Chapter Nineteen: The Celestial Thunder General Star

The sky was overcast, pitch dark with no sign of daylight.

Although the downpour had slightly eased, Hua Sheng felt it was merely the prelude to an even fiercer storm about to come.

Lei Zhenzi’s face was a shade darker than the gloomy sky, a deep blue-black.

Hua Sheng forced a faint smile through his stiff expression and offered a sheepish grin to Lei Zhenzi. “Great Sage, please don’t take our youthful folly to heart. Teenagers often speak without thinking. We’ll leave immediately—”

“Don’t go!” Lei Zhenzi’s words rang out like a thunderclap, tightening Hua Sheng’s chest.

“Wait—” Hua Sheng tugged at Mie Ying, trying to retreat, while turning back with a playful grin. “Great Sage surely has important matters to attend! We’ll disappear at once. You focus on your affairs—”

Lei Zhenzi bellowed, “It seems the young ones lack discipline! Today, I must capture you both and hand you over to the Academy of Mystical Arts to be redeemed!”

Hearing this, Hua Sheng sighed inwardly. Since leaving the Great Thousand Zen Temple that morning, troubles had followed nonstop; these few hours felt longer than months.

If Lei Zhenzi really took them away to ‘visit,’ not only would they stand up the Supreme Young Lord and miss meeting the Dao Spirit Star Lord, but it would also only fan the flames of trouble with the Academy of Mystical Arts.

These troubles were like a row of dominoes, tumbling one after another in a long chain. If not caught in time, everything would spiral out of control, and all plans would be in vain.

Therefore, Hua Sheng and Mie Ying absolutely could not be caught by Lei Zhenzi now. If they fled immediately, even if they were later confronted, they could brush it off casually—the rain forest was hardly forbidden territory; at worst, mischievous children sneaking out to fish.

As long as they didn’t miss the meeting with the Dao Spirit Star Lord, it would be fine.

With this resolve, Hua Sheng reached out, grabbed Mie Ying, and shouted, “Run! By the decree of the swift!”

Dragged by Hua Sheng, Mie Ying shot downward, the wind roaring past their ears.

“Why are we running?” Mie Ying asked.

“Powerful immortals like him are not to be trifled with, and we have urgent matters. We can’t afford a moment’s delay!” Hua Sheng shouted.

Before Mie Ying could reply, a barrage of thunder erupted behind them. Dense lightning bolts pierced the dark clouds like sharp arrows, hurtling straight at them.

Hua Sheng’s hair stood on end as he pulled Mie Ying to dodge the lightning, weaving left and right while flying, yelling, “It’s my first time seeing lightning so intense it could give you a phobia of crowds! Be extremely careful—don’t get struck!”

Unexpectedly, Mie Ying struggled fiercely to break free from Hua Sheng’s grip.

“Let go! I want to confront that old fellow!”

Hua Sheng dared not loosen his hold, gripping tighter and shouting, “It’s not worth it! Don’t be stubborn at such a time! The bigger picture matters!”

Seeing Hua Sheng refusing to release her, Mie Ying huffed and fell silent.

In a flash, they landed back in the jungle. No sooner had they touched down than tens of thousands of lightning bolts rained like arrow storms around the forest.

Booms echoed continuously as several towering ancient trees, each wide enough to be embraced by thirty or forty people, were split in two by the lightning strikes—clear proof of the immense voltage and power.

Hua Sheng originally planned to dodge by running, but the lightning strikes were too dense; relying on just his legs was impossible. He resorted to a hovering technique, gliding close to the ground, pulling Mie Ying along to dodge back and forth.

Yet the dense forest posed a challenge—trees everywhere made flying awkward, with a risk of crashing headlong into a tree. So Hua Sheng decided to release Mie Ying’s hand, instructing her to stay close without getting separated.

“It’s inconvenient to hold onto you in this forest. I’ll let go; you must be careful to keep up—”

He turned to remind her but stopped mid-sentence, for the figure behind him was no longer the green-haired Mie Ying.

Trailing him was a pink-haired girl, her long hair tied with a palm-sized red bow. She looked at him innocently.

What shocked Hua Sheng more was that while his hand still held her left hand, her other arm was clutching an enormous teddy bear.

Hua Sheng was dumbfounded and immediately asked, “Who are you?”

The girl’s expression was innocent.

“I… I…”

“Wait, I’ve never seen you before, but you’re one of Mie Ying’s sisters. Which one are you?”

“I… I’m Fifth Sister.”

“Fifth Sister?”

“Yes… that’s right…” The girl seemed confused, not knowing what was going on.

A sudden thunderous crash—an ancient tree toppled beside them, nearly crushing Fifth Sister.

“Ah!” Fifth Sister shut her eyes tightly, clutching the teddy bear.

Worried about Lei Zhenzi catching up, Hua Sheng wasted no time and pulled Fifth Sister forward, flying ahead.

But he felt their speed slowing, as if dragging a heavy burden. Anxiously, he shouted, “Fifth Sister, you have to fly faster! If you’re slow, it’ll be dangerous!”

Unexpectedly, Fifth Sister cried out through sobs, “I’m already flying as fast as I can! As fast as I can!”

“What? What are you talking about?” Hua Sheng was incredulous.

“Are you not of the Spirit Race? How can you fly so slowly?”

The pink-haired girl sobbed, “I don’t really understand immortal arts! Fifth Sister doesn’t understand immortal arts!”

The thunder in the jungle exploded in Hua Sheng’s mind.

He felt as if struck by a thousand thunderbolts and hurriedly asked, “Fifth Sister, what do you mean you don’t understand? Explain!”

“I mean I just don’t. What can I do?”

Her tear-streaked face seemed sincere, not pretending. At a time like this, there was no reason to feign ignorance of immortal arts.

“What about your second sister? She was with you just now!”

“I don’t know! She got angry and left. I’m innocent too!” Fifth Sister sobbed and shouted, “What do you want me to do?”

“Wow, your second sister really throws you under the bus quickly!”

Hua Sheng crouched down and said, “Jump on my back. I’ll carry you!”

The pink-haired girl hesitated.

Impatient, Hua Sheng urged, “Quick! If we’re late, we’ll both be fried by lightning!”

“Oh…” Fifth Sister climbed onto Hua Sheng’s back. Because she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, the huge teddy bear pressed against Hua Sheng’s face.

“You’ve got this giant bear in my face! I can’t see a thing!”

“But… what am I supposed to do with it?” Fifth Sister sobbed anxiously.

“What kind of magical artifact is that?”

“It’s a toy bear!”

Hua Sheng’s hair nearly stood on end. “You brought a toy bear while running for your life! Throw it away!”

“I won’t!” Fifth Sister kept crying. “I won’t! She’s my best friend.”

Seeing he couldn’t persuade her, Hua Sheng shouted, “Then lower the bear a bit. I need to see where I’m going!”

Fifth Sister adjusted her hold, pressing the bear down, allowing Hua Sheng to at least see with both eyes.

“By the decree of the swift!” Hua Sheng shouted and accelerated, flying low through the forest.

But with the toy bear in front and Fifth Sister on his back, Hua Sheng felt like a stuffed meat bun, bulky and awkward, risking collisions with the dense trees.

As he fled, he glanced upward through the thick leaves and faintly saw Lei Zhenzi’s thunder and wind wings crackling with electricity. Lei Zhenzi waved his golden Staff of Wind and Thunder.

Countless bolts of lightning poured downward from the staff into the jungle below.

Because Hua Sheng’s speed had slowed considerably, the distance between Lei Zhenzi and them visibly shrank.

This was bad, very bad!

Hua Sheng cursed inwardly—facing the tenacious Lei Zhenzi, and now with Mie Ying’s sisters turning out to be a “dead weight” unfamiliar with immortal arts.

Among so many sisters, here at the crucial moment, suddenly appeared a Fifth Sister he never knew about, who couldn’t use immortal arts.

Not only that, she was carrying a useless teddy bear.

Now he was an unexpected and genuine “one dragging two,” and prospects looked grim.

Just as despair settled in, Hua Sheng suddenly spotted the jungle’s end ahead—a cliff. Beside it, a wide river plummeted down as a towering waterfall.

“Got it! There’s always a way out!”

An idea struck him. He flew to the waterfall’s edge and, still carrying Fifth Sister, leapt down.

From beside him came Fifth Sister’s shrill screams, “Wah! Wah! Wah! I’m afraid of heights! I’m afraid of heights!”

Her piercing cries nearly deafened Hua Sheng, who looked back and said, “Fifth Sister, are you really of the Spirit Race? Being afraid of heights is embarrassing! What’s going on?”

Fifth Sister didn’t answer, continuing to sob uncontrollably.

Hua Sheng slowed their descent, flying inside the waterfall’s mist. Halfway down, he found a natural hollow behind the cascade and quickly took shelter inside.

He gently set Fifth Sister down. Her pink hair and bow were soaked through, and the teddy bear’s weight had increased from drinking the water.

Fifth Sister sobbed, clutching the bear tightly. The bear, squeezed hard, leaked water onto the ground, forming a small puddle.

Seeing her so miserable, Hua Sheng felt pity and refrained from further scolding her lack of magical skill.

He recited a spell and gently patted Fifth Sister’s back; her clothes dried instantly.

But she kept crying, clutching the bear tightly. The bear, squeezed again, leaked more water, wetting her robe anew.

Hua Sheng listened carefully to the sounds outside the waterfall and sensed no unusual activity. It seemed Lei Zhenzi hadn’t found this hidden cave behind the water curtain yet.

Only then did he relax slightly and turned to Fifth Sister.

“Come, hand me the teddy bear. You’ll catch a cold soaking wet like this.”

“No!” Fifth Sister gripped the bear tighter, burying her face deep into it.

Hua Sheng squatted and gently tapped the bear’s arm, speaking as kindly as he could, “It’s alright. Let me dry it for you. I’ll give it back soon.”

Fifth Sister raised tear-streaked eyes and looked at him trustingly.

“Promise you won’t lie to me…”

Hua Sheng sighed. “I won’t.”

Slowly, Fifth Sister loosened her grip. Hua Sheng lifted the bear and found it was indeed drenched, weighing several dozen pounds.

He carried it to the cave entrance and squeezed it hard; water gushed out. After lightening the burden, he set it down, patted its head, and chanted, “By the decree of the swift!”

A warm mist rose, and the bear dried completely.

Hua Sheng returned it to Fifth Sister and helped dry her robe again. Only then did her sobbing subside.

Then, bending forward patiently, he said, “Fifth Sister, we can’t hide here for long. Lei Zhenzi will find us sooner or later. I must go out and lure him away. You stay hidden and don’t move.”

Tears welled up again in Fifth Sister’s eyes. “No… don’t go. Don’t leave me here alone. I’m scared…”

“It’s alright. I’ll draw Lei Zhenzi away and come back. Besides, your sisters are here with you. If you’re truly afraid, hide in the back and let the others show themselves.”

Fifth Sister nodded silently and hugged the teddy bear tighter.

Seeing she was calm, Hua Sheng stood at the cave’s mouth, grasped the refined iron golden chain at his chest, and a golden light flashed. The Ruyi Golden Cudgel returned to his hand.

Looking down at the staff, he said, “Fine, mighty Sea-Calming Divine Iron! Today we shall match your power against Lei Zhenzi’s Staff of Wind and Thunder!”

With that, Hua Sheng stepped onto a cloud and shot out from behind the waterfall’s curtain, soaring straight toward the sky where Lei Zhenzi awaited.