Green Mountain Would Not Leave Regrets

Old Man of the Imperial Ancestral Temple arrived carrying a painting, and An Le stopped practicing the Collapsing Sword Force.

He slowly drew Bamboo Sword Green Mountain from the Old Scholar Tree and strapped it at his waist. He did not know whether it was an illusion, but An Le felt that the bamboo sword seemed to fit his hand a little better.

"The Sword Has Spirit. It sensed hope within you, and the spirit buried within its blade will slowly awaken in due order. Do not be fooled by how damaged Green Mountain appears—it can break through anything. But if you wish to wield Green Mountain now, boy, you are still far from ready."

"A sword is a Swordsman's finest companion, but you are still too green."

The old man sat in a bamboo chair, poured himself a cup of Old Yellow Wine as though he were in his own home, drained it in one gulp, and smiled.

An Le stroked the Green Mountain bamboo sword, and somehow, he found himself liking this unimpressive Bamboo Breaking Sword more and more.

"You started too late. You were only enlightened at eighteen, which is somewhat regrettable. You must improve yourself quickly and reach the point where you can wield Green Mountain. Do not let Green Mountain be left with regrets."

As the old man drank, he suddenly sighed. A flash of loneliness passed through his eyes.

Perhaps he had once made Green Mountain bear too many regrets, and so he did not wish for the youth to repeat the same mistakes.

An Le smiled. Amid the soft wind and rain, his voice carried a measure of resolve and sincerity. "Green Mountain will not be left with regrets."

Since he had come to this world and could encounter the splendor of cultivation, he naturally did not wish to leave regrets in his life.

His past life had been brief and gaudy, as though shackled, with helplessness and ordinariness flowing through every corner. As a child, it had been the three-point line of youth palace, school, and home. Elementary school, middle school, high school—then in the blink of an eye, he had become an adult. After exhausting brush and ink and filling countless sheets of paper, he had been about to enter the art academy he had traded his entire youth for, only to transmigrate instead.

An Le felt that there had been many regrets in those years—regret that everything he had mechanically striven for had gone up in flames, and regret at bidding farewell to that era.

Yet this world was vibrant and dazzling. He had stepped onto the path of cultivation and experienced the splendor of heaven and earth, with Green Mountain at his waist. He was even less willing to squander his life away. The taste of regret was too bitter; he did not wish to taste it again.

An Le poured himself a cup of Old Yellow Wine and drank with the old man.

The clouds in the sky scattered, and the bright moon rose like a divine maiden ascending to heaven, gentle as water.

Moonlight poured over the branches of the Old Scholar Tree and the tender new leaves nourished by spring rain, casting dappled shadows.

Draining the Old Yellow Wine in his cup, An Le gazed at the bright moon and chuckled. "There is an order to hearing the Dao. Those who set out first may arrive later, and those who set out later may arrive first. Senior, do not worry."

Hearing the youth's spirit soaring like a rainbow, the old man's appreciation deepened. Stroking his beard, he burst into laughter and raised his cup for a great drink.

After that, they spoke no more of cultivation. The old man took out his painting, and beneath the moon, he drank and discussed art with the youth.

Three months of spring passed at the flick of a finger, with ninety days of unbroken gloom.

Spring rain always came without rhyme or reason. It might stop one moment, and before the warmth lasted half a day, threads of mist and smoke would gather once more. Rain that watered the eastern wind's green fields fell everywhere, fine as cow hair and like beaded curtains, veiling the human world.

Nourished by spring rain, spring in Lin'an Prefecture became even more beautiful. Green leaves and tender flowers filled every street and alley, urged into bloom. Whether walking beside West Lake, strolling along the long embankment, or resting in a pavilion, one could see life's colors everywhere.

After asking Madam Hua for leave, she directly granted An Le three days off, telling him to cultivate properly at home, nurture his mind and spirit, and prepare for the opening of Sixth Mountain.

An Le tried to decline, but Madam Hua said that the young masters also had to prepare for Sixth Mountain's opening, so painting work would be suspended for the time being.

Since that was the case, An Le naturally had no reason to refuse.

Rising in the early morning, he bathed in the spring rain and practiced the Five Animal Frolics in white robes. His sinews and bones rang together, his blood and qi roiled, and the blood and qi he had pushed to perfection actually began to gather, spreading thread by thread into his bones.

An Le knew that he was only one step away from the second realm of Body Tempering, the Spirit Bone Realm. Perhaps with only a single opportunity, he could step into it.

Demonic qi continuously seeped out of the Quenching Demon Jade. As he practiced the Five Animal Frolics, it tempered his body through his skin and flesh, making his physique increasingly powerful.

Bathed in demonic qi, An Le grew ever more handsome and refined, while gaining an additional trace of bewitching charm that drew the eye.

He visualized the Sword Waterfall Diagram, practiced the Five Animal Frolics, and cultivated the Collapsing Sword Force...

An Le had his own plans for cultivation. Of course, studying was important as well. In the gaps between cultivation, he would squeeze out time to read. Books related to the imperial examinations, works by Great Scholars of the Academy of Literature, and even excellent works by renowned writers of this world—he read them all carefully.

Read a book a hundred times, and its meaning would reveal itself. An Le still believed that studying could change one's fate.

Though he had embarked on cultivation, cultivation did not mean giving up study. Even a powerful figure like Madam Hua held books by great scholars every morning, drinking tea and reading at Tianbo Water Pavilion. What right did An Le have not to study?

Moreover, the Spring Imperial Examination was approaching. He could not slacken his studies just because he was cultivating.

As he read, he walked toward West Lake, as he always did, to take a look at Fairy Yun Rou, the cold and peerlessly beautiful woman who had nevertheless fallen into the mortal world.

From the flowing light of time, he had learned that Fairy Yun Rou's cultivation was not weak, yet she willingly remained among the flower boats as a Flower Queen. Though she was the foremost among the flower girls and her beauty was famed far and wide, it was still a lowly profession, one that did not quite match Fairy Yun Rou's identity as a cultivator.

Even within Lin Hua Pavilion, Lin'an's foremost brothel, there were worldly women who cultivated. Yet they had only just entered the path and were merely a gimmick. Talents like Fairy Yun Rou were truly rare.

Unfortunately, after lingering by West Lake for a while and stepping through the thin streams of spring rain, he still did not see Fairy Yun Rou. This was the third day he had failed to see her.

He left West Lake and returned to Imperial Ancestral Temple Alley on Qingbo Street.

An Le set out a table, with teacups upon it and a charcoal stove boiling water beside it.

He brewed a pot of hot tea and sat quietly by the doorway, facing the Old Scholar Tree in the courtyard. He began visualizing the "Sword Waterfall Diagram," while his mind and spirit, having entered Embryonic Breathing, slowly gathered strand by strand.

With the blessing of the Talent of the Ages Dao Fruit, An Le's cultivation speed was quite rapid.

Without needing to work at Lin Manor, the only pity was that he could no longer absorb Time Qi.

Going out into the streets to try his luck did not necessarily mean encountering cultivators, while the Time Qi on Old Man of the Imperial Ancestral Temple was something The Current An Le could no longer draw out.

Still, An Le was not overly regretful. Once Sixth Mountain opened, a great number of cultivators would surely gather there. By then, he could absorb his fill.

The rain fell fine, then sparse again; though it could not fall much, it refused to cease.

He watched the spring rain before his door.

Drinking tea, visualizing, all was tranquil and well.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

The spring rain stopped and came again, as though it were welcoming the opening of Sixth Mountain of Sacred Mountain today. The rain fell with even greater fervor.

An Le rose early. The sky was hazy, and the fine, lingering spring rain drifted down like silver threads filling the sky beneath the faint light of dawn.

He changed into clean, wide-sleeved white robes. After three days of using demonic qi to temper his body, his Body Tempering cultivation was only a threshold away from Casting Spirit Bone, and he could break through at any time.

Thus, An Le's bearing grew ever straighter, his countenance as fine as jade.

With Green Mountain at his waist and the Quenching Demon Jade on his person, he opened an oil-paper umbrella. After locking the courtyard gate, he stepped over the thin streams running through the cracks of Imperial Ancestral Temple Alley's flagstones and headed out.

The alley was rather quiet. A few peach branches poked out from the high walls on either side. The pink blossoms had been sliced in half by the spring rain and fallen onto the bluestones. An Le stepped on them, and they stuck to the soles of his shoes, grinding into specks of pink.

Today was the opening day of Sixth Mountain, and the atmosphere throughout Lin'an Prefecture seemed to have changed.

His Embryonic Breathing mind and spirit coiled around his body, and he could sense that the spiritual qi between heaven and earth seemed to flow faster along with the surging emotions of the cultivators.

Just as the Literature Academy was the sacred ground in the hearts of scholars across the realm, and the Martial Temple the sacred ground in the hearts of martial cultivators across the realm, Sacred Mountain was a transcendent force of Great Zhao—and indeed all the Central Lands—and the holy land in the hearts of countless cultivators.

To enter Sixth Mountain, even if one merely became a Mountain Guardian, was a leap to an entirely different level.

Thus, when the order announcing the mountain's opening resounded through Lin'an Prefecture, cultivators from around Lin'an Prefecture, from all across Great Zhao, and from every corner of the Central Lands came at the news. Some came to try for that dream which seemed ethereal and unreachable to many; others simply came to join the excitement.

Holding his oil-paper umbrella, An Le reached the mouth of the alley and suddenly thought of a serious problem.

Sixth Mountain of Sacred Mountain was renowned far and wide, but... he did not know where to go.

Looking at Qingbo Street, washed clean by the spring rain, An Le scratched his head and turned to look at the imposing, magnificent two-story pavilion with an octagonal pointed roof and double eaves in the distance.

In the Imperial Ancestral Temple, incense still burned, shrouded in the hazy colors of dawn and spring.

Old Man of the Imperial Ancestral Temple had said he would take him to Sixth Mountain today, yet there had not been the slightest movement so far.

Arriving before the Imperial Ancestral Temple, he did not enter the temple pavilion. From several meters away, he clasped his hands and bowed.

"Little Friend An, do not be anxious. In spring, one sleeps unaware of dawn. This old man is catching up on sleep, so I will not be going with you today. Someone will come to take you there."

The old man's lazy, amused voice drifted from within the temple.

An Le froze for a moment.

Amid the spring wind and rain, the sound of wheels rolling over bluestones and splashing thin streams suddenly came from afar.

At some point, a luxurious carriage had slowly emerged around a corner from the far end of Qingbo Street.

An Le stood by the street with his umbrella raised. The luxurious carriage came straight toward him and slowly stopped at his side.

A pale, slender hand extended from behind the carriage curtain and gently lifted it, revealing Madam Hua's exquisite, beautiful face, which he had not seen for several days.

Madam Hua first gave a slight nod toward the Imperial Ancestral Temple. Then her autumn-water eyes fell upon An Le, and the corners of her lips lifted faintly.

"I will take you to Sixth Mountain."

"Young Master An, get in."

Next week, I should be trying to make a run for Sanjiang. Please keep reading, and please send recommendation votes~