Don't farm, cultivate immortality!

Its palm-sized body trembled rapidly, deftly freeing itself from the grass roots.

However, a sudden change occurred: the severed tips of the grass roots suddenly stretched out, binding the white rat once again like a snake.

Not only the white rats, but even Zhuang Xing's legs were bound.

He instantly felt a sharp pain as if he were being tightened by a thin rope, and couldn't help but swing his sword twice more, cutting off all the grass roots that were wrapping around him.

"Get out of here!" Zhuang Xing shouted at the white rat.

Dense grass roots emerged from the beast's den, resembling wriggling serpents. Zhuang Xing felt a chill run down his spine. When did such a bizarre waterweed monster appear near this village?

If someone were to accidentally wander here and get caught in this deadly entanglement, they would likely be wrapped up like a dumpling and dragged into the water to drown in an instant.

Zhuang Xing thought to himself that this was not something he could handle. He swung his sword repeatedly, cutting the grass roots to pieces, and ran outside. Once he escaped, he would definitely tell the old hunter everything so that the experts could deal with this waterweed monster, otherwise it might become a disaster.

"Here!" Yunling stretched out her hand from outside the ditch, and Zhuang Xing took her hand, using her strength to jump out of the half-meter-deep ditch.

The white mouse also escaped from the ditch. When it was entangled, it was on the verge of death, but after escaping, it was as agile as a mouse. Well, it was a mouse after all.

Even after running out of the ditch, Caogen continued to pursue her relentlessly. At some point, Caogen tied Yunling's feet and pounced on Zhuangxing and Baishu.

Zhuang Xing was slightly out of breath. Unleashing sword energy had greatly depleted his stamina. At this moment, his ammunition was already somewhat depleted. He would probably be exhausted after another two or three sword strikes.

“I can’t swing my sword much longer. I’ll count to three, and then I’ll cut the grass roots that are tangling around us in one go. Then we’ll run away as fast as we can. Do you understand?” Zhuang Xing said.

"Mmm." Yunling tightened her grip on Zhuang Xing's hand.

The white rat had already disappeared without a trace. Although Zhuang Xing didn't expect to gain anything by saving the rat demon, he was still a little unhappy. He hoped that the white rat would remember that someone had saved it and would not harm the area in the future.

"One, two..." Zhuang Xing counted aloud as he raised his sword.

The grass roots had already wrapped around his and Yunling's calves. Just as he was about to utter the word "three," the amulet on his chest suddenly vibrated again.

The lotus seed phantom on the river surface flickered suddenly, and then the crazed grass roots suddenly stopped. As the vibration of the amulet subsided, the grass roots suddenly released Zhuang Xing and Yun Ling, and in just a dozen seconds, they retreated like the tide and shrank into the beast cave.

Zhuang Xing looked at the amulet with suspicion. At that moment, the white rat crawled out from under the rock next to him.

It turns out this guy didn't run away; he just hid.

It cautiously peered into the beast's den, then stood up on its two legs and bowed three times to Zhuang Xing and Yun Ling, as if to thank them for saving its life.

"You rascal." Zhuang Xing chuckled, and a mouse mimicked a human's bow, which looked rather comical.

After bowing, the white mouse circled around Zhuang Xing and Yun Ling's feet three times.

Yunling's dark eyes followed the white mouse's movements, and a faint smile appeared on her lips.

Zhuang Xing then realized that they were still holding hands, and quickly let go of each other's hands.

He cleared his throat, pretending not to care at all, and said to the white rat, "Seeing how nimble you are, you shouldn't need us to take care of you anymore. Now that you're saved, go on your own. Don't do anything dangerous again, and don't harm anyone."

But the white rat shook its head. It circled the two of them again, nibbled at Zhuang Xing's trouser leg, and tugged at the beast den.

Zhuang Xing frowned: "Do you expect us to help you get revenge?"

"It seems... it wants us to wait here." Yunling squatted down and patted the white mouse's head. "Is that what you mean?"

The white mouse nodded repeatedly. Yunling looked at Zhuang Xing and asked, "I want to stay with it a little longer. Do you want to wait?"

Zhuang Xing looked at the sky. Although it was dark, it was still a while before nightfall. However, he could already hear his father's shouts. His father was calling him home.

"I can only wait a little longer at most, my father is calling me."

After hearing this, the white rat nodded and then quickly darted into the beast path.

"It actually dared to go in," Zhuang Xing complained.

A short while later, the white mouse emerged.

Its rear end emerged from the burrow first, while its head remained inside. It moved its rear end little by little, as if dragging something.

It was indeed dragging something; although it was covered in mud, you could still tell it was a small metal box.

The white mouse dragged the box to Zhuang Xing's feet, then nudged Zhuang Xing and Yun Ling's feet, bowed once, and then scurried into the soil.

This guy's ability to burrow underground seems quite impressive.

Zhuang Xing recalled that three years ago, the old hunter said that the monster he found by the river was very good at digging holes, and all the information matched this white rat.

He suddenly realized something. If the monster digging the hole was a white rat, and it was digging holes everywhere in the river, it looked like it was looking for something.

Zhuang Xing bent down and picked up the metal box.

It felt very heavy when he held it. He wiped the mud off with his hand and found a hole in the center of the box, like a keyhole.

But that wasn't what concerned him the most. He looked at the amulet in his hand and the hole in the box over and over, and discovered something that made him unable to suppress his excitement.

The box was engraved with the same lotus flowers and seeds as the amulet, and the hole on the box was exactly the same shape as the amulet.

Chapter 31 The White Lotus Hermit

Zhuang Xing inserted the amulet into the hole on the box. The amulet fit perfectly into the hole and went deep inside. He heard the sound of the mechanism turning. The surface of the box was suddenly revived, and the crazy grass roots that had been growing from the surface of the box grew out of it.

This time, however, they grew extremely gently, with the grass roots intertwined and stems growing upwards.

The rhizome continued to grow, producing lotus leaves. A small flower bud slowly opened, and the white lotus bloomed, its twenty-four petals as smooth and lustrous as jade.

Yunling moved closer to Zhuang Xing, the white lotus reflected in her pupils. She reached out and carefully touched the lotus petals.

"So beautiful..." Yunling's eyelashes trembled slightly.

"It is very beautiful." Zhuang Xing glanced at Yunling.

When she smiled, the tiny lotus flower bloomed.

The scene unfolding on the box resembles the life cycle of a lotus flower, starting from a seed, sprouting, growing wildly, developing roots and buds, and finally, after the lotus blooms, its petals wither and form lotus seeds.

This time it wasn't an illusion; the lotus flowers and seeds were real entities, radiating brilliance and possessing a dreamlike beauty.

However, in the end, the lotus flowers and seeds withered away. They bloomed for only a dozen seconds before turning into a handful of dust and scattering with the wind.

As Yunling watched the dust drift away in the wind, the light in her eyes gradually faded, and the smile disappeared from her face.

She looked at the hole the white mouse had dug when it left, her eyes lowered, as if she were a little sad.

“It seems… we can open it now…” Zhuang Xing tapped the box in his hand.

Yunling then turned her attention to him, and Zhuang Xing took a deep breath and opened the box.

Inside the box was a jade scroll, clearly priceless. Twenty-four pieces of white jade were strung together with gold thread, each piece pure and flawless, radiating a warm, luminous glow.

The words reflected in the glowing clouds before Zhuang Xing's eyes startled him. If Miss Huai'an's sword could be explained by martial arts, then what had just happened was truly divine skill.

He read the words carefully, and the more he read, the more shocked he became.

“I began learning Taoism at the age of three, attained divine understanding at the age of six, slew a dragon at the age of twelve, and became famous throughout the world at the age of fifteen. People called me the White Lotus Hermit, and I believed that no one in the world could surpass me.”

"Now that I am old and frail, I realize that I have only a hollow reputation and have not achieved anything. Therefore, I have devoted all my learning to this jade slip and stored it in Taihu Lake."

"Those who are destined to find the jade slip will have the potential to learn my teachings. Go wherever fate leads, but just remember my name."

"Written in Yandu in the sixteenth year of Qinghua."

"Written by: Bai Lian Jushi"

After he finished reading, the words slowly faded away, the glow on the jade slip dimmed, and there was no further movement.

"Were those words just now? I wonder what they said?" Yunling murmured.

Zhuang Xing suddenly realized that Yunling couldn't read and didn't know what the jade slip represented.

If those words are genuine, then this jade slip is not just a jade slip, but rather a record of a celestial being's lifelong learning.

Although he had never heard of the White Lotus Hermit, he had witnessed the immortal's abilities; with a mere gesture, he could create something from nothing and display the full spectrum of life and death.

The white lotus just now displayed the elegance of an immortal, as if it were deliberately showing off its skills and intentionally arousing the viewer's longing.

Zhuang Xing couldn't help but wonder if he could also do such miraculous things if he learned the Dao of the White Lotus Hermit.

He was a prodigy at six, slew a dragon at twelve, and became famous throughout the world at fifteen. What extraordinary talent and mediocre learning he must have possessed!

His grip on the box tightened involuntarily.

The white rats were digging holes in the river repeatedly, probably looking for this jade slip. It must be a rare treasure, but there was only one jade slip, while there were two people here.

Since Yunling doesn't know the purpose of the jade slip... doesn't that mean...?

Just as Zhuang Xing was thinking this, Yunling went to the side, picked up her wooden basin, and walked out without saying a word.

Zhuang Xing watched her walk a few steps silently, then finally called out to her, "Are you leaving already?"

Yunling turned around: "Isn't your father looking for you? You should go back quickly, don't make him worry about you."

"But...this jade slip..."

"Take it back, I don't want it."

After saying that, Yunling turned and left without hesitation.

Zhuang Xing was stunned for a moment, and suddenly realized how petty he had been thinking, actually trying to keep the jade slip all to himself and take all the benefits.

"Wait!" Zhuang Xing ran forward. "Did you understand those words just now?"

“I can’t read,” Yunling shook her head.

"Actually, I can read, but I was so engrossed in reading that I didn't pronounce them. Let me tell you the words," Zhuang Xing said.

Yunling blinked and said softly, "Okay."

Just then, Zhuang Xing's father arrived at the riverbank.

"Zhuang'er! It's time to go home!" The father popped his head out and called out.

"How about this, I'll tell you about it tomorrow!"

When Zhuang Xing saw his father coming, he quickly hid the box under his stomach. If his father found the jade slip and the box, it would no longer belong to him. Although his family was lenient with him, he was only five years old and could not make decisions on his own.

Are you free tomorrow? I'll come find you then!

"I'll be free at dusk."

"Then it's settled. I'll come find you by the waterwheel tomorrow at dusk!" Zhuang Xing tightened his belt and tied the box to his abdomen.

"Okay."

"See you tomorrow." Zhuang Xing waved and ran towards his father.