Chapter 228
Xiao Yu Ying looked at Zheng Fa with a strange expression, as if she could see through his cowardice. "When others hear about the Lingbao, they would be begging me in tears... but you..."
Zheng Fa grinned sheepishly. "My master once had a disciple who stirred up a lot of trouble while treasure hunting... so he strictly ordered me not to act recklessly."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yu Ying nodded slightly, as if she believed him. "I know your sect leader; he's quite timid..."
"Exactly! I really want to go!" Zheng Fa said apologetically, nodding repeatedly. "But I can't go against my master's orders."
Xiao Yu Ying shook her head, closing her mouth as if she had given up.
However, just before they reached the Tianbei (Heavenly Monument), Zheng Fa suddenly heard her voice in his mind: "The Lingbao I mentioned is likely related to the Tianhe Zun Zhe (Venerable River)."
Zheng Fa froze, stopping in his tracks.
He understood why the usually outspoken Ling Ye Xian Zi (Fairy Ling Ye) had to resort to secretive communication—Lingbao related to the Tianhe Zun Zhe was something that could drive many cultivators to madness.
But Zheng Fa was not just concerned about that.
Now, he was particularly curious about the Tianhe Zun Zhe, especially his new methods...
Seeing the shock on Zheng Fa's face, Xiao Yu Ying smiled triumphantly. "If you change your mind, we can discuss it in detail after we leave the Tianbei."
(End of this chapter)
---
**Chapter 217: A Glimmer of Hope**
In the Tianbei realm, within the Half-Mountain City.
Zheng Fa was reviewing the Tian Gong points in his Feng Shen Ce (Book of Deification).
Ever since the Feng Shen Ce turned golden, his territory had expanded fourfold, and the heavenly tribulation had harvested over a thousand Tian Gong points.
Adding the points he had saved up before, he now had nearly two thousand points in his Feng Shen Ce.
Zheng Fa was confident that, aside from Xiao Yu Ying, the chances of anyone else in the Tianbei realm catching up to him were slim.
However, he was now facing a problem— as the villains turned to ashes one by one, the points he could earn from the heavenly tribulation were dwindling.
To acquire a large number of Tian Gong points for exchanging spiritual materials, he would likely have to rely on Yun Yu Lei (Cloud and Rain Thunder) and Ling Mu Lei (Spirit Wood Thunder), or develop the population of his territory.
He had no leads on Ling Mu Lei for the time being, but he had already made progress with Yun Yu Lei in modern research.
The three types of thunder—Xing Yun (Moving Clouds), Bu Yu (Creating Rain), and Zhi Yu (Stopping Rain)—each had their own challenges.
Xing Yun and Bu Yu required a high level of control over thunder techniques; only by advancing further in the "Shen Xiao Yu Lei Zhen Fa" (True Method of Controlling Thunder) could one truly control the amount of rainfall to the finest degree.
But Zhi Yu was different—this type of thunder relied on high-energy lasers, focusing on sheer power.
As long as his spiritual energy was sufficient, he could clear the skies for the world!
Zheng Fa opened the Feng Shen Ce and noticed that the task page had changed since it upgraded to gold.
The task page had transformed into a map, reflecting the shape of his territory.
He tapped on it, and a forecast of the Yun Yu Lei conditions for the next month appeared—just like a weather report.
Only this weather report had to be realized by his own hands...
The Feng Shen Ce could evolve—Zheng Fa now deeply suspected that this thing was mocking those beneath the golden book, suggesting they could never master Yun Yu Lei.
While he was studying the Feng Shen Ce, Xiao Qing suddenly walked in.
In the past two months, she had been eating well, growing two inches taller, and her little face had become much rounder.
She now looked like a graceful girl of fifteen or sixteen.
She was much prettier than when Zheng Fa first met her.
But at this moment, she frowned and slowly approached Zheng Fa's statue. First, she knelt on the mat and bowed reverently before softly asking, "Lord Thunder God?"
"What's the matter?"
Zheng Fa's voice rang out, and Xiao Qing's face lit up with joy. "Lord Thunder God, I want to ask when the thunder will stop in the river down the mountain?"
"Mm?"
Zheng Fa scanned her thoughts and quickly understood what she was asking.
Descending from Half-Mountain City, there was a river valley teeming with fish and shrimp, which sustained the tens of thousands of people in the city.
However, for the past half month, the valley had been inundated with torrential rain and wild lightning.
"Several people have already been struck dead; the townsfolk are too scared to go fishing," Xiao Qing said, her brow furrowed. "We can only gather mushrooms and dig for bamboo shoots in the mountains, but it's just not enough..."
After listening to Xiao Qing, Zheng Fa pointed at the river valley and discovered that according to the Feng Shen Ce's arrangements, this area should have had mostly sunny days for the past half month.
After a moment of thought, he said to Xiao Qing:
"Tell everyone in the city to go fishing in the river valley three days from now."
"Three days from now?" Xiao Qing asked, puzzled, but Zheng Fa didn’t offer any further explanation.
---
"Red Jie, this is from your family today, take it!"
Xiao Qing handed a small bag of mountain goods to a woman named Hong Jie. After peeking inside, Hong Jie nodded gratefully and hurried back home.
As soon as she opened the door, a fit of coughing echoed.
"Bao'er’s mother, you’re back?"
An elderly voice accompanied the cough.
The speaker was an old woman.
Though only thirty years old, she was considered quite old in Half-Mountain City.
The old woman sat at a simple loom, coughing as she wove cloth.
"Mother, you're sick; why aren't you resting properly?"
"I'm making clothes for Bao'er."
The old woman looked kindly into the room, where a toddler of one or two years was clumsily trying to walk while holding onto the wall.
"I can do it."
Hong Jie set down the bag and took out a clay pot, adding water and dumping the mountain goods into it.
"Did you catch any fish today?"
The old woman, helping to start a fire, noticed the bag contained only mushrooms and asked.
"No, the thunder in the river is too fierce; everyone is too scared to go. Mother, bring down that dried fish hanging from the eaves; it’ll spoil in this weather." Hong Jie thought for a moment. "It’s just right to help you regain your strength."
"At my age, what do I need to regain? Let Bao'er eat!" The old woman trembled as she brought the fish over, still muttering, "I told you I’d go to the mountains; why do you still look for me?"
"Mother."
"You take care of my son and raise Bao'er. If I die, I’ll bow to you in the afterlife." The old woman continued to chatter, "Why do you still look for me?"
"Mother, the Lord Thunder God said that the elderly should get more food. If you stay at home, Bao'er and I can still enjoy your blessings."
"The Lord Thunder God is meddling in trivial matters..."
Hong Jie gazed at the clay pot, speaking softly, "After you left that day, I felt so empty in the house."
"…"
"Bao'er is also looking for his grandmother everywhere."
The old woman glanced at the toddler and finally fell silent.
Hong Jie placed the dried fish into the pot to cook.
The fish wasn’t large; she wanted her mother-in-law to eat it, but her mother-in-law was reluctant, so in the end, it was given to Bao'er.
Bao'er seemed reluctant to eat it first, leaving the piece of fish in his bowl untouched.
Hong Jie let him be, and after finishing her meal, she sat down at the loom to weave.
She thought about how Bao'er had grown a bit taller and needed new clothes; they should be made larger to last longer.
She looked over at Bao'er, who was huddled with his grandmother, as she picked out fish bones for him.
Hong Jie smiled and turned her gaze back, feeling a pang of hunger.
With fishing off the table, more people were gathering mountain goods.
But the mountain goods were limited, and after half a month, the amount they could gather had dwindled significantly.
Bao'er needed to eat more to grow, and her mother-in-law needed to eat more to recover; she was left with just a couple of bites.
Suddenly, she heard Bao'er’s light footsteps approaching. Before she could turn around, her mouth was stuffed with a piece of fish. "Mother... Mother, eat fish!"
Bao'er’s tender voice rang in her ears.
Hong Jie was taken aback, turning to see Bao'er grinning at her, as if he had learned something new, saying:
"Mother gives to grandmother, grandmother gives to Bao'er, Bao'er gives to mother."
Hong Jie slowly chewed the fish in her mouth.
She felt as if the creaking of the loom was laughing at her.
"There’s still some fabric at home; after I finish making for Bao'er, I’ll make a set for the Lord Thunder God too," her mother-in-law suddenly said.
"Mother?"
"I don’t even know what size the Lord Thunder God wears," her mother-in-law murmured.
---
Three days later.
Hong Jie was just about to head out.
Her mother-in-law stood at the door, blocking her way.
"Mother?"
"I'm going today," her mother-in-law insisted. "If something happens to me, Bao'er can’t be left without a mother."
"Mother, your health..."
"I'm fine!"
Her mother-in-law pushed her back into the house.
---
Xiao Qing stepped out of the temple.
In Half-Mountain City, with over ten thousand households, at least one person from each family had come out, standing before the temple.
They looked at Xiao Qing with various expressions.
Some were confused, some disbelieving, and others anxious.
"Xiao Qing, can we really go fishing?"
"What did the Lord Thunder God say?"
"Are we going to get struck?"
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