Volume 3 - Chapter 419: Sculpting the True Meaning, Shi Miao Awakens (Part 4)
Outside the courtyard, Li Hao returned from the ancestral land.
The yard before him looked just as it had three years ago. His eyes immediately turned toward the tightly shut doors of the inner hall. Still closed.
Disappointment flickered in his heart. It seemed there was still no sign of awakening.
Carrying the basket, he returned to his carving bench. The chessboard beside it was covered in dust. He waved his hand, scattering it clean in an instant.
When Nanny Wu saw Li Hao return, her face lit up with joy and she hurried over.
“Young Master, you’re back!”
“She hasn’t left her room?”
Li Hao asked directly.
Nanny Wu instantly understood he meant Su Muqing and replied, “Miss has rarely stepped outside these past few years. She’s kept herself shut away in the hall.”
Li Hao let out a quiet “Oh.” It seemed that during his three-year absence, she hadn’t paid him any mind.
He gave a slight shake of his head and didn’t dwell on it.
He dismissed Nanny Wu and returned to his usual routine—playing chess and sculpting, just as he always had.
But now, having reached the twelve segments of the Sculpting Dao, the figures he carved—especially the ones of Ying Xiaoxiao—seemed to carry a trace of soul.
Each time he finished sculpting one, he would place it by his side, treating it as quiet companionship.
Time passed swiftly.
During the three years Li Hao spent in the ancestral land, Su Wanqing and Su Wanxue had both come by the Exiled Immortal Court looking for him. Upon learning where he had gone, they were sincerely happy for his opportunity and didn’t disturb him further.
Even so, they would occasionally send someone to check whether he had returned.
Now that he had, it took less than half a month before the two came to visit.
“Haotian, we heard you trained with the Progenitor. After three years, your strength must have improved greatly, right?” Su Wanxue looked him up and down with curious eyes. Any prejudice she once held had long since faded. Now, she found herself wondering just how far his strength had grown.
“It’s all right,” Li Hao answered casually.
But Su Wanqing’s gaze had already landed on the nearby sculpture. Li Hao had sealed away the Great Dao Origin from it to avoid drawing attention. Though it only emitted a quiet charm, his twelve-segment sculpting skill made it far more lifelike than anything he’d carved before.
“Your sculpting seems to have improved,” Su Wanqing said softly, though her voice carried a tinge of sourness.
Was it because he had kept sculpting her sister over and over?
Even without seeing her, he had remained so focused. Was it because that person had already been deeply etched into his heart?
“Mm.”
Li Hao didn’t give it much thought, but he was slightly surprised that Su Wanqing could sense his breakthrough in the Sculpting Dao.
“Haotian, are you planning to go to the Primal True World?” Su Wanxue asked with wide-eyed curiosity. “With your talent, cultivating there would definitely help you improve even faster.”
“The Primal True World?”
Li Hao looked instinctively toward the hall where Su Muqing was secluded. Then he shook his head slightly. “Not for now.”
“Not going?”
Su Wanxue caught his glance and immediately asked, “Is it because of Muqing? She’s going too, you know.”
Li Hao replied, “If she goes, then I’ll go.”
Su Wanxue fell silent. It was clear now—wherever Su Muqing was, that was where Li Hao would be. Even the lure of the Primal True World couldn’t sway him.
Her curiosity piqued, she asked, “Where did you meet Muqing? Why do you care so much for her?”
Hearing that, Su Wanqing also looked at Li Hao. She quietly tucked away the envy in her eyes, worried he might notice and distance himself.
The question left Li Hao momentarily stunned. His thoughts drifted back—to the Southern Region, to the small teahouse in the mortal world.
He said nothing for a long while, lost in the memory.
Seeing that he didn’t respond, Su Wanxue didn’t press further. Instead, she said, “If you ever want to go to the Primal True World, our Su family can make arrangements. Your father favors you. I’m sure he’d help you gain a spot.”
Li Hao returned to the present and shook his head. “No need. I already have a way in.”
“You do?”
Both Su Wanxue and Su Wanqing were surprised. But then they thought of his overwhelming talent, and it didn’t seem so strange. Someone like Li Hao would naturally have a path forward.
The sisters exchanged glances. Su Wanxue couldn’t quite understand him, but Su Wanqing bit her lip.
If he had a way into the Primal True World, yet chose to stay here, then he was simply wasting time—for her.
That level of feeling… was beyond anything they could hope to match.
After a bit more small talk, the two of them took their leave.
Li Hao returned to his usual routine: cooking the ancient demon’s corpse for nourishment, healing his golden bones, and alternating between sculpting and chess.
Though both skills had broken through to the twelfth segment, he still needed to accumulate more experience. If he could reach the thirteenth, he would be able to break through to the King Realm.
But that path would be a long one. Experience alone would require endless repetition—day after day.
Inside the hall…
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