Chapter Nine: Zhuzhu

On the way back, Jiang Heng suddenly realized that the spiritual medicines in her storage pouch were almost used up and that she needed to gather more.

She slowed her pace, carefully searching the roadside for any useful herbs.

Snow Crane Peak was rich in spiritual energy and one of the sect’s treasured lands, so many wild spiritual plants grew in the mountains.

However, most of these were of little value—though they contained spiritual power, they were often toxic, useless for pill refining, and purging toxins after consumption was time-consuming and laborious. Their cost-effectiveness was low, so few bothered to harvest them.

It was like bitter wild vegetables in the mortal world, growing in wealthy households’ gardens—only good for decoration, with no other use.

Suddenly, Jiang Heng spotted a dense cluster of bright red fruits and her eyes lit up as she quickly approached to pick them.

Having gained some experience from eating raw spiritual herbs these past few days, she knew these red fruits were sweet and juicy, so she wouldn’t miss the chance.

As she was picking the fruits, something seemed to brush against her foot.

Looking down, she found it was… an egg?

This egg was unlike the others that lay quietly; it could stand, roll, and seemed to have its own consciousness.

When Jiang Heng stared blankly, the egg rolled and bumped her again.

After finishing with the fruit, she picked up the egg, holding it in her palm, and tried to scan it with her divine sense.

But the egg resisted her inspection, rolling around in her hand as if coaxing her.

Seeing this, Jiang Heng’s heart sank slightly. She quickly put the egg down and left.

Its ability to repel her divine sense indicated it was of a higher realm than her own, yet it was still just an egg! What if it hatched?

Such a terrifying being was not something she could provoke. If a high-level demon beast or spiritual beast mistook her for kidnapping their young, trouble would be enormous.

However, no matter how Jiang Heng tried to avoid trouble, trouble was bound to find her.

After returning to her cave and meditating through a small cycle, she opened her eyes and wanted to continue eating the spiritual medicine, only to be shocked by the scene on her bed.

In all her centuries of life, it was her first time seeing an egg lying so seductively on its side.

The egg, sensing her gaze, hopped over to her side and rubbed against her hand, trying earnestly to please her.

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Heng asked, “Why are you following me?”

The egg couldn’t speak; it only hopped more vigorously, almost as if it was about to talk.

Suddenly, it seemed to realize something, rolled onto her hand, and then...

It dropped a red fruit into her palm.

Jiang Heng was stunned and asked the egg, “Is this for me?”

The egg happily bounced up and down.

She tentatively asked, “Why are you giving this to me? Do you want me to trade something with you?”

She didn’t believe in free gifts from nowhere. Even if such things existed, they were not meant for someone like her.

Though the Ero Path was domineering, it hardly seemed like a righteous cultivation method; it was likely to lead to demonic ruin.

She was merely trying to quench thirst with poison, hardly a sign of fortune or destiny.

The egg shook from side to side unhappily.

Jiang Heng realized that up-and-down bouncing meant “yes,” side-to-side shaking meant “no.”

With this understanding, communication with the egg became much smoother.

Through questioning, she understood that the egg was a spiritual beast that had failed to hatch properly. Although it had not emerged, it had awakened its consciousness, and the first person it saw was her, so it instinctively bonded with her.

As for what kind of spiritual beast it was, even the egg did not know.

It only knew it liked Jiang Heng very much and wanted to be her spirit pet.

Gently stroking the eggshell and glancing at the fruit, then at her desolate and cold cave, Jiang Heng was quietly moved.

She wasn’t the type of cultivator who tamed beasts, but having a spirit pet was clearly advantageous for a cultivator, especially since this egg appeared to be of high rank.

Spirit beasts and their offspring usually bonded with the first person they saw upon hatching, so she had accidentally picked up a rare opportunity.

Jiang Heng made up her mind: “Alright, once you hatch successfully, we’ll perform the bonding ceremony.”

The egg happily bounced three feet high, rubbing against Jiang Heng’s face constantly.

Holding the egg down, she thought it didn’t sound quite right to keep calling it “egg,” so it needed a name.

Looking at the fruit it had given her, Jiang Heng tried, “From now on, I’ll call you Zhu Zhu?”

Zhu Zhu happily agreed.

Life with Zhu Zhu didn’t change much compared to before.

After all, it was just an egg and couldn’t speak, and Jiang Heng wasn’t one to confide in an egg.

She spent her days meditating and cultivating, reciting the Ero Formula repeatedly, gradually grasping its profound mysteries.

When the spiritual medicines in her storage pouch ran out, she would take advantage of the night to collect more from the mountain, then return to her cave to continue cultivating, rarely encountering other disciples.

Zhu Zhu was well-behaved, hopping and bouncing to keep Jiang Heng company but causing no trouble.

Gradually, Jiang Heng grew accustomed to the little companion and always carried it in her arms wherever she went.

Jiang Heng’s disappearance marked the complete loss of the bet Huo Shiqing had made earlier.

No matter how unwilling he was to admit it, the facts were clear: Jiang Heng no longer tried to create opportunities to interact with them or cautiously return to their side.

Her heart seemed truly darkened because her meridians had been destroyed.

One day, Huo Shiqing stormed into Jiang Heng’s cave with a darkened face, grabbing her without a word and bringing her to Uncle Ji at the medicine hall.

Upon hearing about Jiang Heng’s meridian issues, Uncle Ji’s expression grew serious, and he immediately began diagnosing her pulse with great care.

Jiang Heng remained silent, seemingly calm but inwardly anxious, unsure if the black spiritual flow could deceive Uncle Ji.

Uncle Ji was a late Nascent Soul cultivator, highly skilled in pill refining and pulse diagnosis, aided by powerful magical tools. His abilities were comparable to those of a Spirit Severing cultivator and not easily fooled.

Gradually, Uncle Ji’s expression grew strange.

Huo Shiqing’s heart sank and he asked about the situation.

Uncle Ji withdrew his hand, pondered for a long time, then said cautiously, “This is truly strange. Jiang’s meridians are almost completely destroyed, yet her internal spiritual energy is abundant. How could this be?”

It was as if a region hadn’t seen rain for years, but its soil was moister than a place with perfect weather.

Jiang Heng felt uneasy and learned a lesson: she should hide her spiritual energy better next time.

Fortunately, Huo Shiqing didn’t hear the latter part, and just “meridians almost completely destroyed” was enough to make him black out and despair.

He had hoped Jiang Heng was lying or exaggerating her injury, but it was real.

If only part of the meridians were damaged, recovery might be possible; nearly complete destruction made that nearly impossible.

For a cultivator, meridians were not only crucial pathways for circulating internal spiritual power but also the main channels for absorbing external spiritual energy.

Saying Jiang Heng’s meridians were almost completely destroyed was tantamount to declaring her useless.

No matter how good her spiritual roots or how strong her body, with both internal and external pathways blocked, her cultivation would stall at the late Foundation Establishment stage for life...