Three Pillars of Cultivation

Second Master forced himself to bear the grief and went out of the cave first.

He assumed Old Woman wanted to give her final instructions, and that it wouldn't be appropriate for him to listen.

Xiao Hong Tang obediently went to the cave entrance too, standing guard there. At first, she had been very worried, but after seeing Old Woman, she had relaxed. She didn't understand the other things, and didn't think there was anything wrong with Old Woman's condition just then.

Perhaps, to her, Old Woman felt even closer now.

Hu Ma held Old Woman's hand, which had already grown weak, and sat in silence, unable to speak.

He could feel how fond the old woman was of him, and was glad he hadn't just made the other choice.

But as he felt how frail Old Woman was, all sorts of strange emotions stirred in his heart.

"Child, your grandmother is leaving."

Old Woman looked at Hu Ma tenderly, but the moment she spoke, his heart gave a tremor. He looked up in disbelief.

"You don't need to worry."

Old Woman noticed the concern that flashed across Hu Ma's face and saw that it was genuine. Feeling all the more comforted, she gave a soft laugh. "I'm not really abandoning you. I just have to return to the ancestral shrine and pave the way in advance."

"The Meng Family failed this time. They couldn't wipe out our branch, but they went too far and dragged a lot of people into it. If I don't go back, I'm afraid they'll do even worse things."

"But don't tell outsiders about this. Don't even tell your Second Master. They wouldn't understand..."

"..."

Only after seeing the warmth in Old Woman's eyes did Hu Ma relax a little. He vaguely sensed that what she was saying involved matters of great importance.

But with what he knew now, he couldn't understand them yet.

"It's just a shame..."

Old Woman sighed and said softly, "Once I go back, you'll have a hard time."

"My grandson, your problem hasn't been solved yet, but I have to leave you here in Old Yin Mountain to struggle on alone."

"..."

He could hear the helplessness and reluctance in her words, as well as her deep remorse.

Hu Ma's heart stirred. He had come to find Old Woman in the first place to understand what was wrong with him.

Was I really going to have to keep eating Blood Ganoderma just to cling to life?

"You were hurt too badly by the Meng Family back then..."

Old Woman saw what he was thinking and sighed slowly. "Or rather, you really had already... died."

She clearly recoiled from the word "died," as though she still couldn't accept the truth, even now.

After a pause, she continued, "But our Hu Family, your father and your mother included, did nothing wrong. Why should we let someone harm us until our branch is wiped out?"

"So your grandmother doesn't believe it. No matter what, I have to bring you back..."

"..."

Hu Ma listened in silence, not daring to blurt out anything.

"But in the end, I'm still to blame. My cultivation wasn't good enough, and I pushed myself too far..."

Old Woman looked at Hu Ma with eyes full of guilt and spoke slowly. "I was only able to bring you back, but this method of bringing the dead back to life was only half completed."

"By rights, I should have stayed and finished healing you."

"But the Meng Family was pressing too hard. I have no choice but to return to the ancestral shrine and deal with things there first. You'll have to complete the other half yourself..."

By this point, Hu Ma was already a little confused.

But he had seen how hard Old Woman had worked before, and seeing how remorseful she was now made him feel even worse.

He hurriedly said in a low voice, "You've already done so much for me, Old Woman."

"Ah..."

Old Woman only stroked Hu Ma's hand. He had just drawn on the furnace flame to slay the infant spirit, and the fire was still burning.

The warmth of his hand seemed to reassure Old Woman, bringing her comfort and warmth.

She sighed softly. "It still isn't enough. Your father is gone, and all I wanted was to raise you, but I couldn't even do that..."

"If you were the way you used to be, I never would have felt at ease leaving for the ancestral shrine. But now..."

"..."

She spoke, then seemed unable to bear it. After pausing, she said, "It's not always a good thing to be sensible. Sensible children always suffer more."

"I'm not suffering, Old Woman."

Hu Ma's heart quivered as he listened. If nothing else, out of sympathy for this old woman who had exhausted herself for him, he couldn't help saying, "You drove away the Evil Spirits for me and found me all this Blood Ganoderma. You've done more than enough."

"I've only been with Second Master for a month, but my furnace fire is stronger than everyone else's. Second Master even taught me all his skills..."

"Second Master was amazed. He said I'd lit my furnace for only a month, yet I was even better than his sixty years of Boy's Skill!"

"..."

"Isn't that right?"

Old Woman laughed with him, pride filling her brow. "You are, after all, a descendant of our Hu Family!"

"That Second Master is just a butcher..."

"..."

There was nothing more enjoyable than talking behind someone's back together. Even the atmosphere in the cave seemed to lighten.

Old Woman wore a smile, but as she looked at Hu Ma, her heart softened all the same. She spoke quietly:

"Good boy, your grandmother believes you can do it."

"But there are a few things I need to tell you. You must remember them."

"..."

Hu Ma quickly steeled himself and nodded.

Old Woman said solemnly, "First, you must take your grandmother back to Old Fire Pit. Whoever asks, just say that your grandmother has passed away. Don't mention me to anyone again, and don't mention the Hu Family either, until the day I come in person to call you back."

"To go into Old Fire Pit... wouldn't that mean..."

At her words, Hu Ma's heart quivered again, and worry rose up in him.

"Your grandmother is different from you."

Old Woman smiled. "It's only my husk. It's no use anymore, and easier to leave behind."

Hu Ma still couldn't understand, but when he looked into Old Woman's clear eyes and saw she wasn't just trying to comfort him, he could only nod and agree in earnest.

"Once your grandmother has entered Old Fire Pit, my grandson, you need to hurry and heal yourself."

Old Woman sighed and looked at Hu Ma, speaking softly. "How many pillars of cultivation do you have now?"

"How many pillars?"

At her words, Hu Ma suddenly thought of the pillar of incense he had seen in his dream.

Originally, it had been less than two fingers' breadth long, but later, as he ate more Blood Ganoderma and practiced diligently, it had grown.

Now, the incense had reached one and a half pillars.

So he tentatively replied, "Just two nights ago, while I was practicing, it seemed like something changed..."

He didn't mention what had happened in his dream, only describing the sensation that something had "melted."

"That's right."

A relieved smile appeared on Old Woman's face, and she nodded. "Then you already have one and a half pillars of cultivation."

"That means our method is working."

Old Woman sighed softly. "I can't do the second half of this method for you, but once you have three pillars of cultivation, you'll be able to solve the problem with your Half Yin Body."

"Three pillars?"

Hu Ma's heart stirred slightly. "Once I have three pillars of incense, I'll be able to get rid of the coldness in my body?"

"One pillar is a person's entire life and vitality. Once you have three times the life and vitality of an ordinary person, if you still can't get your breath back, then God of Heaven truly isn't playing fair..."

Old Woman sighed under her breath. "I had you learn from your Second Master because I was thinking of this day. The skills he learned are actually the right path; people just weren't willing to teach him."

"But you have to keep learning."

"..."

As she spoke, she struggled to turn around, as if trying to reach for the bundle beside her.

Hu Ma hurriedly fetched it for her and handed it over, but she pushed it into Hu Ma's arms instead. She opened the bundle and said, "Keep all these things, but be careful not to let anyone else see them. That red one..."

She pointed to a strip of paper inside that looked like a talisman. "This is Xiao Hong Tang's birth-date slip. Keep it, and Xiao Hong Tang will stay with you from now on."

"Ah, she's a pitiful child too. Don't be harsh with her in the future."

"..."

"Of course I won't..."

Hu Ma shook his head again and again, looking toward the cave entrance, where Xiao Hong Tang was resting her chin in her hands, lost in thought. "I like Xiao Hong Tang very much."

"You used to like picking on Xiao Hong Tang, and you even coaxed her into stealing things..."

Old Woman couldn't help laughing, but Hu Ma didn't know how to respond. After laughing a couple of times, Old Woman pointed to a jar in the bundle and said quietly, "With your body as it is now, you can't go without the Ganoderma."

"Your grandmother has cut all the Blood Ganoderma in Old Yin Mountain, but I don't know if it'll be enough to keep you going until you reach three pillars of cultivation. There's no better way for now..."

Hu Ma could only keep shaking his head, trying to reassure Old Woman. He couldn't say anything else.

Old Woman seemed unwilling to give him any more chances to speak. Using all her strength, she pulled an old book out from the very bottom of the bundle. Hu Ma saw what looked like the words "Qingyuan Hu Clan" and "Talisman Suppression" on it.

"This is the Talisman Suppression Book of our Hu Family..."

With great solemnity, Old Woman placed the book in Hu Ma's hands.

As she spoke, even her expression seemed to turn stern. "Our Qingyuan Hu Clan is down to just the two of us. I have to return to stop those Meng Family bastards. My abilities are limited, and I don't know how long I can hold them off. I can only hope in you, my grandson."

"One day, my grandson will master his skills, and we'll settle the score with the Meng Family together..."

"..."

Looking at Old Woman's grave expression, Hu Ma felt an immense weight bearing down on him.

A strange feeling made him reluctant to accept the book.

Deep down, he vaguely felt that taking the book meant taking on some vast, tangled grudge along with it.

But when he met the hope hidden in Old Woman's face, he finally sighed to himself and accepted the book in both hands.

"I will."

He promised Old Woman earnestly. "I definitely will."