Chapter 149: Despair?

　　The jade bottle was ordinary at first glance but in reality it was made from a kind of jade that could lock in spirit energy. The contents would not rot even after a thousand years.

　　Kong Hou’s calm expression turned to ecstasy when she confirmed the bottle contained dragon blood. Kong Hou was a person who liked to smile. When she encountered interesting food, beautiful plants, and familiar people, she would smile. But she would rarely smile so stupidly and without restraint. Even if her grin was not good-looking, she could not calm down.

　　“Huan Zhong, we found it, found it, found it!” Kong Hou turned to hug Huan Zhong and jumped a few times. “This is great!”

　　Huan Zhong reached out to gently pat Kong Hou’s back and also gave a smile.

　　Lin Hu stood at the side and watched the lovers embrace each other. He pulled over Uncle Salted Fish who was watching from the ground so he sat with his back to Huan Zhong and Kong Hou.

　　Twisting his mouth, Uncle Salted Fish sat there and ignored Lin Hu.

　　Kong Hou carefully put away the dragon blood. Then she took out several pieces of fine jade from Huan Zhong’s storage ring, and created a new stone table for the residence with a few swings of her Water Frost sword. Then she used a storage bag for long term preservation to hold many delicious fruits on the table.

　　“I heard that dragons like beautiful things…” Kong Hou found a box of valuable precious stones in her own storage ring to put on the ground. Then she stood up and dusted the dust from her dress. “Huan Zhong, let’s go. ”

　　The four walked out of the cave residence and discovered that the tide had risen. The small island was already half underwater. Kong Hou looked at the surrounding seawater, and turned to say to Uncle Salted Fish, “Uncle, thank you so much for your help this time in finding the valuable dragon blood…”

　　“Do not thank me. Even though I did not help at all, my fall led to the discovery of this bottle of dragon blood. If you want to thank me, give me a small courtyard and shop in Harmonious City. I have travelled all over the cultivation world and found that Harmonious City’s atmosphere is most suited for me.”

　　Kong Hou smiled upon hearing this. “Since Uncle plans to settle down in Harmonious City, how about coming to Harmonious City with us? If you do not mind, please come to drink at Huan Zhong and my path union ceremony.”

　　“Path union ceremony?” Uncle Salted Fish’s gaze swept Kong Hou and Huan Zhong. He said neutrally, “Congratulations. I will not come to the path union ceremony.”

　　Kong Hou did not demand more. She took out a jade ship from her storage ring. The quartet stepped onto the jade ship that quickly flew away and left the rising sea waters.

　　Kong Hou looked back and found many lazy fish playing in the blue waters. The sun shone on the surface and reflected golden light.

　　“The sea is beautiful.” Maybe because Kong Hou was in a good mood, everything looked beautiful. Even Uncle Salted Fish’s messy stubble had a wild kind of beauty.

　　“You are right.” Uncle Salted Fish nodded and said, “The vastness and mystery of the sea is something you… young cultivators cannot understand.”

　　Kong Hou nodded with a smile.

　　The four travelled back without encountering sea monsters or the mists. There weren’t any wild winds or storms. It was inconceivably peaceful. Kong Hou and the others spent three days and nights to ride the jade ship back to land.

　　Coming off the jade ship, Kong Hou found that this old town had already changed. The damaged and falling walls had been rebuilt. The people at the gates who saw them still looked on with fear, but also gratitude and hesitation.

　　The flying horses came down from the sky with the carriage. Kong Hou did not enter the city. She turned and asked Uncle Salted Fish, “Uncle, do you need to enter the town?”

　　“Why? There is no food or place to eat.” Uncle Salted Fish turned his head in disdain.

　　Kong Hou: “…”

　　So why did you suddenly come here before? To eliminate evil?

　　The carriage did not look big but was very large inside. It could hold several large men lying down together. But Uncle Salted Fish did not want to squeeze in with the two young lovers so he sat outside with Lin Hu.

　　He had mysterious origins but Huan Zhong and the others never asked him about it, just like he would not ask Kong Hou why she wanted to search for dragon blood. They maintained a strange balance.

　　They did not travel during the night and found a beautiful place to stop. Uncle Salted Fish watched as the talisman in Huan Zhong’s hand turned into a beautiful palace. He rubbed his hands and said, “The crafters are getting even better, and able to make anything.”

　　“Humans will always advance.” Kong Hou looked up into the sky. “It is so beautiful tonight. Let’s roast meat.”

　　Lin Hu turned to look at Huan Zhong. Huan Zhong smiled at Kong Hou. “All right.”

　　Uncle Salted Fish: “…”

　　Young people these days really had extraordinary habits.

　　The roasting racks already existed. Lin Hu’s storage ring carried all kinds of seasoning. Uncle Salted Fish contributed a piece of dried meat and several fresh fish.

　　Kong Hou’s eyes lit up when she saw the meat. The meat that had been cooked on the deck previously and been flipped over by the sea monster before she could eat was a great pain to her.

　　When washing and cutting ingredients, the advantages of cultivators appeared. They could be clean and not harm their hands. Their blades were sharp, and each piece of meat was perfect in thickness.

　　Huan Zhong brushed seasoning on the pieces of meat with familiarity and turned the meat pieces over and over. No one would believe that he had once taken someone else’s food and pretended he had made it. As a one in a thousand years cultivation genius, he naturally knew that after a person lied, they should not say more lies, but make the lie a truth.

　　The food that had been burned on Sword Cry Peak proved Huan Zhong’s efforts.

　　“Careful, it’s hot.” Huan Zhong handed the roasted meat to Kong Hou. Kong Hou puffed up her cheeks and blew on it. After eating a piece, she remembered that Huan Zhong had not yet eaten. She cooled another piece and held it to Huan Zhong’s mouth.

　　Uncle Salted Fish looked at the two in their loving state and turned to shove the burnt meat into his mouth. The hot meat hissed in his mouth. Lin Hu peeked at him. What body did this person have to not feel anything when eating something so hot?

　　Kong Hou looked up at the crescent moon after getting full. “When we find the cloud seeking branch, we will have all our ingredients.”

　　Hearing this, Uncle Salted Fish looked oddly at Kong Hou.

　　“No hurry, we can search slowly.” Huan Zhong took out a cloak embroidered with grand patterns to put over Kong Hou. “We have a long time.”

　　“Yes.” Kong Hou nodded as she gripped Huan Zhong’s hand.

　　“No.” Uncle Salted Fish finally couldn’t resist. “You have two Cloud Seeking Trees in your carriage—where are you going to find them?”

　　“Our carriage?” Kong Hou’s mind was blank for a long time. Then she screamed in disbelief, “Uncle, are you talking about the grass in the pots that haven’t grown much in the last decade?”

　　“Cloud seeking trees have a hard time blooming and producing seeds. Growing a bit in a decade is already very good.” Uncle Salted Fish looked with surprise at Kong Hou. “Did you not know what it was when you planted it?”

　　“I dug it out of a secret realm randomly and planted it…” Kong Hou’s expression was dazed. She ran to the carriage and moved out one of the pots. She flashed in front of Uncle Salted Fish and asked in disbelief, “This, this really is the cloud seeking tree?”

　　“The cloud seeking tree is not judged by its outside appearance but the unique spirit energy it has. I am sure it is the cloud seeking tree without even looking at it.” Uncle Salted Fish flicked the cloud seeking tree’s leaves. “This tree is in its infancy. However, the cloud seeking branch you speak of is not the tree’s branch, but a very small branch that appears when the cloud seeking tree starts to grow. That branch will become a cloud seeking tree branch after seven days. If the small branch grows into a large branch, it means that this tree will survive.”

　　Uncle Salted Fish looked with pity. “If I am not wrong, you need that branch that is so delicate it would snap in the wind. But the cloud seeking tree has already grown—the cloud seeking branch… is gone.”

　　The greatest pain in life was not hopelessness but knowing that you lost your opportunity accidentally after receiving hope, and it would be impossible to get it back.

　　Lin Hu almost couldn’t accept Uncle Salted Fish’s words. He shook his head dazedly. “How can it be like this…”

　　Uncle Salted Fish watched as he almost collapsed emotionally and did not try to comfort him. He looked sideways at Huan Zhong. The person concerned was calmer than anyone else, as though he would not fear anything that happened.

　　“A branch that would snap in the wind…” Kong Hou turned to look at Huan Zhong and then at Lin Hu who was in visible pain. “I have it.”

　　Lin Hu’s mind was in chaos. He turned instinctively towards Kong Hou when he heard Kong Hou say she had it.

　　Kong Hou was slightly embarrassed by Elder Lin’s heated gaze. She hid behind Huan Zhong and popped her head out to say, “Just after we planted the cloud seeking tree, I found it grew a strange branch. When you lifted the curtain, wind blew in, and the cloud seeking branch near the door snapped. The green branch looked good-looking and adorable, so I picked it up and put it in a jade box that can preserve and keep in spirit energy …”

　　“So… Master has all the ingredients he needs?” Lin Hu looked dazedly at Kong Hou. So Master would have to serve Miss Kong Hou his entire life. Otherwise, why would Master get all these coincidences and benefits?

　　Uncle Salted Fish looked oddly at Kong Hou. Would ordinary people pick up a snapped branch and put it into a jade box? The girl’s mind wasn’t ordinary, and neither were her actions.

　　Was this the so-called dumb people have dumb luck?

　　“Let’s not sleep tonight and go find Spirit Master Nameless and Qing Yuan Shishu.” Kong Hou put the cloud seeking tree back onto the carriage. “Elder Lin. Based on the rules of storybooks, we cannot delay important matters and must take care of them immediately. Otherwise, things will go wrong.”

　　Then she put away the palace talisman. “Elder Lin, we have to trouble you to drive.”

　　Uncle Salted Fish: “…”

　　What was this rules of storybooks? Why would anything go wrong?

　　In the evil cultivator world, Jiu Su, who had been in seclusion for a long time, finally walked out.

　　“Lord!”

　　“Congratulations, Lord, for coming out!”

　　“Congratulations, Lord, for reaching fulfillment.”

　　“Lord, Splendid Cloud Sect’s female disciple Kong Hou and Zhong Xi of Radiance Sect… ” The evil cultivator messenger almost blurted out Huan Zhong’s title but he immediately changed his words when he saw Lord’s dark expression. “This pair of animals is holding their path union ceremony next month on the eight.”

　　“Path union ceremony?” Jiu Su smiled coldly. “This seat will turn their celebration into a funeral.”

　　When the couple that had their ceremony thought they would be get their happily ever after, he would turn Splendid Cloud Sect red with blood. This was the best gift.

　　“Lord, there will be many experts at the path union ceremony. Why don’t we kill them now so the famed sects will not have any successors?”

　　“Zhong Xi’s spirit platform has not healed. Splendid Cloud Sect’s female disciple’s cultivation is insufficient. If we kill them now, why would this seat have been in seclusion for a decade?” Jiu Su’s eyes were red. How could he forget the humiliation Zhong Xi gave him that day with his sword?

　　What was the most painful?

　　When the happiness one possessed was completely shattered, then that person would feel true despair.

　　Translator Ramblings: Uncle Salted Fish is doubting his entire life now.