this, there would still be some moments when waves would stir in the heart.

Xu Qing sat in front of Lord Sixth’s grave and took out two flasks of wine. He poured one flask of wine on the soil of the grave, and took a big gulp from the other. He didn’t speak and only drank.

The wind in the mountain forest and the light in the sky fused together and continued to flow through the world. Two hours later, Xu Qing stood up.

“Lord Sixth, the next time I come back to see you, I’ll bring you a few Illuminate’s heads to go with the wine.”

After saying that, Xu Qing bowed deeply toward the grave.

May you rest well.

Xu Qing turned and left the back mountain. He didn’t walk out of the mountain gate but went to look for his master.

He had many questions to ask his master, such as the changes to the Ghost Emperor Mountain in his sea of consciousness, or the fact that the spirit plants mentioned when the Sword Holder Great Elder was explaining herbs might be the direction to study gods.

With this thought in mind, Xu Qing sent a voice transmission to his master to greet him. Old Master Seventh told him that he was in the pavilion at the top of the mountain and asked him to go over.

After knowing where his master was, Xu Qing quickened his pace. Just as he was walking toward the pavilion at the top of the mountain, his expression suddenly changed slightly as he looked at the small path in front of him on the right.

A familiar voice rang out.

“Little guy, you’re lucky to have met me. Your Martial Uncle Ding Xiaohai has a bad temper. Is he someone you can go against? If I hadn’t passed by when I came out of seclusion, he would have crippled you.”

“In the future, when you’re in the sect, you have to listen to me, understand?”

“Mm, I’ll listen to you, Martial Aunt Ding.” A shy and light voice rang out together with Ding Xue’s words.

Very soon, Ding Xue, who had a ponytail and a heroic bearing, appeared in Xu Qing’s vision.

She acted like a senior to a little boy around ten years old beside her.

This little boy’s clothes were very clean, and so was his small face.

At that moment, he nodded very politely. However, at the next instant, he sensed Xu Qing before Ding Xue did. The instant he saw Xu Qing, his expression suddenly changed.

He clearly revealed horror and wariness, and his body even paused for a moment. He instinctively hid behind Ding Xue.

Ding Xue was surprised. After that, she also saw Xu Qing in the distance and her eyes lit up. She ignored the little boy and ran toward Xu Qing alone.

At this moment, all the heroic bearings from before were replaced by surprise.

“Brother Xu Qing, I was about to look for you. When you returned yesterday, I was still in seclusion. Look, I’m about to reach 60 magic apertures and form the second ball of life fire!”

“However, I haven’t forgotten about the herbs either. I’ll work harder.”

When Ding Xue saw Xu Qing, there was a strange glint in her eyes and she was filled with joy.

“Brother Xu Qing, do you have something to do on the mountain?”

A smile also appeared on Xu Qing’s face. At the same time, he was surprised that the other party’s cultivation base had increased so quickly. Ding Xue had formed a ball of life fire just a year ago on the way back from the Ghost Emperor Mountain.

However, when he thought of how Old Master Seventh had once said that girls had to be raised richly, Xu Qing roughly understood the reason.

“Not bad.” Xu Qing praised sincerely and told her that he was going to meet his master.

Hearing Xu Qing praise her, Ding Xue’s heartbeat sped up and her small face turned slightly red.

Xu Qing’s gaze landed behind Ding Xue, looking at the little boy who was feeling very uneasy in the distance.

The little boy stayed where he was. He didn’t know whether he should leave or stay. At that moment, he had a timid expression and fear rose in his heart.

He was really afraid of Xu Qing.

Although the token he used to come to the Seven Blood Eyes was given to him by Xu Qing, the words Xu Qing said before he left back then let him know that the other party had seen through everything about him.

Moreover, he had felt a suppressive power from Xu Qing. Now that he saw him again, this suppression was already extremely powerful.

Others might not be able to tell but he was different. His perception was extremely clear. That was the pressure from the Ghost Emperor Mountain.

This little boy was none other than the bizarre entity turned human that Old Master Seventh had taken a fancy to when he brought him and Ding Xue to stay in the small town at the foot of the Ghost Emperor Mountain.

“Brother Xu Qing, you still remember him, right? That little boy from that small town.” Noticing Xu Qing’s gaze, Ding Xue smiled and spoke.

“Wang Ling, why aren’t you coming over to greet your Martial Uncle Xu?” Ding Xue glared at the little boy.

The little boy suppressed his fear and took a few steps forward with a numb scalp. He then greeted Xu Qing with a trembling voice.

“He-hello Martial Uncle Xu.”

Xu Qing’s expression was calm. He understood the situation and knew that this little boy had been at the sect for several months. During this time, he had been staying at the foot of the mountain.

Today, he came up the mountain to exchange for a magic boat. In the end, for some reason, he attracted Ding Xiaohai’s disgust. Ding Xue passed by when she came out of seclusion and helped him.

“Previously, when I saw how Ding Xiaohai looked at him, it looked like he wanted to devour him for some reason, so I helped him.”

The smile on Ding Xue’s face was still there but she secretly transmitted her voice to Xu Qing.

Although she looked obedient and virtuous in front of Xu Qing, in reality, she was extremely clever. She had an exquisite heart and didn’t lack scheming and observation skills.

“Brother Xu Qing, go and greet Master. I’ll look for you later. I’ll send Little Wang Ling down the mountain first,” Ding Xue said with a smile.

Xu Qing nodded and walked forward.

The little boy beside Ding Xue tilted his head and looked at Xu Qing’s figure. A hint of envy appeared in the depths of his eyes. He recalled what Xu Qing had said to him back then and couldn’t help but speak softly.

“Big Brother… Ah, Martial Uncle Xu, what you said to me back then…”

“Work hard and you’ll realize it.” Xu Qing turned and glanced at the little boy before nodding.

The little boy took a deep breath and nodded as well. Amidst Ding Xue’s smile, he followed her into the distance.

He wanted to become a human, a real human. This was also the only reason why he came to the Seven Blood Eyes.

After the amount of time it took for an incense stick to burn out, Xu Qing walked toward the pavilion at the top of the mountain. He immediately saw his serious-looking master and the middle-aged servant beside him. The two of them were playing chess.

However, compared to Old Master Seventh’s seriousness, this middle-aged servant whom Xu Qing was familiar with had a relaxed expression.

After seeing Xu Qing, the middle-aged servant was about to stand up and greet him when Xu Qing took the lead and lowered his head. He then cupped his fists and bowed.

The middle-aged servant smiled and stood up to return the greeting.

At the side, Old Master Seventh flicked his sleeve and messed up the chessboard as he calmly spoke.

“Your moves are too poor. I let you have so many pieces but you still lost.”

“Fourth, come and play with me.”

The middle-aged servant smiled bitterly and stood at the side.

Xu Qing calmly walked over. He tidied up the messy chessboard and began to play chess.

However, his chess skills were ordinary, so as he played, a smile appeared on Old Master Seventh’s face.

“Fourth, your heart isn’t calm. The chessboard contains emotions. From your chess moves, I can tell that there’s something on your mind.”

“As expected, I can’t hide anything from Master.”

Xu Qing looked into Old Master Seventh’s eyes and said seriously. He automatically ignored the fact that he had said that he had something to ask when he transmitted his voice through the jade slip earlier.

The middle-aged servant at the side saw that the master and disciple had something to say, so he retreated. He even waved his hand to seal the surroundings and sat cross-legged outside to meditate.

“Speak.” Old Master Seventh picked up a chess piece in satisfaction and played with it.

“Master, there are some changes to the Ghost Emperor Mountain in my body.” Xu Qing took a deep breath with a solemn expression.

“What changes?” Old Master Seventh’s tone was relaxed and the chess piece was about to land.

“It took on my appearance.”

With a clang, the chess piece fell from Old Master Seventh’s hand onto the chessboard. He lifted his head and looked at Xu Qing blankly.

“What did you say?”

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