Fellow Travelers

"You can't seriously be thinking of rebelling, can you? That's ten thousand times harder than cultivation." Seeing Lianshan Xin appear to give serious thought to becoming emperor, Qi Shiyun nearly lost her composure. "With all their vile fiends, even the Demon Cult wouldn't dare dream of overturning the imperial court's rule. You'd better behave yourself." Lianshan Xin explained, "Tanhua Qi, I don't have that kind of nerve. I was merely proposing a hypothetical." "Don't go tossing around wild hypotheticals. Thinking about things like that is an easy way to die young," Qi Shiyun warned him with a stern expression. Had it been anyone else, Qi Shiyun would not have been worried. But Lianshan Xin had already demonstrated his potential in this regard, so she could not help but worry. After all, once Lianshan Xin decided to court death, she would be dragged down with him. "We embarked on the path of cultivating immortality in the hope of attaining longevity and eternal life, not to bring about our own doom through self-inflicted ruin," Qi Shiyun reminded him. Lianshan Xin chuckled helplessly. "Tanhua Qi, if I'm not mistaken, to the outside world, our lineage is the very definition of bringing about our own doom." Qi Shiyun could not refute that. "Be that as it may, that's only because outsiders don't understand our lineage's might. The greater the danger of our cultivation method, the greater the harvest." "I basically understand." He was someone accustomed to seeing through appearances to the essence of things. The approach with the highest success rate for the Dragon-Supporting Immortal Art was to back the Crown Prince. However, the gains from doing so would be modest; after all, even without them, the Crown Prince already had a fifty-fifty chance of becoming emperor. The approach with the greatest return was to back a prince or princess who seemed to have the least chance of ascending the dragon throne, but the chances of success were slim, and it was easy to ruin not only oneself but one's entire nine familial relations. A balance had to be struck in between. This placed immense demands on one's personal execution and skill, as well as the caliber of the candidate chosen. "Looking at it this way, our lineage actually relies quite heavily on outside forces," Lianshan Xin noted with a slight furrow of his brow. Qi Shiyun corrected him. "The greatest difference between humans and beasts is that humans are adept at using tools. In ancient times, the ancestors of our Dragon Supporting lineage relied on spiritual qi for their cultivation. But the worldly environment underwent a colossal shift: spiritual qi vanished, and they declined along with it. Now our cultivation relies on the imperial bloodline—how is that any different from relying on spiritual qi? Don't assume that relying on yourself to cultivate martial arts or relying on spiritual qi to cultivate the way of immortals makes you superior to relying on external forces. The world only cares about how high your ultimate achievements are." Lianshan Xin said solemnly, "This student has been enlightened." He was convinced. He had indeed harbored a similar prejudice before, feeling that pinning one's hopes on outsiders was somewhat beneath a true cultivator. Yet Qi Shiyun's words made sense. A person had to constantly update their perspectives; one could not stubbornly live trapped in their own world. When three walk together, one will surely be my teacher. In this regard, Qi Shiyun was more than qualified to be his mentor. "Beyond the imperial family, any other person endowed with spiritual roots and tremendous fortune can aid our cultivation, so long as we establish good karma with them. Take you, for example. In my perception, you possess spiritual roots and a certain measure of fortune. As facts have proven, that was indeed the case. By initiating you into the Dao, my own cultivation has improved slightly as well. In the days ahead, as you continually break through and advance, I will receive boosts to my strength second only to yours. "Of course, if you meet an untimely demise, I will suffer a severe blow as well. Lianshan Xin, from this day forth, we are truly fellow travelers on the same path. "What's with that look on your face?" Qi Shiyun had spoken with utmost gravity, but seeing Lianshan Xin's expression turn strange the moment she finished, suspicion arose in her heart. Lianshan Xin spoke candidly, "Tanhua Qi, you and I probably can't be fellow travelers in that sense." Leaving aside the fact that he had no inclination to share a path in that way, she didn't even have the equipment for the crime. "Did you not understand what I said?" "Ahem... I understood. But Tanhua Qi, you're glossing over the main issue. I'm definitely tied to your ship now, but you can steadily reap benefits from me, while I won't gain anything from your rise in strength." Qi Shiyun did not deny it. "The greatest help I have given you was guiding you into the Dao and leading you onto the immortal path. Lianshan Xin, you are still young and there is much you don't yet understand. In truth, that first step is often the hardest." "No, this student understands." Under Qi Shiyun's Lesser Cloud and Rain Art, Lianshan Xin had quite literally washed his face and sloughed off his old skin, emerging a new man. He straightened his robes, rose to his feet, and bowed respectfully and solemnly to Qi Shiyun. "Lianshan Xin is not an ingrate who fails to recognize good from bad. Without your help, Tanhua Qi, I would still be toiling away in the Body Tempering realm with no way to break through. By guiding me into the Dao, you have bestowed upon me the kindness of instruction and patronage. Lianshan Xin will etch it into his heart." He was in earnest. Anyone who started from scratch knew that the first pot of gold was the hardest to earn. Qi Shiyun had given him that first pot of gold. As long as he had a shred of conscience, such kindness demanded immense gratitude. Compared to what Qi Shiyun had provided, what Kong Ningyuan offered could hardly even be called founder's shares. Seeing Lianshan Xin act with such solemnity, the admiration in Qi Shiyun's gaze deepened. "It seems you truly understand. Very good. If you encounter difficulties in the future, feel free to come to me. As long as it is within my power to resolve, I will do everything I can." "This student won't hesitate to ask. Tanhua Qi, am I right in understanding that I can also go cultivate other children of fortune?" "They are called 'Chosen Sons of Heaven,'" Qi Shiyun corrected him, then patiently explained, "Right now, your cultivation is at the Qi Condensation realm. At this stage, you must first completely refine the dragon qi within your body. According to ancient phrasing, this realm was called the Qi Refining stage." Lianshan Xin blinked. A Qi Refining mighty figure? Then the next step must be a Foundation Establishment ancestor. "Once you have thoroughly refined the dragon qi inside you, according to today's martial arts system, you must seek to comprehend your own martial intent—such as fierce, swift, protective, slaughterous, or natural. You will infuse your spiritual will into your true qi and martial skills, imbuing your techniques with a soul and forming a martial artistic conception unique to yourself. This is the fourth realm of martial arts: the True Intent realm. "Once you possess your own martial intent, you will attempt to highly condense, compress, and transform the true qi in your body, forging a specialized 'astral qi'—such as blazing fire astral qi, glacial frost astral qi, protective astral qi, or sharp metal astral qi. This is the fifth realm of martial arts: the Astral Transformation realm. "Moving from true qi to astral qi is a momentous leap. Astral qi far surpasses true qi in power and possesses distinct attributes, combining offense and defense into one. Most importantly, astral qi can be projected outward to manifest substantive attacks. "And in our Dragon Supporting lineage, astral qi can also initiate others into the Dao, and even help you sense other favored darlings of heaven who possess fortune. This is an innate ability that sets us apart from other martial artists of the Astral Transformation realm. "The Qi Condensation Pill you consumed just now was infused with my unique astral qi. Of course, initiating someone into the Dao doesn't strictly require a Qi Condensation Pill; one can simply infuse astral qi directly. It was only because you were too weak that I had to take that extra step." Lianshan Xin coughed lightly. "Tanhua Qi, you didn't need to explain that last sentence; I understand. In other words, I still need to break through two more realms to reach the Astral Transformation realm and become a Grandmaster before I can support any 'Chosen Son of Heaven' I take a fancy to." "Correct." "Two realms... That isn't too bad." Lianshan Xin was not disappointed. If cultivating an immortal art were that easy, that would be truly abnormal. "Tanhua Qi, at what age did you break through to Grandmaster?" "Twenty." "I'm eighteen this year. One realm a year, and I still have hope of catching up to you." Qi Shiyun patted Lianshan Xin on the shoulder and said encouragingly, "Go to sleep early. You can have whatever you want in your dreams."