Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

Chen Xueru knelt on one knee, one hand bracing herself against the scorching rock, breathing heavily. Her vision began to blur, her ears were ringing, and she couldn't hear anything. Her body felt like it no longer belonged to her; only boundless pain and exhaustion remained.

But she didn't give up. She could feel that the golden core in her dantian was almost fully formed, just one last step away!

She raised her head, using the last of her strength, to look at the churning, even more violently churning clouds above.

The final bolt of lightning delayed its fall.

The calamity clouds churned and contracted, the silvery-white lightning within growing brighter and denser, as if gathering a world-destroying power. The entire sky was bathed in a ghastly white light, visible even from Hong Kong, a hundred miles away. Many people were awakened and rushed outside to investigate.

This lightning bolt was more terrifying than all eight previous lightning bolts combined!

As Chen Xueru watched the increasingly bright tribulation cloud and felt the suffocating pressure, she suddenly smiled. That smile carried a hint of weariness, a hint of resolve, and a glimmer of hope for the future.

She recalled what He Damin had once told her: "The Golden Core Tribulation consists of nine stages. The last one is the most intense and crucial. If you overcome it, you will achieve the Golden Core and leap over the dragon gate; if you don't..."

He Damin didn't say what came next, but Chen Xueru knew what it was.

"There's nothing we can't overcome!" she said softly, her voice hoarse but unusually firm, using all her strength.

"Snap—!!!"

As if it had accumulated to its limit, the ninth bolt of lightning finally struck down!

This bolt of lightning was as thick as a bucket, its entire body a dazzling white, as if it had gathered all the power of the sky. With a world-destroying force, it tore through the thick tribulation clouds and instantly appeared above Chen Xueru's head!

This time, Chen Xueru did not sit idly by and wait for her fate.

She suddenly stood up, facing the earth-shattering lightning bolt, opened her arms as if to embrace it, and charged forward!

"boom--!!!"

A blinding white light instantly engulfed Chen Xueru's figure and the entire island. The violent energy shockwave spread outwards, creating huge waves on the sea. Even He Damin, who was hundreds of feet away, felt a strong shockwave rushing towards him.

He Damin abruptly stood up from the reef, his heart seemingly stopping, his breath frozen in his chest. His consciousness frantically probed into the blinding white light, trying to find Chen Xueru's presence.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Every second felt like an eternity.

Finally, he found it!

Although faint, it definitely exists!

The white light slowly dissipated, revealing the scene inside.

Chen Xueru remained standing in the same spot, her body charred black as if she had just been pulled out of a fire. Her clothes were completely gone, and her body was covered with deep, bone-revealing wounds. Most of her hair was also singed, leaving her in a wretched state.

But she did not collapse.

Her eyes shone with an astonishing brightness, like two of the most brilliant stars, sparkling with the light of surviving a catastrophe and an indescribable joy.

At her dantian, a golden, round, and plump pill, the size of a pigeon egg, was slowly rotating, emitting a warm yet powerful light. Faint patterns seemed to emanate from its surface, mysterious and enigmatic.

Golden Elixir!

Become!

He Damin could no longer contain himself. In a flash, he appeared beside Chen Xueru and pulled her into a tight embrace. His hands trembled slightly, and his voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement and lingering fear: "Xueru...you scared me to death..."

Chen Xueru leaned against his warm and firm embrace, listening to his rapid and powerful heartbeat. Her tense nerves finally relaxed, and a wave of exhaustion washed over her. She smiled weakly, her voice hoarse and almost inaudible: "I...I said...I can do it..."

He Damin didn't say anything, but just hugged her tighter, as if he wanted to meld her into his very bones.

A sea breeze blew by, carrying fresh air and dispersing the smoke and dust of the aftermath of the lightning tribulation. The tribulation clouds overhead had also dispersed, revealing a sky full of twinkling stars. On the distant sea, the ships that had been observing earlier were nowhere to be seen.

No one knew that a Golden Core cultivator had just been born on this desolate and remote island.

"Let's go home," He Damin said softly, carefully picking Chen Xueru up in his arms.

Chen Xueru nodded weakly, rested her head on He Damin's chest, felt his steady heartbeat, and closed her eyes in peace.

Just as He Damin was about to leave with Chen Xueru, Chen Xueru suddenly opened her eyes and gestured for him to put her down.

"Wait a minute." She crouched down and picked up a small piece of stone from a crevice in the rock that had been charred by lightning.

The stone slab was only the size of a thumb, its edges were burned smooth by lightning, giving it a peculiar glassy texture, and it seemed to still retain a faint trace of lightning power.

Chen Xueru carefully placed the stone fragment into her bosom, then stood up and smiled at He Damin: "Alright, let's go."

He Damin gave her a deep look, asked no more questions, picked her up again, and transformed into a streak of light, disappearing into the vast night.

It was already late at night when we got back to the villa on Victoria Peak.

He Yushui had already gone to bed, and He Yuzhu had also returned to his room. The entire villa was quiet, except for a dim yellow wall lamp in the living room, emitting a soft glow, as if waiting for its owners to return.

He Damin carried Chen Xueru back to the bedroom and carefully placed her on the bed.

Although Chen Xueru was extremely exhausted, she was in good spirits. She struggled to go to the bathroom to take a shower and change into a clean and comfortable set of pajamas.

When she came out of the bathroom, He Damin was standing by the window, gazing at the sea that shimmered silver in the moonlight, lost in thought.

"Brother Damin." Chen Xueru walked over and gently hugged him from behind.

He Damin turned around, embraced her, and looked down at her. Her face was clean, her hair was combed again and tied up with a simple hairpin. Her face was pale and tired from surviving a disaster, but her eyes were surprisingly bright, even brighter and more moving than when they first met seven years ago.

"Um?"

"Thank you," Chen Xueru said, burying her face in his chest, her voice muffled.

He Damin was somewhat puzzled: "Thank me for what?"

"Thank you... for leading me down this path," Chen Xueru's voice choked with emotion, "Thank you... for always being there for me and never giving up on me."

He Damin's heart seemed to be gently touched by something. He lowered his head and gently placed a tender kiss on her smooth forehead.

"Fool, why are you telling me all this?" he said softly. "Go to sleep. You've just formed your Golden Core, so you need to stabilize your realm. You can't be careless."

Chen Xueru hummed in agreement and nodded obediently.

He Damin took her hand and led her to the bedside, covering her with the blanket. Chen Xueru closed her eyes, and perhaps because she was truly exhausted, she fell into a deep sleep almost instantly, her breathing even and long.

He Damin sat on the edge of the bed, quietly watching her sleeping face, his eyes gentle and focused. A long, long time passed, until he was sure her breathing had completely calmed down, before he got up, gently closed the door, and left the bedroom.

Outside the window, a bright moon hung in the deep blue sky, casting a silvery glow that enveloped the entire Victoria Peak in a peaceful and serene atmosphere.

The next morning, He Yushui, as usual, came to knock on Chen Xueru's door with a stack of documents.

To her surprise, the door opened quickly.

Chen Xueru stood at the door, wearing an elegant lake-blue cheongsam, her hair styled in a delicate bun, and light makeup on her face. She looked very energetic and showed no signs of the fatigue she had felt yesterday after "going out for a stroll".

"Auntie, you're awake?" He Yushui asked with surprise. "Where did you go yesterday? I looked for you for ages and couldn't find you."

Chen Xueru smiled, stepped aside to let her in, and said in a relaxed tone, "It's nothing, I just went to the beach for a while. What's wrong? Is something wrong with the TV station?"

"Okay!" He Yushui nodded vigorously, picked up the documents, and sat down on the sofa in the living room. "The finance department has already reviewed the TV station's budget for the second half of the year, and you need to sign it. Also, at next month's board meeting, I'd like to propose a new variety show plan and would like to ask you to take a look and give me some feedback."

As she spoke, she handed over the top document.

Chen Xueru took the documents, sat down on the sofa, and carefully flipped through them. She read quickly but attentively, pausing occasionally to furrow her brow in thought.

"Hmm, well done." She finished reviewing it quickly, nodded, and showed an approving expression. "This budget proposal is very detailed and reasonable. The idea for the new program 'Hong Kong Idol' is also very innovative; young people these days like to watch these kinds of things. However..."

She pointed to a line of numbers on the document and looked at He Yushui: "The fee for prime-time 'GG' is set too low. Our Asia TV's ratings are already more than double that of the second-place station. The effectiveness of 'GG' speaks for itself. The fee should be at least 50 percent higher than it is now, or even higher."

He Yushui's eyes lit up, and she suddenly realized, "That's right! How come I didn't think of that! Auntie, you're so perceptive! I'll have them change it as soon as I get back!"

"Also," Chen Xueru called to He Yushui, who was about to get up, and added, "you will chair next week's board meeting."

He Yushui froze, pointing to herself in disbelief, and asked, "Me? Auntie, you're not kidding, are you? I...can I do this?"

"Of course you can do it." Chen Xueru looked at her encouragingly. "You came up with the plan, so you know the situation best. I'll watch from the sidelines while you explain. I'll have to hand this responsibility over to you sooner or later, so I might as well get some experience now."

He Yushui's eyes immediately reddened, and her nose felt a little sore. She knew that her aunt was giving her a chance and was carefully nurturing her.

"Auntie... thank you!" Her voice was choked with emotion.

"Silly child, why are you being so polite with your aunt?" Chen Xueru smiled and patted her hand. "Go on, revise the plan. By the way, where's your uncle? Didn't he say he was going to take you out for dim sum today? Don't keep him waiting."

"Okay!" He Yushui nodded vigorously, wiped her eyes, grabbed the documents, and ran out briskly. At the door, she turned back, waved enthusiastically to Chen Xueru, and shouted, "Auntie, you're so kind!"

Chen Xueru stood by the window, watching He Yushui's figure run away like a happy little bird, and a gratified smile appeared on her lips.

Downstairs, He Damin had changed into a casual suit and was standing in the living room with a newspaper in his hand, seemingly waiting for them. Seeing Chen Xueru come downstairs, he put down the newspaper and a gentle smile appeared on his face.

"Ready? Let's go have some morning tea." He held out his hand.

Chen Xueru walked up to him, placed her hand in his palm, and held it tightly. His palm was warm and strong.

"Okay, let's go."

Sunlight streamed through the villa's floor-to-ceiling windows, falling warmly on the two of them.