Simply Feed the Dog

Chen Xia leisurely stood outside the Sword Forest, gazing at the two ancient bronze doors covered in rust. Curiosity prompted him to steal a glance inside.

He couldn't see anything.

Chen Xia had no intention of entering. He was merely out for a stroll. As he turned around, he noticed a large yellow dog lying on its side next to the bronze doors, snoring peacefully.

The dog was quite extraordinary. It had a distinct yellow color, with some of its fur standing on end, giving it a wild and unrestrained appearance.

Chen Xia didn't disturb the dog and continued on his way back to his own abode to cultivate his skills.

Time flew by quickly during his cultivation, with several months passing in the blink of an eye.

Chen Xia's cultivation level was visibly improving, but he had yet to break through to the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. It was estimated that he still needed more than ten years of accumulation.

Rarely, he felt the urge to go out for a walk. So, he stood up and lazily strolled outside, following the path formed by the sword patterns.

It was said that the end of this path led to the Heaven-Piercing Sword Bone, which was one of the foundations of the Flying Sword technique. However, one had to pass through the Heavenly Pavilion to reach it, and as preparatory disciples, they didn't have the qualifications.

As Chen Xia leisurely walked along the road, he suddenly noticed an approaching visitor. The person was heading straight for him without any attempt to conceal their presence, blocking his way. They spoke straightforwardly.

"Chen Xia, I want to fight you!"

Chen Xia looked at the figure before him with confusion. It turned out to be a crimson... crow.

"Who are you?" he asked.

The crow replied, "Chi Yu. I want to have a battle with you."

Chen Xia shook his head and waved his hand, a hint of sadness in his tone. "No, I can't. My Dao heart is injured, and I'm not suitable for a life-and-death battle. Please find someone else."

Only a fool would fight a red-haired crow like this. It was obvious that he had come to test him.

Chi Yu frowned, and the crimson feathers on his body shimmered slightly, as if flames were about to ignite. "But you are the Emperor's chosen successor."

Chen Xia raised an eyebrow and retorted, "I'm not the Emperor. If I were, I would fight you."

"If you were the Emperor, I wouldn't need to seek you out for a battle," Chi Yu countered with a frown.

"So, you only dare to fight the Emperor's chosen successor," Chen Xia raised an eyebrow and continued, "especially one with an injured Dao heart like me."

Chi Yu paused for a moment, pondered, and explained, "I just wanted to have a battle with you and see how powerful you really are."

"Not powerful," Chen Xia casually patted his sleeve and spoke slowly, "but don't touch me because I won't fight."

He needed to maintain the image of having an injured Dao heart and focus on recuperation.

Chi Yu furrowed his brow, feeling somewhat troubled. He hadn't expected that the Emperor's chosen successor, Chen Xia, would refuse to engage in a battle.

Throughout history, the Emperor's chosen successors were known for their combativeness. Not only would they accept battles, but they would also actively seek out others to fight.

Why did it change when it came to Chen Xia? He wouldn't even take the initiative to fight.

Strange.

Chi Yu wasn't ready to give up and continued, "I'm willing to make a wager with you. If you win, I'll give you a divine weapon."

"No thanks," Chen Xia still shook his head, raising his hand to dismiss him. "Alright, don't block my way anymore. I want to continue my walk."

"Unless you fight me, you won't take another step forward today."

Chi Yu's voice grew heavy, and his feathers glowed with the light of a thousand different flames if one looked closely.

This is the Supreme Seed, the Three Thousand Flame Feather Crows!

Chen Xia was also quite nonchalant. If you won't let me move forward, then I'll just go back. He patted his buttocks and headed straight back to his residence.

Leaving Chi Yu standing there, slightly dazed.

I have never seen such a good-tempered young Emperor like Miaozi before.

He contained his own flames and pondered on how to make Chen Xia accept the challenge. Additionally, he received some useful information.

Chen Xia's Dao Heart was damaged.

This was no small matter. When an Emperor's Dao Heart is injured, it takes a tremendous amount of energy to repair it. It would take at least several hundred years to recover, and that's assuming it's only a minor injury.

If the Dao Heart is severely damaged, it would limit one's potential, and they could at most become a Saint instead of an Emperor.

Chi Yu hurriedly rushed back to the Emperor Capital to inform them of this major event.

Meanwhile, Chen Xia, with his damaged Dao Heart, sat in his own cave dwelling, writing a Dao chapter. The Dao chapter called "Boundless Abyss" was almost complete. Once finished, it would be his ultimate technique, a direct invitation to a one-on-one battle in the Black Chamber.

Simply put, he wanted to arrange a private room.

His next goal was to linger at the peak of the Nascent Infant realm for several hundred years until his points accumulated, and then break through to the Great Vehicle realm.

After all, everything was better off taken slowly. He aimed to outlast Old Fisherman.

For Chen Xia, cultivation didn't necessarily have to surpass combat power. As long as his lifespan was long enough, it was sufficient.

It was his second year on the Flying Sword, and although there were some ups and downs, overall it went smoothly.

Chen Xia allocated the new points to his Strength attribute and successfully reached the level required for the Great Vehicle realm. The system also displayed a prompt.

[Strength attribute has reached the level of the Great Vehicle realm. Next stage: Mountain-moving realm, requires Strength attribute.]

Chen Xia raised an eyebrow. This was the first time the system provided a standard for the Strength attribute.

If he followed this Strength attribute standard, he would reach the Mountain-moving realm in just a few years, and his cultivation would also be close to the Mountain-moving realm.

That would mean having the strength of a dual Mountain-moving realm, not to say invincible at the same level, but at least close to invincibility.

At noon today, Old Fisherman once again came to visit Chen Xia. He made time almost every month to check on Chen Xia's Dao Heart problem.

Unfortunately, there had been no improvement.

This greatly worried Old Fisherman, who tried all sorts of inspirational metaphors to encourage Chen Xia, such as the ugly little snake transforming into a beautiful dragon.

Chen Xia raised a question at that time.

"If the ugly little snake can transform into a beautiful dragon, could it be because it was originally a dragon?"

This completely stumped Old Fisherman.

He had never thought about it before, that there could be such an angle.

Old Fisherman also gave Chen Xia a Pure Altar Soul Lotus, but Chen Xia didn't touch it at all. This made Old Fisherman anxious, and he pointed at the Pure Altar Soul Lotus.

"You have to eat this. When you're sick, you have to take medicine. Your Dao Heart is damaged, so you should replenish it."

Seeing his eager expression, Chen Xia nodded. The reason he didn't eat it was that he was afraid Old Fisherman might tamper with it.

Old Fisherman kept urging him, and Chen Xia felt somewhat helpless. He responded with a sound and decided to let others test the toxicity first.

The old fisherman has left.

Chen Xia carried the Pure Altar Soul Lotus and went to test its toxicity.

As for choosing someone to test the poison, he thought about it and found that none of the prepared disciples were suitable, and he didn't know anyone else.

So he took the Pure Altar Soul Lotus to feed the dog.

Beside the bronze gate of Sword Forest, there was a wild and unrestrained big yellow dog.

The big yellow dog savored a flower petal with great relish, and its eyes lit up when it looked at Chen Xia.

Chen Xia lowered his head and contemplated, feeling that there should be no problem. He would observe it again in a few days.

He was about to leave when the dog stood up and shouted, "Brother, is there more?"

Chen Xia was stunned.

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"What? He fed the Pure Altar Soul Lotus to the dog!"

Upon hearing the report from the black-robed person, the old fisherman froze completely.

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Author's note: Four updates today, close to ten thousand words. Thank you brothers for following and supporting, and for urging me to update faster.

Sour Treasure wishes all the brothers immortality and eternal life.

Elders, can you share some pictures in the comments (I'll go first!)?