Who Let Him Cultivate?! (WX)-Chapter 555: Clues of the Epoch Immortal

Numerous clouds drifted by. First Elder exhaled in relief as he got closer to the Dao-Seeking Sect. “At last, safely back at the Dao-Seeking Sect.”

Although the journey from being captured by the Hanging Monastery to this safe return to the Dao-Seeking Sect had been circuitous, living to return is good enough.

~~~

“Junior Brother Shi Chan, I don’t think you’ll need travel funds.”

“Ah? Why?” Senior Brother Dai looks like a kind person. Would he really bear to make me walk back alone?

“Your sect has come for you,” Dai Bufan said impassively, looking past Shi Chan at the approaching group of monks.

Turning around, Shi Chan saw it was indeed his shifu, senior uncle, and senior brothers. The Buddhist light they radiated was so resplendent it hurt the eyes. His senior uncle, Custodian Monk Jiechen, carried someone by the collar. With their profound cultivation, the Hanging Monastery members crossed a hundred meters per step, arriving at the Dao-Seeking Sect’s mountain gates immediately.

“Senior Uncle Jiechen, why are you here?” Shi Chan was stunned. I didn’t hear anything about them coming to fetch me. Although his shifu Jiesha was present, considering his shifu’s inability to speak for a long while, Shi Chan figured questioning him would be futile—he might as well ask his senior uncle.

“Performing a daily good deed by setting a captive life free.” Master Jiechen shoved his captive toward the Dao-Seeking Sect.

“Shifu, are you alright?” Dai Bufan asked First Elder with a peculiar expression.

First Elder waved his hand, gesturing for Dai Bufan not to worry about him. “It’s merely an exchange between sects’ higher-ups. Why wouldn’t I be alright?”

Dai Bufan, “...”

Master Jiechen beckoned Shi Chan over. “Many thanks for your care this past month, Junior Nephew Dai.” Master Jiechen nodded in gratitude.

“You’re too polite, Senior Uncle.” Dai Bufan bowed in return.

~~~

As the Hanging Monastery entourage departed with Shi Chan, the latter kept his head drooped in dejection. It seems I won’t be able to continue working in the slaughterhouse anymore.

“Shi Chan, what did you gain from the Dao-Seeking Sect?” Master Jiechen asked genially. True to his name, which meant “abstaining from anger,” he always wore an affable smile.

“I've gained plenty! The Dao-Seeking Sect abounds with experts. I met many who share my ideologies! But most importantly, I’ve verified that what Shifu said isn’t wrong. The Taciturn Daoist Priest’s eldest disciple is indeed not easy to deal with.”

“That’s a given. Your shifu wouldn’t deceive you. The Taciturn Daoist Priest’s eldest disciple is indeed not easy to deal with... Wait, what did you say?”

“Didn’t Shifu say the Taciturn Daoist Priest’s eldest disciple is extremely formidable and shouldn’t be provoked? I felt that learning it on paper is ultimately shallow and that one must personally take action, so I went to Heaven’s Gate Peak to challenge Senior Yun Zhi. Needless to say, I couldn’t beat her.” Shi Chan’s body ached at the memory, shuddering in lingering fear. Senior Yun Zhi is really powerful.

Hearing what his dear disciple had done, Master Jiesha wobbled mid-flight, nearly plummeting. He wished he could curse out loud, but since he was still cultivating the Mouth-Shut Chan Meditation, he could only confine the outburst to his thoughts.

~~~

“We’re back!” Lu Yang’s group of five returned to the Dao-Seeking Sect. Nothing compares to the warmth of one’s own sect. Look at Senior Brother Dai and First Elder personally receiving us at the gates.

“It’s been hard on you, First Elder, Senior Brother Dai. I must look for Big Senior Sister, so I’ll take my leave first.” With that, Lu Yang vanished before the bewildered group.

“What’s this kid’s hurry?”

“No idea.”

Lu Yang was naturally in a hurry. Setting aside the plethora of things he had learned from his stay at the Five-Elements Sect, he needed to consult with Yun Zhi regarding the ancient matters he had uncovered.

~~~

At Heaven’s Gate Peak, Yun Zhi sat in a half-lotus position, one foot touching the ground while the other rested on the opposite thigh. She held two golden cores between her fingers in a flower-pinching mudra, her breathing drawn out and synchronized with nature, making her presence nearly imperceptible.

Before Lu Yang could speak, Yun Zhi’s eyes opened slowly. “Little Junior Brother, what brings you here in such haste?” Rising, she flicked the golden cores skyward, where they streaked like meteors before suspending high above.

Lu Yang watched, eyes wide, mouth agape.

Noting his shock, Yun Zhi explained offhandedly, “A month ago, someone came to challenge me, requesting I suppress my cultivation to the Advanced Golden Core Stage. I agreed to his terms and plucked two golden cores from the sky to temporarily suppress my cultivation realm. Afterward, I thought since this is a rare opportunity, I might as well refine them further. Now that I’ve finished, I can return them to their original positions.”

Lu Yang’s eye twitched. Some things are better left unexplained.

“Where did you obtain this wooden tablet?” Yun Zhi hooked her finger, summoning the Jianmu wood fragment around Lu Yang’s neck toward her and dragging him along with it.

Yun Zhi examined the Jianmu wood at close range. This unprecedented proximity to Yun Zhi flustered Lu Yang. He could even feel her breath.

“A fragment of immortal wood?” Yun Zhi’s eyebrow arched as she released Lu Yang. This is extremely precious. How did Lu Yang acquire it?

“That’s what I wanted to report! This is a part of the Jianmu World Tree. Shangguan-jiejie gave this to me!”

“A part of the Jianmu World Tree? The Epoch Immortal?” Yun Zhi was taken aback. So Senior Shangguan possesses clues about the Epoch Immortal? Or perhaps she recognized its value without knowing its origins, so she decided to form friendly ties with Lu Yang for good karma?

“It’s better that I explain,” the Everlasting Immortal Fairy interjected. “When Lu Yang and I went to the Five-Elements Sect’s Wood Branch, I discovered it was brimming with astonishing vitality. After noticing the protective charm Lass Shangguan gave Lu Yang, I scanned the entire Wood Branch with my immortal consciousness and found this.” With her consciousness, she recreated the image of the Epoch Immortal’s corpse buried beneath the Wood Branch.

“This is...”

“The Epoch Immortal’s corpse.”

Yun Zhi’s eyes widened slightly at this revelation. Although she had visited the Five-Elements Sect, she hadn’t used her spiritual consciousness to scan the area beneath the Wood Branch out of propriety. Who could have imagined an immortal corpse was actually buried beneath the Five-Elements Sect?!

“The Epoch Immortal perished? No, we can’t make any judgment with just a corpse. Senior, I have something I’d like to check with you. The ancient texts state that the Nian Year Beast[1] is the Epoch Immortal’s familiar. Is this true?”

“It is. The Nian Year Beast is a demon beast that the Epoch Immortal cultivated with the Epoch Dao Fruit.”

“That sounds correct then. Every New Year, the Nian Year Beast is active, but shortly after, it disappears. Once, I tried to intervene to track where it went, but I used too much force and startled the Nian Year Beast. From then on, it flees at the sight of me.”

Mortals, with their brief lifespans, cherished each year. For cultivators with long lifespans, a year passed in a blink. In the cultivation world, the custom was to celebrate the New Year every ten years, and the Nian Year Beast similarly appeared once a decade. Ever since the Everlasting Immortal Fairy’s revival, she had yet to experience a New Year in the cultivation world.

“What I can determine is that every New Year, the Nian Year Beast comes from the east and returns to the west. Thus, I suspected clues of the Epoch Immortal lay in the East Sea or the Buddhist Kingdom. That was why I sent Second Junior Brother to roam the west more.”

1. It’s said that the firecrackers during the Chinese New Year are meant to scare off the Nian beast. “Nian” is “year” in Chinese. ☜