Chapter 51

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Chapter 51

No one would guess that at the highest point of the eerie and terrifying Night Poison Mountain, there lay a vast bamboo forest of purple bamboos.

From the broken marks on the outer rock layers, Ji Yang could see that this place was once a steep peak, which had later been flattened by someone.

He bent down and used his fingers to probe three feet into the soil, further confirming his suspicion.

Night Poison Mountain was full of steep cliffs, completely unsuitable for anyone to stay for long.

However, a powerful one not only cultivated the area into a flat surface but also brought in fertile soil to plant thousands of purple bamboos.

Such delicate bamboo would hardly survive the harsh conditions here, yet it thrived, giving off a subtle sense of expansion.

They walked along the small stone path into the depths of the bamboo forest, and before long, they saw a straw hut with smoke faintly rising from it.

Gong Wu asked curiously, "How many people are inside?"

"Just one monk."

Kan Jixuan called out loudly, "Wang Jin! Wang Jin!"

"I’m here." The young monk wiped his hands with a coarse cloth and covered the pot, saying, "What brings you here again, little girl, to ask for alms?"

Gong Wu and Ji Yang quickly bowed to the monk, waiting for the two seniors to talk before quietly conversing among themselves.

"Does the Great Wuxiang Temple have anyone with the name Jin in their generation?" She struggled to remember the names. "Qing Zhen seems to have the character Qing, so…"

Ji Yang whispered, "Wang Fan and Shan Xiu, Qing Kong and Jue Zhi, those are the previous eight generations."

"Nowadays, most of the monks who appear in public are from the twelfth to the fifteenth generations."

"Really?" Gong Wu covered her mouth in surprise. "Is it possible that the person that old lady is looking for is the ancestor of the Great Wuxiang Temple?"

The monk named Wang Jin looked to be only in his twenties, maybe just a bit more mature than Ji Yang.

But if one opened their spiritual eye and looked again, they could see the intense light of Buddha radiating from behind him, just like the Bodhisattvas in the paintings.

A monk with such cultivation, how could he possibly live alone at the top of Night Poison Mountain?

Gong Wu recalled how Qing Zhen had been beaten by fierce beasts, breaking several of his ribs, and had a hunch that the monk probably didn’t know the ancestor was at the mountain peak; he just happened to come here to gather medicine.

Before they could speak, the monk had already turned back to the kitchen and asked through the window, "What about you two? Want to have some vegetarian food?"

"No, thank you, Senior." Gong Wu replied, "Our master has arranged to eat together with us in the evening."

Wang Jin said okay and busied himself serving dishes for Kan Jixuan.

The coarse grains and mixed rice came with tofu and cabbage, seemingly all bought from down the mountain.

Kan Jixuan tossed another piece of candy into her mouth and while waiting for the meal, casually wrote a few characters in the air.

Where her fingers fell, brilliant red spiritual traces appeared, as if she had used cinnabar to casually inscribe bold strokes in the air.

"This place can catch Night Poisons," she casually mentioned while fulfilling her previous gift. "As for the poison-resistant gloves, you shouldn’t be short on those in Moonfire Valley. You’ll need to figure it out yourselves."

Ji Yang thanked her and, together with Gong Wu, helped the monk set out the tables and benches. The four of them sat in the bamboo forest, enjoying the breeze and sipping tea.

Kan Jixuan was quite pleased that these two children never asked unnecessary questions and just turned to Wang Jin and asked, "Did you wait long?"

"When I met you, I was over a hundred years old, and you were waiting here for it."

"Now that fate has changed, hundreds of years later, I come here to take a look, and you are still here." She scooped a spoonful of tofu, tasting its simple flavor, "But meat is still better."

Wang Jin shook his head, "It hasn’t come at all."

"Perhaps it is dead, or maybe it still refuses to forgive me."

As she spoke, Gong Wu glanced to the side and caught sight of a small patch of cultivated farmland.

Beyond that, through the cracks in the dilapidated and humble house, she could also glimpse some ancient scriptures and texts.

The monk had been practicing rigorous asceticism here for hundreds of years, completely cut off from the world, and had no idea who he was waiting for.

"I don’t think it remembers," Kan Jixuan sighed, "People get muddled as they age, let alone a dragon."

"It does remember," Wang Jin said firmly.

Once they finished their porridge and rice, Kan Jixuan gestured for Ji Yang to wash the dishes for her and called out Wang Jin’s Dharma name.

"Brother, this girl has a mysterious background; take a look at her as well."

Gong Wu was unexpectedly called upon and immediately sat up straight, slightly surprised that she was so well understood.

Kan Jixuan smiled and briefly recounted how Ji Yang had helped her, casually tucking her hands into her sleeves to display her importance, "Do you think the girls at the Rebirth Temple all naturally possess spiritual insight and can see everything clearly?"

"Then, could it be…?"

"That’s all taught by his sister’s cultivation methods; it was also his sister who established the temple." Kan Jixuan bowed to the heavens, "That Bodhisattva has already attained a golden body; you cannot see her now."

As the Master of Soul Cliff, her act of bowing to the Bodhisattva seemed somewhat rebellious yet entirely natural.

"Both siblings are born with Buddha roots, having cultivated their virtues to perfection and opened their wisdom early." Kan Jixuan continued, "My son thinks highly of you, so as a mother, I certainly need to support him."

Ji Yang nearly dropped a bowl in the kitchen.

Gong Wu felt flustered and quickly waved her hands, "My senior brother and I have no such intentions!"

"Is that so?" Kan Jixuan shot her a sharp look, "You’ve been observing him closely all along."

Ji Yang glanced over through the window.

"Because my senior brother is good-looking," Gong Wu spoke the truth without changing her expression, "Subei has had suitors from noble families asking for his hand since he was little, and he was even praised by our Master Ancestor for his dragon and phoenix qualities during New Year."

"That’s true." Kan Jixuan kicked the bamboo stool the monk was sitting on, "Did you see it well?"

"I’m observing," Wang Jin stared closely at Gong Wu, "Hmm… You were not human in your last life."

"Humans undergo several reincarnations, but your last life was a complete chaos."

Gong Wu was stunned for a few seconds.

"I, in my last life, was a bowl of wonton?"

Kan Jixuan looked puzzled, "She was… a fierce beast named Chaos from ancient scriptures, reborn as a human?"

"Not exactly," Wang Jin peered carefully into the girl’s pupils, "Your three souls and six spirits have all been refined."

"You are indestructible and immortal, and with each reincarnation, your powers grow deeper than before, am I right?"

Gong Wu quickly nodded.

"Senior, you are impressive; you can see all that at a glance!"

She felt she could not stand on equal footing with such a high monk, stood up, and said, "I find it strange, but I have always been unable to pinpoint the reason. Please enlighten me today."

"Well…" Wang Jin repeatedly said, "Wonderful," and took a sip of tea.

"What do you think in this world is something that cannot be destroyed?"

"The more you try to destroy it, the more it accumulates, and the more it resists?"

Gong Wu pondered for a long time.

"It seems there is no such thing."

Wang Jin turned to Ji Yang.

"This child seems smart and insightful; what do you think?"

Ji Yang had just finished washing all the pots and dishes. He dried his hands and replied cautiously, "Hatred?"

Wang Jin smiled.

"That’s correct."

"Love can fade, but hatred is hard to extinguish."

"A single seed of hatred can sprout countless grievances and pains, leading to endless consequences."

"My child, you were refined from a spirit destined to become a demon."

As he spoke, his gaze penetrated through Gong Wu’s eyes, as if he were witnessing her entire life.

"Think about it, if your Master hadn’t found you, what kind of life would you have led?"

Gong Wu froze, her face turning pale.

She might have perished long ago.

Then, repeatedly, she would have come back to life until someone discovered her immortal body.

She might have grown up amidst hatred and fear, possibly being killed or even bound and thrown into a lake, much like those ‘unfortunate’ women submerged in pig cages.

Those scornful glances, rejection, and disdain were emotions she had endured countless times when her identity was revealed.

At that time, Zhi Bai Guan and Ba Jing Tower repeatedly targeted her, while numerous small and medium sects remained vigilant and issued warnings. It was Moonfire Valley that consistently shielded her, refusing to let her suffer, and certainly not allowing her to face adversity alone.

"Fate is indeed cunning," the monk said gently. "The one who refined you intended for you to grow up filled with hatred, to suffer endlessly, and to become a ruthless celestial demon."

"But my child, you grew up surrounded by love, didn’t you?"

Gong Wu’s eyes welled up with tears, instinctively looking towards Ji Yang.

Her senior brother had always cherished her.

Her Master loved her, her father loved her, and the thousands of disciples of Moonfire Valley, though not all closely acquainted, loved one another and cared for every struggling household beyond the mountains.

"This is your destiny," Wang Jin said. "You were born into a deadlock, deliberately cast out beyond the Magical Formation meant to refine you, intended to die repeatedly and endure suffering, transforming into a demon capable of slaying gods."

"But you were found by your Master and have lived well; until now, the number of times you’ve died is not many."

"Child, do you know how to proceed on your path in the future?"

Gong Wu stared blankly and replied, "Perform good deeds."

Wang Jin smiled warmly.

"If someone bullies you, it’s understandable how you should retaliate."

"But if you can do good, you should still extend your help widely and forge friendships."

"You mean, I… was refined?"

She felt that this statement was too absurd.

"Does Soul Cliff possess such forbidden techniques?" Kan Jixuan pondered, "I was confined by my aunt for nearly a century, and many things remain unclear to me."

"Not Soul Cliff, could it be Bone Abyss?"

Wang Jin shook his head and rose slowly.

"I’m weary, let us conclude here."

"Forgive me for troubling you one last time," Gong Wu said anxiously, "Will the person who refined me eventually reclaim me?"

She had endured enough confinement; she refused to be taken from this familiar place by a stranger!

Wang Jin, unoffended, replied gently.

"Soon."

"Within a year, you will see everything."

With these words, the monk leisurely retreated to his inner chamber to continue his meditation and sutra recitation.

Ji Yang secured the door and echoed the monk’s words.

"See?"

Not reclaimed, not engaged in fierce battle, but… see?

These words evoked memories in Gong Wu of her former self, before her spiritual intelligence had awakened.

In those days, she could not perceive the spiritual aura surrounding each person, discern the contours of formations and magical energies, nor soar high in the sky.

Was Wang Jin suggesting that within a year she would break through to the Opening Sun Realm and perceive what was ordinarily invisible?

"What a shame," Kan Jixuan remarked. "I had hoped he might divine my son’s marital prospects, whether he would father daughters or sons, but who would have thought the old man would evade me to sleep?"

"Thank you for bringing us here," Ji Yang said, bowing deeply. "At least now… my Junior Sister’s origins are largely revealed."

"From your tone, it seems you intend to depart?" Kan Jixuan arched an eyebrow.

"Ah, what else can we do?" Gong Wu murmured, "That venerable one has retired to rest."

The old woman rolled up her sleeves.

"Since we’re here, let’s not leave without some of his bamboo shoots!"