White Snake Steals a Teacher

"Don't worry, Big White is perfectly fine. Perhaps it's undergoing a transformation," Yu Rong said calmly.

Xu Ling breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, while Yang Mu remained taciturn, his expression indifferent.

"What has the White Snake been eating these past few days?"

Yu Rong thought about it, concluding it was unlikely the snake's cultivation speed had simply increased on its own. It was more likely that it had consumed something beneficial, leading to its robust vitality and improved cultivation.

"Uh..."

Xu Ling and Yang Mu exchanged an awkward glance.

"What? Don't tell me you two fed the palace's monthly medicinal pills to a snake?"

Yu Rong's expression soured.

"Absolutely not. Big White has just been going to Lingxu Palace and eating a lot of discarded pills and medicinal dregs. Senior Brother Du, who manages the discarded pills and dregs, has been much more relaxed lately. Um... it's eaten almost a basinful, hasn't it?"

Upon hearing this, Yu Rong's lips twitched. With her vast knowledge, she quickly understood the underlying situation. Humans' absorption and digestion capabilities were inferior to snakes. Discarded pills and dregs were practically supplements for a snake. After all, the medicinal ingredients used in refining pills were potent tonics, items that cultivators used to enhance their cultivation and heal injuries. Eating a basinful – was it evolving?

The master and his two disciples stared intently at the White Snake coiled on the ancient pine.

Not long after, the White Snake began to move on the sturdy ancient pine, occasionally rubbing its head against the sharp edges. Soon, the scales on its head flipped open, revealing new snake skin beneath...

"This is... shedding."

Still rubbing against the tree, it used branches to hold onto its old skin, struggling to break free. First, its head, then its body, it moved with determination and slowness. The master and his disciples, who were usually idle, stood by the cliff edge and observed carefully.

Every shedding was a dangerous process for a snake. If it failed to shed successfully, it would surely die.

It took over an hour. When the snake's tail finally emerged from the old skin, Xu Ling applauded joyfully. Yu Rong smiled, lost in thought. For some reason, after observing the entire shedding process, her state of mind had subtly improved. Shedding the old skin to be reborn, all things had their own destiny.

After shedding, the White Snake clung to the ancient pine and fell into a deep sleep.

When it awoke again, it had grown to nine meters long.

Within this renowned sect of the cultivation world, the White Snake found its own way of life.

In the early morning, it would bask by the cliff, absorbing the mist. When hungry, it would go to the refectory for meat. It would then visit Lingxu Palace to freeload, improving its cultivation, before returning to Qingxu Palace to guard the gate and sleep soundly. Its days were unspeakably leisurely.

Xu Ling noticed that Big White had been frequenting Taiji Plaza recently.

Taiji Plaza was where the disciples of Chunyang Palace practiced martial arts and sparred. Viewed from high above, the plaza resembled a massive Eight Trigrams formation, with a giant Yin-Yang fish in the center. The plaza was vast, at least ten times the size of a football field. The White Snake surmised it was likely created by a powerful being who had directly flattened a mountain peak using their divine power.

Over a thousand disciples practiced swordplay in the plaza, their Sword Qi surging like mountains, seas, and winds.

Some disciples practiced sword formations, but most were cultivating sword techniques. Practicing swordplay here allowed one to sense Sword Qi and Sword Momentum, as well as observe the sword techniques of senior disciples. If their hands itched, they could spar with fellow disciples. Most importantly, the top disciples from each lineage would come to Taiji Plaza to impart martial arts and explain cultivation challenges.

Today's lecturer was Chu Zhe, the eldest disciple of the sect leader's Jade Void lineage. He was the reigning most handsome man in Chunyang Palace for six consecutive years, the dream partner of most female cultivators in Chunyang Palace, and the object of countless secret admirers.

Chu Zhe, clad in a Taoist robe, with a jade crown on his head and a treasured sword in hand, was diligently teaching the younger disciples.

"Remember, your sword techniques should flow like a flood dragon emerging from water, and be as still as a spiritual cat hunting a mouse. In motion, your hands should divide yin and yang, and your body should conceal the Eight Trigrams..."

While explaining the sword techniques, he would occasionally glance at the White Snake beside him. No one had ever heard of a demonic beast being able to learn skills by observation, so no one bothered to question the White Snake's presence there.

The White Snake was indeed learning by observation.

Taiji Plaza was the training ground for low-level disciples. The White Snake couldn't understand or comprehend the training methods of high-level disciples. Building a solid foundation in martial arts was paramount, so it lingered in Taiji Plaza to learn techniques.

After staying for a long time, it swam towards Zuowang Peak.

New disciples who entered the mountain gate, in addition to practicing sword techniques at Taiji Plaza, also had to meditate and cultivate at Zuowang Peak, practicing how to circulate their techniques to enter the true realm of cultivation.

Zuowang Peak was vast, with numerous open spaces and platforms scattered across the mountain. Waterfalls flowed through them, adding to its ethereal, immortal aura.

The reason it was called Zuowang Peak had its origins. To cultivate, one must first learn to enter a state of stillness and oblivion. With one's entire being, one seeks the true, existent state of life. Forgetting is not necessarily a bad thing; remembering is not necessarily a good thing. What is suitable for oneself is the best.

Sitting and forgetting: cast off limbs, expel cleverness, depart from form and knowledge, become one with the Great Dao. This is called Sitting and Forgetting.

Sitting and Forgetting is attained through contemplation, and forgotten through contemplation.

It involves returning to a state of natural simplicity in spirit and mind, achieving complete liberation of one's disposition, bringing about a state of tranquility, detachment, emptiness, and non-action, as if one were merging with the universe, ascending to the realm of 'enlightened self'.

At the summit of Zuowang Peak, there was a massive boulder, its top as large as a basketball court. An ancient stone pavilion stood at its edge, with an old peach tree in front of it.

Only disciples with exceptionally outstanding talent could cultivate on the summit of the boulder. They would receive guidance from palace elders or cultivators of extremely high attainment. Occasionally, even the sect leader would come to teach disciples, and of course, Yu Rong also came to give lessons. Yang Mu and Xu Ling, the two young ones, were frequent visitors here.

Today's lecturer was an elder. An elder was not necessarily an old man; as long as one's cultivation reached a certain height, they could be promoted to the rank of elder.

The youngest disciple was no more than five or six years old. He couldn't help but curiously turn his head to look at the peach tree. A giant white snake was coiled around the peach tree, its head lowered as if listening to the teachings. This genius disciple's cultivation spot had once again become a target for the White Snake's eavesdropping.

"Know the masculine, yet keep to the feminine; be the ravine of the world..."

"Being the ravine of the world, eternal virtue is not lost, returning to the state of an infant..."

"Know the white, yet keep to the black; be the pattern of the world..."

"Being the pattern of the world, eternal virtue is without error, returning to the un-limited..."

The White Snake habitually flicked its tongue, diligently memorizing these scriptures, which it had heard before but never truly studied. Those young disciples didn't know how great an opportunity it was for a snake to cultivate. Merely unlocking spiritual intelligence was a barrier that blocked the cultivation path for the vast majority of birds and beasts. Without a teacher, without a method, without a sect, cultivation was exceedingly difficult.

Now that it had the chance, it naturally had to try its best to remember everything. The path of cultivation was incredibly arduous; all it could do was climb upwards with all its might.

One had to admit, compared to humans who had opportunities but didn't cherish them, the White Snake was truly diligent.

Understanding its meaning, sensing its meaning, in reality, many cultivation methods could also be practiced by beasts. Cultivating human techniques in a beast's body could be considered a blooming wild orchid in the history of cultivation...

That day, the White Snake learned a great deal. As the red sun began to set in the west, it coiled its massive body and returned to Lingxu Palace. It still had to digest, comprehend, and integrate what it had learned that day overnight. There were many things it couldn't do, but it didn't matter. If one method was understood, all methods would be understood; by analogy, it could always comprehend.

Upon returning to Qingxu Palace, the candles and lanterns within the hall were automatically lit with the help of formations, their soft glow illuminating the great hall.

The White Snake coiled itself around a thick, tall pillar at the palace gate, resembling a white jade ornament on the pillar