Chapter 394 163: Zhao Xin's Ascension

"You know Zhao Xin, too?"

Then, Xu Lei couldn't help but ask, "When did you meet?"

After all, back then, Xu Lei had never taken Bai Ling to see Zhao Xin, nor had he told her much about himself.

Bai Ling explained that after Xu Lei died, she had looked into his past, which was how she learned of Zhao Xin's existence. She had even met her a few times afterward.

But after Zhao Xin left to wander the world, she never saw her again. She never expected her to suddenly appear nearby.

"Master, should we go see her?"

Bai Ling then asked, "Do you want to see her?"

Xu Lei thought for a moment, then nodded.

'Even though a lifetime has passed.'

'What would it be like, seeing her again? Zhao Xin must be old by now.'

'He had even thought that Zhao Xin had already achieved Ascension, but it seemed she hadn't.'

'But now that they'd run into each other, it felt wrong not to go see her.'

So, Bai Ling led Xu Lei to find Zhao Xin.

Along the way, gusts of wind blew, filling the air with sand.

They had returned to the city at the Desert Border. Having failed to find any Spirit Monsters before, they had come out again to see if they could find the Lizard Demon they hadn't managed to catch previously.

They soon arrived at their destination.

At that moment, Zhao Xin was in an inn in the city, simply eating a meal. She wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary.

She was dressed in a plain Daoist Robe.

'Although so many years had passed, her Cultivation must be quite impressive now. Has she reached the Ninth Realm? Still, she just looked like an ordinary Daoist Nun, sitting there and eating.'

After all, the Cultivators of this era weren't overwhelmingly powerful and didn't use their Magical Power carelessly. When not channeling their power, they seemed just like ordinary people.

Of course, Zhao Xin had indeed grown old. Her hair was almost entirely white, and her face was covered in wrinkles, though her figure had not grown stout.

The elegant lines of her face were still visible; you could tell she had been a beauty in her youth.

She wasn't so old that her teeth had fallen out, and she still had a healthy appetite.

From the time Xu Lei had left Zhao Xin, spent a while with Bai Ling, died, and was reincarnated to the present day, more than eighty years had passed.

Therefore, Zhao Xin had aged to be nearly sixty years old.

Zhao Xin was on the second floor of the inn, eating noodles. As Xu Lei reached the top of the stairs, he gazed at her, his eyes filled with complex emotions and his heart swelling with feeling.

Bai Ling quietly watched Xu Lei and Zhao Xin, because she knew, of course, that Zhao Xin had been Xu Lei's Dao Companion in his previous life.

This reunion, spanning the vast gulf of time, where Xu Lei was once again a young man while Zhao Xin had become a white-haired old woman, filled Bai Ling with a touch of emotion as well.

At that moment, before Xu Lei or Bai Ling could say anything...

...Zhao Xin sharply sensed that someone was watching her and immediately turned her head toward Xu Lei and Bai Ling.

Her gaze met Xu Lei's first.

The look in his eyes gave her pause.

'She didn't know this handsome, unfamiliar young man, but the way he was looking at her felt a little strange.'

Of course, her eyes quickly moved to the beautiful, slender, white-haired Bai Ling standing beside Xu Lei, and then to the two distinctive Human Puppets that followed her.

"Little Bai Ling?"

A surprised smile spread across Zhao Xin's face. "What are you doing here? What a coincidence! So many years have passed, you're all grown up! If it weren't for those two Human Puppets by your side and that white hair of yours, I wouldn't have recognized you immediately! Come, sit down! Let's talk!"

The timbre of her voice was not what it used to be. The aging of her body had changed it, lending her tone a hint of aged frailty.

She was, of course, still very warm toward Bai Ling. Not only was Bai Ling accompanied by the Human Puppets Xu Lei had left behind, but she had also introduced herself as Xu Lei's disciple when they first met.

Bai Ling naturally stepped forward at once, smiling as she and Zhao Xin began to exchange pleasantries and catch up.

"You've become a young woman, so tall and graceful! I can't imagine how many male Cultivators you've charmed!"

Zhao Xin took Bai Ling's hand. "So? Have you found a Dao Companion? This man with you... don't tell me he's the one?"

Bai Ling didn't answer, looking instead to Xu Lei.

She wasn't sure if Xu Lei intended to reveal his true identity to Zhao Xin.

After all, Xu Lei had told Bai Ling that he didn't want too many people to know he could reincarnate, which meant Zhao Xin was also in the dark.

'But what if Xu Lei decides to reveal himself right here and now? If he does, should I go ahead and admit that we're Dao Companions? That's something to consider.'

'After all, Zhao Xin was Xu Lei's Dao Companion in his past life. It would definitely be a bit awkward.'

"We are indeed Dao Companions."

At that moment, Xu Lei spoke up. "It's been for the last two years—"

He then addressed Zhao Xin as "Senior" and briefly introduced himself and his current situation.

That's right. After some consideration, Xu Lei had decided not to tell Zhao Xin that he was the Hui Chi of a past life.

'The secret of his reincarnation was something Xu Lei was truly reluctant to share.'

'If he confessed his secret to every reliable friend he made, he felt that sooner or later, it would be known to the whole world.'

'After all, you never know when you might run into a blabbermouth, or when a once-good relationship might turn sour.'

'If the secret got out completely, would people deduce that he had reincarnated into one of his own descendants? It was hard to say. After all, people weren't stupid.'