I made the entire cultivation world cry

Chapter 163 The Old Man with the Golden Finger (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
"What kind of demon are you?!"

The Martial Melody vanquishes demons!

ヽ(#`Д)ノ┻━┻
In just one hour, Jiang Yi was pierced through the skin by more than twenty swords for the ninth time.

In dreams, besides consciousness, one can still remember techniques. However, since she lacks cultivation and magical artifacts, the extent of her abilities depends on the dreamer's perception of her.

Hua Gu hovered suspiciously by the bedside, wondering if there was something wrong with the jade bed it had replaced. Why did its master always wake up in a fright after only a short while, his face turning blue with anger?

"This has nothing to do with you, Flower Maiden. This bed is cool and comfortable to sleep on in the summer. It can also gather spiritual energy on its own. It's very nice. I like it. I just had a nightmare. You can go and do your work."

Whoosh!

Hua Gu nuzzled against Jiang Yi, finally satisfied, and happily left the bedroom to tend to the flowers and plants in the yard.

Jiang Yi took a deep breath. After reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, her emotions were indeed prone to agitation, her mind was complicated, and her spirit was unstable.

When the ordeal of falling in love finally arrives, it will likely be even more difficult than the last time.

Last time, she suffered a qi deviation, and her meridians almost broke.

Recalling the previous incident filled her with uncontrollable anxiety and fear.

Some people can overcome a minor tribulation in just one day, while my junior sister only took three months.

She traveled abroad for five years, facing life and death several times, barely surviving only by suppressing her fears with elixirs.

Jiang Yi simply put on her coat, got up, and went to the octagonal pavilion, facing the cool night breeze.

Under the clear moonlight and amidst the wispy clouds, she took out a celadon tea set she had bought but never used before, and decided to brew a bowl of tea herself.

I used to think that making tea was a pastime for idle people, just a sip of tea, why make it so complicated?

Holding the teacup and whisk in my hand, I suddenly found it rather interesting.

Jiang Yi composed herself, crushed the tea cake, poured water and whisked it, suspending her wrist for a moment, and as she stirred the tea, cloud-like foam gradually rose to the surface.

The first bowl was ordered too hastily, and the tea froth dissolved before it could even be fully absorbed into the cup.

She wasn't annoyed, and took some spring water to boil again.

Each failure leads to improvement.

On the ninth cup, a satisfactory tea soup was finally brewed.

Jiang Yi picked up the teacup and sipped slowly. As the tea entered her throat, a warm sensation lingered. She took a deep breath, and the crisp night wind from the mountains filled her lungs, carrying with it the scent of everyday life.

Memories of my last journey through the mortal world are like reflections in tea soup, gradually becoming clearer in the rising steam.

After a fierce battle, she took shelter from the rain under the eaves of a house in a small town alley. The tea seller handed her a bowl of coarse tea, which was sweeter than spring water.

In the desert inn, the Hu woman who taught her how to make milk tea said that the tea should be brewed until all her worries dissolve.

And then there's the arrogance of secretly chuckling to myself as a few pedantic scholars debated the unity of tea and Zen at the Nanguan Ferry Teahouse…

The aftertaste of the tea melts on the tip of the tongue, with a slight bitterness followed by a hint of sweetness.

Jiang Yi suddenly chuckled. It turned out that those seemingly meaningless experiences back then were all 'antidotes' prepared for her by the heavens in advance, allowing her to taste different flavors and gain some insights when she looked back on them today.

The clouds under the night sky stretched and changed, sometimes like her panic when she was being chased, and sometimes like her tranquility when she sat alone listening to the pines.

The past events, those joys and sorrows that once shook her Daoist heart, now seem like nothing more than foam floating on tea soup after the passage of time.

What appears intense will quickly dissipate into a greater calm.

Even the strongest tea will taste like water in the end.

Even the deepest tribulations, once overcome, become ordinary days.

"The calamity is not in the mortal world, but in one's own heart."

A mountain breeze rustled the copper bell at the corner of the pavilion, its clear sound rippling through layers of clouds. Jiang Yi closed his eyes and heard his own heartbeat gradually aligning with the rhythm of heaven and earth.

Now, let heaven and earth be our mat, and let all the flavors of life be distilled into this cup of clear tea.

The tribulations of being moved are also a necessary step on the path of cultivation. If it gets too hot, wait patiently; if it cools down, don't regret it. Why have so much anxiety and unease? It only affects yourself and doesn't change anything.

It's good to be a little lazy, both physically and mentally.

After slowly sipping a cup of tea, Jiang Yi put down the teacup, her mind returning to tranquility. She yawned, felt the night breeze, and lay down on her side in the pavilion to sleep.

……

At Xuandu Temple, it was still the same scene of sword practice in the afternoon. This time, Jiang Yi was calm and, before the old man could notice her, she took the initiative to step forward and clasp her hands in greeting.

"This disciple has just entered the temple and has come today specifically to learn swordsmanship!"

When you're out and about, you have to choose your own identity. If you can't learn by passively stealing information, then take the initiative!
The old man paused for a moment, looked Jiang Yi over, and then nodded slightly. "Stand aside and observe your senior brothers and sisters practice."

"Yes!"

Jiang Yizhong answered with great confidence, standing obediently to the side, openly learning from Jiang Yizhong's teachings.

The lingering resentment within the peach pit was profound; there was only this one scene before them, and all paths leading away from it were obscured by mist. Even among the twenty-odd male and female Taoist priests practicing swordsmanship, some were barely visible.

The only one that looked very stern was the old man. It's likely that this lingering spirit had been scolded and disciplined by the old man quite a bit back then.

I just don't know which of the twenty-odd sword-practicing Taoists left this lingering regret.

The process went smoothly. After the Taoists finished practicing a set of sword moves, the old man instructed them to practice basic skills in a horse stance before coming to Jiang Yi's side.

"How much of the move you just used did you remember?"

Jiang Yi chuckled inwardly, but his expression remained unchanged. "The Heavenly Gang Demon Subduing Sword Manual has seven levels and thirty-six forms. I've memorized them all."

"Oh?" The old man raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Demonstrate once."

"Yes!"

Jiang Yi quickly demonstrated her moves. Although some of them were not accurate, she still demonstrated her basic swordsmanship skills very well. The more the old man watched, the brighter his eyes became. He already regarded Jiang Yi as a swordsmanship genius.

"Good! You can memorize it to such an extent after only observing it once. No wonder your senior brother wanted to take you under his wing."

Jiang Yi was stunned. Well, they'd even filled in the gaps in her identity.

"Did your senior brother teach you the essential techniques?"

Jiang Yi's heart skipped a beat. Here it comes, the most important thing has come!
"No."

The old man nodded slightly. “Then I will teach you. Remember this sword manual, which is the supreme martial art of my Xuandu Temple. It is based on the Big Dipper and integrates the power of the stars in the heavens, transforming the sword into the Dao, to slay evil and protect righteousness. Practitioners must maintain a righteous mind and not kill indiscriminately or be greedy for advancement, otherwise they will easily suffer the backlash of the star evil and fall into demonic possession.”

"Yes, disciple, keep this in mind."

"Okay, I'll read it aloud, and you memorize it. After I've finished reading it all, if there's anything you don't understand, I'll explain it to you word by word. The first level of the mental cultivation method is called 'Heavenly Dipper Guiding Stars,' which involves visualizing the Big Dipper and merging your spirit with the stars. Once the seven orifices are clear, sword energy will arise spontaneously. When cultivating, you need to sit facing north and visualize the seven stars of the Big Dipper shining on the top of your head..."

The old man sat cross-legged, his eyes slightly closed, his voice deep and resonant, like the soft tolling of an ancient bell.

Jiang Yi sat opposite him, her back straight and her gaze focused.

The old man's narration gradually deepened, from the basic process of drawing stars into the body to the complex process of condensing sword energy, recounting every detail in detail.

Jiang Yi frowned slightly from time to time, as if puzzled, but quickly relaxed, and a look of understanding flashed in her eyes.

She occasionally raised her hand and gestured with her fingers as if drawing a sword in the air, simulating the path of sword energy.

The old man's eyes were full of approval. He raised his hand and lightly tapped the air. A faint light emanated from his fingertips, outlining the pattern of the Big Dipper. As the starlight flowed, the profound meaning of the sword energy was fully revealed before Jiang Yi's eyes.

Jiang Yi was completely absorbed in the old man's story.

She has an exceptional understanding of swordsmanship; often, as soon as the old man raises a concept, she can apply it to other situations and even offer her own insights.

Bold yet meticulous, not bound by fixed routines.

The old man's admiration grew stronger, and his explanation expanded from mental techniques to practical application skills and how to adjust sword stances according to different opponents.

This short nap lasted less than an hour, but in the dream, I was preaching from the afternoon until nightfall, which shows that time passes faster in dreams than in the real world.

She had memorized all the techniques of the "Heavenly Gang Demon Subduing Sword Manual" and had received explanations from a renowned teacher, which greatly benefited her.

The swordsmanship practiced in ancient times was completely different from that of today. Sword energy was condensed between heaven and earth, and more emphasis was placed on sword intent than on the sharpness of sword energy. One could cultivate both magic and swordsmanship.

Unlike modern cultivators, there's no need to cultivate sword energy in the dantian and meridians beforehand.

This is good news for Jiang Yi.

Jiang Yi stroked the peach pit in her palm, her lingering resentment still present. The old man knew quite a lot, and she could certainly continue to delve deeper.

Perhaps there will be even more gains.

"How can this not be considered a cheat code grandpa?"

(End of this chapter)