Chapter 7: Embarking on the Immortal Path
The days on the Cloud Wanderer passed quickly.
Over the past few days, Luo Xue had gained a general understanding of the other girls’ situations.
Besides Luo Xue and Su Yiyao, the other three girls were named Yu Yiling, Li Zining, and Huang Xinya.
But to Luo Xue’s surprise, all the girls had lost a significant portion of their memories.
Only vague impressions remained in their minds. Even Su Yiyao could only barely recall her own name.
As for Luo Xue, her memories before waking up were of the apocalyptic world.
Huang Xinya had directly asked Daoist Ziyang about this, but he claimed to be unaware, speculating that it was the work of the previous bandits.
At this point, Luo Xue knew very well that Daoist Ziyang didn’t want them to pursue the matter further.
So she could only follow his wishes and, like the other girls, begin her cultivation.
This was a world where “Immortals” existed, and the gap between mortal martial artists and immortals was practically the difference between two species.
Countless people yearned for a sliver of immortal destiny, a glimpse into the legendary world of cultivation, to become an immortal beyond the reach of mortals.
And now, this immortal destiny was clearly presented before Luo Xue and the others.
The cultivation methods Daoist Ziyang gave the maids to help the girls embark on the path of immortality were genuine; he was indeed helping them become immortals.
The reason he didn’t directly teach them was simply because they didn’t know how to use the jade slips yet.
Under the maids’ guidance, within a few days, one of the girls, Li Zining, had already sensed the existence of “spirit.”
Although it couldn’t be said that she had embarked on the immortal path, she had already touched the threshold before becoming an immortal, the “Post-heaven Realm.”
The Post-heaven Realm for cultivators wasn’t much different from mortal martial artists. Both had to cultivate their five senses: mouth, ears, nose, eyes, and spirit.
Respectively, these were “Clear Mouth,” “Sharp Ears,” “Sensitive Nose,” “Bright Eyes,” and “Spiritual Insight.” After achieving introspection of the spirit, one could step into the peak that mortal martial artists dreamed of, the “Innate Realm,” also known as “Martial Arts Grandmaster.”
After reaching the Innate Realm, one would have few opponents among mortals, but for the path of immortality, it was still a step away.
Of course, for the girls now, the Innate Realm was still too distant.
However, they were all carefully selected by Daoist Ziyang for their cultivation constitutions, so “grasping spiritual inspiration,” which was as difficult as ascending to heaven for ordinary people, was easy for them.
From Post-heaven to Innate, and even entering the first realm of cultivators, “Spirit Condensation,” would be a natural progression.
After Li Zining sensed “spirit,” the girls were greatly encouraged and pursued their cultivation with all their might.
Not long after, they all successfully entered the Post-heaven Realm. Li Zining, who had grasped spiritual inspiration first, was even approaching “Sharp Ears.”
Su Yiyao was naturally the same, but due to Luo Xue’s instructions, her cultivation could be described as half-hearted, barely reaching “Clear Mouth.”
The only exception… was Luo Xue.
[Current Realm: Mortal (Next Realm: Post-heaven)]
Just as the panel had evaluated her cultivation aptitude as “almost none,” Luo Xue couldn’t sense the existence of “spirit” at all.
Instead, the aura emitted by the “Yin Breath Poison” gradually accumulated in her body, forcing Luo Xue to allocate another 10 survival points to “Yin Poison Resistance.”
Otherwise… before she could luckily cultivate to immortality, she would die from the poison first.
Because of this, the girls often mocked Luo Xue and frequently spoke ill of her behind Daoist Ziyang’s back.
“Master, look at Ah Chou, she hasn’t even entered the door yet. What a waste of Master’s expectations… and that precious pill!”
“If Master could bestow her pill upon this disciple, perhaps this disciple would have already stepped into the Innate Realm!”
Luo Xue had heard similar words so many times that she was numb to them. Between the lines, they were basically coveting the purple pill in her hand.
Moreover, because of Luo Xue’s situation, Su Yiyao was also frequently bullied by them.
Luo Xue really wanted to just throw the pill to them, but unfortunately, whenever Daoist Ziyang heard these words, he would simply smile silently.
At the same time, he would look at Luo Xue with encouraging eyes, making her shudder.
In this strange yet harmonious atmosphere, the Cloud Wanderer soon reached its destination, the secluded place Daoist Ziyang called “Mount Ziyang.”
Even Luo Xue, who had always been wary, couldn’t help but sigh after disembarking the Cloud Wanderer and stepping onto Mount Ziyang… It truly lived up to the worldly imagination of an immortal’s abode.
Atop the endless, steep mountain peaks, ethereal immortal energy swirled. Pleasant chirping came from flocks of birds in the sky, and beautiful, exotic beasts paused to drink from the gurgling streams.
The dreamlike wonderland instantly captivated the girls, their faces filled with uncontainable excitement.
Luo Xue stealthily glanced back and saw Daoist Ziyang watching their backs, smiling gently.
Noticing Luo Xue’s gaze, Daoist Ziyang nodded slightly at her, still with those terrifyingly encouraging eyes.
Only…
Luo Xue’s gaze involuntarily fell on the Cloud Wanderer behind Daoist Ziyang, and the port where it had docked.
The boundless water surface was as calm and peaceful as ever, like a… perfect painting.
“What are you looking at?”
As if in a trance, Daoist Ziyang’s snake-like pupils once again filled Luo Xue’s vision, a sharp glint hidden within the gentle smile in his eyes.
Yet he was still ten steps away.
Luo Xue quickly lowered her head, feigning subservience, not daring to utter a word.
Daoist Ziyang didn’t seem to mind. He simply waved his sleeve, putting away the Cloud Wanderer, then walked straight past Luo Xue.
At this moment, Luo Xue didn’t even dare to breathe. She knew Daoist Ziyang had been paying attention to her, but she didn’t know why.
Was it because she was the only one who hadn’t grasped spiritual inspiration yet?
If so, she, having lost her value, shouldn’t be receiving attention.
Just like Su Yiyao, although beautiful, because her aptitude seemed poor under her deliberate concealment, Daoist Ziyang wasn’t interested in her.
“Follow me.”
Daoist Ziyang’s voice rang in Luo Xue’s ear, just like in the carriage.
…This sound transmission method, he had never used it on the Cloud Wanderer, as if he had deliberately chosen to use it now.
Luo Xue looked up and suddenly saw two figures appear before her, one tall and one short, one fat and one thin.
Their faces were stiff, their eyes devoid of all life and sparkle, just like the maids.
And these two, Luo Xue wasn’t unfamiliar with them.
“You know them?”
Daoist Ziyang’s smile reappeared before Luo Xue’s eyes.
Leave a Reply