Qingzhu's Gift

"I... I think I can feel it."

Lin Xiao's voice trembled slightly in the lamplight. He stared at his left hand, his fingers opening and closing, his amber pupils contracting and relaxing.

Lu Yuan pulled out a charcoal pencil and the last half sheet of scrap paper from his inner pocket.

"Describe it," he said, spreading out the paper. "Use the words that come to mind most easily."

"Dark purple." Lin Xiao frowned. "Like the thickest clouds at night. The edges shimmer with silver light, like the eyes of a wild beast."

"What about rhythm?"

"Irregular. Sometimes fast, sometimes slow, and..." He paused, "... alone. Tired."

Lu Yuan paused for a moment.

"Tired?"

"Hmm." Lin Xiao himself felt it was strange, "It's like it ran a long way, finally managed to lie down, and I kept touching it."

The wick of the oil lamp sparked. Outside the window, the bamboo leaves rustled.

Lu Yuan wrote down a few words: dark purple with silver edges, irregular rhythm, aloofness, and a sense of exhaustion.

He put down his pen.

"Try it once a day from now on, for no more than fifteen minutes. Touch it gently and wait for a response. Stop if it resists."

Lin Xiao nodded, his tongue licking his canine teeth.

"The communication is over, so what's next?"

"Then it will tell you what it wants." Lu Yuan stood up. "It could be a certain way of circulating Soul Power, a certain environment, or maybe... what it wants to eat."

Lin Xiao was stunned.

"Eat?"

"To give an analogy," Lu Yuan walked to the window, "Martial Soul is the manifestation of life energy, with its own characteristics and needs. Traditional cultivation methods try to harness a wild horse to a fixed carriage, but your Martial Soul is too 'wild,' so it can't be harnessed, hence the stagnation."

He paused.

"Communication is for the sake of understanding. Only after understanding can we find the most suitable 'path' for it—not a carriageway, but the direction it is willing to run in."

Lin Xiao fell silent.

He looked down at his palm. The first lesson his family taught him was "control." Controlling his Martial Soul, controlling his Soul Power, controlling everything.

No one ever said that it was negotiable.

"Nonsense," he muttered, a slight smirk playing on his lips.

The next morning, when Qingzhu opened the door, Lin Xiao was already standing at attention by the medicinal herb garden.

Maintain proper posture and breathe evenly.

Qingzhu took a few steps closer and tapped the ground with his bamboo cane.

"Your Soul Power fluctuations... are stable?"

Lin Xiao opened his eyes.

"It's loosened up a bit." He spoke frankly, "Lu Yuan's method is somewhat effective."

Qingzhu didn't press the matter.

He turned to look at Lu Yuan, who had just come out of the house, his gaze lingered for a moment, and then he suddenly smiled.

"It seems I'll have to bring out my hidden stash of supplies ahead of schedule."

Breakfast consisted of porridge and pickled vegetables. After breakfast, Qingzhu led the two deeper into the herb garden.

Inside the simple bamboo pavilion, yellowed animal hides and thin wooden boards covered with inscriptions were spread out on the stone table.

"Sit down." Qingzhu sat down first. "Girl Shen said in her letter that you are good at theory. But theory is just a skeleton; the flesh and blood must grow from reality."

He picked up a piece of wood.

"For example, this—'Before the morning dew dries, the efficiency of clover absorbing Soul Power facing east is 35% higher than at noon.' Why?"

Lu Yuan leaned forward.

"Is the data derived from observation?"

"Thirty-seven years, recorded every day." Qingzhu pushed the wooden board over. "Here are one hundred and twenty-seven kinds of Soul Power plants, with absorption curves for different times of day, weather, and seasons. I have them all."

He looked at Lu Yuan.

Does your theory include a model to explain this kind of fluctuation?

Lu Yuan took the wooden board and lightly touched the engravings with his fingertips.

Yes, but he needs time to digest this local data.

"It needs verification and adjustments," he said cautiously, "But the direction is right."

Qingzhu smiled.

"That's good." He then unfurled another roll of animal hide. "Look at this—the entrance to the ' Nether Waterway.' Moss only grows on the western rock face; nothing grows on the eastern side. I've observed this for twelve years and discovered that a faint 15 minutes of sunlight refracts off the western side every day at noon."

He pointed to the diagram.

"It's not a matter of lighting. We later discovered that there are extremely subtle pulses of Soul Power inside the western rock wall, which, due to the geothermal deflection at midday, refract that bit of sunlight in."

There was a test in Qingzhu's eyes.

Do you think moss grows because of sunlight or the flow of Soul Power?

Lu Yuan remained silent for a moment.

"Perhaps none of these are the fundamental issues," he said slowly. "Sunlight and the flow of Soul Power are both 'triggering conditions.' What the moss truly needs are trace elements that can only be extracted from the rock wall when a specific Soul Power fluctuation overlaps with a specific spectrum."

He added, "Or, the moss itself might be an 'indicator organism,' its presence signifying a delicate balance in the Soul Power environment of that rock face. The balance itself is the key."

Qingzhu stopped stroking his beard.

He stared at Lu Yuan for a full ten breaths.

Then he let out a long breath.

"Girl Shen didn't lie to me." He shook his head. "You are indeed... a little different."

The pace quickened in the days that followed.

Qingzhu was like a research partner eager to share. Every afternoon, the two would discuss things in the bamboo pavilion. Qingzhu would bring out the phenomena, data, and conjectures recorded over the decades, and Lu Yuan would use a theoretical framework to analyze, classify, and propose verification schemes.

Lin Xiao mostly listened from the sidelines.

He couldn't understand the complex deductions, but he could see the growing amazement in Qingzhu's eyes. Those scattered fragments of experience were gradually pieced together into a complete picture in Lu Yuan's hands.

Sometimes Qingzhu would stroke his beard and sigh, "So that's how it is... What I've been pondering for over a decade, you've explained in just a few words."

Sometimes Lu Yuan would suddenly grab a charcoal pencil and scribble wildly, then look up and say, "Senior, the 'restlessness of Soul Beast on the night of the full moon' that you recorded thirty-seven years ago might be related to disturbances in the Earth's magnetic field—it needs to be verified."

Lin Xiao's recovery is also progressing rapidly.

The daily brief "communication" with his Martial Soul gradually eased the stagnation. The total amount of Soul Power increased slowly, but the smoothness of its circulation improved by 30%. The fracture in his right arm healed far faster than expected with the help of herbal poultices.

On the evening of the seventh day, Qingzhu brought out an old wooden box about the size of a palm from the main house.

Open it. Inside are several tattered pieces of parchment, their edges charred and the writing blurred.

"This is a fragment I found in ancient ruins when I was young," Qingzhu said in a low voice. "It involves 'earth vein nodes' and ' Soul Power convergence.' But it's too incomplete. I've studied it for half my life and only managed to reconstruct about 30 or 40 percent of it."

Carefully unfold the parchment.

Lu Yuan leaned closer. The characters were an ancient variant, interspersed with abstract symbols. He studied them for a while, then frowned.

"Energy node distribution map?"

"It seems so." Qingzhu nodded. "The description next to it says, 'The earth's veins are like the meridians in the human body, and the nodes are like acupoints. Blockages cause stagnant Soul Power, while unblocking them allows Soul Power to flow freely.' But the specifics of how to 'unblock' are blurred."

Lu Yuan stared at the symbols, his mind racing with theories of energy networks and node resonance.

He picked up a charcoal pencil and sketched on the scrap paper.

"If we compare the flow of earth vein Soul Power to the circulation of human Soul Power, then the blockage point is the 'energy barrier'," he said as he drew. "There are two approaches to clearing it: either increase 'pressure' upstream to force it open, or change the local energy structure to lower the height of the 'barrier'."

Qingzhu shook her head.

"The power of the earth's veins is vast; increasing the pressure is no easy task. Altering the local structure..." He smiled bitterly, "I've tried guiding it with my Soul Power, but it was like trying to put a clay ox into the sea."

Lu Yuan paused for a moment.

"Perhaps not direct confrontation," he looked up, "But 'resonance'."

"Resonance?"

"Find the energy vibration frequency of the blockage point itself, and use Soul Power of the same frequency but purer to 'induce' it, making it loosen from the inside." Lu Yuan drew a waveform diagram, "It's like pushing a swing; if the timing and force are right, even a small force can make it swing higher and higher."

Qingzhu stared at the waveform graph, stroking his beard with his fingers.

"... Theoretically feasible." After a long pause, he slowly said, "But in practice? How do we measure the frequency? How do we guarantee the purity of the Soul Power? If it gets out of control and causes disturbances in the earth's veins, the consequences would be unimaginable."

He's right about everything.

But there was light in Lu Yuan's eyes.

"We can try it on a small scale." He pointed outside the bamboo pavilion. "Senior, are there any small areas in this valley where the flow of Soul Power is noticeably slow and the plants are growing weakly?"

Qingzhu was taken aback.

"Yes." He stood up. "Thirty paces west of the herb garden, there's a patch of land less than half a zhang square, where nothing grows well. I've always thought it was a soil problem."

The three set off immediately.

The place was on the western edge of the medicinal herb garden, right next to the mountain rocks. The grass on the ground was sparse and yellow, a stark contrast to the surrounding lush green medicinal fields.

Lu Yuan squatted down, pressed his right hand to the ground, and closed his eyes.

The perception of Soul Power seeped into the soil like a thread. It was slow and difficult, like reaching into semi-solid glue, with immense resistance.

Half an hour later, he opened his eyes, his forehead covered in a fine layer of sweat.

"It's blocked. The flow of Soul Power is only a quarter of what it was around, and its direction is chaotic. There should be a very small branch node of the ley line underground, which is blocked."

Qingzhu also crouched down to sense the situation, her expression grave.

"That's true." He looked at Lu Yuan, "How do you want to try?"

Lu Yuan quickly calculated.

"Three things are needed: a natural mineral that can stably release Soul Power; a herbal powder that can guide the frequency of Soul Power, a mixture of ' Clear Heart Grass ' and ' Earth Root Flower ' is recommended; and a very precise Soul Power output controller."

He looked at Qingzhu: "Senior, you will do the third item. Lin Xiao and I will prepare the first two."

Qingzhu hesitated.

Matters concerning the earth's veins are of utmost importance. Even such a small area could trigger a chain reaction...

But looking at the certainty in Lu Yuan's eyes, he recalled the boy's insightful observations over the past few days.

Finally, he nodded.

"Try only once. The range is limited to within half a zhang (approximately 3.3 meters). Stop immediately if anything goes wrong."

It took an hour to prepare.

Qingzhu found several thumb-sized "Green-Veined Stone" that could slowly release gentle wood-attribute Soul Power. Lu Yuan and Lin Xiao ground the Clear Heart Grass and Earth Root Flower in proportion.

As the sun begins to set, everything is ready.

Lu Yuan used a twig to draw a small six-pointed star array on the ground, placing Green-Veined Stone at each of the six corners. He sprinkled mixed medicinal powder in the center of the array. He stepped back and looked at the Qingzhu.

"Senior, please stand three steps north of the array diagram. Release your Soul Power, keeping the intensity at one-tenth of your usual level and the frequency as stable as possible. I will use Blue Silver Grass to guide the Soul Power into the array diagram, attempting to match the frequency of the blocked earth veins."

Qingzhu took a deep breath and stood still.

The bamboo staff lightly tapped the ground, and a wisp of pale blue Soul Power slowly flowed out, gentle and serene.

Lu Yuan simultaneously released Blue Silver Grass. The slender grass leaves stretched along the ground, and began to tremble slightly when they touched the edge of the array.

Lin Xiao held his breath, his vertical pupils fixed on the ground.

Time passed.

At first, there was nothing. The Green-Veined Stone glowed faintly, and the medicinal powder had no effect. The Soul Power of the Qingzhu was injected into the array through the Blue Silver Grass, disappearing without a trace like water droplets falling into sand.

But Lu Yuan didn't stop.

He closed his eyes, focusing all his attention on the subtle feedback from the Blue Silver Grass. The stagnant Soul Power fluctuations underground were like the slow heartbeat of a sleeping beast. He was searching for that rhythm, for the "point" of resonance.

After an incense stick had burned, Qingzhu's forehead was covered in sweat. Maintaining this level of precise control was even more mentally taxing than unleashing a burst of power.

Just as he was about to call a halt—

The medicinal powder in the center of the array moved automatically without wind.

It's not soaring, but like ripples on the surface of water, spreading out in a circle of extremely subtle, almost invisible waves from the center.

Immediately afterwards, all six Green-Veined Stone lit up for a moment.

It's fleeting, like the light of a firefly on a summer night, gone in an instant.

But Qingzhu clearly sensed and captured the change.

Beneath the ground, the Soul Power that had been stagnant for countless years stirred very slightly, almost imperceptibly.

Like the first crack appearing on Ice Seal river surface, that faint "click".

Lu Yuan suddenly opened his eyes and withdrew the Blue Silver Grass.

The array's light dimmed, and the medicinal powder ceased its fluctuations. Everything returned to normal.

Only the sparse, yellowish grass on the ground swayed gently in the evening breeze, its tips seemingly... a Sisi greener than before.

Qingzhu stood still, still holding the bamboo staff, but had already withdrawn her Soul Power.

He stared intently at the patch of land, at the grass.

After a long while, he slowly raised his head and looked at Lu Yuan.

The boy was pale and exhausted, but his eyes shone with an astonishing light.

Qingzhu opened her mouth, her throat tightening.

In the end, he just let out a long, long sigh.

That sigh contained shock, relief, the ease of having a burden that had been lifted after years of pent-up emotions, and a touch of melancholy.

"Perhaps..." His voice was very soft, almost like talking to himself, "I really am getting old."

He turned around and looked at the afterglow of the setting sun sinking into the mountains in the west, his back looking somewhat hunched in the twilight.

"This world," he paused, slurring each word slowly, "Is now in the hands of young people like you."

The wind rustled through the valley, making the bamboo leaves whisper in the breeze.

Lin Xiao looked at Qingzhu, then at Lu Yuan, and finally at the small plot of land about half a zhang square.

There was no trace left there.

But he knew that some things had changed.