The Way of Learning

The Way of Learning

"You really are unbelievably stupid. 'At the beginning of life, human nature is inherently good'—just those six characters, and you've turned them over and over for half an hour without memorizing them?" Zhao Yue'er looked utterly incredulous, shaking her head furiously as she sighed again and again at Li Feng.

Li Feng threw back his head and howled, "Heavens, Master, are those six characters really that simple? But why do they all look like they're spinning around? Every character is whirling in circles, and my eyes are going blurry! These characters are far too complicated. Isn't there anything a little simpler to learn?" He simply sprawled lazily across the floor and began whining miserably. "Master, every bone in my body hurts... Just take hauling water and chopping firewood—I could live with two iron buckets, an iron carrying pole, and a thirty-pound axe, but why did you have to put talismanic charms on them too? They've made my whole body go limp. I barely managed to finish the task, but it was far too exhausting."

Zhao Yue'er chuckled. "Who told you to have so much Innate Spiritual Energy in your body before you had even entered the sect? Compared with ordinary people, you naturally need more tempering before you can become useful. That's what Mother told me. Mother said that when Senior Brother Xiao Longzi and the others came up the mountain, their meridians weren't all open like yours, nor had they accumulated such dense spiritual energy. They certainly weren't strong enough to leap thirty yards in a single step. When the senior brothers came up the mountain, they were still ordinary mortals of flesh and blood, so naturally they used wooden buckets and woodcutting knives."

Zhao Yue'er lightly tapped the table twice. "Hauling water and chopping firewood were meant to rein in the fire in your heart. How could it work if I didn't make you suffer a little?"

Li Feng sprang straight up from the ground, pulled a face, and pleaded with Zhao Yue'er, "Then please, Master, have mercy. I've already suffered enough from hauling water and chopping firewood all morning. Just pick some simple characters—teach me the simplest ones. There's no need to teach anything so difficult, right? Look at these characters, twisting and turning one after another. How could I possibly remember so many strokes clearly?"

Zhao Yue'er frowned, tilted her head, and sighed. "You call that a lot of strokes? I think this script is much easier to learn. It's also the script currently popular in the mortal world, so it should be the simplest to learn... Here, look." She beckoned, and two bamboo scrolls and one jade slip immediately flew over from the row of bookshelves lining the room.

Casually spreading open a slightly yellowed bamboo scroll, Zhao Yue'er said with a smile, "This is Lesser Seal Script. Do you think these strokes are even harder?" Li Feng let out a miserable groan, his eyes already beginning to roll. Then Zhao Yue'er opened the other bamboo scroll, the smile on her face deepening. "This is Greater Seal Script. Do you think it's easy to learn?" A strange clicking sound came from Li Feng's throat, as if he were about to faint.

Zhao Yue'er carefully opened the jade slip and could not help laughing. "Hehe, this is the ancient Tadpole Heavenly Script. The strokes are simple enough, but can you read what's inside?"

Li Feng lunged at Zhao Yue'er, hugged her calf, and howled, "Master, spare your disciple! These things aren't meant for people to learn! Please, just read everything aloud and tell me what it means. Why do I have to learn it myself? Forget Greater Seal Script and Lesser Seal Script—I'm so dizzy my head's about to turn to mush!" Li Feng's nose twitched furiously, but inwardly he was laughing with delight. Heavens, Master's legs smell so good—better than the Cold Night Orchid I dug up the night before last. Those little ladies in Suzhou Prefecture, all powdered and painted... compared to Master, their perfumes smell like latrines.

Zhao Yue'er lightly smacked Li Feng on the head and said very seriously, "That won't do. Of course I can read all the cultivation methods and Daoist texts to you, but how much can your head remember? Even though my father is the sect master, Yiyuan Sect has a total of 137,645 and a half Daoist texts, 5,967 magical texts, 314 volumes of Ancient Classics, 125 volumes of Immortal Mansion Purple Records, and two True Cultivation Sutras. Even he can't remember all of them in his head—he still has to consult them often. You're so lazy. How could you remember them? Are you expecting me to recite to you whenever you need it? What if I enter seclusion?"

Li Feng grumbled inwardly, I'd be delighted if you read to me every day. Outwardly, however, he spoke sweetly. "Then Master, what should I do? Reading and learning characters are bitter, painstaking work. My head hurts."

Zhao Yue'er's eyes rolled around a few times before she suddenly gave an odd laugh. "I remember now. Fifth Senior Brother once said that when Seventh Senior Brother Lei Zhenzi first came up the mountain, he too refused to settle down and read Daoist texts. Uncle-Master Miaomiao punished him by making him haul three times as much water and chop three times as much firewood every day. Then he obediently sat in the study and worked hard. Looks like I should learn from Uncle-Master Miaomiao's method. It's decided. From now on, don't haul water from the stream at Qingyun Flat. Go to the ravine on the western side of Mount Hua's Main Peak outside Qingyun Flat—no, below Qingyun Flat—and bring back a bundle of dry firewood on the way. Hehe. I'll have Little Cat supervise you."

Li Feng froze. His hands loosened from Zhao Yue'er's calf without his realizing it, and he howled, "Master, you can't be so heartless! This will kill me!" Li Feng had been following Zhao Yue'er for three days now. How could he not know that Mount Hua's Main Peak was more than two hundred li away from Qingyun Flat? Especially since Qingyun Flat had only one route down the mountain—unless one flew on a sword, it was a narrow path scarcely a foot wide, carved into the cliffside, steep beyond measure.

Zhao Yue'er narrowed her eyes. "Otherwise, you'll just keep complaining. I've taught you for two days, and all you know how to write is one. You can't write a single other character. That's simply too humiliating for me, your master... Every day when I teach you to read and write, you're either sleepy or your stomach hurts. So you'd better suffer properly." Zhao Yue'er gave Little Cat a hard smack on the head and shouted, "Lazy cat! From now on, you follow Little Feng every day when he hauls water. In any case, don't let him slack off. If he dares slack off, whip him with your tail."

Li Feng froze, and before he could launch an even fiercer protest, Zhao Yue'er had already transformed into a hazy burst of green light. "I'm going to read Daoist texts. Little Feng, don't be lazy. This study is sealed inside and out by the talisman charms of generations of Martial Grandfathers. You don't need to worry about Outer Path Demonic Fiends sneaking in. You can meditate at ease. I've already taught you the most basic Qi Refining formula, so work hard." With that, a streak of green light shot out through the door and vanished in an instant.

"Heavens, what a miserable life I have! I thought I'd found a good backer, like finding a big brother, but who knew my life would be this bitter? She casually changed my water-hauling route. Heavens, one round trip will probably take the whole morning, won't it?"

Li Feng completely collapsed onto the floor, while Little Cat let out an indignant low growl. "If I'd known, why did I come along with you today? I have to supervise you? Doesn't that mean this tiger has to run more than four hundred li every day too? What a miserable life." Unfortunately, Li Feng could not understand its complaints.

Green light flashed again, and Zhao Yue'er rushed back in. "Let me tell you this: if you aren't back by noon, the next day the task doubles. And you won't get anything to eat that day either. I'll lock you in a secret chamber so you can't get out. Remember?... Those three dead old men said this: there's no need to be too kind to disciples. As long as they don't die, it's fine... Hehe, Uncle-Master Songzi told me that when he got drunk and cursed the three Martial Grandfathers. Hehe." With that, Zhao Yue'er flew away again.

Li Feng was completely dumbfounded. Raising a hand, he cursed loudly, "Is this a place that teaches people cultivation, or what? Even Zhou Bapi, the stingiest man in Suzhou Prefecture, wasn't this vicious to his tenants! At least he made sure they had full stomachs... You immortals are fucking worse than landlords... Heavens, I want to go back to Suzhou!"

Little Cat cocked its head and glanced at Li Feng, who had completely fallen into hysterics. It snorted, then lazily lay down to sleep. Several low growls rumbled from its throat, meaning, "Instead of wasting your energy complaining, why not hurry and meditate to refine qi? With one more thread of inner qi and True Essence, at least tomorrow will be a little easier!" The more it thought about it, the more Little Cat felt that not having to haul water and chop firewood every day was a kind of happiness. Its mouth curled into a grin, and it peacefully closed its eyes.

Little Cat suddenly felt something sink onto its belly. Opening its eyes, it saw that, sure enough, Li Feng had already leaned against its stomach while grumbling and cursing, using its belly as a pillow as he prepared for a nap. Little Cat stared for a while, shook its head, yawned, and muttered, "You fellow, you don't even cherish the chance to become an immortal? If this tiger had a human body, I'd definitely work a hundred times harder than you... Ahh~~, forget it. This tiger is going to sleep."

Nothing happened for the rest of the day. Early the next morning, Li Feng was awakened by Zhao Yue'er, who wore a faintly annoyed expression and greeted him with a small Palm Thunder. Zhao Yue'er kicked Li Feng and Little Cat in the rear again and again, shouting, "You two lazybones, get up! Get up already! What are you doing? Get up! Li Feng, go get the water buckets and axe. Little Cat, don't run. Put a Mount Tai Talisman on your back before you leave."

Zhao Yue'er's fingers moved swiftly. Yellow light flashed, and a talisman charm firmly stuck itself to Little Cat's back. Little Cat let out a mournful howl. "Heavens, a Mount Tai Talisman! You heartless girl! I carried you all over these mountains every day when you were little... It weighs a full thousand jin! Use less magical power!"

Zhao Yue'er could understand the grievance in Little Cat's roar and could not help scolding with a laugh, "Let's see if you dare sleep in again. Little Feng was led astray by you, you lazy tiger. Go supervise Little Feng properly. If you two dare collude to deceive me, just see how I deal with you. Especially you, Little Cat. If you dare slack off together with Little Feng, next time I'll use a Five Peaks Talisman to crush you." With that, Zhao Yue'er laughed sweetly and waved both hands repeatedly. Countless Palm Thunders shot toward Li Feng and Little Cat with crackling snaps, sending man and tiger scrambling out the door like chickens and dogs in chaos.

The more Zhao Yue'er struck, the happier she became, and she could not help shouting, "Don't run! Take a few bolts of Heavenly Lightning before you go! I only learned Nine Heavens Thunder Barrage yesterday."

Little Cat gave a miserable howl and, carrying the heavy Mount Tai Talisman as though fleeing for its life, ran like the wind out of the bamboo grove beyond the study. Li Feng hesitated for only a moment before a string of tearing explosions burst through the sky. More than a hundred bolts of lightning, each as thick as an arm, struck down like Spirit Snakes. Li Feng finally understood what "Thunder Barrage" meant. He let out a shrill scream, kicked wildly at his own backside, and fled like the wind.

Lightning flashed violently, and a large stretch of bamboo forest turned to flying ash amid the electric glare. More than a dozen deep pits appeared in the ground before the study, still sending up wisps of green smoke.

Zhao Yue'er relentlessly chased after them, shouting, "Little Feng, Little Cat, don't run! Stop right there! Just once—one hit won't kill you!"

Gu Lingzi, dressed in a green robe, suddenly appeared beside the study and nearly groaned, "Fine, fine, fine. Junior Brother Xiao, you really are something. You took in a disciple and won't manage him yourself, and now he's fallen into Little Junior Sister's hands... Those few Small Flat Peaches of yours didn't die for nothing... As for my Candle Dragon Grass, although it was a terrible waste for that brat to eat it, I'll accept it."

Xiao Longzi and Xie Yuezi also revealed themselves. Xie Yuezi, full of Ah Q spirit, lifted his head, wiped his forehead, and said, "We cultivators should not regret possessions outside our bodies. Aren't they merely a few Small Flat Peaches? Eating them won't make one immortal, so what's there to feel sorry for? Even my Cold Night Orchid—though it pains me somewhat when I think of it, as long as Little Junior Sister is happy and we ourselves haven't suffered much loss, what do a few worldly possessions amount to?"

Xiao Longzi rolled his eyes and nodded repeatedly. "Exactly, exactly. Why should I care about a few peach trees? In any case, this Daoist thinks taking in this disciple was a good idea. First, it spared us the nagging of those five old fellows, always telling us to take disciples. That matter has been dealt with. Second, Little Junior Sister seems to have found someone to play with, so we can finally have some peace and freedom... At worst, we lose a bit more medicinal material. Haven't there been few medicinal herbs destroyed by Little Junior Sister in the past?"

Gu Lingzi nodded repeatedly. "That's true. With Little Junior Sister and Little Martial Nephew together, at most we'll lose another thirty percent of our medicinal herbs, but at least Little Junior Sister will stop coming to make trouble for us every day. Otherwise, if we leave Little Junior Sister alone on the mountain, it'll be like that time with my furnace of spirit pills... Tsk, tsk..." Gu Lingzi seemed to recall some unfortunate incident too painful to look back upon and shook his head again and again.

Xiao Longzi shuddered all over. "Quick, go! While Little Junior Sister is hunting down those two unlucky fellows, we should hide first."

Gu Lingzi hurriedly shouted, "Shameful! How can we cultivators harbor fear in our hearts?... But Junior Brother Xiao, my Golden Core still lacks some refinement. I'll need you to protect me while I cultivate it."

Xie Yuezi quickly said, "Senior Brother Gu wishes to study the Golden Core. Perfect—I can ask Senior Brother for instruction as well. At the same time, the three of us can join forces to set up an array. Those Outer Path Demonic Fiends probably won't be able to break our formation, right? Even if it's Little Junior Sister, she..."

The three looked at each other and smiled. Xiao Longzi gave a dark chuckle. "Cultivators should strive to improve every day. That is the proper way. Hehe..." Having found themselves a grand and righteous excuse, the three turned into wind and vanished at top speed. Xiao Longzi's voice could faintly be heard: "Leaving Fengzi with Little Junior Sister isn't bad either. At least Little Junior Sister can enter and leave the sect's forbidden grounds freely. Any benefits she finds will naturally benefit Fengzi too. Hehe, it's not as though I, his master, am being irresponsible."

After the three had flown so far away that they were nowhere to be seen, Chen Songzi appeared beside the study with a breeze, carrying a small wine flask. He tipped back his head and gulped down a mouthful of wine, then cursed under his breath, "Those little ox-noses, each more skilled than the last at evading work and cutting corners. Don't they know they need to revitalize the sect? They actually dumped their own disciple on Little Junior Sister. Do they expect us old fellows to teach the new disciples instead? Alas, misfortune for the sect, misfortune for the sect... But it does make sense. Yue'er is a child who knows how to strive forward. Fengzi should be all right under her hand... Mm, exactly, exactly. Hehe, hehe."

In a streak of clear wind, the old Daoist vanished as well.

As for Li Feng, he and Little Cat had long since been frightened into strange shrieks by the continuous lightning. With a heavy axe strapped to his back and a pair of water buckets on his shoulders, he shot down Qingyun Flat like the wind, racing along that narrow, twisting, steep path strewn with bizarre rocks.

Faint golden light emanated from the carrying pole, flashing and vanishing. The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy that had filled Li Feng's body was immediately suppressed by that golden light into a single mass, condensed within him. Li Feng could only rely on his physical strength to carry the pair of loads, weighing over a hundred jin, down the mountain. Yet considering that Li Feng's physique was already far stronger than that of an ordinary person, the extra hundred-odd jin merely made him exert himself each day like an ordinary sect disciple. In this regard, Zhao Yue'er's judgment had been extremely accurate.

Zhao Yue'er stood atop a golden longsword, hovering at the end of the path as she shouted, "Little Cat, no slacking off! Little Feng, no tricks! You two must return by noon, or neither of you gets anything to eat. Especially you, Little Cat—if Little Feng slacks off, it must be because you led him astray. Understand?"

Li Feng's miserable complaints echoed through the stretching mountain peaks. Even louder was Little Cat's unwilling, aggrieved roar, wronged as if snow had fallen in the sixth month. The voices of man and beast gradually faded away, while Zhao Yue'er watched the mountain path with a smile on her face and softly hummed a tune.