Martial Cultivator

For a time, Mount Xi was filled with joy. Yun Jianyue seemed to have truly blended in. He no longer looked like some young temple master of Infatuation Daoist Temple, but rather like a daoist who had cultivated on Mount Xi since childhood and never left.

Li Yu was deeply moved. After much hesitation, he still went to seek out his senior brother, the palace lord.

The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord stood in front of a thatched hut, smiling at his junior brother, and said, “This is a good thing. If the future leader of the Daoism world has such a temperament, then for all daoist cultivators under heaven, it can only be a benefit.”

Li Yu said with some concern, “If this continues, won’t the disciples on the mountain...”

“What about them? Start seeing this temple master in a different light? ”There’s no need to worry, Junior Brother. The way Yun Jianyue is acting, I don’t believe it’s intentional. He truly is seeking the Dao.”

“For a future leader of the Longevity Dao to ultimately find his path in our Great Peace Dao lineage, isn’t that a good thing for our Great Peace Dao?”

The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord smiled and said, ”The Dao gives birth to all things, and naturally embraces all. If not for these past years Infatuation Daoist Temple looking down on us, I wouldn’t have been unwilling to engage with them more.”

Li Yu said softly, ”I didn’t expect Senior Brother to have such a broad heart.”

The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord narrowed his eyes and smiled. ”A broad heart? Sometimes it’s out of necessity, sometimes it’s truly what one wishes to do.”

Li Yu remarked, ”No wonder Senior Brother refused that Lord Warden Commander back then.”

The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord uncharacteristically fell silent after hearing this. No one knew how long had passed before he let out a heavy sigh.

......

......

At the foot of Pine Dew Platform.

Yun Jianyue placed a meditation cushion on a flat patch of ground, then sat cross-legged. Around him, young disciples from Mount Xi gathered, layer upon layer.

Yun Jianyue smiled as he looked at these faces. To be honest, the young disciples of Mount Xi were far inferior to those of Infatuation Daoist Temple. At least among the disciples before him now, some would not even have been brought up the mountain if they were in Infatuation Daoist Temple.

After all, the Myriad Heaven Palace was a sect on par with Infatuation Daoist Temple as a leading force in the same lineage. At first, Yun Jianyue had not understood why things were like this. But now, he no longer found it strange.

This was the charming aspect of Mount Xi.

“We’ve been discussing the Dao for days. Let’s not today, how about a casual chat instead?”

Yun Jianyue looked at the young disciples and spoke gently. Saying that there would be no discussion of the Dao left some of them a little disappointed, but soon many voices echoed in agreement.

“Temple Master Yun...”

A young disciple had just begun speaking when Yun Jianyue shook his head and said, “I’ve said it before, we are of the same generation. You may call me Senior Brother or Fellow Daoist. Those a bit older may call me Junior Brother. If you must be polite, then ‘Daoist’ will do. The term ‘Temple Master’ is far too distant.”

“Daoist Sage...Yun, since it’s a casual chat, then this humble daoist will boldly ask something personal. Is it true that you fell for Fellow Daoist Ye early on?”

As soon as the young disciple asked, laughter erupted. These past few days have all been about discussing the Dao. Although Yun Jianyue was always warm, they had never talked about such private matters.

“When this humble daoist first ascended the mountain and laid eyes on Senior Sister, I was smitten. That hasn’t changed to this day.”

Yun Jianyue glanced at the young disciple and quickly gave his answer.

“Senior Brother Yun, since you’re such a rare talent, didn’t anyone in Infatuation Daoist Temple ever tell you that romance hinders cultivation?”

Another young disciple spoke, but his tone was not mocking. On the contrary, he seemed to be asking seriously.

“To be honest, the atmosphere at the Infatuation Daoist Temple isn’t as open as Mount Xi. They take this matter quite seriously. But I believe, in cultivation, the Dao takes many forms. Each person walks a different path, and we shouldn’t generalize.”

Yun Jianyue smiled and said, “Whether love hinders cultivation has no definitive answer.”

After a brief pause, Yun Jianyue thought for a moment and said, “I hope the cultivators of the Dao in this world, with their differing daoist techniques and various Great Daos, don’t all walk the same road. That would be far too crowded.”

Once he finished speaking, there was a short silence, followed by an explosion of laughter.

Many young daoists found the words of this Temple Master of Infatuation Daoist Temple to be endearing.

He bore none of the stagnation seen in older daoists, nor the arrogance that often came with genius. On the contrary, he was more like a gentle older brother from the neighborhood, speaking softly. Among the crowd, a few female daoists of suitable age already harbored affection for Yun Jianyue. But all knew he was devoted to Ye Zhihua. Most could only sigh inwardly.

“Senior Brother Yun, what do you think of the Great Liang Dynasty’s Lord Warden Commander?”

Suddenly, someone in the crowd asked about Chen Chao, who was currently at the peak of fame.

Yun Jianyue said, “A first-rate genius of this world, a leading figure of this generation.”

Many gasped in surprise. None expected Yun Jianyue to hold such a high opinion of the young Lord Warden Commander of Great Liang.

“Senior Brother Yun, and his character?”

Someone pressed further.

“As a martial artist, he has the courage of one. Like the rising morning sun. The cultivation world judges him rather harshly, but in truth, he is a hero much like the Great Liang Emperor. It’s only a matter of differing positions. That’s why everyone sees him differently. But think about it: over the past few years, yes, he has killed many and acted overbearingly at times. But which of those actions didn’t have cause and effect?”

Yun Jianyue spoke slowly. What he said surprised the young disciples on Mount Xi.

“Senior Brother Yun, what is the most difficult thing in this world?”

The young disciples jumped from topic to topic, quickly asking another question.

Without hesitation, Yun Jianyue said, “Not relying on others, and not overestimating oneself.”

Hearing this, some disciples already began to reflect. Yun Jianyue’s simple words, for some reason, seemed to carry a deeper meaning.

“Don’t make things hard for yourself.”

Yun Jianyue suddenly muttered as he stood, slowly walking out of the crowd and toward the nearby cliff. He said quietly to himself, “Asking others is easy. Asking oneself is hard.”

The group of young disciples looked toward the cliff.

They just saw that young daoist, whose demeanor was among the finest in the world, slowly sit down at the cliff’s edge. Waves of Dao rhythm radiated from his body.

This scene caused many to widen their eyes.

High above, on the distant sky, multicolored clouds suddenly appeared and slowly drifted toward Mount Xi.

Soon, many daoists across Mount Xi had stepped out of their abodes and looked to the sky. Li Yu quickly arrived, standing not far away and gazing toward the cliffside.

His heart was filled with shock.

As a daoist sage, he had read countless records of his predecessors. In those tales, he saw stories of countless daoist seniors, about the heaven and earth phenomena that was triggered when those legendary figures broke through and entered Nepenthe, and when entering the end of Nepenthe.

But it had all been in books. Li Yu had never seen it with his own eyes. In all these years at the Myriad Heaven Palace, only one such event had occurred, when the late old daoist sage, who was also Zhu Xia’s master, triggered a phenomenon of white cranes soaring and circling the sky when he stepped into the end of Nepenthe.

Li Yu had once spoken privately with his Senior Brother, now the Palace Master of the Myriad Heaven Palace, who felt that only Zhu Xia might trigger the a heaven and earth phenomenon when stepping into the end of Nepenthe in the future.

Li Yu believed he would witness such a phenomenon only once in his life, and that would be with Zhu Xia. He never imagined that now, he would be seeing a heaven and earth phenomenon from breaking through, but it was not Zhu Xia who triggered it.

It was an outsider.

Seeing the colorful clouds, Li Yu was about to speak. But after seeing the colorful clouds, a bright moon actually appeared among the pink clouds.

Li Yu widened his eyes, dazed for a long time, his expression complicated. There were too many emotions - envy, joy, and disappointment, all flickering within. But eventually, all emotions faded. The Daoist finally gave a silent laugh and said, “Such a young great daoist sage!”

......

......

In the valleys of Mount Xi.

Zhu Xia sat on a bluestone, looking up at the multicolored clouds and moon visible across the entire mountain.

She propped her chin on her hand and giggled, ”So beautiful!”