Chapter 379 : Train Diligently
Half a year passed, and then another half. In the blink of an eye, Jiang Mo had been in the inheritance space for a full year.
If Zhu Baiyi hadn't been counting the days, she might have lost track of how long Jiang Mo had been gone. Fortunately, the time cultivators spent receiving inheritances was never fixed—a day or half a day was common, while three to five years wasn't unusual either. Those who waited usually maintained some patience.
Meanwhile, in another space within the void, Jiang Mo had no idea so much time had passed. Since she never felt fatigue or sensed her spiritual energy depleting, she treated this training session as an ordinary battle... perhaps lasting a bit longer than usual, but three to five days or even seven to eight days was a perfectly sustainable duration for normal spiritual energy reserves.
When Jiang Mo made progress once again, pinning the young White Tiger of the same age under her paw, she felt immensely proud despite being covered in wounds. She even thought she might be a genius—White Tigers had been fighting since birth, and even at the tender age of eighty-three, they had faced countless enemies. If she could so easily surpass someone who had grown up with such hardship, what else could she be but a genius?
The tiger cub held her chin high, flicking her tail a few times with pride. But the moment she swished her tail, an excruciating pain shot through it, instantly freezing her entire body.
To save face, she didn't make a sound, unwilling to show weakness before her defeated opponent.
The Little White Tiger beneath her had already seen through everything. This time it didn't struggle, but simply pushed firmly against the ground with all four paws and freed itself from her restraint, standing up again.
It shook its fur once more. Seeing this, Jiang Mo ignored her pain and watched the Little White Tiger warily: "Coming for more?"
However, after smoothing its fur, the Little White Tiger didn't attack again. It sat properly in place and shook its head: "No more. We don't have that much time left." Then it continued, "You're weaker than I expected, but at least you learn quickly. Remember this in the future—don't just focus on cultivation realm. True skill is being able to defeat your opponent in battle."
Hearing these words, Jiang Mo looked carefully and noticed that the Little White Tiger before her wasn't as solid as before, having become somewhat translucent. She felt an inexplicable melancholy rise in her heart, no longer concerned about how it had left her covered in wounds. She hesitantly asked, "Are... are you going to disappear?"
The Little White Tiger didn't answer her question, but instead raised its paw and smacked her on the head: "I'm talking about something important. Don't change the subject."
Jiang Mo rubbed her head, feeling a bit wronged, but she could see that it didn't want to dwell on the topic of its disappearance. She pouted, then obediently sat down: "Alright, alright. Whatever else you need to tell me, just tell me."
The Little White Tiger nodded, repeated its previous words, then continued: "You're still young, though your cultivation level is progressing quite fast. This has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is that you can leave this realm earlier, and have better development after ascending to the upper realm. The disadvantage is that you're still too young—even after ascending, you'll be at the bottom of the hierarchy. Don't be arrogant."
Jiang Mo agreed with these words. She hadn't forgotten the first memory the White Tiger phantom had shown her—those fierce battles between dragons and tigers displayed power far beyond what she could match now. Her ability to pin down the Little White Tiger only meant she could overcome a White Tiger of this young age.
White Tigers were naturally proud, but seeing the cub before it being so obedient brought the Little White Tiger some comfort. Like an elder, it raised its paw to rub the cub's head, advising once more: "I've given you the inherited techniques and memories, but there isn't enough time here for you to study them thoroughly. Remember to learn them diligently after you leave. For what you can't master, find our clansmen to teach you after you ascend."
Jiang Mo nodded obediently. In truth, during these days of fighting with her opponent, she had learned far more than just dodging attacks and brute-force combat. Spiritual energy manipulation was woven into every attack, and under the other's guidance, her control became increasingly refined.
This laid a solid foundation, making it easier for her to learn other techniques in the future.
Seeing the cub so obedient, the Little White Tiger gave a few more pieces of advice. After saying everything that needed to be said, it suddenly remembered something and pointed its paw at Jiang Mo's head: "There's a small thing attached in your sea of consciousness. Would you like me to remove it for you?"
Jiang Mo was momentarily stunned before quickly realizing it was referring to the system. For a moment, she was tempted—the system had indeed helped her a great deal over the years and had never done anything to harm her. But as her cultivation deepened, she increasingly understood the danger of having her divine soul bound to a foreign object. It was no different from having a time bomb implanted in her body.
However, her temptation lasted only a moment. After consideration, Jiang Mo didn't make an immediate decision, but instead asked the White Tiger: "If I miss this opportunity, would it be very difficult for me to remove it myself in the future?"
The White Tiger thought for a moment and said: "It wouldn't be difficult for me, but for you, it might be somewhat challenging."
This was the honest truth, though a bit disheartening... Of course, in the current cultivation world, there was no being that could match the White Tiger before her.
Nevertheless, Jiang Mo understood the implication—her current cultivation level wasn't sufficient to actively unbind from the system, but when her cultivation advanced enough someday, she should be able to accomplish it. Since that was the case, she wasn't in a hurry to unbind, especially considering she'd been bound to the system for so many years and had developed some rapport with it. Moreover, while the system itself might be somewhat useless, the system mall was genuinely useful—she had accumulated so many points that remained unused!
Her expression shifted only slightly, but the White Tiger immediately understood her thoughts and didn't insist: "Since you want to keep it, then keep it. You can handle it yourself when the time comes."
"Thank you..." Before Jiang Mo could finish speaking, her head received another heavy pat.
The White Tiger placed a restriction into her sea of consciousness, confining the system within. However, it didn't explain this to Jiang Mo, and after finishing this matter, it had no intention of wasting more words with her. It struck sideways with its paw, sending her flying away.
In the moment when the spatial fluctuation appeared, Jiang Mo heard the White Tiger's final advice: "Train diligently, and ascend early."
༻༺❀༻✧⋆｡°✩☽༓☾✩°｡⋆✧༺❀༻༺
Outside the space, Zhu Baiyi and the others had been waiting for a year, and had gradually grown accustomed to waiting.
On this day, Qingyu and Zhu Baiyi were sparring as usual. Little Swan Goose stood on a pile of rocks in the distance, munching on spirit fruits while watching the two fight, looking somewhat bored.
Initially, she had been very interested in this, especially when Qingyu had first emerged from the inheritance space and chased after the fox to teach her a lesson because of her tattling. Seeing the fox's fur flying everywhere had delighted her. Unfortunately, that only happened once. In their subsequent encounters, they merely exchanged moves without causing harm—sparring where not even a single fox hair fell had no appeal whatsoever!
Oh well, let them fight while she ate, minding her own business.
This day was proceeding as usual, and Little Swan Goose thought it would pass like every day before. But just as she was about to start on her third spirit fruit from the pile she had set out, she suddenly felt a familiar spatial fluctuation in the air.
Little Swan Goose paused mid-bite, and the two who were in the midst of sparring also sensed the disturbance, both stopping at once.
Three gazes and six eyes turned simultaneously toward the source of the spatial fluctuation. Sure enough, ripples soon appeared in the calm space. Then a ring of light emerged, and from the opening spatial exit, a figure tumbled out.
There was no need to guess who it was, but Jiang Mo's miserable state when she appeared startled all three of them—the neat and tidy Jiang Mo who had entered the inheritance space now wore tattered robes with disheveled hair, and her exposed skin was covered with countless wounds. Although the wounds didn't look serious, they were still shocking at first glance.
If anyone present had transmigrated from the modern world, they would immediately think of one word: battle-damaged.
Little Swan Goose was the first to throw down her spirit fruit and rush over. The small white phoenix buried herself in Jiang Mo's arms, looking at her wounds with concern and asking: "What happened to you? How did you get so injured? Weren't you just receiving an inheritance?"
Jiang Mo was still inwardly relieved that she had transformed quickly enough—otherwise, her bald tiger appearance might have been seen by her senior sister. But when she heard Little Swan Goose's concerned questions, her attention was immediately diverted, and she exclaimed in delight: "Senior Sister, you can speak now?!" Then, looking at Little Swan Goose's current appearance, she grew even more excited: "And you have feathers and tail plumes, they've all grown out!"
The joy in her voice was so genuine, showing her true happiness for Little Swan Goose. Little Swan Goose could certainly feel it, and since Jiang Mo's first words were about her beautiful feathers, Little Swan Goose's attention was also diverted: "How do they look? Beautiful?"
Jiang Mo naturally played along, nodding repeatedly and praising: "Of course they're beautiful, absolutely gorgeous."
Her words were sincere, and Little Swan Goose immediately became somewhat elated from the compliments. Then from the corner of her eye, she saw Qingyu and Zhu Baiyi approaching. Without thinking, she immediately tattled again: "You have good taste. Some people are just cruel and merciless..."
Jiang Mo followed Little Swan Goose's gaze and immediately met Sect Leader Zhu's somewhat embarrassed look.