Searching and Searching

"East..." Senior Brother put away the tortoise shell and began searching the east side of the house...

When the moon was at its zenith and the moonlight was at its brightest, the sound of a door opening echoed through the silent courtyard. Senior Brother, with his hair disheveled, walked out holding a compass, muttering as he went, "The tortoise shell isn't very accurate. I knew I should have used the compass earlier. Why is it still pointing east..."

"East, east, east... South?"

Senior Brother turned and found himself facing an empty room.

He blinked, then suddenly realized. Right, he had some unused clutter piled up in his son's room.

Senior Brother put away his compass and pushed the door open. Without turning on a light, he began rummaging in the darkness.

He completely trashed the room before finally finding a few books in a box of toys.

Most of them were books on mechanisms, with a half-finished, tattered volume tucked in between, loosely attached to a mechanism book.

"Ah, this is it! I knew it. My memory is so good, how could I have gotten it wrong? I said I'd seen a similar cultivation method before, Kun Yuan Gong. It's a shame it's only half a volume. I wonder where the rest is."

Senior Brother opened it and read carefully. He only glanced at the beginning before eagerly flipping to the end. "Not bad, not bad, this is it. Even though it's only half a volume, there are few in this world who can cultivate to this level. No need to rush."

Senior Brother tucked the booklet into his robes. Turning back to the messy room, he shook his head and said, "It's too messy. I'll have the children clean it up tomorrow."

With that, he went back to his room to sleep.

Meanwhile, across the courtyard, Pan Yun was also awake. She was looking at scattered information about Mount Sanqing that she had found in the Spirit Realm.

She hadn't been to Mount Sanqing in the 26th century, but she knew that several major wars and the development of civilization over a thousand years had damaged it.

Culture had been broken, but she could still find a lot of information. For example, what did the mountain god of Mount Sanqing look like?

Pan Yun flipped through the pages bit by bit. With a Spirit Being present, searching for keywords was just a thought for it. Even without a Spirit Being, she could still search precisely.

It was just that there were many mountain gods of Mount Sanqing, and many different images. She didn't know which one to believe, so she could only slowly search through the database to find the most plausible image.

Pan Gong, with a rooster's head and a human body?

Pan Yun couldn't help but glance at the black cat and sigh. Why did mountain gods never have anything to do with cats?

Pan Little Black, the night owl, was getting sleepy. Seeing her still poring over the Spirit Realm in her mind, he couldn't help but ask, "What exactly are you searching for the mountain god of Mount Sanqing for?"

Pan Yun replied, "So Xuan Miao was trying to repay a favor. In that case, I should become a disciple of the most powerful one, the most noble one.

Who is the most powerful on Mount Sanqing? Of course, it's the mountain god of Mount Sanqing! I want to be Senior Sister to Daoist Priest Wang."

Pan Little Black: "...What's the connection between those two? Your thought process is too jumpy. Fine, but aren't the Three Pure Ones the most noble on Mount Sanqing? The mountain god should listen to the Three Pure Ones, right?"

Pan Yun fell silent.

Seeing her not speaking for a long time, Pan Little Black hesitantly asked, "Did I say something wrong?"

"No," Pan Yun sat up and said, "You didn't say anything wrong. It was me who was wrong. I was thinking too small, acting too timidly.

My courage could have been even greater. You're right. Who among the Three Pure Ones do you think would be a suitable Master for me?"

Pan Little Black: "Are... are you serious?" He had just said it casually.

But Pan Yun was serious. She began to consider her own situation. "The time I come from has developed to the 26th century, far in the future of this era. I feel that Lingbao Tianzun and I would be a good match. What do you think?"

The black cat lay down and said nothing.

After an excited moment, Pan Yun gave up on her own. "Forget it. All fellow Daoists in the world believe in the Three Pure Ones and are their followers. If I choose one of them, not only will few people believe it, but it will also disrupt the market. The mountain god of Mount Sanqing is perfect."

The black cat finally lifted its head.

Thinking of the serendipitous encounter Tao Ji had after singing when they went up the mountain today, Pan Yun became even more determined. "This mountain god of ours sounds like a very kind and entertaining deity, which suits me well. After I become His disciple, I will sing for Him every day."

The black cat shivered and said, "As long as you're happy."

Pan Yun put her worries aside and closed her eyes, imagining the appearance of the mountain god in her mind.

A gentle breeze rustled the talismans hanging under the corridor, and the wind stroked Pan Little Black's fur, but no one noticed, and the cat didn't sense it.

As soon as Pan Yun calmed down, the person and the cat quickly fell asleep.

Perhaps it was because she had thought too much before sleeping, but Pan Yun dreamt all night of a man in armor, holding a giant sword, looking at her with a half-smile.

He was quite handsome, but too tall. In the dream, Pan Yun appeared short and small, feeling the oppressive force of his height.

Pan Yun was very unhappy. In the dream, a table appeared not far from Pan Yun. She directly moved the table over and climbed onto it, thus staring eye-to-eye with the warrior-like man for the entire night.

As dawn approached, the man in her dream turned into a crane and flew away. Pan Yun woke up.

She got out of bed and sat on the edge, staring blankly. The dream from last night gradually faded, and Pan Yun could only remember a vague silhouette.

She couldn't help but frown and ask the black cat, "Pan Little Black, do you think there are really gods in this world?"

Pan Little Black replied, "Ghosts and gods have always been mentioned together. Since you've seen ghosts, why do you still ask if there are gods?"

Pan Yun said, "But there were ghosts in my past life too, yet I never saw any gods."

Pan Little Black sneered, "This is why your spellcraft development is difficult. You want to use divine power, yet you don't believe in the existence of gods superior to you."

Pan Yun asked, "Did the person who created and owned you become a god?"

Pan Little Black became wary. "Why?"

Pan Yun threw off the covers and got out of bed. "It's nothing. I just wanted to know if I could pull some strings. Since you didn't mention it, you probably didn't become a god."

Pan Little Black: "..."

Pan Yun had already made up her mind and wasn't dwelling on her past life. What mattered was the present.

She folded her blanket neatly and went out.

In the room next door, Miao He also opened her door and stretched as she walked out. Seeing Pan Yun, she immediately dropped her hands and skipped over, "Junior Sister, you're awake! Come, I'll take you to wash up."

As Pan Yun nodded, the door to a room diagonally opposite opened. A girl who was half a head taller than them came out. Seeing Pan Yun, she paused slightly, then stepped forward and cupped her fist like an adult, "Junior Sister Pan, this humble Daoist is Miao Zhen."

Why was she called Junior Sister already?

But it didn't matter. It wouldn't be for long.

Pan Yun returned the salute, cupping her fist, "Fellow Daoist Miao Zhen, I am Pan Yun. I haven't officially become a disciple of Mount Sanqing yet."

Miao Zhen looked serious, her small face stern, "Since you're here, you will eventually become a disciple. There's little difference between calling you earlier or later."

Miao He watched from the side, stunned and finding it incredibly amusing. She immediately squeezed in, saying, "I want to too."

So, she first cupped her fist towards Pan Yun, "Junior Sister Pan, this humble Daoist is Miao He."

Then, she grinned and cupped her fist towards Miao Zhen, "Fourth Senior Sister, this humble Daoist is Miao He."

Pan Yun: ...

Miao Zhen: ...

Pan Yun returned the salute. Miao Zhen looked helpless and, under Miao He's expectant gaze, returned the salute as well.

Suddenly, she noticed Xuan Miao standing by the main house entrance, wondering how long she had been watching.

Seeing the three of them turn towards her to bow, Xuan Miao waved her hand with a stern face, "Go wash up!"

Miao Zhen and Miao He each grabbed one of Pan Yun's arms and dashed off, "Hurry, hurry, we have morning practice!"

Pan Yun followed them to wash her face and brush her teeth. After drying off, she headed forward.

The two girls grabbed a meditation cushion each and handed one to Pan Yun.

Carrying them to the large open space in front of the Three Pure Ones Hall, Tao Ji and a young man were already practicing martial arts.

Their movements were slow and graceful, yet each punch carried a force.

Miao He put down her cushion, "Today we're practicing the Twelve Great Strengths. Junior Sister Pan, do you know how?"

Pan Yun: "I know the Eight Brocades, Five Animal Frolics, and Tai Chi Chuan."

"Oh, we'll practice those too. Later, we'll also practice Circulation Cultivation."

Tao Ji slowly finished his movements and turned to look at Pan Yun, his eyes smiling, "Junior Nephew Pan is awake? Come, I'll teach you the Twelve Great Strengths. You'll need it for morning practice from now on."

Pan Yun didn't argue about the title and stepped forward to learn from him.

After practicing martial arts, they needed to practice Circulation Cultivation after regulating their breathing. This required sitting on a meditation cushion.

Pan Yun's Circulation Cultivation was different from theirs. Thinking about what they had said about her cultivation method being problematic, she didn't dare to circulate her energy. Instead, she only focused on regulating her breathing and entering a meditative state, which was also a way to increase cultivation.

The so-called cultivation method, in the beginning, was about entering a meditative state, and the breathing methods were different.

No matter how many times he saw it, Tao Ji was still amazed by her speed in entering meditation.

After sighing inwardly about her talent, he closed his eyes, regulated his breathing, and entered meditation to practice Circulation Cultivation.

When they awoke from their meditation and opened their eyes in unison, they saw Senior Brother standing not far away, swinging his arms.

Wang Fei Yin looked back at them as he swung his arms, "You're awake. Go make breakfast. Pan Yun, stay."

Everyone scattered. Tao Ji gave Pan Yun a triumphant glance before leaving, thinking that the next time they met, he could call her Junior Nephew with even more confidence.

Wang Fei Yin didn't bring up the matter first. Instead, he took out the half-volume cultivation method he had found last night and gave it to her, "This is Kun Yuan Gong. Don't be fooled by it being only half a volume; finishing it is not easy. Take a look, does it seem similar to the cultivation method you practiced before?"

Pan Yun flipped to the first level of the cultivation method. After a long time, she nodded responsibly, "Yes, it's just that the latter half has some modifications... Is it because the meridians and acupoints used in the latter half are different, that's why my cultivation method had problems?"

Wang Fei Yin thought for a moment and then said, "More than that. Those who cultivate the Dao cultivate Qi. It's not wrong for you to call it spiritual energy, but it's more accurate to call it primordial energy."