Love Travels through Time (My father who traveled through time and space to cultivate immortality came back to pick me up) - Chapter 18
Chapter 18: Crisis
Yin Changli took out a rattan chair from his storage bracelet, placed it outside the Buddha cave, and lay on it to bask in the sun.
The sun in the Northern Desert was as fierce as its people; only the early morning sunlight was gentle enough not to scorch the skin.
Yin Changli was unwell, like someone recovering from a long illness, or a cold-blooded creature just awakened from hibernation.
Bone-deep coldness clung to his soul, and he craved warmth.
Meanwhile, Xiang Haikui crouched in the shade with Bai Xingxian and Lu Xiqiao, continuing to keep watch over him.
When he finished sunbathing and headed back, the three tailing him, their legs numb from squatting so long, helped each other up and followed again.
“Good morning, Senior Brother,” the young monks in the cave greeted him in unison, casting suspicious glances toward the trio.
Yin Changli nodded slightly, said nothing, and returned to his room.
He meditated behind his desk all morning.
Ate a few bites of vegetarian food brought by the monks.
Took a nap in the afternoon.
He was watched the whole time, yet remained calm and composed throughout.
In the City Lord’s residence, Xiang Tianqing had practiced swordsmanship, meditated, tended to herbs, and even refined a batch of pills.
After waking from a nap, she suddenly realized she might’ve been a bit too extreme the previous day.
She had accompanied her father for decades, receiving his affection from childhood.
But Xiao Kui had been alone since the age of nine.
Even if their father now favored her more, giving her a treasured sword, that was only fair.
Besides, Xiao Kui had left her home and come to this place.
It was understandable that she’d want to compete and prove herself, hoping to gain a foothold in Silver Sand city as soon as possible.
Xiang Tianqing bit her red lip, pondering things over and over.
She had said such harsh words to little Kui yesterday, how must she feel about that? If a rift grew between them, it would only trouble their father when he emerged from seclusion.
But to apologize? Her pride wouldn’t let her.
How could she ease the tension, then? Leaning against the window through the noonday heat, she finally got up to find Meng Xilou.
“Yesterday, there was a misunderstanding between Master Daochen and Xiao Kui. She wounded him, and now rumors are spreading inside and outside the city. Many people are blaming her.”
Meng Xilou put down the jade slip in his hand and looked at her.
“Didn’t Xiao Kui stay behind in the Buddha cave to care for him?”
“I’m afraid that’s not enough.”
Knowing how much Meng Xilou disliked dealing with others, especially Buddhist cultivators, Xiang Tianqing twisted her fingers and glanced at him timidly.
“Father’s not here, so you’re representing him. Why don’t we go visit the master in the Buddha cave?”
Meng Xilou tapped the table with his fingers, pondered for a moment, and nodded.
“Mm. After the sun sets.”
Xiang Tianqing breathed a sigh of relief, her smile blooming like a flower.
“I knew Eldest Senior Brother was the best.”
Inside the Buddha cave.
“His movements and mannerisms really do resemble Senior Yin,” Xiang Haikui said as she stood with folded arms by Yin Changli’s mat while he napped.
“But…”
The boss had always been radiant and full of vitality and nothing like this, looking like a retired official focused on health and longevity.
Bai Xingxian nodded silently.
They had fled war and faced desperate situations.
He had survived countless life-and-death moments, yet never once had they seen Uncle look so worn out.
Yin Changli woke up around dusk from his nap.
A talisman, folded into a triangle, flew out from his storage bracelet on its own.
It was from Daochen, a one-use communication talisman for long-distance contact.
Someone was urgently trying to reach him.
Yin Changli didn’t know who it was, and apparently, a specific incantation was needed to activate it.
Lu Xiqiao recognized it instantly.
“It’s from my family!”
Yin Changli sat up and let it go.
“Then it’s probably for you.”
Lu Xiqiao formed the hand seal and broke the talisman’s seal.
The talisman began to burn, and a refined male voice came through: “Master, I hope you’ve been well.”
Lu Xiqiao mouthed to Xiang Haikui: “My dad!”
Xiang Haikui nodded.
It was the head of the Lu family, Lu Zhengtu, a legendary tycoon who controlled a third of the Central Continent’s resources.
Yin Changli asked, “You’re asking about the progress on unsealing the mirage demon?”
The voice on the other side replied, “That’s not urgent. I received word from the Silver Sand City Lord Xiang Heng that my good-for-nothing second son ran off to the borderlands. His older siblings are on their way to Silver Sand city, but the journey is long. Even with the fastest flying ship, it’ll take ten days. In the meantime, I hope you’ll take good care of him.”
His words were earnest, almost humble.
Lu Xiqiao protested angrily, “Dad, was that necessary? I’m already Sixth Rank. Don’t I know how to get home? You’re making such a fuss, people back in the capital will laugh at me, say I’m still on a milk bottle!”
The voice on the other side clearly hadn’t expected his son to be present.
After a moment of silence, the tone shifted from scholarly to shrill: “You little brat! All you ever do is make trouble for your old man!”
Lu Xiqiao muttered, “You’re impossible. When I’m at home, you say I annoy you. Now I’m out here trying to do something meaningful, and you say I’m causing chaos.”
His father snapped, “Do big things? More like getting your butt kicked by big things!”
Lu Xiqiao couldn’t take it anymore.
“Watch your mouth, there are others here!”
His father assumed the “others” were Daochen, he didn’t consider it might be anyone else.
After all, Daochen wouldn’t interface with a talisman in front of just anyone.
His father gave a cold chuckle and changed the subject: “By the way, since you’re in Silver sand city, have you heard of a young man named Jingran who came from there to the capital? Do you know anything about his background?”
Xiang Haikui had been quietly amused, but the moment she heard her senior’s name, her heart clenched.
Time-wise, he shouldn’t have reached the capital yet.
Yin Changli noticed her suddenly straightening up, her formerly casual stance became upright, and she lifted her head to look at the burning talisman in the air, her eyes filled with nervous anticipation.
So… it’s someone she likes.
Jingran? Yin Changli repeated the name silently in his mind.
No recollection but he made a note of it.
Lu Xiqiao was about to say he didn’t know, but one look at Xiang Haikui’s expression made him change course: “What about him, Dad? Why bring him up all of a sudden?”
His father replied, “That young man is remarkable. On his way to the capital from Silver Sand city, he stopped at a small town called Xiaofeng. While transferring between flying ships, he played a game of chess by the river with an old man.
Though he lost, the old man took a liking to him and accepted him as a disciple.”
That old man was none other than Elder Jingwen of the Sword Pavillion at Jinling Academy, one of the three Grand Sword Masters of the current age.
Xiang Haikui’s heart bubbled with joy, if it were anyone else, she’d roll her eyes and scoff: What’s so great? Just another overpowered protagonist with a cheat code. But her senior was different. He’d earned it with real skill.
Wait a second.
Wasn’t Elder Jingwen the very one invited later to slay demons when her father fell into possession? One of the Three Grand Sword Masters.
Xiang Tianqing’s future master.
Her joy suddenly deflated.
Then the voice from the talisman added, “I’ve heard he comes from no notable background. Families in the capital are already preparing to recruit him through marriage. But judging by his attitude, he’s supposedly betrothed to Xiang Heng’s daughter?”
Xiang Haikui blinked.
Is senior trying to stay out of trouble by using her as a scapegoat?
The talisman had finished burning, cutting off the connection, but she was still thinking about that.
The scent left behind by the burned talisman was very much like the aftermath of firecrackers.
Yin Changli wrinkled his nose.
He rummaged through his storage bracelet with his spiritual consciousness for a moment and took out a bathing tub.
Opening a bamboo tube, he tossed it in, and just like a tap, water gurgled out into the tub.
“Miss Xiang,” Yin Changli dipped a hand into the water, releasing inner force from his palm to warm it.
“This little monk is preparing to bathe. Must you stare without blinking?”
Since she’d never seen her boss bathe before, Xiang Haikui had originally intended to leave and let Bai Xingxian keep watch instead.
But his last sentence sounded a little too much like a defiant provocation, which made her pause.
It wasn’t his own physical body, so Yin Changli didn’t care at all.
He loosened the sash, removed his monk’s robe, and expressionlessly stripped off his inner garments, baring his upper body.
Before he could take off his pants, Xiang Haikui’s skin wasn’t quite that thick, she turned and walked out.
Once Yin Changli got into the water, he closed his eyes.
The feeling of being surrounded by warmth was even more comforting than sunbathing.
It unconsciously reminded him of the moment he had fallen into the Sea of Death — the seaweed that had held him afloat.
Xiang Haikui waited by the door for two whole hours.
It was already dark and he still hadn’t come out.
She thought to herself, Bathing this long? Not worried about scrubbing your skin off?
Bored, she followed the passageway out, intending to admire the moonlight over the desert.
Just then, three little monsters came hopping toward the outside of the Buddha cave in a row.
As they were about to enter the cave, they were bounced back by an invisible force, rolling on the ground a few times.
They tried hopping forward again and were repelled again.
They couldn’t get in.
“The spiritual will of this Buddha cave is really strong,” sighed Luo Yunxiu and Liu Yixing, who were following behind the three little monsters.
The little monsters came from the Underworld and feared Buddha’s light.
Let alone the monsters even the two of them, being longtime dwellers of the Underworld, couldn’t approach it easily right now.
“Yin Changli must be hiding in there,” Liu Yixing said with a determined smile.
Everyone involved in the desert fight had already been checked; only a few remained inside the Buddha cave.
And the Buddha cave was the perfect hiding place for Yin Changli to avoid being hunted.
“What do we do if we can’t get in?” Luo Yunxiu furrowed her brows.
“Should we force it open?”
“No,” Liu Yixing shook his head.
“Remember the rules. We’re out on a mission , unless absolutely necessary, we must not impact the human realm.”
Luo Yunxiu didn’t care.
She thought to herself, So old, so stubborn.
Liu Yixing knew what she was thinking and thought, So young, still so naive.
The spiritual energy of the Buddha cave was clearly bestowed by a great Buddhist cultivator from the Upper Realm.
Destroying this cave would be like destroying his faith.
Of course he’d come for your life in return.
Luo Yunxiu asked, “Then what do we do?”
“I’m thinking…” Liu Yixing mused.
“Got it.”
He grabbed a handful of yellow sand from the ground, floated up into the air, and looked down from above.
Muttering an incantation, he flung the sand out.
“Scatter!”
The yellow sand transformed into golden dust, floating and blanketing the entire Buddha cave.
It was as if the cave had vanished from the earth, leaving behind only faint silhouettes inside.
Though blurry, their actions could still be observed.
For example, a slender girl carrying a sword case was walking out alone.
For example, little monks scattered in corners , some chanting scriptures, others sneakily eating chicken legs.
What caught the attention of Liu Yixing and Luo Yunxiu was, of course, Yin Changli’s room.
Two men… watching a monk take a bath?
Luo Yunxiu twitched her mouth.
“It should be those guys.”
Liu Yixing nodded and swiftly formed a hand seal.
From his fingertips, a faint whirlpool appeared and rippled outward like water toward that room.
“Tell me your names.”
He was using a soul-capturing technique and not just any, but a high-level divine version.
Each time it was cast, it consumed half of one’s spiritual energy.
Today, even if Yin Changli was at the end of his rope, as a former comrade, Liu Yixing had once witnessed him slay three Heavenly Generals with a single sword and crush a 100,000-strong army alone.
He dared not be careless.
He glanced at Luo Yunxiu beside him, whose face clearly said, Is it really necessary to use divine arts on a dying man?
He sighed helplessly.
Women… No matter how many times you explain how ruthless and dangerous the enemy is, all they care about is his face.
Inside the Buddha cave room, the air was suddenly sucked dry.
Lu Xiqiao was the first to feel a tightness in his chest, unable to breathe, as if he were exhausted to the extreme.
A voice full of seductive allure asked him: What is your name?
He immediately replied, “Lu Xiqiao.”
Next was Bai Xingxian.
When it came to Yin Changli’s turn, he knew something was wrong, but having just reclaimed his soul from possession, he was too weak to resist and answered as well.
“Hanpi”
After everyone answered, Luo Yunxiu was confused.
“Wasn’t this monk supposed to be named Daochen?”
“What the hell kind of dumb name is ‘Hanpi’?”
Liu Yixing was just as puzzled.
He withdrew his spell and said, “Who cares what his real name is as long as he’s not the one we’re supposed to catch.”
That meant only one person was left.
The two of them turned in unison toward Xiang Haikui, who was just about to leave the Buddha cave.
Yawning, Xiang Haikui stepped out and stretched. Just then, the sword box on her back, Tiankuang began to shake violently.
It was a danger warning.
With the Buddha cave at her back and barren wilderness on three sides, if there were enemies nearby, her Wind-Chasing Energy Technique should have picked up on it.
But Tiankuang never gave false alarms.
Xiang Haikui’s expression turned serious.
She opened the box and drew her sword.
With a flick of her arm, the blade traced a shining arc before her.
“Who’s there!”
Bathed in swordlight, three little monsters suddenly revealed themselves.
She had no idea what these creatures were.
They had been circling her this whole time, drooling everywhere, startling Xiang Haikui.
“Scram!”
Xiang Haikui shouted harshly, slashing her sword to drive them off.
They seemed very afraid of Tiankuang’s sword aura, yet couldn’t suppress their hunger.
Whenever they saw an opening, they tried to attack her again.
“If you don’t scram now, don’t blame me for being ruthless!”
These monsters were nimble, and felt like they’d bounce off like cotton if she slashed them.
What’s more, Xiang Haikui gradually realized they weren’t trying to eat her, they were going after the little black snake in the jar at her waist.
So she made sure not to expose her back, keeping it against the wall to protect the snake.
“It’s him!” Seeing this scene, Luo Yunxiu couldn’t hide her joy and revealed herself midair.
“Senior, it’s been a while.”
Xiang Haikui was still busy fending off the monsters.
When she looked up and saw Luo Yunxiu, her heart gave a heavy thump.
She had seen this woman before, during the hyena hunt at Gale Valley and knew who she was: a high-ranking official from the underworld chasing her boss.
But… who was she calling “Senior”?
Luo Yunxiu gave her a demure curtsy, her eyes flowing with charm and affection.
“It’s only been a short while, yet you’ve already changed into a female sword cultivator’s shell? This one dares say, such a shell doesn’t match your heavenly grace and peerless elegance in the slightest.”
Xiang Haikui was getting irritated.
Tiankuang’s sword intent started to steadily rise.
She swung a sword strike to drive off the monsters, then stared at Luo Yunxiu like she was looking at an idiot.
“Lady, are you out here performing a one-woman opera or something?”
