Chapter 34: The Daughter-in-Law Returns
Page 1 of 3
As Little Maruko stared fixedly into the distance, Mu Han also emerged from the house. His featureless face flickered wildly with human faces.
Anyone looking closely at the eyes of Little Maruko and Mu Han would have discovered that their gazes pierced through the darkness and the howling Severing Wind. It seemed as though all of Shadow Mountain was echoing within their eyes.
Countless fissures split open across the earth, swallowing one malignant entity or tribe after another.
Countless birds and beasts struggled desperately, yet were devoured by the earth without the slightest power to resist.
Elsewhere, mountains and ground rose violently from the earth, bringing forth one sinister anomaly after another.
In a trance, they even saw an abyss slowly taking shape somewhere in Shadow Mountain.
It was an abyss whose bottom even Little Maruko and Mu Han could not see...
The Abyss of Despair.
An endless Abyss of Despair.
The longer they looked, the more feverishly deranged Little Maruko and Mu Han’s faces became.
Suddenly, Zhao Yu’s anxious voice rang out.
“Quick, take your heads off and calm down.”
Little Maruko and Mu Han’s thoughts instantly returned to reality. They happened to see the anxiety covering Zhao Yu’s face.
Seeing this, Zhao Yu urged them again. “Why are you looking at me? Hurry up and take your heads off to calm down! Something’s wrong with your expressions. You’re clearly about to have another episode!”
With faces as twisted and horrifying as theirs had just been, what else could it possibly be?
Little Maruko and Mu Han said nothing. In silence, they removed their heads and held them in their arms.
Zhao Yu breathed a great sigh of relief, though his heart ached with concern. “You have no idea how frightened I was when you two had your episodes just now... Little brother, get inside quickly. You must have fallen ill because the earth dragon turned over and stirred up all that ghostly wind. Then you came outside and caught a draft.”
“Thank you for your concern, Big Brother.” Mu Han gave a sinister chuckle, then carried his head back into the house.
Zhao Yu’s expression darkened. “This isn’t good. Even taking off his head didn’t calm him down.”
Fortunately, his sister-in-law had already calmed down, which brought him a little peace of mind.
Perhaps he should brave the black wind and go out to look for some medicine?
Before Zhao Yu could decide, he suddenly caught a faint, unusual fragrance.
This was...
“Wife, you’re back?” Zhao Yu looked toward the entrance.
With a gentle breeze, Ying appeared out of thin air by the doorway. Compared with before, her face was now much rosier.
Ying spoke softly to Zhao Yu. “Husband, I have returned. I am sorry to have worried you.”
“As long as you’re back...”
Zhao Yu stepped forward and gave his wife a big hug.
At the same time, he instinctively wanted to ask about the cultivation matter. Yet he feared that she might think he no longer loved her enough, and the words stuck in his throat.
After thinking it over, Zhao Yu asked indirectly, “Wife, did you encounter any danger this time?”
“Husband, the journey went smoothly enough.” Ying gave a slight nod.
Page 1 of 3
Page 2 of 3
Zhao Yu could barely conceal his delight.
Smoothly. That very likely meant she was hinting that he could cultivate.
Was he finally about to become a cultivator capable of flying through the heavens and burrowing beneath the earth?
Ying, however, asked with concern, “Husband, while I was away, did Little Maruko cause you any trouble?”
Zhao Yu shook his head. “No. Little Maruko and Mu Han have both been very well-behaved.”
“As long as she did not trouble you.” Ying’s voice grew even gentler.
Only then did Little Maruko mutter, “Big Sister, I’m so adorable. Of course I wouldn’t cause Brother-in-law any trouble...”
Ying lifted her eyes and glanced at Little Maruko without saying a word.
Zhao Yu hurried to curry favor with his wife. “Wife, I stewed some giant-wolf noodles in the pot. I’ll rekindle the fire, heat them up, and serve you a bowl.”
Ying shook her head. “Husband, I am not hungry.”
“Even if you aren’t hungry, have a little. It will nourish you.” Zhao Yu trotted toward the kitchen.
She was his wife. If he did not take care of her, who else would?
Little Maruko, however, could not hold back. “Big Sister, didn’t you go out this time to find out whether Brother-in-law could cultivate? What was the result?”
Zhao Yu had already reached the kitchen door. He instinctively slowed his steps, his ears perking up.
His assumption that he could cultivate was based only on Ying’s remark that the journey had gone smoothly. His wife had never directly told him the result.
Ying said nothing. Instead, she stared fixedly at Little Maruko, a flickering black light seeming to dance in her eyes.
“Sister, I was only asking on Brother-in-law’s behalf.” Little Maruko hunched her head and gave an embarrassed laugh.
Seeing this, Zhao Yu could not help speaking up as well. “If Little Maruko hadn’t mentioned it, I would have forgotten to ask. Wife, how did it go?”
Ying immediately turned her gaze toward Zhao Yu, her expression once again becoming gentle.
“Husband, everything went very smoothly. Once you have some free time, you may try cultivating.”
She also took out a book.
Zhao Yu very much wanted to take it and examine it at once, but he still shook his head. “There’s no rush. I’ll heat up your noodles first.”
He went into the kitchen and lit the fire.
Suppressing his impatience, he quietly waited until the broth in the pot boiled again before adding the noodles.
Once they were cooked, he filled a bowl with steaming giant-wolf noodles.
Carrying the bowl out of the kitchen, he called, “Wife, come and eat.”
“Thank you, Husband.” Ying smiled sweetly.
She looked exceptionally beautiful.
They entered the main hall.
Only after his wife began eating did Zhao Yu pick up the book she had taken out earlier.
Three characters were written across the cover in bold, elegant strokes:
The Sealing Heaven Art
Page 2 of 3
Page 3 of 3
He opened it and began to read.
“The heavens and earth, yin and yang; the four seas and eight wastelands; primordial chaos without limit...”
The more Zhao Yu read, the deeper he sank into thought.
He recognized every individual character, but once they were put together...
What in the world was this supposed to mean?
With no other choice, Zhao Yu suggested, “Wife, perhaps you could find me another book?”
He truly could not understand this one.
Ying looked troubled. “Husband, I searched everywhere, but this is the only book suitable for your cultivation.”
Zhao Yu’s heart trembled. He gritted his teeth. “The only one? Fine. I’ll go to the study and examine it more carefully.”
He refused to believe that, with his clever little brain, he could not make sense of a single cultivation manual.
He took the book and headed toward the study.
After walking only a few steps, Zhao Yu stopped and looked back at his wife, hesitation showing in his eyes.
Ying looked puzzled. “Husband?”
“Wife, you...”
After hesitating for a moment, Zhao Yu asked very carefully, “Wife, what will happen after I begin cultivating?”
Ying shook her head slightly. “Husband, I do not understand what you mean.”
“I mean...”
After a pause, Zhao Yu explained, “Before, when I couldn’t cultivate, our whole family lived together in harmony. Once I begin cultivating, perhaps I’ll be like you and spend all my time in seclusion. If that happens, won’t there be no one left to look after Little Brother and my sister-in-law?”
“Then our family won’t be quite so harmonious anymore.”
When he finished, a rare look of worry appeared on Zhao Yu’s face.
Although he had previously dismissed the Woodcutter’s Knife’s warning, the knife was his good friend, and he had truly kept those words in mind.
Ying smiled sweetly again. “Husband, you are worrying too much. Your Sealing Heaven Art cultivates itself. You will not need to enter seclusion.”
He had not received a direct answer, and Zhao Yu was somewhat dissatisfied. He asked again, “Then will our family still live together in harmony?”
Ying’s smile vanished without a sound.
Little Maruko, who had been pretending to be invisible, also stared at Zhao Yu in disbelief, as though he had said something utterly unimaginable.
A moment later, Ying’s gaze drifted downward.
She stared fixedly at the Woodcutter’s Knife hanging from Zhao Yu’s waist.
Page 3 of 3