Ferrying the Buddha 66

Chapter 66

It wasn’t that she wouldn’t.

It was just that she couldn’t bring herself to.

From her time at the Time Management Bureau( Time and Space Administration) in her past life to now, her journey had been far from clean. While she hadn’t stained her hands with the blood of innocents, she wasn’t a good person either.

But Liaowu was special to her.

She, an outsider, had gradually developed a sense of belonging to this world, and this feeling was mainly due to Liaowu. Such a special person was bound to leave a deep mark on her memory, making it difficult not to consider him.

And considering him meant restraint, meant drawing a line she couldn’t cross.

Sitting across from You Yun, lost in thought, Heng Yu zoned out.

You Yun spoke several times, but seeing that Heng Yu wasn’t paying attention, he tapped his fingers on the table. “Are you even listening to me?”

The Sword Sect’s accommodations for Nascent Soul cultivators were excellent. The table was made of thousand-year-old Xuan wood, producing a clear, pleasant sound when struck.

Feeling the vibrations from the table, Heng Yu returned to her senses. “Master, what did you just say?”

A pang of jealousy struck You Yun. He felt his authority as a late Nascent Soul master was nonexistent. Even his coveted beauty seemed to have no effect on his disciple. He had just talked so much, and this foolish disciple hadn’t heard a word! She must have been thinking about that Buddha-son again!

It was infuriating. He had raised a disciple who was more interested in outsiders!

But meeting Heng Yu’s questioning gaze, You Yun suppressed his jealousy and said seriously, “I was asking what reward you want. Your performance in the tournament was excellent, bringing glory to the sect. The sect will definitely reward you. If you need anything in particular, I can help you request it. They can send it along with the Forget-Me-Not seeds.”

Mentioning rewards immediately piqued Heng Yu’s interest. She did have some needs right now. Having the sect as backing was great. Although there were obligations, as long as one had talent and strength, they would receive the sect’s full support, eliminating the need to search for rare treasures themselves.

“Master, I want to find materials to refine a natal spirit sword.”

She was about to break through to Core Formation; it was time to refine a sword that resonated perfectly with her.

“Do you have any materials in mind?”

Heng Yu wasn’t very knowledgeable in this area. “Master, do you have any recommendations?”

“You have an ice spiritual root and cultivate the Profound Ice Manual. An ice-attribute natal spirit sword would definitely maximize your strength,” You Yun thought for a moment. “You could use Ice Marrow Stone as the main material.”

Ice Marrow Stone. This material, formed from the essence of ten-thousand-year-old snow spirits upon their death, was extremely rare and a top-grade refining material.

However, any material considered “top-grade” was incredibly rare, even for the Hehuan Sect.

Heng Yu was interested, but, “Does the sect have enough? Isn’t using Ice Marrow Stone as the main material too extravagant?”

“Among the ten young masters, you’re the only one with an ice spiritual root. There are no water spiritual roots at all. Without competition, there’s enough Ice Marrow Stone for you. However—” You Yun smiled slyly, a hint of amusement in his eyes. “Ice Marrow Stone is very precious. It can even be used to refine magical treasures for Spirit Transformation cultivators. You only won the sparring tournament; that’s only enough to exchange for a fist-sized piece of Ice Marrow Stone. If you want a sufficient amount, try to win the formation battle and mental fortitude test as well. Especially the mental fortitude test. Work hard.”

Winning the sparring tournament was impressive. But winning all three would be truly remarkable.

Geniuses were rare, but the Hehuan Sect had existed for tens of thousands of years and had accumulated many talented disciples. Those worthy of the sect’s investment had to be truly exceptional, surpassing their peers.

Heng Yu twitched her lips. As her master, was it really appropriate to want to see his disciple struggle?

“I’ll do my best,” Heng Yu said calmly, determined not to give You Yun the satisfaction of watching her struggle.

You Yun pouted and leaned back against the cushions, looking listless.

After bathing, Heng Yu leaned against the couch and reviewed the rules for tomorrow’s competition.

Tomorrow was the mental fortitude test for Foundation Establishment cultivators. Unlike the one-on-one sparring matches, this test involved one hundred cultivators entering a formation simultaneously to have their mental fortitude tested.

After reviewing the rules, Heng Yu remembered she had gained a lot of admiration points and quickly took out her jade pendant to check.

—12500.

An increase of over five thousand admiration points. This was much higher than she expected. No wonder Wu Mei had gained nearly ten thousand admiration points after her impressive performance at the Sword Sect.

“The Dharma Assembly is only held every ten years. It seems I have to work hard in the next competitions. Opportunities to earn admiration points like this are rare.”

As long as she could earn enough admiration points this time, she could focus on breaking through to Core Formation and wouldn’t have to worry about admiration points until she reached Nascent Soul.

Early the next morning, Heng Yu woke up and practiced her swordsmanship. Seeing that the competition was about to begin, she sent a paper crane to Liaowu, and they agreed to meet at the crane riding area.

As the crane flew through the clouds, Heng Yu tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and told Liaowu about the Ice Marrow Stone.

Liaowu asked, “Have you decided to use Ice Marrow Stone as the main material?”

Heng Yu nodded. The rarer the main material, the more powerful the sword would be. “I have to do my best in the next two competitions.”

“Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. If there isn’t enough Ice Marrow Stone, this poor monk can find some for Lord Luo.”

Heng Yu chuckled. “The Undying Sect and the Hehuan Sect are on opposing sides. Wouldn’t this be considered aiding the enemy?”

Liaowu said slowly, “With this poor monk’s strength, a trip to the Thousand-Year Snow Mountain should yield quite a bit of Ice Marrow Stone. Even if I’m unlucky, I can exchange it with my sect contribution points from the sect’s treasury. Since it belongs to this poor monk, this poor monk can do as he pleases with it. Even the sect can’t interfere. What does it have to do with good and evil?”

Heng Yu sighed inwardly. She had become increasingly aware of Liaowu’s stubbornness hidden beneath his gentle exterior. Gentle people were generally divided into two types: those who were gentle to the point of being easily swayed and lacking principles, and those who were gentle but had their own set of rules.

Liaowu was undoubtedly the latter.

“So you’re always right.”

“Hm?” Liaowu didn’t quite understand what she meant.

Heng Yu shook her head. “I don’t need your Ice Marrow Stone.”

She blinked and feigned displeasure. “Do you think I can’t win first place in the formation battle and mental fortitude test? If I have a choice, of course I’ll take advantage of the sect’s resources first.”

She didn’t mind taking what the sect offered because she would repay them after she grew stronger. She also didn’t mind tricking her master into giving her various treasures because she was his direct disciple, and in this world, the master-disciple bond was even closer than that of parent and child. She was You Yun’s inheritor and successor.

But she didn’t want anything from Liaowu, even if he was willing to give it to her.

Liaowu seemed to sigh silently. “Alright.” He looked down at the parasol tree forest below. The wind rustled the leaves, creating a crisp, almost chaotic sound, just like his current mood. Liaowu felt that perhaps it was precisely Heng Yu’s attitude that made him want to do more for her.

Because she was so carefree, so composed, and so rational, even though she was always by his side, he always felt like he couldn’t quite grasp her, as if she might leave at any moment and sever all ties with him. This feeling was unsettling, making him feel a sense of panic even when he woke up in the middle of the night.

But keeping her by his side would be selfish.

So he hesitated, unsure what to do, unable to act. He could only follow her lead, one step at a time.

An apricot suddenly hit his forehead. Liaowu snapped out of his daze and looked at Heng Yu.

Heng Yu was munching on fresh Wu Huan Fruit. “We’re almost there. What were you thinking about?”

“A Buddhist scripture. This poor monk couldn’t quite grasp its meaning.” After saying this, Liaowu chuckled at himself.

Heng Yu looked at him curiously. “What’s so funny? Did you suddenly understand it?”

Liaowu shook his head. He was simply amused by his own analogy. Seeing that he didn’t want to elaborate, Heng Yu didn’t press further.

The crane flew over a mountain and landed at the edge of the Sword Testing Grounds. Heng Yu jumped off and fed it two pills. The crane chirped happily, nuzzled her cheek with its beak, and then swallowed the pills.

Being nuzzled by a beak wasn’t exactly a pleasant experience, and Heng Yu couldn’t help but smile wryly. But for a crane without sentience, this was probably its way of showing affection. Probably.

Heng Yu said, “Let’s go. The first batch of cultivators who entered the formation should be coming out soon.”

The layout of the Sword Testing Grounds had changed again. The one hundred and eight arenas had disappeared, replaced by a massive gate that seemed to reach the sky.

Having read the introduction last night, Heng Yu knew this gate led to another space where cultivators underwent the mental fortitude test. But the area around the gate was quiet; the first batch of cultivators hadn’t come out yet—

Just as she thought this, ripples appeared on the gate’s smooth surface, and a Foundation Establishment disciple in Netherworld Sect robes was spat out, collapsing to the ground, pale and sweating profusely. He seemed dazed for a long time.

“They’re coming out!”

“He looks quite disheveled. I wonder what kind of test it is.”

“Hmph, as expected of a demonic sect disciple, their mental fortitude is truly lacking.”

“You—who dares speak such arrogant words!”

Many demonic cultivators looked around angrily, trying to find the person who had spoken, but that person had disappeared after making the remark, clearly afraid of provoking the crowd’s anger.

Before the demonic cultivators could find the speaker, the gate spat out another pale-faced Sound Sect disciple.

“Oh, and are the righteous disciples’ mental fortitude any better? If you want to compare, compare the strongest, not the weakest. Using the performance of the bottom of the barrel to define the entire demonic path, pah, who gave you the right!” A male cultivator from the Netherworld Sect said openly, his expression arrogant and defiant. “Righteous cultivators are truly shameless.”

“You—” someone shouted angrily.

Some righteous disciples retorted eloquently, “In the past Dharma Assemblies, the righteous cultivators always performed better. The top spot in the Foundation Establishment mental fortitude test usually goes to someone from the Undying Sect or Sword Sect. Your Netherworld Sect, hmph.”

“Damn it! Do you dare to make a bet?”

“The bets are already open, we’re just afraid you’re too scared to wager!” A Sword Sect disciple said coldly, leaning against a pillar with his arms crossed.

Hearing about the betting, many cultivators who were waiting for the next match excitedly went to place their bets. Waiting around was boring; naturally, they wanted some entertainment.

Heng Yu watched the commotion for a while. Although the conflict between the righteous and demonic paths in the Canglan Continent wasn’t overt, there was still friction beneath the surface. It was normal for disciples to dislike each other. However, in the mental fortitude test, demonic cultivators did tend to perform worse. After all, demonic cultivation techniques didn’t place as much emphasis on mental fortitude.

Heng Yu said, “Should we place a bet too?”

“Alright,” Liaowu nodded. He wasn’t interested in betting, but he would accompany her.

“Let’s go have a look,” Heng Yu stretched and followed the crowd towards the depths of the Sword Testing Grounds.

This gambling operation seemed to be run by the Sword Sect. There were two main bets. The first was on whether the winner would be from the righteous or demonic path. Since the outcome of this bet was usually predictable, the odds were low.

Heng Yu glanced at the odds and immediately lost interest, turning her attention to the second bet.

The second bet was on which cultivator would win. Many core disciples from the eight righteous sects and five demonic sects were listed. Heng Yu saw her own name among the Foundation Establishment cultivators. Probably because she had won the sparring tournament, her name was quite high on the list, in seventh place, with odds of one to five. Besides her, there were no other demonic cultivators in the top twenty.

The top three were Liaoyuan of the Undying Sect, Yu Xia of the Sword Sect, and Ban Mo of the Black and White Academies.

“No one seems optimistic about the demonic sects,” Heng Yu remarked.

It was Liaowu’s first time witnessing such a gambling operation. He looked around curiously and, hearing Heng Yu’s words, asked, “Do you think your ranking is too low?”

Heng Yu commented calmly, “Of course it’s too low.”

Liaowu chuckled and explained, “The Hehuan Sect uses admiration points for advancement, so the requirements for mental fortitude are relatively low. This is common knowledge in the cultivation world. Besides you, the other disciples from your sect probably aren’t ranked very high.”

Heng Yu scanned the list and finally found Chi at seventy-fifth place. Since the list only included the top one hundred, only she and Chi from the Hehuan Sect were listed.

Heng Yu: “…”

She now understood why her master had told her to work hard in the mental fortitude test. If she could stand out in this event, the sect’s rewards would definitely be substantial. After all, winning would bring great honor to the sect.

“Your Undying Sect has many people on the list,” Heng Yu said.

She saw at least ten names at a glance. But it wasn’t surprising. Buddhist cultivators had firm beliefs and naturally possessed stronger mental fortitude than others at the same realm.

“Fairy, would you like to place a bet?” A male cultivator in charge of registering bets saw Heng Yu standing there for a long time and asked solicitously.

“Yes,” Heng Yu looked at him. The cultivator had a baby face and a friendly appearance. “Is there a limit on how much we can bet?”

“No,” the cultivator shook his head. Most Foundation Establishment cultivators were poor, only the core disciples were relatively wealthy.

“Then I’ll bet on Luo Heng Yu winning, one thousand high-grade spirit stones,” Heng Yu said casually.

Her master was very generous to beautiful female cultivators and even more so to his disciple. Taking out one thousand high-grade spirit stones wasn’t difficult for her.

“H-how much?” The cultivator gulped, looking stunned.

“One thousand high-grade spirit stones,” Heng Yu repeated, handing him a Qiankun bag. “It’s all in there. You can count it.”

Storage rings, as spatial artifacts, were quite valuable, but Qiankun bags were cheap, costing only fifty low-grade spirit stones.

The cultivator finally snapped out of his daze, his eyes lighting up as if he was looking at a fool. “Alright, alright, please wait a moment, Fairy.”

Heng Yu chuckled and transmitted her voice to Liaowu, “He must think he’s hit the jackpot.”

Liaowu smiled but didn’t reply.

When they returned to the gate after completing the betting process, many cultivators who had participated in the mental fortitude test had been spat out. They all looked disheveled. Some people tried to ask them what they had encountered, but they only shook their heads, unwilling to speak. The only thing certain was that each person faced different illusions and challenges.

After a while, ripples appeared on the quiet gate again. This time, a late Foundation Establishment cultivator in Black and White Academies robes walked out instead of being spat out. He looked slightly pale, but his overall demeanor was good.

The referee for this competition stood nearby, glanced at him, and said, “Please hand over your soul token.”

The cultivator took out his soul token and handed it to the referee. The referee stamped it and returned it to him. “Congratulations on passing the first round.”

Starting from this cultivator, all those who came out afterwards had passed the first round of the mental fortitude test.

After another half an hour, when everyone had come out, the referee announced loudly, “Contestants for the next round of the mental fortitude test, please prepare yourselves. You may enter now.” His voice, amplified by spiritual energy, quickly spread throughout the Sword Testing Grounds.

Heng Yu, who had been bored, perked up.

“I’ll go in first,” she waved to Liaowu and walked towards the gate.

The gate was massive, too large for her to take in completely as she approached. Sensing a faint pull from within, she didn’t hesitate and stepped through the light curtain calmly and resolutely.

As she entered, her figure disappeared. In the next moment, Heng Yu slowly opened her eyes, only to see complete darkness.

This darkness was utterly silent, amplifying the sound of her own breathing and heartbeat. She stood there for a moment, noticing nothing unusual, then chose a direction and walked forward without hesitation.