Mo Tiange was silent for a moment, then shook her head. "I'm not belittling myself, I'm just stating facts. I know how vast the gap is between Core Formation perfection and late-stage Foundation Establishment. Even with my exceptional talent, before I form my Core or achieve Nascent Soul, I'm still just a Foundation Establishment cultivator."
Upon hearing this, Dao Lord Jinghe sighed. "This master truly doesn't know whether to call you clear-headed or too demanding of yourself." None of his other disciples were like her—even as the disciple of a Nascent Soul cultivator, she still viewed herself as an ordinary Foundation Establishment practitioner.
Mo Tiange looked up and smiled. "Master, when have I ever looked down on myself? Within the Xuanqing Sect, I can walk with my head held high. It's just that while I may look down on them in terms of status, I cannot do so in my mindset."
"..." After a long pause, Dao Lord Jinghe said, "You are clever. Though not the most talented among my disciples, you are the wisest." Knowing where one should stand and what one should do—that was a kind of wisdom in itself.
After saying this, Dao Lord Jinghe immediately followed up with another question. "You feel you have no standing to speak of forgiveness or not, but then what exactly is your attitude towards him?"
Mo Tiange fell silent again. There were some things even she herself wasn't sure about...
"Master, I... Senior Brother Shoujing was acquainted with my father. I should regard him as an elder, but... when I first met him, I only thought he was an ordinary Qi Refining disciple..."
Dao Lord Jinghe detected the hesitation and confusion in her words and couldn't help but say, "When your father made Xi'er's acquaintance, he was already nearly three hundred years old, wasn't he?"
"Yes..."
"In terms of age, your father was over a hundred, nearly two hundred years older than him. And they were merely fellow sufferers in a predicament. What generational difference is there between you? Besides, we cultivators have no reason to be bound by age or seniority. Even master-disciple relationships are not without precedent."
"..." Mo Tiange lowered her head without speaking. She wasn't hung up on seniority; she just needed to find a reason for herself.
"Over these years, I've come to see it. If you had no feelings for him in your heart, you would never have refused to mention him even half a word for decades..."
"Master!" Mo Tiange called out sharply, glancing up at Dao Lord Jinghe before lowering her head again. Slowly, she said, "Don't talk nonsense. I... I haven't been thinking about anything."
Dao Lord Jinghe paused, then said with some urgency, "How can you say you haven't been thinking about anything? You clearly..."
"Master!" Mo Tiange interrupted him again, her brows furrowing. "What are you saying?"
Hearing the reproach in her voice, Dao Lord Jinghe thought better of continuing. Young girls were always more troublesome; saying too much and making her bashful wouldn't be good.
"...Alright," Dao Lord Jinghe conceded defeat. "This master won't speak of this matter anymore. The two of you—one preparing for Nascent Soul formation, the other for Core Formation—it's not the right time anyway. By the way, if you're recovered, go and help your senior brother with his injuries again. His spiritual energy has now returned to his meridians, but his wounds are not yet healed. Your spiritual energy has the best healing effect for him—don't worry about another incident. His energy flow is smooth now; he won't forcibly absorb your spiritual energy anymore."
Mo Tiange wanted to refuse, but Dao Lord Jinghe gave her no chance. After speaking, he assumed a meditative posture and closed his eyes. "Go quickly. The sooner he recovers, the better."
After hesitating for a while, she finally obeyed and left the Shangqing Palace.
After she left, Dao Lord Jinghe opened his eyes and muttered to himself, "Such matters... better let you two sort it out yourselves. That lad will wake up soon. Let's see what luck you have..."
Mo Tiange's mind was in turmoil. She stood blankly at the entrance of the Shangqing Palace for a moment before sending out a messenger talisman.
Not long after, Ye Zhenji hurried over, delighted. "Aunt, you're all better?"
"Yes..." Mo Tiange smiled distractedly. "How is your master?"
"Master is fine, just hasn't woken up yet." Ye Zhenji was a bit puzzled. Had she called him over specifically just to ask this? She could have asked via the messenger talisman!
"...Take me to see him."
"Huh?"
Mo Tiange made up her mind. "Your grandmaster has ordered me to go and heal your master's injuries."
Ye Zhenji was taken aback for a moment, then suddenly understood Dao Lord Jinghe's intention. He wanted to say something, but felt some words were better left unsaid by him, so he swallowed them back. "Understood, Aunt. Follow me."
The two flew to a deserted mountain peak, with Ye Zhenji landing first.
Mo Tiange looked around, feeling the place was strangely familiar. Seeing Ye Zhenji walk up to a bare cliff face, perform a series of hand seals, and then open a formation with a jade token, a flash of insight suddenly struck her. She knew why it looked so familiar.
This was the place where she had rejected Bai Yanfei all those years ago when he had pestered her!
"Aunt?" Ye Zhenji saw her face turn pale and then flush red, not understanding what was happening.
Hearing his voice, Mo Tiange snapped back to reality, wiping the sweat from her forehead. She forced herself to calm down and entered the cave abode. Forget it, forget it. That was so long ago. She might remember, but the other person probably didn't recall it at all.
This cave abode was not much different from the original Mingxin Abode. There were no exquisitely carved railings or painted beams, nor any lavish or noble furnishings. It was just extremely spacious. In terms of spiritual energy, it was also one of the notable spiritual sites on Qingquan Peak, not much inferior to the Shangqing Palace.
The master preferred luxury, yet every disciple he taught was different from him. Whether it was Uncle-Master Xuanyin, Senior Sister Suxin, this Senior Brother Shoujing, or herself—none of them liked pomp and circumstance. This phenomenon was rather interesting... Her mind wandered with these random thoughts as Ye Zhenji led her to the innermost stone chamber. After another set of hand seals, the stone door opened.
This stone chamber was still very simple. At a glance, she saw Qin Xi lying on the cold jade bed.
His robes had been changed; he wasn't as disheveled as that day. Yet his face remained deathly pale, lying there without a sound.
Mo Tiange slowly approached, gazing at this face she hadn't seen in so long.
His features were actually extremely handsome. Even in the cultivation world where handsome men were everywhere, he was not inferior to anyone. Deep-set brows, sculpted lines—presumably even when older, he would still possess a striking, heroic air like Dao Lord Jinghe.
Yet, she missed the Qin Xi from Yunwu Mountain—the one who, though somewhat handsome, wore the robes of a low-ranking Yunwu Mountain disciple and blended into the background everywhere.
Even if he had none of his current bearing back then. Even if his cultivation was extremely low.
Now, she admitted it. Forty years had not worn away her admiration. Thirty years apart, and this face was still deeply engraved in her heart.
What love was, she still didn't know. But she remembered that during the Five Hindrances Obscuring Consciousness trial in the Myriad Laws of Nature Formation, the man she fell in love with had his appearance.
So what if she admitted it? During those two months of interaction, she had developed fondness. In the following years, it gradually faded, only to suddenly discover his deception. And from that moment on, he occupied her thoughts constantly, leaving her anxious and unsettled. Remembering too much, thinking too much—she could no longer simply erase him from her heart as she once could.
Some feelings have unclear origins; some feelings have inexplicable processes.
She tried hard to make herself forget, but couldn't. So she told herself: if she obtained it, she should rejoice; if she couldn't obtain it, she shouldn't dwell on it.
Thirty years. She had managed it. Yet she also had to admit: she wanted to stand atop the world, holding all of creation in her hand, but she still hoped that he would be there, standing by her side.
Just like in that dream.
"Aunt?" Ye Zhenji's voice sounded by her ear. Mo Tiange snapped back to reality, seeing the surprise and doubt on his face.
Her face felt hot. She turned away, avoiding Ye Zhenji's gaze, and said, "Aunt needs to heal your master's injuries. You may go."
"...Yes." After hesitating for a moment, Ye Zhenji finally obeyed and left.
Mo Tiange let out a sigh of relief, gathered her spirits, helped Qin Xi sit up, then sat behind him and placed her palm on the Lingtai Acupoint on his back.
Her spiritual energy slowly probed inward—smoothly, without any obstruction. When it entered his meridians, she still felt a sticky pull, but not as strong as that day. She carefully controlled her spiritual energy, merging it with his. The Yin and Yang spiritual energies mixed together naturally, until finally, control was wrested away by him.
Although this time, her energy was still slowly taken from her, the process was gradual and the force not overpowering. Besides, the process of healing others inherently consumed spiritual energy.
What Mo Tiange didn't know was that when she was unconscious, Qin Xi healing her had not only not consumed his spiritual energy but had even increased it somewhat. This was due to the vast difference in their cultivation levels. For Qin Xi, healing and refining her body didn't require much energy, and he gained some spiritual energy from her in the process. But Mo Tiange's spiritual energy, relative to his, was limited. Qin Xi automatically absorbing too much from her was why she had decreased instead of increased.
After a while, half of her body's spiritual energy was depleted. Mo Tiange made a decisive judgment and stopped channeling energy.
If too much spiritual energy was absorbed, she might not be able to stop at all.
She laid Qin Xi back down, intending to check his complexion, but was startled.
Qin Xi was slowly opening his eyes. He had woken up!
Even though she had admitted the matter before Dao Lord Jinghe, Mo Tiange was not prepared to face him. Stunned for a moment, she turned to leave.
But her wrist was caught tightly, and her whole body froze, unable to move.
"Tian Ge." His hoarse voice came. "You..."
Mo Tiange stood there, motionless. She couldn't leave, yet she didn't want to turn around either.
A look of confusion appeared on Qin Xi's face as he sensed the familiar yet unfamiliar Yin spiritual energy circulating within his meridians. After a long moment, he finally spoke with a sigh-like tone. "You know..."
Just those few words made her feel moisture welling up in the corners of her eyes.
The two faced each other in silence. He didn't let go; she didn't turn around.
This was the first time he faced her as Qin Shoujing—without concealing his cultivation, without hiding his identity.
"What should I call you?" He heard her soft voice. "Senior Brother Qin, or Senior Brother Shoujing?"
"..." He remained silent, unable to utter a single word.
So she turned around, looking at him with a distant and unfamiliar gaze. "Tell me, what should I call you?"
"...Does it matter who I am?" He shifted his gaze, lifting his head to look at her. "Qin Xi is me. Qin Shoujing is also me. Whether Qin Xi or Qin Shoujing, it's the same person."
"Yes, the same person." Mo Tiange looked at him, slowly raising a smile, but her eyes were cold. "But the meaning is completely different."
He saw the indifference and detachment in her eyes, stiffening slightly. He couldn't help but ask, "Why is it different?"
Mo Tiange smiled, the smile not reaching her eyes. "Senior Brother Shoujing, some things don't need to be spelled out too clearly."
"..." Just the form of address had already made her attitude clear.
Qin Xi said nothing.
So she gently pulled her hand free from his grasp and turned to leave.