The days of quiet cultivation at the temple could be a little dull, but Shen Hui found he didn't mind.
He'd developed a habit: every day, while the sky was still caught between night and dawn, he got up and headed for the back mountain.
Following the little path his feet knew by heart, he passed through the woods, their leaves fallen, and watched the sun slowly push up over the eastern ridge, staining the snow gold and crimson. Then he took off his clothes, slipped into the water, closed his eyes, and began that day's cultivation.
Three shichen later, he got up, dressed, and retraced his steps.
He spent the rest of his time practicing magic.
He practiced wind and fire magic the most. With hand seals and incantations, a thought was all it took for the flames to form into threads, spread into nets, or gather into ghostly heads, all at his command.
He also practiced the Aura Observation Art every day, though he didn't dare look for long. He only used it a few times before resting.
Though he still felt dizzy and bleary-eyed after each use, little by little he was able to keep it up longer.
Most of the time, he read.
All kinds of books.
Gazetteers, illustrated bestiaries, common spells and ways to counter them, rumors from the martial world, tales of unusual people and strange happenings.
He'd gone through every book on Third Senior Brother's few shelves, and had read most of what Second Senior Sister had.
By comparison, Second Senior Sister's collection was far more respectable than Third Senior Brother's. Seven or eight out of every ten books on her shelves were Daoist scriptures.
Shen Hui picked and chose, reading only those about spells, demons, and martial-world conflicts. As for the ones that discussed scripture and profound mysteries, he put them down after a couple of pages.
He simply couldn't get into them.
Second Senior Sister had plenty to say about that.
One day, when he came to return a book, she was sitting by the window, copying scriptures. When she saw him come in, she didn't even lift her eyes. She only asked coolly, "Finished it?"
"Finished it."
"Understood all of it?"
Shen Hui thought for a moment, then honestly corrected himself. "Actually, I didn't finish it. I only read the parts about spells. I skipped the ones about profound principles."
Jingming's brush paused. She looked up at him. "You ignore the respectable books and read only about fighting and killing. When you debate the Dao with someone one day, and they ask what the seventh scroll of the Azure Sun Sutra says, how will you answer?"
Shen Hui blinked. "Then this junior will say, 'I don't understand the scriptures, but I know a little fire magic.'"
Jingming's wrist jerked at his words, and her brush nearly slipped from her fingers.
She drew a deep breath, lowered her head, and continued copying the scriptures without another word.
Shen Hui gave an awkward smile, glanced at the spot of ink on her paper, picked an unread book from the shelf, and quietly slipped out.
Now and then, he also practiced magic with his fellow disciples.
They called it practice, but most of the time Senior Brother and Fourth Senior Sister sparred while he watched from the side.
Senior Brother's swordsmanship was steady and weighty, while Fourth Senior Sister was nimble and quick. He watched, learned, and memorized, and sometimes stepped in to try it himself.
But it wasn't like those scenes in opera, where fighters traded blows for three hundred rounds.
That was too fake.
Real sparring was mostly about comparing how quickly each side could form hand seals and recite incantations, how skillfully they could channel their spiritual energy, how they countered and applied their arts, and how to get the greatest effect for the lowest cost.
Such sparring could settle who was superior in a matter of moments.
But in the past few days, they'd sparred less and less.
That was because Third Senior Brother and Fourth Senior Sister had become hooked on listening to stories.
It was only natural. A lack of entertainment was a common ailment in this world.
Most people here spent their whole lives seeing no more than the few acres around them. A county town dozens of miles away might as well have been another world.
If they could read, at least they could learn about the world through books. If they couldn't, they had to rely on other people's words and their own eyes to picture the myriad things under heaven.
Even the opera troupes and storytellers only ever performed the same few old, worn-out tales.
Besides, even if you wanted to listen, it wasn't easy to find the chance.
A trip down the mountain took several days. Who would want to walk dozens, even a hundred miles, just to hear a story that wasn't especially interesting?
So when Shen Hui occasionally told some strange tale no one had ever heard before, the audience gradually grew.
It began one day after dinner, when Shen Hui casually told the story of the Ugly Duckling.
He'd meant to tell them about a duckling that was despised for being ugly, then eventually turned into a swan and flew away.
But as Third Senior Brother listened, his eyes lit up. He pulled out the little notebook he always carried and began taking notes as he listened.
"Brilliant!"
When Shen Hui finished, he clapped his hands in admiration. "That wasn't a duck at all. It was clearly a demon cultivating the art of transformation! It first showed the world an ugly appearance, enduring humiliation until its cultivation was complete. Then it shed its old form, transformed, and took flight. Junior Brother, where did you hear this? Is there more?"
Shen Hui opened his mouth, unsure how to explain.
He thought, You really are a genius. How did I never know the Ugly Duckling was a satisfying face-slapping tale?
So he told them Little Red Riding Hood.
This time, the result was even more astonishing.
After hearing it, Third Senior Brother sat stunned for a long while before slowly letting out a breath. "What a demon! It took human form to trick its prey, then swallowed it whole once it had let down its guard. That was a Wolf Demon with awakened intelligence! The hunter's appearance was karma repaid, the cycle of Heaven's law... I only wonder, compared with the Wolf Demon you encountered some time ago, which one would be stronger..."
As he spoke, he bent over his paper and began scribbling away.
Shen Hui: "..."
Well, as long as you're happy.
From then on, Third Senior Brother and Fourth Senior Sister wouldn't leave him alone.
Once their daily lessons were done, the two would come smiling into Shen Hui's room.
Fifth Senior Brother heard about it and dragged over a stool to join them.
Later, Senior Brother came too.
After that, even Second Senior Sister came.
Whenever she saw everyone gathered together, she would walk over with a dark expression, frown, and sit down in a corner.
She said nothing. She just listened.
When Shen Hui finished, she would get up and leave. At the doorway, she'd toss out, "Cultivation comes first," then return the next day.
That day, he told The Little Mermaid.
Shen Hui racked his brains and dug the fairy tale out of his memory. After thinking for a moment, he decided to make it a little more "realistic."
"On the East Sea Coast, there lived a Mermaid Princess..." he began.
"Merperson?" Third Senior Brother's eyes lit up. "I know what those are, but a princess..."
"Don't interrupt," Fourth Senior Sister Jinghui quickly cut him off.
Qingyi fell silent.
Shen Hui continued.
"The Mermaid Princess was beautiful and practiced secret water arts. One day, she rescued a mortal prince who had fallen into the water..."
"What's a prince?" someone else asked.
"Uh... the crown prince."
"Junior Sister, you mustn't interrupt either."
"I know, I know. Keep going, keep going."
"The prince was handsome, and the mermaid fell for him. So she went to find a Sea Witch and asked if there was a way for her to go ashore."
"What's a witch?" someone asked.
"Uh... someone like a shaman."
"Then was the witch a man or a woman?"
Shen Hui couldn't help sighing.
He knew that the Chinese term for shaman referred to both male and female shamans, but he'd read the story years ago. Who could remember whether the witch in the sea was a man or a woman?
So he answered offhandedly, "A woman!"
The moment the words left his mouth, he was about to continue when someone asked:
"But why would there be a witch in the sea? Couldn't she be an immortal from Penglai Immortal Island?"
Shen Hui stuck out his neck and put his hands on his hips. "Are you listening or not?"
Everyone hurriedly fell silent.
Shen Hui glanced at them, thoroughly exasperated. "Ask questions after I'm done."
"The witch said she could let her go ashore, but humans and demons followed different paths. The mermaid's cultivation was still shallow, so she had a human torso and a fish's tail. If she wanted to transform, she'd have to cut off her tail and grow legs. But then, every step would be like walking on the tip of a blade. Not only that, she'd have to refine the horizontal bone in her throat, and so on..."
When he finished, he let out a long breath. "Ask away."
Everyone immediately began talking over one another.
"Every step like walking on the tip of a blade?" Fifth Senior Brother's eyes widened. "Could that be some kind of body-tempering martial art? Once mastered, would it make her impervious to blades and spears?"
Shen Hui opened his mouth. "...It isn't a martial art. It's the price she had to pay."
Third Senior Brother had already turned to a fresh page. "Aren't only great demons at Core Formation able to transform? The mermaid hadn't formed a core, so how could she grow legs?"
Shen Hui thought for a moment. "She used witchcraft, not cultivation."
"Then this witchcraft is truly remarkable..." Third Senior Brother lowered his head and wrote it down. "I'll have to look through the classics later and see if there are any similar records."
Jinghui cut in. "Were her tears the legendary Mermaid Pearls? I've heard they can ward off water."
"That's what the story says." Shen Hui nodded.
"How far does the protection extend?" Senior Brother suddenly asked. "Does it protect only the wearer, or can it cover a three-foot radius around them? How long does it last? Could it be refined into a magical artifact?"
Shen Hui was silent for a moment. "Senior Brother, it's a story."
Senior Brother said, "Oh," and fell silent.
Third Senior Brother asked again, "When she turned into bubbles, was that her cultivation dispersing and returning to its source? Did she die, or return to Heaven and Earth?"
"She... basically died."
"Was it worth it?" Fifth Senior Brother scratched his head. "To put herself through all that for a heartless man."
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
A faint voice came from the corner. "That is an Emotional Tribulation."
Everyone turned. It was Second Senior Sister who had spoken.
"For cultivators, Emotional Tribulations are the greatest taboo." Her tone was certain. "The mermaid failed to overcome hers, and so she perished, her Dao destroyed."
Shen Hui: "..."