120. The Question

Since Lingyu now had a master—none other than Master Wei of Guan Yun Peak—Duanmu Lin did not say much. He merely offered a few suggestions and provided guidance on some fundamental issues regarding sword cultivation.

Regarding the comprehension of sword intent, Duanmu Lin said, "Junior Sister Cheng, you may rest assured. While grasping sword intent is as difficult as ascending to heaven for Qi Refining disciples, it is far easier for Foundation Establishment cultivators. With careful contemplation, you will surely comprehend it one day."

Lingyu understood this logic. It was much like spells; when a Qi Refining disciple attempts to learn Foundation Establishment-level spells, they are often left confused because they lack the necessary level of power to grasp the underlying essence. Once one reaches the Foundation Establishment stage, both their command over energy and their cognitive faculties reach a higher tier, bringing those previously elusive concepts within reach. As long as one is not entirely slothful, gaining sword intent is merely a matter of time for a sword cultivator.

Before taking his leave, Duanmu Lin kindly cautioned, "Junior Sister, your Foundation Establishment came quite hastily, so your foundation is likely not yet solid. I suggest you take some time to settle your cultivation or perhaps venture out for some travel; that would be beneficial for you. Of course, this is merely my own opinion. I am sure Uncle Wei has his own plans, so there is no need to worry."

Lingyu thanked him and then went to the Pavilion of Myriad Laws to transcribe a copy of the *Five Elements Sword Manual*. Since it was only a mid-tier cultivation technique open to all Foundation Establishment cultivators, she was able to obtain the complete version.

Afterward, she went to Qingyue Peak, hoping to meet with Qian Jiale. To her surprise, the disciples at Qingyue Peak would not even let her through the gates, informing her that Qian Jiale had been taken in as a disciple by Master Duanyue and was currently undergoing mandatory, intensive training, forbidden from leaving for the time being. Only after much persistence did the disciple agree to pass on her message.

With her errands finished, Lingyu returned to Guan Yun Peak.

Wei Wuyang was still fishing, with a book covering his face as if he were asleep. Lingyu dared not disturb him and tiptoed into the cave dwelling. She found it strange—were Golden Core cultivators not supposed to be ascetic practitioners? Why did her master seem so idle? She had been living here for several days, and she had never seen him do anything other than fish or sleep.

As the door to the dwelling closed, Wei Wuyang shifted the book to glance at her, then covered his face again and continued to sleep.

***

Wei Wuyang did not let her rest for long. The very next day, he hauled her off to learn how to care for spiritual herbs.

"This 'Moistening Rain Art' is a basic spell required for disciples of the Hundred Medicine Garden; it can accelerate the growth of spiritual herbs," Wei Wuyang said, demonstrating it once for her. "Have you mastered it?"

The Moistening Rain Art was a spell that could be learned during the Qi Refining stage, and its principles were simple. Being a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Lingyu found learning such a minor spell quite easy.

"Besides watering on schedule, there is pruning, sun exposure, and pest control. Furthermore, you must constantly monitor the distribution of spiritual energy and the reactions of the herbs. At different times of the day, the herbs have different moods, which requires subtle adjustments to the arrays to maintain harmony..." Wei Wuyang listed task after task, speaking for two full hours.

"Did you understand?"

"I mostly understand."

Wei Wuyang raised an eyebrow. "I don't need 'mostly.' Do you understand, or do you not?"

Lingyu hesitated. She strongly suspected that if she said she did not understand, Wei Wuyang would immediately make her pay for it.

Seeing her answer, Wei Wuyang’s brow relaxed. Finding a satisfactory disciple was no easy task. First, they could not be spineless; if his disciple lacked a backbone, how could they ever make their way in the world? Second, they could not be stupid—he had no patience for fools. Finally, they had to be sensible; he had no interest in disciplining someone who had a temper but lacked the patience to endure.

For now, this disciple was passable, at least within the range of what he could tolerate. Of course, to make her truly fit his requirements would take long-term tempering; it was not something that could be achieved overnight.

"This is the schedule I have prepared for you." After demonstrating how to care for the herbs, Wei Wuyang tossed her a piece of parchment made from beast skin. "Starting today, follow this schedule every day. If you slack off even a little... hmph, hmph!" Before leaving, he patted her shoulder. "Work hard. I believe in you."

Lingyu took the parchment and nearly coughed up blood. The schedule was packed to the brim. All the chores required to maintain a cave dwelling were dumped on her, from dawn until dusk, leaving her not a moment of leisure. The time left for her to meditate was a mere two hours!

She strongly suspected that Wei Wuyang had not taken her on as a disciple, but as a glorified servant!

"Master," Lingyu said, chasing after him once she finished reading, "with a schedule like this, there is too little time for cultivation, isn't there?"

"Too little?" Wei Wuyang remained unmoved. "Two hours of meditation and four hours of sword practice—is that too little?"

"But... there are twenty-four hours in a day!"

"Do you mean to tell me you cultivate for twenty-four hours straight?"

"..." Well, she had to admit, that was impossible. No matter how diligent a cultivator was, they only cultivated for about twenty hours a day, unless they were in seclusion.

"But..."

"What more do you want?" Before she could finish, Wei Wuyang cut her off, his tone flat. "You are only twenty-one. By any count, you have only been on the path of cultivation for nine years. In nine years, to go from a mortal to Foundation Establishment—such speed is considered top-tier even in the great sects of the Cangming Realm, let alone for someone from a minor world with scarce spiritual energy. Besides, if not for your blind luck in obtaining the source of the Heavenly Fire from Mount Zhurong, could you have reached Foundation Establishment on your first attempt?" He advised her earnestly, "Do not be ungrateful. Even the direct disciples of Master Xianhua and Master Yang spent five years honing their skills at the peak of Qi Refining before going into seclusion to establish their foundation. Your current state is like a fortress built of sand—it looks impressive, but at the slightest mishap, it will be washed away by the tides..."

Lingyu was taken aback by Wei Wuyang’s sudden seriousness, and since his words were quite reasonable, she stared at him blankly. "Master, is my situation really that bad?"

"Do you think you are in a good state?" Wei Wuyang glanced at her sideways. "Think about it: why is it that others must toil and struggle to reach Foundation Establishment, while you succeeded so easily? That boy with you is likely being tortured half to death by the old man Duanyue by now. You should be thankful that I am not as crude as he is; otherwise, would you still be standing here so comfortably?"

"..." Lingyu believed this. The disciples at Qingyue Peak had already said that Qian Jiale was in mandatory intensive training—and for a sword cultivator, if training didn't strip a layer of skin off you, it wasn't considered successful. So, she was supposed to be thankful for her master’s "gentle" methods?

Bah! Gentle, my foot! She would rather be stripped of a layer of skin like Qian Jiale than be entangled in these chores...

As her gaze drifted toward A-Bi, who was squatting nearby playing with some grass, Wei Wuyang spoke: "Don't rely on your spiritual pet. You will do it yourself."

Very well. Lingyu reluctantly withdrew her gaze.

"Master, then tell me, how should I cultivate? What problems do I have? Give me an idea of where I stand."

"What about you? Where do you think your problems lie?" Wei Wuyang countered.

Lingyu thought for a moment and spoke honestly: "Disciple feels lost. I don't know what I should be doing. I had prepared myself to slowly hone my swordsmanship and contemplate sword intent, and only then seek Foundation Establishment. I never expected..."

"In other words, you didn't even expect to succeed in your own Foundation Establishment."

Lingyu nodded honestly.

"That is exactly your problem. A cultivator who does not even know the path they are walking—how can they continue?" Wei Wuyang said indifferently. "Do not underestimate the training before Foundation Establishment; it is the foundation for tempering one's Dao Heart. You skipped that stage. It looks fortunate on the surface, but in truth, it does you more harm than good. Unless, of course, you have no intention of reaching the Golden Core stage and only wish to drift through your life at the Foundation Establishment level."

That was, of course, impossible. What Foundation Establishment cultivator did not dream of reaching the Golden Core? Especially since she was still so young.

The more Lingyu thought about it, the more worried she became. Gritting her teeth, she smoothed her robes and knelt. "Please, Master, teach me."

"Am I not teaching you?" Wei Wuyang sat at a stone table, leisurely brewing tea. "If you cannot even endure trivial, mundane tasks, where is your Dao Heart?"

Lingyu froze. Did this mean that having her do chores was actually for her own good?

She fell into silent contemplation. Thinking back to when she was first brought to White Water Temple by Xuan Chenzi, she had experienced the peril of being surrounded by powerful enemies and the crisis of life-and-death encounters. Yet, neither the danger nor the crises had sufficiently tempered her state of mind, and in the end, her survival did not depend on herself. Just as Wei Wuyang had asked: Where is your Dao Heart?

The Dao Heart was invisible and intangible, yet it played a vital role in a cultivator's life. During the Qi Refining stage, it mattered little, as one had not yet stepped through the door. But from Foundation Establishment onward, the Dao Heart followed one like a shadow, constantly influencing the cultivator's future.

In truth, the so-called "training" from the peak of Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment was meant to temper the Dao Heart. Unfortunately, Lingyu had completely bypassed that process.

A long while later, Lingyu looked up abruptly. "Master, do you mean to say that the tempering of the Dao Heart must begin here?"

Wei Wuyang smiled, neither confirming nor denying, and walked back into his room.

Lingyu did not rise immediately, instead falling into deep thought.

She felt lost. She knew there were problems with her path of cultivation, but she had never understood where they lay, nor did she know what to do. With her sword intent yet to be grasped, her foundation not yet solid, and her Dao Heart not yet tempered, she was like a child of fifteen or sixteen enjoying the status and wealth of a high official without having earned it. It looked glorious, but the prosperity before her was like mist and smoke. As Wei Wuyang said, her fortress was merely made of sand, ready to collapse at any moment, while the fortresses of others were made of solid stone.

How to turn the sand into stone...

Leaning against the window, Wei Wuyang watched Lingyu deep in thought outside and revealed a faint smile.

The circumstances of her and Qian Jiale's Foundation Establishment had been thoroughly inquired into by the Elder of Affairs, Yuan Ningzi, upon their return to the sect. They knew that such things could not be hidden from the sect, so they had simply told the whole truth.

Initially, the sect had been shocked. They had not expected that the extinction of the eternal Heavenly Fire on Mount Zhurong was related to them. Yuan Ningzi had personally examined them and confirmed that a powerful force existed within their bodies. This force was of a very high grade—violent and surging—yet it miraculously harmonized with them.

Upon learning this, Wei Wuyang had decided to observe the situation. When Lingxiao asked why he had taken a disciple, the truth was that it had been a whim. The power within this girl was truly marvelous—water and fire as one, ice and fire fused. He had a premonition that by understanding this power, his own current problems would be solved, allowing him to break through his bottleneck and begin the journey toward forming his Nascent Soul.

He only hoped she would not disappoint him.