Claiming the Reward

Yunqi bid Sukong farewell, turned around, and followed the same path out of the bamboo grove.

Just as he emerged, he saw a flock of silver pheasants fly into the sky from deep within the grove. Faintly, he thought he heard laughter coming from its depths.

The bamboo grove had been cool and shaded. As soon as he stepped outside, the sunlight felt warm on his skin. He looked up at the sky. The sun stood in the southeast; it was still the late morning hour.

Yunqi remembered his instructor saying that consuming qi required taking the time of day and the terrain into account. Now he stood on high ground, with no clouds for ten thousand miles and the great sun overhead. Yang qi flourished here, so he ought to consume fire qi.

At that thought, Yunqi immediately took his stance where he stood and began consuming qi with the Ha incantation.

Sure enough, the warm currents he consumed felt stronger than those in the cool bamboo pavilion. That made him even less inclined to hurry. He simply stayed there consuming qi, waiting for He Bingkun to finish his evening lesson so they could return together.

During the breaks between his breathing exercises, Yunqi also considered how to condense his thoughts. Creating a temple complex in his mind would not be easy. A mere outward image would not suffice: his instructor had said to build it brick by brick, tile by tile. Once built, he would have to maintain it, too. He absolutely could not forget it after two or three days.

A temple complex had an intricate structure, but its heart had to be a divine hall, the place where its deities were enshrined. Rainfall Temple outside the mountain had many such halls: the Hall of Wang Lingguan, the Hall of the Four Deities, the Hall of the Great Master of Mystic Metropolis, the Hall of Dao Lord Guangcheng, the Hall of Primordial Lady Doumu, as well as the Hall of the Three Pure Ones and the Hall of Immortal Ge.

Within the mountain, atop the flat summit in the Lotus Blessed Land, there was also a Hall of the Three Pure Ones, enshrining the Three Pure Dao Ancestors. There was a Hall of Fuxi, enshrining the ancestor of humanity, and the Halls of Yin and Yang, enshrining the far more intangible and elusive qi of yin and yang.

Yunqi first had to decide which hall he would build. His instructor had just said that ideally, it should connect with his visualization method, Inner Landscape Deity, and Palace-Opening, so he could achieve twice the result with half the effort...

"What are you daydreaming about?"

Someone clapped Yunqi on the shoulder, startling him. It was He Bingkun.

"How come you're back so soon... huh? It's dark."

He Bingkun chuckled. "You slip into meditation easily. That's a good thing, too. Let's head back."

The Thunderbird carried them both to the Courtyard Residence.

"How did today go?"

"Pretty well. I consumed qi."

"Hmm? You learned to consume qi, or you actually consumed it?"

He Bingkun's voice suddenly rose several notches.

"I learned to consume qi, and I consumed it."

"One day? You consumed qi in a single day?!"

He Bingkun grabbed Yunqi's head with both hands and scrutinized it from every angle. "What kind of monster are you?"

Yunqi smiled, then took a pale green slip from inside his robe. It was very thin, as though shaved from bamboo, and bore a line of slender, graceful handwriting:

"Cheng Yunqi consumed qi six breaths after receiving the method, witnessed by Wen Sukong. Written on Bright Governance Mountain, the ninth day of the fourth month, Year 424."

"My instructor said I should be able to claim a cash reward from the All-Teachings Institute with this slip."

He Bingkun's eyes almost pressed against the slip. "Six breaths? You consumed qi in six breaths?"

After half a month together, He Bingkun could tell Yunqi was no ordinary fellow, but he had never imagined just how extraordinary he was.

"Not 'should be able to.' You definitely can. Come on, we're going right now!"

He Bingkun burst out laughing, seized Yunqi by the wrist, and strode out of the courtyard, heading straight for the All-Teachings Institute.

Lanterns hung beneath the eaves of the houses on either side of the street and on the mountain walls outside cave dwellings. Some glowed fiery red, others orange-yellow, forming two ribbons of light that clearly illuminated the mountain path.

He Bingkun was famous for his booming voice. How could he possibly walk along laughing without attracting attention? Doors opened one after another on either side of the path, and their owners poked their heads out.

"Has Old He achieved Palace-Opening?"

"The King of Clamor achieved Palace-Opening?"

"He Bingkun achieved Palace-Opening!"

"..."

The congratulations traveled even faster than He Bingkun's laughter. For a moment, good wishes rang out without end.

He Bingkun blushed, though it did not show in the lantern light. "Achieving Palace-Opening will come as naturally as water flowing into its channel. The time hasn't come yet. What's there to congratulate me for?"

"You whelp! Cackling at night and ruining everyone's quiet cultivation!"

"All that lightning he draws down every day must have fried his brains."

"A body full of brawn, and not a scrap of brain."

In an instant, the congratulations turned into abuse.

"My roommate Cheng Yunqi learned the method today and consumed qi in six breaths. We're off to the All-Teachings Institute to claim his reward. Isn't that worth a laugh?"

The little mountain street fell utterly silent.

The next moment, dozens of people poured out from both sides of the street and surrounded He Bingkun and Yunqi.

Nobody paid any attention to He Bingkun's smug face. They merely studied Cheng Yunqi closely.

"Consumed qi in six breaths!"

"He's handsome, too."

"Oh, is he the one from Bright Governance Mountain?"

"Ah, I remember now. The newly arrived young Daoist!"

Everyone spoke at once. Yunqi was startled, too. Was consuming qi in six breaths really that astonishing?

"Let's all go!"

Someone shouted.

"Of course we're all going!"

"Naturally we're all going!"

And so, instead of one person laughing and shouting, there was an entire crowd.

Yunqi felt uneasy. This was far too ostentatious. Somehow, things had turned out like this before he knew it.

"Haha, don't worry about it, Yunqi. Lantern Street hasn't had anyone like you in ages. We have to seize this chance to vent our frustration. You don't know this, but the year before last, Ancient Vine Street got a newcomer who learned the method in the morning and consumed qi that evening. They praised him to the skies. The All-Teachings Institute was clearly uphill from his place, yet when they went to claim his reward, that lot deliberately walked downhill toward us first. Only after parading around did they head back up. Now Heaven has granted us this golden opportunity. How could we let it pass?"

With that, the crowd escorted Yunqi up the mountain.

Cheng Yunqi had spent half a month hiding indoors reading and knew none of his neighbors. Now, surrounded by their escort, he had met every one of them before even reaching the All-Teachings Institute.

"Brother Jiabao, I really do come from an ordinary mortal family. I'm not some Dao-born son. You've been asking me the whole way."

Yunqi helplessly answered him once again.

The questioner was a man who looked rather prosperous, with a large belly, a plump face, and an ever-present smile.

"If you're not a Dao-born son, then this really is astonishing."

"What exactly is a Dao-born son?"

His words had piqued Yunqi's curiosity.

"The son of a pair of Golden Core Dao companions."

Yunqi nodded. That was impressive indeed, and presumably rare as well.

When they reached a certain street, the crowd's shouts suddenly grew louder. Yunqi hurriedly tugged at He Bingkun. "Brother He, please ask our fellow Daoists to quiet down a little. This isn't very seemly."

He Bingkun roared with laughter. "This is Ancient Vine Street!"

Yunqi looked around. Thick old vines lined both sides of this mountain path. The residents had woven the vines into huts to live in, lending the place a distinctive charm.

Yet what had been a quiet, secluded spot now seethed with noise. Yunqi worried that an argument might break out.

The vine huts on either side of Ancient Vine Street remained silent.

"Something's wrong."

He Bingkun finally put away his obnoxious expression, replacing it with a stern, searching look. At that moment, with his tiger's back and bear's waist, his eagle's stare and wolf's watchfulness, he embodied those descriptions perfectly.

"Those little bastards on Ancient Vine Street must be plotting something!"

He Bingkun was not mistaken.

Beneath the cover of night, Ancient Vine Street came alive. Countless vines crept soundlessly beneath the crowd's feet.

"What's that?"

Someone cried out in alarm.

It was like a signal. The exposed vines sprang into motion, swift as snakes and lightning, quickly encircling the people of Lantern Street. Apart from a few who had practiced movement techniques and escape arts and were still dodging, most were bound fast.

"Tian Lingzhi, you shameless bastard!"

He Bingkun's footwork was exceptional, and he was still evading the vines as he shouted a name. He knew Tian Lingzhi was the leader of Ancient Vine Street. This had to be his idea.

His words had barely fallen when rustling sounds sliced through the air.

"Hahaha, you brainless fool! You're all brainless fools! Wang Xianyou is in secluded cultivation, and you actually followed He Bingkun into this nonsense! Hahaha!"

Many figures appeared on Ancient Vine Street in an instant. Moving extremely fast, they lunged toward the trapped crowd. With the old vines and darkness concealing them, they were almost impossible to distinguish.

"By the Lightning Mother's decree, Golden Lightning Flash! Let nothing hide-reveal!"

Yunqi saw He Bingkun form a hand seal, an incantation bursting from his mouth. A fierce white light flared at his fingertips. Beneath its radiance, all of Ancient Vine Street shone as bright as day, revealing those clusters of figures.

The people squinted in the lightning's glare, and their steps slowed.

Yunqi looked toward their leader, a young man in white robes and a jade-green cap. The young man saw Yunqi, too, and actually smiled at him. Then he began casting an incantation:

"By the Wood Duke's decree, Myriad Things Thrive-bind!"

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