Chapter 0545: The Endless Path

Ning Cheng’s Spiritual Consciousness then fell on to his ring; finding that he could still retrieve things from the inside, Ning Cheng finally felt some relief. At least he could cultivate even in this situation.

From the looks of it, Shen Qinyu could not use her Spiritual Consciousness; as such, Ning Cheng guessed that she might not be able to open her storage ring. Ning Cheng was just about to tell Shen Qinyu that he could take out things from his storage ring, when Shen Qinyu spoke up again, “In the deepest part of the Sea of Twilight, time flows continuously, and even walking would not be of much help. With our lifespans, I estimate that we can only stay alive for up to ten years in this place. Moreover, the depths of the Sea of Twilight has no measurable range; therefore, even if we continue walking without stopping, ten years later, we most likely would still remain inside.”

Ning Cheng turned silent. He indeed felt his lifespan shortening. Whether he could use his Spiritual Consciousness or not, as long as he remained inside, he felt as if he would not survive for long.

Thinking of this, Ning Cheng gave out a sigh and spoke, “I have a Miniature World Ring, we can enter the Miniature World Ring and try to think of a way out.”

Shen Qinyu shook her head and spoke, “It would be of no use. Unless the laws governing your Miniature World Ring are of a higher quality compared to the laws within the Sea of Twilight, time would still flow at the same pace within your Miniature World Ring. Time definitely would not slow down just because you entered your Miniature World Ring. What’s more, without any way to use our Spiritual Consciousness, we can’t even enter your Miniature World Ring.”

“Is there really no way out of the depths of the Sea of Twilight?” Ning Cheng’s expression turned ugly.

Shen Qinyu calmly replied, “Not only is there no way out, but I also heard that it is impossible to regain the life span that we lose within the Sea of Twilight. If it were anywhere else within the Time Wilderness, if we lost some lifespan, although we might age a little, the lifespan lost could still be regained through cultivation by way of advancement.”

“However, within the Sea of Twilight, the lifespan lost, will not only result in us turning older, but it would also be impossible to recover the lost lifespan. Even if you somehow managed to advance to the next realm, it would only help you increase your lifespan by a bit, and the part that you lost in this place would remain lost forever……”

“Ah….” Ning Cheng turned sluggish. According to Shen Qinyu’s words, even if he managed to get out one day, he most likely would turn into a white-haired old man. If that was the case, could he still manage to reunite with Shi Qionghua and Luofei?

Not caring about Ning Cheng sluggish expression, Shen Qinyu herself gave out a sigh, while her eyes also showed a hint of desolation. She, however, did not think much of such things. She knew about her unique appearance; even then, she did not mind dying an old age within the Sea of Twilight.

She recalled Xiao Yu, who had always frantically pursued her. This was the only person of the opposite sex and the Senior Apprentice Brother in her heart that she had some favourable impressions.

In the Grand Culmination Starry Skies, the Spiritual Heaven Sect was one of the apex-ranked sects, belonging to the category of Starry Skies-level Sects. Within the Spiritual Heaven Sect, only those disciples who had the potential to inherit the sect’s mantle would have the character ‘Xiao (霄 – Heaven/Firmament)’ within their names. In other words, Xiao Yu was the prince of the Spiritual Heaven Sect. Moreover, he was the only person she knew of who reached the Celestial Bridge Realm within just a hundred years of cultivation.

Shen Qinyu looked at Ning Cheng beside her and felt her heart losing focus. Ning Cheng was a starry skies’ wanderer; moreover, a principled starry skies’ wanderer. If Xiao Yu replaced Ning Cheng right now, how would he behave if he realised he only had a ten-year worth of lifespan left……….

“Do you have someone you like?” Shen Qinyu interrupted Ning Cheng’s daze.

Ning Cheng gave an ‘en’ sound and replied, “Yes, I have two wives. I just thought that if one day I turn into an old man, what would happen if I could go out and see them?”

Shen Qinyu obviously did not think that Ning Cheng would have two wives. She felt surprised and only spoke up after a while, and with a confused look, “Aren’t starry skies’ wanderers always alone? How could they have wives?”

Ning Cheng’s mind immediately flashed with Shi Qionghua’s demure and unparalleled temperament, followed by Ji Luofei’s gentle and caring face. In comparison, the only thing that he could say was that Luofei was a bit more outgoing than Qionghua.

“Before I entered the starry skies, when I was in a low-level True Cultivation Mainland, I had two wives.” Ning Cheng’s tone no longer contained the previous irritableness. He believed that since Little Chase could escape from here, even it was in the form of a Life Essence then he could also come out of this place. If it really came to that point, he would then ask Little Chase for more details.

In any case, he had to get out of this place. If Shen Qinyu did not want to leave, he would try to find a place for Shen Qinyu to settle down before trying to find his way out.

Seeing Ning Cheng turn silent again, Shen Qinyu suddenly spoke up, “I heard that in the depths of the Sea of Twilight, there is a special kind of Ice Essence called the Glimmer of Dawn. A single drop of this ice essence could restore not just people’s original appearance but also their lost vitality. Moreover, the value of this stuff is higher than even Twilight Sand. Anyway, it’s just something I heard and only a legend, no one has ever seen it.”

“Glimmer of Dawn Ice Essence…..” Ning Cheng muttered to himself. “The words I spoke earlier, ‘Sublime is the beauty of the sun yet to set; so soon, alas, shall the dusky evening follow’, where did you hear this phrase?”

Shen Qinyu shook her head and spoke, “It’s not something just known to me. Most likely, all the people who know about the Sea of Twilight also know about this phrase. I heard that only after entering the Sea of Twilight could one understand the meaning of this sentence. Currently, we are not only in the Sea of Twilight but also in the deepest part of the Sea of Twilight, yet I still do not know what this sentence means. It seems that not all rumours are true after all.”

Ning Cheng did not speak, wondering if there was such a thing like a coincidence. Not only did people from two different worlds knew about this phrase, people even connected it to the Sea of Twilight.

“You don’t have to think about it too much. We anyway have a limited lifespan. It would be better if we use this time wisely to explore and try our luck. If we can’t find the exit even after a few years, I intend to find a place and wait quietly for the inevitable.” Shen Qinyu’s tone turned even calmer; apparently, she had already accepted and resigned to her so-called fate.

Ning Cheng also nodded; however, he did not refute Shen Qinyu’s words. As for searching for a place to die, it was impossible for someone like Ning Cheng.

“I’m actually from the Grand Culmination Starry Skies. You can say that I am much more fortunate than you are and have a master in the Life and Death Realm while coming from a decent clan…..”

As Shen Qinyu and Ning Cheng walked, she started talking about her origins. Ning Cheng just listened quietly. He did not ask any questions and did not take the initiative to speak to Shen Qinyu about his own affairs.

One day passed like this, two days, three days, one month passed by……

Shen Qinyu finally stopped talking after finding that she was the only one speaking and felt a little embarrassed. The words that she had not spoken to anyone in her lifetime, she ended up spilling them out during this month. In this environment, she seemed to have forgotten that they were within the deepest part of the Sea of Twilight and kept talking nonstop.

The second month and the third month quickly passed by, and even as Ning Cheng and Shen Qinyu continued to walk forward, the two people’s lifespan still decreased rapidly as the time continued to flow around them.

Since the start of the second month, Shen Qinyu had not spoken a word, while Ning Cheng also did not talk about anything. The two of them just continued to walk forward. Shen Qinyu’s eyes grew more and more tired. Her body also turned more haggard and weak each passing day. Even her bare while skin had become dark under the effects of walking in the deepest part of the Sea of Twilight for the past few months.

In the first three months, Shen Qinyu occasionally managed to look at Ning Cheng; however, in the fourth month, she finally closed her eyes.

Ning Cheng remained silent for four consecutive months. He tried to use his Spiritual Consciousness to try to grasp the surface of the flowing time. He wanted to seize the hint of epiphany that he once experienced in the Perpetual Moon Lake and see if he could use it to find an exit.

However, even after four months, although his Spiritual Consciousness could now extend from the initial ten feet to twenty feet, he still could not feel that kind of flowing time.

As the fifth month ended, Shen Qinyu finally stopped moving. It was an endless path; as such, she felt that regardless of if they continued walking or not, it would result in the same outcome.

Initially, Ning Cheng had been walking at the same pace as Shen Qinyu, which caused Ning Cheng’s level of contemplation and perception to remain in a steady and constant flow. However, when Shen Qinyu stopped, the strap connecting their hands grew taut, causing Ning Cheng to wake up suddenly. He also stopped and subconsciously asked, “Are you not able to walk?”

“You are a silent man. I have never walked with someone who refused to talk for over five months. I am sorry; I cannot continue walking with you. It’s just that I cannot walk anymore.” Shen Qinyu spoke with a dry tone. Moreover, she did not lie, as she genuinely could not walk anymore; it was more apt to say that she could not even muster the strength or the will power to walk anymore.

Ning Cheng secretly cursed himself for being careless. Shen Qinyu could not bring out her Spiritual Consciousness; as such, her Celestial Essence drainage was several times larger than he was. Continuously walking for five months without any exchange of words really was pushing it to the extreme, which made him feel apologetic.

Without waiting for Ning Cheng to speak, Shen Qinyu suddenly removed the mask covering her face, “Since we’re friends, I can at least let you have a look at my true face. You can continue along the path behind you, I will stay here and wait quietly.”

Ning Cheng, who was just about to speak, turned sluggish for a moment after he saw Shen Qinyu’s face. He indeed had never seen such a beautiful face.

Her eyes were already beautiful even in the past; however, they suddenly turned even more vivid. Even the extreme exhaustion and the desolated look could not hide the beauty of these two bright spring-like eyes. The slightly pale lips, plus this pair of beautiful sparkling eyes, turned her face into something that one could never describe with words, more than enough to cause the downfall of nations.

Even the messy hair and the rag-like robes hanging on to her body could not diminish her beauty by even the slightest bit. At the same time, it actually enhanced her unearthly aura.

Anyone who gazed at this face would quickly forget about everything going around him or her. This face literally was a masterpiece within the starry skies universe, a beautiful landscape, or even the most beautiful song.

Ning Cheng’s gaze gradually drifted away as Luofei and Qionghua’s faces emerged within his heart. The one in front of his eyes was the most beautiful face he had ever seen while those two were the most beautiful souls within his heart. As a feeling of disassociation gradually started to emerge within his mind, it made Ning Cheng want to return to Qionghua and Luofei’s side quickly.

Shen Qinyu did not care about Ning Cheng gaze. Whenever a man saw her face for the first time, it would immediately send them into a daze. Even she admitted that in this world, she had never encountered a second woman more beautiful than her.

However, she soon noticed the disassociation in Ning Cheng’s eyes. Were there still some men who could think of other women while looking at my real face?

Shen Qinyu finally smiled, if she could, she really wanted to see the woman Ning Cheng thought of. When this thought emerged in her mind, she suddenly shook her head. If it were before, she would have never come up with such an idea.

“I overthink. I even wanted to let you see my true appearance before we separated. If it were the past, I would not have even dared to imagine such a thing turning into reality.” Shen Qinyu’s voice still sounded very dry.

She felt grateful towards Ning Cheng for saving her once, which was why she decided to let Ning Cheng see her real appearance. Naturally, it also had some self-pity in it, which resulted from her and a strange starry skies’ wanderer to both facing deaths in the Sea of Twilight.