Uncanny Immortal 6

Chapter 6

After a moment, with what sounded like a sigh, Mo Jiangxue’s toes tapped the air, and she leaped back into the water. She wrapped an arm around the young girl’s waist, pulled her from the water, and placed her on a flat stone.

She lay prone on the stone, coughing until her eyes filled with tears, as if she were about to cough up her own heart and lungs.

Mo Jiangxue tossed her tunic back to her and said calmly, “This cold pool was formed from the melting of thousand-year-old ice crystals. It can cure a hundred poisons. The more you struggle, the deeper you will sink. If you remain still, you will float.”

“I… cough, cough, cough! I didn’t know… cough, cough, cough…”

Even if she had known, she wasn’t a corpse. How could a living person, drowning, possibly remain perfectly still?

She grabbed her clothes and, while coughing wretchedly, hastily pulled them on.

Mo Jiangxue reached out and pressed her Tiantu, Shanzhong, and Dingchuan acupoints, then circulated her internal energy, sending a stream of warmth into her.

Her coughing stopped instantly, and the moisture on her clothes began to slowly evaporate.

She raised a hand to wipe the tears from her eyes and turned to look at Mo Jiangxue, taking in her cold, clear features.

For a moment, she felt that the turquoise water and green bamboo, the bright moon and the frost in the night, were all less captivating than this exquisitely beautiful face.

Mo Jiangxue also gazed at her and asked, “What is your name?”

They’ve been together for a day or two, and only now does she think to ask my name…

She said, “I… I’ve forgotten. I can’t remember anything from before I was seven. The villagers didn’t give me a name either; they all called me ‘Nannan.’”

At the mention of the villagers, a dull ache still throbbed in her heart.

All these years, they had taken such good care of her. From now on, there would be no one to look after her. She would have to learn to take care of herself.

Mo Jiangxue: “If you’ve forgotten, then let it be forgotten. Consider your worldly ties severed.”

The words seemed meant to be comforting, but when she looked at Mo Jiangxue’s expression, it was still just as cold.

She asked, “What does it mean to sever worldly ties?”

Mo Jiangxue: “To let go of mortal thoughts and desires, to cut the bonds of emotion, and to cultivate without any attachments.”

The first step in Xuanmen cultivation was to sever worldly ties. Even an emperor who wished to cultivate the Dao and attain immortality had to relinquish his worldly honor and riches.

“Cultivation…”

She murmured these two words, a faint hope stirring in her heart: Has this person changed her mind? Is she willing to take me as a disciple and guide me in cultivation?

If that were true, it would be wonderful.

As if she half-understood, she said, “I’ve heard Aunty talk about this before. She said there are three immortal mountains among the fourteen provinces within the seas—Penglai, Fangzhang, and Yingzhou. There are many cultivating immortals on the mountains. In the past, emperors even sent people to those places to search for the elixir of immortality, but none were ever found. Those immortals would also transform into Daoist priests and enter the mortal world for training.”

She had read about these things in books and heard them from her aunty. She spilled out everything she knew, wanting to make a good impression on Mo Jiangxue, to prove that she was not completely ignorant about matters of cultivation.

Mo Jiangxue: “Some of what your aunty said is correct, and some is not.”

“What’s correct? And what’s not?”

She had a bellyful of questions but was afraid of talking too much. She cautiously observed Mo Jiangxue’s expression. Seeing not a hint of impatience on her face, she relaxed.

Mo Jiangxue: “The three immortal mountains do indeed exist, but there are no immortals, only reclusive cultivators who have hidden their names and built huts to cultivate in seclusion.”

Most reclusive cultivators were weary of the mortal world, disliked interacting with secular people, and were unwilling to interfere in worldly affairs. Therefore, those without the proper fate, even if they found the three immortal mountains, would not be able to find the cultivators on them, let alone the so-called elixir.

The young girl asked, “Then where did all the immortals go?”

“They ascended to the immortal realm. Only cultivators who have not yet become immortals remain in the mortal world to cultivate.”

“Then, do the reclusive cultivators get bored staying on the mountains all the time? Do they, like me, raise little chickens and ducks for company?”

“Some do. They have Daoist companions or friends by their side. Some do indeed raise spiritual pets.”

But generally not chickens, ducks, or geese. Their character was not noble enough, so it wasn’t fashionable to raise them.

The young girl remembered that Mo Jiangxue was also a reclusive cultivator from Penglai. She smiled faintly and said, “Then, for someone like you, with no Daoist companion and no spiritual pets, when you get bored, do you have no choice but to come down the mountain for training?”

Mo Jiangxue glanced at her and said coolly, “If I were bored, I’d prefer to come down the mountain to look at a drowned rat.”

Taken aback by the sudden jest, the young girl was speechless for a moment before asking, “Do the little chickens, ducks, and geese I raised in Wen Family Village count as my worldly ties?”

Her parents were long gone, and the ghosts of Wen Family Village had been delivered. The only things she could still care about were the chickens, ducks, and geese in her courtyard. Without her, they would probably turn back into wild fowl.

Mo Jiangxue: “They do not.”

“Then it seems I have nothing left to be attached to.”

“Your familial ties are weak, but you have an affinity with the Dao. You can give yourself a Daoist name.”

“I… give myself a name?”

Mo Jiangxue hummed in affirmation.

After entering the Xuanmen to cultivate, it was common for people to cast aside their secular names and take on a new Daoist name or title.

The young girl asked, “I can’t think of one. Could you give me one?”

Mo Jiangxue shook her head. “I am neither your parent nor your master. I cannot name you.”

It seems she’s still unwilling to take me as a disciple…

Her hopes dashed, she felt an unavoidable sense of disappointment. A dullness enveloped her heart. She looked up at the sky and thought, but she truly couldn’t come up with any elegant words to use as her name.

Mo Jiangxue pointed to several odes carved on the stone. “You can choose one from here.”

Hearing this, she ran her hands over the stone, feeling her way. Her fingers found the line, “Speaking of the qin, some call it Qingzheng,” and she said aloud, “Qingzheng.” (zhǐ, pronounced like “jer”)

She wanted to use these two characters as her name.

Gong, Shang, Jue, Zhi, Yu—the ancient musical notes. This person carried a qin and wore a xiao, so she might as well choose a name related to music.

Mo Jiangxue: “Qingzheng.”

When she spoke these two words, they sounded exceptionally pleasant.

The young girl nodded. “Yes, Qingzheng.” Fearing her subtle little thought would be exposed, she added, “Didn’t you say I have an affinity with the Dao? Qing, for clarity and mystery; zheng, zheng, um, uh…” She explained clumsily, her attempt to cover up only making it more obvious.

Finally realizing she couldn’t explain it clearly, she simply said honestly, “Qingzheng, the clear zhi note. It’s related to music.”

Mo Jiangxue, however, seemed completely unconcerned. She looked at the crimson mark between her brows and said, “Your mother’s surname was Xie. The cinnabar between your brows was placed there by your mother. It contains the remnants of her spiritual energy.”

The young girl raised a hand to touch her brow. “How do you know my mother’s surname? Did you know my mother?”

“I did not. Someone else told me.”

“And how did that someone else know?”

“She was an old friend of your mother’s.”

Was it the person who was talking with Mo Jiangxue last night? She remembered that person’s clear, gentle voice, which sounded very kind and amiable.

She placed her hand on her forehead and felt around, but she couldn’t feel anything.

When she was a child and looked in the mirror, she had seen this cinnabar mark on her forehead, like a tiny teardrop.

When children began their studies, elders would place a dot of cinnabar between their brows, symbolizing the opening of their minds for learning, so that their eyes and hearts would be clear from then on.

She knew her mother had taught her to read and write, but she never knew that this cinnabar mark contained any residual spiritual energy.

Perhaps only cultivators like them could sense this so-called spiritual energy.

A shadow of sadness fell over her heart, but she quickly pulled herself together and said softly, “Then from now on, I will be called Xie Qingzheng.”

All living things in the world have a mother. Even the small birds and beasts in the mountains grew up under their mother’s care.

The “people” of Wen Family Village had also adopted and cared for her because they had received her mother’s kindness.

She couldn’t remember the people and events of the past. The cinnabar mark on her brow and her mother’s surname were the only traces she had of her mother’s existence. She wanted to carry her mother’s surname and live a good life in this world.

It didn’t matter if Mo Jiangxue was unwilling to take her in. If one place wouldn’t keep her, another would. She could even go beg on the streets if she had to.

She wanted to ask more about her mother and Wen Family Village, but Mo Jiangxue suddenly reached out a hand.

A cold aura washed over her. Xie Qingzheng’s body stiffened. “What… what are you doing?”

“Casting a spell.”

Mo Jiangxue plucked a strand of her hair and placed it on a round, white stone by the pool. She formed a hand seal, and the characters “Xie Qingzheng” appeared on the stone. Then, the strand of hair seemed to be swallowed by the stone and disappeared.

“This place is called the ‘Jade Water Cold Pool.’ It is located at the foot of Ethereal Peak and is protected by a barrier. From now on, you may enter as you please.”

So that was why she had asked for her name. But—

“You’re not willing to take me as your disciple, so why would I need to come to this place in the future?” Xie Qingzheng looked around. “To take a bath?”

It was indeed a good place for a bath—green bamboo, turquoise water, the epitome of tranquility. If there was any flaw, it was that, like the white-robed woman before her, it seemed too cold, without a trace of warmth.

One would surely freeze to death in winter.

“To detoxify,” Mo Jiangxue said. “You have a poison of heat and cold in your body. When were you poisoned?”

Xie Qingzheng shook her head. “I don’t know. It’s always been like this, cold one moment and hot the next. I thought it was a strange illness. So it was poison…”

Mo Jiangxue: “I’m sorry.”

Xie Qingzheng was stunned.

Why was she suddenly apologizing so formally?

Mo Jiangxue explained, “In order to retrieve the Tianxuan Sword, I broke the barrier and array of Wen Family Village, which indirectly caused the poison in your body to act up again.”

If she had known that the barrier and array could temporarily suppress the poison in Xie Qingzheng’s body, she would certainly have chosen a different method to retrieve the Tianxuan Sword.

Xie Qingzheng shook her head like a rattle-drum. “I don’t blame you.”

She still remembered the words she had heard while unconscious: even if Mo Jiangxue hadn’t broken the array to get the sword, the seal and barrier were already weakening and wouldn’t have lasted much longer.

Her old ailment would have flared up sooner or later; it was only a matter of time.

She, in turn, comforted Mo Jiangxue, “Don’t blame yourself. I’m fine now.”

Although, from the other’s ice-cold face, she couldn’t see the slightest hint of self-blame…

But, this person was indeed kind-hearted. Her temperament was aloof, but she was not at all arrogant. She would always respond when spoken to politely, and if she felt she had done something wrong, she would humble herself and apologize sincerely.

Mo Jiangxue gazed at her. “Most of the poison in your body has now been removed, but there is still some residual poison in your organs.”

Does that mean… she’s cured me? I can live like a normal person?!

Xie Qingzheng’s face instantly lit up with a brilliant, warm smile, her thin cheeks still retaining a touch of childishness.

But the next moment, seeing Mo Jiangxue’s slightly pale lips and remembering the image of her standing on the bamboo branch wiping a trace of blood from her mouth, Xie Qingzheng’s smile faded.

I heard someone say while I was unconscious: she was severely injured retrieving the Tianxuan Sword and transferred a lot of true qi to me. Now, she’s expended more effort to detoxify me…

“Are you alright?” Xie Qingzheng asked with concern.

“It’s nothing serious.” Mo Jiangxue gestured for her to sit on the stone. “Sit properly. I will teach you a breathing and meditation technique that can remove the residual poison in your body.”

Xie Qingzheng was taken aback for a moment, then obediently sat cross-legged on the stone.

She was very curious and couldn’t help but probe, “How… how did you just detoxify me?”

Didn’t they say my poison was difficult to remove and could only be temporarily suppressed? Could it be that just taking off my clothes and soaking in this poison-curing cold pool was enough?

Mo Jiangxue glanced at her and answered with a non-sequitur, “You talk too much.”

At her words, Xie Qingzheng’s ears burned, and she stammered, “I-I-I haven’t spoken to anyone from outside the village in many years…”

I really couldn’t help it. I did talk a bit too much…

Perhaps this person was naturally taciturn and disliked noise. She had intentionally chatted more just now to soothe her mood, and now, she finally couldn’t stand her constant questions.

Mo Jiangxue said in a cold voice, “No more talking. And you are not to mention this matter to anyone else.”

Xie Qingzheng: “Why is that?”

“Because I said so.”

“Oh, alright.”

Perhaps it was some secret technique of hers, one she wouldn’t have taught to an outsider if not to cure her poison.

This person was willing to treat her illness and teach her a detoxification technique, yet she was unwilling to take her as a disciple, nor would she take her in out of guilt or pity.

She really draws a clear line…

She looked at Mo Jiangxue, brought four fingers together, and obediently swore to the heavens, “I swear I won’t tell. Heaven knows, the earth knows, you know, and I know. This is our secret.”

Overnight, she and this person shared a secret.

For some reason, when this thought arose, her calm heart felt as if a stone had been cast into it. With a plop, ripples spread out in circles.

Author’s Note:

Little Qingzheng: For someone like you with no Daoist companion and no spiritual pets, when you get bored, you have no choice but to come down the mountain for training.

Mo Jiangxue: Well said. Don’t say it again.

Note 1: “Qingzheng” comes from Shen Kuo’s Dream Pool Essays, section on “Musicology”: “Speaking of the qin, although all are clear and solid, among them are heavy sounds and light sounds. The material itself has its own tone, which is why the ancients named their qins, some calling them ‘Qingzheng’ (Clear Zhi), others ‘Qingjue’ (Clear Jue).”

Note 2: “Mo Jiangxue” comes from Liu Kezhuang’s poem “Spring in the Han Palace (Admiring Red Plum Blossoms at the Secretary’s Younger Brother’s Home)”: “Let us drink until we fall, for a moment among the flowers, and not let the crimson snow scatter.”