It had to be admitted that while this child’s talent was not as exceptional as Tingtong’s, her perseverance and temperament were remarkably satisfying.
The exertion she had just displayed had pushed her to the absolute limit of what she could endure; anyone else would likely have found it impossible to hold on.
Yet, she had persevered and successfully performed the spells Su Qing had prescribed.
Furthermore, she hadn’t wasted much time during the process.
One could say she had performed excellently...
And Su Qing was never one to be stingy with praise.
Seeing that she had done well, Su Qing offered her applause in support.
"Not bad, not bad at all! You did very well this time. Although your control over magic power is still slightly lacking, it has reached an excellent standard."
Su Qing nodded and continued, "Since you have completed the test I set for you, I will proceed to teach you more profound knowledge of talismans as agreed."
Hearing this, even though she was exhausted to the point of collapse and nearly fainting, Bai Qingrou couldn't help but break into a smile.
She was naturally overjoyed.
After all, this was the reason she had worked so hard.
Seeing her happy expression, Su Qing chuckled, though her tone grew slightly more serious as she added, "While you did well, do not celebrate too early. The more profound the talismans, the harder they are to learn. The requirements for magic power control will only increase, and the demand for magic power itself will rise accordingly. Your current level of control is barely passing, but your total magic power is still far from enough. Take this advanced cultivation manual and practice with it... I will test you again in a few days."
Bai Qingrou didn't find Su Qing’s stern demeanor frightening at all; instead, she was very happy.
She knew very well...
The stricter her master was, the more seriously she was being taught.
For her, this was a good thing.
Besides, Su Qing’s strictness was limited only to her teaching.
In all other matters, she remained very relaxed and generous.
Therefore, even though she had been sternly cautioned, Bai Qingrou took the words to heart with earnest devotion.
"Alright, go down and practice on your own!" Seeing her beaming face, Su Qing waved her hand, not bothering to say more. "As for the content regarding talismans, take this part and look it over first... Once your cultivation has progressed further, I will teach you the rest."
It wasn't that Su Qing hadn't prepared a full lesson plan; it was simply that the subsequent content was beyond Bai Qingrou’s current level.
There was no point in leaving it for her to see yet.
When it came to talismans, the greatest taboo was impatience.
It was better to let her master the talismans she could handle first before moving on to deeper layers.
Upon hearing this, Bai Qingrou nodded, then left with the new cultivation manual in hand.
After Bai Qingrou departed, Su Qing leaned back in her chair and stretched her shoulders.
As she did so, she released Chen Nianxin, who had been silenced by a silence spell for the entire day.
In return, she received a resentful glare from Chen Nianxin.
Su Qing ignored her, simply turning to look out the window before picking up her teacup.
"How much longer can this world remain at peace?"
Small-scale chaos was not true chaos.
At first, Su Qing had felt that these minor anomalies were already quite absurd.
But as time passed and she gathered more information from her seniors, she began to realize that this was truly just the simplest of beginnings.
The real trouble was still to come!
Su Qing took a sip of tea and shook her head helplessly...
Then she stood up and headed for the kitchen.
It was time to eat.
One month later.
Su Qing's main body arrived at the Moon Palace.
She had come to hang out with Chang'e as agreed.
However, when she arrived at the Moon Palace, she saw Chang'e sitting alone in the great hall, drinking gloomily.
She looked utterly dejected.
"Why is Sister Chang'e unhappy today?"
Su Qing walked over and sat down beside her quite naturally, asking with a serious expression.
Hearing her, Chang'e turned to look at her, then smiled and shook her head. "It's nothing special. It's just... I've run out of good wine to drink."
Was this true? No, it was a lie.
Su Qing could tell the moment she heard it.
However, she didn't expose the lie.
Chang'e usually didn't hide things from her. If she was hiding something now, it meant she didn't want to talk about it.
And since Chang'e was unwilling to speak, Su Qing naturally wouldn't force her to tell. There was no need for that...
Su Qing didn't want her curiosity to make their excellent relationship turn awkward.
So she simply smiled, nodded, and said, "If it's good wine you want, I have quite a lot. Would you like a taste?"
Hearing this, the corners of Chang'e's mouth curled into a faint smile. She nodded and said, "If you have good wine, why wouldn't I drink it?"
With that, Su Qing brought out her own fine wine.
This was wine from the mortal world, but it was an exceptionally rare vintage.
Although it contained no spiritual Qi, the liquid was no less delicious than spirit wine...
Even Chang'e was full of praise after tasting it.
Soon, she returned to her usual self when spending time with Su Qing, as if nothing had happened moments ago.
The two of them drank for a long time.
Su Qing maintained her self-control, drinking only until she felt a slight buzz while keeping her reason intact.
Chang'e, for her part, didn't act out while drunk this time. Once she finished drinking, she simply lay down and fell asleep, appearing completely out of commission.
Looking at her like this, Su Qing couldn't help but shake her head, muttering to herself, "I wonder what exactly is troubling Sister Chang'e... It's a pity she won't tell me; I can't even help her talk through it. Fortunately, her tolerance for alcohol is poor; she gets drunk in no time."
Su Qing smiled, then helped Chang'e up and escorted her back to her room.
Once she had settled her inside, Su Qing didn't linger. She turned and left the room, then departed from the Moon Palace without further delay.
Long after Su Qing had gone, Chang'e woke from her slumber.
She looked up at her room and couldn't help but let out a long, melancholy sigh.
"As expected, I still can't tell her... that Patriarch Bodhi and the others have already entered the Jianmu Tree. Sigh... I wonder what the scenery is like inside the Jianmu Tree, how difficult it will be to rebuild the Heavenly Court within it, and most of all... if this journey is dangerous."
Chang'e's heart was filled with gloom.
This was because, among those who had entered the Jianmu Tree this time, besides Patriarch Bodhi... the Lunar Deity had also gone inside.
In fact, many other old seniors had entered together.
Naturally, she couldn't help but feel depressed.
However, depression was one thing, but life had to go on.
Someone had to go to the Jianmu Tree, and it was a path that could absolutely not be abandoned.
It was the hope for the Heavenly Court to survive the tribulation...
Someone always had to risk their life.
Chang'e sighed, then closed her eyes and went back to sleep.
Once asleep, she wouldn't have to think so much.
Time is harder to grasp than the sand in one's palm.
In the blink of an eye, another thirty years had passed.
Thirty years was not particularly long, yet it was certainly not short either.
During these thirty years, many things, large and small, had occurred.
The clone responsible for increasing Su Qing's incense power in the mortal world had traveled through several more cities. By now, it had gathered a significant amount of faith and incense power for her.
Meanwhile, the Su Qing at the Northern Continent was still there. As for the reason... it really wasn't that she wanted to linger.
It was simply that Great Emperor Zhenwu still hadn't returned.
Three years after three years, and now thirty years had passed, yet he was still nowhere to be seen.
It truly left Su Qing feeling utterly helpless.
If it weren't for the fact that being in this position allowed her to earn some incense power from the Northern Continent on the side, she would have wanted to throw in the towel long ago.
After all... how could someone keep extending their leave like this?
As for the Changbai Mountains, her unofficial disciple, Bai Qingrou, had now successfully completed her studies.
Although her cultivation wasn't particularly high upon her graduation—still a hundred and eight thousand miles away from the Earthly Immortal realm—she did indeed have some ability to protect herself.
Returning to the mortal world would no longer be a problem for her.
With her current abilities, there was now a certain probability she could achieve the things she wanted to do.
Aside from Su Qing's affairs, the changes across the world were not too drastic.
The anomalies brought by the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth remained relatively minor.
She had yet to see many powerful ones. Even when one appeared occasionally, it was suppressed by both the East and West working together, reducing its impact to a minimum.
Whether this situation was truly a good thing was hard to say... but it confirmed one thing for Su Qing: the Great Tribulation was indeed still a long way off.
They still had plenty of time to prepare.
Furthermore, her past actions and all her hard work had not been in vain.
Consequently, her mood was naturally quite good.
In the mortal world, Su Qing's clone brought Ao Yiyi and the others to a coastal city.
Developing faith and incense power here was slightly difficult. After a great deal of effort, Su Qing had only managed to achieve a small amount of spread.
However, Su Qing wasn't in a hurry. There was still plenty of time; she could take it slow.
After all, matters of incense power were always a slow, painstaking process. How could they be accomplished overnight?
By the sea, Su Qing sat on a reef, watching the waves constantly crash against the rocks. She stared blankly, lost in thought.
Ao Yiyi stood behind Su Qing, patted her shoulder, and sat down to ask, "What is Sister Su thinking about again? Worried about the incense power?"
"Do I look like the type to worry about that? I've always preferred to let things take their natural course; I'm not anxious about this. I just like to strike quickly once I see an opportunity so I can move on to the next place."
Su Qing curled her lips into a slight smile and replied, "I was thinking about Su Qingyu and the others. It's been thirty years since we left, hasn't it? I wonder how they are doing now."
Thirty years was naturally not a long time for an immortal. Even staying in the mortal world, they wouldn't feel that thirty years was particularly lengthy.
After all, wasn't everyone here at least a thousand years old?
Oh, except for that silly cat, Coal Ball.
However, to her, thirty years didn't feel like much either. Since she spent her time eating and sleeping, time passed just as quickly.
Returning to the topic, thirty years was very short for an immortal, but it was a different story for mortals.
Therefore, Su Qing felt a desire to return to Xingyang City to see Su Qingyu and the others.
Hearing Su Qing's words, Ao Yiyi fell silent for a moment before nodding. "True. Thirty years have passed. Even those who were children back then are now in their forties or fifties... Even the youngest, Su Qingyu, should be over forty now. I wonder if they are living well."
"It seems you want to go back and take a look too?" Su Qing asked with a chuckle upon hearing her words.
Ao Yiyi nodded and said, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I might not have missed them so much. Now that you've brought it up, I find myself missing them again. Since Sister Xiao Qing plans to go back, let's go! Though, my opinion isn't really that important, is it? Whether I want to go or not, you've likely already decided to go. Haven't you?"
Having followed Su Qing for so long, how could Ao Yiyi not understand her style of doing things?
Having been seen through, Su Qing didn't feel embarrassed at all. Instead, she chuckled and nodded, admitting to Ao Yiyi's suspicion.
She said, "You're right. I did indeed already have the thought and plan to go see them. However, your opinion isn't entirely meaningless. I was still debating when to set off, but now that you've spoken, the decision is made."
Ao Yiyi's mouth twitched as she said with an amused expression, "That hardly qualifies as a major influence, does it? So, when do you plan to set off?"
"When? Why, we set off today, of course!" Su Qing chuckled and said, "Go call the others for me! After a bit of preparation, we'll go visit our old friends whom we haven't seen in thirty years."
Su Qing's decision caught Ao Yiyi by surprise, and she couldn't help but say, "Who was it that said they weren't an impatient person?"
"I'm only not in a hurry when it comes to incense power. I never said I was slow and methodical about everything else!" Su Qing spread her hands, acting as if she had been misunderstood.
Ao Yiyi was even more speechless at the sight. However, she didn't bother to continue arguing with Su Qing; such meaningless debates were just a waste of breath. So, after giving Su Qing a white look, she went to gather the others.
Once everyone learned they were going to Xingyang City, they quickly assembled by Su Qing's side.
Clearly, everyone was very curious about the situation of Su Qingyu and the others, and they were all eager to see their old friends.
Even the thoughtless little Coal Ball came to Su Qing's side.
"Coal Ball, do you plan to go too?"
"Of course I'm going!"
Little Coal Ball wasn't missing anyone; she had basically forgotten most of what happened in the past. She was only following along because she felt it would be boring if everyone else went and she didn't.
Seeing this, Su Qing nodded and didn't ask further. She simply formed a hand seal, summoned a Somersault Cloud, and led everyone toward Xingyang City.
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