Ascending to the Clouds Alone

Lin Su suppressed his turbulent emotions and returned to his side room to continue his cultivation.

The night was deep, and all was quiet in Changqu Town.

Within this small side room, a faint yet extremely pure life force is quietly growing, like a spark just beginning to ignite.

The next morning, Lin Su woke up. His wound was still throbbing, but it was much better than the day before.

The old doctor's medicine was indeed miraculous; after just one night of recuperation, the wound that had burst open the night before had already clotted and closed.

After getting up and washing up, he thought about helping out in the front hall. He couldn't just eat and stay for free without paying for his medical bills.

Upon approaching the herb garden, they saw an old man pruning the branches and leaves of the medicinal herbs, while Qingqing squatted beside him, poking at the soil with a small shovel.

Lin Su stepped forward, bowed, and said:

"Old doctor, my injuries have mostly healed, and I can handle the odd jobs."

The old man didn't even raise his head, his hands continuing their work:

"No rush. Young master's injuries will not heal in a day. Focus on recovering first, and we can talk about the rest later."

Lin Su wanted to speak again, but the old man waved his hand in refusal, so he didn't insist.

As he turned around, he noticed that Qingqing seemed to be smiling faintly when she looked over.

Back in the side room, Lin Su continued to ponder the "Tongtian Baolu".

Around half past Chen Shi (7-9 AM), Qingqing came in carrying a bowl of medicine and handed it to him:

"Drink it quickly, or it won't work after the appointed time."

Lin Su stood up and accepted it, saying politely:

"Thank you, young medicine boy."

Upon hearing this, Qingqing immediately puffed out her cheeks: "Who's the medicine boy? My name is Ye Qingqing!"

Lin Su, holding the bowl of medicine, asked, "Hmm, Ye Qingqing?"

"Mmm!" Qingqing puffed out her chest. "Isn't it nice?"

Lin Su lowered his head, took a sip of medicine, and mumbled:

"Little man, why are you calling a girl's name?"

Qingqing puffed out her cheeks: "My name is Ye Qingqing! So what?!"

After saying that, Ye Qingqing turned her face away, but couldn't help stealing glances at him again:

"By the way, Grandfather said you could even slay the Bewitching Moth, but... why don't you have a trace of spiritual energy on you?"

Lin Su paused for a moment, holding the bowl of medicine, and said calmly:

"It was all luck, nothing worth mentioning."

Ye Qingqing's eyes darted around, and she smiled, pursing her lips:

"Grandpa is amazing! Everyone in town says that the 'miracle cure' in Changqu Town is even more effective than the big clinics in the city!"

Lin Su followed up by asking:

"The old doctor has the aura of an ordinary person, yet his medical skills are divine. Why does he live in this remote town?"

Ye Qingqing pouted, feigning maturity, and sighed:

"My grandfather never mentioned the past. He only said that there was too much strife in the world and that he wished to guard a medicinal herb garden and save as many people as he could. He did not cultivate himself. He just planted herbs and wrote prescriptions. Occasionally, he would teach me some basic martial arts for self-defense."

Lin Su thought to himself:

This old doctor must be a reclusive master who has seen through the ways of the world. Thinking back on my actions last night, I was truly showing off my limited skills before an expert.

It was past midnight, and the sun was getting stronger. Seeing that his complexion had improved, Ye Qingqing said:

"You seem to be alright, it's time to prepare lunch. Come and help me."

Before Lin Su could respond, he was pulled into the kitchen.

Ye Qingqing was extremely quick and efficient, giving instructions while starting a fire:

"There's some spirit rice over there. Rinse it twice, then add water until it's about one finger's width above the rice grains."

Lin Su did as instructed, first adding spirit rice to the earthenware pot, then water. When there was too much water, he would add more rice, and when there was too much rice, he would have to add more water...

After fussing around for a while, I realized that the rice hadn't been rinsed yet, so I hurriedly started rinsing it.

After Ye Qingqing finished starting the fire, she looked back and couldn't help but burst out laughing:

"You're really stupid, just like my brother. He's so good at killing demons, but he can't do this little thing at all."

"Your elder brother?... " Lin Su asked in confusion.

Ye Qingqing didn't speak, but took the earthenware pot from his hand, washed it, and placed it on the stove, controlling the heat to simmer it slowly.

In less than half an hour, four dishes and a meal were served.

The old man returned home, and the three of them sat around a table, the atmosphere becoming much more harmonious.

Ye Qingqing chattered away as she ate her rice:

"Grandfather, look at him. He can't even wash rice properly, yet he's killed a 'bewitching moth' before."

The old man glanced at Lin Su, his voice calm:

"When the mind is not on worldly matters, the hands are naturally clumsy. Young master, your injuries have not yet healed, it is already quite remarkable that you can sit still and regulate your breathing."

Lin Su bowed slightly:

"I'm sorry to have made such a fool of myself, old doctor."

Just then, a soft knocking sound came from the front hall.

Ye Qingqing immediately put down her chopsticks and was about to get up when the old man raised his hand to stop her and made her get up and leave.

Through the paper window, Lin Su could vaguely see the figure of a middle-aged man standing outside the door.

The man was dressed simply, no different from an ordinary traveling merchant, but his footsteps were so light as to be almost inaudible when he left.

A short while later, the old man pushed open the door and returned, holding a letter in his hand.

After he sat down, he slowly opened the letter, his gaze sweeping across the paper. His brow furrowed briefly, then relaxed again, returning to normal.

Ye Qingqing picked up a piece of food with her chopsticks and casually asked:

"Grandfather, is that the uncle from last time?... "

The old man folded the letter and put it into his sleeve, saying slowly and deliberately:

"A border town is not as safe as a big city. There has been some unrest outside Changqu Town recently. Since you have no spiritual power, it would be best for you to stay home until you recover from your injuries."

Lin Su's heart skipped a beat: "This junior has remembered."

After the meal, Lin Su helped Ye Qingqing clear away the dishes and returned to the side room.

Thinking of the old man's words, a sense of urgency rose in his heart, and he immediately took out the arm blade.

After closing his eyes and concentrating for a moment, he actively activated his ability to "hear".

Deep within the blade, the lingering tremor still remained, like a string about to break quivering slightly, but it was much weaker than it had been in the chaotic rock forest, as if it would completely dissipate at any moment.

He gripped the blade tightly, focusing his mind into it as he had in the chaotic rocky forest, drawing upon the remaining demonic power to try and unleash it.

At first there was no movement, but after several attempts, a faint emerald light suddenly appeared on the blade. When it was swung, it brought a sharp wind, slightly stronger than when the demonic power was not released, but that was all.

Then, the emerald green completely faded, the blade became light and returned to stillness, with no more tremors or radiance.

The demonic power is completely exhausted? A desolate emptiness!

He had hoped to draw demonic power from his arm blades to enhance his strength, but now that hope was dashed.

this?……

It seems that everything depends on myself! Lin Su immediately sat down cross-legged and focused his mind on himself.

The spirit-locking talisman still sealed the dantian, but its power had loosened slightly compared to when it was in the chaotic rock forest.

He tried to capture its rhythm by "listening," just as he had listened to the thief's breathing the night before.

But the spirit-locking talisman doesn't have a heartbeat like a living being, nor does it tremble like a weapon.

He listened intently, his mind completely absorbed.

Suddenly, a barely perceptible fluctuation was detected among the runes.

He wanted to mobilize his spiritual energy to respond to that fluctuation, just like when he broke the jade slip before, but unfortunately, he had no spiritual energy in his body.

When he tried to examine the spirit-locking talisman more closely, a sudden, sharp pain shot through his head.

He immediately regained his composure, now covered in a cold sweat, as the buzzing sound began!

Lin Su's suspicions from last night were confirmed:

If you activate your spiritual sense to "listen" to those whose cultivation level is lower than your own, the buzzing in your ears will disappear;

Only when one encounters an existence whose realm is higher than one's own will dull pain inevitably occur.

The only way to control the ability to "hear" is to devote oneself to diligent cultivation and improve one's own cultivation level as soon as possible, so as to become stronger than what one "hears"!

But can we wait that long?