Reflections on the Past

As daylight faded, a hazy night draped over Chixia City. Qin Ming sat quietly in his room, watching fragmented scenes of the past draw near from afar, constantly reassembling and solidifying. "So you are Li Qingxu." Qin Ming looked at the feather-robed youth in the vision, finally learning his name. The two had known each other in the past, though they could hardly be called old friends—they had been nodding acquaintances at best. "A member of the Li clan's direct line, blessed with extraordinary natural talent. While it is exceedingly difficult for others to gain apprenticeship under those beyond the mundane world, he was exceptionally suited to that path. A senior master whose renown shook the entire night world took notice of him and made an exception to take him in as a personal disciple." Qin Ming frowned. That senior master from the lands beyond the mundane world seemed like someone not to be crossed, commanding respect even from millennial clans. Li Qingxu's figure surfaced before his eyes once more: clad in feather robes like an immortal, ethereal and transcendent. Even the purple, glowing bamboo staff in his hand was remarkable—a wondrous bamboo from a blessed land that had once caught heavenly light from beyond the mortal realm. Before long, the youth's figure faded away. More scenes emerged, all the fragmented memories reassembling and rushing into his mind all at once. Apart from a few minor details that remained hazy, the core of his past memories had returned. Qin Ming repeatedly rubbed his temples to ease his fatigue. A vast flood of images and scenes, spanning from childhood to youth, struck him like wave after wave of surging tides. Qin Ming absorbed and digested them rapidly, his emotions thoroughly tangled. The myriad feelings of the past threatened to overwhelm him like a sea of mist. Circulating the method recorded on the silk book, he calmed his mind, broke through the cage of surrounding memories, and pulled himself free to look down upon his past. He wanted to view his former self from a different perspective. Questions lingered in his heart, and he wished to scrutinize those past experiences with a critical eye. "I am Cui Chonghe, of a millennial clan's direct line." Through his memories, Qin Ming first confirmed his identity. All those events of the past seemed to transform into a slightly yellowed book, discovered in a dust-covered old room, which he now reopened. Qin Ming turned the first page, as if crossing the dappled expanse of years to return to more than a decade ago. "Poor child, you suffered out there. Remember, I am your Seventh Uncle." A young man with thick eyebrows and extraordinarily bright eyes patted his head and spoke, offering a gentle smile. His teeth were gleaming white, as if shining with light. Qin Ming was thoroughly familiar with him. This was Cui Hao, one of the people he had been closest to. From childhood onward, he had always remained close to this Seventh Uncle. He gazed ahead. This was the earliest memory of his youth. "Was I lost once?" Qin Ming murmured softly. In that memory, he had been at most three or four years old, wearing tattered little clothes. He hoped to remember more, but he could not. A normal person's earliest memories usually began at only three or four years of age. Someone had taken him to bathe, dressed him in clean clothes, and adorned him with fine jade, making him look like an entirely different person. Though slightly uneasy, his stubborn nature refused to show weakness or stage fright; his small figure had stood straight, lingering there in silence. The scene turned rapidly. He moved into the Cui clan, where people taught him how to read and instructed him on various rules, all of which he committed diligently to memory. During that time, he had secretly wept, not wanting anyone to see. "Chonghe, remember your name and never forget it again. Come, I'll teach you how to write these characters." An elder personally taught him calligraphy. "Chonghe, come here. This is your younger brother by blood, Cui Chongxuan. In the future, you must protect him well. He is one of your dearest kin." The Cui mother appeared. She looked very young, elegant and dignified, with an exquisitely beautiful face. Fastened in her hair was a plume shimmering with golden radiance used as a hairpin, shedding a hazy glow that marked it as no ordinary object. The child she led by her right hand was very small, barely over two years old, but appeared exceptionally clever. His dark, round eyes were darting about, looking at him with curiosity. "He is a year and a half younger than you. In the days ahead, you two must love and care for each other. You are the elder brother, so you must look after him more," the Cui mother said. "Alright!" The nearly four-year-old Qin Ming nodded. He settled down in the Cui clan and grew entirely accustomed to life there. The Cui father was stern and commanded immense prestige within the household. As a child, Qin Ming had always remained quiet whenever he saw him. Perhaps because of this, he had grown particularly close to Cui Hao. Seventh Uncle held no airs of seniority; he would sometimes take him strolling through bustling streets, ride exotic beasts alongside him at a gallop outside the city walls, or take him aboard painted pleasure boats on the Moyun River at night. For that, Seventh Uncle Cui Hao had even been reprimanded by the Cui father. The dust-laden book of years turned another page. Looking at the past, Qin Ming saw his eldest brother by blood, Cui Chongxiao, eight full years older than himself. Though Cui Chongxiao had still been an adolescent, he was already remarkably mature and composed, bearing quite a resemblance to their father. Only when seeing the young Qin Ming did a brilliant gleam appear in Cui Chongxiao's eyes, revealing a trace of a youth's true nature as he walked over smiling to look at him closely. It was said that Cui Chongxiao had apprenticed under an eminent master, but the Cui father forbade anyone from discussing where that was, let alone spreading word outside. All that was known was that this eldest brother could only return home once every few years. This also revealed the cautious nature of the Cui parents; they did not want more people knowing that their eldest son, Cui Chongxiao, had entered the tutelage of an extraordinary master. Qin Ming had only learned by chance, overhearing their hushed discussions, that his eldest brother had likely joined an ancient orthodoxy tied to deities. It was not about revering or visualizing gods; rather, that sect possessed boundless ambition, seeking to conquer those peculiar "phenomena" and "realms," harness them for their own use, and attain godhood themselves. Every year when spring blossomed, his parents would receive a special letter that required referencing several ancient books to decipher. It was treated with extreme gravity, seemingly guarded by multiple layers of encryption. Whenever that time came, even the sternest Cui father would smile, appearing surprisingly gentle and bright. Both Qin Ming and his younger brother Cui Chongxuan suspected that the letter came from their eldest brother, which was why their parents were so happy. Cui Chongxuan had even tried stealing the letter to see its contents, but he could not decipher the cipher at all. He ended up taking a severe beating from the Cui father and never dared court misfortune again. The Cui clan's main direct lineage had many white-haired elders whose strength ran unfathomably deep. Some had stepped into the lands beyond the mundane world and were absent from the clan year-round. Meanwhile, an elder who walked the path of the Newborn once drew in a deep breath just to amuse the juniors, sweeping a four-colored sparrow straight from a tree into his hand. These elders, whether gentle or strict toward the younger generation, all placed immense importance on nurturing their descendants. Whenever these elders greeted him with smiles and told him to call them Fifth Grandpa or Seventh Grandpa, a hazy figure would surface in Qin Ming's mind—a grandfather from his blurred childhood memories, whom Qin Ming would clamor to find. "He traveled far away to the royal capital of the Yu Nation. Practicing the method from the silk book nearly drove him mad in the past. Now he has 'cleared the vessel and stripped away the excess' to seek his own path." "I miss him. I miss that grandfather." Though he had adapted to life in the Cui residence, Qin Ming could not help his eyes reddening, after which he wanted the silk book back. "That won't do. The silk book is an ancient relic and cannot be flipped through carelessly, or it will be easily damaged. You must master the first few pages before looking at the rest. It's just that... this book is terribly difficult to master." From then on, Qin Ming devoted his heart to practicing the method on the silk book, setting his mind on it and persevering every day through wind and rain. He had many cousins. Over time, a few among them traveled far after being chosen by people beyond the mundane world, embarking on vastly different paths. Some siblings entered esoteric sects, others joined fairly renowned factions, and still others stayed at home to pursue the path of physical renewal as a Newborn. "Does that silk book have an extraordinary origin? Was it once a renowned classic?" As he grew older, Cui Chongxuan learned what his brother was practicing and wanted to practice it as well. The Cui father scolded him, "The silk book is exceedingly difficult to practice. One person walking this path is enough. You may choose other secret manuals." Because of this, as Cui Chongxuan grew taller, jealousy took root. He argued over why he wasn't allowed to practice it, and for a time he even showed hostility toward his elder brother. "I want to know, is the silk book the most powerful Newborn method?" Cui Chongxuan rarely defied the Cui father, but he pressed to find out the truth. The Cui father's expression softened considerably as he said, "Who dares claim to be the greatest? The world holds more than just a single silk book. There are inheritances of equal might, such as the Six Imperial Scriptures, the Tathagata Method, and the Heaven-Reaching Book. Practice our clan's secret manuals diligently and lay the firmest foundation. In the future, I may be able to secure a volume of the Six Imperial Scriptures for you. If you are formidable enough, it is not entirely impossible that you might truly be accepted into that elder's tutelage." Qin Ming spoke up, "Father, in the future I also wish to look at the Six Imperial Scriptures to compare them against the silk book. The Newborn methods later in this book are far too difficult, as if the path cannot be traversed." "What, have you lost confidence in yourself?" The Cui father looked at him, his eyes seeming to pierce straight into his soul. "I still have confidence!" Qin Ming felt a surge of restlessness, turned, and left. Afterwards, he asked his cousin for some secret manuals, wanting to see what other Newborn methods were like. The Fifth Grandpa of the main line looked at him with a smile and said, "The choice of which Newborn method you use to lay your foundation carries no small consequence; the ultimate achievements differ drastically. If you practice those ordinary manuals to step into the Newborn realm and only then return to the silk book's method, the result will never match the path of persevering with the original method from the very start." After hearing these words, Qin Ming consulted the Cui father and Cui mother, receiving nearly identical answers. Having read through his cousin's visualization methods and Yiqi Art, he tossed them aside, his resolve to master the silk book's Newborn method unshaken. The inn room remained quiet. Like an outsider, Qin Ming watched his own past, turning yet another page. The entire Cui clan held him in high esteem. Not only at home, but even before outsiders, they never spared praise for him. Anyone could see that he was a core member among the direct lineage. Very early on, various factions already knew that Cui Chonghe would likely be the standard-bearer for the main line in the future, being groomed with great focus. Once, after having too much to drink, the clan's Second Grandpa accidentally let slip that Cui Chonghe possessed an extraordinary natural endowment, making him exceptionally suited to set foot in the lands beyond the mundane world. Whether he mastered the silk book or not mattered little; he was destined to be someone close to an immortal. Second Grandpa revealed that Cui Chonghe had not been sent away yet only because they were waiting for a senior master whose renown shook the entire night mist world to emerge from secluded cultivation. An agreement was already in place for him to be taken as a disciple. Afterward, when the Cui father learned of this drunken babble, his face turned terribly dark. Second Grandpa knew he was in the wrong, filled with shame, and punished himself by entering secluded cultivation. Although Second Grandpa's drunken slip occurred within the clan, some outsiders still caught wind of it. Consequently, Qin Ming's safety was threatened for a time, with people attempting to harm him on multiple occasions, though all were uncovered by the Cui clan. Qin Ming's treatment in the Cui clan was indeed superb. When he grew slightly older, his mount was secured in a single leap—an extraordinary creature that had undergone four mutations. Though four mutations were already that exotic creature's limit, granting it to someone who had not yet achieved Newborn was lavish, practically the highest tier. The Cui clan protected him very well. Although people had repeatedly spied on him, no mishaps ever occurred. Moreover, when Qin Ming was still young, the Cui father had already reached an agreement with the Wang clan of Thousand Stars City. A daughter of the Wang clan's direct line would marry Cui Chonghe, uniting the two families through marriage. Qin Ming had even met the young maiden. She was exceedingly beautiful and loved to laugh. However, as he grew older, whenever the two families gathered again, the Cui parents began admonishing him to observe propriety, avoid suspicion, and keep his distance. Once, when he strolled together with the Wang clan's daughter in Qinghe City, the Cui father had grown angry and rebuked him afterward. As Qin Ming grew, though the Cui clan still valued him greatly and praised him before distinguished guests as their brilliant prodigy, they rarely let him meet those guests anymore. Fearing he would become distracted, they urged him to focus entirely on the method from the silk book. After entering his teens, he came to know many people: from important figures of various great families to direct members of millennial clans, to disciples of those beyond the mundane world. One had to admit that a millennial clan possessed deep foundations; even ancient orthodoxies, powerful sects, and figures beyond the mundane world were willing to associate with them. During those years, rumors constantly circulated that certain grand figures beyond the mundane world would take in disciples, with several coming out of seclusion to enter the secular world and select suitable pupils, choosing Qinghe City as the venue. The rumors were true. Every family sprang into action. Li Qingxu, Li Qingyue, the Wang clan's daughter, and a host of others arrived at the great city one after another, all seeking entry into the tutelage of those formidable figures. It was at that time that Qin Ming sensed Li Qingxu's hostility. In the end, several illustrious figures from beyond the mundane realm did appear, and a small number of candidates were chosen. A senior master of immense standing held Li Qingxu in extremely high regard, presenting him with a purple bamboo staff nourished by heavenly light upon their very first meeting. Afterward, Qin Ming was baffled. Hadn't they said an elder whose renown shook the night mist world would take him away? Why had Li Qingxu been chosen instead? "No rush. The senior master who favored you has not yet emerged from seclusion," the Cui father said. Thereafter, Qin Ming faced multiple assassination attempts, yet he survived each one unharmed. No one had expected that the gradually rising Li clan would abruptly wage war against the Cui clan. Perhaps Qin Ming simply hadn't realized it at the time, or perhaps the clan elders had known long ago and made preparations. "An old fellow from the Li clan actually made a breakthrough and may become close to an immortal in the future, while our Cui clan's ancestor hasn't appeared for two hundred years. The Li clan wants to achieve a series of goals by clashing with us, showcasing their strength to elevate themselves into the ranks of true millennial clans. They need such a war." "Most terrifying of all is that someone stands behind them. They might even be pushed forward by others." ... As the clash between the two great families loomed, members of the Cui clan had held such discussions, leaving Qin Ming gravely concerned for his family. "Our ancestor still hasn't appeared. The current situation is exceedingly grim, and we may not be able to hold them off. We must preserve our foundation and withdraw first. Furthermore, we must search the ancestor's seclusion grounds once more. I believe he is still in this world, and we must ensure his return at the very first moment." Late one night, the Cui clan secretly escorted away a group of key members, while another group took a different route—one that would likely face encirclement by scores of powerful Li clan experts. "Chonghe, you are my child. Our main line must shoulder responsibility. I must oversee the overall situation and cannot take that path for now. Your younger brother is still small, neither mature nor steady enough. You will represent me, joining the clan elders on the second path," the Cui father said in person. That night, with a complicated expression, the Cui father had patted his second son on the shoulder. Looking at his parents, Qin Ming had known that the path he was to take was fraught with peril, nine chances of death to one of life, primarily meant to draw away the attention of the Li clan's experts. Those accompanying him were old men of the Cui clan whose years were spent, with only a few years left to live. "Father, Mother, Little Brother!" With tears in his eyes, Qin Ming nodded and bid them farewell. He boarded the bronze carriage, and looking back into the dark night, he saw only the receding silhouettes of his parents. In the inn room, Qin Ming let out a sigh.