Chapter 165: The Lone Brave
Under the pouring rain, the coldness in the night deepened.
Most of the restaurants in Shengjing City had closed, and countless students, either holding umbrellas or using Spiritual Qi to shield themselves, walked into the rain.
The rain then grew heavier, knocking down withered leaves from the mountains, causing a rustling sound throughout the night, only to gradually subside at dawn.
Thus, at daybreak, the landscape was one of desolation after a fresh rain in the empty mountains.
Ji You, who had returned to the Inner Courtyard from Hongding Restaurant, did not sleep, as sleep was not essential for cultivators.
He was currently sitting cross-legged in his Inner Courtyard room, attempting his fifteenth subtle illumination, causing the Spiritual Qi under the night sky to whistle incessantly.
This was his daily required practice, though not every attempt yielded results.
For instance, his fourteenth subtle illumination began before the Autumn Tournament and ended the night before the Battle of Night City Mountain, intermittent and continuous, taking him over half a month.
And this fifteenth attempt had just begun, and he could already feel it would take even longer—
At the third quarter of the Yin hour, Ji You opened his eyes. The Spiritual Qi was still flowing ceaselessly through his Meridians, and his entire body was extremely hot with vigor.
“Even a Rongdao Realm cultivator would find it difficult to break my defense now.”
“This could even scare the little Master Jian of Lingjian Mountain…”
Ji You clenched his fist, feeling that with just his Physical Body strength, without using Dao techniques, he could even develop some Senior Brothers in the Inner Courtyard into clients.
However, there were also disadvantages.
According to the common consensus in the Immortal Realm, the purpose of Ascension is to shed the decaying Physical Body and forge an Immortal body, thereby achieving eternal freedom.
In other words, the more solid the Physique, the harder it is to shed in the end.
Ji You originally had no motivation for Ascension and thought it would be fine, but his recent subtle illuminations made him feel a restriction.
It was a restriction on Divine Thought caused by an overly solid Physical Body. He was still breaking through Divine Thought by “seeking higher places,” but after each successful subtle illumination, the Ascension process would be very heavy.
This indicated that his Physical Body was too strong, preventing his Divine Thought from smoothly leaving his Physical Body.
“It seems the Physical Body is indeed a cage for Divine Thought—”
“For the next few days, I’ll mainly train my Divine Thought—
Ji You muttered to himself, thinking that his cultivation was like making dumplings: if there’s too much flour, add water; if there’s too much water, add flour.
As for what he would cultivate into in the end, he wasn't sure, but in terms of combat power, the improvement was significant.
He had previously said when discussing the Dao with Kuang Cheng that the reason the top cultivators in the world did not respect this world was because they believed they could Ascend and yearned for the Immortal Realm, thus having no sense of belonging to Qingyun World.
This also led to a distorted trend among the people below, forming a millennium-old unchanging custom.
Therefore, many cultivators, even in the Lower Three Realms, dared not actively refine their Physical Body, fearing that they would be unable to shed their Mortal body upon Ascension.
But Ji You was not flustered at all; his main principle was to live in the present.
At this moment, the morning light gradually arrived, and sunlight spread across the world, but the temperature did not rise much.
The red sun in the twilight hung in the sky like a salted egg yolk, glowing crimson.
Ji You rose from his room, washed up, and left, walking towards a pavilion with gray tiles and red walls halfway up the Inner Courtyard mountain, passing through a small path where grass and trees were lightly frosted.
This was the Clear Wind Lecture Hall of Tianshu Academy, where Inner Courtyard Instructors would come to teach and impart the Heavenly Dao Laws they had comprehended.
And these Instructors were mostly Elders belonging to the various halls.
The Instructor who came today was from Dustless Hall, surnamed Ning, and he taught the Law of Celestial Phenomena, which is the so-called wind, rain, thunder, and lightning.
This was Dustless Hall's main cultivation direction, constantly applying various techniques to oneself by comprehending the Law of Celestial Phenomena, achieving mysterious body protection.
However, the Disciples of the Inner Courtyard knew that although some Celestial Phenomena techniques could be used to improve one's Realm, they did not enhance one's combat power.
These Laws were called obscure techniques, and many people were unwilling to delve deeply into them.
Just as among the four phenomena of wind, rain, thunder, and lightning, thunder and lightning were widely practiced techniques.
Because thunder power possessed strong offensive capabilities, the Huantian Technique that Chu River used that day actually contained Laws related to the Dao of Thunder.
The inclusion of this Law made Chu River's power strong, comparable to half a Xiao Chong Shan—
The reason for this phenomenon was the constant secret struggle between Worldly Families and Immortal Sects; in these conflicts, combat power was always the key to victory or defeat.
Last year, on the streets of Shengjing, Ji You, Ban Yangshu, and Lu Qingqiu encountered a black-clothed old man.
What he used was thunder Law, and the reason for this was, in the final analysis, that thunder Law was too common and would not reveal his identity.
Thinking of this, Ji You couldn't help but frown slightly.
After the Qi Ridge incident, all disasters were attributed to the Zheng Family, but the inexplicably appearing Evil Seed in Shengjing, and that Rongdao Realm cultivator, remained unidentified to this day.
“Thunder, the hidden power within the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.”
“Mobilized by the power of Law, colliding to form momentum, accumulating first then erupting, until thunder power takes shape.”
“Yang Qi gathers in Yin, it must be forced, and when forced to the extreme, it advances.”
“The soft penetrates, the hard shatters.”
The Third Elder of Dustless Hall chanted, his hair and beard fluttering, then he held out his single palm, chanting, and thunder Law gathered.
Purple electric light flashed.
Ji You found a seat, leaned back in the wooden chair, and listened for a long time.
The Laws taught in the Clear Wind Lecture Hall were based on the Human Race's comprehension of the Heavenly Dao. The Instructor's purpose was to guide, but how to evolve and apply them still required Disciples to achieve Epiphany.
To know the Law and achieve profundity, and to evolve it into a technique is Integration Dao.
The five grand halls of Tianshu Academy each had different techniques, as well as exquisite cultivation methods, and some were only accessible to personal Disciples.
An hour later, the lecture in the hall ended, and Ji You rose and left.
It must be said, it was a bit boring—
But cultivation was like this; as Wen Zhengxin said, all Inner Courtyard Disciples would say when sitting in deep mountains that one must be patient to achieve something.
Too comfortable, Ji You scratched his palm, feeling his occupational habit about to act up again.
Yesterday he robbed Ru Long Immortal Emperor, and today he wanted to find another client.
He walked to the vicinity of Purple Bamboo Zen Forest and saw He Lingxiu leading a group of people towards it.
She paused slightly when she saw him.
Among these people, Ji You recognized a few.
Shi Junhao, Fang Jincheng, Leng Yingying, Chai Ze, and Xiao Hanyan were all candidates for personal Disciples in the Chang Sheng, Dustless, and Wuyu Halls.
At this moment, He Lingxiu also saw him, and she gracefully walked towards him.
Every time Ji You saw this Senior Sister, he would stop to admire her. At this moment, he felt that she seemed to have had an Epiphany recently, and her aura was much stronger.
“Junior Brother, I heard that you have been back from Feng Province for many days. I didn't expect this to be our first meeting.”
“Thank you for your concern, Senior Sister. I have been diligently cultivating and rarely go out.”
He Lingxiu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow upon hearing this: “But yesterday, there was a rumor in the Outer Courtyard that a Junior Sister with a perky butt saw you and said you were very enthusiastic.”
Ji You's mouth twitched after hearing this: “Really? That’s great—”
That damned Bai Rulong, yesterday he was forced to bribe him with silver to keep silent, but he didn't expect it to reach so many ears.
“I didn’t expect Junior Brother to like this type. No wonder Lu Qingqiu and Zhao Yunyue couldn’t catch your Dharma Eye.”
“Actually, theirs are not bad either—”
Ji You had just eaten their meal yesterday and couldn't help but defend them; their butts were also excellent.
He Lingxiu then chuckled lightly, stating that she was going to Wudao Field, and then left.
It should be known that after the Autumn Tournament, this broad-minded Senior Sister had always wanted to entice him into the Inner Courtyard, even promising him the treatment of a personal Disciple, but at this encounter, she only exchanged a few playful words, not mentioning anything about entering the hall.
It was as if this matter had never happened, and even more unusually, Ji You didn't feel surprised.
“Then Ji You probably won’t be able to enter the Inner Courtyard Immortal Hall.”
“What?”
In the Wudao Field, Fang Jincheng had been in meditation for several hours. As he rested, he saw Ji You float past Bi Shui Lake, so he spoke softly, immediately causing countless people to turn and look.
Lu Hanyan also turned her eyes: “Can’t enter the Immortal Hall?”
Fang Jincheng raised the corner of his mouth: “Although I don’t need him to guide me in comprehending the Heavenly Book, if he had honestly told us the method of sensing last night, I might have been able to let him enter Chang Sheng Dian as a personal Disciple or something. Unfortunately, he was insensible.”
It was no secret that Fang Clan had an Elder in Chang Sheng Dian, but Fang Jincheng saying he could make Ji You a personal Disciple was pure bragging and deceit.
However, hearing him mention asking Ji You about comprehending the Heavenly Book last night, Lu Hanyan pursed her red lips, recalling that last sentence.
He didn’t know, couldn’t teach, because it wasn’t him who sensed the Heavenly Book, but the Heavenly Book that sensed him.
So she looked up at her Elder sister.
Lu Qingqiu, who was accompanying her younger sister to Wudao Field today, also recalled last night's events.
For thousands of years at Tianshu Academy, it had always been students sensing the Heavenly Book; there had never been a saying of the Heavenly Book sensing students. She hadn't sensed it back then and didn't know what it meant.
But what concerned her was why Fang Jincheng would say that Ji You couldn't enter the Immortal Hall.
And also concerned about this matter was Cao Jinsong.
“Why haven’t you entered a hall yet?”
In the Outer Courtyard, in the pavilion of the Instructor building, Cao Jinsong looked at Ji You, who was leisurely strolling from the Inner Courtyard, his brows deeply furrowed.
Since returning from Feng Province, he had been busy encouraging Disciples like Xiang Fu and hadn't seen Ji You many times.
Now that they finally met, he couldn't help but voice the question in his heart.
“This matter of entering a hall, I’m afraid it won’t happen.”
“?”
Ji You picked up his teacup, his gaze calmly directed towards the mountain: “The Night City Mountain incident has caused all the Worldly Family factions in the Inner Courtyard to be extremely exclusive towards me. Although they don’t say it, I actually know it.”
Cao Jinsong frowned deeply: “Just because of that?”
“More or less. Anyway, in the past few days since I returned, no hall seems to welcome me. I once wandered into Dustless Hall and was even driven out by the Disciples there.”
“These Worldly Families are truly petty. Those sent to Feng Province were Disciples that the Worldly Families didn’t value much,
but now they care.”
“The people aren’t important; what’s important is that the act of displaying their heads made them lose Face. It’s said that even several Hall Masters feel that I’m a bit too troublesome.”
When Ji You was in the Outer Courtyard, he was targeted by the Master's Courtyard because he blocked Chu River's path, and coupled with his identity as a rural rogue cultivator, he was out of place with his surroundings and was indeed once ostracized.
But in fact, some people in the Inner Courtyard had a good impression of him.
After all, over so many years in Qingyun World, not many truly deserved the four words 'exceptionally talented', and taking them as Disciples was also very Face-saving.
Especially when Ji You broke through the Sword Forest during his Dao inquiry on Lingjian Mountain, even the Inner Courtyard Elders envied Cao Jinsong's 'bursting milk'.
But after the Night City Mountain incident, Ji You made countless enemies in the Inner Courtyard.
Behind the Immortal Villa were Worldly Families, and behind the Worldly Families were Immortal Sects. They were either connected by blood or had paid tribute annually, with an intricate and inseparable relationship between them.
Just like Luoping Mountain of Poyue Immortal Villa, and Elder Luo, who had considerable prestige in Zizai Hall.
According to them, killing a few was fine, but there was no need to kill them all, and what they found even more unacceptable was cutting off heads and displaying them.
In their eyes, this behavior broke the rules.
What are rules?
Rules mean that no matter how many undercurrents there are behind the scenes, there must be at least superficial friendliness.
Just like the Chen Clan and the Mountain and Sea Pavilion ultimately didn't fight, and Tianshu Academy only went to Lingjian Mountain to seek the Dao.
Everyone took care of each other's Face, after all, who knows who might have a close relationship with whom.
Only Ji You, this private cultivator from the countryside, had no ties with any of the great Worldly Families or Immortal Villas, so he dared to kill and hang heads, thus breaking the rules.
But for Ji You, beheading was something that had to be done.
Feng Province needed time to rest and recover, so he had to go to extremes to make those Immortal Villas not dare to cause trouble in a short period.
Cultivators were high above, calling themselves Immortals, clearly distinguishing themselves from the common people.
But they were ultimately afraid of death, just like Mortals.
The chain reaction was that after this incident, some people intensely disliked Ji You's unrestrained style.
And some who had no connection with the Feng Province Immortal Villas were suddenly alerted by the Night City Mountain incident, realizing that Ji You, this private cultivator from the countryside, had always stood on a different side from them.
“Not of our kind, their hearts must be different.” This saying could now be applied to Ji You.
Private cultivators from the countryside were indeed not of the same kind as Worldly Family Disciples.
“I, on the other hand, have absolutely no experience in this regard—”
Cao Jinsong wanted to offer Ji You some advice, but he was willing but powerless.
There were already few students in Feng Province; sometimes there were one or two a year, sometimes none. He had never had the experience of a Disciple entering the Inner Courtyard.
In fact, thinking about it again, a private cultivator from the countryside entering the Inner Courtyard was also rare in the world.
“Will it be like this from now on?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I’ll be the only Disciple in Tianshu Academy’s history who entered the Inner Courtyard but wasn’t accepted by the Five Great Immortal Halls. That would be quite impressive to say.”
Cao Jinsong’s mouth twitched slightly: “I have to say, you are really optimistic—”
Ji You placed the teacup on the table and looked deeply at the sky: “I always thought that in this world, besides life and death, everything else is a minor matter.”
“What about money then?”
Cao Jinsong thought to himself, if everything besides life and death was a minor matter, then was money a major matter?
Ji Hanfei’s eyes lit up: “Instructor, how did you know why I came? It seems you’re already prepared, so should I just proceed with the process?”
“Scram, you Rebellious Disciple!”
“Instructor, have you ever considered that I need to find some silver to grease a few palms in the Inner Courtyard?”
Cao Jinsong couldn’t help but chuckle after hearing this: “I’d rather believe you’d use the silver to build yourself a nest than believe you’d be willing to give away even half a tael.”
Ji You put away his smile, said it was truly boring, and turned to leave.
As soon as he left, someone stepped through the door. It was Liu Jianan, the son of Prefectural Governor Liu of Feng Province, who had brought a jar of fine wine from Shengjing City to Instructor Cao.
Tianshu perception did not depend on cultivation, so his offering of wine at this time was actually to seek guidance on how to perceive the Tianshu.
Cao Jinsong stroked his long beard, his eyelids slightly closed, and looked at the table, motioning him to put the wine down.
Liu Jianan immediately understood, put down the Spirit Wine in his hand, and took out half a roasted pigeon from his embrace.
Instructor Cao looked in the direction Ji You had left, thinking, “Look, look, this is true respect for one’s teacher!”
There were countless Disciples in Tianshu Academy, but who would extort silver from their Instructor every day?
It was a good thing that brat Ji You left early. If he had left a moment later, he would have definitely shown him what a good example was.
Thinking of this, Cao Jinsong felt pleased.
No, forget it.
If he had left a moment later, neither the Spirit Wine nor the roasted pigeon would have remained, and he might even have taken the wine cup and chopsticks with him.
In the following days, Ji You indeed did not enter any hall. He himself didn't mind, because before entering the Rongdao Realm, he wasn't in such a hurry to enter a hall for deep cultivation. However, contrary to his indifference, rumors from the outside world gradually increased.
Outer Courtyard Instructors, and some Outer Courtyard Disciples who had originally paid close attention to Ji You, were all discussing among themselves.
“It seems that Ji You really can’t enter an Immortal Hall.”
“Entering the Inner Courtyard but not being able to enter an Immortal Hall, I’ve never heard of such a thing—”
“In the past, those who entered the Inner Courtyard were all Worldly Family Disciples. He was already an exception. In fact, before the Night City Mountain incident, I heard that several Elders in the Inner Courtyard actually admired him.”
“Does this count as showing temporary bravery but ruining one’s Immortal path? I wonder if he regrets it.”
Lu Qingqiu, unable to fulfill her wish of entering the Inner Courtyard, had now shifted her cultivation focus to making connections everywhere.
Like her, Lou Siyi, Sun Qiaozhi, and other Outer Courtyard Disciples in the Condensation Realm also began to change their mindset, no longer cultivating diligently day and night, but looking towards the future of their Families.
As a result, many Inner Courtyard Disciples received invitations from Outer Courtyard Disciples. Banquets were frequent, and news exchange was quite fast.
And the rumor that the Five Great Immortal Halls were not accepting Ji You was thus confirmed.
Upon hearing this, everyone reacted differently, but all felt that seeing the Inner Courtyard’s reaction now, he must surely regret it.
A great Immortal serves life and the people.
After the Primordial War, the Human Race was not without such idealistic individuals.
But in the end, they were still constrained by various worldly matters.
Without offerings, one could not cultivate the Dao with peace of mind. Without strengthening the clan, one would be swallowed and perish. It was precisely because of the commotion caused by Ji You’s prolonged failure to enter a hall that news also began to spread that Lu Hanyan and other students had asked Ji You how to perceive the Tianshu, only to be fobbed off with a lie that he didn’t know.
Many who heard about this felt it was incomprehensible, and even their words carried sarcasm.
Some said that Ji You came from the countryside, and his vision had been narrow since childhood, only understanding immediate petty gains, and not knowing how to plan for the future.
Thus, in Shengjing City, in teahouses and taverns, wherever cultivators gathered for banquets, such remarks could be heard.
“If I were Ji You, on that day, when those Immortal Villas were willing to give up 20% of their offerings, I would have agreed, and then allied with those Immortal Villas to strengthen my own power, growing endlessly, leading to the prosperity of my Family.”
“Indeed, if I were Ji You, I would have taught the method of Tianshu perception that very night and befriended the Lu Family and the Fang Family. The Lu Family has countless Spirit Stones, and the Fang Family is a great Worldly Family, with relatives serving as Elders in the Inner Courtyard. Wouldn’t becoming an Elder’s direct Disciple then be a matter of course?”
“This Ji You, after all, was Innately deficient, and now it’s fully exposed.”
“Innately deficient? What does that mean?”
“Those from the countryside invariably have narrow vision, only focusing on immediate petty gains and not knowing how to plan for the future. This is a habit they developed in the countryside, so it’s not his fault for lacking such astuteness.”
“Actually, my view is somewhat different.”
“Brother Wang, how do you see him?”
“I think Ji You has been so high-spirited all this way that his mindset has become somewhat arrogant. He probably believes deep down that he doesn’t need to make connections and can support a Worldly Family in this Qingyun World all by himself.”
“But I heard that Ji You is not unwilling to teach the method of perceiving the Tianshu.”
“Then why?”
“He said he doesn’t know how to perceive the Tianshu, because the Tianshu perceived him.”
“This person—hahahaha, he really loves to boast to his Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters.”
At this time, as autumn deepened, Ji You was cultivating in his Inner Courtyard room.
Following the principle of adding flour when there's too much water and adding water when there's too much flour, he continuously pushed the limits of his Divine Thought and refined his Physical Body.
Besides this, he also went to the Clear Wind Lecture Hall every day to listen to lectures on the Heavenly Dao Law, and then went to the Purple Bamboo Zen Forest to observe the Heavenly Dao.
During this period, Wen Zhengxin and Ban Yangshu both visited.
Pei Ruyi was now staying in Feng Province and frequently corresponded with Wen Zhengxin. Information about the situation in Ji Village and Qiu Ru’s spiritual awakening progress was usually included in the same letter.
According to Senior Sister Pei, Qiu Ru had good talent, but was too fond of eating and so on, nothing serious.
When Ban Yangshu came, he told Ji You that he now had a brand new title in Tianshu Academy: the Lone Brave.
This meant that he neither chose a Dao Companion for endless propagation, nor showed mercy when killing in Feng Province, and thirdly, he refused to teach Outer Courtyard Disciples how to perceive the Tianshu, seemingly deluding himself into thinking he could support a Worldly Family alone, appearing very brave and reckless.
Ji You, upon hearing this, was not particularly concerned, only saying that handsome men were easily misunderstood, and then proceeded to the Purple Bamboo Zen Forest.
There were many Disciples in the Zen Forest, and upon seeing him approach, they all looked sideways.
“Did you hear? Yesterday, Ji You told the newly admitted Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters that it wasn’t him who perceived the Tianshu, but the Tianshu that perceived him.”
“Students and the Tianshu naturally perceive each other. We ourselves know that saying this isn’t wrong, but—to use this to deceive those uninformed Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters is indeed a bit much.”
“He’s always been so fond of showing off, like ‘one person, seven swords,’ or ‘let the human Dao be under the clear sky.’ It’s no surprise to me that he’s now twisting facts.”
“Actually, his ability to perceive the Tianshu was just luck.”
“Why?”
“I once heard the Hall Master say that the night Ji You perceived the Tianshu, it happened to coincide with the Sect Master Immortal Master summoning the Tianshu, so he found the opportunity.”
“Is that so?”
At this moment, Ji You had already entered the bamboo forest, found his meditation cushion, and sat down cross-legged.
He had always disdained others’ ridicule, and then silently thought about turning them into customers.
However, the latter version about the Sect Master summoning the Tianshu seemed to be something he had never heard before.
Ji You muttered to himself when he suddenly saw a great spiritual light burst forth above the layers of clouds, endlessly changing, continuously whistling, and swiftly entering his Heavenly Spirit.
In an instant, his Divine Thought passed through the caves, continuously flying in the void, and finally entered Void Mountain.
The mountain was empty, with no one inside, only chaotic Heavenly Dao continuously evolving.
Ji You sat cross-legged at the foot of the mountain, began to observe the heavens with his Divine Thought, then his eyes gradually closed, and he entered a meditative state, attempting an Epiphany.
At this moment, a faint rustling sound rose from the void, approaching from afar. In a short while, a Fairy in a red skirt with bare feet gracefully landed on the black cliff.
Her red skirt was extremely short, revealing long and slender legs, smooth as jade and whiter than snow.
The Fairy’s features were extremely delicate, her eyelashes long and curled, her eyes lively and deep, and her red lips were naturally crimson.
However, the Fairy seemed very annoyed, her beautiful eyebrows slightly raised, her pink toes lightly tapping. She gracefully floated from the cliff to Ji You’s front, then raised her foot to measure, as if wanting to step on him.
But that snowy foot only swayed in front of him for a moment before lightly retracting.
【Don’t disturb my cultivation of the Dao. I will not come out of seclusion midway again.】
Yan Shuyi now walked to the black rock beside him, sat down obediently, then propped her chin and stared at the meditating Ji You, her eyes blinking lightly. Unconsciously, pink mist began to slowly rise around her.