How can one cultivate immortality without learning modern knowledge?

The woman in blue smiled gently: "Wenju, that does sound like the name of a scholar."

"Similar? Is it possible... that I myself am a writer?"

"Hehe..." The woman in blue laughed. "Just because you have a scholar's name and wear scholar's clothes, does that make you a scholar? Please! A name is just something your parents choose, a beautiful expectation they have. Does being named Wenju really mean you'll 'pass the imperial examinations'? Well then, may I ask, did you take the imperial examinations? Did you pass them?"

Scientific expedition?

Passed the imperial examination?

Zhou Wenju was dumbfounded: "Don't you think that the way you're chatting... is very likely to kill the conversation?"

The woman in blue laughed heartily: "The moment you reached out and took my umbrella, I knew you were a cultivator, at the Dao Mountain realm! It's not surprising that cultivators are often refined and cultured, but you can fool others, but don't keep up the act for too long, or you'll end up fooling yourself."

"Alright, alright, stop arguing with me!" Zhou Wenju said, "And you? What's your name?"

The woman in blue looked a little embarrassed: "My name isn't important, is it? Anyway, there's no one else around. I know you're talking to me, so there's no need to call me by name."

"That's true! Where does Miss Lan come from?"

"...My surname isn't Lan! My surname is Lin..." the woman in blue quickly said.

"Surname Lin? Which prominent Lin family in Jiangnan? Oh, I remember now, there's a Lin family in Yannan Mountain. I once visited your hometown, and your family doesn't have a good reputation. Everyone says your Lin family bullies men and women and does all sorts of evil. But seeing you today, young lady, I'm starting to believe, to some extent, the power of gossip..."

The woman in blue rolled her eyes at me: "Are you getting revenge on me? Just because I didn't tell you my name, you started making wild guesses. Fine, fine, I'll tell you, okay?... My name is Lin Nongyue! I'm from Qixia Mountain."

Qixia Mountain!

Zhou Wenju's heart skipped a beat.

He knew about Qixia Mountain.

This mountain is near the South China Sea and is home to an extremely legendary ancient race: the Void Clan.

The Void Clan is said to possess the bloodline of the "Void Divine Beast" and has extensive knowledge of the laws of space.

When she was fighting just now, her movements were extremely strange, as if she could appear in any area she wanted at any time.

This was still her performance while suppressing her cultivation level...

If she really is a member of the Void Clan, then... it's unlikely that she's related to King Rulan.

Why? Because the Void Clan is extremely proud. They ignored the royal court's repeated attempts to recruit them. Think about it, how could an ancient alien race that even the emperor wouldn't respect lower themselves to become a prince's lackey?

After meeting her, Zhou Wenju underwent her test; in fact, he had been testing her all along.

Now that her origins have been revealed, his test seems to have yielded a good result: the test shows that this woman has nothing to do with the King of Rulan and is not someone sent by the King of Rulan to assassinate him.

The conversation could then proceed normally: "Is Miss Lin traveling to the capital?"

"Yes, I want to see my dad. I've never seen him before."

Zhou Wenju was slightly taken aback: "Never met your biological father?"

"Is it hard to imagine? I find it hard to imagine..." Lin Nongyue said, "It was all my mother's foolishness back then. At the foot of Qixia Mountain, she and my father, who was traveling in the South China Sea, played the Plum Blossom Melody under the moon, which led to my birth. Then, my father returned to the capital, became his official, married his principal wife, and completely forgot about my mother. This time I came to the capital, firstly to see what kind of person could make my mother worry about me day and night, and secondly to ask him if he still remembers the Plum Blossom Melody from back then."

"Your father is a high-ranking official in Beijing, surnamed Lin? What's his name?" Zhou Wenju asked.

"Lin Xiangdao! I told you... his name is a joke. He seduced my mother and then abandoned her, and he actually named himself 'Xiangdao'!"

Lin Xiangdao!

"What is your current official position?" Zhou Wenju asked.

"My mother said that she became a Minister. I don't know how high a position a Minister is, but it must be quite high. Anyway, my mother looked very proud when she mentioned this position. I don't know what she has to be proud of. Others have long surpassed her..."

Zhou Wenju's heart pounded.

There are countless officials in the capital, and it's impossible for him to know everything about them.

However, the number of ministers was not as numerous as dogs; there was only one person with the surname Lin, namely Lin Xiangdao, the Minister of Works.

When news of the Qishan Incident reached the capital, the court officials either echoed the two vice ministers' words, calling for the extermination of the Zhou family's entire clan, or remained silent, ignoring the matter.

Only one person took the lead in firing a shot, confronting the two vice ministers head-on, openly accusing them of corruption and openly protecting the Zhou family.

That was Lin Xiangdao, the Minister of Works.

It was Lin Xiangdao's outburst that changed the course of the Qishan incident, indirectly giving the Zhou family the strategic initiative.

The Lin Nongyue I'm traveling with today is actually his illegitimate daughter...

"And you? What are you doing in the capital?" Lin Nongyue changed the subject and asked Zhou Wenju.

"If I... if I said I was going to the capital to attend a literary gathering, would you think I was lying?"

Lin Nongyue glared at him: "I told you, deceiving yourself for too long makes it easy to actually fool yourself! Please! You're a cultivator! What kind of literary gathering are you holding? Tell the truth!"

I rely on!

What can I do if you don't believe me when I tell you the truth?

Zhou Wenju's eyes darted around slightly: "Do I really have to say it?"

"You've laid bare all my secrets in just a few words, and now you're trying to evade responsibility by refusing to tell me? That's outrageous! You absolutely have to tell me!"

"Then you promise you won't get hairy?"

"Let's be frank, what's with the fuss? Do you really think I'm unreasonable?"

"Alright, I'll tell you the truth!" Zhou Wenju said, "I originally didn't plan to go to the capital, but I saw you by chance. Once I saw you, I was really attracted to you. My blood was boiling, and all I could think about was going to spend a trip with you, even if it cost me a hundred taels of silver."

Lin Nongyue stared intently at Zhou Wenju, her gaze quite strange.

Zhou Wenju also glanced at her: "Just a reminder, you just promised that you would never lose your temper."

Lin Nongyue stood up: "I'm not angry, I... I'll just change rooms!"

She threatened to move to a different house.

Theoretically, Zhou Wenju should not see her the next day.

However, the next day, after Zhou Wenju had eaten the pre-cooked food on the ship, he took a teapot to the balcony and saw that familiar paper umbrella hanging on the balcony next door.

The girl named Lin Nongyue sat on the balcony, watching the misty spring rain outside.

"You didn't change rooms?" Zhou Wenju greeted him.

Lin Nongyue glared at him: "Why change rooms? I've thought it through!"

"You've figured it out? Figured out what?" Zhou Wenju sat down.

"In the martial world, lecherous men are as numerous as carp crossing a river. To avoid them is not my style! Anyone who dares to lay a hand on me will be killed!"

"That's more like it! You've even killed the Holy Son of the Tianquan Sect, so who else could you possibly avoid? Hmm..." Zhou Wenju paused slightly, "Why did you kill this Holy Son?"

Zhou Wenju also knew about the Tianquan Sect.

This is a very famous sect in Haizhou.

Its status in Haizhou is almost equivalent to that of the Cangshan Sect in Qishan County.

After he wiped out the Cangshan Sect in Qishan, he had also thought to himself that if the prefect of Haizhou had to use the state troops, he might borrow troops from the cultivation sects in Haizhou.

Because he had this thought, he had some understanding of the cultivation sects in Haizhou.

The Tianquan Sect thus came into his view...

Faced with this question, Lin Nongyue said, "This Tianquan Saint, that day he dressed in a scholar's robe, struck a pose like a refined gentleman, and preened his manner before me, reciting a nonsensical poem in a 'refined' way. Unfortunately, all his pretense couldn't conceal his filthy intentions of lust and ulterior motives. Therefore, I sealed him with a single finger to prevent him from harming other sisters in the martial world... Now tell me, was my killing him just or unjust?"

"Whether it's right or wrong is beside the point... cough..." Zhou Wenju said, "Could you please stop looking at me like that when you say that?"

After a few casual chats and some rambling, time slowly slipped away over this teacup...

The large ship is heading north, having already traveled a thousand miles compared to yesterday.

As night fell, the boat passed Ruzhou.

After passing Ruzhou, you leave the Jiangnan region.

Once you leave Jiangnan, the sky changes dramatically.

Instead of the gentle spring rain, heavy snow is falling.

The boat sails on the river, while heavy snow covers the riverbank.

The next morning, when Zhou Wenju stepped out of his room again, he was captivated by the snow scene before him.

Along the banks of the Yangtze River, towering mountains stand tall, and heavy snow falls, covering the river embankments.

Snowflakes drifted across the Yangtze River and vanished without a trace.

But the snowflakes falling on the mountaintop turned the mountain white overnight...

The air was already chilly with the north wind.

From the middle of the river, the chill of the river water could be felt.

On the fifth deck, more than a dozen scholars stood, their white or purple scholar's robes forming a unique scene on the large ship, a sight characteristic of this era.

"Brother He, with the changing seasons, why not compose a poem?" a scholar in purple robes called out.

"Brother Zheng, how could I dare not comply with your kind offer?" A scholar in white robes stepped forward and stood by the boat. As the river breeze rose, his scholar's cap fluttered in the wind.

All of the dozen or so private rooms on the top floor had their windows open, and various discussions followed.

"This must be He Tianliang, one of the Ten Talents of Jiangnan, right?"

"That's him!"

"In the provincial examination in Juezhou that year, he ranked seventh, which was the highest among the ten outstanding scholars in Jiangnan."

"Unfortunately, I did not pass the imperial examination last year."

"How can a scholar's reputation be contained by a single imperial examination? He failed the imperial examination, but because of this failure, he wrote a poem entitled 'On Wuyun Temple,' which can be described as losing in one place but gaining in another."

"Indeed, it is difficult for scholars to achieve fame and fortune, and even harder to create timeless masterpieces... The chaotic clouds fly north of Wuyun Temple, and the pavilions are gone, leaving only empty dreams, a sentiment that resonates with countless disillusioned scholars..."

Suddenly, a voice reached Zhou Wenju's ears: "North of Wuyun Temple, chaotic clouds fly; once gone, the pavilions and terraces are empty, only dreams remain..."

It was her voice, Lin Nongyue.

Zhou Wenju glanced to the side and saw her.

Today, instead of sitting at the coffee table drinking tea, she picked up a calligraphy brush, turned the paper umbrella over, and wrote on the inside of the umbrella.

The words written were the two lines of poetry that had just been heard from the room next door.

Moreover, under Zhou Wenju's discerning eye, there were more than just those two lines of poetry written on the inside of the umbrella; there were seven or eight poems, some in five-character lines and some in seven-character lines...

From his perspective, these poems were all... utterly awful!

The only lines that have even a hint of poetry are these two: "North of Wuyun Temple, chaotic clouds fly; the pavilions and terraces are gone, only dreams remain."

What do you mean?

You little brat, how dare you write such a bunch of low-class poems on the inside of your umbrella?

Lin Nongyue wrote the last stroke of the character "回" (hui), then looked up: "There should be two more lines. What are the remaining two lines?"

The question was about Zhou Wenju.

Zhou Wenju shook his head: "I don't know, it wasn't me who wrote it."

He genuinely didn't know.

"Now you admit it, huh? You don't even know such a famous poem, yet you pretend to be a scholar..." Lin Nongyue pouted.

"Since he's so famous, how come you don't know him?" Zhou Wenju asked in return.

"Tch! I can't have a serious conversation with you..."

On the deck, He Tianliang, the focus of everyone's discussion, slowly turned around.

All eyes were simultaneously fixed on his face...

He had finished composing his poem and began to recite it…

"The freezing rain slants in, the waves have not yet receded, suddenly startled by the clouds transforming into gulls in the sky, a thousand mountains of white feathers sink a lone oar, a stretch of cold river cuts through the nine provinces."

As soon as the words were spoken, the surrounding scholars cheered.

"Yesterday it was freezing rain, but today it's snowing heavily for miles around. Brother He, this change in the weather is truly wonderful!" Brother Zheng, who was beside him, was the first to cheer.

"White snow like seagulls in the sky, this description originated with Brother He!" Another scholar clapped his hands in praise.

"A thousand mountains of white feathers, a single ribbon of cold river... Such a vast river, such a poem of this season, what unparalleled grandeur! Exquisite and incomparable, Brother He truly deserves the title of the beauty of Jiangnan!"

"The journey across the river was arduous, seven days of hardship. Hearing this poem, I know the trip was worthwhile..."

Immediately, scholars vied to praise it.

He Tianliang smiled and bowed, saying frankly, "I dare not accept such an honor..."

Lin Nongyue's pen flew across the paper, and in the blink of an eye, she had written the third sentence...

"What's the last sentence? Tell me quickly..." Lin Nongyue exclaimed.

"Why did you write this stuff?" Zhou Wenju asked.

"Is it so strange that I write down good poems and lyrics when I travel the world?" Lin Nongyue said, "Tell me quickly, don't force me...go ask them!"

"A single stroke of the cold river can cleave the nine provinces!" That was all Zhou Wenju could tell her.

Lin Nongyue quickly wrote it down, and only after finishing did she breathe a sigh of relief, tilting her head to admire it...

Zhou Wenju's gaze swept over her face, which was filled with rapture: "It's not uncommon for scholars to travel the world and casually jot down beautiful lines they come across, but..."

"I know what you mean. You mean I'm a spiritual practitioner, not a scholar, right? Who says a spiritual practitioner can't appreciate poetry and beautiful verses..." Lin Nongyue finished writing this poem she had come up with on her journey and was in a very good mood.

"No, you've misunderstood me!" Zhou Wenju said. "I'm not saying that cultivators can't appreciate poetry. The key is that it has to be clever and good poetry. This poem... does it deserve to be called clever? Does it deserve to be called good?"

"Didn't you hear so many people cheering?" Lin Nongyue retorted.

"Is it good for a bunch of intellectuals to flatter each other?" Zhou Wenju retorted.