Chapter 240: Dilemma

Yang Ning and Shen Shuibi actually didn't have a very good relationship.

Although strictly speaking, they were biological sisters, conceived from the Great Dao of Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron and Empress Luofu.

Empress Luofu was most skilled in the transformations of Yin and Yang Qi.

The Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron, furthermore, swallowed and exhaled the sun and moon; the sun and moon of eight million realms rose and set within its body, and it had already mastered the Great Dao of the sun and moon's operation.

When their two Great Daos intertwined, the essence of the sun and moon that was conceived was Shen Shuibi and Yang Ning.

Empress Luofu's surname was Shen, while the Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron had chosen the surname Yang for itself.

However, because they inherited different parts of the two's Great Daos, their personalities also differed.

Shen Shuibi was introverted and gentle, while Yang Ning was flamboyant and strong; this contradiction in their personalities made Yang Ning always dislike Shen Shuibi's plant-like way of life.

She was truly like a tree, standing rooted in place, swaying with the wind.

But now, it seemed something was a little different.

Shen Shuibi seemed not as soft as before?

Therefore, Yang Ning asked, "Have you come to your senses?"

Shen Shuibi shook her head, "I've always known what to do; it's just our turn now."

"It's good that you know what you're doing, so what now? Coming back, what are your plans?" Yang Ning placed her hand on Shen Shuibi's shoulder and gently pushed.

With that push, a crack appeared in the Grotto-Heaven, and the two left the Grotto-Heaven together, appearing among the Spirit Peaks outside.

Above the Spirit Peaks, the scenery was magnificent, with clear mountains, beautiful waters, and vibrant Life Qi.

Here, Yang Ning found a stone to sit on, gazing at the mountain scenery not far away.

Shen Shuibi also sat beside her and took the initiative to ask, "Have you recovered to the Fifth Grade?"

Yang Ning replied, "My injuries aren't as severe as yours. Once that entire solar essence is refined by me, I should be able to stabilize at the Fifth Grade. Besides me, Granny Mei is also... As for the others, they probably didn't escape."

"Granny Mei... It's good that she's still alive," Shen Shuibi sighed.

Mount Luofu was surrounded by thirty-two layers of heaven, with each layer being a Fourth Grade Realm.

The Lords of the Realm of these worlds were Fourth Grade, and Granny Mei was one of them.

In other words, Mount Luofu still had one Fourth Grade alive now.

Whether out of emotion or the current situation, that phrase, "It's good," came from the bottom of her heart.

Then, she continued, "If Granny Mei is still alive, can we repay some of Shaman God Mountain's Karma in advance? I still remember many of the methods I developed myself, which should be able to make up for Shaman God Mountain's lack of understanding of some details of the Dao Orthodoxy, perhaps allowing Niangniang to bear a little less."

Shen Shuibi discussed these matters.

Yang Ning was very surprised, "It seems you've truly come to your senses, so what are you thinking?"

Shen Shuibi nodded and began to explain her thoughts, "I need to tell you what I learned on the way first."

"First of all, I think we should... Wait, let me think, I've forgotten a bit." Shen Shuibi's words were on the tip of her tongue, but she seemed to get stuck.

It was like that feeling of picking up a pen and forgetting a character, or suddenly having amnesia when words were on the tip of your tongue.

Yang Ning's expression immediately turned suspicious.

She frowned and said in a questioning tone, "...You're a bit off."

Shen Shuibi tilted her head, "Isn't this normal? I've already said—"

She had only said half of it.

But Yang Ning directly interrupted her, "Your mind has been affected by the River of Time. Dropping to the Eighth Grade has such a big impact on you?"

"Impact? I don't know of any impact." Shen Shuibi shook her head.

"You and I are both naturally Immortal, but you are not anymore. You are even more impatient than I am now," Yang Ning said, "Have you been affected by the Mortal's mind?"

"Mortal's mind...?" Shen Shuibi was puzzled.

"Can you understand this now?" Yang Ning waved her hand, and countless symbols emerged.

These symbols were all Yin and Yang trigrams that Shen Shuibi was very familiar with.

These Yin and Yang trigrams could be arranged in different sequences based on different combinations of Yin and Yang, forming different hexagrams, and ultimately expressing different meanings.

It was a very efficient way of communication; Dao Orthodoxy often used this method to communicate cultivation methods.

Shen Shuibi was naturally very skilled at these things; she could even form Formations and mobilize natural forces just by using Yin and Yang trigrams.

However, suddenly, she found that she seemed to be having great difficulty reading them.

"Did you notice? You're Eighth Grade now?" Yang Ning asked.

"Yes... It's Eighth Grade. My Spirit Soul is degenerating," Shen Shuibi frowned deeply, saying with a hint of sorrow.

Yes, she realized the problem.

She had just said it before.

As the essence of Taiyin conceived by the Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron, she was naturally Immortal from birth.

The erosion of the River of Time meant nothing to her.

From the moment she was born, she could naturally resist external influences.

No illness, no evil, no magic could invade.

Later, after refining the Immaculate Body, the erosion of the external River of Time could almost be ignored; the body's regeneration alone could easily resist aging.

But now, the situation was a little different.

The Immaculate Body was broken, and even if it was barely repaired, it was like a leaky house.

Her Spirit Soul was exposed to the world, suffering all the ravages that Mortals endured.

"Am I... aging?" Shen Shuibi raised her hand and touched her Face.

Her Face was nothing special, still as soft as ever, but she could feel something was wrong.

On her skin, there were traces of the elements.

Yes, there should be traces of the elements, after all, she had journeyed with Li Qi for nearly two years.

In two years, Li Qi had already grown to Eighth Grade.

The old Shen Shuibi would spend more than two years in a daze; her concept of time had been completely overridden by her Immortal essence.

Therefore, she felt that these two years of her life had been particularly fulfilling, and she had done an extraordinary amount of things.

The reason was simple.

The perception of time for the long-lived and the short-lived was not the same thing at all.

Even if Shen Shuibi thought she was still long-lived, things had actually changed.

She could no longer spend two years in a daze.

Nor could she continue to view this world from the perspective of a long-lived being.

Even her Physical Body was like this.

Changes in Lifespan would naturally affect the mind.

Mayflies that live and die in a day are destined not to share the same perspective or think with the same mindset as Immortals who live forever.

In other words, Shen Shuibi becoming more lively, talkative, and able to communicate with others while staying with Li Qi was not because she was amiable.

It was because she was gradually degenerating into a Mortal.

Yang Ning stood up, patted Shen Shuibi's shoulder, and said with a worried expression, "Your desire to help is good, but now is not the time. You need to re-cultivate. You cannot participate in those matters now; leave them to Granny Mei and me."

However, Yang Ning suddenly asked, "Now that you've returned to the Seventh Grade, with your injuries, can you regain immortality?"

This question was very subtle.

Normally, reaching the Seventh Grade meant one could achieve immortality, existing eternally. As long as they weren't destroyed by external forces, the human body's mini-cosmos could no longer be slowly eroded and destroyed by the River of Time, or rather, the 'Sea of Suffering.'

But after Shen Shuibi recovered to the Seventh Grade, could she regain immortality?

Shen Shuibi originally thought she could.

But now, after being enlightened by Yang Ning, she thought carefully.

Perhaps... it was questionable.

It had been said many times: the Physical Body is like a boat, and the True Spirit resides within it.

This boat sails in an existence that is difficult to perceive.

The Dao of Reason calls it space-time, which is the independent fourth dimension of time within three-dimensional space, the root of all movement. Movement causes 'chaos,' ultimately pushing everything towards destruction.

Dao Orthodoxy calls it the River of Time; the water of time constantly beats, making everything tend towards chaos.

Buddhism calls it the Sea of Suffering; all things sink in the Sea of Suffering, unable to find liberation; only by becoming a Buddha can one transcend.

Shaman Dao, on the other hand, simply regards it as the natural wear and tear of all things in the world, believing it to be part of the natural cycle of heaven. The worn-out parts will eventually join other new births, maintaining the balance of all things.

And the reason why the Seventh Grade can exist eternally is that each Dao Orthodoxy's understanding and theories have solutions.

Then, based on the theories of their respective Dao Orthodoxy, different methods were developed. Some of these methods could inhibit the damage to this boat, or accelerate its replacement, all with different ways to allow the boat to exist eternally without experiencing major storms.

It's not because you reach the Seventh Grade that you can be Immortal.

It's that when you reach the Seventh Grade, you are qualified to learn and use such methods to infinitely extend your life.

The problem lies here.

If Shen Shuibi recovered to the Seventh Grade, could she regain her immortality? Could she repair her Immaculate Body?

Difficult.

Even at the Seventh Grade, her injuries would likely cause her Lifespan to continuously shrink, and even using those life-extending methods wouldn't be able to stop the leakage.

Shen Shuibi's boat had too large a hole, so large that ordinary methods would probably find it very difficult to plug.

She was once a Fifth Grade, and upon Yang Ning's reminder, she immediately realized this.

Her expression became heavy.

At this moment, Yang Ning said to Shen Shuibi, "We still need Shaman God Mountain's help, otherwise, your aging might not be suppressed. You'd best calculate your remaining Lifespan, but if I were to guess, it shouldn't exceed five hundred years."

Five hundred years sounded like a lot, but for them, it was already a matter of life and death.

Upon hearing this, Shen Shuibi anxiously grabbed Yang Ning, "No, we can't ask Shaman God Mountain, we have to find a way ourselves!"

"Niangniang is already burdened with too much Karma. If we continue to ask Shaman God Mountain for things, I'm afraid that in the future there will truly be no Mount Luofu, only a Luofu branch of Shaman God Mountain," Shen Shuibi said anxiously.

"Then what can we do? You say there are still five hundred years of Lifespan, but you know how difficult it is to reverse aging?" Yang Ning glared at her and reprimanded her.

Aging is very difficult to reverse.

Why do many cultivators appear old and decrepit?

Because by the time they cultivate to immortality, they are already terribly aged. Some are too lazy to change their appearance, so they walk around looking old, while those who care about Face will reshape their Physical Bodies and appear younger.

Yes, they can reshape their Physical Bodies.

But what about the True Spirit?

The Physical Body is just a boat, and as the boat gradually breaks down, it harms the passenger inside, which is the consciousness and thought, commonly known as 'a sliver of True Spirit.'

The Physical Body can be reshaped, but the aging of the True Spirit will genuinely affect the speed of thought.

For example, Shen Shuibi.

She had only aged for two years, and she was already having difficulty interpreting Yin and Yang trigrams, even experiencing moments of forgetting characters when writing.

This was a terrifying thing for someone like her, who was naturally Immortal; their True Spirit should ideally be in the most perfect state.

But now, this perfect state was broken.

The aging of the True Spirit, caused by the damaged Physical Body being exposed to and eroded by the River of Time, is normally irreversible.

Although it can be restored through some means, those means are, without exception, extremely difficult.

Either it requires a powerful being to act, or Heaven And Earth Treasures; in any case, it's not easy.

Yang Ning knew that Shen Shuibi meant to give up on treatment.

That's why she was so angry.

However, Shen Shuibi replied, "A few years are irrelevant; we can find a way."

Yang Ning immediately flared up in anger and retorted impolitely, "A few years? Niangniang will be in slumber for at least a century. What will you do then? What can be done in a century? I can't even refine that great sun in a hundred years! I can't help you!"

Shen Shuibi also seemed to be a bit angry. The usually gentle and weak her stiffly retorted to Yang Ning, "Then what do you want me to do?"

"Seeking help from Shaman God Mountain now will only make Niangniang bear heavier Karma. How will Niangniang repay it?"

"What does Mount Luofu have left to repay this Karma? Are you going to use the Grotto-Master's Dao opportunity to repay it?"

Shen Shuibi was not as emotionally intense as Yang Ning; she was more like a soft nail, without any particularly angry tone, just calmly retorting.

But this sentence choked Yang Ning and left Golden Crow speechless.

What to use to repay it?

The Dao opportunity of the Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron?

Could she really say that?

The two fell silent.

The wind blew around them, rustling their hair and stirring their clothes, under a bright sun.

But it could not disperse the gloom in their hearts.

After several minutes, Shen Shuibi sighed first and said, "It's better to do more now, while my True Spirit is only partially slowed."

"I will be opening an Alchemy furnace soon, and then I will compile the cultivation method documents and the Dao Orthodoxy's Dao脉络 that I never wrote down but kept in my mind. These things should allow us to live here without being criticized."

In fact, no one was criticizing them at all. Shaman God Mountain yearned for Dao opportunities, but in a place like this, they weren't that petty and weren't going to charge them money.

But living under someone else's roof comes with its own feelings, and even if the host said nothing, Mount Luofu had its own Face.

Now, Shen Shuibi was preparing to use her past savings to pay some 'rent.'

Yang Ning used to only like fighting and killing, and didn't understand research.

Only Shen Shuibi used to spend her days studying these things, but back then it was out of hobby and interest. Many of her researches were just kept in her mind after she finished them, and she didn't plan to tell anyone else.

But now, she was preparing to take out all her past efforts and hobbies and sell them for money.

It must be said, I rushed out a chapter by sacrificing my Lifespan, and didn't miss an update, being too responsible led to the failure of taking leave.