“Are you Gu Nianxian?”
“I am, I am.”
In the middle of the crowd, a middle-aged woman bowed and scraped, standing nervously to the side.
The man in black flipped through the register, his gaze lingering on her for a moment before he nodded with satisfaction. “Mm, very good. You are the kind of talent that can be used by the Saint Sect.”
Gu Nianxian’s face lit up with joy. The man in black pointed toward the interior of the hall and said, “The Sect Leader has been waiting for you all for a long time. Today, he will personally deliver a sermon and teach you. Why haven’t you gone inside to offer your thanks?”
“Thank you, Lord Sect Leader!”
Cheers erupted from the crowd. They were all people who had been screened through multiple layers and deemed talented by the Saint Sect.
Even if they lacked Spirit Roots and had been rejected by various sects… the Saint Soul Sect recognized their value!
Gu Nianxian clenched her fists, the long-dormant desire to become an immortal burning fiercely within her.
‘Become an immortal! Being age 50, drowning in debt, and married off to a mortal—what did any of that matter? If my useless daughter couldn’t do it, I certainly can. As long as I practice hard in the Saint Sect, I can become an immortal!’
Full of ambition, Gu Nianxian followed the crowd as they surged into the great hall.
*Clang!*
The hall doors slammed shut instantly. Above the hall, a massive lid sealed over the top.
“Wh-what’s happening?”
“Why are they locking us inside…?”
The crowd stirred with uneasy commotion. Just then, a deep voice echoed through the space.
“Fellow Daoists, I am Shen Dingyi, the Sect Leader of the Saint Soul Sect. The Sermon Assembly will begin immediately.”
“Please open your minds and cast away all distracting thoughts to receive the teachings of the Saint Sect.”
Hearing this, some people immediately sat cross-legged and closed their eyes.
A few hesitated, but seeing everyone around them sitting down, they followed suit, sitting on the ground and opening their spirits.
Gu Nianxian was the first to sit down. She firmly believed that as long as her heart was pious, she would surely earn the Sect Leader’s favor!
“Aaaaah!”
Wretched screams echoed through the hall. People’s bodies could not withstand the pressure, and they began to explode one after another.
“Hold on,” the Sect Leader’s voice rang out again. “The pain of receiving the Way is not something an ordinary person can endure. Only by clearing your mind of distractions can you become a pillar of the Saint Sect!”
Gu Nianxian felt as if her body were being torn apart. After a wave of intense agony, she suddenly felt no more pain. Her body felt light and exceptionally comfortable.
Opening her eyes, she realized she was floating.
“Collect!”
Shen Dingyi flicked his sleeve. Within the hall, wisps of soul energy flew out, sinking into the formation where he stood.
From his perspective, there was no grand hall at all—only a single massive tripod.
The Soul Refining Tripod.
Shen Dingyi felt the soul energy and nodded repeatedly with a look of satisfaction.
“This batch is certainly much more obedient than the last. They all stayed still and were refined perfectly.”
After performing a few calculations, Shen Dingyi opened his eyes. Above the Soul Gathering Array, a nebula map drawn from souls was clearly visible.
He paused for a moment, a flash of joy appearing in his eyes.
“Found it.”
After calculating for so long, he had finally encountered a soul related to the one who possessed the Jian Tai.
“Qingyang Prefecture, Shangyuan Sect…”
Shen Dingyi slowly stood up and sent a transmission to the disciples outside the door.
“Inform the leaders of each Saint Sect. The Jian Tai hasn’t escaped. It has been found, and it is within the Shangyuan Sect.”
“As of today… let the war begin.”
—
“To the left… a little more to the right. Yes, right there. Press it down firmly.”
Jiang Tong was directing his young disciple. A pair of couplets had appeared on the courtyard gate.
Tonight was New Year’s Eve. The Master and disciple had prepared well, setting up lanterns and couplets.
[One parasol tree, one willow]
[One round moon, two heads of white hair]
Horizontal Scroll: [Endless cycles of perfection]
Jiang Yueliu had written them this year. She had insisted on personally putting up the first pair of couplets for this small courtyard.
She patted them a few times with her small hands to ensure they were stuck tight. Stepping back two paces, the young girl looked at her work with satisfaction.
“Four characters would be better for the horizontal scroll,” Jiang Tong said, using his soul power to manipulate a knife. He was thinly slicing meat to prepare ingredients for the hotpot.
Looking at the couplets his disciple had written, he felt a bit amused.
“Four characters?” Jiang Yueliu glanced at him. “Wouldn’t that make it ‘Perfection comes to an end’ then? I don’t want it to end.”
“Then we’ll be Master and disciple for a lifetime?” Jiang Tong teased.
“What else?” The girl sat down beside him, resting her chin in her hands as she watched Jiang Tong slice the meat. Her large eyes remained fixed on him as she whispered under her breath.
“Master told me to live well. If I’m alive, don’t even think about running away, Master.”
“You were speaking like you were giving your last words back then. Does that not count now?”
Jiang Yueliu’s face instantly turned red.
“What last words? Master, don’t talk nonsense!”
Jiang Tong chuckled. He placed the sliced beef on a plate and began pounding a piece of pork on the side, intending to make minced meat cakes.
“What about the next life?”
“Hmm?”
The young disciple turned her head, her gaze toward Jiang Tong filled with confusion.
“I’m saying…” Jiang Tong pounded the pork slowly. His expression was unclear, but his tone was very gentle. “In the next life, what should we be?”
Jiang Yueliu blinked and thought for a moment. “In the next life… let’s be Master and disciple again, okay?”
Jiang Tong laughed. “Then I’ll be your disciple.”
“That works.” The corners of Jiang Yueliu’s mouth curved up. She propped up her face and squinted her eyes. “Each of us gets a turn to be the Master… that’s fair.”
She tilted her head, staring intently at Jiang Tong.
Whenever she looked at this person, her heart became incredibly peaceful.
The small courtyard, the wooden hut, the cutting board, the meat halfway sliced on the board, the fried chili peppers in the iron pot, and the person seriously cutting meat at the stone table…
Fireworks were set up by the lake. Tonight’s moon would be very bright. Even if it wasn’t perfectly round, it didn’t matter, because with him by her side, it would look beautiful no matter what.
‘I don’t know what a hotpot is supposed to look like; it is just the chili peppers in the iron pot and the plates of meat brought from the cutting board. I don’t know what you look like; you are just the little ball of air that leaked from the wooden plaque, or the Bell Young Master who came out of the bell. But the rhythmic sound of the kitchen knife hitting the cutting board is so reassuring. You look so handsome when you’re serious, so sitting here feels like an eternity.’
‘In the spring of next year, the lakeside will be covered in willow branches. I want to build a round island in the center and plant a parasol tree on it. We will sit by the lake and watch them change from emerald green to withered yellow, and from withered yellow back to emerald green, while you and I never change.’
‘The Immortal Path is long, and life is ordinary. I want to spend a long, long time with you.’
‘Master…’
‘Jiang Tong.’
*Rumble—*
The faint sound of thunder rolled in. In the sky, dark clouds piled up like mountains, slowly converging toward the Shangyuan Sect.
The earth was covered in ink-like shadows. In the waters of Guanye Lake, continuous stretches of black were reflected.
A dull, heavy roar echoed from the distance.
Jiang Tong’s movements paused. On the cutting board, a few snowflakes had appeared at some point.
He looked up at the sky. Snow filled the air. This was the first snow to fall since winter had begun in Qingyang Prefecture, and it was a heavy one.
Figures flew out from various mountain peaks, rushing toward the horizon. Above them were endless black clouds, yet they charged toward that darkness without a second thought.
“Master…”
Jiang Yueliu wrapped her coat tighter and exhaled a breath of cold air. She saw it all happening.
Given the range of Jiang Tong’s Divine Sense, he likely only saw that it was snowing.
The girl gazed up at the scene, as if the world were about to collapse.
Her voice trembled with cold, but she said with a smile, “Master, it seems… it’s snowing…”
Jiang Tong put down the knife and silently watched the firmament.
“Yes,” he said. “It’s snowing.”
—
New Year’s Eve, Yuan Calendar 280. Midwinter. Heavy snow.
The Demon Gates joined forces and attacked the Shangyuan Sect.