That night, Ling Tian slept soundly. After being utterly exhausted, there was nothing happier than sleeping in a bed. He dreamed of Hua Min'er, laughing and no longer crying. Even in his sleep, he smiled, the corners of his mouth lifting in a faint, sweet smile, there and gone in an instant.
The next morning, Ling Tian awoke from his dream. A faint longing welled up inside him, gradually growing more and more intense. For the first time, Ling Tian understood that there was such a thing as longing in this world: sweet, and filled with happiness and anticipation. The feeling was so elusive. He wanted to grasp it, but it always slipped away in the blink of an eye, playing hide-and-seek with him.
"Hehe, this feeling isn't bad either. I wonder when I'll get to see Min'er." Ling Tian's lips curled faintly as he tried hard to recall the feeling of his dream and murmured to himself.
Not long after, Lingyun left the bedroom and stepped into the courtyard. A cool breeze swept toward him, and Ling Tian suddenly felt refreshed, as if good fortune had brightened his spirits. Even the flowers, grass, insects, and birds seemed livelier than before.
"Tian'er, you can go practice on your own today. You already know how to cultivate, and where to go." Lingyun came out a little later. Seeing Ling Tian in such high spirits, he understood all too well why his son was acting this way.
"Mm, I know, Father," Ling Tian replied cheerfully. He didn't even notice the bright, beaming expression on his own face.
"Go on, you rascal." Lingyun chuckled to himself and swept his long sleeve, signaling Ling Tian to go practice.
"Mm, off I go!" Ling Tian whooped and leaped away, while Lingyun's hearty laughter rang out behind him.
On the way, Ling Tian was torn, locked in a fierce battle with himself.
"Should I go see Hua Min'er? She's at Qingdie Peak. I wonder if that silly girl's been crying again." At the thought, Ling Tian felt a faint ache in his heart.
"Maybe I shouldn't. She just joined Qingdie Peak, and she must have a lot to do. If I go find her, I'll probably disturb her." Ling Tian quickly overturned his first decision.
"I wonder if she misses me. I think I miss her a little. Could it be that I really like her?" Ling Tian's little face flushed at the thought, but he couldn't help feeling a little expectant.
"I'd better focus on cultivating my spiritual sense first. By then, she'll probably be used to life at Qingdie Peak, and everything will have settled down. I'll go see her then." In the end, Ling Tian made the difficult decision and hurried toward Qingming Peak.
At Qingdie Peak, inside a solemn yet graceful and beautiful Great Hall.
Hua Min'er was taking part in her initiation ceremony, but her thoughts had wandered.
"I wonder what Brother Ling Tian's doing. Does he miss me?" Remembering how Ling Tian had held her the day before, Hua Min'er's delicate face turned faintly red.
What Hua Min'er didn't know was that Ling Tian was wondering whether she was thinking of him, too. The two of them really did seem to share an unspoken understanding.
Hua Min'er no longer looked as she had the day before. Her ragged clothes had been replaced with the standard uniform of a Qingdie Peak disciple. Several butterflies fluttered across her white dress. Her delicate face was no longer pale and gaunt; now it was fair, with a hint of rosy color, making her seem as graceful as a butterfly and as beautiful as jade.
"I wonder when Brother Ling Tian will come see me. This is the first time I've ever wanted to see someone so badly." Hua Min'er's thoughts drifted again, her mind full of Ling Tian's handsome, jade-like face and his warm, sunlit presence.
"Junior Sister, the ceremony's about to begin. Don't let your mind wander." A pretty young woman beside Hua Min'er noticed her daydreaming and gently tugged at her sleeve.
"Hm? What? Oh, I know. Thank you, Senior Sister." Feeling her sleeve tighten, Hua Min'er snapped back to her senses. She jolted, flustered and at a loss for words, her cheeks turning even redder.
"Are you thinking about some handsome Martial Brother? Look at you, mooning over him. Aren't you ashamed? Hehe." The young woman wrinkled her delicate nose and made a face, unbearably cute as she teased Hua Min'er.
"N-no." Hua Min'er's heart pounded like a startled deer. It was as if someone had discovered her greatest secret. She answered in a hurry, not realizing that her expression had already given her away.
"You still say no? Your little face is as red as an apple, hehe." The young woman wouldn't let up, continuing to tease Hua Min'er with a smile so sweet it was hard not to adore her.
"Silence!" Ye Feidie glared down from the seat of honor in the Great Hall, her phoenix eyes full of authority.
The young woman stuck out her lively tongue, then fell silent. Hua Min'er, beside her, finally breathed a long sigh of relief, inwardly grateful to the peak master for inadvertently rescuing her. Everyone else quieted down as well, and the vast Great Hall fell silent.
Hua Min'er's initiation ceremony officially began.
In the Orange Spirit Mist Sea at Qingming Peak, Ling Tian sat cross-legged, surrounded by a hazy sea of mist. Beads of water covered his face; it was impossible to tell whether they had condensed from the mist or were his sweat. Weariness weighed on his features, but he gritted his teeth and persevered.
"I clearly feel like I could break through at any moment, but no matter how hard I try, I can't pierce that final layer. Sigh, why is this happening?" Ling Tian was deeply frustrated. His face was pale, and he panted without pause.
"Could I have hit a bottleneck?" Ling Tian looked utterly disbelieving. His father had once told him that cultivation had bottlenecks; if one encountered one and couldn't fully comprehend it, one's cultivation would make no progress at all.
"That can't be, can it?" Ling Tian wasn't sure. He'd never heard of someone hitting a bottleneck at such a low level of cultivation. Most cultivators encountered bottlenecks only after reaching a higher level, when they needed to comprehend the Heaven and Earth Great Dao and verify it against the Great Dao.
"Oh, I nearly forgot. Before I started cultivating, Father said there were some things he needed to tell me. Could it have something to do with why my Mental Cultivation can't make any progress?" Ling Tian suddenly remembered what his father had said. He smacked his little head, and the suspicion grew stronger.
"Father, oh Father, did you really have to do this every time? Hmph." Ling Tian pouted. His father had caught him out like this several times already.
"Sigh, I'll have to wait even longer to develop my spiritual sense, and even longer to see Min'er." At the thought, Ling Tian could only smile bitterly, his longing growing even stronger.
"Luckily, my Mental Power can still increase. Otherwise, this trip would have been a complete waste." Ling Tian hadn't come here for nothing; his Mental Power was growing rapidly.
"Next, I should keep refining and compressing my Mental Power." Ling Tian knew that even people with the same level of Mental Cultivation could have different amounts of Mental Power. Some had power that was dense and solid, while others' was far inferior.
As he thought this, Ling Tian formed hand seals and followed his father's method to refine and compress his Mental Power.
Time passed unnoticed during cultivation. This time, however, Ling Tian had learned his lesson and kept track of the hours. When the moon rose, he stopped cultivating and returned to Qingyou Peak.
"Father, is there something you forgot to tell me?" At dinner, Ling Tian pouted, looking deeply dissatisfied. Of course, he was only putting on an act.
"Did I?" Lingyun played dumb, amusement showing in his eyes.
"You definitely did. Otherwise, why do I keep feeling like I can't develop spiritual sense? Hmph." Ling Tian's dissatisfaction grew, and as he spoke, he looked to his mother, Humei Niang, for help.
Humei gazed at Ling Tian affectionately and swept her fox tail across Lingyun, her expression full of reproach.
"Hehe, he was in such a hurry that he forgot to ask me." Lingyun chuckled awkwardly as he spoke, subtly moving away from the fox tail tickling him.
"Father, please tell me. I'm begging you." Ling Tian tugged at his father's robe and began to plead as well.
"All right, all right, I'll tell you. Honestly, what did you have to learn from your mother? Of all things, you had to learn how to plead." Lingyun couldn't take it anymore and hurriedly gave in.
Ling Tian was overjoyed. He quickly stopped and listened attentively.
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