Murim's Weakest Princess-Chapter 22: Silver Bells

After the last explosion that demolished the guest accommodation, Yan Ping’s unwavering determination led her to finally grasp the basics of soul cultivation. Despite being initially confused over the limit of her astral journey, she persisted. Yet, every hour, without fail, she would be pulled back into her body forcefully. She thought her insufficient control over soul projections caused it. However, the timely coincidence could not be explained. Refusing to give up, Yan Ping conducted numerous experiments to measure her soul exploration journey and the time to traverse space. After many trials and errors, she realised it was the bell tower that always brought her back.

A few decades ago, when Yan Ping was still travelling in search of the hero who would defeat the demonic cultivation cult, she visited a fellow sage who was a revered monk in the Shaolin temple. The Buddhist monk was the first to teach her the art of meditation to attain a different kind of enlightenment because Yan Ping had been very vexed. No matter how far she travelled, she could not find Zhao Mingfeng back then. Among the other preaching that he taught her, Yan Ping recalled the fundamentals he taught. The only book she had related to soul cultivation was a Buddhist scripture he gifted her. There were many mantras in that book that made little sense to cultivators. However, the ritual setup mentioned in the book was exactly what she needed now.

Silver bells.

Although many cultivators wore them on their belts or the hilts of their swords as decorations and good luck charms, there was more to these shiny trinkets than their beautiful chimes. Many silver bells were also known as warding bells. They appear in many legends and folk tales to guide lost souls with their sound. Maybe there was some truth to this.

Unlike the clock towers at the Shaolin temple with bronze bells, most cultivation sects used silver bells even if they cost more. Any cultivators believe that silver helped to purify any unclean energy and was seen as a good omen. Some people even claimed that the symbol of cultivation sects was their silver bells in the clock towers. Not many cultivation schools could afford to build them, and it was a sign of prestige over wealth. The Celestial Dragon Sect was one of the most prestigious sects in recent years. It was only natural for them to have at least one silver bell clock tower. Unfortunately, that created a different problem for Yan Ping.

The sound of a silver bell could easily bring back a lost soul. Although there were ways to avoid being pulled back by the sound of a silver bell in soul cultivation, Yan Ping was merely a beginner and did not know how to counter that. Unless a person’s will to live is very weak, the silver bell’s ringing was the most effective way to pull a person back to the realm of the living.

Thankfully, there were a few spells and arrays that the prophet knew would act as a compass for her soul during her astral journey. Tasking Mingfeng to provide her with the materials and location needed for her breakthrough, Yan Ping secretly observed her student from afar. Although she could not see how much Anji had physically grown, the child’s intellect shone through her lessons. The Doctrine of the Mean was not an easy textbook to understand. Many people cannot understand how the Zhongyong principles could be applied even with a teacher. Memorising every word in it wasn’t enough.

Anji’s insights were profound, demonstrating her understanding of the concepts taught to her. She could clearly explain every line the teacher read with a few questions of her own, emphasising her critical thinking skills. Although the teachings in Zhongyong highlighted walking on the middle line and advocating peace, Anji’s questions about the definition of good and evil were very valid. In the face of two contrasting polarities, was there still a way to exist harmoniously as a neutral party? In Yan Ping’s opinion, sometimes the right thing has to be done, even at an unreasonable price. There was a reason why justice always prevailed, even when corruption was rampant. Hope was a powerful emotion not covered in the Doctrine of the Mean. Unfortunately, the teacher overseeing the young princess’ education wasn’t as experienced or knowledgeable to provide her with insights outside his book.

Mingfeng took two days to scour his sect for the materials Yan Ping requested. The deep recess cultivation chambers were below the sea level under the mountain. It was very cold because of the frozen lake inside, and the lack of ventilation made ordinary people feel sick. However, it was the perfect place for the blind cultivator as it was dense with earth qi. The thick rocks were perfect insulators from the silver bell’s loud chime every hour.

"This is the deepest cultivation chamber in my sect," Mingfeng explained as he handed Yan Ping the materials she required. "This is a jade token that allows you to communicate with me. Is there anything else you require?"

Yan Ping sent a pulse of qi to look at her new cultivation space and nodded with satisfaction. It was a great setup. She should be able to avoid the cruel tribulations as well. However, the same could not be said about the mountain that was shouldering it on her behalf.

"I apologise about your mountain in advance," Yan Ping informed. However, I have one more request. Regarding Anji’s education, won’t you oversee her learning while I’m undergoing seclusion? That teacher you sent her isn’t bright enough. Anji needs to learn from a cultivator and not a scholar for practical application. It would be best if you could also teach her how to apply those concepts to the basic cultivation theory."

Surprised by Yan Ping’s request, which was completely unrelated to Anji’s treatment, Mingfeng agreed. However, he was still curious about what Yan Ping intended to create and why she struggled as much as she did.

"What do you know about soul cultivation?" she asked.

Soul cultivation? Mingfeng scratched his head. He had never heard of that before. Was it a new technique that Yan Ping was trying to create to fix the seal he made?

Chuckling, the blind prophet shook her head. She would share her knowledge with her fellow divine core cultivator after she figured out its secrets and a safe way to cultivate in her astral form. Compared to qi deviation, the risk of soul drifting was much higher. However, all cultivators risk their lives to climb greater heights. This was no different from all those years Yan Ping strove to perfect spells under her teacher’s tutelage.