Jiang Xiaoyu did not cry. She even waved goodbye to Elder Luo and turned around to comfort Liu Zhijian, "Grandpa is a bit old and a bit tired. It's time for him to have a good sleep."
Hearing those words, one could tell right away that Elder Luo had used them to coax Jiang Xiaoyu.
"A child shouldn't talk like an adult." Liu Zhijian looked at Jiang Xiaoyu, who was still smiling mindlessly, and shook his head. "There are some things you don't understand now, but you will when you grow up."
"That's not true!" Unwilling to concede, Jiang Xiaoyu began explaining her reasoning with utmost seriousness.
In Jiang Xiaoyu's hometown, there was a peculiar custom called the 【Death Kiln】.
When elderly people grew old and lost their ability to work, they would move into a cave dwelling to await death so as not to burden their children.
Jiang Xiaoyu had personally seen her own grandfather and grandmother enter a 【Death Kiln】 and had even helped seal the dirt over it.
Now that Elder Luo had left, it was no different to her than moving into a 【Death Kiln】.
Liu Zhijian was somewhat surprised to hear this.
He had not expected that Jiang Xiaoyu, at such a young age, had already witnessed life and death.
"I underestimated you." Liu Zhijian patted Jiang Xiaoyu's head and said softly, "There's no one else here. If you want to cry, just cry. I promise I won't laugh at you."
"I don't want to!" Jiang Xiaoyu humphed and skipped away. "Grandpa said I should be a carefree little fish and live happily every day!"
...
Upon receiving the news, Deng Gang made a special trip back.
Because Elder Luo had stated beforehand that no grave or tombstone should be erected for him, Liu Zhijian took Deng Gang to the banks of the White Dragon River, where each poured out a cup of wine in memorial.
Compared to last time, Deng Gang was much more reserved, with a subtle, terrifying aura gathering around him. His every gesture carried an authoritative presence without even needing to show anger.
Inside the thatched cottage, the two sat facing each other in silence.
Liu Zhijian took the initiative to speak, asking about the situation in the Huang Kingdom.
A faint smile appeared on Deng Gang's face as he gave a light, casual description.
The current situation was exceedingly good.
One could even say the overall outcome was already decided.
The mortal towns and cities surrendered at the mere sight of his forces.
The enshrined cultivators of the Huang Kingdom's royal family, the Chu family, had either fled far away or defected.
In just three short months, Deng Gang's rebel army had already occupied three prefectures.
Liu Zhijian was genuinely happy for Deng Gang upon hearing this, bringing out wine to celebrate.
Deng Gang stopped after drinking only a few cups, no longer indulging in wine as before, nor did he invite Liu Zhijian down the mountain again.
"Brother Liu..." Deng Gang looked at Liu Zhijian, full of high spirits as he said, "In the past, you said that Mortal Turbid Qi would disrupt one's Dao Heart and hinder cultivation. But look at me now: my desires are fulfilled, my mind is completely clear, and my cultivation is advancing by leaps and bounds."
"Now, I have reached the mid stage of Qi Refining!"
"When I unify the Huang Kingdom... I should break through to the late stage of Qi Refining."
"With pills from the Qingyun Sect to assist me, in another ten years I can hope to reach the great perfection of Qi Refining, where I can make an attempt at 【Foundation Establishment】!"
Liu Zhijian listened with a calm expression, nodding as he said, "I have only read a few Daoist scriptures and cannot yet be considered a cultivator. If I have made a fool of myself, please forgive me, Brother Deng."
"'Read a few Daoist scriptures...'" Deng Gang held his wine cup, savoring the words carefully before laughing softly. "I have repeatedly invited you down the mountain, Brother Liu, but you refused every time."
"Looking at it now, Brother Liu is clearly a sect cultivator with a true legacy. It is only natural that you look down on a loose cultivator like me, who wallows in the mortal world."
Liu Zhijian froze upon hearing this, opening his mouth to explain.
"There is no need to say more."
Deng Gang set down his wine cup, stood up, and stared at Liu Zhijian, saying in a deep voice, "To be frank with you, Brother Liu, I am an orphaned descendant of the Deng Kingdom's royal family and of the White Dragon lineage! My ancestors once produced high cultivators of sect heritage, and even deacons of the Immortal Alliance!"
"If we truly talk about background, mine is hardly inferior to yours!"
"I only hate the Taixuan Demonic Sect! To settle the relatives of their demons, they ruthlessly slaughtered my Deng clan and stole our kingdom's mandate!"
"When I reach the great perfection of Qi Refining, I will surely charge up Mount Taixuan to demand justice for my ancestors and exact my revenge!"
Having spoken, he turned and walked away.
Liu Zhijian remained silent, able only to watch Deng Gang's departing figure until he was far out of sight.
Within the Huang Kingdom, the only sects on the surface were Mount Taixuan and the Qingyun Sect.
Having married a daughter of the Qingyun Sect master's family, Deng Gang was naturally well-informed.
Which sect Liu Zhijian belonged to was self-evident.
However, because there was still some sentiment remaining between the two, neither had brought it into the open before, allowing them to drink and talk merrily together.
After today, that would likely no longer be possible.
"The mortal world truly distorts one's Dao Heart."
Liu Zhijian slowly stood up, took his fishing rod and fish basket, and went down the mountain to fish by the river.
...
In the blink of an eye, winter had arrived.
The bitter wind blew fiercely, piercing to the bone.
Even Jiang Xiaoyu lost her usual lively exuberance. She no longer went down the mountain to play, instead staying inside to keep warm by the stove and entertain herself.
Liu Zhijian, having already opened his meridians, did not fear the cold.
During the day, he stayed in the thatched cottage to play with Jiang Xiaoyu.
At night, after Jiang Xiaoyu fell asleep, he would go down the mountain to gather qi by the river.
The night was deep and dark, with no trace of stars or moon.
The river water seemed suppressed by the winter cold as well, losing its previous mighty, rushing momentum. All that could vaguely be seen was a greenish-black ribbon meandering eastwards.
Peaks towered on both banks, casting layered black shadows.
In the wintry night, they resembled ferocious monsters that might leap up and devour a person at any moment.
Liu Zhijian cast out his line and waited silently, his entire being blending into the cold winter night.
When midnight arrived, fluttering snowflakes actually began to fall.
"It's snowing..." Liu Zhijian looked up, deeply stirred in his heart.
Wearing a straw raincoat and bamboo hat to ward off the elements, and standing aboard an old, dilapidated boat by the river, he truly embodied the famous verse: "An old man in straw cloak and hat, alone in a solitary boat, fishing the snow on the cold river."
The snowfall was immense.
In just an hour, the world was blanketed in a vast expanse of pure white.
Splash.
Liu Zhijian gently lifted his fishing rod and placed a fine-scaled little fish into the fish basket.
"Tonight, even though there is no bright moon submerged in the river and I shouldn't be able to gather 【Clear Qi Above the River】,"
"the drifting snow across thousands of miles makes heaven and earth limpid and pure."
"This imagery of spotless purity across heaven and earth far surpasses that of a moon in the water."
Liu Zhijian had read many Daoist scriptures and possessed a deep comprehension of the 【Kan Water】 imagery. In the quiet depths of his mind, an intuition suddenly took hold.
Ingesting qi to enter the Dao—now was the moment!
Liu Zhijian had read in the Daoist scriptures that such moments of epiphany, where one resonated with heaven and earth during cultivation, were the most precious of all. Once missed, it would be nearly impossible to encounter another.
Without hesitation, he lifted the fish basket to look inside.
The fine-scaled little fish inside the basket were packed full to the brim.
"Since Master said I possess the aura of 【Kan Water】, ingesting 【Clear Qi Above the River】 to enter the Dao should naturally present no obstacle."
Liu Zhijian reached out his hand toward the fish basket.
The fine-scaled little fish in the basket seemed to sense something, leaping up into the air one after another.
Splash.
Faint water ripples began to flow around Liu Zhijian's body.
The fine-scaled little fish did not fall to the ground. Instead, they swam upstream along the illusory water ripples wrapping around his arms.
The sound of rushing water grew louder and louder, until it became impossible to tell whether it was Liu Zhijian's hallucination or the actual sound of the river rushing beneath his feet.
A moment later, countless fine-scaled little fish circled all around Liu Zhijian, swimming and spiraling with joy. As their tail fins sliced through the air, they even carved out real ripple patterns in the empty void.
Liu Zhijian recalled the method of ingesting qi. Closing his eyes, he guided the 【Clear Qi Above the River】 into his meridians.
The fine-scaled little fish swam along his meridians.
Every time they passed through an acupoint, they transformed into a strand of ice-cool 【Clear Qi Above the River】 that poured into it.
Along the Conception Vessel, the cool sensation rose directly from the Huiyin acupoint into his dantian.
Then came the Governing Vessel; the cool sensation climbed section by section along his spine until it reached the Baihui acupoint.
After a complete heavenly circuit, it finally converged into the Sea of Qi, transforming into the 【Root of Heaven and Earth】 that linked with spiritual qi.
Boom.
It felt as if a window had opened atop his head, illuminated by a bright moon and brushed by a fresh breeze.
Liu Zhijian opened his eyes.
The snow had stopped.
The sky had cleared.
There truly was a bright moon hanging directly overhead.
"From this day forward, I am no longer a mortal, but the 【Kan Water】 cultivator, Liu Zhijian."
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