Missing Thoughts Literature

Five days of probation passed in the blink of an eye.

Yun Luo lay on her back atop a thick branch of the Hehuan Tree, a piece of Hehuan Flower Cake clamped between her teeth.

Zhuaizhai sprawled on her belly, holding a spiritual herb in its two paws and munching away like a rabbit. When it finished, it dug out a spiritual pill from the Brocade Pouch at Yun Luo's waist and stuffed it into its mouth.

The spiritual herbs and pills had been sent by Senior Sisters from the other peaks.

The Hehuan Sect had not accepted a Direct Disciple in over ten years, so Yun Luo naturally became the Little Junior Sister among the Direct Disciples.

They said common folk favored the Youngest Child; apparently, the cultivation world was no exception.

Yun Luo had accidentally become everyone's darling.

Seeing Zhuaizhai's cheeks puffed full, she stroked its chubby head.

"Zhuaizhai, do you like the Hehuan Sect?"

Zhuaizhai nodded as it gnawed on its pill.

Its leg injury had healed completely. How could it not like this place?

Yun Luo rolled onto her side. "I like it too. Once my spiritual roots recover, I'll find you even better pills and medicines, so you can cultivate with me."

By a Pallas's Cat's natural lifespan, Zhuaizhai's life should have been nearing its end. Yet thanks to all the spiritual herbs it had been fed over the years, it now had at least thirty more years to live.

This was called: when one person attained the Dao, the Pallas's Cat ascended to heaven.

After Zhuaizhai finished the pill, its fat little head rubbed against her cheek. Then it flopped over, rolled onto its back, and exposed its soft belly.

Yun Luo reached out with her evil hand and gave it two rubs.

That feel was glorious.

After playing around for a while, her Jade Slip trembled. Yun Luo picked it up and saw that Elder Jinghong was summoning her to the Main Hall of Taihe Peak at once.

She did not dare delay and hurriedly blew the Bone Whistle hanging around her neck.

Maibake spread its enormous wings and crouched beneath the tree.

Yun Luo flipped down and landed steadily on its back, then waved at Zhuaizhai in the tree.

"Be good and wait for me at home."

Zhuaizhai rolled its round body over, yawned, then lay against the trunk with a rumbling purr.

In the blink of an eye, Maibake landed steadily on a platform atop Taihe Peak. Yun Luo was stunned by the enormous palace carved entirely from spiritual jade before her.

She jumped down from the crane's back. A graceful woman in green approached her, with a red Plum Blossom mark between her brows.

Everyone in the Hehuan Sect was outrageously good-looking. It was practically paradise for face connoisseurs.

"Are you Junior Sister Yun Luo?"

Yun Luo cupped her hands in salute.

"That is me. May I ask how I should address Senior Sister?"

The woman smiled faintly. "My name is Huo Mei. I am the Sect Leader's Direct Disciple."

"Senior Sister Huo."

After the two exchanged greetings, Huo Mei led her to the Main Hall.

"Junior Sister, you may go straight in. This is a small token of my regard, a meeting gift. I hope you will not disdain it. I still need to cultivate, so I'll be going now. When you have time, come visit Taihe Peak more often."

Huo Mei handed her a Qiankun Pouch. Before leaving, she looked at Yun Luo with boundless charm, her alluring eyes like silken threads.

Perhaps the other woman had used a Beguiler Technique, but Yun Luo felt her heartbeat quicken as her face rapidly flushed red.

She touched the spot over her heart, truly afraid she might be bent the other way.

Beautiful women could cuddle with her, but for dual cultivation, she still wanted a handsome guy.

Big in every way.

Upon entering the Main Hall, Yun Luo finally saw Mu He again. This was the first time master and disciple had met since entering the Hehuan Sect.

"Disciple Yun Luo pays respects to the Sect Leader and greets Master."

"Mm. Sit quickly."

The white-robed woman seated beside Mu He spoke. She was the Sect Leader, Tantai Zhao, at the Late Stage of Spirit Transformation. Her features were understated, yet every gesture carried the authority of a Sect Leader.

The moment Yun Luo sat down, she felt a gentle stream of spiritual power envelop her.

The other woman meant no harm, so she relaxed and allowed herself to be examined.

A moment later, Tantai Zhao withdrew her spiritual power, a faint furrow appearing between her brows.

"It is indeed the Primal Saint Physique, but these spiritual roots..."

Yun Luo's heart leaped into her throat.

"Sect Leader, Master, can my spiritual roots not be restored?"

"Not so." Mu He gestured for her to remain calm. "With the Heavenly Star Sect's capabilities, so long as they did not dig out your spiritual roots, the Hehuan Sect can repair them."

Yun Luo breathed a sigh of relief, only to hear her continue.

"However, those with the Primal Saint Physique usually possess extraordinary talent. At the very least, they have Superior Spiritual Roots, while Top Grade Spiritual Roots are even more common. Mid-Grade Spiritual Roots, on the other hand, are unheard of."

"Talent is not such a grave concern." Afraid Yun Luo would become nervous, Tantai Zhao's expression softened somewhat. "Those born with a Primal Saint Physique already achieve twice the result with half the effort in dual cultivation compared to ordinary people. That is enough to make up for any lack in talent."

Mu He did not truly care what Yun Luo's talent was like. She merely found it somewhat regrettable on Yun Luo's behalf.

Yun Luo did not find it regrettable at all. To her, cultivation meant cultivating longevity. Having a life longer than that of mortals meant every extra day lived was pure profit.

Reforging Spiritual Roots

Mu He rose and walked over to her, a pill radiating gentle golden light appearing in her hand.

Yun Luo had long heard how formidable her master was: a possessor of the Heavenly Grade Fire Spiritual Root who specialized in the Pill Dao, while also having considerable attainments in artifact refinement, swordsmanship, and talisman arts.

"This is a pill I refined. Once you take it, your spiritual roots will recover. Remember this well: before you possess enough strength to protect yourself, do not act alone. The Primal Saint Physique benefits your cultivation, but it also makes you an easy target for those who would refine you into a Cauldron."

Those made into Cauldrons usually ended with both soul and spirit destroyed.

Yun Luo shuddered.

"This disciple will heed Master's teachings."

Mu He placed the pill in her hand.

"Take it now. The Sect Leader and I will stand guard for you and help restore your spiritual roots."

Yun Luo swallowed the pill without hesitation. Abundant spiritual power, carrying a faint medicinal fragrance, swiftly flowed through every inch of her Meridians.

She immediately sat cross-legged, and a burst of excruciating pain coursed through her body. She felt her Meridians being stretched apart inch by inch.

The shattered spiritual roots in her dantian were like severed vines. As the pill was absorbed, it was as though an invisible pair of hands stretched the broken vines at both ends, then wound them tightly back together.

The pain was a hundred times worse than when her spiritual roots had been crippled.

Great beads of sweat rolled down Yun Luo's cheeks. She clenched her teeth hard, refusing to cry out in pain.

"She is quite a resilient child."

Tantai Zhao remarked, though Yun Luo could not hear her clearly through the agony.

Soon after, however, Yun Luo felt two vast streams of spiritual power enter her body. The pill's effects were greatly stimulated, and the restoration of her spiritual roots sped up by more than tenfold.

Two days later...

Yun Luo lay on the cold jade floor, her entire body soaked through with sweat.

Within her body, she could faintly sense fluctuations of spiritual power.

Her spiritual roots had been restored.

She pushed herself up, knelt on the ground, and kowtowed three times to the two women above her.

"This disciple will remember the Sect Leader and Master's kindness in her heart. Should you ever have need of this disciple, Yun Luo will brave fire and water without hesitation."

Mu He's complexion was slightly pale.

It was clear that restoring spiritual roots was no easy task even for a Void Refining Stage powerhouse like her.

"There is no need to brave fire and water. Cultivate well. One day, if you can bring glory to the Hehuan Sect, that will be the best repayment."

Yun Luo nodded in agreement.

"Return to Lingxi Peak for now and rest well tonight. Starting tomorrow, you will not have it so easy."

Mu He smiled with an unreadable meaning, and Yun Luo's muscles tightened all over.

Over the past few days, she had learned from her Senior Sisters that when Master trained her Disciples, she was nowhere near as easygoing as she appeared.

Yun Luo hurriedly agreed. After bidding the two farewell, she mounted Maibake and left Taihe Peak.

Tantai Zhao watched Yun Luo's departing figure and murmured,

"You said she reached Foundation Establishment in four years. That does not seem like the aptitude of Mid-Grade Spiritual Roots."

For someone with Mid-Grade Spiritual Roots, taking several decades to reach Foundation Establishment was the norm.

Mu He shook her head. "I do not quite understand it either. We can only wait for Grandmaster to leave seclusion and examine her again."

"I wonder whether Grandmaster can successfully undergo Tribulation Crossing."

Tantai Zhao spoke softly, seeming troubled.

The Grandmaster the two spoke of was Bai Huan, the Old Ancestor of the Hehuan Sect. She was at the Late Stage of Tribulation Crossing, possessed the Heavenly Grade Golden Spiritual Root, and like Yun Luo, had the Primal Saint Physique.

This time, Bai Huan had entered seclusion to charge toward Grand Completion of Tribulation Crossing and prepare for ascension.

For a great sect, if someone within the sect successfully ascended, the cave abode they left behind would receive the Heavenly Dao's blessing during ascension. It could protect the sect for over a thousand years, and cultivation within it would yield twice the result with half the effort.

Not only that, they would receive several additional slots for trials in the various secret realms.

Yet the Hehuan Sect had never produced anyone who successfully ascended.

They either fell midway or failed their ascension.

The Hehuan Sect had been mocked for this for many years. People said they took shortcuts through dual cultivation, that the Heavenly Dao would not tolerate them, and thus not a single one of them could ascend.

Thus, ascension had become a sore spot for the Hehuan Sect.

That was also why Mu He had brought Yun Luo back.

The Primal Saint Physique was the finest constitution for cultivating the sect's supreme secret art, the Moon Sea Tide Sound Technique. Of those in the Hehuan Sect who could cultivate to the Tribulation Crossing Stage, eight out of ten possessed this constitution.

Yet Yun Luo was the only one with Mid-Grade Spiritual Roots.

Mu He fell into thought. No matter what Yun Luo's spiritual roots were like, she would still do her utmost to nurture her.

Perhaps Yun Luo would be that miracle, finding the secret to ascension through the path of dual cultivation and allowing the Hehuan Sect to finally hold its head high.