After Lin Shen brought the remains of Palace Master Lingyue back to the Time Chamber, the System's voice suddenly echoed:
"Ding!
Congratulations to the host for completing the side quest!
Reward: 3,000 System coins!
Reward: 5 Invisibility Gu!
Reward: Three-color Haki!"
Hearing this, Lin Shen was dumbfounded. What on earth? The power system from One Piece had actually shown up, and all three colors were given at once. That was ridiculously OP.
Just as Lin Shen was feeling quite pleased with himself, the System asked, "Host, you brought Palace Master Lingyue back—what is your intention?"
"Don't you think Palace Master Lingyue makes a fantastic sparring partner?"
"The host is brilliant!"
Lin Shen pricked his finger and squeezed a drop of blood onto Palace Master Lingyue's body.
Immediately, a massive magical array enveloped her. The wounds on her body slowly began to heal, and the swelling gradually subsided. Color started to return to her cheeks.
Feeling somewhat exhausted from casting spells back-to-back, and figuring nothing untoward could happen, Lin Shen lay down nearby and fell fast asleep.
Three hours later, the magical array vanished, and Palace Master Lingyue woke up.
Finding herself in a completely unfamiliar place, she murmured, "Where am I? Didn't I die?"
Just then, she noticed Lin Shen lying beside her. She gently shook him and softly called out, "Young friend? Young friend?"
Lin Shen slowly opened his eyes, looked at the palace master before him, sat up, and said, "Daoist priest, you're awake?"
"Young friend, what is this place? Didn't I already die?"
"Daoist priest, please calm down first. Allow me to explain everything slowly."
With that, Lin Shen recounted how he had investigated Shuiyue Palace and traveled to the Min region to rescue her.
Palace Master Lingyue asked, "Are Qiluo and Ling'er both doing well?"
Lin Shen replied, "Ling'er was heartbroken over what happened to you. Granny Jiang has been staying by her side. However, those people shouldn't target Shuiyue Palace for now, so there will be a brief period of peace."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Those members of the Baiyue Cult don't know yet that I've rescued you. Right now, the only decent combat strength in Shuiyue Palace is Granny Jiang, and Ling'er should only be around seven years old—not yet at the age of awakening. If we take her back to Miaojiang right now, the White Miao Tribe will inevitably intervene, which would complicate things. It's better to leave her on Xianling Island for now and make our move when the time is right."
Palace Master Lingyue was startled upon hearing this. "Young friend, who on earth are you, and how do you know so much?"
"An idler."
"An immortal? Are you also a cultivator?"
"What immortal? Just someone with too much time on his hands—an idler, for short."
Palace Master Lingyue smiled faintly and said, "What an interesting idler. Young friend, might I ask your name?"
"Easily done. My name is Lin..." Lin Shen whispered quietly to the System, "System, can I just make up a fake name?"
The System replied, "Go ahead. You're the living person it's bound to anyway. Call yourself a cat or a dog and nobody will care."
Palace Master Lingyue prompted, "Lin what?"
Lin Shen smiled awkwardly. "My mistake, I'm actually called Anuosi."
"Anuosi—what an interesting name."
"I come from a place very, very far away from the Central Plains."
"Very well, Anuosi. Thank you for saving my life. This poor Daoist has no way to repay such a kindness in this lifetime. Whatever you ask of me, I will grant without hesitation."
"Daoist priest, actually, there is indeed something I need your help with."
"Please speak, young friend."
"I need you to be my sparring partner."
Palace Master Lingyue looked puzzled. "A sparring partner? What do you mean?"
Lin Shen pointed his index finger at the environment of the Time Chamber and said, "Daoist priest, you can see what it's like here. I'm all by myself, and I have no real gauge of my cultivation progress. I need someone to spar with so I can push my strength further. I suppose you'll ask why I don't just leave this place. All I can say is that for Ling'er's sake, the time for me to go out into the world has not yet come."
Confusion and worry flickered in Palace Master Lingyue's eyes. "Ling'er—what is wrong with her? Young friend, tell me in detail."
"Daoist priest, if I told you that Zhao Ling'er will die young at the age of seventeen, would you believe me?" As he finished speaking, a glint of tears flashed in the corners of Lin Shen's eyes.
Palace Master Lingyue was thoroughly shocked. "How could that be? You can't possibly be making this up. But your eyes tell me it's true. Why would Ling'er pass away so young... What on earth is going on?!"
"Daoist priest, you should know that Ling'er is a descendant of Nuwa. When she turns sixteen, she will meet her destined partner, Li Xiaoyao. After the two of them are wed on Xianling Island, they will head to Miaojiang to search for the whereabouts of Empress Wu. In Suzhou, they will run into a girl named Lin Yueru, and the three of them will travel the pugilist world together. Later, due to a misunderstanding, Zhao Ling'er will be mistaken for a Snake Demon and dragged into the Demon Locking Tower, where Lin Yueru will lose her life during the rescue attempt. After Ling'er returns to Miaojiang, Lord Baiyue will awaken the Water Beast once again and forcefully merge with it. To destroy the Water Beast, Ling'er will sacrifice herself, leaving Li Xiaoyao to live out the rest of his life in endless sorrow and longing."
Hearing this, Palace Master Lingyue sank to the ground, unable to find her composure for a long time. After a while, she asked, "How do you know all of this? Who on earth are you?"
"Daoist priest, please forgive me for not being able to tell you. All I can say is that my goal right now is to prevent all of this from happening. I hope Ling'er, Yueru, and Li Xiaoyao can grow old together. And I know very well that this is going against the will of heaven—without formidable strength, everything else is just empty talk."
"Young friend, all of this is destined by fate. This poor Daoist admires your courage and your resolve. I am willing to help you."
"Thank you, Daoist priest. Then let's begin right now."
The two of them stood up. Lin Shen summoned his staff, and Palace Master Lingyue conjured her horsetail whisk.
Palace Master Lingyue made the first move, flicking her whisk upward as a large magical array suddenly materialized in the air, hurling dozens of rocks wreathed in flames. Lin Shen infused his staff with Armament Haki and smashed the rocks to pieces one by one.
As all the fiery boulders were shattered, Palace Master Lingyue whipped her whisk forward, sending dozens of lightning bolts straight at Lin Shen. Seeing this, Lin Shen channeled his spiritual energy to summon his own lightning in retaliation. The two bolts of lightning collided with a massive explosion, and the resulting shockwave forced both of them back over ten paces.
The palace master praised, "Well done, young friend. Your magical power is formidable."
"You flatter me, Palace Master."
She flicked her whisk once more, stirring up a towering wave from the flat ground that surged toward Lin Shen.
At the sight of this, Lin Shen immediately unleashed his spiritual energy to freeze the giant wave solid, then shattered the massive block of ice with his staff.
Lin Shen called out, "Daoist priest, now it's my turn!"
"Come on, young friend!"
Lin Shen struck the ground with his staff, and Palace Master Lingyue instantly felt as though her body had been filled with lead, rendering her unable to move. Lin Shen fared slightly better, though his movement speed slowed to a crawl.
The palace master was completely bewildered. "Young friend, what kind of spell is this? Why can't I move?"
"I've simply altered the gravitational magnetic field around us. It's a bit hard to explain, but you can think of it as increasing your body weight to five times its original amount. Daoist priest, bear with it for a moment and slowly adapt to this gravity field."
After quite some time, by channeling her own spiritual energy, the palace master was finally able to move freely within the gravity field. Lin Shen, however, was still struggling somewhat.
The palace master launched another attack, summoning dozens of fiery boulders to hurl at Lin Shen. Seeing this, Lin Shen had no choice but to fire ice arrows from his staff to block them. The flaming rocks fell to the ground after being struck by the ice arrows.
Noticing something amiss, Palace Master Lingyue asked, "Why aren't you using your spiritual energy to resist the gravity field?"
Lin Shen canceled the gravity field, instantly feeling a wave of fatigue wash over him. He leaned on his staff to catch his breath and replied, "D.. Daoist priest, you don't understand. W... where we come from, there is a theory. Training in... in such a hyper-gravity environment can... can rapidly improve one's agility and combat prowess. S... so I had no choice but to rely purely on physical endurance."
Looking at Lin Shen's condition, Palace Master Lingyue's eyes were filled with deep tenderness as she said, "Young friend, why put yourself through this?"
"For Ling'er's sake, I do it willingly."
"This poor Daoist understands. I will continue to assist you."
And so, Lin Shen and Palace Master Lingyue sparred every day in the hyper-gravity environment. After an unknown amount of time, Lin Shen was able to trade blows evenly with Palace Master Lingyue even under twenty times normal gravity.
In the middle of a clash, Lin Shen suddenly called a halt to the fight.
Palace Master Lingyue asked, "What is it, young friend?"
"Daoist priest, after sparring for this long, should we find a place to test our actual combat skills and see how much we've improved?"
"I would like to hear your thoughts on this, young friend."
"Where I come from, one way to test your strength is to clear various labyrinths, fighting all sorts of magical beasts inside. On one hand, you gather equipment and items; on the other, you discover your own shortcomings. As for me, I don't mind, but since you are a cultivator, this involves taking lives, so..."
Before Lin Shen could finish, Palace Master Lingyue understood what he meant and replied, "If they are merely magical beasts, that is acceptable."
"Very well then. System, please open the labyrinth."
Not long after, a glowing gateway appeared before them.
Lin Shen gestured and said, "After you, Daoist priest!"
Palace Master Lingyue returned the gesture. "Lead the way, young friend!"
The two of them stepped into the gateway.
(End of Chapter 6)