Door of Luck and Fortune

Ji Luofei opened her eyes in a daze but saw a room that wasn't very big, with six people in it; she was lying on a wooden couch. Besides her, there were Zhuang Tianya, Jian Sujie, and Dan Xiangling, while the other two girls were strangers to her.

"Where is this? Where is Ning Cheng?" Ji Luofei came to her senses and sat up anxiously to ask.

Dan Xiangling usually didn't speak much, while Jian Sujie and Ji Luofei weren't on good terms at all, and the two other girls Ji Luofei didn't recognize were even less likely to say anything. Only Zhuang Tianya said, "We're currently on a flying craft headed to Huazhou; we've just passed over Daan Forest. In a few days, we should be approaching Yuanzhou."

"Yuanzhou? But what about Ning Cheng?" Ji Luofei suddenly jumped off the wooden couch and asked, not waiting for Zhuang Tianya to reply, she immediately followed up with, "What about my aunt? Did she bring Ning Cheng along?"

Zhuang Tianya fell silent, and Ji Luofei immediately realized what had happened and turned to rush out. Zhuang Tianya was startled and quickly grabbed hold of Ji Luofei, exclaiming, "Have you lost your mind?"

"Even if I have lost my mind, I must save Ning Cheng. Ning Cheng, left alone in Cang Qin Country, has no chance of survival..." Ji Luofei said anxiously and in panic, "Let me go, quickly."

Zhuang Tianya did not let go of Ji Luofei, but sighed and said, "Luofei, if you rush out like this, intending to return to Cang Qin Country, not only will you not survive, but your aunt will also face severe consequences, and you definitely won't be able to make it back to Cang Qin Country. Do you know the cultivation level of the senior on this flying craft? He is a senior in the Mysterious Liquid Realm. Your aunt is just a teacher at the academy; she could only bring you back to the Meteor Academy in Huazhou. Many things..."

Ji Luofei calmed down and stopped her impulse to leave. Of course, she knew about the Mysterious Liquid Realm—only after reaching the pinnacle of the Building Foundation Realm could one attempt to break into the Mysterious Liquid Realm. And those who advanced to the Mysterious Liquid Realm were rare; in the lower realms, each expert of the Mysterious Liquid Realm held an extremely high status.

The Building Foundation Realm involved transforming True Yuan into True Liquid to forge a foundation. At the same time, it engendered spiritual awareness, making the Building Foundation Realm a watershed for cultivators. However, the Mysterious Liquid Realm is achieved after reaching the perfect culmination of the ninth level of the Building Foundation Realm, when the True Liquid accumulates to form an embryonic lake in the dantian. As the practitioner's cultivation consolidates, the lake of True Liquid expands and thickens, and their spiritual awareness simultaneously grows. A cultivator with such a lake of True Liquid is far more powerful than those in the Building Foundation Realm.

To put it plainly, just as her aunt easily killed two people at the sixth level of the Gathering Qi stage, someone in the Mysterious Liquid Realm could just as easily kill her aunt.

Seeing Ji Luofei's hands tremble, Zhuang Tianya continued, "Besides, even if you go back, you can't save Ning Cheng. And what's more, can you even make it back?"

"What happened to him?" Ji Luofei's voice was shaking even more now.

Zhuang Tianya did not hide anything and said, "When Ning Cheng left the academy, he heard Gu Fei verbally insult you and immediately got into a conflict with him. As a result, Gu Fei challenged him..."

Ji Luofei clenched her fists until her knuckles turned blue. Honestly, what left the deepest impression of Ning Cheng on her was not the many years they had lived under the same roof, but rather the memory of that time after she helped Ning Cheng kill Xian Yuankui and told him to run away.

That was only a short amount of time, but the impression Ning Cheng left on her was more significant than all previous ones combined.

"Don't worry… just listen to me."

"Luofei, you know my aptitude; remember after I'm gone to avenge me, I don't want to die without someone avenging me."

"Luofei, you're not ugly at all..."

Ning Cheng's words seemed to ring in her ears, but where was Ning Cheng?

Truly getting to know someone sometimes doesn't happen even over many years, but sometimes a single moment can feel like a lifetime. Ji Luofei felt that she had come to completely understand Ning Cheng in the brief time they had interacted.

"What happened to Ning Cheng afterward?" Though Ji Luofei knew in her heart that Ning Cheng's chances were slim, she still held on to a sliver of hope as she gripped Zhuang Tianya's hand anxiously.

Zhuang Tianya felt Ji Luofei's trembling hand and sighed inwardly; in her eyes, Ning Cheng was far from a match for Ji Luofei. She did not understand why Ji Luofei was so concerned about Ning Cheng.

Zhuang Tianya, trying to be comforting, patted Ji Luofei's hand and said, "When Gu Fei challenged Ning Cheng, Ning Cheng proposed to race Gu Fei outside the city. Ning Cheng probably intended to use this method to escape, but the difference in their cultivation levels was simply too great, and Gu Yiming was also there backing Gu Fei up."

Ji Luofei was so focused that she failed to notice her palm had been squeezed until it bled; she was well aware that although Ning Cheng was more capable than her, what could he do in the face of absolute strength?

Ning Cheng, I will surely avenge you, I won't let you die without vengeance...

Ji Luofei etched these words into the bottom of her heart, vowing that once her own cultivation was sufficient, she would return to kill Gu Yiming. And not just him but also the king of Cang Qin Country and others...

Ji Luofei gave Jian Sujie beside her a cold look. She was very clear that Ning Cheng hadn't done anything to Jian Sujie, and the fall of the Ning family was undoubtedly related to her. If given the chance, she would help Ning Cheng kill both Jian Sujie and Qiu Yingguang.

Seeing Ji Luofei's icy gaze, Jian Sujie felt a chill run through her body. But she quickly recovered, as if she knew what Ji Luofei was thinking, and looked back at Ji Luofei with equally cold eyes, "If you want to avenge Ning Cheng, I, Jian Sujie, will take it on."

"Your Jian family and Qiu family conspired together to frame Ning Cheng. As someone who hadn't even succeeded in reaching the Gathering Qi stage, could Ning Cheng have been impolite to you? I am not blind. Ning Cheng is gone, and I will finish his business for him," said Ji Luofei, her tone completely devoid of any emotion.

Even Zhuang Tianya, standing to one side, shuddered at the words. She had an inexplicable feeling that Ji Luofei had changed, becoming someone she completely did not recognize, no longer the previously kind-hearted Ji Luofei who had locked away her own feelings.

Although Jian Sujie's heart also shuddered, she still said, "It is true that Ning Cheng took liberties with me at the beginning. I later learned that he was framed, but it certainly wasn't by me. Moreover, I was also a victim. That's why I didn't continue to pursue killing him, and even saved him once. Whether you believe it or not is up to you."

Ji Luofei closed her eyes and slowly sat down, completely ignoring Jian Sujie.

...

For one month, Ning Cheng and An Yi had been taking detours. An Yi had become much quieter, but that didn't mean she was useless. At least she could cook and knew various spiritual grasses, though she did not eat meat. An Yi never ate any of the various animals Ning Cheng hunted.

Ning Cheng never cared what An Yi ate. He spent the journey researching the spiritual grass manual that An Yi had given him. By now, he had made much more progress than when he had first left Cang Le City. At least he could recognize ordinary spiritual grasses.

An Yi had become much quieter but was also more dependent on Ning Cheng. Every time Ning Cheng went hunting, she would become anxious. Only when she saw Ning Cheng return would she calm down. The death of her master had dealt her a great blow.

That day, Ning Cheng and An Yi crossed another huge mountain. The two could already smell the salty scent of the sea, and Ning Cheng was thrilled. Even if everything was unfamiliar, the sea was still the same as in his previous life, at least on the surface.

Thinking of the boundless sea he was about to reach, Ning Cheng felt his own heart expand immensely. He even longed to reach the shore and then shout out loud, "I have finally seen the ocean again."

However, when Ning Cheng turned back and saw the still silent An Yi, his surge of passion immediately subsided. He smiled at An Yi and said, "An Yi, why did your master say you couldn't marry?"

Ning Cheng was worried that if An Yi continued like this for too long, she might develop depression. An Yi might not understand this, but that didn't mean he was clueless.

"I don't know either. If my master said I can't marry, then I just won't marry. Didn't you also tell me that monks don't get married?" said An Yi, her eyes wide as she looked at Ning Cheng.

Ning Cheng, looking into An Yi's bright, clear eyes and her now thinner face, felt a pang of sorrow for her. He immediately put those emotions aside and still smiling, said to An Yi, "An Yi, in my hometown, monks can get married."

"Ning Big Brother, are you saying you want me to marry you?" An Yi immediately asked. She never hid her questions when with Ning Cheng. After being with Ning Cheng for over a month, she had begun to refer to him as Ning Big Brother.

Ning Cheng, feeling troubled, ruffled his hair and said, "No, I have a girlfriend. What I meant was..."

An Yi smiled slightly and said, "Ning Big Brother, you don't have to worry about me, and thank you for taking care of me along the way. My master is gone, and I'm just sad. Now I'm gradually coming to terms with it. You don't have to comfort me specifically."

Ning Cheng stared at An Yi in amazement. Now, if anyone called this little nun dull, he was ready to take issue with them. It seemed An Yi always knew what was on his mind; she just didn't like to speak out.

Seeing Ning Cheng a little embarrassed and lost in thought, An Yi suddenly said, "Ning Big Brother, I have always been grateful to you. Without your company, I really wouldn't have known what to do after my master passed away."

After saying this, she took the initiative for the first time and asked, "Ning Big Brother, you mentioned you had a girlfriend, and that you two had a bit of a quarrel and broke up. Would you still go look for her?"

Ning Cheng hadn't expected An Yi to remember that clearly; it had been just an offhand comment to placate An Yi's master. Considering how distraught An Yi had been then, it was surprising she remembered. Women, truly, you never know what they're thinking, nun or not.

"I won't anymore. Besides, I have no way of finding her now," Ning Cheng shook his head and said.

An Yi asked again, "Ning Big Brother, if you could find her, would you go look for her?"

Ning Cheng fell silent. Tian Muwan had acted toward him without any explanation.

It was one thing for a woman to throw a small tantrum, but Tian Muwan should not have given the pearl flowers he had given her to Zha Zhiyi. And Zha Zhiyi had thrown the pearl flowers into the sewer, yet Tian Muwan had asked Zha Zhiyi to buy her another one. Regardless of Tian Muwan's intentions, Ning Cheng felt it would be difficult for him to treat her the same way as before.

He had given those two pearl flowers, symbolizing the two dearest to him, one being his sister Ruolan. When Tian Muwan, through Zha Zhiyi, discarded the pearl flowers, it was as if she had also discarded the sincerity he had for her. (Please add to bookshelf if convenient, as it's like having an extra favorite. Thank you!)...