Divine Ability

Was this True Person Chonghuan's Divine Ability, "Flow Eastward"?

Big Fat Fish's eyes went wide inside the Rising Yang Mansion. This was the first time she and Jiang Wangxuan had seen the manifestation of a Purple Mansion Divine Ability!

Yes, this was only a manifestation of the Divine Ability, not the complete Divine Ability. If "Flow Eastward" were to appear in the world in full, it would surely be a sight of a raging river pouring down in waves, shattering mountains and rivers.

A strange look flashed through Lin Tongjiang's eyes. This was not the first time he had seen his master's "Flow Eastward," but today he could sense that his master's "raging river" had grown more complete!

A pale blue-green wave, like a bolt of silk, strained to hold back the waves of the "raging river." In Jiang Wangxuan's sight, Lin Tongjiang had already flown forward to resist its ferocious force.

The blue-green waves conjured by the Immortal Foundation "Flow Eastward" slammed head-on into the "raging river." In an instant, the pale blue-green light was overwhelmed within it.

It was like a great river swallowing a tributary without hesitation. River torrents and flowing waves crashed together and mingled. Lin Tongjiang stood where the waters met, making himself the crest of the tide to resist the furious waves of the "raging river" as they fell from the heavens!

Protected behind Lin Tongjiang, Jiang Wangxuan understood. True Person Chonghuan's Divine Ability "Flow Eastward" and Lin Tongjiang's Immortal Foundation "Flow Eastward" actually embodied two different visions!

The raging river fell from perilous heights, carrying a force that shook heaven and shattered earth. The great river flowed eastward, staking everything on a final, desperate bid for which there was no return. Master and disciple had taken different paths with "Flow Eastward"!

Ah, it looks like Teaching Assistant Lin was quite rebellious when he was young too!

The wave-rider held firm atop the crest against one round of pounding torrents after another. When the thirteenth furious wave fell, he leaped again amid the waters. The raging surf crashed against the shore, and Lin Tongjiang was swept head over heels into the raging river. Not even a trace of him could be seen!

Then the raging river poured down onto the ground, making the earth quake and the mountains shake. Like a giant dragon, the waters rushed at Jiang Wangxuan!

Jiang Wangxuan's pupils contracted sharply, and his mind reeled. The "raging river" had been aimed at him from the very beginning. Teaching Assistant Lin had tried to make himself a shield to stop its descent from the heavens!

The raging river smashed into the earth, whipping up a thousand layers of waves, each piled atop the last, as though a flood dragon were dancing beneath them. All he could say was that True Person Chonghuan lived up to his reputation: the moment he made a move, he threw himself right into the thick of things with his students!

Moonlight surged as an "osmanthus embraced by a frosty moon" took root amid the river waves. Silver light fell like frost, and moonlight melted into gold. Jiang Wangxuan used the full-moon phase of "Immortal Moon Township" to manifest the Immortal Foundation "Autumn Moon Osmanthus."

Light flowed and turned around the osmanthus. Frost-cold moonlight fell through its interlacing shadows, refining the ceaselessly surging waves into a pond full of moon sculptures.

The first wave had only just been stopped when the next surged forward, riding atop it with the force of piled-up waves. In the blink of an eye, the following wave swallowed the moon sculptures in the domain he had just carved out around the pond.

The osmanthus swayed slightly, shifting its shadow, and its frost-cold moonlight flared. Even so, it could only protect a tiny foothold beneath the tree.

But when Dao arts contended, either the east wind prevailed over the west wind or the west wind prevailed over the east. Every moon sculpture in the pond crumbled to pieces, floating on the river's surface.

The raging river's waves continued to batter the roots the osmanthus had sunk into the water. All the frost-cold moonlight had already turned into Frost Osmanthus Spirit Liquid to repair them!

In seven breaths at most, the Immortal Foundation "Autumn Moon Osmanthus" would collapse. Jiang Wangxuan now understood that True Person Chonghuan had probably descended so suddenly today to test his mettle!

He had only just reached Foundation Establishment. This was the best moment to take the full measure of his foundations.

With that thought, Jiang Wangxuan stopped holding back. In this world of Attainment-Status Immortal Cultivation, if he wanted a place to cultivate in peace, he had to fight for it with his own strength. If a higher cultivator was willing to test him, that meant the cultivator was willing to give him a chance!

A lower cultivator had to act like one and show his value to higher cultivators. Jiang Wangxuan had never grown arrogant over reaching Foundation Establishment at a young age or belonging to the [Grand Yin] Dao lineage.

A heaven's chosen who had yet to grow up was, in the end, still waiting under the table for the adults to feed him!

Thus, a stream of Silver River Moonlight soared into the sky, and a full moon hung high between this "heaven and earth." Alas, a faint sliver was still missing from the lunar disk, keeping it from being complete!

Beneath the osmanthus, the chill of silver frost vanished. Moonlight shone bright as day, its flowing radiance melting into gold. The raging river's waves encircled the osmanthus and became a lake, while Silver River Moonlight rose from the tree to the heavens like a divine pillar calming the sea.

Streams of light fell from the osmanthus branches into the waters, turning into stars in the night. The bright moon shone alone, while a brilliant starry river appeared on the lake's surface. Stars and moon occupied the two realms of heaven and earth, answering each other across the distance!

This was the brilliant scene that belonged to Silver River Moonlight. The moonlight Jiang Wangxuan had obtained from his dream of returning home, the closest to its original essence, now manifested in the world once more.

Beneath the "osmanthus embraced by a golden moon" lay a lake full of stars, with the bright moon hanging high above. Thus the osmanthus took root amid the raging river's waves, transforming them into a full-moon lake.

The raging river fell from the heavens and crashed down between heaven and earth, yet it encircled an island at its heart. On the island stood an osmanthus, and beneath it lay a lake filled with the radiance of stars and moon!

A tiny black dot hung in the sky. True Person Chonghuan looked at the stir the youngster below had caused and was greatly delighted. Then dark clouds swept across the sky, blotting out the sun and obscuring most of the moonlight's radiance.

Amid the dark clouds and thunder, the shadow of a flood dragon darted through the clouds, its dark horns churning the rainstorm and lightning.

Jiang Wangxuan's face turned deathly pale in an instant. The full-moon lake he had just finished "putting in order" became an overflowing flood in the blink of an eye, its waters utterly turbid!

"Master, this is hardly how a teacher should act!"

Where the raging river struck the ground and surged onward, a great river suddenly sprang forth to the east, carrying the water falling from the sky eastward without ever looking back!

"Now that's a little progress!"

As True Person Chonghuan's voice fell, the vast expanse of heaven and earth returned to a single pavilion. The True Person sat at the tea table, brewing himself a pot of fine tea!

"Master, wasn't one Divine Ability enough? Did you have to use a second?"

Lin Tongjiang glared at his shameless master. It was bad enough for him to bully his juniors, but when he got worked up, he raised the stakes too!

Jiang Wangxuan, however, cupped his hands and bowed in thanks. "This student is unworthy of having his teacher demonstrate the arts for him."

What did it mean to have a master? This was the way of teaching and inheritance: a Purple Mansion True Person had concealed all the harm his Divine Ability could cause, turning it into a scene of heaven and earth solely for the younger generation to contemplate and comprehend!

This also showed that True Person Chonghuan's control over his Divine Ability had reached a transcendent realm. He could manifest it at will without harming a single person.

True Person Chonghuan nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Lin Tongjiang. "You don't know what's good for you. Instead of learning the fine teachings handed down to you, you spend all your time pondering that great river of yours flowing east!"

Lin Tongjiang did not respond. Master and disciple both cultivated Kan Water; if everything about them were the same, wouldn't that be far too dull?

True Person Chonghuan took a sip of hot tea, his brows lifting involuntarily. "This is good tea. Was it made from the blossoms of that osmanthus tree?"

Jiang Wangxuan nodded at once. "A few days ago, this student was fortunate enough to reach Foundation Establishment. The osmanthus rejoiced and shed quite a few blossoms. I saw that they already had silver threads and golden edges, so I thought they must be a fine spirit material!"

"I also saw Heavenly River Water falling, so I gathered the water and blossoms, refined the osmanthus blossoms' spirit essence with the Water-Weighted Three Jade Gathering Method, and used the Heavenly River Water to seal it in a water membrane!"

With that, he took a tea box from a hidden compartment at the side of the pavilion.

True Person Chonghuan picked up the osmanthus blossom tea from the tea packet with considerable interest. The blossoms had shrunk after being refined with the gathering method, forming a flower tea that still retained their original shape.

As soon as they entered warm water, they unfurled languidly. The spirit essence contained in the tea mingled with the water, and the fragrance of osmanthus filled the air. Most precious of all, True Person Chonghuan could also taste a lingering trace of Lunar Essence!

"Does this tea have a name?"

Jiang Wangxuan shook his head. "This student made it to settle his mind after reaching Foundation Establishment. It was merely something I made on a whim, and I never named it. Why don't you give it a name today, Principal?"

Lin Tongjiang looked at the student he had taught for six years as though he were a stranger. He suddenly understood what it meant to be an opportunistic climber. Jiang Wangxuan, you weren't like this before!

Where did that aloof manner of yours, always keeping to yourself, go?

True Person Chonghuan was quite pleased to hear it. Looking at the deeply spiritual "pale-shadowed cold-moon osmanthus" outside the window, he smiled. "There'll be no shortage of these blossoms from now on. Your method of processing them is quite refined too, and you even tucked in a trace of Lunar Essence for flavor. Let's call it 'Osmanthus Rain Flower Essence'!"

With that, the box of "Osmanthus Rain Flower Essence" on the tea table went into the True Person's pocket. He then turned to his disciple. "Watch carefully and learn. There's knowledge to be found in all things!"

Lin Tongjiang was already at a loss for words, while Jiang Wangxuan pressed his lips together to keep from laughing. Both were his teachers, and he naturally had to treat them with respect!

"Wangxuan, you entered Lüyu six years ago and have always cultivated diligently. Apart from the three years you spent practicing the sword, you've had little contact with outsiders. Even I considered checking on your studies several times, only to set the thought aside each time!"

"Cultivation is the sort of thing where, since you've found your own rhythm, I as your teacher naturally respect it. I had thought I'd wait until you fell into a pit before lending you a hand. That's part of cultivation too. If there are some pits you don't step into, how will you know how deep they are?"

True Person Chonghuan spoke unhurriedly. Jiang Wangxuan also knew that he was pointing out how quickly he had cultivated during the Qi Refining Stage!

"But since you've forged your Immortal Foundation without a hitch, it's time you learned a thing or two about Qinghuan's [Grand Yin] Dao lineage. Above all, you need to know the significance of the 'Autumn Moon Osmanthus' you cultivate!"

"Please enlighten this student, Principal!" Jiang Wangxuan bowed his head and respectfully asked!

"There's no need to speak of enlightenment. Once you officially emerge from seclusion and leave your name with [Huaqi], 'Vast Cold Heaven' and 'Jielin Hall' will naturally come looking for you."

"Then you'll learn why our 'Yuanhuai Heaven' is at odds with those two great Xuantian, so now is just the time to tell you plainly!"

Jiang Wangxuan's heart gave a jolt. Sure enough, there was more to the Grand Yin lineage of "Yuanhuai Heaven" than met the eye. Otherwise, why would he be the only one cultivating in the "Clear Frost Osmanthus Garden"?

"Since True Lord Donghuan closed himself off from the world, the Grand Yin Immortal Foundation 'Autumn Moon Osmanthus' has appeared only four times. Three were in our 'Yuanhuai Heaven,' and only one in 'Jielin Hall.'"

A look of deep scorn appeared on True Person Chonghuan's face at this point. "True Person Miaoshang was originally a Dao child of our Yuanhuai and cultivated three Grand Yin Divine Abilities, yet fell in the Southern Fire Rebellion. Wei Jinghong perfected the Immortal Foundation and should have entered seclusion to break through to the Purple Mansion and attain a Divine Ability, yet vanished in the lands of Jiangnan!"

"It has been sixty years since Wei Jinghong disappeared. Apart from the one who has already become a Jielin Immortal, you are the fourth to cultivate the Immortal Foundation 'Autumn Moon Osmanthus'!"

"So, Jiang Wangxuan, are you afraid?"