Could this Miss Bai Ran also be searching for Spring Letters, Autumn Post?
A flicker of suspicion arose within Qin Xuan. A Qi Refiner's aura could be concealed; such secret arts were not uncommon. Unless there was a vast disparity in cultivation, seeing through another's concealment was no easy feat.
Though Qi Refiners were not unheard of, they remained a tiny minority compared to ordinary mortals.
Consequently, common folk in the marketplace always held an innate reverence toward Qi Refiners of the immortal path.
During both of his encounters with Bai Ran, her manner of speaking had been light and casual. Either she was truly candid and carefree by nature, or she possessed cultivation of her own.
Perhaps Miss Bai read the Spring and Autumn as well.
Mulling this over, he made his way toward the temple.
About two li from the foot of the mountain, a figure emerged from the stream of people on the street, drawing steadily closer until only half a zhang separated them.
He wore a yellow kasaya edged with gold thread. Standing barely shoulder-high to Qin Xuan, his features were unremarkable, save for a bare, gleaming bald head.
The newcomer was none other than Monk Jin Guan, the abbot of Liangfeng Temple whom Qin Xuan had encountered in Daoxiang Hollow.
Upon sensing his approach, Qin Xuan had already readied the earthenware pot given to him by Mao Yan.
"Master, come no closer."
"Patron Qin, this poor monk has been waiting here for you."
"What guidance do you have for me?"
"Our temple's kasaya has gone missing. I wished to ask whether Patron knows of its whereabouts."
Both spoke via voice transmission, keeping an unvarying distance between them as though they were mere strangers happening to walk in the same direction.
Qin Xuan replied, "If the kasaya is lost, you should look for Mountain God Tan. What use is there in coming to me?"
Excuses were pointless; it was better to lay all the cards on the table.
Monk Jin Guan's face darkened abruptly before returning to normal. He asked probingly, "How much does Patron Qin know of the secrets shared between the Buddhist and Daoist paths?"
"Enough to know that if Master harbors ill will toward me, I am afraid you will find no footing in Pingyuan Commandery—or even the entire Yunzhou Prefecture."
Master Bear had laid bare those two wicked Chan arts; Qin Xuan's words were not the slightest exaggeration.
So long as he exposed Liangfeng Temple's true origins, the commandery's powers would drive them straight back to Beijuluzhou.
Monk Jin Guan dropped his pretense as well, his tone turning cold. "Patron Qin, do you intend to clash with our temple? If so, this poor monk will have no choice but to abandon our monastery in Pingyuan Commandery, join forces with the Huanyin and Renmao Sects, and contend with you."
Qin Xuan seemed not to hear him. "I hear that Master maintains close ties with the Lesser Demon Court of the Western Religion. I wonder if you are familiar with the demon forces of Toxic Scorpion Valley in Chuanlai Commandery?"
"What is Patron Qin trying to say?"
"A spider demon in the city is eyeing me covetously, making me feel rather insecure."
"Amitābha," Monk Jin Guan said coldly. "Should that demon dare set foot into the commandery city again, this poor monk shall eliminate her and chalk up a deed of merit."
"Master, Sect Master Feng of the Xieling Sect is eyeing me covetously as well."
Monk Jin Guan's eyelids twitched. "Should Sect Master Feng appear in the city, this poor monk will eliminate him as well, earning yet another deed of merit."
"And the Huanyin Sect..."
"Enough!"
Monk Jin Guan was on the verge of losing his composure. Squeezing soft persimmons like Toxic Scorpion Valley and the Xieling Sect was one thing.
He and Qin Xuan were merely playing along with each other on the surface, stalling for time and calculating their moves.
Having lost the kasaya this time, Liangfeng Temple's Chan art had been exposed, leaving them thoroughly tainted. Monk Jin Guan knew he was held by the throat, yet he could not allow Qin Xuan to jack up the price unchecked.
"Master, I offered you opportunities to earn more merit, but you failed to seize them."
"Young Master Qin can earn such merit himself."
Monk Jin Guan lowered his eyelids. "A word of caution: the matter of the kasaya's Chan art must not be leaked beyond you and the thief behind you. Should you inform your elders, we will have our fight.
"This poor monk also knows a Chan art called Other-Mind Chan. The next time I cross paths with Young Master, should you utter a single lie, I will surely perceive it—and when that happens, it will spell disaster for the entire commandery city."
Qin Xuan considered this for a moment and countered with a warning, "Master, I expect all factions affiliated with Liangfeng Temple to treat me with respect and courtesy."
Monk Jin Guan replied, "This poor monk also wishes to remain at peace with Young Master. Otherwise, someone may invite Young Master to visit Beijuluzhou."
Beijuluzhou lay unimaginably far away, north of Zhongzhou, but it was immense.
Among the Nine Provinces, Zhongzhou was the largest, followed by the Eastern Ascendant Continent. Beijuluzhou was larger than both Xiniuhezhou and Nanshanbuzhou; within it lay not only the Beiming Great Marsh, but also vast snowfields blanketed by Northern Polar Metamagnetic Immortal Light.
As for the remaining Youzhou, Shuzhou, Chenzhou, and Zuzhou, none even reached half its size.
Monk Jin Guan's threat was palpable. His roots lay in that chaotic domain of Beijuluzhou, and Liangfeng Temple was an outpost piece positioned abroad—one that not just anyone dared touch.
Monk Jin Guan was stalling for time.
Qin Xuan, too, needed to stall until Madam Wei emerged from seclusion.
He would not place full faith in Monk Jin Guan's nonsense, yet for now, their fleeting tacit understanding had to be maintained.
The two brushed past each other.
Monk Jin Guan melted into the crowd, and Qin Xuan returned to Yuansong Temple.
He had indeed heard of this Other-Mind Chan before. Monk Jin Guan might well have been bluffing, but to be safe, Qin Xuan decided to keep the matter under wraps for the time being.
The first thing he did upon returning to his small courtyard was water Songsong.
"Fellow Daoist Pine, Fellow Daoist Pine...!"
This time, there was genuine urgency. He had yet to achieve the twelfth layer of Qi Refining, 'refining spirit and returning to clarity,' yet he had prematurely absorbed the qi of the Five Sprouts—something meant only for after Foundation Building—and was now using that Five Sprouts qi to reverse-refine his spirit back to clarity.
Was this not completely inverting the natural order?
"Songsong, wake up quickly, something terrible might have happened!"
Under the threefold assault of tapping the trunk, pouring water, and shouting her name, Songsong's voice finally sounded: "Zihou, what is it this time?"
There was a hint of annoyance in her tone. Knowing that waking her was indeed discourteous, Qin Xuan offered an apology before recounting his upside-down cultivation process to her.
This time, Songsong did not reply immediately.
Qin Xuan grew somewhat uneasy. "Is there any saving me?"
Songsong remained silent, causing Qin Xuan's heart to sink halfway into his chest. Could his Dao foundation be ruined?
Yet before long...
A burst of stifled laughter reached his ears.
Qin Xuan could not help but sink onto a nearby stone stool, grumbling gloomily, "Fellow Daoist Pine, please do not frighten people like that."
"Who told you to make such a fuss and disturb my sleep again?"
Qin Xuan steered away from the subject. "What should I do next?"
Now her voice softened again. "Seeking immortality and the Dao originally had no defined paths; they were merely synthesized by predecessors. While your situation is peculiar and not something I have seen before, I once heard a senior say that as long as a path is valid, it will resonate with heaven and earth. The will of heaven and earth is infinite; so long as you are not unsettled by stray thoughts, you may cultivate with peace of mind.
"Still, since you can perceive the qi of the Five Sprouts, taking more than ten days just to absorb a single strand shows you are held back by your cultivation art, which is why your progress seems so sluggish."
Relieved considerably, Qin Xuan asked, "That counts as slow?"
"Mm."
The female voice slowly explained, "You have reached the end of the Jade Rinsing Scripture. That art is meant for Qi Refining and was never capable of absorbing the Five Sprouts. Since you can already sense them, continuing to practice it will only hinder your progress.
"Switch to another cultivation method, and you will achieve Foundation Building in no time."
"Really?!" Qin Xuan was both surprised and overjoyed.
Songsong answered with laughter in her voice: "Of course it is true. I am not some female ghost trying to lure you into a desolate grave; where would I find the leisure to trick you?"
Qin Xuan was rendered speechless. Old Pine was gossiping behind someone's back again—truly ungracious of her...
Chapter 74