49. A Daoist’s Difficult Question
There were still some scattered treasures in the outer area of the secret realm, so while waiting for the outer barrier to be broken, everyone began searching.
But Gong Yiling wasn’t interested.
She had finally managed to get Qiu Shui to sleep beside her and intended to cultivate, but the thin spiritual energy was disheartening.
Unless she was standing next to a spirit stone mine or a treasure trove like the Heavenly Dragon Spring, her cultivation progress was agonizingly slow.
But the weather was nice.
Such warm sunshine in early spring, although still a bit chilly, would make for a pleasant nap…
As she drifted off, she felt like she was hugging a cat, rubbing its face, chin, and body.
For Miss Gong, who longed to be a cat owner, this dream was heavenly.
Wonderful.
After an unknown amount of time, a thunderous shout of “It’s open!!!” jolted her awake.
She realized…
What she was hugging wasn’t a cat, but Qiu Shui.
The girl was already awake, her hair and clothes messed up, her eyes filled with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
“Ah…” Gong Yiling quickly released her, stood up, and promptly bumped her head on a thick branch.
Her head was now practically as hard as iron.
So, she snapped the branch, which then fell and hit her foot.
“Ouch, fuck… oh, that didn’t hurt.”
“Pfft…” Qiu Shui chuckled. “Master, why are you so jumpy?”
“Ahem… wasn’t Master just putting on a show for you?”
Gong Yiling looked around and noticed everyone rushing towards the secret realm.
Had the barrier been opened?
She immediately grabbed Qiu Shui’s arm and followed.
The scene resembled a supermarket sale, with a crowd of old men and women, eyes gleaming, rushing forward like a horde of zombies.
Seeing this, Gong Yiling felt relieved.
She couldn’t compete with them in speed or grabbing ability.
So, she decided to take it slow, hoping to stumble upon some treasure…
Suddenly, she felt her foot step into nothingness, and she plummeted downwards.
“A trap???”
This sudden drop stunned her.
She had asked for good luck, not a trip to the underworld!
Fortunately, she had pulled Qiu Shui down with her.
Before hitting the ground, Qiu Shui reacted quickly, using her true essence to slow their descent. They landed in front of a large door.
“…Huh?”
Gong Yiling was bewildered.
She had only prayed for a bit of luck, but this was excessive.
A random misstep led her to this place. And since everyone else was rushing forward…
No one would come back and discover this place.
“We’ve hit the jackpot!”
Miss Gong was so excited she almost hugged Qiu Shui and cheered.
But a new problem arose.
This door… seemed impossible to open.
Pushing, pulling, using true essence, even hitting it—nothing worked. There was no keyhole or any other opening.
Could it be a password door?
“Open sesame!”
No response.
“Who’s there?” (A common challenge phrase in wuxia novels)
No response.
—Well, that was too simple.
“Hey, at least give me a hint on how to open this!”
Miss Gong knocked on the stone door impatiently.
But!
Because of her knock, the door trembled and let out a yawn.
Yes…
A… yawn???
Wait a minute.
Did it just yawn!?
Gong Yiling and Qiu Shui exchanged glances.
Was this door sentient…? No way, that couldn’t be, it had to be a joke. What was going on?
“Yawn… ah, two girls.” The door spoke, its voice originating from an unknown source. “Hello there, pretty ladies.”
“Are you crazy?” Gong Yiling kicked the door, which yelped in response.
“Calling you ‘pretty lady’ is fine, but ‘crazy’ is not.”
“I’m not interested in your nonsense,” Miss Gong said. “How do we open this door? Give me a straight answer.”
“Don’t be so hasty. Just answer a question.” The door grumbled. “It’s been so long since anyone came here. Can’t you chat with this lonely old man?”
“What do you want to talk about?”
“What are your measurements?”
“Bam!!!”
This was the first time in this world that someone had dared to tease Gong Yiling like this.
A cold glint flashed in her eyes as she stomped on the door, a smirk playing on her lips. “You dare hit on me?”
“Ooh… is this the legendary dominant queen!?”
Gong Yiling ignored it, taking out a talisman and her pen. She drew the first eight strokes of a high-grade Earth-level talisman, the Five Thunders Technique, on the wall.
“Want to know what electrocution feels like? I can give you a demonstration.”
“Wait, I was just making small talk, just chatting.” The door panicked. “You want to go in, right? Just answer a question.”
“You already said that!”
“Oh, right. Then here it is.” The door coughed and said seriously,
“Xiao Ming’s master married a woman named Xiao Hong years ago. Xiao Hong has an uncle. This uncle had two sons many years ago. The elder son was kidnapped by the demonic sect and forced to marry a bandit leader, and they had a child who inherited the demonic sect. Later, that child married a woman, and that woman also had an uncle. That uncle’s father’s younger brother’s daughter is Xiao Ming’s younger cousin’s mother’s elder brother’s son’s uncle’s daughter’s nephew’s uncle, and they are married.”
“So, how should Xiao Ming address Xiao Hong?”
Gong Yiling: “…”
What the hell kind of question was that?
As someone who constantly forgot how to address relatives, Gong Yiling was face-blind when it came to kinship terms.
She didn’t even understand the question.
But just then…
Qiu Shui said hesitantly, “Master’s wife… wouldn’t that be… Master’s wife?” (Shi Niang)
The atmosphere became incredibly awkward.
Leave a Reply