"Auntie, Auntie!"
A voice came from outside the cultivation chamber. Mo Tiange cast a hand seal and emerged from the Void Heaven Realm, then removed the restriction.
The one who stepped into the room was a man around twenty years old, tall and already with the bearing of a youth, though his face still retained the pure innocence and gentle kindness of a boy.
Seeing him, Mo Tiange smiled and asked, "Zhenji, is there something?"
This youth was precisely Ye Zhenji. He was now twenty years old. His originally cute appearance remained pleasant even as he grew up. Coupled with his good character and generous treatment of others, he was quite popular among the lower-ranking disciples of the sect. Over the past decade, Mo Tiange had been unstinting with elixirs and treasures for him. He was now at the tenth layer of Qi Refining, only waiting for the sect's trial to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill.
Seeing her, Ye Zhenji smiled, revealing two small dimples. "Auntie, you're still cultivating!"
"Naturally, I was cultivating. Didn't you go to the Martial Practice Hall with Hua Ling? It's only noon and you're back already?"
The Martial Practice Hall was a branch hall on the main peak of the Xuanqing Sect, specifically for disciples to spar. Under normal circumstances, a Core Formation cultivator and several Foundation Establishment cultivators were stationed there to train disciples in Dharma Combat. Male disciples were always more interested in combat, often visiting the Martial Practice Hall every few days. Ye Zhenji was the same. After reaching the tenth layer of Qi Refining, he and his childhood playmate Hua Ling ran to the Martial Practice Hall every day, ostensibly to accumulate experience for the Foundation Establishment Pill trial. Mo Tiange felt this was a good thing and let him be.
"Don't mention it!" Ye Zhenji sat down opposite her, looking bored. "There weren't many people at the Martial Practice Hall today. I sparred twice and it was dull, so I came back."
"Didn't you say last time that Hua Ling had thought of some move… and you didn't know how to deal with it? Have you already cracked it?"
"Of course!" Ye Zhenji raised his head, his face full of pride. "What kind of moves can that kid Hua Ling come up with? I pondered it for two days and figured it out. Auntie, watch this!"
Saying this, he stood up enthusiastically. With a lift of his hands, a Wind Wall Technique and an Earth Wall Technique appeared almost simultaneously around his body.
"Auntie, look, by using these two spells together, Hua Ling's Ice Freeze Technique and Earth Splitting Art can't break through!"
Mo Tiange smiled. "This is indeed a good method. I'm impressed you could think of this."
Praised, Ye Zhenji instead seemed a little embarrassed. He withdrew the spells and sat back down. "Auntie… there's something I'd like to discuss with you."
"What is it? Tell me."
A hesitant look appeared on Ye Zhenji's face, and he stammered, "I… I want to go home for a visit."
Mo Tiange was taken aback. Ye Zhenji had come up the mountain at nine, recognized her at ten, and had been by her side ever since, never leaving. Counting it up, it had been eleven years since he left home. For cultivators like them, after entering a sect, they rarely returned to the mortal world. Ye Zhenji had never mentioned missing home, so she hadn't given it much thought.
At this moment, a trace of melancholy faintly appeared on Ye Zhenji's face. "When I left home, my mother cried all night… Auntie, the Foundation Establishment Pill trial for elite disciples is still a year away. I… I want to take this time to go home for a visit. Is that alright?"
Seeing the anticipation on the child's face, Mo Tiange didn't speak. She naturally understood Ye Zhenji's feelings. She had felt the same way in the past. However, such strong attachment to family was not a good thing.
"Auntie," seeing her silent, Ye Zhenji pleaded again, "I will definitely come back as soon as possible. I just want to go back and see…"
"…Our Xuanqing Sect does not require disciples to sever mortal ties. However, under normal circumstances, visits are only permitted after Foundation Establishment. You haven't established your foundation yet, and it's precisely the year you're waiting for the trial. It really isn't convenient for you to leave."
Ye Zhenji didn't speak again, his face full of dejection.
Mo Tiange thought for a moment, then smiled at him again. "You don't have to be so disappointed. Your grandmaster said five years ago that after I finish my five-year seclusion, he would allow me to travel away from the mountain. Now, it's exactly five years. After some time, when I've handled some miscellaneous matters, Auntie will take you back. How about that?"
Ye Zhenji was instantly overjoyed. "Auntie!"
"Are you happy now?"
Ye Zhenji nodded repeatedly. "Thank you, Auntie." After thanking her, he hesitated again. "But… doesn't Auntie not want the family to know about you?"
Mo Tiange smiled. "I don't share the Ye surname, so what does it matter? They won't be able to tell. When the time comes, just call me Martial Aunt." Ye Zhenji was nominally the in-door disciple of Perfected One Shoujing. According to the rules, he should indeed call her Martial Aunt.
Having placated Ye Zhenji, Mo Tiange ended her cultivation session and stepped out of her cave abode.
Five years had passed. Her cultivation had reached the peak of the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment. She only needed a bit of opportunity to break through to the late stage. However, Mo Tiange wasn't in a hurry. She was only thirty-seven years old now. For her age, her cultivation was already considered quite high. Even Qin Shoujing back then was only at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment at her age.
Stepping into the main hall of Shangqing Palace, Dao Lord Jinghe was sitting cross-legged in meditation. Five years ago, after his fight with Venerable Songfeng, his injuries were not light. He had been recuperating all these years. Fortunately, his cultivation base was profound, and his dantian and meridians weren't damaged, so there were no serious issues.
Mo Tiange stopped not far away and called out, "Master."
Dao Lord Jinghe opened his eyes. "You've emerged from seclusion?"
Mo Tiange nodded. Over the past five years, she had been secluded in her own small cave abode, never coming out. Now that she was out, naturally, she had emerged from seclusion.
Feeling Dao Lord Jinghe's divine sense sweep over her, Mo Tiange remained calm. Her Spirit Refinement Art had already reached the second layer. As long as he didn't deliberately use his aura to suppress her, she could maintain her composure even in front of a Nascent Soul cultivator.
After the inspection, Dao Lord Jinghe nodded. "Not bad. You've reached the peak of the mid-stage. I imagine breaking through to the late stage in the next few years won't be a problem—you've even cultivated the Spirit Refinement Art to the second layer? In just over a decade, to have such an achievement… I've never seen anything like it."
Mo Tiange smiled. "It was Uncle-Master Xuanyin who considered things thoroughly. It just so happens that I'm not afraid of Qi Deviation. Master, how are your injuries?"
"Fine." Dao Lord Jinghe waved his hand, looking unconcerned. "They're almost completely healed. Hmph! That old bastard Songfeng definitely hasn't been having an easy time these past few years either. Back then, Zhenyang Old Daoist's Heaven-Falling Stone hit him squarely. By my estimation, he'll have to go into seclusion for at least ten or twenty years. Ha! Counting it that way, I actually came out ahead!"
Seeing Dao Lord Jinghe's smug look, Mo Tiange shook her head helplessly. This master of hers could probably only be serious on occasion.
"By the way, since you've emerged from seclusion, the sect's minor competition is in a few days. Do you want to participate?"
Mo Tiange hesitated. "This… wouldn't it be inappropriate for me to go?"
The sect's minor competition was mostly for ordinary disciples to participate. The Qi Refining stage competition was related to Foundation Establishment Pills. The Foundation Establishment stage competition had other rewards. Generally speaking, elite disciples rarely participated in the minor competitions. First, they all had rewards from their masters and weren't greedy for those small prizes. Second, if elite disciples participated, they would mostly defeat ordinary disciples, meaning one less ordinary disciple would receive a reward. Although the cultivation world didn't consider modesty a virtue, within the sect, there were still considerations.
Dao Lord Jinghe didn't care at all. "What's inappropriate about it? If they lose to you, that's their own lack of skill."
Mo Tiange remained silent, clearly not agreeing.
Dao Lord Jinghe glared at her. "Fine, fine, don't go if you don't want to. But you should go and join in the fun. It's beneficial to spar more with fellow disciples."
This she agreed with, so she nodded. "Yes, Master."
Mo Tiange knew that although she had experienced numerous battles big and small, after Foundation Establishment, the number of times she had engaged in Dharma Combat wasn't that high. Although she had participated in the Demon Beast Rebellion, she had avoided the most chaotic two years within the Void Heaven Realm. Moreover, her several instances of Dharma Combat were almost all life-or-death struggles. Her intuition for danger surpassed that of ordinary cultivators, but her technique was probably slightly inferior to those who sparred frequently. Currently, having been in seclusion for five years without taking action, she really should properly study Dharma Combat.
Leaving Shangqing Palace, she rode her White Silk Handkerchief and flew to the main peak.
The Martial Practice Hall was located next to the Three Pure Ancestors Hall on the main peak. Its scale was only slightly inferior to the most magnificent Three Pure Ancestors Hall in the entire mountain gate, showing the importance the sect placed on it.
As Mo Tiange slowly stepped inside, a gatekeeping disciple saluted. "Ancestral Master Mo." She now had a certain level of prestige within the Xuanqing Sect, and these disciples recognized her.
Subsequently, an attendant disciple came forward and smiled. "Ancestral Master Mo, have you also come to the Martial Practice Hall to spar?"
Mo Tiange returned a slight salute and replied, "I'm idle today and came to take a look."
"Oh… Ancestral Master, please come this way. The Foundation Establishment stage matches are inside."
"Mm, thank you for your trouble." Following this attendant disciple, Mo Tiange passed through the crowd under the gazes of others and entered the inner area.
This outer area was where Qi Refining disciples sparred, presided over by Qi Refining stage attendant disciples with two Foundation Establishment cultivators overseeing. The inner area was where Foundation Establishment disciples sparred, overseen by one Core Formation cultivator. The receptionist was also a Foundation Establishment stage attendant.
The attendant disciple brought her before the attendant and excused himself.
The attendant here took her identity token, recorded it, and smiled. "Martial Aunt Mo, is this your first time here?"
Mo Tiange nodded. When she had arrived at the Xuanqing Sect, she was already at the peak of Qi Refining, facing Foundation Establishment. After establishing her foundation, she immediately encountered the Demon Beast Rebellion. After returning, she became Dao Lord Jinghe's formal disciple, was tormented for five years, then went into seclusion for another five years. She simply hadn't had time to come to the Martial Practice Hall.
The attendant then said, "Then let me take you there."
"Thank you."
The attendant led Mo Tiange while introducing the place. "Actually, the rules of the Martial Practice Hall are simple. In the main hall here, there's a stage. Anyone can go up and issue a challenge. The winner must stay on the stage waiting for others to challenge. Winning three consecutive matches allows one to step down. If two people want a private match, they come to me to receive a room token and go to the side rooms over there—of course, an attendant must be present as a witness. In that other room, there's a Core Formation Martial Uncle stationed there. If two people want to fight without holding back, they must request permission and can only proceed under the witness of the Core Formation Martial Uncle."
Mo Tiange listened and nodded. These rules were reasonable. For private matches, a third party needed to be present to avoid accidents and unclear explanations. Additionally, some offensive techniques, if used, could potentially cause casualties. Without going all out, their power couldn't be fully displayed. Hence, a Core Formation cultivator was needed to ensure safety.
As they spoke, they arrived at the main hall. Mo Tiange looked over. A wide stage was set up in the center of the hall, with twenty or thirty cultivators standing or sitting around it.
The attendant said, "After the last Demon Beast Rebellion, over a hundred of our sect's Foundation Establishment Martial Brothers and Sisters perished. Now there are less than two hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators in the sect. Otherwise, there would be at least forty or fifty people here."
Seeing the faint melancholy on this cultivator's face, Mo Tiange thought it likely that relatives or friends had passed away in the demon beast war. She smiled and said, "The sect's minor competition is about to start. I imagine this time, a large batch of Foundation Establishment fellow disciples will certainly emerge."
"That's true." The attendant also smiled. "Martial Aunt Mo, please make yourself comfortable. I'll take my leave now."
Mo Tiange returned the salute, watched the attendant withdraw, then walked to the side of the stage herself and found a random spot to watch.
The two sparring on the stage were both early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators—one a burly man with a full beard, the other a thin, frail-looking middle-aged man.
Although the burly man was large, the magic tool he used was a small flying sword, while the middle-aged man wielded a fan. The burly man focused on offense, the middle-aged man on defense. The two exchanged blows back and forth, fighting quite fiercely.
Mo Tiange watched for a while and actually gained some insights. For example, the burly man's flying sword was controlled more like a hidden weapon, flying silently. This required a long period of practice. As for the middle-aged man, his fan also held mysteries; it could actually manipulate the burly man's spiritual energy, thus repeatedly allowing him to evade danger.
After watching intently for a while, someone patted Mo Tiange on the shoulder. She turned her head in surprise. "Brother Ye!"
Standing beside her with a smile was none other than Ye Jingwen.
Ye Jingwen was now nearly sixty years old, so he looked slightly older, having lost some of his sharpness but gained more steadiness.
Ten years ago, the two had fought side by side, experiencing life-and-death struggles against several cultivators of the Ancient Sword Sect. Their feelings were naturally not as superficial as before. However, both of them had been accidentally injured by Dao Lord Jinghe's aura. Mo Tiange, because her meridians were tough and she was placed in the Nurturing Pool by Dao Lord Jinghe, recovered almost completely in just a few days. Ye Jingwen's injuries were heavier than hers. It took over a year of recuperation before he fully recovered. At that time, Mo Tiange was tormented daily by Dao Lord Jinghe, and they only hurriedly met a few times, without even time for pleasantries. Later, she went into seclusion, and they hadn't seen each other for five years.
Ye Jingwen smiled at her, pointed behind them, and the two withdrew from the crowd to find chairs in a corner and sit down.
Once seated, Ye Jingwen smiled. "Tian Ge, long time no see."
"Yes, I just emerged from seclusion yesterday."
Ye Jingwen's divine sense swept over her in surprise. "You've reached the peak of the mid-stage?"
Mo Tiange nodded. "By luck, this seclusion went very smoothly."
Ye Jingwen looked at her face, which showed no trace of arrogance, and sighed. "I heard your aptitude was actually extremely good, but I didn't quite believe it. Now I have no choice but to believe it. When I met you, you were just a little girl at the second layer of Qi Refining, and I was already at Foundation Establishment. Now you've actually surpassed me."
Over these past few years, Ye Jingwen's cultivation had also progressed. However, his progress wasn't as obvious as Mo Tiange's, and he spent some time recuperating from his injuries, so he was still a bit behind.
Mo Tiange shook her head and smiled. "Brother Ye, don't tease me. That I can have today is all due to opportunities." If she hadn't coincidentally met Zhong Muliang, she would still be a crippled Spirit Root today. Over these past dozen or so years, she'd probably still be lingering at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, right?
Back when she established her foundation, without a Hunyuan cultivation method, even the efficacy of the Pure Maiden Art was greatly reduced, and the spiritual energy she absorbed could hardly be retained in her body. Now that she had obtained the Hunyuan cultivation method and cultivated within the Void Heaven Realm, she finally understood just how great the gap was between a crippled Spirit Root and those single Spirit Root or mutated Spirit Root geniuses. If before she could only retain one-tenth of the spiritual energy, now she could retain nine-tenths! This terrifying nine-fold difference made her realize that if she hadn't met Zhong Muliang and hadn't obtained the Hunyuan cultivation method, then even if she exhausted the rest of her life, she probably wouldn't be able to advance to Core Formation.
Naturally, Ye Jingwen didn't know her inner sentiments. Hearing her modesty, he shot her a look. "I told you back then, opportunities are also part of one's strength. Why deny it?" He paused, then asked, "Tian Ge, did you come to the Martial Practice Hall to spar?"
"Mm, after Foundation Establishment, I've rarely fought. I think sparring more with fellow disciples will increase my Dharma Combat experience."
"That's good. In Dharma Combat, experience is more important than talent. A cultivation genius might be poor at combat, but someone who isn't as good at cultivation, if they practice a lot, won't be much weaker in combat."
"Does that mean Brother Ye often comes to the Martial Practice Hall?" Mo Tiange asked with interest. Previously, she knew Ye Jingwen but wasn't close, never having seen him fight. Later, when she met him at Qianmen Ridge in the Tianhuo Mountains and fought alongside him, she learned he was also decisive and resolute in killing. It seemed he was probably very interested in combat on a daily basis.
Sure enough, Ye Jingwen nodded. "I come to the Martial Practice Hall whenever I have free time. For us sword cultivators, martial skills and Dharma Combat are more important."
"I'm afraid every sword cultivator loves to fight, right?"
Ye Jingwen couldn't help but smile. "Correct. If one didn't love to fight, one wouldn't choose to be a sword cultivator."
The two smiled at each other.
After sitting idly for a while, Ye Jingwen said, "By the way, since you came here to spar, and I don't feel like going on the stage right now, shall we have a match?"
"Alright!" Mo Tiange naturally welcomed this. Ye Jingwen's combat power surpassed that of ordinary mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, and his experience was very rich. He was, of course, an excellent opponent.
The two stood up together, went outside to find an attendant, received a room token, and entered a side room under the lead of an attendant.
Although called a side room, it was, after all, used for sparring, so it was quite spacious, equivalent to a small stage. The two stepped onto the platform. After confirmation by the attendant, they began exchanging moves.
Ye Jingwen was a sword cultivator. Sword cultivators emphasized offense. As soon as the attendant confirmed, his flying sword shot out, aiming straight for Mo Tiange's face.
Mo Tiange stepped on her White Silk Handkerchief, deliberately not using it for defense. In an instant, she brushed past the flying sword. However, a sword cultivator's flying sword carried sword aura. This brush swept past her arm, making it go numb.
Seeing this, Ye Jingwen immediately recalled his flying sword, condensed energy into the sword, and suddenly, a myriad of white radiance condensed on the sword body, enveloping his entire person. Then, abruptly, he released all the sword radiance towards her.
Mo Tiange had no choice. She withdrew and released her White Silk Handkerchief, forming a brick wall to block the sword radiance. Her Flying Sky Shuttle shot out, golden light soaring, descending to envelop Ye Jingwen.
The two went back and forth, fighting for a while, until the witnessing attendant applauded and cheered, then they stopped.
Descending from the stage, the two rested temporarily.
Seeing Mo Tiange lost in thought, Ye Jingwen asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
Mo Tiange replied, "Originally, I didn't want to use that magic treasure, but facing Brother Ye's sword aura, I didn't know how to avoid it."
After she said this, Ye Jingwen laughed. "You're actually thinking about that."
Mo Tiange was puzzled. "Is there a problem?"
This time, the observing attendant interjected. "Martial Aunt Mo, a sword cultivator's sword aura is very difficult to dodge. In such a narrow space here, naturally one chooses to block with a magic tool or a spell. Since Martial Aunt has a magic treasure, that's naturally best. Why try to avoid it?"
Mo Tiange was taken aback, her face showing shame. "I was mistaken. I was always thinking about being absolutely safe."
Ye Jingwen said, "Tian Ge, your Dharma Combat experience is considered quite rich, but you haven't yet adjusted your mindset. You must know that in the path of Dharma Combat, even winning by a little is still winning. Whatever means you have, just use them."
"Yes, thank you for the guidance, Brother Ye." Although her current cultivation had surpassed Ye Jingwen's, when it came to Dharma Combat, Mo Tiange knew she was still not his match, so she thanked him sincerely.
Ye Jingwen smiled. "If you have nothing to do recently, come to the Martial Practice Hall often to spar with me. We can learn from each other and progress together."