Chapter 28: The Ring Spirit's Pallor

He heard Old Bai Ze’s voice drifting in on the wind: “Just shout ‘Open Sesame’ three times and you’ll be able to leave.”

…What? Open Sesame? Good grief, what a tasteless incantation, thought Du Gu Ling to himself.

He slipped the Void Divine Ring onto his finger and dripped his blood onto it to claim ownership. A flash of white light burst forth, and Du Gu Ling instantly felt as if his mind was now linked with the ring.

With a single thought, he found himself transported to a space entirely different from the secret realm beneath the cliff—a place so barren it was almost pitiful by comparison. So, this is the inside of the Void Divine Ring? he wondered.

Suddenly, a little girl’s voice piped up, “Who are you?” A small girl, dressed in a bright red vest and wearing her long ponytail high, appeared gradually in midair. A lovely hairpin set off her flower-like, sweet face—her features were entirely natural, innocent to the core. Her unadorned cheeks made her seem even more pure and naïve. Her eyes were astonishingly clear, without a trace of impurity, shimmering like water, enough to make anyone’s heart melt. Her skin was fair and rosy, cheeks flushed, her little nose playful, her lips slightly pursed like cherries, and her large eyes blinked brightly—if there was one word for her, it was adorable; two words, utterly charming; three words, impossibly cute. She hovered there, eyes wide, curiously examining him.

“I’m Du Gu Ling. And who are you?” Du Gu Ling shot back.

The little girl landed on his shoulder and sniffed him, “You smell so familiar. Are you my master’s disciple?”

“Master? Who’s your master?” Du Gu Ling had no idea what she was talking about.

“My master is the famous Chaos Immortal!” The girl tilted her chin up proudly as she spoke.

What? Your master is also the Chaos Immortal? Du Gu Ling was confused, but nodded anyway and said, “I am indeed Du Gu Ling, disciple of the Chaos Immortal.”

“No wonder! Otherwise, why would that old Bai Ze hand me over to you and have you drip your blood to claim ownership? You, like my master, possess the Chaos Physique—a once-in-a-million-years phenomenon, imbued with chaotic essence.”

“Chaos Physique? Chaotic essence? What are those?” Du Gu Ling was completely lost.

“It’s normal not to know,” the girl replied. “You probably know that cultivators have vital essence within them. Sometimes their essence acquires special properties, either because of a natural mutation or by consuming rare treasures—like wind, fire, lightning, metal, wood, water, earth, even light and darkness. These essences with properties are not only more powerful in battle, but sometimes have unique effects.”

She paused, then continued, “But chaotic essence is superior to all of them; it’s the ultimate essence, above all others. It can transform into any kind. Isn’t that amazing? Those who possess chaotic essence are called bearers of the Chaos Physique.”

So that’s how it is. He never would have imagined he had chaotic essence. Did that make him extraordinary? Du Gu Ling felt a surge of pride.

“Don’t get too cocky, kid,” the girl mocked. “Even with the Chaos Physique, there’s a huge drawback—it’s terribly slow to advance. At your current pace, it might take millions of years before you become as powerful as my master.”

“You look even younger than I am. Why call me ‘kid’?” As soon as Du Gu Ling spoke, he realized with a jolt: according to the Chaos Immortal, a cataclysm of ten million years was about to descend. If it took him that long to become powerful, it would be far too late.

“All right, stop looking so glum,” the girl said. “Things will work out somehow. Let me introduce myself—I am the spirit of the Void Divine Ring you wear, and my name is Cang Cang.” She looked at him with pride.

“What, a ring spirit? What’s that?” Du Gu Ling was baffled.

Cang Cang nearly fell out of the air in disbelief. “You mean you don’t even know about artifact spirits or ring spirits? How do you not know anything?”

Du Gu Ling shook his head.

Cang Cang thought to herself, Where did Bai Ze pick up such a clueless idiot?

At that very moment, Bai Ze, flying in the sky, suddenly sneezed. Who’s cursing me? he wondered, then muttered, “I wonder if that kid can handle Cang Cang.” Just thinking of her made him shiver.

Cang Cang explained, “Every divine or sacred artifact produces its own intelligence. I am the artifact spirit of your Void Divine Ring. Since I’m a ring, I call myself the ring spirit. There are also sword spirits, tower spirits, blade spirits, and so on. Understand?”

Du Gu Ling nodded, only half-following.

Cang Cang was exasperated. “Forget it, you’ll figure it out eventually. For your information, I’ve lived for millions of years. I’m Bai Ze’s peer, so if he can call you ‘kid,’ why can’t I?”

She then looked at him loftily and added, “Even though you’ve claimed me, from now on you have to do as I say. Otherwise, I’ll show you what I’m capable of, got it?” She waved a tiny fist in the air.

Finally, Du Gu Ling understood—this little girl just wanted him to obey her. He found it both funny and exasperating. Wasn’t it supposed to be the other way around? The master should be obeyed by the spirit, not vice versa. But as soon as he seemed to realize something, Cang Cang vanished in a flash. “All right, you can leave now. I want some time alone.”

She disappeared. Hiding, Cang Cang patted her chest in relief. That was close—he almost figured it out. How could she, Cang Cang, end up as the spirit of such a blockhead? I miss Master… and tears welled up at the corners of her eyes.

After a while, Cang Cang wiped away her tears. Well, no matter what, since Master took him as a disciple, she couldn’t betray her master’s intent.

Seeing that Cang Cang was gone, Du Gu Ling knew there was no point staying. With a thought, he returned to the secret realm beneath the cliff.

He gathered the herbs he had just dug up and stored them all in the Void Divine Ring, leaving only some clothes and food in his storage pouch. Then he picked up the egg Bai Ze had left for him.

The egg was about the size of his own head and looked quite ordinary. Well, since Bai Ze told him to claim it, he would do as told. He trusted Bai Ze wouldn’t harm him.

He pricked his chest and let a drop of blood fall on the egg. Instantly, there was another burst of white light. He reflexively shielded his eyes. He almost wanted to complain—why did everything today come with a blinding white flash?

When he lowered his hand, he saw only a small pet crawling around, much like a little worm. It had two horns on its head, was about the size of a newborn puppy, but looked more like a little earthworm with four tiny legs.

As soon as the mysterious pet emerged, it clambered onto his shoulder and hugged him, crying, “Daddy, Daddy!”

Du Gu Ling looked at the unknown creature. Not knowing what to call it, he said, “Since you look so much like a bug, I’ll call you Buggy.” Then he wondered, Could you really just be a bug?

Buggy seemed to understand and bared its teeth at him.

He picked it up by the leg and realized—it was a female, after all. But then he was troubled: how was he supposed to carry her around? People would surely ask questions he couldn’t answer.

Just then, Buggy crawled up his arm and suddenly vanished. Looking down, he saw a tattoo on his arm. The tattoo was rather fierce, all claws and fangs, nothing like the unremarkable Buggy from before.

Seeing that the creature had such powers, Du Gu Ling was delighted. “You really are something special, just as Elder Bai Ze said. In that case, you shouldn’t be called Buggy anymore. How about Petal?”

He suddenly felt a wave of joy and happiness from his arm.

To his surprise, when Petal merged with him, they could now sense each other’s thoughts. The more he discovered, the more he liked this pet. With a thought, he told Petal, “Just stay attached to my arm like this.”

After dealing with these two things Bai Ze had left him, he looked around at the place that had changed his fate. Taking a deep breath, he shouted three times, “Open Sesame!”

A flash of white light, and Du Gu Ling was back on the cliff where he’d fallen that night. It was now daytime. He had no idea how long he’d spent in the secret realm, but now all he wanted was to leave as soon as possible.

Taking advantage of the daylight, he checked his compass and hurried off in a chosen direction.

He ran from noon until sunset, not stopping until the moon was rising and he finally reached the edge of the Cold Moon Forest.

Looking back at the forest, he let out a long sigh of relief. Remembering all he’d been through there, Du Gu Ling was full of emotion.

He gazed down at the city below the mountain—Cold Moon City—and couldn’t help but want to shout: Cold Moon City, I’m back!

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