Chapter 4551 — The Five-Kill Cultivation

What if Zhang Lifeng was not confident he could cure his own beloved women? Or, what if Zhang Lifeng was confident he could save them but had no way to return to the mortal realm?

Given Wei Zhao's temperament, he would never flinch even before the most powerful of foes—just as he faced the Old Sect of the Western Hills now: at worst he would find somewhere to hide, and once he grew strong enough, he would settle the score. There was nothing so terrible about that.

But the two matters now weighing on his mind could not be resolved by hard cultivation alone; success or failure rested entirely with Zhang Lifeng, and Wei Zhao could do nothing to help. That sense of helplessness was the most soul-tormenting thing of all. For the past year and a half, almost every time he closed his eyes, the worry had surged up in spite of himself, for fear that the final answer would be no. Had his will not been tough enough, an ordinary man would long since have been ground down into a nervous wreck.

Fortunately, both questions had now found their answers in Ghost Thing, and both were yes. That was truly cause for celebration—at last Wei Zhao's heart could settle.

Although Zhang Lifeng claimed no absolute certainty of waking the Inheritor, as Ghost Thing had said, he had never once failed before. Clearly he must still be highly confident; barring any mishap, having him perform the treatment should pose no great problem.

Beyond that, Wei Zhao no longer needed to fret over whether he could return to the mortal realm. Even if the Central Chamber of Commerce yielded no conclusion later on, so long as he could find Zhang Lifeng, there would surely be a way to open a formation passage to the mortal realm. To Wei Zhao, this news was a soothing pill for the heart.

Yet having learned these two things, Wei Zhao actually grew less anxious. Zhang Lifeng had opened the passage just two years ago, and by Ghost Thing's account, his seven wives needed several years of recuperation before they recovered; it could not be opened again anytime soon. So fretting now was useless; better to quietly build up his strength.

Of course, if in the future there was a chance to probe the Central Chamber of Commerce's secret passage, that would be a welcome surprise. But with Zhang Lifeng as the reliable option, Wei Zhao need not insist too hard on it, nor suffer the agony of gains and losses, of advancing and retreating without footing. After all, the Central Chamber of Commerce was absolutely teeming with top experts, not a force to be trifled with.

With both great burdens suddenly settled, Wei Zhao's whole being was invigorated. His spirit and vigor had visibly changed from before; though still as calm and reserved as ever, he now bore a kind of sunshine from within, making those around him feel as if bathed in a gentle spring breeze.

"You can't blame me for this. I'm no gossip, so why would I prattle on about such an embarrassing affair day in and day out? You should count yourself lucky to hear it at all, boy. I had meant to let this rot in my belly and never tell an outsider even if it killed me. Now I've made an exception for your sake—what more could you possibly want?" Ghost Thing said with a cold laugh.

As he spoke, Ghost Thing could not help but feel a stir of emotion. Back in the mortal realm, he and Wei Zhao had barely exchanged words, let alone been close; so when he first came to Cloud Terrace Island, his protection of Wei Zhao had amounted to no more than keeping him alive—beyond that, he could not be bothered.

But over the past year or more, the two had shared hardships and a bond of life-and-death, and Wei Zhao's temperament rather suited Ghost Thing's tastes. Their relationship was naturally not what it once had been. Words once unspoken and deeds once undone were now spoken and done without strangeness—indeed, they felt only proper.

"Well, then I really must be overwhelmed by the honor." Wei Zhao shook his head with a rueful smile. However it was, the stone in his heart had fallen; the path ahead was clear—raise his strength as much as possible, then find a way to locate Zhang Lifeng. Everything else was secondary.

"Naturally." Ghost Thing chuckled without the least modesty, then returned to the point. "All right, enough idle talk. Hurry up and begin your cultivation—don't waste this grand opportunity."

"Fine. Should we scout the surroundings a bit first?" Though Wei Zhao had no intention of adventuring alone through this place, he at least wanted a thorough grasp of his surroundings; otherwise, if some dreadful being fixed its eye on him halfway through his cultivation, the joke would be far too grim.

"No need for that. I'll keep my divine sense locked on the surroundings at all times and warn you at the first sign of anything unusual," Ghost Thing said. In his present state he dared not boast of much else, but in divine sense he had absolute confidence—not only had he not regressed, he had advanced considerably beyond his former peak. After all, it was now his sole reliance.

"Very well, then I'll leave it to you, Senior." Wei Zhao nodded. In truth, even without Ghost Thing standing watch, he had the jade pendant's space to warn him; whatever crisis arose, he would still have time to react. So there was little cause for worry.

With that, Wei Zhao turned and instructed the spirit bird playing nearby not to stray too far, then leaped up onto a high platform close by.

This underground space was not only vast but oddly shaped: every dozen or twenty zhang rose a narrow, towering platform, some connecting directly to the swamp mud above, others stopping somewhat short. The platform Wei Zhao chose just barely reached the mud.

Standing atop the platform, Wei Zhao's body was mere inches from the silt. Though he did not sink into it, the five-element killing qi swirling and prowling within would surface from time to time, and now and then spill over onto him.

Wei Zhao did not wrap his whole body in true qi as he had when descending earlier—that would cause the five-element killing qi to ignore him outright, and cultivation would be out of the question. Yet he dared not rashly touch that utterly perilous five-element killing qi either. So he had not gone deep into the swamp mud, but chosen this platform just high enough to graze it.

Here it comes! The jade pendant's warning sounded abruptly. Wei Zhao's gaze sharpened, and in the blink of an eye a half-substantial, half-phantom wisp of five-element killing qi burst from the silt nearby! (To be continued…) R527