Chapter 35
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Subtle Regulation Heart Technique (2)
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Yuyeon returned home afterward and waited as Heo Jeongwon had advised.
She couldn't just waste time idling at home, so she sorted through the insights she had gained while earning a little pocket money in the village and pondered her koans.
Yuyeon entered her cultivation chamber and sat cross-legged on the rush mat laid out in the center. Before long, she sank into her inner visualization.
Her inner world was just like the one she perceived with her divine sense, with herself seated in meditation at the center and the cultivation chamber around her.
She began removing unnecessary elements from her visualization one by one.
The chamber's walls. The curtains over the windows. The blanket spread on the floor. Even the rush mat beneath her—one by one, they vanished.
Eventually, only Yuyeon herself remained in the visualization. Next, she recited the incantation of the Subtle Regulation Heart Technique while stirring her own heart force.
'Sitting quietly, I light the lantern of consciousness, and a bright moon rises over the murky pond of the mind.'
A dark pond and a single lantern appeared before her. She picked up the lantern and walked toward the pond.
'Do not suppress the myriad rising thoughts; simply observe them, and like mud settling in water, delusions will fade, leaving only your true nature shining in stillness.'
Yuyeon held up the lantern to illuminate the pond and gazed at her reflection.
But Yuyeon was not there. Instead, the pond was filled with all sorts of dirt, leaves, and random debris floating about.
This was where she had always gotten stuck before.
The distracting thoughts filling the pond wouldn't dissipate; they clouded it like thick dust, preventing any clear reflection.
But this time was different. As Yuyeon watched them for a moment, they vanished one by one like smoke, leaving only the clear pond behind.
When she reflected herself in the clear pond, Yuyeon was nowhere to be seen. Only the lantern she held was reflected, feeling just like the moon.
'All phenomena reflected in the pond lie within the palm of your hand—to grasp as you will, to release as you will.'
Yuyeon dipped her hand into the pond, causing ripples across the surface. Shaking her hand in the water made the rippling lantern's reflection eventually become a real moon.
But moments later, the moon faded, leaving only the lantern once more.
This was the realm of subtle contemplation.
Figuratively likening her mind to the pond and manipulating it to control the mind itself.
Now came the realm of mind regulation.
She thought of people she had worked with in the past. Among them, the image of an old farmer rose in her visualization.
Looking into the pond, instead of the lantern, the old farmer was reflected. Through subtle contemplation, she had projected his image.
Waiting a moment, the pond filled once more with dirt, leaves, and debris, clouding it just like before.
Satisfied, Yuyeon reached out and plucked a floating leaf from the pond, holding it in her hand.
Along with the old farmer's appearance came the red glow of the setting sun behind him, the heaviness and fatigue of his body, the smell of earth, the sticky sweat.
These were recreations of the sensations and emotions she imagined he had felt in the moments she observed him.
'Aigoo, my back... I need a drink before heading home today.'
Experiencing those sensations and emotions allowed her to capture the thoughts he must have had then. This, she realized, was the meaning of glimpsing another's mind through mind regulation.
Yuyeon released the leaf back into the pond, and all the impurities sank to the bottom.
The pond reflected no one again, with only the lantern hanging there.
Satisfied with her progress in mind regulation, Yuyeon lifted her spirit.
Objects perceived by her divine sense began reappearing in the visualization one by one.
The room filled completely, restoring the conscious world she normally constructed with her divine sense to its original state.
"Congratulations. In a manner of speaking, you have achieved the first star of the Subtle Regulation Heart Technique."
"Is that how Immortal Cultivators evaluate progress in techniques?"
"Yes, it's a bit crude. As you read the manual and step toward completion, you grade yourself with stars for each stage.
It's not objective, so it lacks authority. But since it's hard to objectively measure cultivation results, it's a sort of consensus."
Yuyeon didn't think she had fully achieved even the first step of the Subtle Regulation Heart Technique yet.
She could only fully manifest mind regulation in this hyper-focused state, and even then, it was just peeking into a portion of someone's consciousness from long ago.
"It's still far from being practical in real combat."
So she humbly downplayed it a bit.
But it was an achievement acknowledged by her teacher. Yuyeon decided to proudly claim the first star of the Subtle Regulation Heart Technique.
"I still haven't grasped a way to scan others with divine sense without being detected."
Even as Yuyeon subtly probed, the teacher avoided answering this point. Any response might give a hint or influence her.
But sometimes, silence itself was an answer.
From the teacher's silence, Yuyeon grasped only that she wasn't ready yet.
***
Until the summons came, Yuyeon practiced operating the Subtle Regulation Heart Technique repeatedly like this.
Each time, she reflected herself in the pond, but her true self never appeared in it.
Was her progress still insufficient? Or had she unknowingly imposed this trait on the pond?
Instead, when she mimicked others' appearances, they reflected in the pond, along with the various distracting thoughts from those moments rising to the surface.
But she couldn't evaluate how closely they matched what those people had actually thought then.
After all, these were merely intricate fabrications, Yuyeon projecting others' minds onto herself.
She couldn't rewind the scattered minds of people from the past. Asking them again would be pointless.
In short, this was the limit of operating mind regulation alone.
The key to advancing to the next stage lay in how quickly she could deploy the Subtle Regulation Heart Technique's visualization—or whether she could operate it casually in daily life.
Only then could she read someone's mind on the spot and compare how accurately she had done so.
Thus, Yuyeon focused on increasing her proficiency.
As she worked through her accumulated koans, sorting insights, a sudden question arose.
Why did she have to reflect a mimicked self in the pond?
Why not simply create the pond directly beneath someone captured by her divine sense from the start?
Rather than speeding up the process through proficiency, compress the process itself.
This was an idea possible only for Yuyeon, who already possessed divine sense as a superior alternative to subtle contemplation.
Yuyeon was lying on the floor, chewing her dinner of rice balls, when the idea suddenly struck her.
Something clicked in her mind, a flash of insight like a light bursting forth—a realization dawned.
Once the idea formed, the method followed naturally as enlightenment.
Other Immortal Cultivators would meditate deeply to capture the insight and strive for progress, but Yuyeon had no need.
She had already reached the conclusion and secured the enlightenment before even attempting it.
This advantage was the same whether studying Immortal Cultivators' manuals or puzzling out insights alone from her mountain village days.
Yuyeon had obtained a clue to deploying mind regulation in real time.
She pondered whether to discuss this clue with her teacher.
It strongly felt connected to using divine sense without detection by others' divine senses.
But in the end, as her teacher always said, the path of cultivation was entirely her own.
She decided not to seek advice at the cost of revealing her enlightenment. She didn't want to seem like a student handing in solved problems for checking.
For the record, Yuyeon was still lying on the floor thinking this.
Whenever her teacher scolded her for the unseemly sight, she always blamed her Pure White Body. Lying on the floor was her way of keeping the house clean, she claimed.
Of course, every time Yuyeon insisted, it was the teacher who yielded.
Later, when she completed the Subtle Regulation Heart Technique and added instructions to the end, Yuyeon planned to write that she had gained enlightenment while cleaning.
That way, even mediocre Immortal Cultivators might clean a bit. Utilitarianly speaking, it was the right thing to do.
***
The business trip to the market was prepared the next day.
Yuyeon received word and headed to the Grand Meridian Pavilion. For reference, the message came through the clan plaque she had been given previously.
She had seen Heo Jeongwon sending messages via formations, but receiving one was a first.
Yuyeon marveled at the utility of formations.
'No way—mobile payments, and now even a messenger function? Formations really are the pinnacle of Immortal arts.'
In truth, a formation's real value lay in sustainably exerting harmony without additional resources. But for Yuyeon, everyday convenience mattered more.
Two other fellow practitioners were already at the Grand Meridian Pavilion. One was the younger of the two who had greeted her before—Practitioner Heo Damun. The other was an unfamiliar female practitioner.
"Welcome, Yuyeon. We've met before. I'm Heo Damun. Feel free to call me Senior Damun casually."
Among Immortal Cultivators who usually grew their hair long—even men—Heo Damun stood out by neatly trimming the back for a clean look and being clean-shaven. It made him appear youthful and refined.
He wore the standard light robes issued to Heo Clan practitioners, topped with a blue outer robe that gave him a tidy, Daoist air.
In contrast, the woman beside him had a more adorned appearance.
She wore the same Heo Clan light robes with a similarly styled outer robe, but hers had longer sleeves and hem for feminine flair. The same blue hue was brighter, accented with subtle dark blue embroidery.
Her age was indeterminable. Immortal Cultivators maintained youthful looks until spending half their lifespan.
Enhanced by their unique spiritual energy, their features were refined and skin flawless, amplifying their appeal.
Her hair was partially loose below, with the top pinned up stylishly—what was commonly called a fairy hairstyle.
Worlds apart from Yuyeon, who skipped braiding as too bothersome, just brushing and letting it fall naturally.
Since they were heading out, both cultivators and mortals alike fussed over appearances—women's common trait.
No one could fault Yuyeon for not primping for an outing, proudly embracing her self-proclaimed Young Master of the Way persona.
For the record, that didn't mean she planned to cut her hair short for easier drying or less brushing.
How dare she cut the hair her parents gave her—long, lush, glossy, beautiful, precious locks. Yuyeon had no such attachment from her past life.
"Hello, Daoist Yuyeon. I'm Heo Seorin. Since we're close in age and both new entrants, call me Big Sister Seorin. Can I call you Yuyeon casually too?"
Heo Damun was older and higher in realm, so he spoke casually. Heo Seorin, uncertain of age but same entry level, used formal speech toward Yuyeon.
In Immortal society, etiquette followed realm over age—a fitting courtesy.
Yuyeon exchanged greetings with them.
"Pleased to meet you, Senior Damun, Senior Seorin. Feel free to speak casually, Senior Seorin. But I'm more comfortable with 'senior' than 'big sister,' so please understand."
Yuyeon respectfully called Heo Seorin 'senior' too, rather than leveling to peers. At least outwardly younger, it felt right. Confucian mortal etiquette was more familiar to her than Immortal customs.
Absolutely not because she didn't want to call her 'big sister.'
Heo Seorin didn't insist on 'big sister' over 'senior.'
The three had already prepared and heard the details, so they skipped briefing with superiors and departed immediately.
Immortal Cultivators always carried essentials, so they weren't laden for the trip.
Neither had conspicuous luggage—just an extra pouch at the waist each.
She had heard Heo Damun, as head of the talisman crafting division, would handle talisman sales, and Heo Seorin, as assistant from the pill refinement hall, would manage elixirs.
Yuyeon was just tagging along for experience, with no specific duties—essentially an errand runner for them.
For transport, a ferry similar to but larger than the one before was prepared. Heo Damun boarded first, followed by Yuyeon and Heo Seorin.
Only Heo Damun, at Qi Refining, could wield the dharma vessel, so he controlled it. Placing a hand on the stern infused it with mana, lifting the boat. It accelerated toward the market.
At the clan formation's edge, it slowed slightly; he used the clan plaque to open a passage and passed through. Outside, it sped up again. Yuyeon thought of modern conveniences again.
'Even slowing just before passing through—exactly the same.'
Yes, Yuyeon recalled high-pass tolls. Human habits were the same in Immortal or mortal worlds.