The next day. July 18th, early morning.
The warm sunlight passed through the small cracks in the tent and shone on Song Shuhang's body.
Shuhang opened his eyes in a daze. Next, he discovered that he was completely covered in sweat. He felt as though his chest had been crushed with a huge rock, and he was having trouble breathing.
"Huff!" Song Shuhang exhaled a big mouthful of bad air. Yesterday, he experienced a terrifying dream!
Luckily, he had avoided the worst calamity in the dreamland yesterday. Just as Chu Chu was hugged to death, the dream suddenly stopped and didn't continue further. One had to remember that Chu Chu had been thoroughly flattened only after Song Shuhang fell from the sky along with the whale.
In other words, if the dream hadn't stopped, Song Shuhang would have experienced an even more brutal and painful deadly hug!
He felt fear just by thinking about it.
After coming out of the tent, Song Shuhang discovered that Doudou and Guoguo were already up. Due to yesterday's dream, Song Shuhang got up relatively late.
Guoguo was sitting on a rock and chanting some early morning scriptures.
Doudou was standing up like a person. His current size was of two meters; he was cooking something in a cauldron.
The hybrid version Yu Jiaojiao was currently as big as a palm and was sitting beside Guoguo, curiously looking at Doudou with her small eyes; it was unknown what she was thinking.
The scene of a little monk, a monster dog, and a monster fish gathered together in the early morning… this seemed something out of a crazy movie!
On another side, on the smooth stone. Venerable White was kneeling comfortably, fiddling with his phone.
After seeing Song Shuhang, he gently smiled and said, "Shuhang, good morning."
"Good morning, Senior White. Good morning, everyone," Song Shuhang greeted everyone.
"Right, there is a piece of news you might be interested in." Venerable White smiled as he clicked and swiped on the screen of his phone.
Then, a ray of light flew out of the phone and projected a piece of news into the void.
Just what kind of scary modifications has Venerable White done to that phone...
As for the contents of the news… it was explaining how those unlucky passengers that had disappeared together with the plane met a mysterious nouveau riche on a lone island in the Pacific Ocean.
According to the news, the missing flight crew members, as well as the passengers, called home to inform their relatives that they were safe and sound.
Moreover, it was mentioned that a luxurious cruise ship was headed toward the Pacific Ocean and that it would bring back all the missing passengers in a month's time.
"Is this 'mysterious nouveau riche' Senior Seven Lives Talisman?" Song Shuhang asked.
Venerable White faintly smiled and nodded.
Song Shuhang secretly heaved a sigh of relief… it seemed that the teaching process on the island was proceeding smoothly. Senior Seven Lives Talisman had already made preparations for the departure of the passengers.
With Seven Lives Talisman there, Song Shuhang didn't have to worry about the safety of Gao Moumou and the others.
As for the fact that they would return only after a month, it wasn't a problem, either. After all, they were originally planning to go to a resort island to have some fun. Perhaps this island with primitive men living on it was even more interesting than that...
"Senior White, thank Senior Seven Lives Talisman on my behalf!" Song Shuhang said. It seemed that Senior White had no plans to let him touch the phone.
"Good." Venerable White nodded and quickly typed something on the keyboard.
At the same time, he also added, "I received another news earlier. Three days later, the Illusory Sword School and the Chu Family would fight on the Grievance Settling Platform. Since we have free time, how about going on a trip to the Chu Family? If your luck is good, you might be able to enter that secret basement and get to see the paintings."
"We're going to the Chu Family?" Song Shuhang pondered for a moment and his eyes suddenly lit up. "Senior White, I have an idea. I can ask Soft Feather to help me enter the secret basement! She has some connections with the Chu Family, and she's currently there!"
"Soft Feather is a guest in the Chu Family?" Senior White asked.
Song Shuhang vigorously nodded. "Yes! Therefore, we can ask her for help. Perhaps she can make use of her relationship with the Chu Family to let me see those paintings!"
"So it was like this." Venerable White nodded and said, "Alright. Such being the case, let's contact Soft Feather in a while."
Venerable White wasn't too interested in the conflict between factions on the level of the Chu Family and the Illusory Sword School. His interest lay in turning Song Shuhang into Chu Chu and make a trip there.
Song Shuhang excitedly clenched his fists. As long as he didn't have to turn into a girl, it was all good.
At the same time...
On the border between the East China Sea and the Pacific Ocean, in a place where multicolored butterflies were dancing—the Spirit Butterfly Island.
"Knock, knock…" Someone knocked on the formation above the island.
It was True Monarch White Crane. After knocking on the formation, it flapped its wings and asked cautiously, "Excuse me, is fellow daoist Soft Feather at home?"
It was this cautious because a powerful senior like Venerable Spirit Butterfly lived in this place!
Venerable Spirit Butterfly was a mighty senior. He was an honest and chivalrous person… the only issue was that he really liked to quibble about trivial matters. He had already reached the peak of haggling over every ounce. And while others were simply haggling over ounces, he was haggling over every single gram!
Actually, saying that he was haggling over every gram was just an exaggeration. Most of the time, Venerable Spirit Butterfly was a very kind and likable person… unless his weirdo-mode was triggered.
"Little friend White Crane? Come in." Venerable Spirit Butterfly said with a smile and opened the formation covering the island.
True Monarch White Crane passed through the formation and entered the island, heading toward the handsome and suave Venerable Spirit Butterfly.
"Hello, Senior Spirit Butterfly. Is Soft Feather at home?" True Monarch White Crane asked.
"She left home a while ago to meet a friend. Does little friend White Crane need something from her?" Venerable Spirit Butterfly heartily laughed. He didn't consider True Monarch White Crane a threat. After all, it already liked someone else and wasn't interested in Soft Feather.
"It's like this… Venerable White just came out of secluded meditation and decided to send gifts to a lot of fellow daoists in the Nine Provinces Number One Group. There is a seal on the gift, and it will automatically untie itself in three days. At the time, the big surprise inside will be revealed. Since I was on my way, I decided to conveniently deliver the gift to Soft Feather," True Monarch White Crane said with a smile.
"Oh? So it was fellow daoist White that sent the gift to my daughter?" Venerable Spirit Butterfly smiled. "In that case, you can leave the gift to me. I'll give it to Soft Feather once she comes back. If she doesn't come back within three days, I have the means to deliver it to her within one hour. I guarantee that she won't miss the surprise. How about that?"
"Such being the case, I'll leave everything to Senior Spirit Butterfly." True Monarch White Crane passed to Venerable Spirit Butterfly the wooden box with the words 'Spirit Butterfly Island's Soft Feather' written on it.
Venerable Spirit Butterfly received the gift and put it on a side.
"I'll take my leave then." After successfully delivering the gift, True Monarch White Crane cupped its hands and bid farewell to Venerable Spirit Butterfly.
"Won't you stay over for a while? It's already late, how about leaving after having a meal?" Venerable Spirit Butterfly politely asked. It was pretty rare for a friend to come and gift Soft Feather something. As a father, he was extremely pleased at this time. Since his mood was good, True Monarch White Crane also became pleasing to the eye.
"I still have more than ten gifts that need to be delivered, and they must be delivered within three days. I'm running out of time." True Monarch White Crane made a hollow laugh and opened his cosmos bag, showing Venerable Spirit Butterfly all the undelivered gifts.
After seeing all the gifts, Venerable Spirit Butterfly faintly smiled. "Such being the case, I'll not insist. But little friend White Crane went through a lot of trouble, how about this..."
As Venerable Spirit Butterfly clapped his hands, a huge multicolored butterfly came over, delivering a small bottle of medicinal liquid.
"This is Spirit Butterfly Island's specialty. It's a medicinal liquid that can relieve fatigue as well as purify all abnormal conditions. I ask little friend White Crane to accept it," Venerable Spirit Butterfly said with a faint smile.
True Monarch White Crane took the bottle and sighed with emotion. Spirit Butterfly was worthily an established and powerful Venerable.Whenever he did something, he would spare no expenses. This medicinal liquid was a medicine of the Sixth Stage, extremely precious. It was a costly treasure very difficult to obtain in the world of cultivators.
This wasn't an isolated case. While delivering these gifts, True Monarch White Crane also received many gifts in return from the kind fellow daoists of the Nine Provinces Number One Group. Moreover, they insisted so much that it had no way to refuse them. Moreover, refusing the gifts would mean not giving face to its fellow daoists, sigh~
In the meantime, in the Chu Family.
Soft Feather was fiddling with her laptop, feeling somewhat bored. In the past two days, she sent many messages to Senior Song, too bad that the latter never replied. As if that wasn't enough, his phone was also unreachable; it seemed he was in an area with no service.
Soft Feather wanted to ask Shuhang whether he would like to come to the Chu Family if he had free time. After all, her shapeshifting brooch was still in Song Shuhang's possession. Although Chu Chunying had refused her good intentions and didn't want any help, with the brooch, she could prepare for all eventualities.
Who knew when it could come in handy?
"How can I get in touch with Senior Song?" Soft Feather sighed with emotion.
Just as she was pondering, she opened the 'Senior White's expression package' she'd made and casually scrolled through Senior White's beautiful pictures.
"Heh! I really wish I could have taken a few more pictures of Senior White. I took too few the last time, and there are still many interesting ideas that I couldn't put into practice," Soft Feather muttered.
After saying this much, her eyes suddenly lit up. Senior Song and Senior White should be still together, right? If I can't contact Senior Song, I should just contact Senior White!
Said and done.
Soft Feather opened the Nine Provinces Number One Group and clicked on Venerable White's profile picture, sending the following message: "Senior White, are you there~? Is Senior Song by your side? If yes, can you ask him whether or not he's free? If he's free, can he come to the Chu Family? It's an important matter!"
After sending the message, she quickly received Venerable White's reply.
"Yes, we're free!" The reply was succinct.
Afterward, Senior White also added, "I'll help you inform Song Shuhang."
Soft Feather excitedly clenched her fists and said, "Thank you, Senior White."
"You're welcome 😊." Perhaps it was just a misconception, but Venerable White seemed to be in a pretty good mood.
On the small island in the East China Sea.
Song Shuhang, Doudou, Guoguo, Yu Jiaojiao, and Senior White were sitting in a circle and enjoying Doudou's cooking. Although he was just a pekingese, he was pretty good at cooking.
After all, for these years, he hadn't run away from home just for fun!
Song Shuhang held the big bowl of soup with an excited face and drunk two bowls in one go.
At this time, Venerable White was fiddling with his phone. Afterward. he raised his head, asking, "Shuhang, Soft Feather asked if you have free time."
"?" Song Shuhang looked at Senior White in puzzlement.
"She asked if you could go to the Chu Family in case you were free. She urgently needs your help with something," Venerable White said calmly.
Song Shuhang replied, "She urgently needs my help?"
"I told her that we were free. After all, we're indeed free," Venerable White continued in a calm tone. In regards to the matter about the Thirty-Three Divine Beasts' Sect, Venerable White had already made the necessary arrangements and only had to wait for the prey to walk into the trap. Before getting their hands on the ❮Thirty-Three Divine Beasts' Technique❯, he and Shuhang were indeed free.
"Therefore, we'll head toward the Chu Family after we're done eating and tidying things up," Venerable White said with a faint smile. Afterward, he also added, "What a coincidence, there are only three days left."
Song Shuhang: 😳
"It's settled then." Venerable White faintly smiled.
Then, he typed on the keyboard of the phone.
Venerable White: "Shuhang is free. We'll set out immediately. Send us the coordinates of the Chu Family 😊."
Spirit Butterfly Island's Soft Feather: "That's great! Wait a moment, I'll send you the coordinates immediately!"
Song Shuhang: 😳
At this time, in the territory of the Chu Family and the Illusory Sword School.
The supervisors of the Grievance Settling Platform were hurrying over.
These supervisors were the true line disciples of the illustrious and morally upright 'Eternal Sword Sect'. They were two powerful swordsmen of the Fifth Stage Spiritual Emperor Realm!
Originally, two disciples at the peak of the Fourth Stage were enough to watch over the battle of factions at the level of the Chu Family and the Illusory Sword School.
But according to the information the Eternal Sword Sect received, Venerable Spirit Butterfly's dear daughter, Miss Soft Feather, had also joined in the fun. Therefore, the sect clenched its teeth and dispatched two Fifth Stage Spiritual Emperors to put up a good front.
With two Fifth Stage Spiritual Emperors on the scene, even if the treasured daughter of the Spirit Butterfly Island were to cause trouble, things shouldn't go out of control, right?
At least, this is what the Eternal Sword Sect thought.
The school head of the Illusory Sword School and the family leader of the Chu Family had agreed to meet beneath the platform to sign the contract of the Grievance Settling Platform battle under the supervision of the overseers of the platform.
Even if the idea to fight in order to settle grievances sounded naive and childish, the two parties could at least fight to their heart's content and freely release their anger.
The school head of the Illusory Sword School was a swordsman in a black daoist robe, his cultivation at the Third Stage Battle King Realm. He took a step forward and wore a fake smile on his face as he said, "Old Chu, no one is accountable for deaths on the Grievance Settling Platform. Why are you being so stubborn? You have no chance of winning… why do you want to make your clansmen die in vain?"
"Hehe." The family leader of the Chu Family was an old man with a strong build. His cultivation was also at the Third Stage Battle King Realm. He sneered and said, "It's not decided who will live or who will die."
The school head of the Illusory Sword School strangely smiled and said, "We'll live, and you'll die. This is how things are fated to go. The battle starts in three days; I hope that the participating disciples of your family won't miss the appointment due to 'stage fright'…"