Chapter 178
Chapter 178
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: [Unknown]
Chapter Title: Fog Ridge Gathering
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"Isn't this damaging the court's dignity?" High Minister Gao hesitated.
This statement drew nods of agreement from the various ministers in the cabinet.
It was far too damaging to the court's face.
Even if Chen Shi was a disaster-class Evil, the court could not compromise so easily!
If word got out, where would the court put its face?
Zhang Fujing shot High Minister Gao a sharp glance. "In that case, why don't you, High Minister, lead troops to subdue the Evil Chen Shi?"
High Minister Gao burst into laughter, then said gravely, "The Chief Minister is joking! Scholar Chen sealed over a hundred demon heads within himself, preventing those demons from wreaking havoc on the world. That is a merit to the Great Ming dynasty's rivers and mountains, a merit to the countless beings of West Ox New Continent. How could he be an Evil? He has merit—he deserves reward! I have no objection to the Chief Minister's words!"
His words prompted laughter from the cabinet officials. "Well said, High Minister Gao! Well said! Rewarding merit is precisely what the court should do!"
With the matter settled, they turned to discussing how to allocate the positions of Provincial Governor, Inspector, and Garrison Commander now that the Gongzhou local government had been wiped out in one fell swoop.
This concerned the interests of the Thirteen Great Houses, so they inevitably argued fiercely, faces flushed and voices raised.
Zhang Fujing sighed inwardly at how difficult it was to be Chief Minister. He admired the former Chief Minister, Yan Xizhi, and thought:
He was smooth and adept, able to arrange everything perfectly for the Thirteen Great Houses—a true talent.
When I can no longer hold on, I must invite him back.
Though reluctant in his heart, he knew that the commotion caused by Creation Little Five in the Western Capital was growing larger, and the pressure on him was mounting.
Creation Little Five was not like Chen Yindu, who had gone on a rampage in the Western Capital, turning the world upside down with slaughter.
He was more like a demon god, treating the Western Capital as his own demonic domain. He applied pressure bit by bit, driving the people inside mad and insane, forcing the Thirteen Great Houses to tear at each other in desperation for survival until they could bear it no longer and spilled what he wanted to know.
He was even harder to deal with than Chen Yindu back then.
Zhang Fujing coughed and asked, "In the end, who obtained the Innate Dao Embryo that year?"
Silence fell over the cabinet; all the officials exchanged uneasy glances, but none spoke.
Zhang Fujing sneered, scanning the room.
He strongly suspected the Innate Dao Embryo was in the hands of one of the Thirteen Great Houses!
In Gongzhou City, Red Mountain Hall.
The Mountain-Blocking Recluse passed on his heart-and-soul refinement method to Chen Shi and Li Tianqing, then led them to the flower bed. Pointing at the butterflies there, he said, "First,
split off a wisp of your heart-and-soul and attach it to a butterfly. Let the butterfly carry your heart-and-soul as it flies, seeing what it sees.
Fly with the butterfly for a full day, keeping your heart-and-soul intact.
Once you can control the direction of the butterfly's flight, you will have achieved minor mastery."
Chen Shi and Li Tianqing followed his instructions in their cultivation. Each split off a wisp of heart-and-soul and tied it to a butterfly in the flower bed.
The butterfly gathered nectar in the flower bed. Once sated, it fluttered upward.
As the butterfly danced through the air, their heart-and-souls rose and fell with it, carried off into the distance.
The butterfly beat its wings, flying out from the flower bed along the base of the street walls, gradually climbing higher, over walls and rooftops, into the sky.
A breeze blew, and the butterfly danced on the wind, heading out of the city.
As the butterfly flew farther away, the test on their heart-and-souls grew harsher. They had to keep their heart-and-souls from dissipating while maintaining clear vision of their surroundings.
By the time the two butterflies flew out of the city, Chen Shi and Li Tianqing found maintaining their heart-and-souls extremely difficult, let alone controlling the butterflies' flight paths.
They persisted, and soon saw lush green grass outside the city, babbling streams, frogs squatting in the undergrowth croaking away, bees lingering among flowers, and cats perched in the grass, curiously looking about.
There were simple yet real things they had never noticed before, now perceived because their heart-and-souls were bound to the butterflies.
Chen Shi felt his heart-and-soul immerse fully. He stopped worrying about how long he could hold out and let the butterfly carry his heart-and-soul wherever it went, observing the world's beauty.
The butterfly carried his heart-and-soul farther and farther until dusk fell. It settled under a leaf and slowly entered dreamland.
Chen Shi's wisp of heart-and-soul returned. He opened his eyes, stood, and felt his heart-and-soul stronger than ever before.
"I treated my heart-and-soul as the butterfly itself, flying with it—why did my heart-and-soul not weaken but grow stronger instead?" He was greatly puzzled.
The Cold Mountain Recluse laughed.
"Cultivation, cultivation—so-called cultivation involves not just refining but tempering.
Many cultivators focus only on refining, thinking that sitting in meditation, entering samadhi, and circulating their arts a few times to boost their realm is impressive enough.
But true growth comes from tempering.
You become the butterfly, live a butterfly's day, let your heart-and-soul dance with it—that is tempering your heart-and-soul.
Fully immersing and tempering it for a day naturally enhances your power."
Chen Shi understood at once.
The next day, he returned to the flower bed and once more bound his heart-and-soul to a butterfly. This time, however, he tried taking the lead, controlling its flight direction.
Gradually, he forgot his own existence and felt himself to be a butterfly, sipping dew, lingering in flowers, frolicking with other butterflies.
At nightfall, Chen Shi withdrew his heart-and-soul.
On the third day, he attached his heart-and-soul to a sparrow and soared with it.
He thought himself a sparrow, joining a flock and engaging in fierce sparrow brawls, getting badly beaten.
On the fourth day, Chen Shi bound his heart-and-soul to an eagle, soaring through the skies and overlooking the earth.
He controlled the eagle to fly farther and farther, reaching over a hundred li away. But when he tried to go even farther, his heart-and-soul suddenly blurred and snapped back into his body.
Chen Shi tried several times, always with the same result. He realized his current limit was a hundred li and gave up.
The Qian Mountain Recluse came to inspect Chen Shi and Li Tianqing's progress and was astonished. In just four days, these two youths had mastered heart-and-soul control, and their heart-and-souls were much stronger than before!
Even back then, he himself had not progressed so quickly!
Moreover, both their heart-and-soul ranges had reached the Golden Core Realm limit of a hundred li!
In the Golden Core Realm, the heart-and-soul could only extend a hundred li, yet these two fourth-turn Golden Core lads had already hit that limit!
It was very likely that as their cultivation grew, these two would break through that limit.
Li Tianqing had a first-grade Divine Embryo, so mastering it so quickly was natural.
But how had Chen Shi, without a Divine Embryo, refined his so powerfully?
He was baffled. The Divine Embryo was crucial for cultivation—the better the embryo, the faster the progress, the greater the realm gains, the deeper the foundations, and the stronger the spells.
Because the Divine Embryo was equivalent to a weakened nascent soul!
Possessing a nascent soul in the Golden Core Realm—imagine the benefits for cultivation!
Yet Chen Shi, without a Divine Embryo, cultivated just as swiftly?
A person without a Divine Embryo was supposed to be a cripple. Who would have thought that on Chen Shi, cultivation without one rivaled a first-grade Divine Embryo!
If he recovered an Innate Dao Embryo superior to first-grade, his achievements would be unprecedented!
The Cold Mountain Recluse sighed inwardly.
He called over Yu Tiancheng. "The Recluses' Gathering is tomorrow. Since you're cultivating with me, you'll attend this time too—it'll make it easier for me to instruct you."
Yu Tiancheng assented, packed his belongings, and prepared to set out.
Chen Shi and Li Tianqing followed him, and the group headed together for Gongshan Fog Ridge.
Granny Sha, Green Sheep, and the Bearded Giant had vanished again, no one knew where.
Young Master Xiao rode in his carriage, departing unhurriedly for Fog Ridge as well.
As for the other recluses in the city, they had left several days earlier and had already arrived atop Fog Ridge.
Fog Ridge was not far from Gongzhou City, just over two hundred li, but Henggong Mountain spanned six or seven thousand li across more than twenty provinces. With peaks everywhere, pinpointing Fog Ridge amid the ranges was no easy task.
Fortunately, with the Cold and Qian Elders leading the way, Chen Shi and the others set out on the fifth of the first month and arrived at Fog Ridge by the sixth.
True to its name, Fog Ridge was shrouded in thick mist all around, with only the peak protruding from the foggy sea, bathed in golden sunlight that made the mist shimmer gold and the peak dazzling.
On the road, the Cold Mountain Recluse taught them transformation arts. Chen Shi, with his foundation in transformation talismans, learned easily, but Li Tianqing struggled more.
Arriving at Fog Ridge, they saw the mountain alive with eccentrics, gathered in twos and threes—some exchanging Dao arts, others showing off divine abilities.
A few seemed mentally off, muttering to themselves and preaching their Dao philosophies.
But if one stopped to listen, it was shocking.
What they spoke of were profoundly powerful Dao arts, just too esoteric, giving the impression of gibberish.
Many recluses knew the Cold and Qian Elders and came up to greet them. The elders held high seniority and nodded in response.
"You two young friends, the Recluses' Gathering is where recluses exchange Dao arts—a tremendous opportunity for you.
Listen carefully when they share; how much you gain depends on your talent and comprehension,"
said the Migrant Recluse.
Chen Shi and Li Tianqing thanked them and parted ways.
Li Tianqing said, "Young Master Xiao told me the same: Recluses often excel in unique fields, and the gathering is the best time to learn their arts and abilities.
If you hit it off in conversation, they might even pass on their life's learnings! We absolutely cannot miss this chance!"
Chen Shi agreed, and the two wandered the gathering. Soon Li Tianqing heard someone expounding on Divine Embryo tempering and brightened, stopping to listen.
Chen Shi listened briefly; the method wouldn't work for him, so he moved on.
He listened to others: some on sword tempering, some on spell control, all with unique insights. But after a moment, none seemed superior to the stele outside the Tomb of the True King.
"I discovered an ancient temple in Tianzhu County. The enshrined Hua Xia deity had withered away, but its divine power lingered, so I rebuilt it. Unfortunately, I didn't know the deity's name."
One recluse sighed. "I planned to sculpt a golden body for it, revive faith, and restore its true form. But no sooner had I finished than a bolt of fire from beyond the heavens shattered the temple, leveling even the mountain."
Another recluse shook his head. "Such things happen too often in West Ox New Continent—nothing unusual."
Chen Shi paused. His grandpa had once said something similar in that tone.
"Do you two know of Mazu?" Chen Shi asked them.
One recluse said, "A sea-guarding deity from Hua Xia Divine Continent. I saw her in murals at an ancient site."
Chen Shi quickly said, "Do you have an image of her?"
The recluse shook his head. "I was in a rush and didn't make a rubbing.
But my memory's good—I can draw it for you."
"Thank you, brother!"
The recluse painted, rendering Mazu's image. Chen Shi took it and froze—the likeness resembled Red Mountain Lady somewhat, though Red Mountain Lady was much younger.
"After the gathering, I must visit the Mazu Temple again!"
he thought.
As Chen Shi strolled Fog Ridge, he sensed many eyes fixed on him intently. Puzzled, he followed the gazes but saw no one.
The staring sensation returned intensely, making him uncomfortable.
Yet there was no malice in those gazes.
"Who's secretly watching me? Could it be Granny Sha and the others?"
Just then, a voice called: "Are you Child Scholar Chen, grandson of the Five Lakes Recluse?"
Chen Shi turned to see a handsome white-robed young lord approaching, elegant and outstanding, with a jade-like face and starry eyes. He wore a juren Daoist robe topped with a golden coronet, quite dashing.
"I am Chen Shi. And you are?"
The white-robed youth smiled. "I'm Ren Hang. You can call me Lord Ren."
Chen Shi nodded. "What does Lord Ren want?"
Ren Hang snapped open his fan with a flourish, fanning lightly, a half-smile on his face. "Surely Child Scholar knows the crime of harboring a jade? You possess the Water-Fire Tempering Art and were refined into a Shed-Corpse Immortal—harboring such treasures invites covetous eyes! The Recluses' Gathering is for sharing learnings. Why not spread the Water-Fire Tempering Art and rid yourself of others' greed?"
His words drew gazes from many recluses, whispers rippling as eyes fell on Chen Shi.
"So he's Child Scholar."
"Heard he came back from death—the Five Lakes Recluse turned him into a Shed-Corpse Immortal."
"Five Lakes Recluse is dead..."
Chen Shi felt displeased. "Whether I share the Water-Fire Tempering Art is my business, not yours.
Are you coveting the Water-Fire Tempering Art, or this body of mine?"
Ren Hang laughed heartily. "You've misunderstood.
The Water-Fire Tempering Art and the Shed-Corpse Immortal—
everyone wants a look. Why be stingy? I've heard Child Scholar's fame fills the land, top talent of fifty provinces. I'm no prodigy myself, but I have some small attainment in Dao arts.
How about this: let me test your Water-Fire Tempering Art, see just how mighty a Shed-Corpse Immortal is."
"Test my ass!"
A childish roar rang out. Ren Hang turned in shock and fury to see a scholar approaching with a book chest on his back, a battered and bruised boy perched inside.
"Sunlight Boy?"
Ren Hang's heart jolted. "Senior Sunlight, you're interested in the Water-Fire Tempering Art too?"
"Interested in your grandma's leg!"
Sunlight Boy flew into a rage, slamming down a palm print with a boom that flattened Ren Hang to the ground.
Ren Hang lay staring at the sky, qi and blood in chaos, his cultivation nearly crippled by that single slap, still clueless as to what had happened.
Sunlight Boy flew from the book chest, landed beside him, grabbed his collar, and pummeled his face fist after fist. "Five Lakes Recluse just passed, and you're already scheming against his grandson? Who are you to call yourself a recluse? You unrighteous scum—I'm beating you today!"
Ren Hang, nose and face swollen, could not fight back.
At that moment, the green-robed musician burst from the crowd, kicking and punching the prone Ren Hang, face red with fury. "Five Lakes Recluse was our senior, with immense contributions to us recluses. You target his grandson—are you even human?"
Feng Feihua rushed up too, stomping at Ren Hang's crotch. "Not even human—what right have you to be a recluse?"
Changping Duke, Yuan Mountain Recluse, Liu Santong, Cao Daoist, and over a dozen other recluses piled on, beating Ren Hang soundly amid cries of outrage, soon leaving him a bloody mess.
The crowd dispersed cursing.
Ren Hang lay there, covered in wounds, clothes in tatters, face swollen like a pig's head, staring blankly at the sky.
Sunlight Boy climbed back into the book chest, then suddenly flew into another temper, jumping down to kick him viciously a few more times before venting his rage.
"Little brother, rest easy. At this Recluses' Gathering, anyone who touches you opposes me, Sunlight Boy!" Sunlight Boy thumped his chest.
Cao Daoist, Changping Duke, and the others thumped theirs too.
"Opposes us all!"
"Yes! We can't let Five Lakes Recluse go unrested in the afterlife!"
"We're your backers at the gathering!"
Chen Shi was deeply moved and thanked them profusely.
Granny Sha, Green Sheep, and the Bearded Giant, hiding in the shadows, watched slack-jawed.
"Sunlight and the others... seem even more worried for Little Ten's safety than we are!—"