Chapter 13: The Secret of the Bronze Mirror |
With the Supreme Purity Sect's methods, activating true Taiyi Qi was incredibly difficult. In his previous life, Niu You Dao had cultivated many other methods and realized that the Supreme Purity Heart Sutra method was inferior to the Taiyi method.
Dong Guo Hao Ran had impressed Niu You Dao with his talents, but what was happening now? Had the Supreme Purity Sect given him incomplete skills?
He immediately had a brief conversation with Cheng Gui Shuo and learned from him that the Supreme Purity Heart Sutra was indeed the sect's core technique. All disciples of the sect cultivated it. The only difference was that low-level disciples were not permitted to cultivate other techniques.
Damn it! What was this all about? Niu You Dao pondered for a moment. He considered the Taiyi method, in which he had achieved far greater success than in his previous life. He concluded that perhaps the Taiyi method wasn't inherently weaker than the Supreme Purity Heart Sutra. It was simply that, in his past life, he had cultivated in the wrong place—a place with weak spiritual Qi.
This realization left him restless. Everything he had done seemed for naught. If only he had known this from the beginning, would he have risked so much, endured such hardships, dangers, and perils? He had almost been killed here. It was fortunate that things had improved slightly, though he was still effectively under house arrest.
However, there was nothing to be done. All things are understood through comparison. How could one appreciate sweetness without first tasting bitterness? Thus, he had no choice but to continue cultivating Taiyi.
A month later, one evening, he and Cheng Gui Shuo sat beneath the peach tree, leisurely sipping wine.
“Each cup of wine squanders so much provision, while outside, countless people starve to death. Yet here we are, enjoying fine wine. I wonder, isn’t this a sin...” the already tipsy Cheng Gui Shuo murmured with a smile. Though he smiled, a hint of sadness lingered in his expression.
Niu You Dao poured him wine from the teapot with a contented expression, also smiling slightly. “Brother, drink.”
Cheng Gui Shuo and Niu You Dao were startled. They had not anticipated Tang Su Su’s sudden appearance. They quickly rose to greet her:
“—Elder Tang!”
Tang Su Su cast a frigid glance at the table laden with food, then displeasedly shifted her gaze to Cheng Gui Shuo.
Cheng Gui Shuo instantly recoiled, lowering his head. Tang Su Su was the Elder of Law Enforcement. In normal times, she oversaw the disciples, holding the power to punish or fine them. Her temperament was notoriously severe, and all disciples of the Supreme Purity Sect feared her.
However, Tang Su Su seemed unusually lenient today, merely stating with indifference, “It’s quite messy. You’d best clear it all away.”
“Yes, Elder!” the two men replied, swiftly beginning to tidy up. Just as Niu You Dao moved to assist Cheng Gui Shuo with the table, Tang Su Su suddenly spoke:
“—Niu You Dao, come.” Having said this, she turned and stepped into the courtyard.
Niu You Dao froze. He cast a questioning glance at Cheng Gui Shuo, bewildered by the turn of events.
Cheng Gui Shuo merely nodded, signaling Niu You Dao to quickly follow her. It was best not to keep her waiting.
Niu You Dao quickly entered the courtyard and, seeing Tang Su Su strolling within, followed her. His posture was utterly respectful. But why had she come?
Elder Tang had left a profound impression on him. At their very first meeting, she had attempted to kill him. If not for Dong Guo Hao Ran’s Doctrine-Transmitting Amulets, he would not be walking upright now.
“It’s quite orderly here,” Tang Su Su began, after walking both inside and outside the courtyard. She approached the sculpture of the sect’s founder and bowed respectfully. As she straightened, her gaze fixed once more on the founder’s likeness, she slowly spoke, “In those years, the founder began establishing the sect from this very spot. Back then, there were no grand halls or palaces, only this peach orchard. He lived right here. One could say that to reside here is to receive the founder’s blessing. This is your good fortune.”
“Yes, Elder!” Niu You Dao replied respectfully:
“—This is indeed this disciple’s good fortune.” In his heart, he added to himself, *The good fortune of being under house arrest*.
Tang Su Su looked around, then asked, “Have you grown accustomed to it?”
Niu You Dao replied, “Reporting to Elder, it is quite comfortable here.”
Tang Su Su seemed to ignore his reply, asking indifferently, “Were you married back home? Or perhaps betrothed?”
“Uh...” Niu You Dao was taken aback. He didn't understand why she was asking such questions, but he cautiously replied:
“I am still young, and back home, I saw nothing but four walls. I was not betrothed.”
“You do not speak like a country bumpkin,” Tang Su Su remarked. It was unclear if she was mocking him or speaking earnestly, but then she changed the topic:
“When a man comes of age, he should strive for his own opportunities and good fortune. Yet now, people are extending kindness to you—one could say this is your stroke of luck.”
Niu You Dao did not understand what she was implying.
Tang Su Su glanced at the founder’s statue once more, as if hesitant to speak of certain matters in his presence, then beckoned Niu You Dao to step out of the courtyard. They began to stroll outside the peach garden, and then Tang Su Su continued:
“The daughter of the former Head, Tang Mu—Tang Yi—have you seen her? What is your impression of her?”
Niu You Dao felt a tremor of doubt. Was this the “kindness” they were offering—to arrange a match with Tang Yi? Wasn’t this some elaborate jest? He replied uncertainly:
“Sister Tang is certainly beautiful.”
“Mm!” Tang Su Su nodded, then said with a smile:
“—Our act of kindness is none other than your Sister Tang. I am her grandfather’s sister, and therefore can be said to represent her elder generation. I now propose that you take her as your wife. What are your thoughts?”
“Ah!” Niu You Dao cried out. He had not considered this in the slightest. First, they had offered him the position of sect head, and now they were offering him a beauty—the sect head’s daughter—as his wife. This Supreme Purity Sect was indeed bizarrely strange. He immediately replied:
“—No, that won’t do!”
The smile on Tang Su Su’s face vanished instantly. She spoke grimly:
“How won’t it do? Your Sister Tang is beautiful, well-figured. You are merely young right now. When you mature, you will learn to separate the wheat from the chaff. Then you will surely understand just how wonderful your Sister Tang is.”
Niu You Dao was at a loss for words. This was utterly bizarre.
“Elder, I am still young and, by age, not a suitable match for Sister Tang...”
Before Niu You Dao could finish speaking, Tang Su Su interrupted him, “If one considers your village, you are already of suitable age. There is nothing unsuitable here. Your master, Dong Guo Hao Ran, once made an agreement with Head Tang Mu for his daughter to marry Master Dong Guo’s disciple. And Master Dong Guo Hao Ran’s only disciple is precisely you. To whom, then, should Tang Yi be married now? As the saying goes: a teacher is like a father. And how can a father’s command be violated?”
A marriage contract? Niu You Dao’s eyes widened, as if he had just seen a demon. Tang Mu and Dong Guo Hao Ran had made a marriage contract! And now he was involved?!
His suspicions only deepened. It seemed to him that a conspiracy was swirling around him. However, it was best not to let himself be drawn into this scheme. He replied:
“—This disciple is truly not a suitable match for Sister Tang due to his age...”
Tang Su Su once again cut him off before he could finish. “Do you know how the Supreme Purity Sect treats those who violate its laws? Do you know what consequences await you? The Supreme Purity Sect will not tolerate such scoundrels, and as the Elder of Law Enforcement, I uphold this order and will not permit violators to exist! If you genuinely intend to defy the will of your masters, I will not even need to dirty my hands. You will jump from the cliff yourself!”
The Little Moon Butterfly wing on her head swayed, revealing Tang Su Su’s severe countenance.
Niu You Dao was speechless. Was she threatening him? He didn’t know if that damned marriage contract truly existed, but there was no point in arguing with this old woman now. So, he swallowed, then asked:
“—May I inquire about Sister Tang’s opinion? Might I speak with her?”
Tang Su Su replied indifferently:
“—There’s no need. You need not concern yourself with Sister Tang’s thoughts. I am simply asking you now: Will you defy your masters’ will and break the law?”
In the end, Niu You Dao himself didn’t quite understand when he had fallen into a daze or how he had managed to return to the courtyard.
Tang Su Su had left him no room for retreat. She was, in essence, explicitly stating that if he refused, she would kill him. How, then, could Niu You Dao refuse? Pondering this, he concluded that there was definitely a trick hidden behind it all. If the matter were simple, they would have sought Tang Yi’s opinion first, let alone his own.
As soon as he came to his senses, he immediately rushed outside. He wanted to ask Cheng Gui Shuo what was happening, but Cheng Gui Shuo was nowhere to be found. Niu You Dao then headed down towards the foot of the mountain. However, on the hillside, he was stopped by the two disciples who had accompanied Tang Su Su.
Returning to the Peach Blossom Spring courtyard, he retrieved a mirror from the peach hall. Gazing at his own face, he wondered, how could he possibly marry at such a young age?
That was one thing. But then there were the people backing Song Yang Qing. The Song family possessed power that the Supreme Purity Sect should not casually provoke. Yet now, they intended to hand Song Yang Qing’s woman over to him? Weren’t they essentially condemning him to death? He absolutely did not believe Song Yang Qing would let him off the hook so easily!
He had always conducted himself with caution, deliberating every single step, yet now he had been left with no choice at all!
And as he was about to put the mirror back, he noticed a water vat standing nearby. There were five such vats, typically used for watering flowers.
Suddenly, something flickered in the reflection on the water’s surface within the vat. He raised the mirror again, his hand hovering. In the dim light, everything was vague. But when he held the mirror up to the moon’s rays, faint glows appeared on the back of the mirror. Nine beams emanated from its reverse side.
*Hiss...*
Niu You Dao was startled and stumbled back a few paces. He looked at the moon, then at the mirror, and its reverse side, but saw nothing out of the ordinary.
But when he approached the water vat once more, he again perceived the faint beams behind the mirror. Staring at this phenomenon, Niu You Dao began to mutter to himself:
“—Heaven for the sun, the mirror for Yang. Earth for the moon, the reverse side of the mirror for Yin. Heaven—like a Celestial Compass; the mirror, encompassing Yin and Yang—like a Door, specifically a Door Compass; Earth—like a Terrestrial Compass. Heaven, Door, Earth, the Three Compasses...” Niu You Dao whispered, as if a profound realization had struck him, and a spark ignited in his eyes. He exclaimed, astonished and overwhelmed, “The Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams!”