Chapter 23: Lesser Yin Reveals Silver |
In order to develop a method for cultivating the Lengshan Venerable, Li Shun had paid an immense price.
Fortunately, the results were gratifying.
“With the aura of the Lengshan Venerable feeding back into the process, the success rate of cultivating a Lengshan Lord, while not absolute, is close to twenty percent.”
“The key point is that the restorative effect of a Lengshan Lord is nearly ten times that of ordinary Lengshan Grass. For the time being, I no longer need to worry about the wear and tear on the Threefold Self-Reflection statue. That is precisely what gives me the confidence to carry out these experiments so boldly.”
In the spiritual field ahead, above the clusters of Lengshan Grass locked in vicious struggle, the focal point of their desperate contest hovered silently in the air.
It was the Lengshan Venerable.
“A venerable is also a king.”
“To give birth to a king, one must either be born with supreme fortune, or…”
“…rise through the struggle of countless contenders, where only the last one standing claims the throne.”
“The battle for kingship is only the foundation. More crucial are three external factors.”
“The first…”
Li Shun shifted his gaze toward the puppet tirelessly executing the Farmer’s technique, Spirit Division and Life Transformation.
“The path of advancement consumes an enormous amount of resources. The Lengshan Grass alone cannot bear such a burden. It requires constant external nourishment.”
“And crude, forceful infusion will not suffice. It must be subtle, like moisture seeping silently into all things.”
“In other words, one needs a practitioner who has brought the Spirit Division and Life Transformation technique to its peak, someone who can tend to it day and night with their own blood and essence.”
“This requirement alone is nearly impossible to fulfill. The Spirit Division technique is something only the lowest laborers practice. Those who attain great mastery are usually already drained of vitality, unable to sustain such intense, continuous casting.”
“The second is guidance.”
“Without a clear direction, even after endless life-and-death struggles, the grass cannot find the correct path of evolution. Only by using the aura of a Lengshan Venerable as a guide can they advance properly toward becoming a ‘king.’”
“The third… and most crucial factor…”
“The isolating effect of the Fangcun space.”
Li Shun’s gaze grew deep and distant.
“Beyond the Lengshan Venerable, there stands a presence at the very end of this evolutionary path. Though I do not know its name, its influence seems to permeate everything.”
“In the outside world, when Lengshan Grass attempts to transform into a Lengshan Venerable, it is easily disturbed by that presence. More often than not, the process collapses at the final moment.”
“But within this Fangcun…”
“I am the one in control.”
Li Shun continued watching the brutal struggle unfolding in the spiritual field.
Time passed. As one stalk of Lengshan Grass after another fell, the final victor began to radiate a distinct and radiant blue glow.
Months of preparation had all led to this single moment.
Yet Li Shun felt no ripples in his heart.
When preparation reaches a certain level, chance itself becomes inevitability.
The dried husks of dozens of failed contenders disintegrated as though burned to ashes, turning into streams of light that were entirely absorbed by the victor.
The final stalk of Lengshan Grass then began to grow at a visible pace. In the span of a single breath, it transformed from an ordinary plant into the shape of a half moon.
It slowly rose into the air, standing shoulder to shoulder with the other Lengshan Venerable.
Above the spiritual field, the sight of twin moons shining together came into being.
But in that very instant, before Li Shun could even feel joy at successfully cultivating another Lengshan Venerable, a sudden change occurred.
As if sensing each other’s presence, the two Lengshan Venerable did not hesitate in the slightest.
They immediately began to clash once more.
It gave the impression of an unrelenting struggle to the death.
At the critical moment, Li Shun’s thoughts stirred. With a swift act of will, he instantly shifted the Lengshan Venerable in midair, which had been serving as a guide, into a nearby vacant area.
Only then did the conflict come to a halt.
Li Shun’s consciousness swept over the two Lengshan Venerable, one newly formed and one old. A trace of understanding rose within his heart.
“This is what they call, kings do not meet kings.”
“If two kings encounter one another, they will fight just like ordinary Lengshan Grass, tearing each other apart…”
At this point, his thoughts paused slightly.
“If I had enough Lengshan Venerable… could I perhaps cultivate the final stage of that evolutionary path?”
For a brief moment, Li Shun’s heart stirred with temptation, but he quickly shook his head and dismissed the idea.
Even if it was theoretically possible, it was far too impractical for him at present.
“To nurture a single Lengshan Venerable requires at least thirty to forty stalks of Lengshan Grass. My reserves are already running thin.”
Li Shun turned his gaze toward the spiritual field where the Lengshan Grass was growing.
Only a small portion had reached maturity. The vast majority were still in their seedling stage and required continued nourishment through the Spirit Division and Life Transformation technique.
“The puppet can only accelerate the growth of five stalks per year. The efficiency is still far too low.”
For the moment, Li Shun could not think of any better solution.
Although a new plot of land had been opened within Fangcun, there was no way he could capture another puppet that only knew the Spirit Division technique.
As his thoughts slowly turned, Li Shun found himself faintly missing the clarity of mind he had experienced after consuming a Lengshan Venerable.
“One Lengshan Venerable must be kept as a seed for further cultivation. As for the remaining one…”
It took him quite some time before he finally suppressed the restless desire in his heart.
“No rush for now. I’ll wait until another one is cultivated.”
“I must keep one in reserve for the Threefold Self-Reflection statue.”
Over the past few months, Li Shun had also begun to sense that something was off about Lengshan County.
“I’ve served here for thirty-seven years, yet Lengshan has never been this hot before. Something unusual must be happening, perhaps related to that Marquis of Changle.”
An invisible pressure gradually rose within his heart.
During his recent cycles of regression, he had also revisited the Jixia Bookshop to check on Zhou Xunzhen’s condition.
Unfortunately, no matter how long he knocked, there was no response.
After asking the neighboring residents, he learned that the bookshop had remained closed for quite some time.
Zhou Xunzhen was most likely already dead.
“The Twelvefold Longevity Methods… it seems to be a sweet poison. Though it can restore one to youth overnight, when the toxicity erupts, the consequences are truly terrifying. In just a few months, one’s youth is completely drained…”
“However…”
“For some people, there is simply no choice.”
Li Shun thought of Feng Guan, and himself.
Even knowing full well that what lay before them was a poison that would erupt in the future, those standing at death’s door would still swallow it without hesitation.
“After all, the future is uncertain. Dying later is better than dying now.”
“Besides, the Great Qian Dynasty may not necessarily lack a method to resolve this rapid aging.”
Li Shun gradually came to understand the meaning behind the seven words Zhou Xunzhen had once written: “The Emperor used this method to subdue the Hundred Schools.”
After pondering for a long time, he finally made a certain decision.
Just as his consciousness was about to withdraw from the Fangcun space, he suddenly froze.
“Hm?”
On the half of the spiritual field where the Lengshan Grass had advanced into Lengshan Venerables, several small metallic spheres emitting a faint silver-white glow had appeared at some unknown time.
Li Shun drew them closer and examined them carefully.
“What is this…?”
He wasn’t quite certain.
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