Chapter 146 Mid-Nascent Soul Stage: Forget it, I can't bear to hate.
The phrase "going into seclusion on a whim" refers to Song Yin. However, she won't be in seclusion for long; at most, it will be a few years.
Before going into seclusion, she worked overtime to finish refining the pills for the sect over the next five years, and then handed them over to Ruan Chaoxue. The third-grade pills would continue to be handled by them.
Before going into seclusion, Song Yin gave lessons to the alchemists and sword cultivators, assigned them homework, and told them that she would check their work after her short seclusion.
Xia Xining, upon learning that Song Yin was going into seclusion: ...
"You're going into seclusion, right? Let's do it together, sisters."
On Danque Peak, Xia Xining rested her hands on the table.
Song Yin kept writing with her head down, her hands never stopping. Hearing this, she asked, "Do you also want to go into seclusion on Danque Peak?"
Xia Xining blinked: "Is it okay?"
Song Yin: "That works too."
Of the once-solid trio, only Shi Heming remained, "all alone" on the Dao Asking Peak.
Many years have passed in the blink of an eye. Song Yin, who said she would go into seclusion soon, ended up going into seclusion year after year.
Song Yin's seclusion caused many inner disciples to feel reluctant to see her go.
Elder Song's decision to go into seclusion, which was already rare, meant that they wouldn't see him again for many years. Some disciples who wanted to perform well and enter Danque Peak were even more frustrated and cried out.
"No! I worked so hard to get into the inner sect so I could learn from Elder Song. Now that Elder Song is in seclusion, all my efforts in the outer sect have been wasted."
“Brother, I understand you. Who wouldn’t want to learn under Elder Song? I’ve heard that disciples who enter Danque Peak progress in cultivation much faster than others. I really want to enter Danque Peak too.”
Shi Heming walked through the crowd, and wherever he went, people were discussing Song Yin.
The Xuan Tian Assembly was held many times afterward, but unfortunately none of them could compare to the one that Song Yin and the others participated in. Since then, no cultivator has ever achieved first place in both the cultivation of two paths.
The photographic stone commemorating Song Yin's battle at the Xuan Tian Conference is still a hot-selling item.
Shi Heming was going to pick up his senior brother Zhu Jing. A few months ago, a beast tide broke out in the northern part of the Eastern Continent, and many sects sent people to provide support, including the Immortal Cloud Sect.
Zhu Jing and the other disciples of the Immortal Cloud Sect disembarked from the flying boat and soon saw Shi Heming who had come to pick him up.
The fellow disciple who had fought alongside Zhu Jing against the beast tide said, "Fellow Daoist Zhu, I must go home and visit."
Zhu Jing said, "Fellow Daoist Zou, please go home quickly. Your wife still needs your company."
This fellow Daoist Zou had been bound to his Daoist partner for many years. It was difficult for high-level cultivators to conceive, but when he went to resist the beast tide, he received the joyous news that his Daoist partner was pregnant.
"Senior Brother Zhu, I also need to go home first to see my parents," said the Golden Core stage disciple.
The Immortal Cloud Sect does not restrict its disciples from returning home, but only limits their time outside before they reach the Foundation Establishment stage.
Zhu Jing: "Okay, goodbye."
Shi Heming waited for a while before Zhu Jingcai approached.
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."
"It's alright." The two walked back, and on the way, Shi Heming asked, "Senior Brother, why did the beast tide break out?"
Zhu Jing: "After we arrived, we discovered that the spiritual energy in the places where the monsters originally lived had become thin. Their large-scale migration was only to go to places with abundant spiritual energy, which triggered a beast tide, and many villages and small towns suffered.
"At the same time, we also discovered that the space is very unstable in places where spiritual energy is scarce, and spacetime turbulence often occurs briefly. I remember you told me before that you and Song Yin have an acquaintance who has been looking for spacetime turbulence. We can send him to the place where the beast tide broke out in the north to try his luck. Maybe he will encounter a new spacetime turbulence."
Shi Heming: "I understand, I will pass it on to him."
Zhu Jing joked, "You had time to pick me up today, is it because Song Yin hasn't come out of seclusion yet?"
Over the years, those around Song Yin and Shi Heming have become more or less aware of their relationship.
When Zhu Jing found out, he suddenly realized why his junior brother always went to Danque Peak to find Song Yin instead of other friends.
Shi Heming: "No."
"Then I have to pray that Song Yin will come out of seclusion soon, otherwise someone will be waiting anxiously every day."
Shi Heming suddenly realized that he shouldn't have come to pick them up today.
Zhu Jing was amused by Shi Heming's expression. "Hahaha! Let's hurry back to Daodao Peak. These past few months of resisting the beast tide have given me new insights into cultivation techniques and combat. Let's have a good match, my fellow disciples."
Shi Heming: "Okay."
-
Song Yin secluded herself to cultivate diligently, temporarily escaping from mundane affairs and focusing her time and energy on improving her cultivation. And it worked! Her breakthrough in cultivation came naturally.
After successfully breaking through to the mid-Nascent Soul stage, Song Yin was thinking of breaking through to the late-Nascent Soul stage in one go. She had broken through to the Golden Core stage before, and she wanted to try it again now.
Unfortunately, she failed many times. Song Yin did not give up, but instead looked for the reasons and opportunities for failing to break through to the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm.
Having found the cause, Song Yin ended her seclusion. She needed to emerge and continue working on refining ninth-grade pills, as the key to breaking through to the later stages lay in this skill. Once she could successfully refine a ninth-grade pill, it would mean she had gained a deeper understanding of the inherited cultivation method, and her cultivation would naturally advance to a higher level.
On Danque Peak, the stone door of a cave opened, and fine dust fell down. A young female cultivator with an extraordinary temperament, dressed in green robes, stepped out.
Song Yin is now exactly two hundred years old, and time has not left any marks on her face.
Song Yin first looked at the cave next to her. Xia Xining had wanted to go into seclusion with her, but the fact that the stone door was tightly closed showed that Xia Xining had not yet come out of seclusion.
She walked slowly along Danque Peak. The familiar flowers, plants, and trees remained unchanged, and the peach blossoms, meant for viewing, bloomed perpetually under the blessing of the array.
Danque Peak remains unchanged, as if she had only been in seclusion for a short time.
In fact, Song Yin's seclusion time was indeed not long compared to other cultivators in the cultivation world, but it was considered long for her personally.
Song Yin walked back to her residence, washed up and changed into new clothes in her room, and then went down the mountain to check on the ordinary disciples to see if they were slacking off in their cultivation.
Han Changyu was teaching Foundation Establishment stage disciples how to refine pills, and he was somewhat irritable.
"I've already said to control the heat! Control the heat! Even slight temperature changes can affect the final grade of the pill. A pill that could have been a top-grade pill can become a mid-grade or even a low-grade pill just because the heat control was slightly off. Don't you think that's a loss?!"
“Teaching you newly recruited disciples is less useful than staying up all night refining pills. You are the worst batch I have ever taught. Look at Gong Wantang back then. As long as he learned a pill, he could consistently produce top-grade pills in every batch.”
Yu Lin also tried teaching new disciples. After teaching them a few times, he skillfully projected his gloomy and aloof male ghost aura, making these disciples afraid to come to him and ask him stupid questions.
After being taught too much, Ruan Chaoxue also began to try to escape. When Han Changyu and Yu Lin caught her, she was not guilty. When asked, she said that she was helping her senior sister manage the affairs of Danque Peak.
For sword cultivator disciples, there's no faster way to improve than through a fight. These disciples spontaneously practice swordsmanship and spar, and have even set a plan to have a match every month and then rank the participants.
Ruan Chaoxue saw Song Yin appear through the window from inside the house, and hurriedly put down the book in her hand and went out to greet her.
"Elder, you've emerged from seclusion!"
Song Yin: "Alright, there's no one else here. Call me Senior Sister if you want."
Ruan Chaoxue chuckled: "Congratulations on your completion of seclusion, Senior Sister! Please come inside and let's talk."
After Song Yin went in and sat down in a chair, she asked, "How has the mountain been during my years of seclusion?"
Ruan Chaoxue picked up the book she had just put down and placed it next to Song Yin.
"Senior Sister, please look here. There are records of the disciples' performance over the years, as well as the income and expenditure records of Danque Peak, etc."
Song Yin quickly finished reading it and said, "Not bad."
Ruan Chaoxue: "Helping Senior Sister with chores is a must!"
Song Yin gave her a thumbs up, "You're amazing, I'll give you an award later."
"Thank you, Senior Sister! Senior Sister is wise!"
After confirming that everything was normal on Danque Peak, Song Yin went to Wendao Peak to see someone.
Flying on his sword to the Asking Peak, he overheard several ordinary disciples of the Asking Peak chatting.
"Our two senior brothers are having a competition today, let's go check it out!"
"Hiss, Senior Brother just got back and he's already having a competition?"
"It is said that this match was brought up by the eldest brother, who specifically wanted to spar with the second brother. Let's go, let's go, there's going to be some excitement."
Song Yin then grabbed one of the lucky participants and asked, "Where do we compete?"
"The competition is about to begin at the mountainside arena. I just received my senior sister's communication talisman." The female disciple from Daowen Peak turned around, then widened her eyes and exclaimed, "Elder Song?"
Song Yin: "Come on, I'll go with you guys and join in the fun."
The female disciple walked with Song Yin, glancing at Song Yin from time to time and giggling.
Song Yin deliberately concealed her aura and mingled behind a group of disciples. The disciples were all focused on the competition in front and no one paid attention to those behind.
Song Yin gestured to her female disciple, signaling her not to make too much noise.
The female disciple nodded repeatedly.
The contest between Shi Heming and Zhu Jing has begun. The two men's spiritual energy bursts forth, their clothes fluttering in the wind, and a circle of talismans floats around each of them.
Zhu Jing formed hand seals, sending talismans flying in different directions to attack. Several landed on a nearby rock, causing it to shatter and the fragments to transform into sharp blades that hurtled towards Shi Heming. At the same time, some talismans still swirling in the air were coated with these fragments. In the next moment, some of these fragments were covered in solid ice, some were engulfed in raging flames, and others were crackling with lightning or coated with a layer of metal.
"Senior Brother has mastered the talismans of each attribute so well!"
"One move after another, the variations are truly endless."
Shi Heming was prepared. He slapped five talismans onto the ground, and a thick stone wall rose up, blocking all the dense attacks. All the rubble was blocked. Shi Heming released a lightning spell, and a lightning net covered the stone wall. Climbing up the rubble, the next second all the rubble exploded into powder, and smoke and dust rose everywhere.
While everyone's eyes were still searching for Shi Heming inside the dusty stone wall, Shi Heming had already appeared behind Zhu Jing, drawing talismans on the spot with his Nine Heavens Talisman Brush. He didn't need talisman paper; he drew talismans directly out of thin air. Each trace of the talisman was imbued with spiritual energy and flew towards Zhu Jing.
Zhu Jingzao was waiting for Shi Heming's move. He skillfully dodged the talisman, spun his jade brush in a circle, and condensed the spiritual energy at the tip of the brush into ink, which he then quickly flicked out.
"The eldest brother's attack moves have increased again, but the second brother is not bad either, and he can always block the eldest brother's attacks."
"Quickly memorize it, quickly memorize it! There's actually a way to break this trick."
Song Yin looked on with admiration; both of them played very well.
Shi Heming and Zhu Jin kept changing their moves and fought for almost three incense sticks' time, both of them ending up with injuries.
Shi Heming's white robes were also covered in dust, and the silver patterns embroidered on the cuffs, which should have been as pure as winter snow, had been torn during his battle with Zhu Jing, and were inevitably stained with grayish-brown mud. Even so, his back remained as straight as a pine tree, his demeanor outstanding, and his expression calm and composed, without the slightest trace of dishevelment.
The duel between the two was mainly a conversation. Shi Heming did not use his array skills, and Zhu Jing did not use any killing moves. In the end, the two did not determine a winner, and both sides voluntarily stopped fighting.
"Senior Brother! Don't stop, let's fight another round!"
"Second Brother! Show me your true skills!"
Zhu Jing said to the ordinary disciples who were gathered around him, "Alright, today's competition is mainly for exchange. You can all disperse now. We can compete again next time."
Shi Heming straightened his fluttering sleeves, feeling something, and looked up in one direction, then froze.
"Second Senior Brother?"
Shi Heming squeezed past the group of ordinary disciples, who automatically made way for him when they saw him arrive.
The disciples looked over curiously, wondering what could have caused their second senior brother to change so drastically. But what they saw shocked them all.
When did Elder Song stand behind them? They didn't even notice!
"Elder Song?!"
"Greetings, Elder Song."
"Greetings, Elder Song!"
A group of surprised ordinary disciples greeted them all at once.
After walking in, Shi Heming looked down at himself, frowning with regret. He should have known better than to accept his senior brother's invitation to a duel.
"You frown when you see me?" Song Yin saw through his thoughts and teased him on purpose.
Shi Heming's brows relaxed, and he hurriedly explained, "No, I—"
Song Yin interrupted his explanation: "Let's go."
Zhu Jing spotted Song Yin from a distance, then looked at his junior brother's worthless demeanor and chuckled.
Zhu Jing said to the ordinary disciples gathered there, "Disperse, disperse. Those who need to cultivate, go cultivate; those who need to draw talismans, go draw talismans. In short, it's time to get to work!"
Shi Heming and Song Yin went to the top of Wendao Peak.
The first thing Shi Heming did upon returning to his room was to change his clothes. "Yinyin, wait a moment."
"Go ahead, go ahead." Song Yin skillfully found a place to sit down.
Because Song Yin was there, Shi Heming quickly changed his clothes. He took off his white robe, hesitated for a few seconds over the color, and finally reached for some of the more brightly colored garments…
Song Yin didn't wait long before she heard footsteps approaching from the side and instinctively turned her head to look. Her dark hair was simply tied up, and her red dress made her skin appear even whiter, giving her an air of otherworldly beauty, as if she were tainted by human emotions and desires.
"It's all changed, but my senior brother was a bit too rough just now, and his chest injury is quite serious."
Song Yin: "Where are you injured?"
Shi Heming moved closer to Song Yin, pulled open her collar to reveal her wound, and said, "Yinyin, the wound on your chest still hurts. Don't blame your senior brother for being too rough; blame my own lack of cultivation. But even though the wound hurts, as long as Yinyin is by my side, I don't feel the pain..."
Song Yin stood up, her face righteous and awe-inspiring, and went over to touch you all over: "Really? Let me apply some more ointment for you. If that doesn't work, I'll specially refine a batch of pills to heal your injuries."
Shi Heming: ...
I hate that you're such a blockhead!
Forget it, I can't bear to hate.
This set of robes also has several flowing red ribbons. If you pull them over and tie them into a bow, Shi Heming will look like a gift waiting to be opened.
Song Yin thought this way, and that's what she did.
"Yinyin, what's this?" Shi Heming looked at the bow on his chest, wondering if his plan had succeeded.
"Shh." Song Yin pressed Shi Heming down into a chair, grabbed a section of the bow with her fingertips, and gently pulled it open.
"Let me heal your wounds."
Place your palm on the injured and reddened area, and spiritual energy will flow out continuously.
It seems to be just normal healing.
Shi Heming tensed up immediately and set up multiple layers of barriers around the entire residence to prevent others from accidentally entering.
Song Yin lowered her head and looked down, as if it were perfectly normal.
Shi Heming stared intently at the person in front of him, at the person's curled eyelashes, and felt the warm touch from his palm. His Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily.
Song Yin slowly raised her eyes, only to meet a deep and focused gaze.
One person was sitting, and the other was standing with his back bent over. The two were very close, their breaths mingling.
The injury wasn't serious; it could even be treated without medicine. Song Yin withdrew her hand. But Shi Heming grabbed her hand and pressed it against his body.
Feeling the rise and fall of her breath, Song Yin remained still.
Shi Heming slowly moved his thumb, which was holding Song Yin's wrist, and gently rubbed it into Song Yin's palm.
Song Yin: ...How can you tolerate this?
Shi Heming murmured, "Yinyin..."
Immediately, Shi Heming's pupils dilated, the faint sounds were silenced, and the world seemed to fall silent, leaving only the softness on his lips.
After a moment, Song Yin straightened up, intending to end the session, but Shi Heming pulled her into his arms, turning the tables and refusing to let go.
...
After watching the ordinary disciples disperse, Zhu Jing slowly climbed to the top of the mountain.
Thinking that Song Yin had also come, he went over to greet her. When he arrived at the outer courtyard gate of his junior brother's residence, the gate was closed.
Knock knock knock.
"Junior brother?"
"Song Yin?"
Zhu Jing: "Nobody here? Did they go out to play?" Since they're not here, he'll say hello again next time.
Zhu Jing turned and left, returning to her residence.
Inside the tightly closed door, the room door was also closed, and the two people inside were now separated.
Song Yin straightened her clothes and straightened the crooked hairpin.
Shi Heming was still sitting in the chair, his eyes were red and slightly moist, and his lips were red and glossy.
Seeing this, Song Yin went over and tugged at his loose collar, "Snap out of it."
He was the one who pulled her to continue, wanting to end things, but when it actually ended, he looked like he'd been bullied. Tsk tsk tsk.
The scenery outside the window remained the same, with birds chirping and chattering. They had both heard Zhu Jing calling them, but they ignored it and pretended not to hear.
After the two had tidied themselves up and looked completely normal, Song Yin said, "Shall we go for a walk?"
Immersed in happiness, Shi Heming was incredibly easy to talk to: "Okay."
They decided to leave the sect behind, disguised themselves, and then appeared on the streets of Xianxiao City.
The two didn't speak a word the whole way, but passersby could tell they were a couple. It was an indescribable feeling; they were simply a match made in heaven.
"I haven't had a chance to congratulate Yinyin on her recovery yet." Shi Heming broke the silence and naturally took her hand.
Song Yin: "I originally planned to break through to the later stage in one go, but unfortunately I got stuck in other places. I can only wait until I refine a ninth-grade pill before I have a chance to break through to the later stage. You can also try to conquer the ninth-order talisman. This will give you a deeper understanding of the inherited cultivation method and thus help you break through to the later stage."
Shi Heming: "I'll try it later."
Walking in Xianxiao City, Song Yin thought of Gu Tongguang. "It seems that this place is very close to Gu Tongguang's residence. I wonder how the news about the Time-Space Turbulence is going. He has always wanted to take the Time-Space Turbulence back to the Nine Spirits Realm."
Shi Heming: "My senior brother returned today. He said that the place where the beast tide appears in the northern part of the Eastern Continent often experiences spacetime turbulence. He also told me to find time to tell Gu Tongguang that if you want to find spacetime turbulence, you can go to the place where the monsters in the northern part of the Eastern Continent originally lived."
"What a coincidence?" Song Yin exclaimed in surprise. "Since we have news to tell him, there's no time like the present, so let's do it now."
Well, he actually quite enjoyed the atmosphere of the two of them together, but Yinyin wanted to see her friends, so let's go.
Gu Tongguang, who was practicing his sword, stopped when he heard someone knocking on the door. "Coming."
She opened the door and was taken aback. "Song Yin? And Shi Heming? What brings you here? Please come in."
Song Yin: "The reason for my sudden visit is actually to get information about the spacetime turbulence."
Gu Tongguang exclaimed excitedly, "Really? You have new news?!"
"There is new information." Shi Heming repeated what his senior brother had told him earlier that day.
Gu Tongguang took out a map from his storage bag and circled the area: "Northern part of the Eastern Continent..."
Song Yin asked Shi Heming, "I haven't had a chance to ask you yet, what's going on with the beast tide?"
Shi Heming: "This happened during your seclusion. The beast tide broke out in the north because the spiritual energy in the places where these monsters lived became thin, so they migrated in large numbers to places with abundant spiritual energy."
Gu Tongguang: "Northern Dongzhou, very good. I'll make preparations and set off in a few days!"
Song Yin: "So fast?"
Gu Tongguang smiled sheepishly and said, "I've been away from home for too long and I miss my family terribly."
"You are among the few friends I have in the cultivation world, and you helped me find the spacetime turbulence. I shouldn't hide these things from you."
“I have many siblings. I have an older brother and two younger sisters, all of whom are my biological children. My grandparents are still alive, and my parents have a very good relationship. Although we are not a large family, we are quite well-known in the city where we live. My family treats me very well. My sisters are super cute. When I left home, my youngest sister was only five years old. I don’t know how old they are when I go back.”
When talking about his family, Gu Tongguang's face was filled with a happy smile, and his words were full of nostalgia.
"Actually, I have a fiancée. The wedding date is set, and we just need to hold the marriage ceremony. Unfortunately, I encountered a spacetime turbulence and accidentally entered the Xuan Tian cultivation world. I don't know how she is doing."
Song Yin: "Don't worry, this time we'll definitely be able to find the spacetime turbulence and get home safely."
Gu Tongguang: "You're right! We'll definitely be able to go back!"
Song Yin: "Should we invite Changsun Li?"
"I'm not sure about her. For her, there's no one or nothing left in the Nine Spirits Realm to cherish." Gu Tongguang's understanding of Changsun Li was actually limited. He only knew the general outline of many things and didn't know the details.
Song Yin suggested, "How about this, I'll write to her and ask. If she's going too, you can set off together."
"Okay," Gu Tongguang agreed with a smile. "Let me tell you about my family."
Once the conversation had started, he couldn't help but want to continue.
Song Yin: "Okay, okay."
Gu Tongguang: "I was one of the more gifted children in my family. Whenever my parents told me that I could only play after I finished my training, my third sister would secretly peek at me from the window."
"Because cultivation requires consuming fasting pills and avoiding food with impurities, I often don't eat at home. My third sister thinks that our parents aren't giving me food, so she would always go to our parents to make a fuss, and then secretly bring me snacks."
Song Yin became interested in Gu Tongguang's third sister, "Have you eaten yet?"
Gu Tongguang smiled brightly: "I ate it, so I wouldn't disappoint my sister." As a result, when their parents found out, their third sister got a scolding instead. Later, as she grew up, she realized that her parents weren't deliberately withholding food from her, but rather that she needed to cultivate and should ideally consume fasting pills.
"Knowing that the fasting pills would benefit me, my third sister became even stricter than my parents and stopped letting me sneak snacks. Later, when my fourth sister was born and grew a little older, she started secretly bringing me food, just like my third sister..."
When talking about his family, Gu Tongguang spoke at length, and he was very happy just reminiscing.
Gu Tongguang told many interesting stories, and Song Yin gradually became engrossed in listening, because these were all things she had never used before.
After returning home that day, Song Yin immediately wrote a letter to Changsun Li.
A few days later, Song Yin received a reply from Changsun Li.
Changsun Li's letter stated that she would not be returning.
[…Song Yin, I know Gu Tongguang meant well, and I'm very grateful that you specifically asked me. The Nine Spirit Realms have long since lost their home; now my home is the Water Moon Sect. I will continue to stay in the sect, and I wish Gu Tongguang a safe journey home.]
Gu Tongguang also received a letter from Changsun Li. After reading it, he stopped insisting on persuading Changsun Li to return to the Nine Spirits Realm.
Before setting off, Gu Tongguang returned the house to the Xianxiao Sect and thanked them for their care over the years.
After learning that Gu Tongguang was going to the northern part of Dongzhou to find the spacetime turbulence and return home, Sect Leader Yan specially summoned Song Yin.
"Do you want to go and take a look? Maybe you'll have a chance to go back to the world you once knew?" Sect Leader Yan asked Song Yin.
She said this to other people in the Immortal Cloud Sect who were in similar situations to Song Yin, such as Elder Su of Xuanji Peak and the girl that Elder Pei had taken in.
Song Yin looked bewildered: "I don't know if I can return to the world I once knew... and I'm afraid I won't be able to return to my sect."
Knowing that time-space turbulence can allow her to travel between worlds, can she really successfully reach the world she wants to go to?
Sect Leader Yan's voice softened, gentle yet powerful, "Since you can use the spacetime turbulence to go back, you can certainly use it to come back. One should never forget where one came from, right?"
“…Then I’ll go with Gu Tongguang.”
-----------------------
The author's note: Someone is happy today, but I won't say who it is.
Guess if Yinyin will return to her former world? [droopy-eared rabbit head]
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[Empty bowl]
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