Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 546: Supporting Each Other in Times of Need

Perhaps it was because she rarely found herself in such a weakened state.

Her dislocated arm had only just been set, making it so that it was best not to exert any force, and in truth, she had no strength to do so. The ointment’s warmth seeped into her cracked rib, causing a tingly and itchy sensation, but it could not mask the sharp pain in her bones.

Her meridians felt as though they were twisted, and her true qi was stagnant.

She wanted to help Zhao Changhe up but found she could not lift him as he was far too heavy.

Just putting a bit more effort into it made her feel as though her arm might dislocate again, leaving her completely powerless.

Even the fish, flopping about on the ground, seemed as though it could slap her in the face.

Whoosh!

Dragon Emperor flashed, skewering the fish and making sure it would no longer move.

Lady Three grumbled, “Are you trying to bully me too?”

The fish had nothing to say in front of such audacity.

Holding the large fish, Lady Three intended to roast it over the fire but realized she did not even have a makeshift spit.

She looked around in silence, finding no branches sturdy or tall enough to use as a spit. To make a stand, she would need to move some stones, but even that was too difficult to lift with her current strength.

When Zhao Changhe was around, everything seemed so easy. But the moment he fell, everything became an ordeal.

That’s what the pillar of a household does, isn’t it...

Still, Lady Three was no delicate flower from a greenhouse like Cui Yuanyang. She had survived on her own for extended periods of time in her youth.

If her hands would not do, she would use her feet. She kicked a stone over to the fire, using her bare feet to push it into place by the fire, then went to kick another.

Without the protection of her true qi, her bare feet soon started bleeding, but Lady Three’s expression remained unchanged. She completed the makeshift spit roast and placed the fish on it to roast.

She did not have the energy to clean the fish or remove the scales, so she had to settle for roasting it as is.

The fish was large, and she had no idea how long it would take to cook it through. She turned to look at Zhao Changhe, who lay sprawled on the ground, and went to try to help him up once again.

She realized that she did not have to rely solely on her arms... If she could just lift his arm over her shoulder and bear his full weight on herself, she might be able to manage.

Lady Three struggled to drag Zhao Changhe toward the octopus’ body, feeling like a young girl hauling a giant teddy bear.

How annoying—I’m supposed to be the big sister here.

Step by step, she painstakingly dragged him to the side of the octopus. Just as she bent down to lay him down, pain shot through her rib, and his weight came crashing down, knocking her to the ground.

She lay there, exhausted and in pain, panting heavily. In the end, she decided to just stay where she was, letting him press down on her, neither of them moving.

She only needed time... Even if her bones would not heal that quickly, she could at least accelerate the healing of her internal injuries. If only she could channel just a little bit of her true qi...

Lady Three silently regulated her energy, trying to heal her internal injuries. She pressed her forehead to Zhao Changhe’s, their foreheads touching, attempting to understand the nature of his condition. After all, he at least did not seem to be physically injured.

When she faced the Sea Emperor’s spiritual assault, she had called upon all her defenses to protect her spirit, weakening all her physical defenses and leaving her susceptible to the octopus’ attacks. This was how her spirit had managed to only suffer minor damage and had mostly recovered by now.

At that moment, Lady Three’s spirit directly invaded Zhao Changhe’s spiritual platform, and she found that his spiritual platform was as defenseless as a young girl without her guard up. She was able to enter without the slightest resistance.

Much like my own body right now.

Lady Three pursed her lips and continued looking around.

She soon found Zhao Changhe’s soul sea to be in utter chaos.

A person’s spiritual sea was usually depicted as a small world, with the sea below, the sky above, and a layer of mist in between. For martial artists progressing toward forming their yin spirit, that mist would gradually coalesce into a spirit, typically resembling a small humanoid figure. Once this form became solid, it allowed for the act of possession, like what Xue Wu and Venerable Duoluo had done. This was the hallmark of the Profound Control Realm.

Lady Three had not reached that realm yet, so her spiritual self was a hazy figure that quickly darted into Zhao Changhe’s mind.

At this moment, it was as though there was a raging storm in Zhao Changhe’s soul sea, waves towering high as if a tsunami was sweeping through. The sky above seemed to be collapsing, crooked and askew, with stars falling in disarray.

This was the state Zhao Changhe had been in while still managing to handle everything...

Wait, why are there stars?

The sea and sky were merely symbolic representations. Every person’s soul sea reflected their unique path. For example, Yue Hongling’s likely had the imagery of a setting sun shining upon a river, while Cui Yuanyang’s was suffused with purple mist covering mountains and rivers. Those from the Four Idols Cult had stars, and Lady Three’s own soul sea reflected the constellation of the Black Tortoise.

Whenever she exerted herself fully, her external surroundings would resonate—an avatar of the Black Tortoise would manifest, and the Black Tortoise constellation in the heavens would shine in response, signifying the connection between heaven and man. It was the same for others. Whenever Yue Hongling unleashed her full power, her energy would evoke the feeling of a setting sun.

But why does Zhao Changhe have stars like those of the Four Idols Cult? Even though he’s supposed to be the Fire Pig of Shi, he’s never formally studied our cult’s cultivation techniques...

No, wait, it isn’t exactly the same as ours. Our cult’s cultivation techniques always have a specific constellation in resonance, whereas Zhao Changhe’s is just a sky full of stars, complete with the sun and moon, with no single constellation standing out. If anything stands out, it’s the presence of the galaxy[1], distinct and radiant, like a long river cascading down from the nine heavens.

Right... Vermillion Bird did write to me a long time ago, asking my opinion about how Zhao Changhe was able to resonate with all the stars when using the Astral Resonance Art. I completely forgot. After all, some people are just born with exceptional talent. I thought it was just something to do with his meridians and acupoints, and there was no point in overthinking it. After all, it wasn’t his soul sea.

But this... is his actual fucking soul sea.

Lady Three was stunned.

It took her quite a while to snap back to reality. This isn’t the time to be thinking about all this. I’m here to help him sort out his chaotic soul sea.

Amidst the apocalyptic scene of collapsing skies and raging waves, there was a faint little figure of mist drifting and dazed amidst the storm...

Is this Zhao Changhe’s budding yin spirit? I guess that makes sense... He’s already at the second layer of the Profound Mysteries, the stage where he’d begin to form his yin spirit.

But this yin spirit is still weak. It’s so tiny it looks kind of cute, and it looks completely disoriented. Hah, its eyes are even spinning in circles.

Haha! Even though it’s still really hazy, it clearly has a scar across its face!

Compared to his hulking, muscular body on the outside, Lady Three could not help but find this tiny, vulnerable yin spirit rather funny. She picked up the little figure, cradling it gently. “Don’t worry, little piggy. Your big sister is here to protect you.”

Unlike earlier, when she had felt like a young girl dragging a giant teddy bear, this time, she really felt like the elder sister holding her little brother. She was filled with an immense sense of satisfaction.

Here, the helplessness she had felt outside vanished. Within Zhao Changhe’s soul sea, Lady Three, with her superior cultivation, was like an invincible goddess.

The “tsunami” surged toward them, but she stood unshaken, unaffected. Lady Three pointed a finger, and the waves obediently reversed, flowing back into the sea and settling without a ripple.

Above her finger, though it was someone else’s soul sea, the Black Tortoise constellation still shone bright, as if knowing that it was in the presence of its master.

The chaos of the collapsing heavens and plummeting stars gradually receded. The Black Tortoise presided over the firmament, and order returned, restoring peace.

Lady Three, with a playful smile, ruffled the little figure’s face. “Time to wake up.” n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

The little figure groggily opened its eyes.

From Zhao Changhe’s perspective, he felt as if he was dreaming of the apocalypse. Waves crashed down in a world-ending flood, like the collapse of the previous era, and he stood utterly powerless, barely holding on, at the center of the storm with the heavens above breaking apart.

Zhao Changhe even wondered if this was what the Sea Emperor had once faced... It seemed logical. After all, his current state was caused by the Sea Emperor’s spiritual attack, so this connection seemed natural.

But it did not take him long to realize he was wrong.

Lady Three appeared, walking atop the waves like a goddess descending from the heavens.

She then cradled him in her arms, stroking him gently. “Don’t worry, little piggy. Your big sister is here to protect you.”

And just like that, the apocalyptic storm vanished, the waves calmed, and the heavens were restored.

Lady Three’s embrace was warm, soft, and incredibly comforting.

Zhao Changhe snuggled deeper into her arms, rubbing against her affectionately.

Am I having this dream because of Lady Three’s earlier display? I have to admit, though, the thought did cross my mind. In reality, I have to act with restraint and be a gentleman. But since this is a dream, it should be fine for me to indulge a little, right?

Lady Three, meanwhile, noticed the misty little figure snuggling into her embrace, and she could not help but find it amusing. If he had a Yang Spirit, there might be something akin to a spiritual communion. But he’s only got a barely-formed yin spirit—a fundamentally insubstantial entity. What could he even feel by snuggling up to me like this?

Wait... why can I feel something?

Lady Three’s thoughts became muddled for a moment before she suddenly understood.

At that moment, she realized their physical bodies were also entwined, with him pressing against her from above...

She was rescuing him in his soul sea, while he was playing with her outside?

1. This can also be translated as Milky Way, though I don’t think it necessarily fits the context of the setting. ☜