This autumn rain fell heartily and thoroughly, washing away all lingering summer heat and sending a refreshing chill through one's robes.
Around the hour of Shen.
*Pitter-patter, pitter-patter...*
In Zhao Huaimin's courtyard, beads of water danced across the leaves of a plantain tree amid a continuous rustle of rain.
Huaimin and the white crane stood beneath the eaves of the veranda, expressions on their faces beyond description. He Wushuang rubbed his eyes repeatedly to verify whether he was seeing things.
Beyond the door of the bamboo cottage, a figure robed in green was walking over.
Weaving through the rain as though parting curtain after curtain, he did not catch a single drop. Moreover, the newcomer exuded an ethereal grace that struck both man and crane alike, as if wind supported his feet without requiring any effort.
Yet a closer look clearly revealed he was not riding qi at all.
It was an entirely natural, effortless manifestation.
The Cinnabar Dew took flight and transformed, his form lifting with the wind; sculpted by the downpour between heaven and earth, it took on palpable shape before their eyes.
"What's with those expressions?"
Qin Xuan smiled faintly at his two friends. Neither Huaimin nor the white crane spoke, their senses locked onto his aura as he walked all the way under the eaves.
Drawing within three paces, they circled around Qin Xuan, taking in the aura he had not bothered to conceal.
Zhao Huaimin said to the white crane, "Zihou has already established his Dao Foundation."
"This crane can see that, but..."
The white crane continued, "How did he manage this? Is my memory playing tricks on me? I took a nap yesterday—could I have slept for years?"
Zhao Huaimin said, "I've been cultivating the whole time and didn't pay attention to the days."
Both wondered whether they had misremembered the passage of time, for Qin Xuan's cultivation to have advanced so swiftly.
Of course, this playful banter was also their way of offering congratulations, yet their shock was unmistakable.
Qin Xuan chuckled. "Huaimin, once my cultivation catches up, don't you forget to introduce me to the divine maiden of the Illusory Wave Pool."
Hearing this, Zhao Huaimin felt that the teasing remark he had made some time ago actually carried a sliver of possibility now.
Even so, as a genius from Bihai Immortal City qualified to vie for the title of heir, he remained exceedingly confident in his own talent and cultivation.
He turned to the white crane and said, "Zihou is getting ahead of himself."
The white crane spread both wings. "Achieving Foundation Building in six years? If it were me, I'd be boasting even harder than him."
Qin Xuan made a show of self-reflection. "I truly did get ahead of myself. I ought to learn from Elder Pan Ang and lie low to settle my temper."
The two men and one crane laughed together, while an old man reflecting on his misdeeds behind closed doors in the back mountain of Yuansong Temple sneezed.
Qin Xuan was in high spirits today. He brought out hawthorn berries from his courtyard and several gourds of spiritual wine, the herbs and flowers within having been cleansed by the ancient mirror's spiritual light.
Unlike the Nether Root Divine Wood, these spiritual flora would brim with medicinal potency and display extraordinary spirituality after absorbing even a wisp of spiritual light.
Huaimin and the white crane brought out their own stored fruits as well.
The three of them sat by the eaves, gazing out at the misty rain shrouding the pine-covered temple, chatting about trivial matters and the city's recent events before the conversation eventually turned to cultivation.
Having reached Foundation Building long ago, Zhao Huaimin did not dare offer reckless advice, speaking only of what he knew.
"After a Qi Refiner establishes the foundation of the Great Dao, they must refine a Dao Foundation lotus platform. In the end, all Foundation Building cultivators can cultivate three Dao Lotuses. After producing three Dao Lotuses, one may attempt to swallow a fiend core and use the Thick Earth Qi within to urge the Dao Lotuses to bloom.
"Once a single flower blooms, one can refine fiend qi and step into the Core Formation realm."
This was no secret to any Foundation Building cultivator.
Zhao Huaimin continued, "However, that is merely the conventional path. Any secret learning of a major sect includes a level beyond the third-grade Dao Lotus called 'Illusory Illumination,' which serves to deepen one's foundation.
"There can only ever be three Dao Lotuses, but Illusory Illumination can produce illusory lotuses. How many illusory lotuses one can generate depends on a Qi Refiner's innate bone structure, comprehension, cultivation arts, and even a touch of fortune.
"Some truly brilliant figures I know of devote immense effort during Foundation Building. Once their accumulated foundation manifests in the future, the gap between them and others becomes stark."
Qin Xuan nodded slightly, recalling that the Cinnabar Dew Flying Transformation Scripture also recorded a method for Illusory Illumination. He remarked, "Cultivation methods from great sects and orthodox traditions should all contain ways to foster illusory lotuses."
"Indeed," Zhao Huaimin said. "However, this secret method of my Mount Bailu allows one to plant additional lotuses atop the foundational techniques of great sects."
Seeing the curious look on Qin Xuan's face, Zhao Huaimin smiled and explained, "In ancient times, upon the Ancient Immortal Prefecture of the Nine Heavens stood the Penglai Immortal Mountain. The founding ancestor of our Mount Bailu was enlightened by an immortal of Penglai back then, receiving this very secret art known as Penglai Planting Golden Lotuses."
No wonder Bihai Immortal City, Illusory Wave Pool, and the Nangong clan claimed to inherit lineages from the Ancient Immortal Prefecture—it truly was no empty boast.
All three hailed from Mount Bailu, and who would have thought Mount Bailu's founder had met with such great fortune?
Before Qin Xuan could speak, Zhao Huaimin was already merrily ticking off fingers to calculate for him. "Establishing a third-grade Dao Lotus will take you a long time. Refining the illusory lotus method afterward will take another long time. And then cultivating this lotus-planting art of the Ancient Immortal Prefecture will cost you yet another long time."
Beside them, the white crane chimed in, "Truly long, long, and long again..."
"Zihou," Zhao Huaimin said with absolute confidence, "by the time you reach this stage, my foundation will have long since manifested and bloomed three dao flowers. I might even have crossed the Yin Fire Heart Demon Tribulation and achieved Golden Core.
"If you want to meet the divine maiden of Illusory Wave Pool, you still have to put in more effort!"
Qin Xuan played along, heaving a sigh and feigning dejection. "Very well. I originally hoped to discuss sword arts with the divine maiden, but it seems we are not fated after all."
The white crane looked at him as though seeing right through him. "You were going to bring out that Wind and Moon Sword Art of yours again, weren't you?"
Zhao Huaimin retrieved a golden sheet of paper from his hundred-treasure pouch and handed it to Qin Xuan. "You can only examine this secret art after completing your own technique. On no account may it be shared with outsiders. Otherwise, my troubles will be minor compared to yours—you'd be hunted down by the Mount Bailu lineage."
Qin Xuan did not fuss and accepted the golden sheet directly, confident he would be able to assist this good friend in the future.
Thus, he said solemnly, "Huaimin, once my cultivation bears fruit, I'll accompany you to fight for the heirship, and then I'll snatch that Nangong maiden for you to tie the knot."
"You... give me back the secret art right now!"
Zhao Huaimin was speechless. What kind of person pushed his friend straight into a fire pit?
While they chatted, the white crane had already downed quite a bit of wine. Fond of drink to begin with, and with this brew offering it tremendous benefits, it soon became thoroughly tipsy.
Once drunk, the crane became endlessly talkative.
Perched between Qin Xuan and Zhao Huaimin, it draped a wing over each of their shoulders like a crane that had attained the Dao, rattling on about how to achieve enlightenment.
"To seek the Great Dao, the foremost priority is to train one's body to resemble a crane..."
Two men and a crane over a few cups of wine, speaking only of the clear breeze and not of sorrow.
The boundless immortal path inspired boundless longing; even better was that along this journey, there were companions walking by one's side.
The next day, rain was still falling.
Qin Xuan visited Old Daoist Wu at Pine Breeze Lodge to inquire about recent movements of the demon sects, then headed straight down the mountain.
Along the way, he naturally drew the attention of many fellow disciples.
Though he restrained his aura so that his cultivation was difficult to discern, it was not hard to see he was somewhat different from before. Those familiar with him felt it even more acutely, yet if asked to describe it specifically, they could not put it into words.
After descending the mountain, Qin Xuan first went to find the little fox.
Elders within the sect had slain members of the Xieling Sect, and the white crane had traded with them for the yin spirit jars. Last time, the fox grandfather had not been home, so this was the perfect opportunity to make the exchange.
After that, he would head over to Senior Mao Yan's place—the True Water Mist should be finished refining by now...
Chapter 78