Qi Yan gave his foodie senior sister a sympathetic look. He felt that her current personality probably really had a lot to do with being stifled under their master's pressure...
He was also very much in awe of this new master and dared not linger, hurrying toward the main hall halfway up the mountain.
A gentle breeze swept over him and whisked him into the hall in an instant, evidently finding him too slow.
In the blink of an eye, Qi Yan found himself inside the hall. Mu Xunzhen stood by the window, gazing at the distant clouds on the horizon, her thoughts unknown.
The mountain breeze blew through the window, lifting her white hair gently, like drifting snow.
Qi Yan unconsciously held even his breath. That air of hers really could hold a person utterly in its grasp.
He did not even dare look for long. Steadying himself, he bowed. "Master."
Mu Xunzhen sighed as she looked out the window. "Jinyue has had no fellow disciples under the same master since childhood and has had little contact with the other peaks. Perhaps she has been lonely, and now that gap has just happened to be filled. Seeing Jinyue so happy... it seems I overlooked this in the past and never considered it."
For a moment, Qi Yan had no idea how to respond.
Then Mu Xunzhen said, "But Qi Yan, affection and respect between fellow disciples are good things, but mind the boundaries. Do not fall into romantic entanglements the moment you join us. That would disrupt Jinyue's quiet cultivation and be irresponsible toward your own path."
Qi Yan hastily said, "This disciple has no such intentions. Senior Sister doesn't mean it that way either. She really has just lacked a playmate and is happy about it."
Mu Xunzhen did not actually think Jiang Jinyue meant it that way either; she was merely mending the roof before the rain with a little warning. At his reply, she did not dwell on it and finally turned to look at him. "Jinyue said you sought the immortal path to take control of your own fate."
"Yes."
"Do you know that taking control of fate is easy to say, but an immense proposition?"
Qi Yan's first thought was the "commanding fate" Little Crybaby had mentioned.
Taken to its highest level, "taking control of fate" could indeed also mean commanding fate, which really would make it an immense proposition. He wondered whether that was what his master meant. Probably so. His master understood witchcraft, so her concept should be the same as Little Crybaby's.
After thinking for a moment, he answered, "If expanded, perhaps it is an immense proposition, but most people are only thinking of very small aspects... This disciple cannot say whether his outlook will broaden in the future, but for now, I have no ambitions that grand."
Mu Xunzhen nodded in satisfaction. "That is fairly grounded. I was afraid you would blindly pursue commanding fate through witchcraft. That would be reaching for heights beyond your grasp."
Qi Yan suddenly found it rather amusing. His master and Little Crybaby really were talking about the same concept, one aloof and lofty, the other utterly adorable. The contrast was quite interesting.
Mu Xunzhen said, "On a smaller scale, there are still many paths to taking control of fate. For instance, divining fortune and misfortune allows you to seek good fortune and avoid calamity. Or you could live forever, contending with heaven for longevity. Which do you want?"
"To grow stronger. Only then can I protect what I want to protect, whether my own fate or the people I value, such as the sect, Master, and Senior Sister."
"Such a sweet tongue. No wonder Jinyue is so cheerful. But those words are too empty, because they involve no price."
Qi Yan chose his words carefully. "Master, why are you asking these questions?"
Mu Xunzhen said, "You should understand your own circumstances... If you want to become stronger, you will essentially have to focus on witchcraft. That is indeed something I can teach you."
Qi Yan nodded.
"But witchcraft presents several problems. First, you cannot use it recklessly outside. Trouble can arise very easily. Though our sect does not fear trouble, that does not mean we are willing to go looking for it."
Qi Yan said, "This disciple will also cultivate Dao Arts and will not reveal his witchcraft unless there is no other choice."
"When the time truly comes to use it, and people scorn and reject you, perhaps even your fellow disciples taking issue with it and thinking you have brought trouble upon the sect, what will you do?"
"Since Master has agreed to let me cultivate witchcraft, what others think is unimportant."
Mu Xunzhen neither agreed nor disagreed. "Second, to conceal your witchcraft, you must also cultivate Dao Arts, which requires additional time and effort. With your deficient spiritual roots, it will be especially difficult. In the end, it may even hinder your witchcraft, leaving you with nothing accomplished."
Qi Yan looked thoughtful.
Mu Xunzhen continued, "Third, unless cultivated to an extremely high level, witchcraft offers far less value in extending your lifespan at its lower stages than Dao Arts do. That is why I ask you, and why you must ask yourself, whether you want longevity. These three things are all prices to pay. They require proper understanding and a firm choice. You cannot overcome every difficulty simply by saying, 'I want to grow stronger.' That is very childish."
Qi Yan nodded. "This disciple understands."
"Then what do you say now? If you study only Dao Arts, even with your mixed spiritual root, with me here, I can at least ensure you reach above Nascent Soul."
Qi Yan cupped his hands and bowed again. "This disciple does not care about longevity and is willing to put in twice the effort, or even several times as much. I wish to cultivate witchcraft."
Mu Xunzhen gazed into his eyes. Qi Yan's gaze was firm and clear.
At last, she nodded. "Your ancestral method is an excellent one before Golden Core, no worse than mine. You can cultivate it for now and come ask me about anything you do not understand. At your current level of cultivation, the main way I can help is to refine some pills specially made for witchcraft."
Qi Yan blinked. "There are special pills for witchcraft?"
"Of course there are," Mu Xunzhen said. "Witchcraft cultivates both magical power and the body. Ordinary pills for Dao cultivators or martial cultivators are skewed toward one side or the other. Among well-known pills, the most suitable is actually the Qi-Replenishing Pill you used earlier. Its name is ordinary, but the 'qi' it replenishes refers both to magical power and to qi and blood. Your stumbling upon this pill today happened to be the best solution. That was also your good fortune."
Understanding dawned on Qi Yan. "No wonder Luo Chaoge uses this kind of pill even as a sword cultivator."
"Mm... But it is meant for Foundation Establishment and is unsuitable for you at present. A pill's medicinal potency is not measured by how much you break off. You really have no sense of danger."
"..."
Mu Xunzhen handed him a medicine bottle. "These are new pills I have tailored for you, enough to last until Foundation Establishment. When you reach its threshold, I will assess your specific circumstances before deciding further."
Qi Yan took the bottle and bowed sincerely. "Thank you, Master."
Mu Xunzhen said calmly, "Since you have become my disciple, this is only natural."
Qi Yan said, "This disciple has something else to ask."
"Hm?"
"Judging by my own experience, does witchcraft require constant growth through practical trials, with secluded cultivation being less effective?"
"Yes, but not entirely. Witchcraft places greater emphasis on the circulation of qi and blood, so sitting motionless yields poor results. But you need not fight within an inch of your life every time. Cultivating while walking or running will already produce much better results."
This really was the difference having a master made... Even with the Crybaby cheat, I couldn't possibly ask about every little detail. That would strike Little Crybaby as very strange... Asking my own master was different. I could ask anything.
Mu Xunzhen handed him another book. "As for your Dao Arts, besides your deficient spiritual roots, another reason is that your family's Dao cultivation method is too poor... This is the first part of our sect's Dao Art, the Heavenly Evolution Art. Study it first, and ask about anything you do not understand. You must judge for yourself how to divide your cultivation time between witchcraft and the Dao."
Qi Yan accepted it and bowed again. "Thank you, Master."
Though this beautiful master was cold and unsmiling, and being in her presence really was stressful, always giving him the illusion that one wrong answer would get him slapped to death... she was clearly very attentive to her disciples. She was a good master.
And with his adorable foodie senior sister as well...
Coming to the Heavenly Evolution Sect really had been the right choice.
Those three so-called prices of witchcraft? By comparison, they were not worth mentioning.
Just as he was thinking this, Mu Xunzhen said, "Once you go back, eat the food Jinyue made with her."
Qi Yan: "!!!"
Mu Xunzhen waved a hand and looked out the window again without another word.
Looking thoroughly constipated, Qi Yan took his leave and withdrew.
Why did it feel like this master bullied her disciples...? How had Jiang Jinyue survived all these years...?
Qi Yan went to Jiang Jinyue's place with his balls aching. Jiang Jinyue was staring at a lump in the pot, her little face scrunched up and on the verge of tears.
Qi Yan leaned over to look into the pot. "What is this?"
"Cooked rice... Why did it turn out like this? I'm really good at controlling fire when refining pills. Why did it turn out like this?!"
Qi Yan: "..."
Was it possible that ordinary people didn't cook rice by just tossing it straight into a huge pot? This didn't seem to have anything to do with your skill at controlling fire for pill refining.
Fortunately, he had arrived early. It was not burned yet, just a lump.
Thinking that his master had apparently not forbidden him to help, and that it could still be salvaged, Qi Yan took some oil and drizzled it around the edge of the pot.
Jiang Jinyue sniffled. "What are you doing?"
"Salvaging it. Let's see if we can make crispy rice."
There was indeed still time to make crispy rice. Though the result of this emergency rescue was not particularly tasty, it was at least edible.
Qi Yan did not dare make anything else. His master had intended this as punishment; he had better not turn it into a reward. If his master cooked him instead, who could he cry to?
And so the senior sister and junior brother sat cross-legged together, pitifully eating crispy rice. Jiang Jinyue sighed repeatedly. "Not bad, not bad. My junior brother even knew to come rescue his senior sister. Otherwise, how was I supposed to eat that lump...?"
Qi Yan hardly dared tell her their master had ordered him to eat with her. He kept his head down and said nothing.
Jiang Jinyue nudged him. "Hey, what did Master say to you?"
"She said Jiang Jinyue would be my junior sister from now on."
"Pfft. Who'd believe you?"
Qi Yan sighed. "She said I wouldn't live long."
Jiang Jinyue studied him thoughtfully, roughly understanding what he meant, and a little sympathy appeared in her eyes.
Qi Yan turned to look at her petite, pretty figure. "Speaking of which, why do you and Master look so young, while all those other elders have white beards?"
"That has to do with natural talent, of course." Jiang Jinyue was very pleased with herself. "You've heard of the great Dao of the Golden Core, right? Do you know why Golden Core is called a great Dao even though it isn't a very high level?"
"Isn't it because the study of the internal elixir is based on that theory?"
"Not entirely. Mainly, after Golden Core, people age more and more slowly. Several hundred years are only like a single year for an ordinary person. That is the great Dao of agelessness mortals pursue. Of course, at Nascent Soul or Spirit Transformation, it gets even slower. That's why, though who knows how many years have passed since Master reached Golden Core, she only looks a few years older. Mm... At Mahayana, one should remain forever youthful and never change again, hence the name Mahayana."
"So those elders were already very old when they reached Golden Core?"
"Yes. For most people, reaching Golden Core in a hundred years or more is already amazing, so of course they have great big beards. Naturally, the world is full of talented people, and there are plenty who look young or middle-aged too. You just haven't seen many."
As Jiang Jinyue spoke, a sparkling anticipation appeared in her eyes again. She plainly wanted her junior brother to praise how early she must have reached Golden Core and express his envy.
Instead, Qi Yan glanced unobtrusively at those A-cups and sighed. "So genius comes at a price too..."
"Bang!" A huge hole burst through the roof as Qi Yan spiraled into the sky.
Mu Xunzhen sat cross-legged in the hall, watching the senior sister and junior brother fool around, when an old man hurried in. "Sect Master, we have preliminary findings from the investigation into the Demon Realm rift."