A White Fox Listens to the Dao

A point of light rested halfway up the mountainside; it was the Blue Rock.

A point of light lay on the road from Lower Yan Village to Meng City; it was the Galloping Horse Stone.

A point of light sat in the Ancestral Hall; it was the statue of the Yan ancestors.

A point of light remained in Zi Bofeng's study; it was surely the abacus upon which Zi Bofeng had performed the Monster Raising Art.

These four points of light varied in brightness and size, but they were undeniably luminous. In the vicinity of these four points, the shroud of deathly aura had thinned, especially near the Blue Rock, where the deathly aura had been almost entirely dispelled.

Although only the Blue Rock had truly become a monster among these four, the others had merely received the spiritual energy of Zi Bofeng. Yet, this was the spiritual energy of the Monster Raising Art, which possessed unique properties that set it apart from all other forms of spiritual energy.

Against the backdrop of these four points of light, the deathly aura throughout Lower Yan Village seemed to have been purged, replaced by a burgeoning vitality. Looking down from above, one could see that the greenery surrounding the village had increased significantly compared to before.

At the turn of spring and summer, it was the season when all things began to stir. With the deathly aura dispelled, living things immediately began to multiply.

Beyond these four points of light, there were also black dots in motion. The depth of these black dots varied; some were faint and indistinct, while others were thick and heavy strokes.

A great many of these black dots were concentrated within the Private School.

These... were they people?

There were four that were incredibly dense: one in Zi Bofeng's home, which was his father; one not far opposite, which was Yan Wu Shi; one in the Private School, which was Little Stone; and one moving out from the Private School—it was actually Yan Lao Wu!

Zi Bofeng's heart stirred, and he immediately understood. This must be a form of belief—trust or closeness toward himself. His father and the others trusted him implicitly, but for Yan Lao Wu to trust him so deeply was unexpected.

There was another black dot, only slightly weaker than those four. Judging by its position, it was Si Gou.

This fellow had truly been frightened into submission by Zi Bofeng.

Looking closely, Zi Bofeng discovered he could even see what these people were doing: his father was sawing wood, Yan Wu Shi was cooking, Si Gou was sleeping in, Yan Lao Wu was walking briskly, and Little Stone... was making faces at him.

He wanted to continue watching, but his head suddenly swam. Zi Bofeng staggered and quickly grabbed the door frame, only then realizing that his spiritual energy had been completely exhausted. He hadn't had the chance to replenish it since waking up this morning.

After a moment of reflection, Zi Bofeng understood why this was the case.

As the saying goes, appearance stems from the heart. In the hands of others, this Porcelain Shard might become the legendary Heavenly Vision and Earthly Hearing Technique, or perhaps it would manifest as a bronze mirror reflecting all things under heaven, or even a scroll depicting the masses. But for Zi Bofeng, these were not intuitive enough. The most intuitive form was the satellite map with a bird's-eye view from the games of his past life—high above, discerning all things.

However, converting the masses into viewable images was not without cost; it consumed spiritual energy—Zi Bofeng's spiritual energy.

This was another benefit brought by the Porcelain Shard. For now, it seemed to have a certain connection to the Monster Raising Art, though the exact nature of that relationship remained unknown.

Zi Bofeng was a man with a strong thirst for knowledge. Having just encountered a new toy, it was truly frustrating not to understand it, but there was a whole group of rowdy children waiting for him to teach them. What was he to do?

Zi Bofeng's eyes rolled, and he had an idea. He returned to the Private School and said, "Today..."

Their comprehension had also increased. This was already a geomantic treasure land for Zi Bofeng's studies, and now that more people had come, it seemed not only to have no negative impact on Uncle Blue Rock's absorption of spiritual energy, but rather, Uncle Blue Rock seemed even more joyful. It appeared that the thoughts and words of more people allowed him to gain more spirituality. What surprised Zi Bofeng even more was that he discovered he had been using the Monster Raising Art unconsciously while lecturing.

In the past few days, the Monster Raising Art could only be written with a brush, and the target was limited to one person. Yet now, things had changed; he could actually "preach the Dao."

Could it be that the Monster Raising Art had leveled up?

They gathered in one place, teaching them to read and write.

Being outside the Private School gave these children less pressure, and the learning effect was quite good. Of course, they didn't know this was due to the miraculous effect of the Blue Rock. Even Little Stone was able to sit still, though he tried to sneak away several times, only to be reported by Xiao Tuozi and dragged back by Zi Bofeng.

In the current situation, it would be a miracle if he could sneak away. This little fellow was likely feeling that because he was teaching so many people at once, he wasn't paying attention to him, so he was deliberately acting out to attract his notice. Zi Bofeng had some understanding of Little Stone's psychology, so he deliberately praised Little Stone for learning well and quickly, which immediately shifted Little Stone's interest back to his studies.

Thinking of his past self, who only knew how to scold Little Stone without knowing how to guide him according to the situation, he realized he had caused Little Stone to fear him and feel resistant to learning. Now, when Little Stone learned things, his eyes were bright and fixed intently on Zi Bofeng. Zi Bofeng was also never stingy with giving him appropriate rewards. To Zi Bofeng, Little Stone was his own younger brother; the idea of treating everyone exactly the same was a lie. If he couldn't be good to his own brother, who could he be good to?

Zi Bofeng didn't care whether Little Stone achieved official rank, but he hoped Little Stone could acquire more knowledge.

When the morning passed and Zi Bofeng announced the end of class, the group actually seemed to still be enjoying it, looking reluctant to leave.

The village's Private School only held classes for half a day; for the remaining half, these children had to go home to help with chores.

"Teacher, will we still have class here tomorrow?" The speaker was Yan Xiaoliu, the young grandson of Yan Lao Wu. After today, he was completely won over and had even grown to love the feeling of being in class.