I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times-Chapter 148Book 2: : Senior Sister Advances, Nascent Soul Possession

Vol 2 Chapter 148: Senior Sister Advances, Nascent Soul Possession

At Leichi Market, inside Zheng Fa’s small courtyard—

The entire room was filled with spiritual materials, lush and vibrant. Even the quiet meditation chamber where Zheng Fa usually cultivated had been transformed into a veritable greenhouse.

Sitting on the low couch, Zheng Fa stared at the materials around him, but his thoughts were still on his two senior sisters.

After returning, they had only told him to focus on his cultivation before leaving on their own—even Senior Sister Yuan, who usually had the biggest appetite, hadn’t spared these materials a glance.

Or maybe… she didn’t dare to. Looking at them might tempt her too much to walk away.

Zheng Fa shook his head, dismissing the thought. He reached out with his hand, and a strand of Thunderstrike Vine floated into his fingers.

As he activated his spiritual power, he slowly absorbed the energy from the Purple Lightning Vine, guiding his divine sense along with it into his dantian.

Inside his dantian, the Thunder Field remained as square and orderly as ever. In the center stood a somewhat sturdy Fusang Tree.

The Fusang Tree was entirely crimson, radiating a faint warmth that spread through his limbs, subtly strengthening his body over time.

But that was far from enough to change Zheng Fa’s opinion of it.

Since settling in his dantian, this divine tree had devoured countless spiritual materials, yet its growth remained painfully slow, dragging down his cultivation progress.

Sure enough, as soon as the energy from the Purple Lightning Vine entered the Thunder Field, the Fusang Tree swallowed it whole.

This thing really hadn’t changed one bit!

Zheng Fa refused to accept this—he had spent twenty thousand Heavenly Merit points to exchange for an entire room full of spiritual materials! Surely that was enough to get some kind of reaction from it?

—

As the sun gradually set, more than eighty percent of the materials had been consumed.

Even Zheng Fa was starting to feel drained, yet the Fusang Tree remained completely unchanged.

He knew it was a divine tree of exceptional quality, but wasn’t it being a little too high-maintenance?

Just as he was starting to lose hope, the tree suddenly trembled—and for the first time, the red hues on its trunk began to condense into a faint golden glow.

At the same time, a five-colored flower bud emerged from the treetop.

The flower’s petals curled tightly together, as if nurturing some kind of rare treasure.

The moment the bud appeared, Zheng Fa felt his entire body tremble as his spiritual power surged toward it.

Even his divine soul, which had been at the very limits of the Foundation Establishment stage, suddenly expanded as if thirsty grass had been drenched in rain—

His spiritual sense, which could originally cover a hundred zhang, now broke into the Golden Core realm’s range:

From a hundred zhang, expanding to ten li.

Then, from ten li, expanding to a hundred li.

It wasn’t until around one hundred and ten li that the growth finally slowed.

He glanced inward. The flower bud had fully formed, its five-colored petals gently swaying atop the branches.

Life-Blooming Thunder Flower…

This marked the third realm of the Divine Thunder of Shenxiao, signifying that Zheng Fa had stepped into the late-stage Foundation Establishment realm.

Now, all he had to do was accumulate enough spiritual energy, wait for the fruit within the flower to condense—his Golden Core—and he could formally advance.

Thinking back, it had only been half a year since he first reached Foundation Establishment, yet his progress hadn’t been much slower than during the Qi Refining stage!

Of course, the greatest reason for this was the Heavenly Monument Realm, which had provided him with a supply of spiritual materials that few could ever hope to obtain…

As he stabilized his spiritual energy, he suddenly noticed a drop of liquid seeping out from the flower bud.

…Water?

Zheng Fa was stunned for a moment. He extended his divine sense toward the droplet and instantly understood its nature—

This was Fusang Spirit Dew, a byproduct of the Fusang Tree absorbing the essence of the sun and moon.

For Zheng Fa himself, it wasn’t particularly useful.

But for fire-elemental spirit beasts—especially those aligned with pure Yang fire—it was incredibly valuable. If such a beast consumed Fusang Spirit Dew, it could purify its bloodline and might even advance in rank.

Moreover, this wasn’t a one-time occurrence. The bud would produce a single drop of this dew every month.

Zheng Fa willed the dew to appear on his fingertip.

The sunlight filtering through the window struck the golden droplet, making it gleam brilliantly.

At that exact moment—

A small Golden Crow flapped into the room, eyes locked onto the glowing droplet.

"Give it to me!"

"I wanna drink it!"

"Just one sip!"

It went completely feral, stretching its neck as far as possible toward Zheng Fa’s fingertip, beak wide open.

But Zheng Fa heartlessly grabbed it by the scruff of its neck, holding it just out of reach.

The little Golden Crow kicked its legs helplessly—so close, yet so far!

Zheng Fa scrutinized the bird from top to bottom.

This thing… how should he put it?

It hadn’t taken human form yet, but it was definitely cunning.

When it first arrived at Zheng Fa’s side, it had acted all friendly and talkative—even helping capture that demon clan member.

But after that, it refused to say another word…

Instead, it had been loitering around the market, pretending to be an ordinary crow.

Zheng Fa suspected that if it weren’t so attached to his body’s warmth, it would have already run away—

After all, that demon cultivator with the Qiongqi bloodline had warned them that Great Sage Qingyun was coming.

The little Golden Crow probably didn’t have much faith in Jiushan Sect, and it was already considering other options.

It was only sticking around to mooch off of him!

What a useless bird.

And now, it wanted his Fusang Spirit Dew?

Please. He had better birds to feed.

"Senior Sister Yuan!"

Zheng Fa sent a divine sense transmission to the "good bird" currently playing in Senior Sister Zhang’s courtyard.

—

At that moment, Senior Sister Yuan was happily eating pastries in Senior Sister Zhang’s courtyard.

Senior Sister Zhang sat nearby, flipping through the books Zheng Fa had gifted her. Occasionally, she would pause, deep in thought, as if she had gained new insights.

When Zheng Fa’s voice suddenly rang out, both women immediately assumed something had happened—and in the blink of an eye, they had teleported to his quiet chamber.

"Zheng Junior Brother, what’s wrong?!"

Senior Sister Yuan asked anxiously.

What she saw was Zheng Fa struggling to fend off the frantic Golden Crow, which was desperately lunging at his fingertip where the spirit dew gleamed.

Despite knowing its place as a freeloader, the crow wasn’t using its spiritual power, but its raw physical strength—which, given its Foundation Establishment-level physique, was already considerable.

Zheng Fa was having a hard time keeping the dew away.

Seeing Senior Sister Yuan arrive, Zheng Fa’s eyes lit up.

"Senior Sister Yuan, open your mouth!"

"…Huh?"

The Golden Crow seemed to realize what was happening, and its struggles intensified. Zheng Fa had no time to explain.

"I’ve got something good for you to eat!"

Saying this, he extended his finger toward her.

"……"

Senior Sister Yuan glanced around, then hesitated, lowering her voice—

"Zheng Junior Brother, isn’t this… kind of inappropriate?"

"Hmm?"

"Senior Sister Zhang is still here!"

"……"

—

In the end, it was Senior Sister Zhang who kept a straight face and flicked her fingers. A talisman shot out, transforming into a binding net that wrapped tightly around the little Golden Crow, preventing it from moving.

Only then did Zheng Fa finally have the chance to explain the origin of the Fusang Spirit Dew.

"This spirit dew is especially beneficial to fire-attribute spirit beasts?"

Hearing this, Senior Sister Zhang's expression softened slightly. She turned to Senior Sister Yuan. "So, you were planning to give it to her?"

The little Golden Crow was clearly not happy with this.

"I carry the bloodline inheritance within my soul! The Fusang Tree and my Golden Crow clan have always coexisted. If you give me the Fusang Spirit Dew, once I refine the Golden Crow True Fire, I can even help the Fusang Tree grow!"

Zheng Fa blinked.

This, he really didn’t know.

But legends did suggest a connection between the Golden Crow and the Fusang Tree.

Clearly, this little Golden Crow had been hiding a lot of things.

At the same time, it also meant that the spirit dew was likely most suited for the Golden Crow.

Hearing this, Senior Sister Yuan hesitated, torn between reluctance and reason.

She looked at Zheng Fa. Then, she looked at the little Golden Crow. Finally, she sighed and said, "Give it to him…"

She understood that, purely in terms of who could make the most of it, the Golden Crow was probably the best candidate.

But after speaking, she turned away as if she couldn’t bear to watch.

"Senior Sister Yuan."

"Huh?"

Zheng Fa flicked his fingers.

The spirit dew shot straight into Senior Sister Yuan's slightly open mouth.

Gulp.

She instinctively swallowed.

Then, she blinked at Zheng Fa in disbelief.

"Did I… just swallow it?"

Zheng Fa smiled and nodded.

"I…" Senior Sister Yuan clutched her stomach, looking grievously wronged. "You could’ve at least said something first!"

"I was worried you'd refuse."

"But I didn't even get to taste it…!"

Off to the side, Senior Sister Zhang simply shook her head, as if she wasn’t surprised by Zheng Fa’s choice.

The little Golden Crow, on the other hand, was absolutely furious.

"You're letting emotions cloud your judgment!" it screeched. "Blinded by lust!"

Zheng Fa gave it a sideways glance and calmly said:

"If Senior Sister Yuan only cared about her own cultivation, if she only thought about what would benefit her the most, she wouldn’t have given me all these spiritual materials in the first place."

Hearing this, Senior Sister Yuan's eyes lit up. She scratched her head and grinned like a fool.

"Hehehe…"

Zheng Fa continued, "You say you can help the Fusang Tree grow, but all I know is that the reason my Fusang Tree has grown at all is because of the spiritual materials my senior sisters exchanged for me."

"Hehe…"

Senior Sister Yuan gazed at Zheng Fa, eyes sparkling, then muttered:

"Junior Brother Zheng… the more I look at you, the more handsome you seem…"

"……"

"But Junior Brother, stop moving. I’m feeling a little dizzy…"

Zheng Fa and Senior Sister Zhang both turned to look at her—

Only to see Senior Sister Yuan struggling to keep her eyes open.

She was trying her best to fight off the drowsiness, her face full of unwavering determination, but her eyelids betrayed her—growing heavier by the second.

Finally, her body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground.

Senior Sister Zhang seemed to realize something. With a wave of her hand, she moved Senior Sister Yuan to the courtyard.

And then—

In the next instant, Senior Sister Yuan revealed her true form—

A massive Qingluan lay sprawled on the ground, golden flames seeping from its feathers, as if it was roasting itself alive…

—

At this point, even the little Golden Crow realized that the spirit dew was completely out of its reach.

It stopped struggling, though its eyes remained fixated on the Qingluan, full of envy.

"Bloodline evolution…" it muttered. "That mixed-blood Qingluan is about to take another step forward."

Even Senior Sister Zhang's eyes gleamed with joy, clearly pleased for her junior sister.

"She’s been stuck at the early Golden Core stage for quite some time. Who would’ve thought her breakthrough would come through you?"

—

Before Zheng Fa could respond, the little Golden Crow suddenly spat out a wisp of golden spiritual light, which landed in front of him.

"This is…?"

"A spirit beast contract?" Senior Sister Zhang recognized it immediately, turning to the Golden Crow in surprise.

The bird looked extremely unwilling.

"This spirit dew… is that important to you?"

Zheng Fa instantly understood.

The Golden Crow had been holding back before—but now, it was suddenly offering to form a contract.

Clearly, the spirit dew had been too tempting to resist.

"What choice do I have…" The Golden Crow let out a long sigh. "Golden Crow bloodlines are incredibly difficult to advance. This spirit dew is the most suitable resource for me."

"Besides…"

It glanced at the Qingluan, still lying unconscious.

"Watching a mixed-blood Qingluan evolve effortlessly… while I struggle just to survive… Do you have any idea how painful that is?"

"……"

"This doesn’t seem like something you’d do," Zheng Fa narrowed his eyes.

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The Golden Crow was cautious by nature—was it really willing to submit just for some spirit dew?

"What do you think I’ve been doing in the market all this time?"

The Golden Crow rolled its eyes, suddenly looking rather smug.

"Huh?"

"The market is full of your Jiushan Sect disciples. It wasn’t hard for me to ask around about you."

Zheng Fa twitched at the realization.

So this bird had been investigating him all along?

"Even Lin Bufan from the Great Freedom Demonic Sect—who your sect captured—seems to be doing just fine in Jiushan Sect," the Golden Crow continued.

"If even a prisoner can live comfortably, why should I be afraid to voluntarily join you?"

—

In this realm, even birds weren’t dumb…

Wait.

Senior Sister Yuan was.

—

"That doesn’t mean I’ll give everything to you."

Zheng Fa thought for a moment.

He had already planned to prioritize Senior Sister Yuan when distributing the future spirit dew.

"I know. That mixed-blood Qingluan can’t even absorb that much at once."

The Golden Crow’s tone had softened considerably, almost sounding pitiful.

"There’ll be some left over."

Zheng Fa glanced at Senior Sister Zhang.

She nodded at him.

So, he reached out his right hand and touched the golden light.

The light seemed to possess its own intelligence, instantly merging into his palm, traveling through his meridians, and settling in his dantian.

There, it transformed into a small Golden Crow’s shadow, perched upon the Fusang Tree.

The Fusang Tree trembled lightly, exuding an air of delight—

It seemed that the Golden Crow’s presence was mutually beneficial to the tree.

But what exactly would change, Zheng Fa wasn’t sure yet.

Looking at the little Golden Crow, he realized—

Its life and death were now entirely in his hands.

The Golden Crow, too, seemed to sense this shift.

Its gaze toward Zheng Fa had changed—now a mix of closeness and unease.

Zheng Fa beckoned.

The Golden Crow hesitated, then obediently flew onto his shoulder—

Letting out a long sigh of satisfaction.

"Master… you’re even more charming than those Demonic Sect witches."

"……"

Zheng Fa immediately regretted this decision.

Senior Sister Zhang casually waved her sleeve, lifting Senior Sister Yuan into the air.

"Senior Sister Zhang?"

"She’ll probably need some time to process this. I’ll take her to my courtyard."

With that, she carried Senior Sister Yuan into her courtyard and set her down.

Just as they stepped through the gate, a message talisman flew over the courtyard wall, heading straight for Senior Sister Zhang.

She stretched out her hand, and the talisman landed in her palm.

"A message from Martial Uncle Pang."

Raising an eyebrow, she glanced at Zheng Fa.

Zheng Fa immediately perked up.

Martial Uncle Pang had gone to seek help from Zhenren Tongming, a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Hundred Immortals Alliance. He was known for being upright—at least, Martial Uncle Pang seemed to trust him.

And Zheng Fa trusted Martial Uncle Pang’s judgment.

After all, the last time they dealt with the Hundred Immortals Alliance’s Nascent Soul cultivators, Martial Uncle Pang had read them perfectly.

But he’d been gone for over a month, and only now was there a response. Zheng Fa had been worried.

As Senior Sister Zhang finished reading, she frowned, as if something puzzled her.

"Senior Sister Zhang? How did it go?" Zheng Fa asked. "Did Martial Uncle Pang manage to get Zhenren Tongming’s help?"

"You could say that."

Senior Sister Zhang hesitated for a moment before replying.

Zheng Fa was even more confused. "What do you mean, ‘you could say that’?"

Just then, Martial Aunt Huang entered the courtyard.

"You got the message too?" she asked.

Senior Sister Zhang nodded.

"Unbelievable," Martial Aunt Huang sighed, brows furrowed. "Jiushan Sect really lacks a Nascent Soul inheritance."

Zheng Fa was completely lost now.

Senior Sister Zhang noticed his confusion and explained:

"Ever since Zhenren Tongming advanced to Nascent Soul, he’s rarely appeared in the Hundred Immortals Alliance. Even the Nascent Soul cultivators of Tongming Mountain rarely see him."

"This time, when Martial Uncle Pang went to visit, he was kept waiting for several days. If he hadn’t insisted, he probably wouldn’t have been able to meet Zhenren Tongming at all—or rather, he wouldn’t have been able to meet Zhenren Tongming’s treasure."

"Treasure?"

Zheng Fa was even more confused.

"This was something Martial Uncle Pang only learned after speaking with him," Senior Sister Zhang continued.

"Zhenren Tongming said that after reaching Nascent Soul, it’s not convenient for him to take action directly. He spends most of his time in seclusion, and even coming out requires preparation."

Zheng Fa nodded. "Like Great Sage Qingyun of the demon race."

"Exactly. Zhenren Tongming explained that breaking seclusion abruptly would be detrimental to his cultivation. However, he couldn’t ignore the crisis facing the Hundred Immortals Alliance, so instead, he sent his treasure to aid Jiushan Sect."

"Not to defeat Great Sage Qingyun, but to stall him until he emerges from seclusion."

Zheng Fa still wasn’t convinced.

"What kind of treasure could stall a Nascent Soul cultivator?"

—

Magic Treasures, Spiritual Treasures, and the Path to Nascent Soul

The Xuanyi Realm distinguished between magical tools and magical treasures.

Generally speaking, magical tools were a tier lower, mostly used by Golden Core and weaker cultivators.

Magical treasures, on the other hand, were far more valuable, and most cultivators only had one—their life-bound treasure.

The difference in power, materials, and value was immense.

But spiritual treasures…

Zheng Fa had heard of them, but never seen one before.

"A spiritual treasure is a treasure that possesses its own intelligence—to put it simply, a magical treasure with a spirit."

Senior Sister Zhang explained.

"I’ve heard that spiritual treasures have intelligence," Martial Aunt Huang added. "But Martial Uncle Pang mentioned something else in his letter that I find… troubling."

"What?"

"Zhenren Tongming told Martial Uncle Pang that in modern immortal cultivation, when a cultivator reaches Nascent Soul, they must rely on their spiritual treasure as a vessel for their Nascent Soul."

"In other words, a life-bound magical treasure must advance into a life-bound spiritual treasure—to the point where it essentially becomes a second self."

"That’s why Zhenren Tongming said he was sending his spiritual treasure to aid us."

—

"A Second Self"—Nascent Soul Possession

"A vessel?"

Zheng Fa froze and looked at Senior Sister Zhang.

From her thoughtful expression, he could tell she was thinking the same thing—

That oath they had found in the Heavenly Monument Realm…

"All beings are ignorant, unworthy of reliance."

At the time, they had thought it was just a philosophical statement.

But now, in Martial Uncle Pang’s message, the same term appeared—Nascent Soul reliance.

—

"What are you two whispering about?"

Martial Aunt Huang was getting frustrated.

She was a Nascent Soul cultivator, yet these two juniors kept having conversations she didn’t understand.

Zheng Fa glanced at her, then decided not to hide it.

"We found an inscription in the Heavenly Monument Realm."

He recited the oath left behind by ‘Nine Nether’.

"Nine Nether… the Demon Ancestor?"

Martial Aunt Huang’s expression stiffened.

She studied Zheng Fa from head to toe, then muttered, "How is a Foundation Establishment disciple running into this kind of stuff? You feel more like a Nascent Soul cultivator than I do."

—

The Truth About Tianhe’s "New Method"

Senior Sister Zhang shook her head, then asked,

"Junior Brother, what are you thinking?"

Zheng Fa fell into thought, then suddenly said:

"Something Sunset Sword Immortal said doesn’t add up."

"Hmm? You think he lied?"

Senior Sister Zhang frowned. "He seemed honest enough."

"He wasn’t lying," Zheng Fa replied. "But… I don’t think he actually knew what Tianhe Venerable’s ‘New Method’ really was."

He paced the courtyard, organizing his thoughts as he spoke.

"He knew that the immortal sects betrayed Tianhe Venerable, and that the Tianhe New Method disappeared. So, he assumed that our current cultivation method was just a remnant of the Demonic Sect’s techniques from the previous era."

"You mean…"

Senior Sister Zhang’s eyes widened slightly as she realized what he was suggesting.

Martial Aunt Huang, on the other hand, looked completely lost.

"Through our studies of that ancient cultivator’s remains," Zheng Fa continued, "we learned that Tianhe’s New Method involved two key aspects—"

"Merging artifacts into the body, and the technique to slay immortals."

Senior Sister Zhang nodded.

"So?" Martial Aunt Huang couldn’t hold back her impatience.

"If we set aside Sunset Sword Immortal’s assumptions, and just look at what ‘spiritual treasures’ really are…"

"I suspect… that the immortal sects never truly abandoned the path of merging artifacts into the body."

"Instead, they transformed it into ‘Nascent Soul reliance.’"

"What they abandoned… was the technique to slay immortals."

—

A Missing Piece in Cultivation History

This realization felt too plausible.

In the Xuanyi Realm, cultivators might be self-serving, but they weren’t stupid.

History was always moving forward—even if it regressed at times, valuable knowledge was never completely discarded.

Zheng Fa continued,

"From everything we’ve learned, I suspect that modern immortal sect cultivation isn’t just Demonic Sect techniques, nor is it Tianhe’s New Method."

"It’s a hybrid."

"A combination of Tianhe’s method and the Demonic Sect’s techniques—but leaning more toward the latter."

Senior Sister Zhang remained silent for a long time before saying,

"…That does fit with the nature of Xuanyi Realm’s cultivators."

Martial Aunt Huang, meanwhile, was completely dumbfounded.

"Wait, wait, wait—are you two seriously piecing together an entire Nascent Soul inheritance right now?!"