Chapter Ten: Conjecture—Nature Cultivates the Spirit
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Boom!
A tremendous collision shook the mountain forest.
Grass and trees were reduced to ash, while rocks split and shattered.
Mystic Brightness staggered back several paces, each step leaving a footprint that grew progressively shallower as he dissipated the force of the recoil.
When the dust and smoke finally cleared, a crater six yards deep came into view. The serpent demon lay within it, grievously wounded and bleeding without end.
A peachwood sword was driven into its vital point, pinning down its life force and making it difficult for its magic power to circulate. It had no way to escape.
The more it writhed and twisted, the deeper the wooden sword sank.
Seeing this, Mystic Brightness breathed a sigh of relief.
This demon had been troublesome and mysterious, but at last it had been subdued.
With a light sweep of his horsetail whisk, Mystic Brightness walked to the edge of the crater. Standing with his hands behind his back, he gazed down at the serpent demon and said calmly,
“Half a month ago, word reached us from below the mountain that several Perfected Ones of the Purple Glow Sect had descended from their mountain and headed straight for the Azurebillow River.”
“If my guess is correct, you are a fragment of the soul of that evil flood dragon that attempted to ride the river’s waters. Your true body has most likely been sealed.”
The serpent demon’s pupils shook violently at having its secret exposed.
Though the panic that flashed across its face vanished in an instant—so quickly it was almost imperceptible—it was still caught by Mystic Brightness, who had never taken his eyes off it.
“He actually guessed correctly!”
Mystic Brightness was secretly astounded.
In truth, he had not been certain whether the serpent demon was truly a fragment of a flood dragon’s soul.
It was only that, recently, the flood dragon’s attempt to ride the river had been the sole major incident. As a soul fragment, the serpent demon’s strength far surpassed that of one who had merely refined essence. Its true body could hardly be an ordinary qi-refining cultivator.
Moreover, the demon excelled at controlling water. In the final exchanges, it had even used the water to condense a flood dragon. Thus, Mystic Brightness had boldly tried to deceive it.
He had never expected the demon truly to be connected to that flood dragon.
With the doubt in his heart resolved, murderous intent surged within Mystic Brightness. The peachwood sword burst into dazzling radiance, and he struck without mercy.
The serpent demon did not even have time to scream before its body and soul were destroyed.
He raised a hand and called the peachwood sword back. Looking at the minced flesh in the crater, he stroked his beard and nodded with satisfaction.
This time, the demon was truly dead—dead beyond any possibility of resurrection.
As for the flood dragon, Mystic Brightness felt wary and apprehensive, but he was not so frightened that merely speaking of it would change his expression.
The Purple Glow Sect was a great Daoist sect in Azure Province, with several Perfected Ones guarding it and a lineage stretching back a thousand years.
Since they had acted this time to subdue demons and seal the flood dragon, it should be unable to break free for quite some time.
Otherwise, the demon would not have gone to such lengths to split off a fragment of its soul and possess a serpent. Clearly, it had lacked confidence in breaking through the seal on its own and had therefore planned to work from within and without.
This gave Mystic Brightness ample time to cultivate and grow. With his own accumulation and the profundity of the Scripture of the Yellow Court, he was confident that he could enter the qi-refining realm and become a Perfected One the following year.
By the time the flood dragon broke free, he would only be stronger.
At that point, even if he could not defeat the flood dragon, protecting the Seeking Truth Abbey should not prove difficult.
Of course, if his abilities became sufficient, Mystic Brightness would not hesitate to raise his sword and slay the flood dragon, eliminating the hidden threat.
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Besides, could he really have spared the serpent demon?
If he had truly feared the flood dragon and shown mercy to the serpent demon, allowing it to leave, his thoughts would never have flowed freely. His Daoist heart would have been stained, and his state of mind would have struggled to break through, hindering his cultivation.
He had once considered suppressing or subduing the serpent demon, but rejected the thought almost as soon as it arose.
To suppress the serpent demon would be no different from leaving behind a conspicuous marker—or a handle for others to seize—on Floating Cloud Mountain.
As for subduing it—
The flood dragon had lived for who knew how many years.
A monster of such ancient age would possess inscrutable thoughts, unfathomable motives, and layer upon layer of hidden trump cards. Though the serpent demon was merely a fragment of its soul, its essence had not changed. Its schemes ran deep, and no one knew how many methods it had concealed.
Rather than remain constantly on guard against it or engage in endless contests of wit, it was better simply to kill it.
Mystic Brightness wished only to devote himself to the Dao. He did not want to divide his attention over intrigue and maneuvering. A direct killing was simple and decisive.
What would happen in the future could be dealt with in the future.
Before the flood dragon broke free, everything depended on how far he could advance.
Several figures leaped through the mountain forest.
They were the young Daoists who had remained behind at the Seeking Truth Abbey, drawn by the commotion of the battle between Mystic Brightness and the serpent demon.
When they arrived and saw the devastation, they drew in sharp breaths. Under the moonlight, the white-haired old Daoist stood with his hands behind his back atop a treetop. Their faces filled with undisguised awe and admiration.
Who could have imagined that, after entering the Dao, this senior fellow disciple would rise like a soaring roc, advancing through cultivation with irresistible momentum? His strength was now terrifying. He was likely one of the abbey’s foremost experts.
“Greetings, Senior Uncle!”
The Daoists bowed deeply. Mystic Brightness inclined his head in return.
Leaving the aftermath to them, he lightly touched the treetop with the tip of his foot and soared into the air, turning to depart.
His bearing was otherworldly, graceful, and unrestrained.
———
The Scripture Repository, Inquiry Hall, within the thatched cottage.
Mystic Brightness sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion with his eyes closed, reviewing everything he had gained.
The events of the day had taken one unexpected turn after another. He had slain several demons in succession, including the soul fragment of a great demon. It had been a turbulent and dramatic battle.
Though not a single enemy had escaped, quite a few problems had been exposed. He needed to sort through the details, draw conclusions, identify and correct his shortcomings, and transform the experience into nourishment for his own growth.
Only after half an hour did he begin meditating and cultivating.
Time flew, and the stars shifted across the heavens.
Half a month later, the Daoists gradually returned to the mountain.
Upon learning that demons had infiltrated Floating Cloud Mountain, they grew extremely tense. When they discovered that Mystic Brightness had acted and slain them all, they were greatly relieved.
Afterward, they came one after another to the Scripture Repository to pay their respects.
To Mystic Brightness, killing a few lesser demons was nothing worth mentioning. As a Daoist of the Seeking Truth Abbey, he had merely done what needed to be done.
The first two times, he received them kindly enough.
The third time, he simply closed his doors and declined all visitors, asking Master Everlasting Peace to convey a message:
“If there is something else, you may come to the Repository to see me.”
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“If you have come to offer thanks, turn around and go home.
“We are all brothers of the same sect. There is no need for such courtesy.
“If there is nothing else, do not disturb me while I study the scriptures.”
The Daoists could only shake their heads helplessly.
They understood that the final sentence was the important one.
Their senior brother found them an intrusion upon his peace and quiet.
Since that was the case, they naturally stopped visiting.
As their senior brother had said, there was no need for needless courtesy.
A place of Daoist cultivation should contain fewer cumbersome worldly formalities and less pedantry, and more tranquility and sincerity.
When Mystic Yin and Mystic Plainness, who were responsible for handling the aftermath, returned to the mountain, life at the Seeking Truth Abbey resumed its former course.
The Daoists cultivated, while Mystic Brightness studied the scriptures.
Morning bells and evening drums echoed across the mountain. The entire place was steeped in peaceful serenity.
It possessed the carefree bearing of Daoists who cared nothing for the mortal world.
Meanwhile, under the arrangements of the imperial inspector, the people of Floating Cloud County began rebuilding their homes. Smiles gradually returned to faces once clouded by grief.
Alongside their praise for the imperial government, they would occasionally raise their heads toward Floating Cloud Mountain, veiled in cloud and mist, their eyes filled with gratitude.
Had the Daoists on the mountain not rescued them in time, they would never have survived until the imperial officials arrived. The people of Floating Cloud County understood this perfectly.
A month and a half later, the people below the mountain had resettled, and the county town was gradually recovering its vitality.
At the Scripture Repository, the old Daoist on the mountain finally finished reading and comprehending all six hundred Daoist scriptures.
The principles within his heart had grown increasingly clear. His Daoist heart had become lucid and broad, and an unrestrained air radiated from within him. His bearing grew ever more that of an immortal.
That afternoon, for once, he did not remain cooped up in the Scripture Repository. He walked out and wandered through the mountain forest.
At times, he mounted a bamboo pole and drifted downstream, letting the current carry him like a boat. At other times, he chased a rabbit until he was covered in dust, refusing to use even the slightest trace of magical power.
He entrusted his feelings to the mountains and waters, cultivated his temperament, nourished both body and spirit, and sought a share of nature’s simplicity and purity.
That evening, he returned home thoroughly satisfied.
The Inquiry Hall, within the thatched cottage.
After eating his morning meal, Mystic Brightness burned incense and bathed.
With his vital essence, spirit, and energy at their peak, he sat cross-legged upon the meditation cushion. Calming his mind and settling his spirit, he gathered his consciousness and entered the Mysterious Pass.
Amid a hazy expanse, three Daoist scriptures emerged.
Daoist energy drifted like mist, principles interwove, and the laws of the Dao curled and coiled through the air.
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