The next day, Wang Ping woke up feeling refreshed.
He made breakfast and tidied up. After their meal, he first took Su Dun to the back mountain to gather some dry firewood, then returned to clean the Daoist Temple. The afternoon was dedicated to his usual, unwavering training, but today was different. Wang Ping's practice was far more casual, much to Su Dun's amazement.
Three months passed, and winter arrived. The number of people coming for treatment in the afternoons increased, and they brought news from the foot of the mountain. Before the start of winter, the county had organized a search of the mountains, clearing out the Little Demons from the surrounding forests and driving those they couldn't handle deeper into the wilderness.
The villages had fared reasonably well this year. Only in the city did some beggars freeze to death, their bodies tossed into the Burial Mound.
Before he knew it, more time had passed. As deep winter set in, fewer people came seeking treatment. According to news from below, a traveling Taoist was holding free clinics in the county.
Two days later, the traveling Taoist knocked on the gates of the Daoist Temple. He and Yu Cheng Taoist brewed tea and discussed the Dao for three days. It seemed they ended up in a heated argument over a disagreement. However, people said that as the Daoist was leaving, he stopped at the foot of the mountain and bowed three times in the direction of Qianmu Temple.
The Spring Festival came and went before they knew it, and in the blink of an eye, the busy spring farming season arrived. A village below sent up a thirteen-year-old boy. Wang Ping and Su Dun made a special trip down the mountain to verify his background, and in the end, Su Dun was overjoyed to become a senior brother.
On March 27th, after breakfast, Wang Ping went to the main hall specifically to perform a divination for himself.
…
Afternoon. The backyard training area.
Su Dun was putting on the airs of a senior as he instructed Little Junior Brother Wang Kang. Wang Ping deliberately moved to a corner, casually assumed an opening stance, and then took a relaxed step forward. Following an unconscious impulse, he performed the motion of lifting a great cauldron.
The next moment, a glowing screen appeared before him:
[Chang Chun Technique: You have had a sudden insight and discovered a better training method. Practice your method 10 times a day. You can achieve a sense of Qi within half a year. (Progress: 99/100, Daily Progress: 0/10)]
Wang Ping was not overly eager. He had spent a full month mentally preparing for this day; there was no way he would let his composure falter at the critical moment.
After the first repetition, a pleasant warmth spread through his entire body. After the second, a stream of Qi began to circulate slowly within him. After the third, he located the Qi. On his fourth attempt, he tried to control this stream, but failed.
The fifth repetition: still a failure…
On the sixth repetition, Wang Ping finally felt something. As he completed the set of movements, he smoothly swung a palm to his side. A visible current of air instantly appeared, but it vanished less than half an inch from his palm.
From the seventh to the tenth repetition, the sense of Qi within Wang Ping's body became incredibly distinct. When he concluded the exercise, the Qi didn't dissipate. Instead, it followed his breath and intent, sinking into his Dantian.
At that moment, the progress for the *Chang Chun Technique* also reached (100/100)!
He was another step closer to ascending the clouds to gaze upon the scenery.
As Wang Ping exhaled a breath of turbid air, a fine white mist formed before him. Sensing the power within his body, he murmured, 'So this is what cultivation feels like?'
"Congratulations, Senior Brother!" Su Dun came forward to offer his praise.
A rare smile touched Wang Ping's lips.
"It is merely a minor path. Do not become obsessed. The true Great Dao lies within the *Annotations on Heaven and Man* your master gave you." The old Daoist had appeared at the entrance to the training grounds at some point.
"Can you explain it to me, Daoist?"
"In your dreams. That's your master's affair. Go ask him," the old Daoist said irritably.
"Are you hungry, Daoist? But it's not time for dinner yet," Wang Kang said, looking at the old Daoist with a serious expression.
"Pfft."
Su Dun couldn't stifle his laughter.
The old Daoist wasn't the least bit embarrassed. He chuckled and said, "But I'm hungry *now*!"
Wang Kang's eyes darted around for a moment. Then he said with a grin, "If you have some rice wine, I'll go make you a meal right now."
Mao Yulong's rice wine had corrupted another soul.
The old man and the two youths were now at a standoff.
Wang Ping, however, had no intention of continuing the conversation. He left the training yard as he always did. The patients who had been waiting outside the dispensary were gone.
His three senior brothers and Yu Cheng Taoist were standing in the courtyard, their eyes fixed on Wang Ping as he emerged from the training yard.
"Have you understood the *Annotations on Heaven and Man*?" Yu Cheng Taoist asked just as Wang Ping moved to greet him formally.
"Forgive my foolishness, Master. After all this time, I still cannot comprehend it."
"Then what have you seen?"
"Contradictions!"
"So, you are trying to understand the contradictions in the book?"
"Yes!"
"Haha!"
The laughter came from behind them. The old Daoist roared, "The Cosmos, heaven and earth, the myriad creatures and all living things—they are in a state of contradiction at every single moment. If you could understand that, you could become a sage on the spot!"
"The contradictions in all things are merely what we perceive. Perhaps, in truth, they are not contradictions at all," Liu Zixiu stated his view slowly, stepping forward after giving the old Daoist a respectful bow.
"I won't argue with you. We think and see things differently. To keep arguing would be like a chicken talking to a duck; we'd just be talking past each other!"
Upon hearing this, Liu Zixiu didn't press the matter. He bowed first to the old Daoist and then to his master before stepping back to his original position, a faint smile on his face.
"Dun'Er, Wang Kang, you two go and start making dinner," Yu Cheng Taoist instructed the two boys who had just walked over. Then he turned to Wang Ping and the others. "The rest of you, follow me to the main hall."
"Yes, Master!"
…
In the main hall.
Yu Cheng Taoist sat cross-legged with his back to the Golden Body Dharma Aspect of the Primordial Celestial Venerable. Wang Ping and the others sat on either side, while the old Daoist took the seat just below Yu Cheng Taoist.
"Six hundred years ago, the Ancestral Master, Lord Yuxiao, established this Dao Field and passed down our tradition. Three hundred years ago, the four great Mystic Sects, two Heavenly Sects, and the Buddhist Sect fought to control the world's destiny and pursue the illusory Dao of Longevity. Their conflict caused the world to fracture, and the Ancestral Master disappeared in the Mist Sea."
"Thirty years ago, a great demon was wreaking havoc. A plea for help from the Lord Prefect arrived by swift courier. My senior brother, who was the Sect Leader, took the six of us martial brothers and dozens of disciples to suppress the threat. In the end, I was the only one to return alive."
Yu Cheng's tale shifted from legend to reality, his voice devoid of sorrow or joy. His expression was distant, as if gazing at a landscape while he looked out at the empty courtyard. "Fifteen years ago, I took in An Tian, Zixiu, and Jade Dragon. Over these fifteen years, I have taught you medicine, martial arts, and some minor magical arts. If you continue to practice as you have, you will achieve something within twenty years. The three of you can be considered my disciples."
"Today, I intend to accept your little junior brother, Wang Ping, as my Direct Disciple. Fellow Daoist Wu can serve as a witness. The acceptance ceremony will be held on the sixth of next month."
After finishing his speech, a spark of life finally returned to Yu Cheng Taoist's eyes. His gaze, now full of vigor, was fixed entirely on Wang Ping.
"This disciple, Wang Ping, pays his respects to Master!" Wang Ping performed a deep, formal bow.
"Mm. Good!"
A rare smile appeared on Yu Cheng Taoist's face. He then turned his gaze to Li An Tian and the other two. "I know that ever since you three succeeded in your Qi Cultivation, your hearts have no longer been here at my little Qianmu Temple. I will not hold you back. In five years at the least, and eight at the most, I will let you descend the mountain."
The path of cultivation is tedious and bland. The legendary Dao of Longevity is an ethereal, uncertain thing. Only a very few can endure such monotony.
Hearing this, Li An Tian and the other two lowered their heads in unison, not daring to defy Yu Cheng Taoist's will. Now that they had succeeded in Qi Cultivation, living for another hundred years would be no problem for them. Five or eight years was nothing to be concerned about.