Qianmu Temple, back mountain.
After returning to the temple and exchanging a few pleasantries with his brothers, Wang Ping went to the back mountain to pay his respects to Yu Cheng Taoist.
"Go put your bags down first," said Yu Cheng Taoist, as serene and unperturbed as ever.
"Yes!"
Wang Ping entered his small hut. The familiar environment and smells relaxed his body and mind as never before.
Yu Lian also squirmed out from Wang Ping's robes, using his arm to leap onto the only wooden table in the room. She looked left and right, taking everything in.
Wang Ping placed his travel bag and sword on the bed, took off his dust-covered Daoist robe, and changed into a common summer garment. As he pushed the door open to leave, Yu Lian leaped down from a roof beam, landing on him and wrapping around his arm as they went outside together.
Yu Cheng Taoist had already prepared tea. It was a common, light tea, with no sugar or salt, and a single sip carried a faint fluctuation of Spiritual Qi.
'I want some tea too...'
Yu Lian leaned her body over the stone table, her tail still coiled around Wang Ping's wrist.
Yu Cheng Taoist sensed Yu Lian's thought and, before Wang Ping could speak, produced another teacup and filled it. Yu Lian didn't like the temperature of the tea. She blew a breath over the steam, and the water cooled at a visible rate.
"Some time ago, two inspectors from the Daoist Scripture Hall came to the temple to inquire about you," Yu Cheng Taoist said, bringing the matter up first.
"It must be about what happened on Mozhou Road..."
Wang Ping told his master everything about the events in Yuanning County without reservation, including his own speculations.
After listening, Yu Cheng Taoist remained impassive. "In this world," he said, "from the Great Realm Cultivators of the various sects down to the lowliest Qi Cultivators, the sole criterion for action is to advance one's own cultivation. Small-timers content themselves with simple robbery, but the great figures... their schemes can topple entire nations, let alone a minor place like Mozhou Road."
Zhongzhou's recorded history spanned five thousand years, though record-keeping only began with the flourishing of the Human Dao. Within the last three thousand years, more than nine orthodox dynasties had risen and fallen. Power in the border regions had changed hands at least several hundred times. And this didn't even account for the untold years of the ancient era before the Human Dao's rise.
"You no longer need to concern yourself with the aftermath on Mozhou Road. Your task is to complete your Bone Marrow Cleansing as soon as possible. I will let you know when it is time for you to descend the mountain."
After saying this, Yu Cheng Taoist refilled the teacups for Wang Ping and Yu Lian, then gently set down the teapot and returned to his hut to meditate.
Wang Ping stood, bowed toward Yu Cheng Taoist's hut, and then sat back down to continue sipping his tea.
"This water is delicious, much better than the water in your flask." After Yu Cheng Taoist left, Yu Lian unwound her tail from Wang Ping's wrist. Mimicking his posture, she used her tail to lift the teacup, squinting her eyes as she savored the tea.
Wang Ping simply stared into his teacup, lost in thought...
For a long time to come, he would have no choice but to spend his days in ascetic cultivation. However, this was also what he sought. There was too much suffering in the outside world, and given his current state of mind, prolonged exposure to the karmic consequences of the mortal realm would be detrimental to his future cultivation.
...
「Five years passed in a flash.」
During these five years, besides practicing Qi Cultivation and Bone Marrow Cleansing, Wang Ping's most important task was to follow his master Yu Cheng Taoist's instructions. He cleared all the vegetation from the summit of Qianmu Mountain, planted a locust tree sapling in the very center, and nourished it daily with his own Spiritual Qi.
After five years of being nourished by Spiritual Qi, the small sapling had grown to a height of over eight feet. Wang Ping had also moved his residence from the back mountain to the summit, building a small courtyard next to the locust tree and completely secluding himself from the troubles of the mortal world.
One morning, as Wang Ping sat meditating on a cushion in front of the locust tree, a set of footsteps coming up the mountain path made him open his eyes. The sound wasn't that of the acolyte who usually brought his meals.
He opened his eyes to see a dashing young man.
It was Wang Kang. He was now of age, his hair tied up in a topknot.
"Brother!" Wang Kang's face was flushed, his expression filled with obvious delight.
"So it's you, Junior Brother. What are you doing here instead of focusing on your cultivation?"
"The apprenticeship ceremony is tomorrow, and I'm taking a disciple!"
The smile on Wang Kang's face grew even wider.
Hearing this, Wang Ping was momentarily lost in a daze. He stared at Wang Kang's smiling face, trying to recall what he used to look like, but the memory wouldn't come.
"Also, after the ceremony, our three senior brothers are leaving... I'll be taking over Brother Jade Dragon's position, responsible for teaching the new disciples martial arts and Qi Cultivation. And the three junior brothers..."
Wang Ping listened quietly to his junior brother's explanation, which couldn't help but remind him of what Yu Cheng Taoist had said in the main hall when he and his three senior brothers were summoned after he had perfected the Chang Chun Technique.
'Those three brothers had no hope of achieving Bone Marrow Cleansing and Foundation Establishment. For them, staying at Qianmu Temple would be no different from being in prison; leaving was the best choice.' Thinking this, Wang Ping looked at the junior brother before him. 'He, too, will likely never advance beyond Qi Cultivation. In the future, he'll face the same problem as our other brothers.'
"Oh, right, Brother Su is coming tomorrow too. I heard he even has children now—two of them!"
Wang Kang followed Wang Ping into the small courtyard, seemingly having an endless stream of things to say. His chatter woke up Yu Lian, who was sleeping under the eaves nestled in a fur cloak. After five years of growth, Yu Lian had passed her infancy, but she still liked to wrap herself around Wang Ping's arm.
"Can you make him leave? He's so annoying!"
Yu Lian was still afraid of the cold, but she was no longer as timid as before, when she wouldn't dare to leave the warmth of her bedding.
Wang Ping completely ignored Yu Lian's request and took out a stove to boil water for tea.
The two brothers talked until noon, when the acolyte brought lunch. The meal was the same as always: two steamed buns and a plate of fried tofu. Wang Kang left with the acolyte, likely eager for his own midday meal.
"I'm hungry too..."
"Get it yourself!"
"But... it's cold..."
Wang Ping and Yu Lian went back and forth for a while before Yu Lian finally relented. She burrowed out of the warm fur cloak and tore off a piece of dried meat hanging on the right wall of the hut.
"This tastes awful. When will winter be over?"
After eating, Yu Lian scurried back into the fur cloak as fast as she could. Wrapped up tight, she poked her head out and stared blankly at the eaves.
After finishing his meal, Wang Ping suddenly felt the urge to practice his swordsmanship. He extended a hand, pointing at the Treasure Sword hanging to the left of the hut's door, and channeled his Spiritual Qi to draw the blade from its sheath.
CLANG!
The Treasure Sword landed securely in Wang Ping's hand.
After casually performing a set of the Qianmu Sword Technique, much of the frustration in Wang Ping's heart dissipated.
In the afternoon, he resumed the Bone Marrow Cleansing he hadn't finished that morning. Afterward, following Yu Cheng Taoist's instructions, he nourished the locust tree with his Spiritual Qi. He had a faint feeling that this step was related to a Secret Technique he would cultivate in the future, so he dared not slack off for even a single day.
「The next day.」
When Wang Ping awoke from his meditative state, he cast three divinations. The hexagrams were all auspicious.
"What are you thinking about now?"
"Nothing!"
"Then why is your Spirit Sea in such turmoil?"
"..."
Having outgrown her infancy, Yu Lian was no longer as easy to fool as before. She was always asking bothersome questions.