Three Years

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, Ye Yun had spent three years at Great Bamboo Peak. Every day during those three years, he spent the morning chopping bamboo on the back mountain, then went to Tai Chi Cave to cultivate after lunch. Though the three years had only turned him into a big nine-year-old boy, he had already reached the seventh layer of Tai Chi Xuan Qing Dao. That was because he had deliberately held back, cultivating each layer to its limit—until his meridians could no longer compress even a trace more magical power—before beginning to break through. He had also used his magical power to nourish his body. Otherwise, he would have reached the eighth or even ninth layer long ago.

Compared with Ye Yun's rapid progress, Zhang Xiaofan's situation was rather awkward. In three years, he had barely managed to reach the second layer. When they checked the results of their bamboo chopping, he had only just managed to cut through a single stalk. Ye Yun knew, however, that it was because he had lost too much blood during that time.

Perhaps it was the force of the story's momentum, but Xiao Hui showed up to find Zhang Xiaofan right on schedule, and led him to Soul Devourer. What left Ye Yun dumbfounded was that, despite his secretly siphoning away some of the power from both the Bloodthirsty Bead and Soul Devourer, Zhang Xiaofan had still somehow fused them together through blood refinement, turning them into the Soul Devouring Cudgel. This was exactly why Zhang Xiaofan's qi and blood were so depleted that he had nearly failed to chop down even a single stalk of Black Knot Bamboo.

At dinner that evening, they learned that their sixth senior brother, Du Bishu, had reached the fourth layer of Jade Purity and attained the Object Control Realm. The news eased some of the tense atmosphere surrounding the upcoming Seven Peaks Martial Arts Tournament. Qingyun Sect had a rule that any disciple who reached the fourth layer of Jade Purity had to travel the world and seek out fine materials and Spiritual Items to cultivate magical treasures. In other words, Du Bishu would soon be leaving on his travels. Ye Yun had not been allowed to go down the mountain before because he was too young. The other peaks did not even know that he had reached the sixth layer—he worried that drawing too much attention would be troublesome, so he had not told anyone he had broken through to the seventh. And because he was still so young, he could not compete in this Seven Peaks Martial Arts Tournament. Even when the tournament began two years later, he would only be eleven.

Three days later, Du Bishu left the mountain. Zhang Xiaofan took over the kitchen, just as in the original story. Perhaps because Ye Yun had helped smooth things over, Tian Buyi had treated Zhang Xiaofan quite well over the past few years, unlike in the original story, where he was constantly picking on him. In contrast, Tian Ling'er, who had often spent time with Zhang Xiaofan in the original story, did not do so here. Instead, she spent all day clinging to Ye Yun. But Ye Yun often chatted with Zhang Xiaofan, so he never felt lonely. Big Yellow also loved following him around.

Over the three years, Tian Ling'er had grown from a twelve-year-old girl into a graceful young beauty. Her greatest pleasure was still "picking on" Ye Yun, though she had become more restrained as she grew older. They never again shared a bowl of porridge like they had before.

During those three years, besides cultivating, Ye Yun most enjoyed studying medicinal properties and talismans, and tinkering with little things. He could now make Tian Buyi's Big Yellow Pills. He had also streamlined the ingredients and developed a weaker version, which Tian Ling'er nicknamed "Little Yellow Pills." By combining what he had learned in the modern world with talisman techniques, he had even successfully created a Mechanical Bird that could fly. Unfortunately, it was only the size of his palm and could not carry anyone. Tian Buyi had also given him a thorough scolding over it.

One morning, after breakfast, Ye Yun picked up the hatchet from beside the door as usual and headed outside. He had already walked quite a distance when he suddenly remembered that his introductory training was over and he no longer needed to chop bamboo. He hurriedly turned back. If his senior brothers, Song Daren and the others, saw him, they would laugh him to death.

But the moment he turned around, he heard a familiar, teasing giggle behind him, and froze on the spot. Ye Yun swallowed hard and stiffly turned to look. Tian Ling'er stood beneath a tree not far away, graceful and lovely, watching him with an amused smile.

"S-Senior Sister, what are you doing here?" Ye Yun felt mortified. He knew his face must be bright red.

Tian Ling'er had never seen Ye Yun so flustered before and found it delightful. She walked over, pulled him into her arms, and gave him a firm kiss on the cheek, leaving a faint lipstick mark.

After kissing him, Tian Ling'er ruffled Ye Yun's hair and said with a smile, "All right, I won't tell anyone about your embarrassing little mishap. But in exchange, you have to practice with me every day. The Seven Peaks Martial Arts Tournament is only two years away. If Great Bamboo Peak fails to get good results again, Father will be furious."

Is this really that lucky? Ye Yun wondered. But never mind that. I'd better agree first. It's not like this is a bad deal for me.

"Okay, I promise," Ye Yun said without hesitation. Even if he refused, Tian Ling'er would still come bother him every day, so he might as well agree.

Tian Ling'er smiled sweetly. "In that case, let's start tomorrow. I'll go ask Father for a few suitable magical treasures for you right now. By the way, what kind of magical treasure do you want?"

"Hmm..." Ye Yun thought for a moment. "A sword. After all, our sect's art, the Divine Sword Thunder Control True Spell, requires a sword to perform. It'd feel like a waste if I couldn't learn it." Tian Ling'er nodded. "That's true. With your talent, Junior Brother, you should be able to learn it in a few years. I'll go ask Father to find you a good sword to use."

Then Tian Ling'er suddenly beamed. "All right, little Junior Brother, I'll be off. Take your time chopping bamboo!"

Listening to Tian Ling'er's clear, bell-like laughter as she walked away, Ye Yun could only look dejected. It seemed this stain on his reputation would follow him for the rest of his life. He could only hope no one else had seen it.

After Tian Ling'er had gone, Ye Yun carefully looked around, then snuck back to the kitchen like a thief and put the hatchet away.

Once he left the kitchen, Ye Yun suddenly found himself with nothing to do. Before, he had spent every morning chopping Black Knot Bamboo, cultivated in the afternoon, and played around with Tian Ling'er during his breaks. He had never found the days dull. Now that he no longer had to chop bamboo, he had so much free time that he did not know what to do with himself.

With nothing to occupy him, Ye Yun found a shady spot beneath a tree and sat down to think about what to do next.

I've already reached the sixth layer of Jade Purity, and taken it to the limit. Cultivating any further would only add a negligible amount of energy to the system. It wouldn't be right to ask Master's wife for the later techniques yet, so I can't cultivate for now. I've already finished the books on medicinal herbs, Miscellaneous Records of Kyushu, Strange Records of Mountains and Seas, and the like. I don't have the materials to tinker with modern gadgets, either. Argh, this is so frustrating! What am I supposed to do?

No matter how much he thought about it, Ye Yun could not come up with anything else to do. He paced beneath the tree, looking increasingly frustrated.

Suddenly, inspiration struck. Ye Yun finally figured out what to do next. A few days ago, Tian Buyi had found a substantial iron deposit on the back mountain and brought back quite a lot of good-quality ore. It was piled in the open space behind Shou Jing Hall. Ye Yun could refine the ore and use it to make some interesting little gadgets.