After that battle, the people of Fire Origin Mountain Domain did not come to provoke Wuling again for several years.
Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie, however, received some serious warnings from their senior brothers.
It turned out that while gathering information outside, the senior brothers had learned why Fire Origin had behaved so strangely.
Cai Tongguang, the man Yun Lie had nearly cut in half with a single sword strike, was the son of Fire Origin’s domain master.
Fire Origin Mountain Domain was very different from Wuling.
Wuling was weak, and its disciples had to face an endless succession of challenges. They barely had time to improve their cultivation, let alone socialize with others or find Dao partners they truly loved. That was why the domain consisted entirely of unattached cultivators.
Fire Origin, by contrast, had many disciples. For thousands of years it had been governed by the same domain master, who had a Dao partner several cultivation levels below him.
The couple had only one son, and the wife had lost her life because of that child. The domain master therefore doted on his only son. Since the boy was talented as well, his father valued him all the more. Over the following centuries Cai Tongguang approached the Soul Transformation realm and gained an unusually high position within the domain.
In time, Cai Tongguang came to consider himself exceptionally talented and developed an overbearing temperament. His mental state was rather unstable, partly because his cultivation history was still relatively short and his life had always gone smoothly. When he lost face, he wanted to win it back. It was not as though he had originally set out to murder anyone.
Unfortunately, he could not compare with the true essence Yun Lie had accumulated through daily battles and killing since his youth. He also had the misfortune to challenge Yun Lie just when his perfected sword intent was beginning to condense into a sword soul. Thus Cai Tongguang became a whetstone for his sword and almost lost his life. Luckily, Wen Tianhua shouted in time, and Yun Lie held back enough to leave his dantian intact.
Even so, Cai Tongguang would have to endure considerable suffering.
That explained how the incident began. The aftermath was another matter.
Fire Origin’s domain master, Cai Bingyuan, had reached the Mahayana stage. After so many years, he had accumulated tremendous power and status, and his mental state was as firm as stone.
Cai Tongguang was his one vulnerable spot. Although Cai Bingyuan knew that his beloved son had provoked the incident, he still felt a measure of anger.
A mighty cultivator of his standing could hardly seek out mere juniors for revenge. Yet he could not entirely swallow the insult either, and he feared that unresolved resentment might become an inner demon. So he first ordered his many disciples to stop provoking Wuling, conceding on that front. Then he commanded his followers to teach that young man Yun Lie a lesson if they happened to encounter him outside the sect.
As for what kind of lesson, it should be no different from what his own son suffered. If Yun Lie was fortunate, he could keep his life. If not, then let him perish!
Listening to the account, Xu Ziqing grew thoughtful.
So Domain Lord Cai wanted revenge for his son without openly breaking with Wuling. The price of his restraint was that Yun Lie would remain a target until he suffered severe injuries or even died.
From his lofty position, the domain master probably thought this an exceedingly generous concession toward Wuling. Perhaps he was not completely unreasonable by his own standards. But to Xu Ziqing, his senior brother mattered more than anyone. Although Xu Ziqing’s cultivation was still far below the domain master’s, he would never allow Yun Lie to be bullied without resistance!
The other Wuling disciples felt much the same.
After enduring so many years of challenges, when had they ever been afraid enough to hand over one of their own juniors to be punished?
Fire Origin was indeed far stronger than Wuling. As a native mountain domain, it also received resources from many supporting factions in the outer sect, while Wuling had no such foundation.
Even so, Domain Lord Cai’s condescending attitude showed that he had seriously underestimated them!
Gongye Feibai warned the two, “We may not be particularly accomplished, but we would never betray our junior brothers. Cultivate diligently, both of you. As long as you’re inside the sect, they won’t dare act recklessly.”
Ke Hong and the others added, “There’s nothing to fear! If it comes to a fight, they might not be our match!”
Warmed by the affection of his senior brothers, Xu Ziqing replied gently, “Thank you for looking after us. Senior Brother Yun and I will remember your kindness.”
Yun Lie nodded slightly in gratitude.
Afterward, the two truly remained within Wuling Mountain Domain to cultivate. With Fire Origin no longer challenging them and the other three mountain domains visiting less and less frequently, Wuling gradually settled into a measure of peace. Occasionally smaller domains still came hoping to seize resources. Most left defeated. Even those who managed a victory did not shake Wuling’s foundations. And so time flowed gently onward.
Five years later.
A young cultivator in green sat cross-legged. Behind him, countless plants and vines spread like grains of sand, intertwining into what seemed an endless forest.
But the scene was not real. It was an illusion of countless shifting images.
Soon the plants and vines twisted and changed into innumerable ferocious beasts. They lunged and tore at one another, each displaying its own abilities and terrifying power.
A moment later, the beasts vanished. Once more, only quiet shadows of plants remained, perfectly still.
Only a multitude of thick blood-red vines waved wildly amid them. Around the vines stood towering trees and green spiritual plants. Their presence seemed to balance the overwhelming ferocity, dispelling the murderous aura and bringing peace. No, perhaps it was more accurate to say the two forces approached equilibrium.
Yet the blood-red vines and the plants surrounding them had not distorted in the slightest. None could transform into the myriad forms of living things.
The young cultivator was naturally Xu Ziqing. The plants he could not transform were his life-bound wood, the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine, several supreme-yang secondary woods that balanced its nature, and Flesh Upon Bones.
Such wondrous woods of the world possessed extremely stable forms. Even transforming them into human shapes was extraordinarily difficult, much less altering them through ordinary spells.
Not even the heaven-defying Great Art of Myriad Woods Heart-Planting could achieve that.
At that moment, a stern-faced man in white approached and stopped before Xu Ziqing.
Lowering his gaze slightly, he asked, “How are you today?”
Xu Ziqing looked up and smiled. “Very well again today. I believe all my old injuries are finally gone.”
Why did Xu Ziqing speak of old injuries?
It all arose from an earlier incident.
Ever since the trouble with Fire Origin, Xu Ziqing had cultivated more diligently than ever. He knew that if things continued as before, he would still be unable to help his senior brother and might instead hinder him. Meanwhile, Yun Lie’s understanding of the sword soul advanced astonishingly quickly. Before long he had completed its first refinement and continued to progress.
Xu Ziqing possessed a legendary cultivation method. Although its power depended on long and steady accumulation, it should eventually give him many more abilities. He could hardly accept falling so far behind. His senior brother had once spent an entire century with his primordial spirit reborn in another body. Xu Ziqing could formerly excuse his inability to help because he was too young, but he no longer had that excuse.
If he and his senior brother had not become lovers, he might have been content to look up to him forever. But now they were dual-cultivation partners, and Xu Ziqing wanted them to stand side by side. He had to work harder.
Yet the harder Xu Ziqing trained, the more his progress faltered. For half a year, his cultivation did not advance at all. His spells grew more familiar, but their power became strangely unstable.
He failed to notice the problem until Rong Jin’s ferocious aura surged back against him one day, severely injuring his internal organs.
Only then did he realize something was wrong.
Yun Lie had been in seclusion tempering his sword soul. Sensing Xu Ziqing’s injuries, he ended his cultivation to investigate.
He discovered that his junior brother had nearly suffered cultivation deviation.
Xu Ziqing had developed an inner demon.
They stopped their strenuous cultivation. Yun Lie examined Xu Ziqing carefully, but when he questioned him, Xu Ziqing could not explain what was wrong.
So Yun Lie brought him into their room, and they dual-cultivated, allowing their primordial spirits to merge.
Seeing the matter more clearly from the outside, Yun Lie finally understood the source of his junior brother’s trouble.
It had arisen from many small concerns and tangled thoughts accumulated over the years, all of which had erupted together.
At its root lay Xu Ziqing’s sense of inadequacy and a measure of shame.
Ever since beginning his cultivation journey, he had endured countless trials and brushes with death. Each time, his senior brother had stood in front to protect him. Xu Ziqing had fought too, but felt he was merely playing a supporting role. He had even once nearly caused Yun Lie’s death. Though he later protected his senior brother for many years, the demands of forming his Golden Core meant he still could not attend to everything.
They were Dao partners and ought to stand as equals. Yet Xu Ziqing felt he had received far more than he had given.
He had often reflected that there was no need to keep such accounts between himself and Yun Lie. Whatever he obtained in the future, he could simply share with his senior brother. There was no reason to torment himself over it.
But the deeper his love became, the less sufficient his own gifts seemed. Uncertainty crept in.
Moreover, his earlier cultivation had been relatively smooth. He had never confronted a true bottleneck. Now his cultivation was stagnating, and the final divine water remained elusive. His unease gradually increased until it began to affect his mental state without his realizing it.
This subtle change made him impatient while cultivating. Minor obstructions appeared when he circulated his arts. They were not serious in themselves, but they prevented his spells from flowing with their former smoothness and ease.
After their dual cultivation, most of Xu Ziqing’s injuries had healed.
Although Yun Lie’s desire had not entirely faded, he put Xu Ziqing’s health first and did not seek further intimacy.
And through the merging of their primordial spirits, Xu Ziqing examined himself and finally recognized the cause.
He could not help smiling bitterly.
Yes, he was afraid he could not keep up with his senior brother, afraid of burdening him, and afraid that he could never repay Yun Lie’s deep affection. Most frightening of all was the thought that Yun Lie might someday grow tired of him.
A cultivator needed a firm mind. Whenever such thoughts arose in the past, Xu Ziqing had extinguished them and assumed his Dao heart remained pure.
He had not realized that while he suppressed them many times, they also arose many times. Little fragments slipped through, unnoticed, until they accumulated.
And now an inner demon had exploited those neglected doubts.
Seeing him like this, Yun Lie drew him into his arms.
Their skin rested against each other, and neither spoke.
Xu Ziqing could hear his senior brother’s heartbeat, steady and unfaltering.
It was just like Yun Lie himself: sharp as a sword, with a heart firm as stone.
Yun Lie was not given to many words, and he remained silent.
After a day and night passed, Xu Ziqing opened his eyes. His expression was gentler still.
At last, his mind had become as calm as water.
He entered seclusion for several months and finally destroyed the inner demon.
But the injuries left by the backlash remained, along with a lingering influence of the inner demon. He could only remove and wear them away slowly.
The process consumed several more years.
Only a few days earlier had Xu Ziqing finally polished his Dao heart until it was clean and clear, his old anxieties worn away.
The occasional fluctuations of mind that had begun with the inner demon were gone.
All the hidden injuries within his body had healed as well.
Just then, someone sent word: the task Xu Ziqing had posted at the Hall of a Hundred Ancients had finally received a response.