“This is…”
Lu Zheng suddenly snapped to attention.
They had been chasing from the south of the city, their route consistently veering southeast.
Had they reached Peach Blossom Ridge?
“Lu-lang~”
A charming voice rang out, and a palace-clad beauty in a flowing, pink silk phoenix-tail skirt emerged gracefully from the woods.
When Shen Ying saw Lu Zheng and Duan Changzai besieging Ningyu and the ghost python, especially noting Ningyu’s completely naked state, she didn’t hesitate. She formed a hand seal, and countless pink peach blossom sha energies materialized out of thin air, shooting straight at Ningyu.
Ningyu exclaimed, “Who is this sister, and why attack so suddenly?”
Ningyu had forgotten Lu Zheng’s surname, but Duan Changzai, of course, knew it and turned to look at him.
Lu Zheng nodded, “My friend!”
Duan Changzai grinned, understanding the situation.
But now wasn’t the time for banter. Shen Ying’s cultivation was no less than Duan Changzai’s. Countless peach blossom sha energies fell like scattered petals, joining Duan Changzai in attacking Ningyu and the ghost python.
With this, how could the scorpion and python possibly escape?
In less than a moment, Duan Changzai pierced Ningyu’s chest with a single spear thrust, while Shen Ying’s peach blossom sha shattered the ghost python’s soul.
The battle ended.
Lu Zheng had been a bystander throughout, only occasionally firing off a few evil-dispelling and frost-condensing talismans.
“Buzz!”
A tremor in his mind’s jade seal announced the arrival of twenty-two strands of fate energy, followed by another twenty-five, totaling forty-seven strands of fate light.
Satisfying!
At the same time, Lu Zheng confirmed something: as long as he caused changes in others’ fate, he would reap rewards.
“Thank you, madam, for your assistance!” Duan Changzai sheathed his short spear and bowed with clasped hands.
Shen Ying returned a slight curtsy, “I am Shen Ying, pleased to meet you, sir.”
Lu Zheng stepped forward, introducing the two to each other, and they became acquainted.
“My home is not far from here. Would you like to come sit for a while?” Shen Ying asked, “I have two old servants who can help deal with this scorpion.”
Though Shen Ying seemed to address Lu Zheng, she was actually asking Duan Changzai.
Duan Changzai nodded, agreeing, “We’ll impose then.”
“No imposition at all, this way, please.”
Shen Ying clapped her hands, and An Bo and Qian Bo appeared, lifting the nearly one-meter-long corpse of the jade scorpion together.
The group returned to Peach Blossom Manor. Shen Ying had Xiao Cui serve tea before they discussed the recent events.
“Speaking of which, I was able to slay the scorpion demon so smoothly thanks to Young Master Lu and Madam Shen’s help,” Duan Changzai said. “I didn’t expect this scorpion demon, with eighty or ninety years of cultivation, to also have a ghost python aiding her, no weaker than she was.”
Shen Ying replied modestly, “I merely happened to be here. Even without me, those two were no match for you, sir.”
“They’d have to not run first,” Duan Changzai glanced at Lu Zheng. “I heard you’ve been cultivating and practicing martial arts for less than three months, yet you’ve already achieved such encounters and cultivation. Truly a heaven-sent talent, your future accomplishments will be limitless.”
Lu Zheng waved it off, “You flatter me. I just had some prior foundation.”
“Still impressive. Your three months of cultivation rival two or three years for an average person,” Duan Changzai said.
Lu Zheng laughed awkwardly, seeming to want to say something but hesitating.
“Does Young Master Lu have something to ask?”
Having slain the scorpion demon overnight and unexpectedly killed a ghost python, Duan Changzai had earned significant merit and was in high spirits. Seeing Lu Zheng seemed to have a question, he spoke first to ease any awkwardness.
“It’s like this. I wanted to ask, how do we cultivators classify things like cultivation level and realm?
My master only passed down to me a copy of the *White Cloud Ever-Speaking Refining Qi Scripture*, saying that when I reach a certain realm, further techniques will be granted. I’m just a bit curious…”
Duan Changzai laughed upon hearing this, “It’s no big secret, because there’s not much to say.”
“Huh, not much to say?” Lu Zheng looked utterly confused. What did that mean?
“Exactly,” Duan Changzai nodded. “There are too many paths, all different. Beyond cultivation level, there’s little to compare, so we generally measure by the depth of one’s cultivation.”
Lu Zheng blinked, half-understanding, “But people’s cultivation results differ, don’t they?”
Duan Changzai nodded, “Precisely, so we base it on the cultivation speed of most beings.”
“Not based on human cultivation?”
Duan Changzai laughed again, “Humans are the spirit of all things, born with clear meridians, cultivating several times faster than other beings. How could they be compared?”
Damn, are humans that powerful?
“If not for the natural limits of the Dao, with limited lifespans and breakthroughs being rare, humans would long have ruled the heavens and earth, leaving no room for demons or ghosts.”
“I see…” Lu Zheng nodded, still dazed. “Like that scorpion demon?”
Duan Changzai nodded, “Take that scorpion demon, for example. Judging by her form, I’d estimate she lived about a hundred years, with eighty or ninety years of cultivation.
I’ve cultivated for thirty years. Though my aptitude is average and my power limited, I can face demons with a hundred and fifty years of cultivation. Handling two demons under a hundred years was no issue.
You, Young Master Lu, with only three months of cultivation, should only be able to deal with stray ghosts. Yet you faced that scorpion demon head-on without injury, your body brimming with vitality and true qi robust, capable of handling beings with twenty or thirty years of cultivation.”
Lu Zheng nodded, “I understand.”
He now had a basic grasp of his own strength.
“So, it’s just about cultivating vitality and true qi, reaching a certain realm?” Lu Zheng asked again.
“What’s a certain realm?” Duan Changzai countered. “There’s no fixed rule for cultivation paths.
Take your White Cloud Temple, for instance. It focuses on refining qi, cultivating a breath of pure yang, flawless, boundless primal cloud qi, naturally invincible and leading to longevity.”
“What about the body or the soul?”
“In the process of refining qi, they’re naturally strengthened—body healthy, soul clear.”
“No other realms?”
“What other realms?”
“Well, like golden core, yang spirit…” Lu Zheng ventured, testing the waters.
“Those are from two other Daoist schools, not the same as your White Cloud Temple.”
“Huh?”
“Three thousand Daoist paths, you think that’s a joke?”
“Huh?”
Duan Changzai shook his head, thinking Lu Zheng truly was a cultivation novice, and explained, “What’s the purpose of cultivation?”
“To get stronger, to live long.”
“Exactly. Who cares how I cultivate—refining qi, forming a golden core, forging the body, or nurturing the soul? As long as I can win fights and live long, that’s enough.”
Lu Zheng felt his worldview, shaped by web novels, crumbling.
“Not different realms, but different paths?”
“Precisely. Probably some storyteller heard bits and pieces and spun them into tales you took seriously.
Your White Cloud Temple follows the qi-refining lineage, with a long heritage. Other Daoist schools include the body-forging faction, which sees the body as a vessel and the soul as a guest, focusing on physical cultivation. In close combat, even martial artists can’t match them. They’re called the Daoist protectors, with the most famous being the True Lord of Pure Source Wonder.
Beyond that, there’s the golden core faction, bold and assertive, believing one golden core swallowed makes their fate theirs, not heaven’s.
There’s also the soul faction, focusing on the soul, cultivating until the soul solidifies, the yang spirit roams freely, traveling the vast world unbound.
Then there are the external alchemy faction, dual cultivation faction, talisman faction, artifact faction, and more, but they mostly fall into these four categories.”
Lu Zheng, “…”
