Bestowing Fate

In the northeast corner of the Central Palace lies a small hill. This area was once included in the development plan submitted by Luyu Port, but it was True Person Chonghuan without even being given a second glance!

At dawn, Lin Tongjiang and his junior brother strolled along Xunting Hill in the Central Palace. The two stood side by side, and the morning dew inadvertently dampened their clothes and shoes.

"Junior brother, this Xunting Hill was originally moved here from the west by Lady Xuancheng. The Venerable of [Huaqi] found it secluded and moved their stone houses here as well!"

Jiang Wangxuan casually brushed aside the branches of the trees, looking at a wisp of smoke rising from the hillside ahead. "I've heard that the ascetic cultivators of [Huaqi] in the Central Palace chop wood, fetch water, and cook for themselves?"

"That's right. They originally lived in Wave-Gazing Residence, leading a life that was out of place with the powerful families of the Central Palace. Later, they moved here. Their lineage values self-sufficiency and hard work. Do you know why, Junior Brother?"

After working for several days, Lin Tongjiang finally completed all the instructions his master had given him that day. Because it involved his junior brother's secrets, Lin Tongjiang handled many crucial parts on his own!

It has to be said that the internet has only been around for a little over twenty years, and it took quite a bit of time to clear the information my junior brother left on these networks!

Seeing that his senior brother had suddenly become interested in testing him, Jiang Wangxuan casually replied, "It is naturally to respect the ancient ways and Qi Ingestion's inner strength!"

"Hmm, not bad. This Qi Ingestion control is passed down from High Antiquity. It emphasizes sensing and obtaining qi, and then communicating with heaven and earth to seek the divine. Reaching this stage makes one an ancient Daoist priest. If one obtains the divine within oneself, one becomes True Person. If one reaches the ultimate level, one becomes True Lord!"

The two leisurely climbed the mountain in the morning sun, not in a hurry to get to their destination. Jiang Wangxuan listened as his senior brother explained, "I've heard that in ancient times, Qi Refinement cultivated their Qi Ingestion by absorbing the morning dew and the rosy clouds, but most of them exhausted their entire lives without ever attaining Qi."

Lin Tongjiang shook his head. "It's not mostly, it's almost. The Qi Ingestion path is extremely demanding on aptitude. If you're even slightly off, you won't get any Qi at all. But once you do, your achievements far surpass what you can currently measure in the Purple Mansion Golden Core Dao!"

"From ancient times to the present, the path of cultivation has been an evolution of expansion, from cultivating Qi Ingestion to the Purple Mansion Golden Core which requires Spirit Aperture, and now to the Everlasting Protection of Spirit Root."

"The Immortal Method and techniques are gradually being disseminated from immortal lords True Lord to ordinary people; this is the greatest virtue of heaven and earth!"

Jiang Wangxuan secretly admired his senior brother, thinking that he was indeed a cultivator who could cultivate in a cave heaven and had his own unique perspective on such a hidden lineage!

"In the present Qinghuan, only the [Huaqi] lineage follows the will of Qingheng Great Luo and dedicates themselves to the path of cultivating Qi Ingestion and nourishing nature. Amidst the hustle and bustle of the mortal world, they build a stone hut, light a candle, and spend their entire lives seeking a single qi!"

"Having sensed the divine mysteries, one becomes a Venerable One; further cultivation leads to still becoming a Venerable One!"

At this point, Lin Tongjiang's tone was filled with admiration and sigh, "In just a short thousand years, the Buddhist and Daoist traditions that once swept through several eras have disappeared into history, while Venerable Qinghuan has continued to emerge in succession!"

Jiang Wangxuan echoed, "[Huaqi] enlightened the wisdom of the Qinghuan. If it weren't for [Huaqi] bestowing the method back then, how could I, your junior brother, have obtained the Immortal Method to refine the essence of the moon? Just kidding, senior brother, the loyalty of the Qinghuan people began with [Huaqi]."

Lin Tongjiang laughed loudly, "Sometimes I also take advantage of my position to browse some of the forums below. Although many of them are just arrogant pronouncements about Embryonic Breathing Qi Refinement, their perspectives are already very different from our generation!"

"However, what my junior brother doesn't know is that [Huaqi] is far more than just opening immortal wisdom."

The senior brother looked at the stone house, which was less than three stories high, not far away. Several acres of wasteland had been newly cultivated in the backyard of the stone house. Several teenagers carried water buckets up from the other side of the hill early in the morning.

"Junior brother, even in the present Qinghuan, how can one cultivate a high-grade Cultivation Method without a destined fate! If I were in the near-ancient era, how could I have cultivated the fifth-grade 'The Scripture of the Vanishing River and the Ravine, Never to Return' without even a trace of the Kan Water destiny?"

Jiang Wangxuan was suddenly startled, and even the Big Fat Fish that was eating plain rice noticed what was happening while it was slacking off.

In their previous understanding, [Huaqi] not only enlightened the Spirit Aperture and Spirit Root with corresponding Cultivation Method, but also imprinted the Cultivation Method in the 'Engraving' of the Rising Yang Mansion to help cultivators comprehend the mysteries of the Cultivation Method!

The man and the fish immediately realized that this understanding was wrong. Fate still depends on fate; the underlying logic of this cultivation world has not changed!

"A destiny bestowed?" Jiang Wangxuan asked his senior brother hesitantly.

Lin Tongjiang nodded wistfully, "Junior Brother understands so quickly, it's truly 'Destiny Assignment.' The Spirit Aperture and Spirit Root are merely the smallest hurdles on the path of cultivation. Without the support of destiny, one cannot reach the realm of Purple Mansion Divine Ability. This is what is meant by 'shallow destiny, no Divine Ability!'"

"However, Qinghuan [Huaqi] can add a destiny element that matches the Cultivation Method Cultivation Method enlightening Spirit Aperture. Only in this way can Qinghuan's immortal wisdom be truly awakened. This is my supreme achievement in governing the Qinghuan!"

The Big Fat Fish was completely mesmerized. The illusory screen involuntarily constructed related models, but no matter how the system parameters were set, the model that [Huaqi] was assigning fate and Cultivation Method to would just not work.

"This is why I had to stop your cultivation progress when you were making rapid advancements during the Qi Refining Stage. You weren't destined to unlock the ' Autumn Moon Frost Osmanthus Qi Condensation Method,' yet you possessed an unusually high level of cultivation. There can only be one explanation!"

Lin Tongjiang turned around, his expression particularly strange. "The destiny [Huaqi] bestowed upon you has gone wrong, causing [Grand Yin] to focus too much attention on you, but your destiny is ultimately borrowed." "A borrowed destiny can only guide you onto the path of immortality, but it cannot allow you to gain cultivation you shouldn't have through a borrowed destiny! This is the 'illusion' we were worried about before, back when you were shrouded in thick..."

Jiang Wangxuan bowed respectfully. He could now understand the immense pressure his senior brother had placed on him. "The Grand Yin energy is far too abnormal!" His senior brother was practically a gambling freak, giving him the green light by saying he was putting the brakes on him, but in the end, he stepped on the gas himself.

"As the saying goes, what is borrowed must be repaid. If a cultivator uses the destiny of [Huaqi] to forge their Immortal Foundation, it means that they have successfully attained divine power, become a master of the fruition, and a subject of it. Naturally, they should return to [Huaqi] to repay their vow. This is how [Huaqi] leaves its mark!"

With a beep, Big Fat Fish received the new data and adjusted the model structure again. This time, Big Fat Fish added a brand new financial lending model.

Jiang Wangxuan stopped, looking at the stone house so close by, and said, "This [Huaqi] sounds a lot like a private investor."

Upon hearing this, Lin Tongjiang thought for a moment, then involuntarily covered his mouth to suppress his laughter, pointing at his junior brother and chuckling, "You, Jiang Wangxuan, have made Qinghuan's great merits of the past thousand years sound so vulgar!"

Jiang Wangxuan lowered his head in embarrassment, realizing that his temper had indeed been getting worse lately!

"Benefactor Lin, Benefactor Jiang, you're spreading rumors about me outside my little hut! Don't you know better than to do it behind people's backs!"

A deep, slightly aged voice came from inside the stone house, and an old man with a full head of white hair, who looked to be in his prime, came out carrying a white porcelain bowl that was half-broken!

The old man wore a gray Daoist robe that was patched and repaired again, and his shoes were stitched with layer upon layer of needles, but the first impression he gave was one of cleanliness, the kind of cleanliness that is as refreshing as a gentle breeze!

"Venerable Tingming!"

"Venerable One!"

The two brothers quickly bowed, and the old man held up his empty palm in front of his chest as a sign of greeting.

Have either of you had breakfast yet?

Senior Brother Lin Tongjiang replied, "Reporting to Your Excellency, no!"

Junior Brother Jiang Wangxuan asked, "I wonder what kind of breakfast is served here, Venerable One?"

Upon Venerable Tingming's eyes lit up, and he immediately pulled the two brothers along, "Come on, come on, it's just the right time for breakfast, let's go inside and join a table!"

He called out again, "Lu Xiaoyi, quickly bring two bowls of vegetable porridge!"

A voice, sounding like that of an eight or nine-year-old boy, came from behind the stone house, "You're here, Master!"

The two brothers followed the Venerable One to the source of the sound. It was only a few steps away, Venerable Tingming even taking a couple of bites from his bowl!

He looks like a reckless old man, but there's a surprising harmony about him.

The back room wasn't large, with four stone tables set up. Further inside was the stove, where a little boy with rosy lips and white teeth cheerfully carried two bowls of porridge to the stone tables.

Looking at the two new guests, especially the young man who looked like he came from a brothel, she curiously walked up to Jiang Wangxuan and said, "This guest, you are so beautiful!"

Venerable Tingming almost spat out the vegetable porridge he had just swallowed, and then coughed incessantly. Lin Tongjiang, who had just lost his composure, couldn't hold back his smile this time either.

He naturally recognized the little boy; he had picked him up two years ago when Venerable Tingming went for a stroll, saying that he might be able to inherit his mantle in the future.

Jiang Wangxuan, however, casually accepted the vegetable porridge the little boy offered and handed another bowl to his senior brother, who was trying to suppress his laughter.

"Xiaoyi Yi is so cute! He's got such a chubby face and a cute little face. I love little boys like him the most—they're so well-behaved and obedient."

As he spoke, he reached out and touched the back of Lu Xiaoyi's head, and the little brother squinted his eyes and rubbed against him comfortably a couple of times.

Jiang Wangxuan was the king of the kids in their neighborhood since he was a child. He could coax his younger sister Jinyi out of her mind when he was only four or five years old. Dealing with a little boy who likes good looks is a piece of cake for him!

"Hey hey, you must be Brother Jiang who's coming today! You're so nice, you know not to touch my head. Some impolite guests used to touch my head, and that'll stunt my growth!"

Lu Xiaoyi felt comfortable being touched, so he pulled Brother Jiang to sit down, and even wiped the stone bench with his sleeve before handing him a pair of chopsticks. Jiang Wangxuan didn't stand on ceremony and squinted as he took a sip of the vegetable porridge.

Hmm, it tastes good. The mung beans, green vegetables, pumpkin, and sweet potato seem like a whole meal, but the proportions are just right.

"How is it, Brother Jiang? This vegetable porridge is pretty good, isn't it?"

Jiang Wangxuan nodded in satisfaction, "Not bad at all, you've got some skills!"

Lu Xiaoyi's eyes lit up after hearing this, and he shook his head, "Right? Everyone who's tried it says it's great! I made it myself this morning, it's my secret recipe!"

Upon hearing this, the two brothers simultaneously turned to look at Venerable Tingming beside them, while the old man gave an awkward laugh, "This is all part of cultivation!"