Wu Chongyun’s eyelashes trembled.
Wei Mingyi asked again, “Why aren’t you speaking?” In the silence, Wei Mingyi made a “tch” sound. Her Shizun’s skill at feigning deafness and muteness was unmatched under heaven, but Wei Mingyi had her own methods. She picked up the horsetail whisk and brushed it against Wu Chongyun’s face. Not long after, the whisk was seized by Wu Chongyun. Wei Mingyi looked at her expectantly, urging her with her eyes.
Wu Chongyun frowned. She stared fixedly at Wei Mingyi. “You didn’t say anything either.”
Wei Mingyi: “?” If she hadn’t spoken, was a ghost making sounds just now? Her thoughts stirred, and she mentally extended the timeline—could it mean on the way back from the pavilion? When Shizun had looked at her, she did seem to hesitate. “Then what did Shizun want to say?” Wei Mingyi asked her.
Wu Chongyun pursed her lips.
She didn’t have anything she wanted to say.
She just wanted to listen to Wei Mingyi speak.
But she also called Wei Mingyi annoying.
Wu Chongyun pondered this, angered by her own contradiction, her expression growing increasingly unpleasant.
She also stopped meditating. With a listless air, she lay back.
And closed her eyes.
Wei Mingyi: “…”
She removed her shoes and socks and outer garment, climbing onto the bed. She lifted the upper half of Wu Chongyun’s body, who was lying on her side, and let her rest her head on her knees. With practiced ease, she reached out and stroked Wu Chongyun’s white hair. Wei Mingyi lowered her head; her voice soft, she asked, “Shizun, what’s the matter?”
Wu Chongyun glanced at her and said, “Leave me alone.”
“Leave me alone” meant she had to manage it to the very end. Wei Mingyi’s fingers threaded through the white hair, finally resting gently on Wu Chongyun’s brow. She stroked it lightly first, tracing past the corner of her eye before pulling back, soothing her brow. Although she knew she wouldn’t get a truthful answer, Wei Mingyi still asked, “Shizun, where does it hurt?”
“I’m not in pain,” Wu Chongyun said. She raised her hands and covered her ears, not wanting to hear Wei Mingyi speak. But when the sound truly disappeared, she couldn’t wait to lower her hands and open her eyes to look at Wei Mingyi.
Wei Mingyi blinked. She asked carelessly, “Is Shizun angry with me? For managing you, not letting you have your freedom?”
Wu Chongyun wanted to say “Yes,” but meeting Wei Mingyi’s bright, clear eyes, she couldn’t bring herself to say anything false. She couldn’t sort out her own feelings. She turned over, presenting the back of her head to Wei Mingyi. Not long after, she turned back on her own and said, “No. I’ll be your training partner.”
The jumping topic made Wei Mingyi pause. More than the latter half of the sentence, she cared about that “No.” Even though she knew Shizun was speaking contrary to her heart, seeing a burning passion meet with denial—whether genuine or feigned—was ultimately a blow to one’s spirit and resolve. However abundant the enthusiasm, if it couldn’t sway an iceberg, it would turn into a heart full of bleak coldness.
Fortunately, Wu Chongyun hadn’t denied her.
The previous topic was set aside for now. Wei Mingyi said, “Thank you, Shizun,” and as usual, began telling Wu Chongyun about her day’s encounters. She said, “That Daoist we met earlier is called Ying Shen’gao. She and her teacher wandered all the way to Cangwu City. The injured one is the Daoist’s teacher; they were beaten by people from the Wang Clan. But revenge isn’t their priority right now. They’re preparing to rebuild their sect within Cangwu City’s territory.” She paused, then added, “Not from the Cloud Realm, but from the Spirit Mountain area. They were previously struggling to survive under the Wu Clan’s sphere of influence.”
Wu Chongyun’s attention was on Wei Mingyi’s fingers. She couldn’t see clearly, but she knew what Wei Mingyi was doing. Her index finger was idly winding strands of her hair around itself, round and round. The motion was very light, with no pulling sensation, yet an indescribable feeling rose in her heart. It wasn’t until she heard “Wu Clan” that Wu Chongyun’s scattered thoughts gathered again. “Spirit Mountain?” she asked.
“That’s what they claimed. As for why they left their homes and came to Cangwu City, they didn’t say,” Wei Mingyi replied. She looked down and saw Wu Chongyun’s gaze flickering, seemingly particularly interested in the Spirit Mountain Wu Clan. She had also said before that she knew about the Four Paragons of Spirit Mountain. A flash of inspiration struck Wei Mingyi, and she joked, “The Spirit Mountain Wu Clan claims descent from the Wu Ancestor among the Ten Shamans. That branch wasn’t originally the direct line; they changed ‘Wu’ [Shaman] to ‘Wu’ [Surname/Martial]. Does Shizun’s ‘Wu’ have any connection to the Spirit Mountain ‘Wu’?”
Wu Chongyun’s eyes darkened slightly. She answered very quickly, “None.” Afraid Wei Mingyi would continue questioning, she added, “They offended the Wang Clan, yet they’re establishing a sect within Cangwu City’s sphere of influence. Aren’t they afraid the Wang Clan will come knocking?”
“They said the Wang Clan doesn’t know their whereabouts,” Wei Mingyi shrugged. Then she added, “But I think the Wang Clan will eventually find them. They won’t be able to hide. Since they’re establishing a sect, and we’re both of the master-disciple lineage, our Chongyuan Sect has an obligation to help them rebuild their mountain gate.”
Wu Chongyun wanted to sit up, but Wei Mingyi had her hair in hand, so she suppressed the impulse. Lowering her eyes, she asked flatly, “Your plan?”
Wei Mingyi thought seriously, then spoke quietly, “How can one allow another to sleep soundly beside one’s own bed? We need to take back Langya City and Xingyang City as well.” The other two major families, like Cangwu City, belonged to the Feng clan. There weren’t tens of thousands of miles of uninhabited land between them; they were interlocked like dog’s teeth. They had to find a way to clear those people out.
Wu Chongyun was silent.
Wei Mingyi: “Does Shizun think my goal is too small?” Given the perspective of a Nascent Soul Perfected One, a few backward, remote villages certainly weren’t worth much. “But I only have Meridian Opening cultivation, after all. A person shouldn’t aim for what’s beyond their reach.”
Wu Chongyun: “…” She couldn’t help but ask, “How high and far do you still want to aim?”
It was fortunate that Su Xuanjing was a very capable Golden Core Sword Cultivator, with top-tier talent and cultivation techniques. Otherwise, the tiny Chongyuan Sect really couldn’t support Wei Mingyi’s grand dreams.
–
Qi Wugua and Ying Shen’gao, master and apprentice, stayed as guests in Chongyuan Sect. By the time the Greater Restoration Pill came out of the furnace, the matter of rebuilding the Spirit Heart Sect had already been settled. Spirit Heart Sect purchased land and rented a Spirit Vein from Wei Mingyi. Given their current assets, they couldn’t produce a large sum of Pill Jade. However, Chongyuan Sect wasn’t short on Pill Jade now; what they lacked were fellow Daoists who could refine artifacts. After several rounds of negotiation, it was settled that Spirit Heart Sect would pay off the debt with the magical artifacts they refined.
Whether it was Pill Jade or artifacts, Wei Mingyi didn’t care much. She was just slightly regretful that Spirit Heart Sect was unwilling to become dependent on Chongyuan Sect, meaning she missed out on two hundred Achievement Points. But it was fine not to be a vassal; having an ally wasn’t bad either.
Wei Mingyi didn’t join in the bustling activity of Spirit Heart Sect setting up their sect. In the new year, she took a trip to Yangchun Terrace in the Wild Domain. By now, nearly a month had passed since the evil tide had completely ended. The tales of Yangchun Terrace, the Fire Element Dwelling, and Chongyuan Sect were widely spread in the Wild Domain. As soon as Wei Mingyi contacted Lang Fengya, she learned that the Heavenly Dao Alliance had placed great importance on these two special encampments, even sending Nascent Soul Perfected Persons to investigate.
Of course, at Yangchun Terrace, the Alliance’s Perfected Persons could only return disappointed.
After all, when the evil tide descended, Wei Mingyi and the others had long since returned to Chongyuan Sect through the Teleportation Array.
Yangchun Terrace gave no response, but at the Fire Element Dwelling, the Heavenly Dao Alliance’s Daoists confirmed there were cultivators present. The arrogant, overbearing Nascent Soul Perfected Person demanded Lang Fengya and her group come out to welcome them and hand over the Fire Element Dwelling. How could Lang Fengya comply? She completely dissociated herself from the Fire Element Dwelling, claiming she had just been lucky to have hidden there during the evil tide and survived. As for the existence behind the Fire Element Dwelling, Lang Fengya, as Wei Mingyi had instructed, first spread the name of Chongyuan Sect, then intentionally or unintentionally hinted at the traces of a Grotto-Heaven Perfected Person.
The Heavenly Dao Alliance Daoist didn’t believe Lang Fengya’s claim of being unrelated to the Fire Element Dwelling. Enraged, he wanted to seize Lang Fengya, but no matter what, he couldn’t breach the Fire Element Dwelling’s barrier. A Nascent Soul Perfected Person could, of course, keep watch in the Wild Domain, cutting off the Fire Element Dwelling’s communication with the outside until Lang Fengya came out. But doing so seemed unnecessary at the moment. Moreover, a rogue cultivator who could cultivate to Golden Core in the Wild Domain wouldn’t have poor luck or cultivation. Perhaps she had already left without anyone noticing. After weighing the pros and cons, the Heavenly Dao Alliance Nascent Soul ultimately chose to retreat.
To the Heavenly Dao Alliance, the rogue cultivator Lang Fengya was actually the least significant.
Their focus was on a sect named Chongyuan Sect, a sect of master-disciple heritage, and the indistinct figure of a Grotto-Heaven power lurking behind it.
For the aristocratic families, an additional Grotto-Heaven in the master-disciple lineage held no benefit whatsoever.
For a time, the Heavenly Dao Alliance bustled from top to bottom, everyone searching for this Chongyuan Sect. In their understanding, Yangchun Terrace and the Fire Element Dwelling could only be the work of a Grotto-Heaven. Regardless of where this Grotto-Heaven came from, Chongyuan Sect itself couldn’t be too shabby. At the very least, it needed to be at the standard of a second-rate clan, possessing several Nascent Soul cultivators, or even a Nascent Soul approaching Grotto-Heaven.
“The families have started searching for you all. Be careful,” Lang Fengya warned gravely.
Wei Mingyi acknowledged it. She wasn’t too worried.
At a time like this, being a village in a desolate, remote area had its own advantages. Even if the Heavenly Dao Alliance investigated their sect and saw only a handful of members, they would immediately rule them out.
“As for the Fire Element Dwelling—”
“Knowing the Heavenly Dao Alliance’s methods, they’ll either try to delay our pills or exert pressure through others, nothing more,” Lang Fengya said with a carefree smile, not particularly concerned. She continued, “There are many rogue cultivators in the Wild Domain unwilling to submit to the families. Now that they know the benefits of the Fire Element Dwelling, they’re all willing to gather here. In the past, we had to rely on others’ charity. Now that we have a foothold, many difficulties can be easily resolved.”
However, Lang Fengya was just making it sound easy. If they had no ambitions, they could stay in the Fire Element Dwelling forever. But having stepped onto the path of cultivation, what they pursued was the higher realm. If they wanted to improve, they still had to “venture out.” The Spirit Vein in the Fire Element Dwelling was only Yellow-Rank and had a specific elemental attribute. It was somewhat beneficial for those cultivating fire-element techniques, but for everyone else, it offered little benefit. It could only serve as a temporary camp to rest.
“We can provide ordinary pills,” Wei Mingyi said with a sly smile. What did the Heavenly Dao Alliance bet on in the Wild Domain? Chongyuan Sect wasn’t even based in the Wild Domain. Looking at her Achievement Points, which were about to break ten thousand, she added, “Overcrowding isn’t good for a cultivation site either. If Fellow Daoist has trustworthy people who want to buy land, feel free to introduce them.”
Lang Fengya’s eyelid twitched, and her heart suddenly seized with shock. Just Yangchun Terrace and the Fire Element Dwelling had already upended her understanding. Did Fellow Daoist Wei’s words imply there were more territories she could sell? What exactly was her origin? The Heavenly Dao Alliance, which dabbled in all kinds of business, didn’t casually buy and sell land in the Wild Domain! Although those territories were still permeated with Primordial Chaos Qi and not entirely pure, with a Spirit Vein and a Mountain Protection Array, turning them into Pure Land was a future one could plainly foresee.
One or two plots of land hadn’t made Lang Fengya think that deeply, but if they possessed many, many territories, that meant the one behind Chongyuan Sect could achieve the millennia-old dream of the Nine Provinces’ cultivators—a Pure Land under heaven!
Did Chongyuan Sect’s Grotto-Heaven consist of only one venerable?
Or was it, perhaps, something beyond even Grotto-Heaven?
