Chapter Thirty-Three: Shadows and Sand in the Wind

Chapter Thirty-Three: Sand of the Wind’s Shadow

“Boy, congratulations—you’ve passed.”

Chunyu Qian seemed to know that Fang Junmei would need some time to digest the experiences from the world of illusions. After he saw Fang Junmei open his eyes, he did not disturb him immediately, but waited for more than ten breaths before speaking.

“Elder, can you tell me—what I saw in the world of the medicine’s power, those illusions—were they real or false?”

Fang Junmei asked, still not showing any joy at having passed the trial.

“Since they are illusions, of course they’re not real,” Chunyu Qian replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world, without a hint of hesitation.

Fang Junmei nodded slightly. Although his doubts weren’t entirely dispelled, he could only choose to believe it. It had been ten years since he left Dragon Chant Goruk; in the mortal world, a decade was enough for countless things to change. Fang Junmei could not, because of a single illusion, cast everything aside and return to Dragon Chant Goruk just to take a look.

“Boy, I don’t know what you saw,” Chunyu Qian said, his tone somewhat stern and cold, “but the moment you set foot on the path of cultivation, those earthly attachments must be severed as soon as possible. If you cannot cut them cleanly, you might as well leave the mountain now and continue as a mortal.”

“Thank you for your guidance, Master-Uncle.”

Fang Junmei’s mind trembled, and he bowed his thanks. After a long sigh, the dimness in his eyes cleared, his entire demeanor seemed to shift in an instant, gaining a touch of otherworldly detachment.

Chunyu Qian nodded approvingly.

“How long did I take?”

Fang Junmei finally asked this crucial question.

Chunyu Qian did not answer immediately. Instead, he looked at him meaningfully and said, “If I told you that the time you took was almost exactly the same as Gu Xijin, would you believe it?”

Fang Junmei’s gaze flickered—he didn’t believe it. “How could it be such a coincidence? Master-Uncle, are you saying this just to spur me on to try to surpass Gu Xijin in the next trial?”

“Go outside, look at the sky, and calculate the time for yourself!”

Chunyu Qian’s words were concise.

With a few flicks of his fingers, the grand doors of the main hall rumbled open.

Fang Junmei stood dazed for a moment, then walked out.

...

Outside, the sun was setting behind the western mountains, casting a red afterglow over the secluded Peach Blossom Sword Sect, cloaking it in a gauzy veil and bestowing an added sense of tranquility.

Fang Junmei remembered that when he’d entered the hall, it was around noon. Though he wasn’t sure how many days had passed, since he had succeeded, it must have been within three days. So it was either about fourteen hours or about twenty-six hours. If it was the latter, then it truly was nearly the same as Gu Xijin’s time.

Footsteps sounded behind him. Chunyu Qian walked out of the main hall and stood beside him, gazing at the mountains. He chuckled, “Boy, do you still have doubts?”

Fang Junmei shook his head slightly.

Chunyu Qian said, “Now, if you want to surpass Gu Xijin, you must pass the sixth trial.”

Fang Junmei nodded.

Chunyu Qian took out another storage pouch and handed it to him. “This is your reward for this trial. Come see me in five years. If you pass the next trial, in addition to the promised reward, I’ll give you an extra pill to help you break through to the Dust Shedding Realm. Whether you succeed or not will depend on yourself.”

“Thank you, Master-Uncle.”

Fang Junmei smiled in gratitude. Linghu Jinjiu had already explained to him that the final bridge among the eight world bridges was the hardest to cross, and many disciples were stuck there.

Chunyu Qian summoned Song Shede and once again instructed him to escort Fang Junmei back.

...

Returning to the Immovable Peak, Fang Junmei resumed his cultivation. This time, his reward was two thousand mid-grade Sword Spirit Stones—four times what he’d received before, enough for him to train for quite some time.

Time continued to flow.

It was as if the Immovable Peak had been forgotten by the world. Or perhaps, all the younger disciples of the Peach Blossom Sword Sect had buried themselves in cultivation, with the great sect tournament drawing ever nearer. After all, a good ranking would yield generous rewards.

Three years later, Fang Junmei reached the eighth level of Qi Drawing.

By then, the two thousand mid-grade Sword Spirit Stones had been entirely used up.

If he relied solely on absorbing the free sword aura in the world, Fang Junmei would have been dissatisfied long ago—the speed was simply too slow. It would be better to cultivate the Peach Blossom Fundamental Wisdom Scripture to increase his spiritual sense. But after some thought, Fang Junmei put that aside. In his heart, the most important thing was to reach the Dust Shedding Stage as quickly as possible and participate in this sect tournament.

Not only did he love competition and challenge in his bones, but he also wanted to do his part for the Immovable Peak.

Since he still wanted to continue cultivating the Peach Blossom Fundamental Sword Scripture, he would need to acquire more Sword Spirit Stones.

Fang Junmei descended the mountain once more, heading alone to Medicine King Peak, hoping to begin the sixth trial ahead of time.

...

On the way, disciples who saw him were all stunned at his rapid progress in cultivation, and word quickly spread. Such speed could only be matched by the top senior brothers and sisters from the other peaks, but the resources they received from their own masters surely far surpassed what Fang Junmei could earn through his own efforts.

Fang Junmei ignored everyone and went straight to Medicine King Peak.

But Chunyu Qian was not there; Song Shede told him he had gone out for herbs. Another wasted trip.

After some consideration, Fang Junmei could only head to the task hall on Steward Peak to see if there were any other tasks he could take.

The hall was still filled with inner and outer sect disciples who had little hope of winning a good place in the tournament. Most were in the Qi Drawing realm. When Fang Junmei entered, they all cast complex looks his way.

Admiration.

Envy.

Jealousy.

Everything in between.

Fang Junmei scanned the hall; naturally, he saw no familiar faces, not even the female steward from last time—she’d been replaced. He randomly chose a green-robed steward elder at the early Dust Shedding Stage and requested a task jade slip to examine.

More than eight years had passed, and many of the tasks in the jade slip had been updated, though most were still about gathering various materials.

The Peach Blossom Sword Sect not only taught sword arts and divine abilities, but also offered methods for refining tools and pills—especially tool refining, which many disciples studied. The artifacts and treasures they made were not only for their own use, but also prime goods to sell for spirit stones. Thus, there were many bounty tasks for materials, some even posted by veteran disciples of the same generation.

Fang Junmei read through each task carefully, pondering them one by one.

Finally, he asked, “Senior Brother, this task for collecting Sand of the Wind’s Shadow offers a good reward. Why has no one taken it? Is the location very dangerous?”

Sand of the Wind’s Shadow—two hundred low-grade spirit stones per bundle.

Compared to the medicine-testing tasks, it was nothing, but it was much better than most other material-gathering jobs. The green-robed elder replied, “Wind’s Shadow Sand is only found in the northern Ghost Desert, even at its edges. The edge of the Ghost Desert isn’t too dangerous, but the winds there are extremely fierce. The Wind’s Shadow Sand flies with the Ghost Storm, moving at incredible speed and with a hint of sentience. Ordinary Qi Drawing disciples cannot hope to catch it. That’s why, despite the high reward, no one has succeeded. Disciples of higher cultivation disdain such tasks.”

A few words, but the matter was clear.

Fang Junmei understood, and his eyes sparkled. What others could not do, with his Three-Breath Spirit Stone and his speed, he might just manage.

“How much does the requester want? The jade slip doesn’t mention a quantity.”

Fang Junmei asked again.

The elder replied, “If there’s no quantity, then there’s no limit.”

Fang Junmei’s eyes flashed as he smiled, “If I bring back a lot, will the requester refuse to pay?”

His remark drew a round of laughter in the hall, full of mockery.

“Boy, wait until you bring back even one bundle of Wind’s Shadow Sand before boasting like that!” someone laughed.

“Don’t think that just because your cultivation improves quickly, you can look down on us. We’ve all tried this task before—it’s not that simple,” another said with some resentment.

...

The hall grew noisy.

Fang Junmei ignored them all, keeping his gaze on the steward elder.

The green-robed elder, seeing Fang Junmei’s determined expression and knowing his reputation, thought he might have some special method, so he said, “You needn’t worry about that. The one who posted this task is Senior Brother Yoda of Grand Void Peak. With his standing, he’d never renege on a deal; if he did, the sect wouldn’t let him off.”

Fang Junmei nodded slightly.

“Very well, I’ll take this task!”

He smiled as he spoke.

“Since you insist on going, I suggest you first learn the Gravity Art from the Concealment Sutra—otherwise, once you enter the Ghost Storm, you won’t even be able to keep your feet on the ground,” the steward elder kindly advised.

“Thank you, Senior Brother.”

Fang Junmei cupped his fists in thanks, ignored the mocking stares, and turned to leave, having already forgotten Linghu Jinjiu’s stern warning not to leave the mountain.