To Achieve Greatness, First Castrate Yourself

"Do you know why they have such terrible tempers?"

Perhaps feeling that they hit it off, Feng Qingye brought up the question himself again.

Lin Shisan shook his head.

"Because finding suitable Cultivation Manuals and Combat Skills in the Tibetan Scripture Pavilion-or even finding any at all-is like fishing a needle out of the ocean."

"It's nothing but opening mystery boxes. One moment, you're opening a box brimming with hope; the next, it turns out to be empty. From blazing fire to freezing ice."

"I've made some rough calculations over the years. The odds of getting Cultivation Manuals and Combat Skills are around one in a thousand. The odds of getting something suitable aren't even one in ten thousand. Most of them are suckers. Some go three or five years, even eight or ten, without opening a single one."

"After spending all that money and getting not so much as a fart out of it, wouldn't you be furious?"

Lin Shisan's heart twisted into a pretzel.

His face went pale, and even his neck felt cold.

Who knew when this head of his might go flying off?

So this wasn't just a dangerous job. It was a dangerous job where he carried his life dangling from his belt, liable to lose it at any moment.

No wonder the benefits here were so generous, and even came with the title of Outer Sect Disciple, when they were all Servant Disciples.

High rewards came with high risks.

"If they're angry, they can go find whoever sold them their Spirit Tokens. Why take it out on innocent small fry like us?"

Lin Shisan asked indignantly.

"Being stupid again, aren't you?"

Feng Qingye rolled his eyes again, adopting the world-weary air of someone exasperated that iron refused to become steel.

"Would they dare? They wouldn't."

"They only found a way in by pulling strings and sneaking through the back door in the first place. How could they dare go back and confront those people? Unless they're tired of living."

"Doesn't anyone do anything about it?"

Lin Shisan hurriedly shut his mouth.

He was afraid Feng Qingye would call him stupid again.

"Do something? Who? Who could do anything?"

This time, Feng Qingye didn't insult him.

"Since this gray-market business chain exists, it has its reasons."

"Think about it. Could a business chain grow this big and operate this openly without a towering tree sheltering it from above?"

"Everyone knows, but nobody says anything. It's an unspoken understanding. You benefit, I benefit, everyone benefits-that's what really matters."

"Besides, cultivating immortality isn't just about talent. Luck and fateful opportunities matter too. If your opportunity hasn't come, who can you blame?"

"So even though they know it's a pit, they willingly jump into it, all for that one-in-countless-millions chance."

Lin Shisan had learned his lesson.

What existed had its reasons.

However unreasonable something seemed, if it existed, there was a reason for its existence.

It just depended on the angle from which you looked at it.

"But you don't need to fret too much. Most of the time, your life won't be in danger. Usually, you'll just get cursed at, beaten, or kicked."

"And if your luck really comes around, an Immortal Lord or Fairy Aunt might be unhappy with whatever they get from their mystery box and toss it straight to you."

"One of my predecessors picked up an unopened mystery box. He soared straight up, and now he's a core disciple of the Tai Chi Hall."

"Ah..."

Lin Shisan's mouth fell wide open.

There were perks like that too?

The retreat drum he had just started beating in his heart fell silent again.

He had the Little Black Cauldron, which could advance techniques. Perhaps he would be the next one to soar.

"Brother Qingye, I've truly learned a lot from you."

"You look about my age, but our knowledge is as far apart as heaven and earth. Please keep teaching me in the future, Brother Qingye."

"Heh heh heh..."

Feng Qingye smiled until his eyes narrowed into slits.

Lin Shisan's flattery had hit just the right spot.

"The same age as you, brat? I'm sixty-five this year, four twelve-year cycles older than you. We're worlds apart."

Lin Shisan froze.

Were the methods of immortals really that powerful?

They could actually preserve their youth forever.

The wavering desire to pursue immortality in his heart began stirring again.

"Let me tell you another secret. What do you think our scripture pavilion looks like?"

Naturally, Lin Shisan shook his head.

This time, he genuinely had no idea.

Wasn't it just a series of magnificent buildings packed together like scales on a fish or teeth on a comb?

What else could it be?

"Can't guess, can you? It's a Spirit Artifact belonging to the Tai Chi Hall's Founding Patriarch."

What?

Lin Shisan went numb all over.

With a Spirit Artifact this enormous, what cultivation realm must their Founding Patriarch have reached?

Could he be one of those legendary Heaven-Connecting Sages who extinguished the sun and moon with a raised hand and shattered the river of stars with a stomp?

"Heh heh heh... ha ha ha..."

Feng Qingye seemed to relish Lin Shisan's shock.

He walked over and patted Lin Shisan on the shoulder.

"Study hard, brat. Your Brother Qingye has plenty for you to learn."

"The reason those Immortal Lords and Fairy Aunts have to fish needles out of the ocean with their mystery boxes is that they've never entered the real Tibetan Scripture Pavilion. They're only in its outer region. It's like looking at the stars. If you reach out to search for them, how could you easily catch one?"

"Only those with a true fateful connection, or those blessed with tremendous fortune, can catch a few little stars."

"And if your fortune truly shines, the Cultivation Manuals and Combat Skills will sense it and fly into your hands of their own accord. That's a true cultivator."

Perhaps he really was in a good mood that day, because Feng Qingye talked at length.

Relevant or irrelevant, true or false, the words poured from his mouth like a cascading river.

Even after Lin Shisan grew tired of listening, he was still spouting away by himself.

He simply wouldn't stop.

"Ah... getting a little tired."

An hour later, Feng Qingye yawned.

"Brat, go do the cleaning. I'll head back and have some tea to perk myself up. You get sleepy easily when you're old."

"Of course, Brother Qingye. I'll see you off."

Lin Shisan respectfully saw Feng Qingye off.

Then he went over, picked up a broom, and cleaned the place inside and out.

He picked up a pair of large shears next, snipping away as he trimmed the flowers, plants, and trees lining the path.

For three or four days straight, no Immortal Lords or Fairy Aunts came to the Tibetan Scripture Pavilion to open mystery boxes.

Lin Shisan's luck wasn't too bad.

During the day, he rested in the office whenever work tired him out. After curfew at night, he returned to his little courtyard to drink tea and read.

Life was fairly fulfilling.

Yet his mood simply wouldn't improve.

His Dantian had completely dried up, and his First Body Tempering cultivation was utterly gone.

After letting out one final dragon cry, the Jiaolong True Spirit dissolved into nothingness and once again

returned to the marsh and vanished.

He had asked Feng Qingye in a roundabout way how to bring a Dantian back from the dead.

All he got in return was a torrent of scolding that rained down on his head.

Lin Shisan was unbearably frustrated.

In his daze, he actually began hoping that an Immortal Lord or Fairy Aunt would come to open a mystery box.

He even dreamed about a discarded mystery box being advanced by the Little Black Cauldron, allowing him to soar into the Inner Sect in one stroke.

"Little Black Cauldron, oh, Little Black Cauldron..."

With no other options, Lin Shisan could only pin his hopes on the Little Black Cauldron.

He hadn't dared take the Little Black Cauldron out these past few days.

Who knew whether Feng Qingye might notice something?

Even if Feng Qingye couldn't tell, what about the Immortal Lords and Fairy Aunts who came to try their luck with mystery boxes?

If it was an Immortal Artifact, that was one thing. But if it was a Demonic Artifact, and someone with an opened heavenly eye recognized it...

Without a doubt, he would die horribly.

Even Han Yansong wouldn't be able to protect him.

So he had kept the Little Black Cauldron in his Storage Ring, not daring to take it out.

"Hmm..."

He took out the Little Black Cauldron and retrieved the Nine Heavens True Dragon Art, his eyes widening into perfect circles.

It really did seem to show signs of advancement.

More importantly, another short passage of fine print had appeared in the original Nine Heavens True Dragon Art.

It wasn't an advanced cultivation manual for the Nine Heavens True Dragon Art, but an explanatory passage he had previously overlooked.

"I... that Old Madman..."

Lin Shisan's face turned green.

He nearly threw the Nine Heavens True Dragon Art away, glaring at those eight characters: "To achieve greatness, first castrate yourself."