Chapter Fourteen: Half a Year

“What orders do you have, sir?” the old monkey asked respectfully.

Xu Chen tossed two spirit coins to him. “I’m hungry. Prepare a meal for me.”

The Great Creek Sect had stood here for ten thousand years, and over that time, the alien tribes within the sect had perfected the art of service almost to its limits.

If necessary, the old monkey could even find an alien girl for Xu Chen’s pleasure.

“Please wait a moment, sir,” the old monkey replied, bowing.

Less than a quarter of an hour later, the old monkey returned, carrying a massive food box, nearly half the size of a table.

“In the rush, I managed to prepare thirty-six dishes for you,” he said, setting the box down.

“That’s plenty,” Xu Chen nodded, taking the box home.

On the large round table, the thirty-six dishes—both meat and vegetable—were a feast for the senses, fragrant and delicious. Xu Chen was stunned by the flavors.

“It’s as good as the finest restaurant in Cloud Beast City. Such skill!” he praised.

He devoured the dishes like a whirlwind, then took the empty box outside, where he found the old monkey fishing by the riverside.

Xu Chen’s interest was piqued. “Do you have another fishing rod? I’d like to try.”

The old monkey whistled toward the dense forest. Soon, a young monkey appeared, handing Xu Chen a fishing rod.

The little monkey dug up a dozen or so earthworms and placed them in a handmade stone bowl, offering them to Xu Chen.

“Such attentive service,” Xu Chen thought, tempted to reward them, but reconsidered, mindful that spirit coins were precious and not to be wasted.

Xu Chen baited the rod and sat near the old monkey, fishing quietly.

“Do you have a name?” Xu Chen asked suddenly, realizing after two encounters he still didn’t know it.

“Sir, you can call me Little Six.” The old monkey’s face showed a trace of nostalgia as he spoke.

“I’ll just call you Six. You’re not so little anymore.”

And so, man and monkey spent the afternoon fishing together.

Fish piled up beside the old monkey, while Xu Chen hadn’t caught a single one.

“Sir, would you like me to share some with you?” the old monkey hesitated.

“Fishing is for peace of mind, not for the fish,” Xu Chen scoffed, laying down his rod and heading home.

By now, dusk was falling. In the distance, a white dot slowly flew toward Xu Chen’s courtyard.

“Xu Chen, you have a package.” The voice of the courier crane echoed from above. Xu Chen hurried outside.

A ten-inch-square spatial wooden box dropped from the sky; Xu Chen caught it deftly.

“Aren’t you afraid it’ll smash on the ground?” Xu Chen called up.

“Everything is calculated,” came the crisp reply from afar.

“With service like yours, the Thunder Eagle will steal your business sooner or later,” Xu Chen muttered.

He sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, impatiently opening the box.

His expression changed slightly as he examined the contents.

On the top layer lay five yellow crystal cards from the Leizhou Bank—each worth ten thousand spirit coins.

“Father already prepared all my cultivation resources. Why send so many spirit coins now?” Xu Chen frowned, opening the second layer to find a set of magical tools; the third layer held a treasure-grade battle blade.

The more he looked, the stranger it seemed. He opened the final layer: a letter and a jade slip.

He read the letter quickly, feeling increasingly uneasy.

“The situation at the front is grim.”

His father explained that Xu Chen should focus on cultivation within the sect; as for finding an alien partner, it depended on fate. All resources except battle treasures had been deposited in Leizhou Bank for him.

Finally, his father urged him not to worry—though the front was dangerous, everything was under control. The contingency plans were merely precautionary.

As for the jade slip, it was currently sealed, containing a wisp of his father’s soul. If the worst happened, the seal would break automatically, revealing its contents.

After reading the letter, Xu Chen felt a deep sense of helplessness.

He desperately wished his parents could retreat from the front lines, but in this era of the Human Emperor, where pride in the human race reigned, it was impossible.

The sun set, and the Milky Way sparkled in the night sky.

Xu Chen looked up, murmuring, “I must become stronger!”

Within the Sacred White Space, Xu Chen pushed open the wooden door of the Sacred Ape Six Forms.

“It’s been a while. The vegetable sellers miss you dearly!” His avatar conjured the shadow of a sacred ape behind him, ready for battle.

“Let’s make a deal—can you give me some pointers during our bout?” Xu Chen ignored the taunt.

“Dream on! The strong learn by themselves, from the changes of heaven and earth!” The avatar unleashed the fiercest move, Sacred Ape Covers the Sky.

Xu Chen hurried to defend.

After thirty-three moves, the avatar grabbed Xu Chen’s crown and squeezed, ending him with a burst.

Xu Chen’s consciousness reformed, and he began a second challenge.

This time, the longer he fought, the calmer he became, carefully observing every move of the avatar.

He’d tried this before, but gained little.

He kept challenging—twelve times in all—until exhaustion overtook him, and he fell asleep on his bed.

The next morning, Xu Chen checked the spatial wooden box again, putting all its contents into his storage pouch.

“After half a year in the Great Creek Sect, disciples must take sect missions. A month has already passed.”

“I must cherish the remaining time, strengthen myself.”

“My priority now is to cultivate the Twelve Wave Body Refinement Method. Once I defeat the avatar of the Sacred Ape Six Forms, everything else will be easier.”

“The spirit coins and magical treasures father sent can wait.”

Xu Chen planned his future step by step.

Outside the courtyard, by the small river, Xu Chen first practiced the Twelve Wave Body Refinement, then jumped, bare-chested, into the river.

The water just covered his head; there, Xu Chen attuned himself to the flow and power of the currents.

Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, half a year had gone by since he joined the sect. Unless necessary, Xu Chen spent this time training at home.

Several disciples from nearby came to visit, and in the comings and goings, he made a few friends.

“Xu Chen, you have mail.”

A Thunder Eagle hovered above the courtyard, its wings beating. Because of the mist array, the eagle couldn’t see into the courtyard, so it delivered the letter with great care.

Xu Chen stepped out from his room.

“Just drop it.”

The Thunder Eagle dropped the letter, then became a bolt of lightning, flying off.

At that moment, a white figure streaked across the sky above the courtyard, equally swift.

Xu Chen read the letter, a smile appearing on his face.

“All is well with father and mother.”

He wrote a reply, sealed it in a black envelope.

The levitation spell within the black envelope activated, sending the letter drifting skyward.

A black bolt of lightning flashed by, snatching the letter and vanishing into the horizon.