78: Chapter 77 Focused Cultivation 78: Chapter 77 Focused Cultivation “How do you see the death of the old immortal?”
After pondering for a moment, Hou Niao replied, “Disciple’s realm is lowly, and his knowledge is limited, so his so-called opinions are nothing more than the idle talk of those around…
If you must ask for Disciple’s feeling, then it is, ‘inexplicable?'”
Li Chuping also knew he wouldn’t be able to get much, even with a Tongxuan Upper Cultivator present at the scene, who had also been unable to discern anything.
Even if they had seen something, who would dare to speak out?
With the cautionary tale of Elder Guan’s preceding incident, who would dare follow in his footsteps?
He had sent the young Cultivator there to present gifts, and at the same time, he hoped to use Elder Guan’s ability to size up a person for the young man’s benefit, which had been the old immortal’s forte.
But since Elder Guan had indeed passed the Treasure Gourd on to him as requested, it was likely that he hadn’t sensed anything out of the ordinary?
He had his doubts about Hou Niao; reaching his own level of understanding, with unique abilities to discern others’ potential, he didn’t believe those old and cunning Daoist Sect authorities couldn’t see what was apparent from this young Cultivator’s performance in Anhe?
In terms of nature, the young man was an excellent Cultivation Seed.
His potential wasn’t apparent at a low realm, but as his realm increased, the role of his temperament would become increasingly clear.
It made no sense to push such a talent to Shan Country.
Could the prestigious Anhe Daoist Sect not accommodate such a minor Cultivator?
It was just a hunch, followed by a few casually set tests, which were all too easy for him in his position as Capital Commandant; yet, it resulted in attracting a whole heap of trouble for himself.
Without obtaining a definitive outcome, he now had more troubles piling up, cleaning up which exhausted him.
How long had it been since he had stopped dealing with these minor Cultivators’ matters?
“What do you think about the incident in the Poplar Forest?”
Hou Niao sensed that the crux was coming, but he didn’t plan to hide his tendencies; living like that would be too exhausting.
He decided to look at it with the perspective of a normal person from Anhe,
“If it was an accident, I have nothing to say; but if it was intentional, I believe it was wholly unnecessary!
It’s nothing but overkill.”
Li Chuping looked at him with interest, “Why do you say that?”
Hou Niao spoke earnestly, “The existence of Cultivation is based on balance.
Therefore, the usually tolerant Daoist Sect might be more aggressive on certain matters, while the traditionally harsh Demon Sect should be more lenient.
This is the way to survive, not the opposite.”
Li Chuping chuckled, “Hmm, sounds reasonable.
But should we also show leniency to those who have been leeching off government relief for ten years, or to their families?
Or maybe, do you have a better way to prevent such incidents from happening?”
Hou Niao shook his head, “I do not!
But they know, after this one, there are thousands and thousands more like them!”
Li Chuping’s expression became serious, “You have a lot of ideas, and I support my disciples having their own thoughts, but the prerequisite is that you have enough insight, to see deeper, think further.
Every Daoist lineage has its imperfections; the Daoist Sects have them, and Quanzhen certainly has them too, something I never deny.
Observe more, listen more, think more, and when you eventually reach a certain height, you will naturally come to the real conclusions.”
Hou Niao bowed, “I have learned much.”
Li Chuping waved his hand, “Go on.
Don’t concern yourself with matters that are not for you to worry about.
What you should be focusing on now is your realm.
At your age, half a year in the Energy Induction phase, don’t you think it’s a bit slow?”
…Finally, Hou Niao returned to his small courtyard.
Li Chuping was right; the foundation of a Cultivator lies in their own strength and realm.
Without these as a guarantee, all talk is in vain, only to attract ridicule.
That very night, he practiced diligently.
In the Soul Realm, he barely managed to hold his own in a fierce battle with Sword Two.
After being expelled from the Soul Realm, he examined his progress with Energy Induction and felt that the transformation of his Spiritual Power on his body was complete.
Compared to his former physical condition, there was a qualitative difference, but because it was the work of half a year, it did not seem so obvious.
The next step was to enter the Essence Building Realm, which wasn’t considered particularly difficult among the small realms before reaching Tongxuan, with a high success rate.
There are generally two methods.
One is the Elixir-driven method, simply put, Swallowing Elixir, consuming a large amount of them to create an overflow of Spiritual Power.
When the body’s meridians can no longer contain this power, it is timely channeled into the Dantian, achieving the Essence Building Realm.
The other method is the Natural Sect’s approach, which is not to hurry with the Essence Building but to rely solely on absorbing the Heaven and Earth Spirit Mechanism to reach the state of Spiritual Power overflow.
This is more difficult, requiring a high-quality environment and cultivation techniques, and the Cultivator themselves must not be impatient.
In the end, it’s a divergence on using elixirs, with the Natural Sect pursuing nature’s Great Dao and the other sect defending the pragmatic standpoint focused on reaching higher realms.
The disputes have been going on for thousands of years without any conclusion reached.
Hou Niao could only follow the Natural Sect because every time he Swallowed an Elixir, the mysterious vortex in Huangting would vanish, and the Energy Induction process would naturally cease, meaning he couldn’t absorb enough of the Heaven and Earth Spirit Mechanism.
Of course, there could be no talk of the Spiritual Mechanism overflowing through his body’s meridians…
It was a series of chain reactions.
To have a sufficiently long period of Energy Induction, he must prevail over Sword Two…
hence the problem circled back, leaving him somewhat perplexed.
Li Chuping despised the slow improvement of his realm, but wasn’t he the same?
However, he couldn’t rush now.
Since the pit of the Double Dantian had given him so many benefits, he could only grit his teeth and fill it himself.
With the Cultivation of the Energy Induction period, yet able to use such fierce swordsmanship, the support of the Double Dantian was indispensable!
There was no other way but to work hard to improve his own sword technique!
In the field of swordmanship, he was a person with a fastidiousness that wouldn’t allow himself to do a slapdash job.
In his view, if he skimped on the Sword Dao, then the Sword Dao would surely skimp on him in return.
In fact, he could have defeated Sword Two right now as long as he relied on his more solid Soul Body.
At the cost of life for life, he could afford to take a few more strikes to eliminate Sword Two, a type of battle that was permitted in the Soul Realm.
But in reality, it was impossible.
He couldn’t risk taking a few strikes to kill an enemy—this was the difference.
If he abandoned his requirements in swordsmanship for the sake of increasing his realm, whether it was gain or loss, who could say for sure?
He hadn’t understood this principle when facing Sword One, but now he did, and he would never again allow himself to cut corners and just muddle through.
If you don’t push yourself even once, you will never know where your limits lie.
He began to practice his swordsmanship frenetically, even refusing Jiang Nanying’s several invitations to go out and enjoy themselves without hesitation, which quenched the younger people’s interest in relaxation.
If Brother Hou was working so hard, what excuses did they have to slack off?
Days passed by quietly, and in Jin City, the turmoil caused by the pension funds gradually subsided, fading out of people’s sight and being replaced by other, fresher news.
Beneath the passage of time, no traces of people remain.
…How long will journeys from north to south cease, with people caught in the flow of time like water.
Only when there is no road left in front of you, do you start facing the sorrow of parting.
Ten years at sea of books, three thousand scripts read.
This is the only urban rebirth story with such rich emotions and details!
PS: Friendly book recommendation—”National Trend 1980″ by Xiang Huangqi
The 1980s Beijing comes to life under the author’s pen!
Full of flesh and blood, overflowing with laughter and tears, history unfolds once more…
The bygone, fiery, and pure era is touched upon again…
The protagonist, Ning Weimin, in his previous life was a shrewd small businessman, filled with schemes and the smell of copper.
If it weren’t for the lack of any noble virtues, it wouldn’t be said that he had no noble virtues at all!
Greedy and cowardly—after all, his home was where the money was!
But somehow, he was reborn in 1980, entangling with the old unlucky fellow living under the same roof.
An old man and a young man thus unfolded the story curtain in Fan’er Alley!
From being petty and calculating to bearing historical missions, what kind of transformation did the protagonist undergo?
From starting with collecting garbage to becoming an invisible rich man, how did he make his choices?
What impact will this space-time virus cause?
Why do the characters who cooperate with the protagonist in the book all end up convinced?
Different from other era novels that give a vague feeling, the stories told as if by the older generation are full of meticulous details, aren’t they?
How unforgettable and indelible must the author feel, to allow those rare yellowed photos to constantly appear in the bonus chapters for us to imagine?
Flip through it, and you will experience a different era, comprehend wisdom, and witness success!
If you were fortunate to live through that time, flip through it too; within you will find the most intimate nostalgia…
“National Trend 1980” is highly recommended!