The dinner at Mrs. Zhang’s was very simple, just a pot of hand-grabbed meat braised rice. The rice was fine, the meat was premium mutton, complemented by small pickles and crispy rice crust. The family enjoyed it immensely.
"Second Lady, how is your Martial Dao practice going?" Zhang Chen asked.
Upon hearing Zhang Chen’s words, Mrs. Zhang smiled warmly and said, "I’ve now comprehended the wonders of the Dark Force, especially recently, meditating with you all and contemplating the Divine Soul Dao. It has refined my grasp of Martial Dao practice and I’ve gained some insights into Huajin."
Zhang Chen nodded in satisfaction, "If you ever feel unwell, do let me know early so we can avoid any mishaps."
After all, Mrs. Zhang was his elder and a woman, so Zhang Chen was reluctant to physically assess her bones to check her Martial Dao progress. All he could do was sense whether the flow of Qi Blood inside Mrs. Zhang was normal.
"We are family. Of course, I won’t hold back with you," Mrs. Zhang replied with a gentle smile.
After dinner, everyone washed up and returned to their rooms, either to continue meditating or to study.
Meanwhile, Zhang Chen went to the courtyard, and upon a thought, began summoning Fox Fairy Nannan.
To learn about the Water God Tomb, the best source would undoubtedly be Fox Fairy Nannan, who was the dream fox of Zhang Xiaohua, and Zhang Xiaohua would never hide things from her.
With Zhang Chen’s summoning, it wasn’t long before a fiery red shadow, like a glowing sunset, appeared atop the wall, glaring at him impatiently, "Aren’t you annoying? It’s only been a few quiet years and now you’re summoning me again."
"Your Dao practice has improved over the years, I see you have six tails now," Zhang Chen remarked, his gaze falling on the six fiery red tails of Fox Fairy Nannan, his eyes showing a hint of surprise.
Fox Fairy Nannan boasted, "Of course! The resources from Yellow Heaven Dao were devoured by me, Zhang Xiaohua’s ascension to the Star Monarch’s Divine Position further provided me the essence of stars to consume. And with the various materials from Prince Pingbian’s Mansion at my disposal, having six tails is quite normal, isn’t it?"
As she spoke, Fox Fairy Nannan jumped down from the wall, transforming into a girl in white attire, looking at Zhang Chen with irritation, "Why are you wandering around Jiangnan instead of staying put in the Northern Land?"
"I have my own matters to attend to," Zhang Chen replied with a grin.
Fox Fairy Nannan gave Zhang Chen a glance, her pupils reflecting a hint of surprise. Zhang Chen immediately sensed Fox Fairy Nannan’s intentions, fearing that she might be plotting against him. Now that Zhang Xiaohua had reached the Eleventh Tier, if she could persuade Zhang Xiaohua to act, he would theoretically be dead for sure.
However, Zhang Chen did not expose her but instead asked, "Let me ask you, Zhang Xiaohua intends to conspire against the Shen Family’s Ancient Great Tomb. Do you know the exact location of this tomb?"
Upon hearing Zhang Chen’s words, Fox Fairy Nannan was stunned, looking at Zhang Chen in amazement, "How do you know about the Water God Tomb? Very few people are aware of it; how did you find out?"
"Don’t worry about how I know. I just want to ask if you know the exact location of that tomb?" Zhang Chen inquired.
Fox Fairy Nannan turned her head to look at Zhang Chen, her eyes flashing with a dangerous light. The next moment, a silvery white light flashed from Zhang Chen’s sleeve, transforming into a ruler, directly striking at Fox Fairy Nannan. Seeing this, Fox Fairy Nannan’s six tails flashed, intending to activate her innate divine techniques, but facing the twelfth-tier Celestial Measuring Ruler, Fox Fairy Nannan’s innate skills seemed as fragile as paper. With a scream, Fox Fairy Nannan was struck, her six tails retracting, and then the Celestial Measuring Ruler slammed hard onto her, sending her flying into a nearby rockery, where she slid slowly to the ground.
"Not to mention that you’ve already become a part of my Dragon Qi origin, a part of my skill. Just by divine techniques alone, you’re no match for me. If you wish to seduce Zhang Xiaohua to kill me to gain freedom, you think too much. This strike is merely a lesson, to wake you up." As Zhang Chen spoke, the Celestial Measuring Ruler turned into a stream of light and returned to his sleeve.
Since Fox Fairy Nannan integrated into Zhang Chen’s Dragon Qi, she became immortal, even Zhang Chen couldn’t kill her, unless he was ruthless enough to erase his own skill, to completely abolish the Dragon Qi talent. But would Zhang Chen be willing to do so?
He can freely wield divine techniques in the Dragon Qi-covered land, not merely because he practiced the Immortal Dao, but because his own Dragon Qi can counteract the Dragon Qi gathered by Human Dao.
"When did you acquire such skills?" Fox Fairy Nannan got up, having reverted to her original form as a fiery red fox, looked at Zhang Chen with a face full of shock.
Zhang Chen was too lazy to engage in a pointless discussion with her and instead asked, "I want to know everything about the Water God Tomb now."
How would he bother explaining to Fox Fairy Nannan?
Never heard of a master explaining skills!
Upon hearing Zhang Chen’s words, Fox Fairy Nannan stretched out her paw to scratch her hair: "You mustn’t go to the Water God Tomb. Zhang Xiaohua has set his sights on it; he has now become a Star God, stepped into the Eleventh Tier, and has become a top master in the world. You are absolutely no match for him, and if you are discovered by him in the Water God Tomb, you are surely doomed!"
Fox Fairy Nannan didn’t want Zhang Chen to get involved in anything dangerous because she currently relied on Zhang Chen for existence. She wasn’t sure if she could survive after Zhang Chen’s death, so she wanted to do everything possible to prevent Zhang Chen from taking risks.
"Precisely because Zhang Xiaohua is also targeting that Water God Tomb, I need to stop him and seize the Creation in the Water God Tomb first. Otherwise, if he gains the authority of the Innate Water God and steps into the Twelfth Tier, I’m afraid I won’t have any chance to live. If I die, you definitely won’t survive!" Zhang Chen directly threatened Fox Fairy Nannan.
Fox Fairy Nannan immediately wore a bitter face, full of worry, and said: "Zhang Xiaohua has now entered the Eleventh Tier. What makes a brat like you think you can compete with him? You’d better hide far away; with your talent, you’ll eventually have your day. Why fight with him for such temporary gains?"
"Heh, strong cultivation doesn’t mean everything is strong. Otherwise, everyone should just announce their cultivation level upon meeting and avoid conflict altogether, right?" Zhang Chen could feel that Fox Fairy Nannan was genuinely advising him, so he said, "Quickly tell me the precise location of the Water God Tomb and all the information you know about it."
Upon hearing Zhang Chen’s words, Fox Fairy Nannan knew she couldn’t change his mind. She had known Zhang Chen for a long time and understood that once he made up his mind about something, it was futile to try to change it. So she said: "Actually, the Shen Family’s Great Tomb is beneath the old residence of the Shen Family. The whole Shen Family was built atop that tomb, nourished by the Innate Divine Spirit’s Water Fortune Qi, which is why the Shen Family has prospered for so long, enjoying an endless stream of fortune."
"The Shen Family was built atop a tomb?" Zhang Chen paused upon hearing this.
"First there was the Shen Family, and then there was today’s Jinling City. You can imagine how deep the Shen Family’s foundations are. Unfortunately, the descendants of the Shen Family have been disappointing, declining with each generation since the Ancient Era, and for a long time now, no one has appeared to rejuvenate the Shen Family." Fox Fairy Nannan’s voice was full of sighs:
"According to the Great Virtuous Master’s speculation, the Innate Divine Spirit power within the Shen Family’s bloodline has been diluted over generations. For the Shen Family to return to its peak, they either need a son of Middle Success to emerge, whose bloodline reverts to its ancestral state and elevates the Shen Family to greatness, or the Shen Family must open the Great Tomb to absorb the Innate Divine Spirit’s blood once more, raising their blood density and thus maintaining decades of prosperity." Fox Fairy Nannan said.
"But according to the clues gathered by Zhang Xiaohua, since the Shen Family’s ancestor, the Sacred Great Tomb has been completely sealed, and the Shen Family has never opened it again. So it might contain unspeakable dangers; otherwise, why would the Shen Family sit on Treasure Mountain and remain unmoved for hundreds of thousands of years without ever opening it?" Fox Fairy Nannan said.
Zhang Chen furrowed his brows upon hearing this: "Are you saying that since the Shen Family’s ancestor, the tomb has not been opened even once by the descendants?"
"Of course! Not even once!" Fox Fairy Nannan replied with certainty.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen fell into deep thought. Now that he had cultivated his Primordial Spirit, his thoughts were clear, and countless pieces of information were captured and added to his deductions: "The reason why the descendants of the Shen Family haven’t opened the Great Tomb might be due to two situations. The first is that some changes have occurred within the tomb, with some great terror resurrecting and being imprisoned inside. Once the tomb is opened, it could lead to a terrifying disaster. The second point is that the descendants of the Shen Family have lost the means to open the door. Plus, considering the information obtained earlier, ’the blood of the descendants of Shen Family’ is needed for a blood sacrifice to open the Ancient Great Tomb, the Shen Family might not open the Water God Tomb because they don’t want too many tribe members to die."
"Or there might be other reasons, but these two are the largest." Zhang Chen’s mind flashed with countless thoughts, secretly assessing which reason was most fitting and reliable.
As Zhang Chen’s mind raced with various thoughts, Fox Fairy Nannan said: "I once tried to use divine techniques to transform into nothingness and sneak into the Ancient Great Tomb, but that tomb was enveloped by a powerful energy, seemingly surrounded by a massive Feng Shui Grand Array that blocked me outside. The feeling that tomb gives me is not inferior to the tomb of the Celestial Emperor Era in the Northern Land."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen’s pupils narrowed, showing caution in his eyes. He knew which tomb Fox Fairy Nannan was referring to; she was talking about the Empress Tomb.