Chapter 97: Affinity and Fortune

So that’s how it was...

To refine and condense Mountain Treasures and materials that had surpassed the shackles of the Power Barrier down to a level that a Martial Artist at the Bone Marrow or Bone Tempering stage could handle...

...required the mastery of a Qi Dao Pill Master?

But where in Anning County could he find someone like that?

’Am I just supposed to waste this treasure by swallowing the Demon Pill directly?’

Just as Ji Xiu was hesitating,

Huang Xuan spoke again:

"However..."

"In Jiangyin Prefecture, there’s a certain Qi Dao Pill Master. Even the Huang Family of the Medicine Shop Lineage, the very people in charge of medicinal ingredients and Alchemy for the Thirty-Six Professions, must treat him with the greatest respect."

"He comes to the Earth Dragon Cave every now and then, searching for a particular Earth Treasure that has appeared here multiple times: the Ghostly Marrow Cold Lotus, ranked thirty-seventh on the Earth Treasure List."

As he mentioned this Earth Treasure, an imperceptible flicker of longing crossed Huang Xuan’s eyes, but it vanished in an instant as he shook his head.

"I’ve met that eminence a few times and have served him faithfully on many occasions. If I were to ask him to refine a Tier Seventh Grade Bone Tempering Secret Medicine from a two-pattern Blood Pattern Demon Pill..."

"...it shouldn’t be a problem."

"The Abyss Ruins Qi has surged recently, which is the only thing that can cause naturally occurring Earth Treasures and Celestial Materials to manifest. Once he gets wind of this, he might already be on the Water Route to Anning."

"Just you wait a bit. When I have news, for the sake of our friendship..."

"...I will put my reputation on the line to help you leave this small mountain city. With my Art and your talent, you will go higher and farther!"

...

「The Fire Kiln, Ji Family courtyard.」

Ji Wei lay on her bed, her lovely face as if carved from jade, seeming to grow ever more translucent.

Normally, a young girl who had only been recuperating for two or three months and had never trained in martial arts shouldn’t have undergone such a complete transformation. At most, she should have just become a little prettier.

Over the past few months, as her brother Ji Xiu continually advanced and made a name for himself, Ji Wei’s own fortunes had risen with his—as the saying goes, when one person attains the Dao, even their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven. Her quality of life had improved immeasurably.

But at the same time, aside from being happy for her brother, Ji Wei mostly felt a deep sense of guilt and dread, believing she was holding him back.

Children from poor families mature quickly, and she was even more precocious than most.

’My brother is out there making a name for himself. What if one day he provokes some enemy who decides to use me as a weakness to threaten him?’

This thought weighed heavily on Ji Wei’s heart. That was why she kept playing pitiful, begging her brother to teach her Martial Arts and Pile Skill.

But perhaps not everyone has the talent for martial arts.

’Take Zhang Qing and Little Sixth, for example. Even though they’re nothing compared to my brother, they could still break through the Entry Barrier and master a Martial Art within two or three months.’

’But when it was my turn, I couldn’t grasp the first thing about it. My brother even begged his teacher, Master Duan, to read my bones.’

Back then, the one-armed master had said...

...that she probably wasn’t cut out for martial arts. Her achievements in life would likely be limited, forever hovering at the lowest levels of the Power Barrier.

As a result, Ji Wei had been feeling depressed. And though her life was much more comfortable now, with the freezing cold keeping her inside, she found herself... growing increasingly sleepy for some reason.

Sometimes she would sleep for seven or eight double-hours a day—fourteen to sixteen hours—and from time to time, she would have dreams that were somehow both vague and vivid.

That evening, as the sky dimmed and it became clear her brother wasn’t coming home again, she closed her eyes in bed and quickly drifted off to sleep.

But this time...

Her sleep was deeper than ever before.

And imperceptibly... a faint, fluorescent glow began to emanate from her body, making her seem to turn transparent.

Her Divine Soul seemed to rise slowly, gradually piercing the celestial canopy of the vast galaxy, rising higher and higher...

Until she closed her eyes, and opened them again.

She found herself in another Celestial Universe, one completely different from the Great Xuan.

"This dream again...?"

Ji Wei fiddled with the hem of her clothes, surveying her surroundings.

She watched the long, dragon-like queues of young men and women, their eyes full of yearning as they gazed at the high platform at the far end, where a young Daoist with an ethereal, immortal-like bearing stood.

The Daoist was holding a fly-whisk, his expression profound and inscrutable.

"The so-called Immortal Dao first values affinity, and second, fortune. If you have an affinity with our Dao, then entering our Licensing and learning the Dao Skill can happen in a single instant."

"If you lack that affinity, you will find it impossible to enter this gate in your lifetime."

"All of you are aspirants who have reached the age of fourteen to seek the Immortal Dao. Come forward in order to have your affinity tested. If you are fated... you may enter my Cyan Feather Sect for Cultivation and receive the Licensing to enter the Dao."

’It was this dream.’

A look of confusion filled Ji Wei’s eyes. She didn’t understand what Cultivation was, or what it meant to cultivate immortality.

She also didn’t know why her dreams had become more and more solid ever since she recovered her health, as if she were really in another world.

Before, they had always been hazy, never as real as this.

It made her... unable to tell what was real and what wasn’t.

Soon, the dragon-like queue pushed the young girl forward, seemingly shoving her onto the high platform and in front of the Immortal Inquiry Stone before she could even come to her senses.

The Immortal Inquiry Stone was over two feet long, perfectly translucent, and emitted a five-colored radiance. The young Daoist looked on with an air of detachment.

"Young lady, place your hand on this Immortal Inquiry Stone. There’s no need to wear such a lost and helpless expression."

"If you wish to emulate the greatest Feathered Ascenders, to become one of the Immortals and transcend the Celestial Universe... then you must know that affinity and fortune are preordained by the heavens. They cannot be forced through mortal effort."

"You either have it, or you don’t. For instance, in the long, dragon-like queue before you, not a single person possessed the aptitude for Cultivation. Such is the cruelty of the Great Dao..."