Nights in the northern kingdom were cold, and even April still held a chill.
Yet the bedroom in the inner garden of the Prince Consort's Residence was as warm as spring, with a faint scent of Calming Incense drifting through it.
Inside the enormous Gilt Purple Sandalwood and Ivory Bed, Li Ling shivered, then slowly turned onto his back.
The Ninth Princess nestled against Li Ling for a while, only to discover that his breathing had already evened out and he was sound asleep. She paused in surprise. "He fell asleep that quickly?"
The two bedchamber maids on duty happened to enter with hot water and towels. They smiled and said, "The Prince Consort must be overworked. He's been sleeping so deeply lately."
"Yes, I don't think I've even seen the Prince Consort turn over at night."
The Ninth Princess reached out to check him. "Could he still not have recovered from that illness a while ago?"
But he did not look as though he was still ill. If anything, he was sleeping exceptionally well.
"Never mind. Being able to sleep is a blessing."
The Ninth Princess did not know that although Li Ling appeared to be sleeping, he had actually performed soul projection and was hard at work cultivating immortality.
In his spirit body state, he controlled his thoughts according to the methods for guiding the mind recorded in the Daoist scripture, and immediately received a clear response.
Li Ling was overjoyed. "It really worked! And so quickly!"
His cultivation talent in spirit body form far exceeded his expectations. Soon, he felt something like a babbling stream flowing through the air. Part of his mental power transformed into cloud mist, gathering beneath his feet and lifting him into the air.
Li Ling looked around. Under the courtyard lamps, he cast no shadow.
This cloud mist was formed through a change in the nature of his own divine sense. It too was formless and traceless, difficult for low-level cultivators to detect.
Li Ling tried controlling it and found that it followed the pull of his mind as readily as fingers obeyed an arm.
This was true control through thought. Within the physical cultivation system, even cloud fiend formed from five elements spiritual energy contained outside matter and could never be controlled with such perfect ease.
Li Ling soon used it to carry his body upward, savoring the exhilarating feeling of standing high above everything.
Unfortunately, after he reached a height of several zhang, the ground turned dark, as though he had fallen into a bottomless abyss, leaving him with few points of reference.
The air did contain dust and other matter, so it was not truly empty. But their mass was too small to provide much feedback, likely for the same reason that the void of space was dark.
Li Ling hurriedly lowered his altitude and discovered that staying between three and five zhang was best.
That height was just right for crossing obstacles on the ground and genuinely improved his mobility.
His spirit body could already pass through most substances, but sufficiently thick material would still obstruct his perception, so he still needed to avoid it.
As for speed, although he was nowhere near the heaven-soaring, earth-burrowing capabilities of a Nascent Soul expert, Li Ling tested it and found he could move as fast as someone running flat out. That was already far better than last night.
Li Ling clicked his tongue in wonder. He could not help thinking that if some Spirit Incense could help him condense clouds, it would surely accelerate his progress in mastering Cloud Escape.
On second thought, he decided to test Returning Soul Incense first.
Entering the room in the Fragrant Incense Pavilion, he found the Returning Soul Incense he had made already laid out on the table. With a slight stir of his divine sense, he drew over a nearby Fire-Sprout Branch and lit one corner of the incense.
His persistent cultivation during this time had gradually increased his divine sense, and he could now move objects weighing around eighteen grams.
Forget controlling a flying sword-even a flying needle would be feeble and powerless.
But moving paper, Fire-Sprout Branches, water droplets, incense powder, and similar things posed no problem. At last, he had an ability that could affect external matter.
As smoke curled upward, a strange, rich fragrance spread through the Chaos Void.
This was the effect of the fat rendered from incense sugar maple. It should have dissipated quickly, but blending it with other ingredients preserved it, greatly extending the duration of its effects.
Li Ling floated out of the room and tried sensing its source. Sure enough, the gradations were distinct, with different concentrations at different distances.
"Although the incense essence in this Returning Soul Incense is nothing to write home about, making it useless for soul tempering, its actual usefulness far surpasses Spirit-Communing Incense!"
"Perhaps even other great cultivators could use this faint sensation to return their souls to their bodies!"
Li Ling immediately took a circuit around his residence.
The Prince Consort's Residence the Mystic Xin Kingdom had provided for Li Ling was remodeled from the mansion of a renowned chief minister of the previous dynasty, with an adjacent garden added to its grounds. Its total area was therefore considerable: over two thousand mu, or more than 1.3 million square meters.
Living in the Royal City was no easy matter. The Prince Consort's Residence stood in the eastern city, a prosperous district already home to high officials and nobles. Occupying grounds comparable to the palace itself certainly spoke of considerable prestige.
The residence's main entrance faced south. Just inside was a broad, level plaza large enough for horse riding, surrounded by flowerbeds and gardens planted with rare flowers and unusual plants. Winding paths led into secluded spots and branched toward covered walkways on either side.
Following the central avenue inward led to the front hall, middle hall, and rear hall in succession. But the estate's functional areas were not divided by these halls. Instead, eight gardens were arranged by the four cardinal directions and their inner and outer positions. Together with the central inner garden, they formed nine major areas, each ranging from a hundred to several hundred mu.
The forecourt of the outer south garden and the area around the front hall were mostly used for receiving guests and ceremonies; the outer west garden housed servants and guards on duty; the outer north garden opened onto the back street and served as the main passage for fruit, vegetables, meat, household refuse, and servants; the outer east garden housed servants' children, hereditary household servants, and their families; only the four inner gardens were used by the masters for daily life and leisure.
Viewed as a whole, the residence backed onto hills to the west and bordered water to the east. Artificial hills, covered galleries, paths, gazebos, lotus ponds, gardens, waterside pavilions, flower towers, terraces, and halls were all present, with the four inner gardens boasting particularly exquisite scenery.
The Fragrant Incense Pavilion stood in the central inner garden. The lotus pond and waterside flower tower Li Ling had visited before lay farther east, in the East Inner Garden. These two places were where he spent most of his time.
But now, as he rode clouds through less familiar areas, he could still sense the fragrance all along the way, and a solid feeling of security welled up within him.
Li Ling could not help remarking, "At least I don't have to worry about getting lost at home anymore."
Soul projection did not consume physical stamina. He remained full of vigor and felt no fatigue, so he decided to revise his earlier, clearly overcautious plan and explore outside.
"This incense should burn for about two hours, but judging by my deductions, its scent should have no trouble lingering until noon tomorrow."
"That should leave more than enough time. Even if anything changes, I can notice it from how the scent weakens. What really needs testing is the limit of its range."
He did not know how adding other ingredients to the incense blend would affect its range. But since he had blended them according to his knowledge and experience, there should theoretically be no problem.
So he began traveling straight outward, heading ever farther into the distance.
A cloud fiend condensed through the incantation now lay beneath his spirit body's feet. Floating like an immortal, he felt wonderfully free.
Before long, he left the residence and continued outward.
One hour, two hours, three hours...
Like a wild horse freed from its reins, Li Ling became carried away. Without realizing it, he reached a junction on the official road marked by a stone tablet bearing the name Marquis-Watching Town. Only then did he abruptly come to his senses.
"I've seen the map. This place is a full two hundred li from the Royal City in a straight line, yet the scent is still here!"
"It looks like Returning Soul Incense's range is far greater than expected. Flying another two or three hundred li wouldn't be a problem!"
"Of course, this might also be because of my exceptional gift. I can easily distinguish scents in the void, whereas other cultivators can only receive them passively."
A quick calculation told him that his current average speed exceeded seventy li per hour. No wonder he had ended up here.
Unfortunately, he could not keep testing.
Although Li Ling was very curious about where the limit lay, it was already past one in the morning. In another three or four hours, it would be five-the hour of the Hare.
The hour of the Hare brought sunrise. Only souls that had reached the day wandering realm could leave their bodies then; otherwise, they would be in danger.
"I'd better head back first. Once my Cloud Escape gets faster, or I gain the ability to perform day wandering, I can explore the limits."
Li Ling immediately raced back on his cloud, returning to his body before dawn.
"Whew, that felt amazing!"
"It's settled. I'll work during the day and go roaming at night."
Once he calmed down, Li Ling began considering whether to report the existence of this incense.
His soul projection certainly had to remain secret, but Returning Soul Incense was another matter.
It was where his value as a master incense maker lay, and also a means of improving his status and treatment.
Thus, the following morning, Li Ling contacted the Old Ancestor with a spirit talisman and told her about Returning Soul Incense.
After listening patiently, Yellow Cloud True Person sighed with feeling. "Li Ling, you truly haven't disappointed me. I happen to need this Returning Soul Incense right now. It may be a great help."
Li Ling said, "Then shall I send you a few cakes first?"
Yellow Cloud True Person said, "Good. I'll send someone to collect them."
She added, "As usual, once the sect confirms its effects, you will receive a reward. But I trust you to spare us worry. Since you dare offer this, it must have some extraordinary effect. Even if it cannot achieve that for the moment, it will merely be a matter of limited conditions."
"I can promise you personally in advance: if there's anything you want, just ask. As long as it concerns worldly affairs, we can do our best to satisfy you."
Li Ling immediately requested incense sugar maple, along with some knowledge concerning the soul.
After a brief moment of thought, he added, "I'd like to know how great cultivators' souls behave and what they experience after Soul Projection, so I've prepared a related questionnaire. I hope the Old Ancestor and the other ancestors who receive Returning Soul Incense can spare some time to fill it out."
This would indeed help improve Returning Soul Incense, but it would also aid his own cultivation, serving both public and private interests.
Yellow Cloud True Person said, "Researching incense formulas is important work and certainly deserves support. I've heard a little about incense sugar maple. It's only an ordinary worldly thing. We can have the Mystic Xin Kingdom establish a dedicated office to supply it, and someone will handle the matter from then on. But since you seem to need it urgently, I'll simply have a disciple cut down a tree for you to make do with first. He can bring you the texts and information as well."
Li Ling paused in surprise. "Hasn't Senior Brother Zhu always handled deliveries with me?"
Yellow Cloud True Person said, "He has already gone to the battlefield to temper himself and face his tribulation."
Li Ling said, "I see."
That night, he projected his soul again to wander about and practice Cloud Escape. Leaving that aside, the next day, Li Ling compiled the formula in the Fragrant Incense Pavilion.
As with the earlier Spirit-Communing Incense, he listed all the main ingredients and concealed nothing about the precise proportions or preparation methods.
From the Immortal Sects' perspective, they would not put all their eggs in one basket and forever let Li Ling alone possess the secret formula. Thus, if he wanted to establish himself in the mortal world through the Incense Path and enjoy peace and prosperity, withholding these things was impossible.
But what Li Ling wrote was: "Two liang of incense sugar maple fat, one liang of white honey, half a liang of spikenard, half a liang of black-horn agarwood, three qian of borneol, one qian of musk. Add appropriate quantities of powdered cloves, agarwood, or cyperus as needed..."
This was not a deliberate attempt to keep secrets. That was simply how it worked.
When making Spirit Incense, Li Ling had always relied on his own talent and experience to adjust the combinations of aromatic ingredients. The finer details also needed to be handled according to the actual circumstances.
Ingredient quality, storage duration, preparation conditions-there were far too many variables.
So the formula was not really the key. His craftsmanship was.
It was much like cooking. One needed skill to make a delicious dish; simply following a recipe was not enough. He had never heard of anyone achieving a master chef's standard merely by reading recipes.
Suddenly, Li Ling heard startled cries outside. Going out to look, he saw a figure carrying a tree about five zhang long descend straight from the sky.
The Ninth Princess arrived just then, anxiety on her face. Once she recognized the newcomer's features, however, she immediately relaxed. "Senior Lu!"
The man the Ninth Princess called Senior Lu was middle-aged, with an Ebony Hairpin inserted upright in his hair and a Dark Teal Robe on his body. He stood suspended above the courtyard, his sleeves fluttering, looking every inch an immortal.
He flew over, the five-zhang tree trunk floating alongside him like a flying boat, and slowly descended under Li Ling's gaze.
With a beckoning motion, he withdrew the white light. The trunk dropped and struck the ground with a crash.
Senior Lu landed as well, brushed off his clothes, and said with a smile, "Li Ling, you're really something. You actually persuaded the elder to send a dignified Foundation Establishment cultivator like me to cut down a tree. Take a look-is this the right kind? Don't get it wrong, or I'll have to travel over a thousand li back and forth again."
Li Ling said, "Yes, this is incense sugar maple. Senior Lu, I never expected you to come personally. Forgive me for not coming out to welcome you."
He had met this man a few years ago and knew that he was Lu Zheng, a True Disciple of the Skycloud Sect. In status, cultivation, and strength, he far surpassed the Ninth Princess, who lived in the mortal world, and Zhu Ming, who was only at late-stage Qi Refining. He was even several hundred years old. Li Ling had never expected him to be sent to cut down a tree on his behalf.
Li Ling addressed the servants who had rushed over at the news. "What are you all standing around for? Disperse. Senior Lu, let's speak inside the hall."
Lu Zheng said, "No need. I still have to return and report."
"Oh, right. These are from the elder."
He took a Jade Scroll from the Treasure Pouch at his waist and handed it to Li Ling.
Li Ling accepted it as though he had obtained a priceless treasure, his face filled with delight.
This was precious knowledge concerning the soul, something ordinary Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators rarely had access to. Yet somehow, a mortal like him had obtained it.
Lu Zheng showed no interest in what it was. He had come only to complete his assignment, and soon departed with the things Li Ling gave him.
Li Ling watched him leave and nodded to himself.
Hopefully, this Returning Soul Incense will prove useful to cultivators, just like Spirit-Communing Incense. It concerns not only my reputation and status, but also my future treatment.
The Old Ancestor needs to see tangible results before she'll continue supporting me.