Chapter 227: Young Goddess! Rabbit!
Chen Xuan descended from the sky. Not toward the villages or nearby cities, but toward the northern part of the island, where the young girl was currently cultivating.
With his cultivation, even Nascent Soul cultivators would find it difficult to detect his presence, let alone a non-cultivator who was still in the process of gathering Qi.
Standing a few feet away from the girl, Chen Xuan quietly examined her up close.
She was small, with a stature perfectly matching her age, while her blue hair was tied into two neat ponytails.
Her young age and immaturity contrasted sharply with the serious expression on her face, making her look inexplicably cute. Anyone who saw her would probably have the urge to pinch her cheeks.
Of course, Chen Xuan would not do such a thing.
He merely stood there and observed her in silence.
Having gotten this close, he could now confirm it.
This young girl... was the Goddess of the Sea!
Or at the very least, a younger version of her.
’Is this her reincarnation?’ Chen Xuan couldn’t help but wonder.
However, he quickly shook his head.
’No. That doesn’t make sense.’
If this were truly the Goddess of the Sea’s reincarnation, then there were far too many things that didn’t add up.
Moreover, Chen Xuan clearly remembered the strange sensation he had experienced after entering this place.
The feeling of unreality.
The faint sense that something was separating him from the world around him.
After connecting these clues together, Chen Xuan soon had an idea.
His divine sense swept throughout his surroundings.
It covered the island itself, the endless sea surrounding it, and then continued spreading outward.
Thousands of miles.
Ten thousand miles.
Yet just as it was about to continue farther...
Bang!
His divine sense suddenly encountered resistance.
It was as though an invisible wall had been erected between heaven and earth, preventing his divine sense from reaching any farther.
Chen Xuan frowned slightly and tried again.
The result remained the same.
No matter how much he attempted to probe beyond that boundary, his divine sense would be bounced back.
Chen Xuan was not surprised.
He had already expected this possibility.
This "wall," combined with the strange sensations he had experienced earlier, finally allowed him to confirm his current state.
’Is this an illusion? It’s extremely realistic...’
’Had it not been for my intuition warning me, and the fact that this illusion cannot perfectly derive an entire world, even I might have been fooled.’
The thought made Chen Xuan inwardly sigh.
The methods of the Goddess of the Sea were indeed extraordinary.
The moment Chen Xuan realized the nature of this world, he suddenly sensed a piece of information enter his mind.
It confirmed his idea.
This place was indeed an illusion constructed by the inheritance palace.
No matter what injuries one suffered inside this place, they would face no harm in the real world. More importantly, no matter how much time they spent inside this world, only a moment would pass in reality.
As for how long he could remain here, there was no upper limit.
Chen Xuan silently digested this information.
The lack of an upper limit, combined with the strange phenomenon of "time stopping," did not make him relax.
If anything, it made him even more solemn.
It was proof that the trial itself was far more difficult than one would expect.
To complete it, he would likely have to expend a considerable amount of effort and time, even if all of that time would only exist within the illusion.
Chen Xuan couldn’t help but grumble inwardly.
He let his divine sense retreat, his gaze once again falling upon the younger girl.
He knew very well that if he wanted to leave this illusion and pass the second trial, he would have to interact with her.
The problem was...
He had no idea what kind of interaction the trial required.
Would he have to change her fate?
Would he have to help her cultivate?
Or perhaps there was some other hidden requirement?
Chen Xuan did not know.
Because of this, he did not rush to step forward recklessly.
Instead, he continued observing.
The young girl remained seated cross-legged, carefully absorbing the surrounding Spiritual Energy as she attempted to gather Qi and step into the Qi Refining realm.
Unfortunately, all her efforts ended in failure.
She was still too young.
Her Physique had not fully developed yet, and her natural talent was far from sufficient to allow her to break through the limits of her current body.
Even though she was the future Goddess of the Sea, at this moment, she was still merely an ordinary little girl.
The "cultivation session" lasted for quite some time.
Chen Xuan remained beside her throughout the entire process, quietly observing every movement.
At first, he was still patient.
But as time passed, even he gradually became somewhat impatient.
It was only several hours later, when Chen Xuan was beginning to wonder whether he had to continue watching her cultivate indefinitely, that the girl suddenly opened her eyes.
She let out a disappointed sigh.
Clearly, she had failed once again.
After gathering her belongings, she slowly rose to her feet and left this place.
Chen Xuan’s eyes flickered.
He immediately became intrigued.
He could sense several powerful beasts inhabiting the nearby forest.
If the girl wanted to return to her village, she would have to pass through that forest.
Yet with her current mortal strength, how was she going to accomplish this?
Chen Xuan’s curiosity was quickly answered.
As soon as the young girl approached the forest, a cunning look appeared in her eyes.
She reached into her pocket and took out a small piece of skin.
The moment it appeared, a powerful aura spread from it.
Chen Xuan immediately understood.
The skin came from a Core Formation beast.
To him, such a creature was nothing worth mentioning.
But to the beasts inhabiting this forest...
"Roar!"
"Agh!"
Countless roars erupted.
The moment the aura of the Core Formation beast spread through the forest, the beasts nearby immediately scattered.
Wherever the young girl passed, the beasts fled in panic, as though they had sensed the presence of a terrifying predator.
Despite this, the young girl remained extremely cautious.
She did not recklessly walk wherever she pleased.
Instead, she only passed through areas inhabited by Qi Refining beasts, as though she had long since memorized the safest route through the forest.
Seeing this, Chen Xuan couldn’t help but sigh.
For such a young child to already be this crafty and cautious, it was no wonder she had eventually grown into a powerful cultivator.
Perhaps even at this age, the temperament that would define her future had already begun to take shape.
With her cautiousness and her various methods, the young girl encountered no trouble.
She soon passed through the forest and arrived safely on the other side.
Only then did she carefully hide the piece of beast skin, concealing its aura once again.
Afterward, she walked toward the village with brisk steps.
"Cai Yao! You’re here! Didn’t we tell you not to go out alone?!"
"What if you encountered a beast and got eaten?! How would we be able to face your parents in the heavens afterward?!"
The young girl was scolded the moment she stepped into the village.
Several middle-aged women immediately gathered around her, pulling her ears while bombarding her with complaints.
The young girl puffed out her cheeks, her face turning red from anger.
Yet beneath that anger, Chen Xuan could clearly see a hint of gratitude and joy.
She was obviously accustomed to these women worrying about her.
The village women continued lecturing her for quite some time.
It was only a quarter of an hour later that Cai Yao finally managed to return to her home.
From the words of the village women, Chen Xuan had already understood that her parents were dead and that she had no other family member to take care of her.
The building was empty.
Or rather, there were no humans living inside it.
But besides Cai Yao, there seemed to be another tenant.
"Squeek! Squeek!"
As soon as Cai Yao stepped into the building, a flash of white light shot toward her like a bullet.
A moment later, its appearance was revealed.
It was a rabbit.
White in color and covered in pristine fur, it looked somewhat majestic as it perched on top of the young girl’s head.
"Squeebly, get off! Get off!"
Cai Yao complained while desperately shaking her head, trying to throw the white rabbit off.
After several attempts, she finally succeeded.
The rabbit landed safely on the ground.
Cai Yao sighed.
She then walked toward one of the few cabinets in the room and retrieved several blades of grass.
After mixing them together, she placed them before the rabbit.
The animal immediately buried its face into the pile.
With a single gulp, it devoured nearly half a bowl of grass.
Watching this happen, a faint smile appeared on Cai Yao’s face.
"Squeebly, you should eat it all!"
"I’ll have to rely on you in the future to make a living!"
She gently patted the rabbit as she spoke.
Strangely, the animal’s ears twitched.
Its movements paused for a brief moment, and it seemed to nod its head.
Then, it continued eating.
It was unknown whether Cai Yao didn’t notice these small movements or simply didn’t care.
After confirming that there was nothing wrong with the rabbit, she hurriedly returned to her room.
She opened a book and began to study.
Only the white rabbit remained in the main room.
Well...
The white rabbit, and an invisible man.
Chen Xuan stood quietly nearby, staring at the rabbit as it continued eating.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
He had been observing Cai Yao this entire time.
Yet for some reason, this ordinary-looking rabbit had attracted his attention even more.
As he stared at the eating rabbit, Chen Xuan couldn’t help but reveal a trace of surprise.