The celestial crane spread its wings and in an instant landed in the Thunder Dream Marsh.
It had been five years since they last met. The little phoenix striding towards them had grown a bit more into her features. She had her hair simply coiled up, with a phoenix flower adorning one side. It was vibrant but not gaudy.
For a brief moment, Chongming was in a daze. Then she leaped off the back of the celestial crane.
"My divine father finally remembered me!"
As soon as she spoke, she reverted to the little spoiled girl Chongming was familiar with.
"I've been swamped with official business. If I had taken you to the Cangling Hall, you would surely have been bored." Chongming smiled faintly. "You've successfully reached the third level of cultivation. Shouldn't you address me differently now?"
Yaohua reluctantly changed her address. "Master."
"This is the Thunder Dream Marsh. Are you ready for this training session?" Chongming turned around, a smile playing on his brows, his eyes shining like stars.
"Of course I'm ready!" Yaohua patted her chest confidently.
However, a moment later, she stood on the desolate grassland in surprise, looking rather confused. "Is this really the Thunder Dream Marsh? Didn't the Starry Night Immortal Lord live here before his ascension? But there's no sign that anyone ever lived here!"
Chongming was also a bit taken aback. "This is indeed the place."
All the details of the immortal lords before their ascension were recorded in the Book of Fate. The Starry Night Immortal Lord was no exception. Moreover, when the Starry Night Immortal Lord took leave before his departure, he also mentioned the Thunder Dream Marsh.
But the Thunder Dream Marsh was right in front of them, yet it seemed as if no one had set foot here for years.
The Great Cataclysm of the Nine Stars had begun ten years ago. Even though the nine continents had been desolate and depleted during these ten years, the Thunder Dream Marsh shouldn't have ended up in such a state, right?
Could this be what the Starry Night Immortal Lord had alluded to?
Chongming pondered for a moment and then directly formed a hand - seal to conjure a celestial crane.
Yaohua had been squatting on the ground, trying to find some signs of human presence. But she looked around and even used her spiritual power to investigate, yet still found no clues.
Who would have thought that when she looked up, she saw a huge celestial crane hovering above her. Its beady eyes were rolling around, looking at her, and its sharp beak was like an arrow, as if it was about to attack her the next moment.
"Master, what are you doing?" Yaohua was stunned and couldn't help but look up at Chongming.
Chongming pointed solemnly at the void above the celestial crane's head. The celestial crane flapped its wings and flew away shakily.
"There's something strange about this place. The Starry Night must know something."
Chongming brushed away the withered grass on her head and smiled faintly at her dazed expression. "However, since this is a training session, just looking won't do."
"Huh?" Yaohua blinked, not understanding. "Does master mean that I should also go find the Starry Night Immortal Lord?"
"Of course not." Chongming's gaze fell into the distance. This place used to be lush with vegetation and bustling with activity. Who would have thought it would turn into what it was now, with not even a broken city wall left?
"In this world, everything that has ever existed will leave a trace. You've already reached the third level of your cultivation technique. I hope you can find a clue before getting in touch with the Starry Night."
In order not to disappoint her master, Yaohua blinked her eyes and agreed.
It wouldn't do to just search in this area. Yaohua tugged at Chongming's sleeve. "Master, can we go deeper inside?"
Chongming intended to let her train and didn't object to her suggestion. "I'll follow your lead."
He would always be there to support her, so there was no way this little phoenix would get into trouble.
With her master's approval, Yaohua rolled her eyes and just walked deeper into the Thunder Dream Marsh.
Her intuition was indeed right. Although the Thunder Dream Marsh looked extremely desolate at first glance, the deeper she went, the stronger the smell of death became.
This smell was not unfamiliar to Yaohua. In the past, after internal strife in other clans, the defeated side would always be devoured, and the vacated territory would have this kind of smell.
The closer Yaohua got to the inside, the more panicked she felt.
It was like when she was a little green worm and got close to a woodpecker. It seemed as if the next moment, she would be grabbed by something unknown and then be crushed to pieces, with no remains left.
Just as she was about to stop, she heard Chongming's voice behind her.
"There's no need to go any further."
Yaohua heaved a huge sigh of relief. She turned around, a look of defeat on her cute little face. "Master, I'm too scared to go any further."
Chongming stroked her head, his gaze deep. "It's okay."
"Did master discover something?" Yaohua sent out a wisp of spiritual power and spread it around, while still asking Chongming.
Chongming stood behind her and waved his sleeve. A dilapidated and withered city appeared out of thin air.
A city stretching for miles appeared out of nowhere. Yaohua thought that she was no longer the inexperienced little green worm, but she was still shocked by Chongming's feat.
She had known that her master was powerful, but she didn't know that with just a wave of his hand, he could conjure a city out of thin air.
"I'm not a creator god." Seeing the undisguised surprise on Yaohua's face, a smile flashed in Chongming's eyes as he explained. "There used to be a famous city called Jincheng in the Thunder Dream Marsh. This place was hidden by special means. With your current cultivation level, it's difficult for you to detect it. When your cultivation improves by two more levels, you'll be able to break the seal without any problem."
"Will I be as powerful as master when I reach master's level of cultivation?"
Chongming was slightly taken aback and looked at her with a somewhat deep gaze. "Naturally."
Immediately, an image of herself standing on equal footing with her master appeared in Yaohua's mind. She let out a silly laugh, and even the somewhat eerie broken city seemed kind and lovely to her.
"Let's go." Chongming was already used to her occasional bouts of daydreaming and silly smiling. "If you can't find any traces before dawn, I'll hold you accountable."
Yaohua immediately pulled herself together and put on a pretend - serious little face. "Yes, master."
This childish face was really quite amusing. Chongming coughed dryly and shifted his gaze to hide the smile on his lips.
Perhaps because Chongming had just broken the seal of Jincheng, the feeling of panic was not as obvious as before. Yaohua then boldly entered the city.
It was a cloudless day, a perfect weather. But as soon as Yaohua stepped into the city, the sky gradually darkened. She looked up in confusion and only saw dark clouds hanging low, as if a storm was about to break.
"Is it going to rain?" Yaohua was even more confused. She conjured two umbrellas and handed one to Chongming. "Master, here."
Although her master was a divine being, divine beings were also restricted by spiritual power when they came to the mortal world. Her spiritual power was abundant and she could use it freely.
Chongming took the umbrella hesitantly. He looked at it curiously, feeling a bit at a loss about this feeling of being taken care of.
Yaohua carried an umbrella on her back and saw that the streets were covered with spider webs. Several kids with vacant looks in their eyes were sitting on the roadside in patched clothes, with a few broken bowls for water beside them.
Good heavens, the inner walls of those broken bowls had already grown green mold. It was really heart - wrenching to look at.
Yaohua felt a pang of compassion. She felt her purse. Before she left, her elder brothers didn't know where they got some little fruits and stuffed them into her purse. These kids were so pitiful. Surely her elder brothers wouldn't be angry if she shared a few with them, right?
Biting her lower lip, Yaohua walked towards the roadside.
Chongming saw clearly the compassion and hesitation on her face. He didn't say anything to stop her and just let her make her own choice.
"Here you are."
On her chubby little hand were several bright red little fruits. One of the kids' vacant eyes landed on them, as if fixed by something, and his gaze didn't move.
"Thank you, sister." One of the kids swallowed and gave Yaohua a silly smile.
"You're welcome." Yaohua smiled and placed the fruits in the hand of a silent kid. Then she turned around to look for Chongming, but there was no sign of her master behind her.