A tall, sturdy pine stood in the courtyard, dozens of meters high, its branches thick and flourishing. Lin Fan also found a great slab of bluestone seven or eight meters across in the mountains. After cutting it into a smooth, level surface, he placed it beneath the pine, then laid a large meditation cushion two or three meters across on top.
Every day, apart from Alchemy, sleep, and a few miscellaneous tasks, he spent almost all his time sitting cross-legged on the cushion, cultivating.
His eldest disciple, Chu Lingxi, often came to sit a short distance behind him at those times, quietly practicing her calligraphy or reading the Pill Sutra, occasionally raising her eyes toward his upright, cross-legged figure.
She had once thought only that her master's Alchemy bordered on the divine and that he acted decisively. But ever since learning that he had slain two experts in the early transforming force realm and single-handedly arranged for her entire family to enter the sect safely, an emotion she could not quite explain had taken root in her heart.
Her admiration carried dependence, and her reverence concealed a trace of closeness that even she dared not examine too deeply.
That afternoon, the autumn sun shone warmly.
Lin Fan emerged from the Pill Room and saw Chu Lingxi sitting beneath the covered walkway, copying illustrations of medicinal ingredients from the Pill Sutra. He walked slowly over.
"Studying the illustrations for the Qi-Nourishing Pill?"
Chu Lingxi looked up and hurriedly rose, her cheeks faintly flushed. "Yes, Master. These past few days, I've been trying to identify medicinal properties using the method you taught me, but some spirit herbs have similar effects, and I keep mixing them up."
Lin Fan nodded slightly, casually took the Pill Sutra from her hands, and rested a fingertip