Chapter 2209: Inheritance

Shang Liuyu was surprised. She looked around and said, "A'Zu, your master is a bit... mysterious."

Zu An nodded in deep agreement. "She is indeed very mysterious."

"How old is she?" Shang Liuyu asked, curious, after hearing the other person repeatedly call them "youngsters" and "young girls."

"I don't know her exact age, but she's probably between eight thousand and ten thousand years old." Zu An mused that since she had been asleep since ancient dynasties, she was indeed quite old.

Shang Liuyu was even more astonished, marveling that someone could live for such a long time.

"No wonder you've grown so powerful in just a few years. So you have such an incredible master."

In a certain space, Mi Li, who was reclining on a bed, had been secretly listening with perked ears. At this moment, a faint smile appeared on her face. This little girl is good; I like her.

Hmph, I've seen several of his female confidantes, and this seems to be the first one to praise me.

Seeing that the other person wasn't speaking ill of her behind her back, Mi Li finally relaxed and fell back into a deep sleep.

Zu An, however, retorted exasperatedly, "She is indeed formidable, but she's also quite unreliable a lot of the time. Never mind her, let's go out first."

Knowing that the woman was likely eavesdropping, Zu An naturally couldn't give her any leverage.

Soon, he led Shang Liuyu by the hand out of the pendant. Shang Liuyu gasped in admiration, utterly amazed by this spatial cultivation technique.

After emerging, she saw the Divine Dragon Immortality Herb next to the altar and learned that he had already obtained the World Law Beacon. She couldn't help but sigh with emotion, "A few days by your side seem more fulfilling than all the years I've lived, and I've witnessed so many miraculous things."

"Then you can just stay by my side forever," Zu An blurted out. Immediately after saying it, he felt a twinge of regret. He just couldn't shake his flirtatious nature. He already had too many romantic entanglements; no matter how many times he told himself not to flirt anymore, he still couldn't remember.

Shang Liuyu had by now regained her usual carefree demeanor. Hearing his words, she smiled and said, "Alright, but I'll have to ask my sister if she agrees first."

Zu An's heart skipped a beat. He wondered what she meant by that. Was it a polite refusal, or was she implying that if her sister agreed, they could be together?

Unfortunately, her face was wreathed in smiles, revealing no clues.

For a moment, he felt as if he had returned to his younger self, constantly fluctuating between hope and fear.

However, he had, after all, weathered too many storms, and his mood quickly calmed. "Oh right, I saw you using singing as a means of attack and defense earlier. It seemed to bear some resemblance to the academy's techniques. Are you 'The Singer,' the mysterious disciple of the old Chancellor?"

"Oh, I didn't expect you to figure that out," Shang Liuyu admitted directly. "Back then, my teacher saw my talent in singing and took me as a disciple, guiding me extensively. Originally, because of my special identity, he worried about causing me trouble and didn't allow me to make our relationship public. But of course, there's no need to hide it from you."

Zu An sighed. "I suppose the Chancellor was thinking that he would eventually have to deal with Zhao Hao and worried about implicating you all later."

Shang Liuyu's expression grew a little sad. "Yes, now I understand my teacher's painstaking efforts. He could have discussed all of this with us. If we had worked together to find a solution, he might not have perished alongside Zhao Hao."

"Perhaps he also wanted to keep your teacher-student relationship pure and unburdened," Zu An offered as comfort.

"Yes, although my teacher was easygoing, he was a very proud man at heart. Perhaps he believed that was his personal vendetta with Zhao Hao and never intended for us to be involved," Shang Liuyu said, a nostalgic look on her face.

Zu An recalled that he hadn't seen the old Chancellor's soul in the Underworld before. He wondered if he had reincarnated or what had happened, otherwise he would have at least tried to help him.

After a long period of shared sadness, Shang Liuyu suddenly asked curiously, "By the way, how did you know I use singing to attack? I think I only displayed those abilities when I was facing those two demons before."

"I was just about to tell you about that," Zu An said apologetically. "Actually, I came back a while ago. For the past few days, I've been observing from the side how you defended against the two demons' attacks."

Shang Liuyu: "???"

She looked at Zu An with a puzzled expression, but wasn't angry, as she understood that he must have had his reasons for doing so.

Just as she expected, Zu An quickly replied, "After I finished my business in the Underworld, I sensed a change here. Just as I was about to return, a voice stopped me..."

"'It seems you are undergoing a trial. If I were to appear, your trial would be incomplete.'"

"A trial?" Shang Liuyu was startled, suddenly remembering the words mentioned by the mysterious giant statue.

Zu An explained, "A phantom told me that she was a wisp of residual thought left by the Mermaid Progenitor, and she was about to completely dissipate. Fortunately, previously Feng... *cough, cough*, her friend helped her select you as the candidate and initiated the trial. However, her energy was already failing, so she entrusted me to continue helping her conduct the assessment."

"Your mermaid clan values loyalty to love and friendship above all else. It's clear that even during the most critical moments these past few days, you never thought of abandoning me and escaping. Instead, you tried your best to persevere for as long as possible. Your loyalty, courage, and wisdom are the most precious qualities of the mermaid clan. Therefore, I, on behalf of that senior, announce that you have passed the test and received the Mermaid Progenitor's legacy."

As he spoke, a blue orb of light suddenly appeared in his palm. He gently tapped it, sending the orb into her glabella.

In that instant, Shang Liuyu felt countless memories and knowledge appear in her mind, along with a beautiful phantom that seemed to be speaking to her.

Zu An waited for a moment, feeling a little nervous. "How are you feeling now?"

Although he had previously examined the orb and confirmed that it contained no hidden traps or evil souls intending to possess her, he couldn't help but feel a little worried seeing Shang Liuyu suddenly space out.

Shang Liuyu snapped out of her daze. "Yes, suddenly there's a lot of information in my mind—all lost cultivation methods and skills of the mermaid clan. And I feel like my cultivation has increased significantly. However, the Mermaid Progenitor told me not to rush it, or my foundation would become unstable. I need to cultivate step by step according to her plan to gradually absorb the gifts she left behind."

"That makes sense. If your cultivation advances too quickly in a short period, you'll encounter all sorts of problems in the future. It's better to be stable now," Zu An agreed.

Shang Liuyu pursed her lips and smiled. "Listen to you, as if your own cultivation hasn't progressed rapidly."

She had heard many stories of geniuses before, and she herself was a renowned talent. Yet, compared to Zu An, all other geniuses paled in comparison.

Zu An looked a little embarrassed. "My situation is a bit unique..."

"Alright, alright, I know you're special, none of us can compare to you," Shang Liuyu said, smiling at him. Then, her expression suddenly turned serious as she asked, "By the way, what if I hadn't withstood the assessment earlier and had given up much sooner?"

"I would have come out immediately to save you," Zu An said, looking into her beautiful eyes, "and I would have just counted you as having passed the trial."

Shang Liuyu playfully chided, "That would be favoritism!"

Zu An gazed at her tenderly. "For Sister Shang, what does a little favoritism matter?"

Shang Liuyu's face flushed slightly, and her heart immediately pounded. She wondered what he truly meant by that.

"I just didn't expect you to endure for so long," Zu An continued. "I thought that with your personality, if you knew everything, you would definitely want to pass the test by your own abilities."

Shang Liuyu formed a heart shape with her thumb and index finger. "You really do understand me!"

As soon as she made the gesture, she regretted it. Similar gestures were common among the mermaid clan and didn't truly signify anything profound, but in this specific situation, it came across as too ambiguous.