Chapter 140: Is It So Hard To Admit I’m Stronger Than You?
Ming Zhaoshuang watched, and couldn’t help but feel a sense of emotion.
Bai Bai’s gaze deepened as he swept over the people pointing fingers at Cheng Zhaoyang and Empress Dowager Cheng, as if looking at an irresistible behemoth, letting out a deep sigh.
The scene shifted again, turning into another scenario.
Cheng Zhaoyang held a long sword, and she, who had just reached the Early Golden Core stage, defeated an elder brother at the Golden Core Mid-stage.
This elder brother was Cheng Zhaowen, who fought Ming Zhaoshuang today.
However, what greeted her was not praise, but deep suspicion.
“How could Cheng Zhaoyang defeat Cheng Zhaowen? This is unreasonable!”
“You must have used some dirty trick! Something beneath contempt!”
“Sixth Sister, if you wanted to win, you didn’t need to resort to such low-class tactics. It would be better to follow us and read the ‘Rules for Women’ and ‘Precepts for Women’.”
The voices of doubt never ceased. Cheng Zhaoyang looked at the men and women on the arena accusing her, and for a moment, she was speechless.
Just as she was feeling bored and about to leave the arena, Cheng Zhaowen, who had just begged for mercy under her sword, suddenly stood up and sneered at her:
“Sixth Sister, even if you can’t defeat me, you don’t have to do this.”
What happened to her?
She had legitimately defeated her third brother, so why did everyone else say she used underhanded methods?
Cheng Zhaoyang didn’t understand. She retorted, “Is it that hard to admit I’m stronger than you?”
Cheng Zhaowen asked evasively, “Sixth Sister, can women truly defeat men after cultivating immortality? You don’t need me to elaborate on how you defeated me, do you?”
At these words, the crowd below erupted in an uproar.
Cheng Zhaoyang’s fingers grew cold, and her emotions seemed to become disordered because of this.
Ming Zhaoshuang watched this, feeling disgusted. This Cheng Zhaowen was truly outrageous.
It was one thing to not believe he lost to Ming Zhaoshuang today; it was another that he had publicly slandered Cheng Zhaoyang in front of his siblings for his own pride. It was no wonder Cheng Zhaoyang’s expression was so grim when she saw him today.
Clearly, she had recalled this unpleasant experience.
She said, “Is this dream scenario from Cheng Zhaoyang’s past experiences, or is it Cheng Zhaoyang’s current nightmare?”
If she had to live under such voices all the time, Cheng Zhaoyang might truly believe that women were inferior to men, and that women could never defeat men.
A woman as strong and bright as her could very well have been assimilated by such voices.
Bai Bai shook its head and said, “Neither. Her experiences were not that sharp or obvious, and her Sword Heart is still intact, so she naturally wouldn’t have any nightmares.”
Ming Zhaoshuang asked curiously, “Then what is this?”
Bai Bai said in a deep voice, “This is a seed sown by the Heavenly Dao for Cheng Zhaoyang.”
Seeing the confusion in Ming Zhaoshuang’s eyes, Bai Bai extended a paw, pointed at Cheng Zhaowen, and asked, “Didn’t you see today the threads entwined around Qin Feilong and Cheng Zhaowen?”
Especially Qin Feilong’s, which were thick and dense, truly terrifying.
Ming Zhaoshuang frowned, “No.”
Bai Bai glanced at her, “I forgot, your Soul Power has only just reached the Entering Soul Realm, so it’s indeed difficult to see.”
Ming Zhaoshuang’s lips twitched, “No, I’m almost at the Virtual Soul Realm.”
Why was Bai Bai looking at her with such disdain, as if she were about to die!
Bai Bai said expressionlessly, “You’re just weak, don’t deny it.”
Ming Zhaoshuang: “……”
Bai Bai continued, “You need to be at least at the late Bright Soul Realm to see the Heavenly Dao’s threads. I don’t blame you for this.”
At the late Bright Soul Realm, she was indeed far from it. Ming Zhaoshuang had nothing to refute.
She remembered Bai Bai’s extremely high Soul Power cultivation and asked, “Then, what realm has your Soul Power reached?”
Bai Bai yawned, seeming a bit sleepy, “Half-step Divine Soul.”
The Mengji Beast was a divine beast of the Soul Power lineage. Before Bai Bai was subjected to heavenly thunder, its cultivation was already at the Tribulation Crossing Mid Stage, so its Divine Soul was naturally not to be underestimated.
Ming Zhaoshuang exclaimed, “So awesome! My Bai Bai is amazing!”
Bai Bai shook its head, its eyes weary, “This is nothing. You might as well praise Ming Zhaoxue; he has already reached the Divine Soul Realm.”
That way, the brat wouldn’t keep nagging him about why Ming Zhaoshuang praised him and not himself. Bai Bai would truly go mad.
If one were to calculate carefully, since Feng He and Ao Tian died, there were many in the Thirty-Six Heavens who reached half-step Divine Soul, but only two truly reached the Divine Soul Realm. Therefore, Ming Zhaoxue indeed had reason to be proud.
Ming Zhaoshuang nodded, “Then I can still ask Xiao Bai Bai for guidance on Divine Soul matters.”
Bai Bai: “……”
If Ming Zhaoxue knew you were so insensitive, he’d be furious.
Never mind, as long as you’re happy.
He reminded her, “It’s useless for others to teach you Soul Power; you have to comprehend it yourself. If you always rely on others, you’re prone to going astray.”
It was like the Demon Lord Feng Budu; if he hadn’t relied too heavily on Feng He, he wouldn’t have developed inner demons in the end. Even after enlightenment, though he walked his own path, he could only stop at half-step Divine Soul.
Appropriate guidance was fine, but one couldn’t let it influence their own thoughts.
Cheng Zhaoyang’s growth process flashed before Ming Zhaoshuang’s eyes like a panorama, and it was entirely filled with voices saying women shouldn’t cultivate immortality and couldn’t surpass men, all clamoring.
Ming Zhaoshuang almost couldn’t resist and wanted to draw her sword to strike down this illusion.
Fortunately, no matter what, Empress Dowager Cheng stood firmly behind Cheng Zhaoyang, encouraging her to boldly move forward.
Move forward, pursue the Great Dao you yearn for.
Move forward, forge a path uniquely your own.
Move forward, unburdened by worldly constraints, unbroken by the world.
Bai Bai watched this scene and said, “Ever since Feng He Du Xian fought the Heavenly Dao, the Heavenly Dao has been trying to annihilate anyone who could threaten its status, sowing such seeds in your childhood. It’s the same for you, Shen Liqian, Qin Feilong, and Cheng Zhaoyang.”
Shen Liqian possessed an Innate Water Spirit Root and was a Spiritually Connected Sacred Body of the Path of Musical Sound; her future achievements might even surpass Yiqi Huang. Qin Feilong carried the Dragon King Bloodline and was a dual Spiritually Connected Sacred Body, almost a walking cheat. Cheng Zhaoyang had an Innate Sword Bone and was destined to be the Lord of Myriad Swords, the strongest in the Sword Dao.
As for Ming Zhaoshuang, the seal within her always made people feel she was the next Feng He, so the Heavenly Dao had reason to worry about her.
Therefore, the Heavenly Dao acted in this manner, sowing a seed in their hearts when they were young, guiding them to become the beings the Heavenly Dao desired.
“It’s just a pity that despite the Heavenly Dao’s calculations, it overlooked the strength of ants.”
“Shen Liqian had Yiqi Huang’s guidance, Qin Feilong had Qin Du’s teachings, and Cheng Zhaoyang also had Empress Dowager Cheng’s continuous support.”
“None of them became what the Heavenly Dao wished, nor did they grow into the appearance the Heavenly Dao expected. That is why it lost control today and attempted to control Qin Feilong, making him defeat Cheng Zhaoyang and topple the high wall Empress Dowager Cheng built for her.”
For ten thousand years, Yiqi Huang deceived the Heavenly Dao, acting humbly and small, almost losing the pride of the Five Sages. He barely met Shen Liqian a few times, so the Heavenly Dao naturally didn’t notice.
Although Qin Du’s talent was not bad, it was insignificant compared to true Heavenly Prodigies, so the Heavenly Dao did not pay him any mind.
As for Empress Dowager Cheng, she was a mortal with no cultivation at all. Who could have imagined that she could forge an indestructible Sword Heart for Cheng Zhaoyang through her own words and actions?
By the time the Heavenly Dao realized it, Ming Zhaoshuang and the others had gradually broken free from its control.
