257: Chapter 257 Return, Becoming a Monk

Chua!

Jiang Chen tore through space and returned to the island in an instant.

Then he dragged the still-dazed Jiang Wawa, along with the two clay figures she was pulling, back onto the small fishing boat.

The clay figures were tossed onto the deck.

Jiang Wawa was pulled into the cockpit.

"Who told you to run around!"

Xue Yao pulled Jiang Wawa into her arms and buckled her in with a seatbelt, wrapping her up like a zongzi.

"Because there are two more clay figures, and they're you guys. I almost forgot."

Jiang Wawa was about to break free from the seatbelt when Xue Yao pinned her down. Helpless, she lowered her head and began to supplement her liquid nutrition.

"Stop drinking, or you might throw up later."

Xue Yao quickly warned.

Although she was still breastfeeding, she had experienced the sensation of the Earth Hexagram being inverted half a year ago and had nearly vomited.

"It's fine."

Jiang Wawa dismissed it.

Swoosh!

The small fishing boat rushed into the Earth Hexagram and began the teleportation.

Another unfamiliar corridor in the sea of stars appeared. The small fishing boat sped through it like a vessel crossing the void.

However, this crossing wasn't horizontal. As the speed increased, the small fishing boat began to spin and flip upside down within the corridor while accelerating forward.

Xue Yao held Jiang Wawa tightly to prevent her from being thrown out.

Jiang Chen, being a Level 5 Lifeform after all, instinctively tried to use the energy in his body to stabilize the small fishing boat's trajectory.

However, he found that this was completely ineffective.

As a Level 5 Lifeform, the energy in his body was nearly a hundred times that of a Level 4 Lifeform.

But trying to counter the energy within the corridor was like trying to put out a forest fire with a cup of water. He was completely unable to control himself and could only endure the turbulence within the corridor, waiting for the transit to end.

"This teleportation corridor was likely created by a God-level Lifeform, wasn't it?"

Jiang Chen murmured to himself.

With his Level 5 Lifeform energy, he could already tear through space with his bare hands and use the spatial pull to increase his speed.

But to create such a peculiar teleportation corridor for others to use—honestly, he didn't have the capability to build one.

"Waa waa waa!"

Just as Jiang Chen was lost in thought, Jiang Wawa started screaming again.

After all, she was only a few months old. After being flipped around like that, all the nutrition from her mother was vomited out.

It was sprayed evenly across the entire cockpit.

For a moment.

The entire cockpit was filled with the scent of milk.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Jiang Wawa seemed to have passed out from motion sickness.

With a whoosh, the small fishing boat finally burst out of the corridor, met by a bright, dazzling glow.

The small fishing boat came to a rapid halt, hovering above the clouds.

Jiang Chen squinted and looked around. It seemed to be morning, with brilliant rays of light and a vibrant atmosphere. After spending over six months in the darkness of Shanhaijing Planet, he suddenly felt as if he had returned from hell.

"This is the taste of light. That ghostly place was truly like hell; it was unbearable."

Xue Yao also faced the sun, feeling the light from nuclear fusion emitted eight minutes ago shining on her face, feeling only warm and cozy.

The cockpit opened.

Under the sunlight, the milky scent slowly fermented and gradually faded.

And Jiang Wawa also slowly woke up from her dizziness.

She squinted and, not quite used to it, shielded her face with her hand, asking in confusion, "Mom, what is that? It's so hot!"

"It's the sun! The sun your father told you about, a type of star that emits light."

Xue Yao said with a smile. Although Jiang Wawa had been born for over six months, this was her first time seeing the sun and feeling its light.

Although Jiang Wawa was used to using her consciousness to sense the outlines of everything around her on Shanhaijing Planet, when light first entered her eyes, more vivid images immediately formed in her mind.

Yes.

Previously, the images were all in black and white because she hadn't seen the colors of things.

But now, she discovered that everything has color.

She looked around in great wonder, leaning against the side of the cockpit, watching the blue sky, looking at the white clouds, and the endless verdant mountain peaks below.

The colorful world was completing her worldview.

"The sun? Mr. Sun is so dazzling~"

Through the gaps between her fingers, Jiang Wawa cautiously and curiously observed this star that would blur her vision if she looked for too long.

"You can't keep staring at the sun, or it'll be bad for your eyes..."

"We are now in the Solar System, your father and mother's home star system. In this system, there are eight major planets, and the planet we are on now is one of them, Earth."

Xue Yao began to teach her daughter some basic knowledge about this world.

Jiang Wawa tilted her head curiously and asked, "The Solar System? Where is that?"

"In the Milky Way Galaxy."

"Ah? Then where is the Milky Way Galaxy?"

"In... Hubby, where is our Milky Way Galaxy?"

Xue Yao looked awkwardly at Jiang Chen. It was already a struggle for humanity just to leave the Solar System, and the Milky Way was huge enough; she didn't usually think about what was beyond it.

Jiang Chen answered in great detail: "Our cosmic coordinates are: Laniakea Supercluster — Virgo Supercluster — Local Group — Milky Way Galaxy — Orion Arm — Gould Belt — Local Bubble — Local Interstellar Cloud — Oort Cloud — Milky Way — Earth, the third planet of the Solar System."

"Oh~~~~"

Xue Yao and Jiang Wawa marveled at the same time, both wearing expressions that said they didn't quite understand but thought it was very impressive.

"If there's anything else you want to ask, go ahead."

Jiang Chen laughed.

It's normal for a child to have this kind of curiosity.

Jiang Wawa turned back and pointed at the clay figures scattered on the deck, asking, "Daddy, I want to color these clay figures."

"Coloring? Sure, I'll take you to find some paint."

Jiang Chen nodded. These clay figures were all mud-colored; they would look much better and more realistic with some paint.

"Wait! What's with this mud person?"

Xue Yao suddenly remembered the mud person that looked a lot like Jiang Wawa, so she fished that lump of mud out from a gap in the deck. It was a bit squashed now, but its size and general shape were still discernible.

After Xue Yao pulled it out, she could still see the mud person making slight movements.

It just seemed to have been squashed and damaged during the transit through the corridor.

Jiang Wawa said matter-of-factly, "Aren't Daddy's mud people and mud horses like this? I'm just imitating Daddy."

"You're imitating the Terracotta Warriors?"

Jiang Chen was shocked. The Terracotta Warriors were essentially ancient martial arts mechs left over from the Qin Dynasty, but the materials, mechanisms, and craftsmanship were too complex to be fully restored now.

How did Jiang Wawa learn to make these kinds of clay figures?

Jiang Wawa picked up the small clay figure and began to mold it with her hands, saying as she worked, "It's just like this, like this, and then like this. See, its eyes are moving!"

As she spoke, the Jiang Wawa clay figure in her hands quickly regained its shape, and its eyeballs began to move, looking lifelike.

"Hubby, did you see how she molded it?"

Xue Yao asked, completely bewildered. She felt as though she had become even more foolish since becoming a Level 3 Lifeform.

"As she molds it, earth qi energy is being released from her fingertips, similar to charging a mud mech... The question is, how does she know this molding technique?"

Jiang Chen grabbed a clay figure, crushed it, and observed the materials. He found that the internal structure of the mud had been altered into a special fluid, just like the fluid skin of the Terracotta Warriors.

"However!"

She was only born recently, and he hadn't taught her any knowledge about creating Terracotta Warriors. Where did she get this information?

"Mom and Dad are so silly. This is very simple. It's just like this, like this, and then like this. Anyone with hands can do it."

Jiang Wawa still acted as if it were perfectly normal.

To her, molding clay figures seemed as natural as speaking is to anyone with a mouth.

"..."

Jiang Chen and Xue Yao felt as though their own hands had been insulted.

"Ahem, let me take you to find some paint."

Jiang Chen changed the subject and steered the small fishing boat toward the Starship.

The Starship was currently a few thousand kilometers above Earth, conducting a routine patrol.

Since the Southern Heavenly Gate system was established, many interstellar warships had adopted the practice of routine patrols around Earth.

Due to the gathering immortal flag, the concentration of Qi on Earth was gradually increasing.

As the Qi concentration rose, the probability of Level 1 Life Forms being born on Earth also increased.

[Starship, this is pearl river 888, requesting permission to land on the deck.]

The radio transmission went out, and a familiar voice soon responded.

[This is Starship Commander Cuihua. Please land at Deck Position Number 8!]

Jiang Chen landed on an open area of the deck.

Just as he jumped out of the cockpit, Cuihua arrived leading a group of mechs to welcome Jiang Chen.

At this time, Cuihua was over five meters tall, with three heads and six arms—a total of nine mechanical arms—allowing her to easily handle hundreds of warship commands.

"Eh, Cuihua? Where are Dean Xia and Tiezhu?"

Jiang Chen was somewhat surprised that the commander of the Starship had become Cuihua.

Cuihua replied, "The Dean is at the Lunar Base focusing on research. Because Tiezhu's underlying protocols were frequently malfunctioning, he has entered monastic life and is now practicing at a temple."

"What? Entered monastic life?"

Jiang Chen and Xue Yao both looked stunned.

"A mech entering monastic life?"

"How does a mech enter monastic life..."

"It's been less than half a year. Has Tiezhu already grown disillusioned with the mortal world?"

Xue Yao looked at Jiang Chen with a strange expression.

"Look at the mech you created. After fifty years, even it can't figure out its own underlying bugs, and now it's entering monastic life."

"No, he said he wanted to seek enlightenment in a quiet environment. Once he has grasped the Great Dao of the universe, he will end his seclusion," Cuihua explained.

"Tell me, which temple is he at? I'll go see him."

Jiang Chen asked with a bitter smile. He had previously told Tiezhu to return to the maintenance plant at the Lunar Base just so he could do a proper self-diagnostic to see what was wrong. He hadn't expected Tiezhu's self-diagnostic to lead him to a temple.

"Haidian Creek, Guankang Temple," Cuihua answered.

Jiang Chen nodded and looked at Xue Yao and Jiang Wawa, who was curiously surveying her surroundings. "Call Qiu Zhi and the others back to meet Wawa. I'll head to Guankang Temple to see what's going on with Tiezhu."

"Okay!"

Xue Yao nodded.

Although Tiezhu was just a mech, he was the first model Jiang Chen had designed, and their bond was deep after over fifty years.

"Wawa, stay here with Mom. In a few days, an older sister and brother will come to play with you."

Jiang Chen instructed Jiang Wawa.

"Brother? Sister? What are those? Are they edible?"

Jiang Wawa looked curious.

"When they get here, you can try and see if they're edible."

After saying that, Jiang Chen left in the small fishing boat.

At this time.

In a small city in the southern part of the Dragon Kingdom on Earth, there was a small town called Haidian Creek.

Near the town, there was an ancient temple where various Taoist immortals and deities were enshrined.

The Eight Immortals from 'The Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea'.

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.

The Ten Kings of Hell.

Some of the more widely known Taoist deities in folklore were situated within this temple.

However, with the development of technology, there weren't many people who believed in immortals and gods anymore.

Thus, the temple had become quite dilapidated.

Usually, only the occasional rat would appear there.

But now.

Inside this temple, incense smoke curled upwards.

On a certain prayer mat sat a thin figure.

It was Tiezhu.

Since applying for retirement, he had modified his body to be smaller, and now he was about the size of an ordinary human. He was tall and thin and wore a Taoist robe. Unfortunately, he lacked a white goatee; otherwise, he would have looked like a Taoist immortal with an ethereal air.

During the past six months, Tiezhu had bathed, changed clothes, eaten vegetarian meals, and meditated, just like a devout believer.

To outsiders, he looked like an ordinary believer rather than a mech.

During this half-year, he had also read many Taoist classics, sometimes looking confused and sometimes with bright eyes, as if he were attaining enlightenment.

But as the time spent seeking enlightenment grew longer, his gaze gradually became confused and chaotic.

He sat blankly on the prayer mat, remaining motionless for long periods, seemingly entering a mysterious state known as Samadhi.

In this state, he found the programs within his body running in a very chaotic manner, with more and more images appearing in his memory storage.

"The Battle of the Milky Way's Right Spiral Arm, the destruction of the galaxy, the collapse of Taoism, entering reincarnation..."

"I am the Lord of Taoism, one of the Three Pure Ones, the Supreme Pure Celestial Worthy of Numinous Treasure..."

"In this life, I shall revitalize Taoism!"

Sitting on the prayer mat, Tiezhu's chaotic eyes suddenly snapped open. The scenes of thousands of star seas in his mind were reflected in his eyes; he seemed to have remembered something.

"Subduing dragons and taming tigers, the Path to Heaven is lofty and pure; roaming proudly in the Biyou Palace, purple mists protect the immortal island!"

Tiezhu murmured as he slowly stood up.

With a wave of his hand.

He directly swept away the Ten Kings of Hell enshrined on the altar.

Then he sat upon it himself.

"All of you, get down."

Tiezhu scanned the Eight Immortals and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to his left and right.

These wooden figures all fell over on their own, crashing to the ground as if they were kowtowing.

With Tiezhu taking his seat and the wooden figures falling, the incense smoke inside and outside the temple grew thick once again.

The surrounding Qi also began to flock toward this place involuntarily.

The distant birds and vegetation also seemed to sense something, chirping and leaning toward the temple.

At this moment, Jiang Chen happened to fly the small fishing boat over the temple.

He was just about to jump down.

Just then.

He suddenly noticed that the birds inside and outside the town had started chirping for some reason.

And the vegetation on the ground was also leaning in unison toward the temple.

"Strange, it's not raining heavily or blowing a gale, so why is the vegetation leaning?"

Jiang Chen looked at the strange behavior of the vegetation, his face filled with shock.

Looking in the direction they were leaning, he was even more surprised.

That place was none other than the Guankang Temple.

Exactly where Cuihua had said Tiezhu had entered monastic life.