Parting and Spark

Before the morning mist had completely dissipated, the outline of the old, crooked pine tree at the valley entrance was already blurred.

Lin Xiao stopped in his tracks.

Lei Qingyue walked ahead without turning back or stopping. But the meaning was clear—say what you have to say.

Lin Xiao grinned. He turned around, took something out of his pocket, and stuffed it into Lu Yuan's hand.

It is warm and moist in hand. It is a dark wooden plaque, half the size of a palm, with smooth edges. The sharp character "" is engraved on the front.

"A token of the Lin Clan's direct lineage." Lin Xiao spoke quickly, "Go to any business in the Star Luo Empire that displays the 'Iron Claw Vulture' flag, and the manager will see you. You can pass on messages, leave notes, or ask for some inconspicuous assistance—anything will do."

Lu Yuan weighed it in his hand, then put it in his pocket. "How did I find you?"

See you at the usual place in three months.

"Here?"

"Right here." Lin Xiao raised his chin, pointing into the depths of the mist, "Senior Qingzhu's herb garden. Seventh Grandpa said he wouldn't stop me; I'll definitely sneak out in three months."

He paused, his amber vertical pupils narrowing slightly in the morning light.

"If... I can't come, or you can't wait any longer," he lowered his voice, "Then go to ' Biting Wind City ' in the northern border of the Heaven Dou Empire. The largest inn in the city is called ' Listening to Snow Pavilion.' Find the innkeeper and tell him my name. He'll leave you a message."

Lu Yuan nodded. "I've got it."

The wind blew through the valley, rustling the pine needles.

Lin Xiao suddenly raised his hand and punched Lu Yuan in the shoulder socket. The force was neither too light nor too heavy.

"I'm leaving." He turned around, took a few steps to catch up with Lei Qingyue's back, and never looked back.

Lu Yuan stood there, watching the figures of the old man and the young man being swallowed up by the morning mist.

There's still a lingering dull ache in my shoulder socket.

He pressed it, then turned and walked into the valley.

The herb garden was unusually quiet.

The maze of vines dissipated, revealing the original fence and herb patchwork. Qingzhu was bending down, tidying up several patches of trampled herbs, her movements slow and deliberate.

Hearing footsteps, he straightened up, leaning on his bamboo cane, and looked over.

"They've left?"

"Um."

Qingzhu nodded, picked up the bucket at her feet, and watered a "Night-Brightening Grass" with scorched leaf edges. "The people from the Hundred Refinements Pavilion have retreated, but now that they've found their way to this place, they won't easily forget it."

Lu Yuan walked to the stone table and sat down. On the table were the drawings and charcoal pencils he had hastily packed up the night before.

"This is no place to linger," Qingzhu said bluntly. "I'm used to living alone, so I'm not afraid. But you're different. Your style... is too conspicuous."

Lu Yuan didn't reply, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the edge of the stone table.

Trouble is like Spiderweb, wrapping itself up layer by layer.

"Does the senior have any suggestions?" he asked.

Qingzhu put down the water ladle and wiped her hands on her apron. "Let's go to more remote places. Deep in the Soul Beast Mountain Range, or those no-man's-land areas on the border between the two countries. There are many Soul Beast, many medicinal herbs, and few people. It's easy to hide, and it's convenient to find what you need."

He paused, then added, "Of course, there are many dangers too. If you die inside, your remains will never be recovered."

Lu Yuan raised his eyes. "Where is the most unique Soul Power environment? Abnormally active, or with mixed attributes, the kind that ordinary Soul Master wouldn't want to approach."

Qingzhu looked at him for a few seconds.

"You certainly know how to pick things." He snorted and sat down on the stone bench. "There are indeed a few places like this on the continent. The depths of the Star Dou Great Forest is one, but that's the territory of the Soul Beast King; going in is suicide. There are also a few areas of chaotic Soul Power near the core area of Sunset Forest, but they're surrounded by major sects, and outsiders can't get in."

He spoke, then suddenly fell silent, his fingers tracing the bamboo cane.

Lu Yuan didn't urge him; he waited.

"There's one more place," Qingzhu finally spoke, lowering her voice slightly, "In the area between the northwestern edge of the Star Dou Great Forest and the Sunset Forest. The old folks call it the ' Thousand Needle Stone Forest '."

"Thousand Needle Stone Forest?"

"Hmm." Qingzhu nodded. "The terrain is strange, filled with stone pillars dozens of feet high, densely packed like needle mountains. Strong turbulent currents of Soul Power surge up from underground, causing the Soul Power on the surface to be extremely unstable, sometimes strong and sometimes weak, with mixed attributes. Ordinary Soul Master can't even unleash their Soul Skill steadily when they go in, and staying there for too long will make them dizzy and nauseous. So not many people are willing to go."

He paused, his gaze drifting slightly into the distance. "However... it's said that there are some very ancient ruins there. Not human structures from the last thousand years, but more like... things from even earlier times. There are also rumors that some ancient monsters, who don't want to be seen, live in seclusion there."

Lu Yuan's fingertips stopped.

Disordered Soul Power, remote and uninhabited, ancient ruins, hermits.

These words went through his mind.

"Interesting," he said.

"Interesting?" Qingzhu scoffed. "That place could be deadly."

Lu Yuan didn't refute. He stood up, walked to the other end of the stone table, and spread out the copy of the research notes. He then took out a few blank sheets of paper and held a charcoal pencil in his hand.

Qingzhu looked at him.

Lu Yuan didn't start writing immediately. He stared at the blank paper for a long time.

"Senior," he suddenly spoke, his voice calm, "What do you think about establishing a base... no, a 'schoolhouse' in a place like the Thousand Needle Stone Forest?"

Qingzhu was stunned. "The schoolhouse?"

"Hmm." Lu Yuan nodded, drawing a line lightly on the paper with his charcoal pencil. "A place. It doesn't judge people by bloodline or Martial Soul, nor does it consider Innate Soul Power level. It only accepts those willing to learn, think, and verify things hands-on. It teaches them the most basic principles of Soul Power operation, how to observe their own Martial Soul, and how to explore the path of Soul Master using logic and experimentation."

He paused, then tapped the paper with the tip of his pen.

"I want to organize my theory, and what will be verified in the future, into a system that can be passed down. Not lock it away in my head, or only teach it to one or two people, but write it into textbooks and design courses so that more people have the opportunity to access it."

Qingzhu didn't speak.

He stared at Lu Yuan with the look in his eyes as if he were looking at a madman.

After a long pause, he sighed.

"The idea is good," he said, his voice unreadable, neither approving nor pitying, "But young man, do you know how many people's interests will be affected if your words get out?"

Lu Yuan raised his eyes.

"I know," he said. "Noble families monopolize knowledge, and sects and clans treat cultivation methods as family heirlooms. My system is tantamount to uprooting them."

"Then you still--"

"But knowledge locked in your head is no different from knowledge buried underground." Lu Yuan interrupted him, his tone calm yet resolute. "Someone has to light the first lamp. Even if the light is faint, only illuminating the small area beneath your feet."

He put down his charcoal pencil and looked at the gradually brightening sky outside the herb garden.

"Lin Xiao is an example. He was talented, but he was restricted by his family's cultivation methods and almost went astray. I helped him find a path that was more suitable for him. But what if... someone has average talent? Someone whose Martial Soul is considered worthless? Someone from a poor family who can't even access the most basic meditation techniques?"

Qingzhu fell silent.

He remembered a child he had seen many years ago in a remote town. The child 'Martial Soul was an ordinary "lantern grass," and his Innate Soul Power was only level one, yet he had an almost instinctive affinity for herbs. What happened to that child afterward? He didn't know.

How many children like that are there on the mainland?

There are too many to count.

"Do you want to be a saint?" Qingzhu asked, her tone complicated.

Lu Yuan shook his head. "Not a saint. A researcher, and also... a seed sower."

He paused, then his fingers unconsciously began tapping on the stone table again, the rhythm very slow.

"Verifying this theory alone is too slow. I need more samples, more data, and someone to help me refine and expand it. And those people—those who have been abandoned by the existing system—what they lack is an opportunity, a methodology."

"So you want to build a schoolhouse to bring them together?" Qingzhu asked.

"Yes." Lu Yuan nodded. "The location needs to be secluded, resource-sufficient, and ideally have a unique Soul Power environment to facilitate research. ' Thousand Needle Stone Forest ' sounds... very suitable."

The Qingzhu remained silent for Jiujiu.

He stood up, leaning on his bamboo cane, and walked to the edge of the herb garden, looking at the distant, layered mountains. The morning mist had completely dissipated, and the sunlight shone down, gilding the distant mountains with a golden edge.

"Thousand Needle Stone Forest..." he murmured, then turned around. "I visited that place once when I was young. I only spent three days exploring the outer perimeter; I didn't dare venture deeper."

Lu Yuan's eyes lit up.

"Do you remember the route?"

"I vaguely remember." Qingzhu walked back to the stone table, dipped her finger in tea, and began to draw on the surface. "From here, head northeast, pass through ' Black Wind Gorge,' go around ' Weeping Blood Lake,' and then north... It's about a half-month journey. The entrance is a rocky slope covered with 'Ghost Cry Vines,' where the Soul Power fluctuations are very chaotic, making it easy to get lost."

His drawing was hasty, but he clearly described the key landmarks.

Lu Yuan stared at the gradually drying water stains on the table, his mind already planning a route.

Looking at his focused profile, Qingzhu suddenly asked, "Are you going alone?"

Lu Yuan looked up. "Currently."

"If Lin Xiao really comes in three months, are you planning to bring him along?"

"It's up to him to choose," Lu Yuan said. "That's his path."

Qingzhu snorted and didn't ask any more questions. He turned and walked towards the thatched hut, but stopped at the door.

"Young Lu," he said without turning around, "Those who light the lamp are often the first to have it blown out by the wind. Have you thought this through?"

Lu Yuan did not answer.

He watched Qingzhu's figure disappear through the door, then lowered his head and began to write rapidly on the paper with his charcoal pencil.

It is neither a theoretical derivation nor Soul Power model.

It is a preliminary conceptual framework. The requirements for the school site selection, the basic curriculum, the access to resources, the safety and protection measures... each item is written concisely yet clearly.

When he reached the third page, he stopped writing and looked at the sun that had fully risen in the east.

The light was very bright and dazzling.

But he didn't squint.

He tapped the paper one last time with his fingertips, then put away the charcoal pencil, carefully folded the paper filled with writing, and tucked it into his pocket.

The road ahead is long.

But we have a direction.