Mountain Peak Dojo.
After replying to posts from his friends and family, the first thing Wang Ping did was check on the flowers and plants in his courtyard. Then, he inspected the Spirit Gathering Array to see if it had loosened.
Finally, he walked into his woodworking shop, took out the materials from his storage pouch, and consulted with Tongyu Taoist about how to build the puppet needed for his advancent.
"Using only the Spirit Wood you’ve grown yourself will make the refinent process easier later on. It could be done in two years, at most. But while Spirit Wood has spirituality, you can’t refine its hardness," Tongyu Taoist reminded him seriously. Under the guidance of Nether Water these past few years, he was no longer as depressed as he used to be.
"I only need to use it this one ti. What’s most important is sufficient spirituality. I’ll dismantle it after I’m done, as it’s not suitable for continued existence."
"In that case, it’s simple. We just need to focus on spirituality when designing the internal runes. And pay special attention to the flexibility of the upper body’s joints."
As the two were discussing, Yu Lian’s head appeared from under the eaves, hanging upside down in the window. "Liu Shuang is here," she said.
Tongyu Taoist instantly vanished like a child with social anxiety. Wang Ping placed the design blueprints on the workbench, weighed them down with a block of Spirit Wood, then dusted off his coarse cloth clothes before walking out of the woodworking shop.
Liu Shuang and her disciple had already reached the courtyard gate. The attendant outside the garden hadn’t stopped the master and disciple pair, as he had been given prior instructions.
"Master!"
"Grandmaster!"
The two greeted him in unison. Although Yang Rong was a bit shy, she wasn’t stage-frightened.
Wang Ping first sized up Liu Shuang. After sensing her Qi Sea with his Wood Spirit Qi, he said, "This is how cultivation should be—one steady step at a ti. You have completely subdued the Spirit Vein in your body. The next step is to try condensing your divine soul or expanding your Spirit Vein. I have an Array here that can suppress your Spirit Vein while you expand it, preventing your physical body from being assimilated."
He manifested an Array from the Taiyan Talisman into a single Talisman and handed it to Liu Shuang.
"Thank you, Master!"
"If you run into any problems, stop imdiately, or have your Spirit Pet call for Yu Lian!"
"Yes!"
The master and disciple exchanged a few words back and forth. anwhile, Yu Lian teased the Spiritual Dog while observing Yang Rong, making the young girl tremble inwardly.
Finally, Wang Ping’s expression turned serious as he instructed, "A Wood Spirit practitioner must focus on cultivating the heart. You must always maintain a full range of human emotions, or else suppress all unnecessary thoughts. If you can’t do that, then go out and get more experience in the world."
"Yes!" Liu Shuang lowered her head in agreent.
But seeing Liu Shuang’s deanor, Wang Ping frowned. He resisted the urge to scold her and beckoned gently. "Co, sit here." He pointed to the stone stool opposite him, then turned to Yang Rong and asked, "Do you know how to brew tea?"
"Replying to Grandmaster, yes, I do!" Yang Rong answered obediently.
Wang Ping pointed a finger, and a Go board appeared on the Stone Table. Beside the table, a stove with a flickering fla materialized. "Go look in that room over there. You’ll find tea leaves and a teapot."
"Yes, Grandmaster!"
Yang Rong stared at the room Wang Ping had pointed to, her face full of curiosity.
Wang Ping then turned to Liu Shuang and smiled. "You go first."
CLACK.
Liu Shuang composed herself and placed a stone.
Wang Ping followed, placing a stone of his own.
After that, the only sound in the courtyard was the clacking of Go stones. Without realizing it, Liu Shuang’s mood relaxed, and she focused on the battle unfolding on the board before her.
An hour later, the ga was over.
Liu Shuang won the ga by a slight margin. Wang Ping took the teacup his grand-disciple handed him and took a satisfied sip. Watching Liu Shuang clear the board, he said, "Another ga?"
"Alright!"
Liu Shuang won this ga as well. It wasn’t that Wang Ping was letting his disciple win, but that Liu Shuang herself was fond of such things and often studied the ga in her spare ti.
Yang Rong handed Wang Ping another cup of tea. This ti, Wang Ping took it and held it in his hand, looking at Liu Shuang. "Your state of mind is very good right now. So why do you always dwell on things that are impossible and will never happen?"
"I... I don’t know why, either. I’ve been feeling restless lately."
"You’re being influenced by Yu’Er’s divine soul. She is luring out the negative emotions in your humanity." Yu Lian explained it for Liu Shuang. "This is not just Yu’Er’s cultivation, but yours as well!"
Liu Shuang’s expression changed slightly. Various thoughts flashed through her mind, but she didn’t say she would stop visiting Zhao Yu’Er. "I understand. My cultivation is still insufficient."
"No, you’re already doing very well. You are facing an extra-domain consciousness, which just ans you need to do even better," Wang Ping said with a smile. "You don’t need to feel so burdened. Qianmu Temple doesn’t need you to carry its weight just yet."
"Yes!" Liu Shuang stood up and bowed.
Wang Ping then shifted his gaze to Yang Rong at his side and asked, "Do you know how to play Go?"
"Replying to Grandmaster, I do!"
"Shall we play a ga?"
"Please, Grandmaster, I ask for your guidance!"
Yang Rong had the sa spiritedness Liu Shuang had as a child—clever, active, and with eyes full of a nimble beauty. As the Direct Disciple who would inherit Liu Shuang’s lineage, Wang Ping was much kinder to her than he was to Liu Ling and Zhao Yu’Er.
This ga was more congenial than the previous two. Wang Ping would occasionally ask Yang Rong questions about her cultivation, and their ga lasted until nightfall.
The ga ended with Wang Ping winning by a slight margin. This left Yang Rong feeling a bit indignant; she probably thought she could win. This was the difference between the young and the old.
"Maintain that competitive spirit. The future belongs to your generation," Wang Ping encouraged with a smile. Seeing the little girl’s unconvinced look, he chuckled, "Shall we play another?"
"Okay!"
"Haha!"
Wang Ping let out a loud laugh, and a smile appeared on Liu Shuang’s face as well.
As Wang Ping’s laughter echoed, the darkening courtyard suddenly lit up with a bright light that seed both illusory and real.
The second ga also ended with Yang Rong losing by a narrow margin. Afterwards, a smiling Liu Shuang took her leave, and Wang Ping did not ask them to stay.
"Liu Shuang is still so easily swayed by external emotions," Yu Lian comnted after she left.
"That’s a good thing. As long as we guide her properly, she might just be able to enter the Second Realm." Wang Ping slipped back into his woodworking shop.
"The premise being that you first have to get your hands on the Second Realm’s Secret Technique," Yu Lian retorted.
"Li Yan’s location has been confird. We’re not moving against him now because the conditions aren’t right, but that doesn’t an we’ll never move against him," Wang Ping replied confidently, as if the Second Realm Secret Technique for the Wood Gathering Skill that Li Yan possessed was already within his grasp.
Yu Lian saw Tongyu Taoist rematerialize, but she didn’t respond to Wang Ping. Instead, she rode a cloud over to the old locust tree, found a comfortable spot, and drifted off to sleep.
Wang Ping, anwhile, continued to busy himself with his design blueprints.
Before he knew it, day had broken. Wang Ping had finished his rough draft. Tongyu Taoist was long gone, and a well-rested Yu Lian landed at the window. "Breakfast today?" she asked.
"Yes. I’m suddenly craving at buns."
"I’ll go inform the kitchens!"
「An hour later.」
While Wang Ping was refining the blueprints in his hands, two attendants brought in a steaming basket of lamb buns. Wang Ping imdiately took out the yellow wine he had prepared in advance.
The buns were truly delicious. Wang Ping ate four or five in a row, washing them down with half a jar of yellow wine.
"Lamb is better when it’s cooked in large chunks. Stead like this, the at just gets mushy," Yu Lian said, clearly not a fan of the lamb buns. She preferred to devour her at in large mouthfuls.
Wang Ping didn’t argue with Yu Lian. It was a matter of personal preference, and no amount of debate would lead to a definite conclusion.
After breakfast, Wang Ping thought about the tasks at hand. He had an attendant outside bring in so materials for Power Pills, then animated the puppet in the Alchemy Room to continue refining them.
When he returned to the small courtyard, Wang Ping decided to continue refining the puppet’s design blueprints.
Around Noon, Zhao Wan and Zhang Xinghuai arrived at the gate of the Dao Field at the sa ti.
"I heard there was a conflict between disciples from the Pill Hall and the Inner Courtyard last month?" Zhang Xinghuai asked, looking at Zhao Wan who stood in a subordinate position to him as they waited.
"Replying to Martial Uncle, that is indeed the case, but it has been handled appropriately." Zhao Wan’s brow furrowed. He clearly disliked the topic and deliberately showed it, as if to tell Zhang Xinghuai he didn’t want to discuss it, especially not here.
"I don’t think you realize the gravity of this matter. This conflict may seem like friction between the disciples of two halls, but the deeper reason is the unfair system within the temple. This ti it might just be a clash, but next ti it could be a bloodbath!"
Zhang Xinghuai delivered a stern warning.
Zhao Wan could only lower his head and say, "Yes," without directly responding to Zhang Xinghuai. He knew Zhang Xinghuai was right, but as a vested beneficiary of the current system, it was unrealistic to expect him to resolve the conflicts between the temple’s various halls.
"Your master must have told you that all affairs in Qianmu Temple are for the purpose of serving Martial Uncle Changqing. It seems the Inner Sect has forgotten this."
Zhang Xinghuai’s tone had turned hostile.
Zhao Wan looked up in surprise, eting Zhang Xinghuai’s gaze. Just as he was about to retort, Zhang Xinghuai spoke again:
"Your internal struggles had better not affect our plans for the situation in Zhongzhou. Otherwise, you will be t with thunderous fury!"
Hearing this, a trace of cold sweat beaded on Zhao Wan’s forehead. How could he not know what his master had repeatedly warned him about? It was just that his thinking was a bit different. He thought that as long as he satisfied all of his Grandmaster’s needs, there wouldn’t be a problem. He had never considered that internal strife could delay a request made by his Grandmaster.
Now that Zhang Xinghuai had called him out, he finally felt afraid and nervous, and even a little terrified.
"Martial Uncle cultivates the Wood Spirit path and is about to beco a Third Realm Great Cultivator. Every stir of wind and blade of grass in all of Qianmu Temple is under his watch. Not to ntion Grandmaster, Martial Uncle Yu Lian, and Senior Zuo Xuan of Dongshui Mountain. You must think things through carefully when you act."
Zhang Xinghuai said this all very softly, then closed his mouth.
After listening, Zhao Wan’s earlier arrogance was gone. He reached up and wiped the nonexistent cold sweat from his forehead. Just then, the attendant beside them stepped forward and opened the Dao Field’s main gate.
"The Ancestral Master invites you in..."
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