Cultivating the Self Revealed Its First Hints

"I'm mostly healed, no major problems. Those chaotic thoughts have been completely suppressed!" The tall man was none other than Tiger Walker. "If I were to make a move now, no one, inside or outside the house, would be my match."

"That's good. Just lie low and wait until evening when there are fewer scholars around before you make your move." Huang Yan nodded, his eyes scanning the crowd several dozen feet away. For a moment, the place fell silent, with only the sound of the wind rustling through the grass.

After a while, Tiger Walker suddenly said, "Why wait until evening, rush over now, take Mr. Qiu away, and then ask him to provide advice, maybe we can also find the murderer that day. By the way, Mr. Huang, can you guess the story of the monster monkey you encountered? So many brothers were crippled by this, they are all in the world, but they can no longer use the sword. It is a life worse than death."

Upon hearing this, Huang Yan glanced at him and noticed the Tiger Walker's clenched teeth as he spoke, knowing that this walker himself hated the Demon Monkey to the core.

"Don't rush. I haven't been idle these past few days. I've been lying in wait and observing, and I've learned about the scholar's routine. If we act now, we have an 80% chance of success, but we still need to be cautious to avoid leaving any future troubles."

Speaking of which, the current appearance of the two is due to the Demon Monkey's foresight. On that day, the group gathered in a pavilion, looking through the chessboard texts, and each of them gained something. The Tiger Walker even broke through on the spot, full of vigor and high spirits.

Unfortunately, their good fortune didn't last long. Just as they were plotting how to force the author of the article, Qiu Yan, who had settled in this area, to come up the mountain, a strange change occurred. A monstrous Demon Monkey that could transform at will suddenly leaped out.

For someone with cultivation, such attacks by demons are not unexpected. They often encounter them when traveling the world, in the mountains and Lin Zhong. The Tiger Walker has killed countless demons along his cultivation journey.

Therefore, when they encountered the Demon Monkey, the group was not afraid and was ready to fight it. Unexpectedly, the Demon Monkey suddenly grew larger and slammed down with its palm. The group had no way to dodge and were all seriously injured!

They were left with severed limbs and barely managed to escape.

This was just the beginning. They then discovered that their wounds contained a disturbing thought that could disturb their State of Mind and undermine their very foundation.

This path of cultivation, whether it be physical or spiritual, is related to one's State of Mind. Those who Nature Cultivation need to undergo a transformation and breakthrough in their State of Mind, while those who Life Cultivation need to use their will to control their intentions and continuously strive for progress.

In this situation, affected by distracting thoughts, the injured group even had trouble healing themselves. They groaned all day long, and their injuries worsened instead of healing. Among them, only Huang Yan and Tiger Walker suppressed their distracting thoughts with their writing and Fist Intent.

Afterwards, reflecting on the events of that day, the group couldn't figure it out. They vaguely realized they had been tricked, but couldn't find the reason. Moreover, they were only focused on escaping and hadn't noticed whether someone was lying in ambush. So they had no choice but to let it go.

However, Tiger Walker lost an arm in the incident, and he was not about to let it go. He was constantly thinking about revenge, but he couldn't find an opponent. His temper became increasingly volatile, and he often took his anger out on others.

One day, Huang Yan suddenly proposed to kidnap Qiu Yan and take him to Qi-Lu. This gave Tiger Walker a target and allowed him to settle down again. However, they could not force Qiu Yan up the mountain as originally planned. After all, they had gone through a great disaster, and everyone was exhausted. Some were injured, and some were crippled. It was no longer realistic to devise a plan.

At this time, news of Qiu Yan's residence spread throughout the Eastern Capital. With a little attention, it was easy to find out. Huang Yan and Tiger Walker came here together and observed for a few days.

"For the past few days, you remained inactive, just to find out the daily routines of these scholars? They're all too weak to even kill a chicken, why bother with all that effort?" Tiger Walker suppressed his anxiety and asked in a low voice.

However, Huang Yan did not answer, but instead gestured for the other party to be quiet, and then pointed ahead.

"Hmm?" Tiger Walker stopped speaking and looked in the direction Huang Yan was pointing. What he saw were several extraordinary figures. The clothes of this group were similar to those of the other scholars, but the fabric of their clothes was obviously different. Walking among the many scholars outside, they stood out from the crowd.

"This group of people should be the ones sent by the Literary Pavilion to collect the paintings every day. We can only make a move after they leave, otherwise it will easily alert the city," Huang Yan said in a low voice.

The Literary Pavilion was a gathering place for Grand Confucian there every day to collect paintings. When this news first spread, many people didn't take it seriously, thinking it was just a rumor. But as time went on, the truth came out, and others realized it wasn't unfounded.

"These many Grand Confucian hold Mr. Qiu in high regard. His decision to settle here and create such a grand spectacle demonstrates that he is truly a remarkable figure. This is exactly the kind of person our mountain stronghold needs!"

Tiger Walker offered a few words of praise, then changed the subject. "Of course, Mr. Huang is a man of brilliant strategy, and both he and Mr. Qiu are outstanding talents of their time. If they were to return to the stronghold together, the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Sha would surely Great Prosperity!"

Huang Yan waved his hand and said, "I know my own situation best. I'm good at being Doghead, but not enough to bring peace to the region. If Qiu Yan can make a name for himself, he would be a good choice..."

As the two were talking, a group of people in the distance entered the courtyard.

At this moment, there was another person in Qiu Yan's room. It was Dai Guo, who came with a tray to deliver the food, which was brought from the teahouse.

Setting down the tray, Dai Guo couldn't help but complain, "Young master, those scholars, they look so refined, but when it comes to grabbing food, they're even more ruthless than me, old Dai. If I hadn't said that this dish was brought for you, it probably would have been snatched up before it even left the shed, like it was free."

Qiu Yan smiled and said, "Food is as essential as iron. In this Lin Zhong, scholars may not have much access to ingredients, so food is a scarce commodity. Supply is limited while demand exceeds supply, so of course they will compete for it. It's a basic necessity for them."

"Young master, you speak with such eloquence, I, old Dai, cannot understand a word you say," Dai Guo shook his head and lowered his voice, "However, shouldn't the prices of the food and tea be raised? We're not worried about selling them anyway. In my opinion, we should let the scholars set the prices themselves, and the highest bidder wins!"

"I didn't realize you had such thoughts, Dai Guo. It seems you shouldn't be practicing martial arts; you should be going into business." Qiu Yan glanced at Dai Guo with slight surprise, thinking that if this person had been born in his previous life, he might have become a great merchant.

Dai Guo scratched his head and smiled smugly, "Doing business is bad, commerce is a lowly profession. I, Old Dai, come from a respectable family. But judging from what you're saying, young master, you're planning to raise prices?"

Qiu Yan shook his head and said, "Your method is good, but it's inappropriate for the times. We can't use it. Those scholars come here to learn and seek fame. I provide them with tea and food and charge them a reasonable fee. This is doing them a favor and I can even gain some recognition. If we take the opportunity to raise prices, the nature of the business will change, and it will be suspected of profiteering."

"Is it that serious?" Dai Guo shook his head, somewhat puzzled. "It's just a small amount of money."

Qiu Yan laughed and said, "How many of those who come here to study and seek fame are truly wealthy? Their travel expenses are limited, and even if we try to extract money from them, we can't make a fortune. Why lose our integrity for such petty gains? Besides, using our food to alleviate the hunger of others is in accordance with the principles of the classics."

"Alright, Lao Dai understands." Dai Guo nodded, saying no more. Just then, Hu Qi's voice came from outside—

"Young master, people from the Eastern Capital have arrived."

"You're here so early today? You usually arrive in the evening these past few days." Dai Guo was slightly surprised.

"Perhaps the Grand Confucian noticed something and knew that this painting today is the culmination of years of accumulated knowledge and experience," Qiu Yan said, pulling a blank scroll from the bookshelf.

Seeing this, Dai Guo withdrew.

Afterwards, Qiu Yan ground ink, laid out paper, picked up a brush, sat upright in his seat, and remained silent. The distracting thoughts in his mind gradually faded away, and what replaced them was the scene of the Land of the Divine Remains in his memory.

These scenes mostly depict mundane events, focusing on the daily lives of the tribal people, particularly their food, clothing, shelter, and transportation. The emphasis was on hunting and gathering, but later, organized farming activities emerged.

As Qiu Yan reminisces, knowledge from his past life flows in, annotating and explaining the original scenes, revealing the deeper reasons hidden behind them.

"Using paintings to showcase the features and spirit of primitive society to the Grand Confucian and teachers of several academies is also an opportunity for my theory to collide with the ideas of other schools of thought."

"However, a complete doctrine must involve self-cultivation, family management, governance of the state, and bringing peace to the world. My current experience in Human Path, which has been summarized and transformed, is still limited to the level of self-cultivation. It is still very rudimentary and the system is not perfect. It will inevitably attract criticism. I am not afraid, but I cannot let it spread."

"Therefore, it's best to limit the impact and gradually promote it after the Metropolitan Examination."

As Qiu Yan was thinking, he was about to dip his brush in the ink, but just as the tip of the brush was about to touch the ink, his movement suddenly stopped.

"Oh? Lü Liang has already noticed the flaws in the Yin-Yang Pagoda and wants to explore the information within. Once he discovers the backup plan on the fourth floor, not only will he be on guard, but he will also disrupt my plans. It seems we can't wait any longer."

The moment the thought arose, the Divine Spirit Body in the distant Netherworld took action.

The Divine Spirit Body, standing in the courtyard of the pavilion, looked up at the sky. Strange lights were bursting out from the edge of the River of Forgetfulness, causing the surrounding Karmic Thread to change rapidly!

Now, the Divine Spirit Body suddenly withdrew its gaze, then its figure shifted, and in the blink of an eye, it transformed into the likeness of Feng Zhen, even its aura was exactly the same as that of the Child-Giving God.

On the level of Karma, the Karmic Thread wrapped around Feng Zhen, due to the transformation of his True Spirit, drifted aimlessly like rootless duckweed. Influenced by the aura of the Child-Giving God, they wrapped around Qiu Yan's Divine Spirit Body. Although they did not connect, they could still deceive people into thinking they were real!

Then, the Divine Spirit Body soared into the sky!

His flight caused the Karmic Thread to change rapidly, some becoming taut, others bending, with far-reaching effects. The furthest one even pierced through the Netherworld and reached a vast ocean in the far east of the Great Rui!