Chapter 274: True Self

The sun sank low in the west.

Dusk fell once more. After a day’s respite, a light wind stirred in the mountains, and the heavy snow returned.

Master Yun Ci’s small manor was half-buried in the wind and snow. The ground all around was blanketed in pristine white, without a single footprint to be seen.

She had only two Daoist Children as attendants, and having recently refused all visitors, she was living a life of near-total seclusion.

The one who greeted him today was not the young boy, Qingfeng, but a young girl. Chen Qingyang had met her before and knew her name wasn’t actually Mingyue.

“Master has left instructions. If Senior Brother Chen arrives, you may go straight up!”

“Thank you.”

He slipped off his shoes at the door and entered barefoot. The floorboards creaked under his weight as he made his way up to the fourth floor.

The room was bare, save for seven candles burning in the very center. Yun Ci was still seated there, meditating.

“This disciple pays his respects, Master!”

Yun Ci replied quickly this time, unlike before when she would ponder her words. “You should be satisfied now, shouldn’t you?”

Her voice, cool and detached, carried a hint of mockery. Chen Qingyang could only clasp his hands and bow again. “Thank you for bestowing the Cultivation Technique, Master. I have already burned the letter. Only you and I know of this matter. I guarantee it will bring you no trouble. Please, rest assured.”

Yun Ci rose and padded lightly a few steps on her Jade Feet, casting a sidelong glance at him. “Hmph. You certainly know how to scheme. Trying to use this to tie us together, are you? Hoping for more benefits in the future?”

‘She’s so clever,’ Chen Qingyang thought. ‘She figured out my intentions that quickly.’

Chen Qingyang’s solemn expression didn’t falter. “You may not be aware, Master, but when I was at Ci Yun Temple, I met an old Daoist Child in the First Realm of Qi Refining. He told me that he showed great respect to every person who passed by wearing the Vermilion and Purple Attire. By doing so, he sometimes received a few Elixirs. It was by this method alone that he scraped together enough for his First Realm of Qi Refining Cultivation over several decades.”

“Immortal Fate is hard to find and bitterly sought. People of low status like myself can only seize every opportunity, praying it allows us to walk further down this path. To me, Master, you are no different than someone wearing the Vermilion and Purple Attire. I just didn’t expect that my petty scheme would be so easily seen through by you.”

Suddenly, Yun Ci chuckled. It seemed she enjoyed seeing Chen Qingyang in this deferential posture before her. “Heh. You are no ‘person of low status.’ You’re full of schemes. Your words, your actions—it’s all part of a calculated act…”

She chided him for a while, as if venting her anger at his manipulations. Then, she extended her hand. “…Alright, hand them over!”

Chen Qingyang took a few steps forward to the long table and, in one smooth motion, laid out twenty Elixirs.

Yun Ci frowned slightly. She had the face of a young maiden; it was only her profound Cultivation that gave her the cool, detached, and unapproachable air of a Master.

That small frown revealed a hint of cuteness, making her seem even more like a young girl. “Don’t you ever fail at Alchemy? How have you produced so many in such a short time? Did you Refine all of these yourself?”

It was a natural question. Anyone would have been just as surprised.

“I told you I would help you fully restore your Cultivation, Master. This is only the beginning. Later, if I can raise these Elixirs to Tier Six, you won’t even need two or three years to recover.”

Hearing the conviction in his voice, Yun Ci stared at him for a long moment, the wind seemingly taken out of her sails. Her tone toward Chen Qingyang softened. “I’ve already given you the Technique for Universe in the Sleeve. Now you’ve brought more Elixirs. Is there something else you’re after?”

Chen Qingyang seized the opening. “I wouldn’t say I’m ‘after something.’ I just have a small question.”

“Hmph!” At his words, Yun Ci’s expression seemed to turn cold again. She moved gracefully to her cushion, sat cross-legged, and turned her back to him.

“You’re not going to make a new demand every time you deliver Elixirs, are you? If so, I won’t be able to satisfy you. These Elixirs… you can take them back.”

Chen Qingyang immediately understood that he had been too hasty. The Master was, after all, a proud woman. He needed to be more accommodating and avoid making her feel he was too opportunistic.

“You’ve misunderstood, Master. I am by no means an insatiably greedy person. I wouldn’t dare bring this up and risk your anger if it didn’t concern your Disciple, Xu Baoling.”

Sure enough, upon hearing that name, Yun Ci fell silent. Perhaps she was wondering if she had truly misunderstood Chen Qingyang.

“Then tell me.”

At once, Chen Qingyang explained Xu Baoling’s current situation and the Cultivation Method she was practicing, omitting certain crucial details, of course.

After listening, Yun Ci nodded lightly. “I admit, I misunderstood you. This is indeed not for your own benefit. If she can achieve the Dao under your guidance, then it is a testament to her Immortal Fate.”

“She was the one who tried to kill you first. For things to have reached this point is a testament to your magnanimity…”

Realizing she had jumped to conclusions, she immediately began to praise Chen Qingyang. “I… I can pass the method of the Mountain and River Daoist Lord to her. Just have her come and see me in person.”

‘That works too,’ he thought. ‘Yun Ci doesn’t want to give it to me directly, but giving it to Xu Baoling is practically the same as giving it to me. With me as her Source Aspect, there is no more stable relationship in this world.’

‘Chen Qingyang had no personal interest in it, anyway. He only ever practiced two kinds of Cultivation Methods in his life: one that allowed him to harm others, and one that protected him from being harmed by them.’

“Thank you for your graciousness, Master.”

Yun Ci said, “It’s hardly my doing. This is a matter concerning one of my own disciples. If anything, you’re the one making this possible for her. And…”