Chapter 37: I Only Believe in This (Please subscribe! Please vote for monthly tickets!)

After seeing Li Chaoge off, Shao Heng sat in her room.

"I haven't even been back to the sect for long, yet Gu Xuan was already waiting for me at the entrance of the Law Enforcement Pavilion. Is Li Chaoge also guarding my door?"

Shao Heng did not feel she was being deliberately monitored, as both Gu Xuan and Li Chaoge—who had gathered information on her whereabouts—seemed to harbor no ill will and belonged to different factions.

"It's also because there are too many outer disciples. No matter where one goes, if someone sees them, they can immediately relay the news using paper cranes or talismans."

Shao Heng calculated that she would need to find time to visit the market to look for disguise techniques; it would make things much more convenient.

With no one else in the room, she took out a time-keeping talisman, set it, and then sprawled lazily onto a meditation mat, letting her mind go blank and daydreaming.

Since entering the path of cultivation, Shao Heng had refused to slow her pace. She had not slept a single full sleep, meditating every night. Even daydreaming had become a rare luxury.

After a short rest, the time-keeping talisman chimed, signaling that her time was up.

Shao Heng stood up from the mat, put away the talisman, and hurried toward the spirit fields.

Mount Danyang was located on the edge of the Zhenyi Yuan Sect's territory. If the mission went smoothly, it would take about two to three days to travel back and forth given their cultivation levels. She needed to go to the spirit fields first to replenish the [Azure Emperor] spiritual liquid for Duobao, and then head to the Law Enforcement Pavilion to hand over the corresponding mission.

***

At the mountain gate of the Zhenyi Yuan Sect.

It was still half a quarter before the hour of the Rooster, but since it was winter, the days were short and the nights long. The sun had already dipped below the horizon, leaving only warm orange clouds in the sky.

Li Chaoge arrived at the mountain gate. After handing her token to the gatekeeper disciples for registration, she had just stepped through the gate when she spotted a young girl in gray standing to the side, intently reading a small booklet. It was Shao Heng.

Being out in public, Li Chaoge had changed out of her disciple uniform into a sapphire blue long dress, which lent a softness to her bright, striking features.

"Has Junior Sister Shao Heng been waiting long?"

Shao Heng closed the booklet in her hand. Li Chaoge noticed that the cover read *The Art of Facial Disguise*.

"Not long. I went to the market to buy some necessities and decided to wait at the mountain gate in the meantime."

Being slightly younger, Shao Heng was not as tall as Li Chaoge. She looked up at her and said, "Let us set off now."

Li Chaoge nodded and actually pulled something from her sleeve.

It was an exquisitely small boat. She tossed it into the air, performed hand seals to channel her spiritual power, and within a few breaths, the object expanded hundreds of times over, becoming a floating spiritual vessel.

"A Dharma tool spiritual vessel?"

Shao Heng looked at Li Chaoge with surprise, her eyes brightening.

*Li Chaoge has such a massive fortune,* she thought to herself.

Among Dharma tools of the same grade, spiritual vessels were the most expensive.

This was because a fully equipped spiritual vessel often required functions such as flight, defense, and counter-attack, necessitating the inscription of numerous auxiliary formations. Furthermore, constant friction from air currents during flight would wear it down, so the materials had to be of exceptional quality; otherwise, it would not hold up at all.

Shao Heng had inquired at the merchant houses in the market and learned that spiritual vessel Dharma tools were extremely rare, and even a first-grade one would cost hundreds of spirit stones.

As the vessel settled into the clouds, Li Chaoge smiled. "Junior Sister Shao Heng, this Hundred Wave Boat has decent speed. Taking this boat to Mount Danyang should take about an hour and a half."

Shao Heng nodded. "Then I shall take your leave, Senior Sister Li."

"Haha, it is my pleasure."

The two women used their flight techniques to land upon the Hundred Wave Boat. This vessel was much smaller than the one Shao Heng had used when coming from the Earth Kun Domain, and it lacked a cabin.

Li Chaoge manipulated the controls, sending the vessel streaking toward the direction of Mount Danyang.

Shao Heng's visible spiritual aura was approximately twenty cauldrons, while Li Chaoge's was only one hundred and seventeen cauldrons, meaning she could not sustain the vessel's propulsion for a long time. She was seen dropping several spirit stones into a slot at the bow, presumably to serve as the vessel's energy source.

Shao Heng withdrew her gaze, took out the *Art of Facial Disguise* she had just acquired, and sat cross-legged on the deck to read.

Though it was late and night was approaching, cultivators possessed excellent vision and could still see clearly.

Li Chaoge had set the vessel's course; unless something unusual happened, she wouldn't need to expend further mental effort on control. She pulled out a volume titled *Essential Techniques of Alchemy*.

The edges of this thick book were curled and yellowed, and it was filled with many handwritten notes that carried the scent of ink.

After two quarters of an hour, Shao Heng finished reading the contents of *The Art of Facial Disguise* and closed the book.

She had collected this book from the market earlier. Although it was not of high standing, the contents included not only spells but also accompanying disguise techniques. Once combined, it would be difficult for anyone other than a cultivator with divine sense to see through it.

She put the book away and noticed Li Chaoge reading *Essential Techniques of Alchemy* with great interest, which left her somewhat surprised.

*So Li Chaoge is also practicing alchemy?*

It was well known that achieving proficiency in any of the four arts of cultivation could bring immense benefits to a cultivator.

However, the difficulty of each art was extreme. Without certain talents and the guidance of a master, one could study for decades without much gain; the threshold for entry was incredibly high.

Shao Heng, of course, did not believe she lacked the talent. In her eyes, if she wanted to learn something, why wouldn't she be able to?

But Shao Heng knew even better that her ability to master a skill quickly in the past was due to focus as much as talent.

Regardless of which of the four arts it was, the depth and mystery far exceeded anything she had studied before; it would undoubtedly consume a vast amount of energy and time.

Shao Heng had long since weighed her options and decided that before entering the inner sect, she would focus entirely on increasing her cultivation and combat strength. Once she reached a stable period, she would then begin her study of the four arts.

Seeing Li Chaoge lost in the alchemy book, Shao Heng made no sound.

She took out several classics she had borrowed from the Hall of Profound Laws.

Night had fallen, and with the bright moon and many stars, Shao Heng became mesmerized as she matched the contents of the texts to the constellations in the sky.

As time passed, Li Chaoge closed the thick book and looked down. Surveying the mountain landscape, she saw they were nearing Mount Danyang. She made a hand seal, causing the Hundred Wave Boat to slow down and descend toward the ground.

Only then did she look at Shao Heng. Seeing the book in her hands, she asked with a smile, "I heard that when Junior Sister Shao Heng tested her aptitude, thirteen bright spots appeared. Everyone is now speculating that it might be the stars."

"Seeing that you are reading *Treatise on Stellar Evolution*, it must be true? That aptitude would indeed be better suited for the inheritance of the Star-Asking Sect. They have quite an achievement in the power of stars and excel at using the stars to divine hexagrams and calculate karma."

Shao Heng put down her book and replied, "I don't know what that aptitude actually was either. I only felt that the power of my spells seemed to become stronger. As for this book, Elder Zhao Tang told me that what appeared during the test might be the stars. I was curious, so I borrowed it to read."

She frowned slightly and sighed. "I also really want to know what it actually is. They say it's the stars, but I don't feel any special connection to them."

Li Chaoge replied, "You could try practicing divination and hexagram arts; perhaps you will find something."

"Divination? But I don't believe in those things."

Shao Heng looked down at her open hands.

She was born into a Marquis's household. From the moment she was born, there were diviners and fortune tellers who read her palms and her face. Every single one of them said she was destined for unparalleled wealth and a smooth life...

Before, she had been smug, proud, and self-important, finding it exhilarating to feel superior to others.

Shao Heng murmured to herself, *But when I was wandering the streets, the things that helped me drive away thugs, helped me snatch leftover food, and helped me survive... were not the palm lines symbolizing a good life. It was this.*

She suddenly clenched both hands into fists.

Ever since she had used those two fists to drive away the thugs who tried to molest her, Shao Heng had never believed in divination or fate again.

"I only believe in this."