Under the moonlight, Fairy Fengqing flew on with her heart in her mouth, constantly releasing her spiritual sense to monitor her surroundings.
After flying for the better part of a day with no abnormalities, she finally relaxed a little.
What she had told them earlier was the truth. The reason she hadn't returned to the Tiandao Sect and lingered in the East Sea was indeed to search for treasure, though she had concealed the specific details about the treasure. She was very grateful that Qin Shoujing hadn't pressed for details; otherwise, she truly wouldn't have known how to hide it. This treasure could not be allowed to slip away. If she could really find it, it would be the greatest opportunity she had encountered since embarking on the Immortal path.
After observing her surroundings, she waved her silk ribbon, and a protective shield rose around her. The red lotus beneath her feet slowly descended, and she submerged into the seawater.
The sun rose and the moon set. A full two days later, with a splash, Fairy Fengqing emerged from the water.
She warily scanned the area. Detecting no anomalies, she stepped onto the red lotus and vanished into the horizon.
After she disappeared, the figures of two people slowly materialized from blurry to clear on the spot.
Qin Xi gazed in the direction Fairy Fengqing had fled and said, "She's laying a false trail."
Mo Tiange frowned slightly. "Does she know we're following her?"
"Probably not," Qin Xi replied. "Caution and suspicion are common traits among Nascent Soul cultivators. Fairy Fengqing has been a Nascent Soul cultivator for many years; it's not strange for her to act this way."
"Hmm." Mo Tiange paused, then said, "Speaking of which, this Fairy Fengqing also formed her Nascent Soul at over three hundred years old. She's only about seven hundred now, quite similar to Senior Sister Miaoyi. Yet, her reputation doesn't seem as prominent as Senior Sister Miaoyi's; cultivators in the Tianji Region rarely mention her."
Qin Xi explained, "There's a reason for that. As we know, the Tiandao Sect accepts disciples based solely on aptitude, not character, and doesn't forbid them from cultivating Demonic Arts. Many who practice Demonic Arts have extremely cruel temperaments, which has given the Tiandao Sect a rather poor reputation. Although Fellow Daoist Fengqing's primary cultivation technique isn't a Demonic Art, she once practiced some unorthodox, left-path techniques, which made her temperament a bit peculiar as well. To put it nicely, she's intolerant of evil; to put it bluntly, she's a mass murderer."
"Hundreds of years ago, she often traveled outside. Whenever she felt displeased, she never showed mercy. The number of cultivators who perished by her hand was at least in the hundreds, if not a thousand. Because of this, cultivators in the Tianji Region gave her the nickname 'Female Rakshasa.' Upon learning of this, her temper became even more irritable. If she heard anyone discussing the 'Female Rakshasa,' she would absolutely turn hostile without mercy. From then on, no one dared to talk about her affairs, and over time, the events of the past faded from common knowledge. After I formed my Golden Core, I never heard of her conducting affairs outside again. In recent years, she has been diligently cultivating within the sect's mountain gates. Outsiders only know the name 'Fairy Fengqing' but not the reality behind it."
Hearing this, Mo Tiange furrowed her brows. "Master often says that on the journey of the Great Dao, mindset comes first. Why do I so often encounter cultivators who don't cultivate their mindset? Like this Fairy Fengqing—she actually managed to cultivate to the Nascent Soul stage."
Qin Xi shook his head. "You misunderstand. It's not that they don't cultivate their mindset."
"What do you mean?" Mo Tiange was puzzled.
Qin Xi looked at her and asked, "Do you still remember that Professor Han from Yunzhong?"
Professor Han naturally referred to Han Shizhi from the Yeshan Academy. Mo Tiange nodded. "I remember. Why mention him?"
Qin Xi said, "You should know that although this Professor Han's cultivation level isn't remarkable, he has unique insights into the classics. He's only at the Core Formation stage but can hold the title of professor precisely because he is unconventional and exceptionally talented." He paused, seeing Mo Tiange nod, then continued, "In our view, he is sinister and self-serving, neither restraining his desires nor cultivating his mindset. Yet he was able to create his own cultivation method. Do you know why?"
Mo Tiange slowly replied, "I've thought about this question too, but I haven't fully grasped it yet."
Qin Xi smiled and said gently, "My thought is that he has found his own Dao."
Mo Tiange was taken aback by his words and looked up at him.
"The fact that he could create his own cultivation method shows he has thoroughly understood the classics and formed his own interpretations. Yet, despite having his own interpretations, he doesn't cultivate the methods of his predecessors. This shows he doesn't take the Dao of his predecessors as his own; he has found his own Dao."
After listening, Mo Tiange fell into silent contemplation. Over the past hundred-plus years, she had traveled to many places and met many people, but no one had perplexed her as much as Han Shizhi. Just as Qin Xi said, Han Shizhi was ruthless and self-willed. What was called mindset cultivation was all nonsense to him. To put it plainly, he wasn't a good person. Yet, this bad person was a Confucian cultivation genius. Merely at the Core Formation stage, he became a professor at the Yeshan Academy. He was highly valued and could even gain the recognition of Confucian sacred artifacts. His advancement to the Nascent Soul stage was only a matter of time.
She couldn't understand why such a person's path of Immortal cultivation was so smooth? Were concepts like mental state and mindset all just nonsense?
"The Dao is not singular. Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, Demonic paths—each school represents a different Dao. On a smaller scale, even among those who cultivate the Dao, each person's Dao is different. Every path has the opportunity to achieve divinity through cultivation. This is the principle of the three thousand great Daos, all leading to divinity."
Mo Tiange nodded slowly; of course, she knew this.
Qin Xi continued, "There are three thousand Daos. Similarity is a Dao; opposition is also a Dao. Righteousness is a Dao; evil is also a Dao. Universal salvation is a Dao; slaughter is also a Dao. Beauty is a Dao; ugliness is also a Dao. The Dao is ever-changing, but one thing remains constant: only a powerful inner self can find one's own Dao."
"There are some people in this world who are sinister and vicious. They don't cultivate Demonic Arts, yet they can walk to the end without any inner demons. Why is that? Because being sinister and vicious is their true nature. They face their inner selves directly, firmly believing without doubt that what they think is the truth—that is their Dao. Since their actions follow their own Dao, of course, they have no inner demons."
"Therefore, those who are self-absorbed, whether good or evil, beautiful or ugly, all have the possibility of finding their own Dao."
Mo Tiange was stunned and murmured, "So, one can completely forgo cultivating one's mental state and still step onto the Great Dao."
"Don't think of it that way." Seeing her expression, which seemed to be questioning the cultivation of mental state, Qin Xi explained, "Each school has a different Dao. For example, demonic cultivators don't need to cultivate their mental state, but would you envy them?"
Mo Tiange shook her head. The path of demonic cultivation indeed allowed rapid advancement, but the chance of achieving the Great Dao was much smaller. Most of them perished due to qi deviation during cultivation. The cultivation path of Daoists, on the other hand, was a slow, grinding effort—slow but steady.
"There is no inherent order to the Dao, but there are distinctions of superiority and inferiority. Unorthodox, left-path methods accumulate many karmic ties. On the journey to seek immortality, most practitioners perish. In that case, what use is the Dao? This is the same principle as the difference from the demonic path."
Mo Tiange neither spoke nor moved, her gaze fixed on the void.
She had never doubted her own path. Even though demonic arts progressed rapidly, she still felt that walking the upright path was the way she wanted to go. When she encountered Han Shizhi, she was endlessly perplexed, unable to understand how such a person could be favored by heaven, smoothly advancing to the Core Formation stage, and even to Nascent Soul. She thought perhaps everyone was different, so their Immortal paths were also different. Yet, she still held doubts in her heart: Could such a person really walk to the final step?
And now, Qin Xi had enlightened her. As long as others were sufficiently steadfast, they could also step onto the Great Dao. However, there was no need to doubt her own path because of this. She just needed to walk steadily and firmly, and one day, she would step onto the supreme Great Dao.
Seeing her raise her head with a firm gaze, Qin Xi knew she had figured it out. He smiled and said, "Let's hurry and catch up. If we don't follow now, she'll slip away."
Mo Tiange nodded, returning a smile. The two of them activated their escape lights and chased after the place where Fairy Fengqing had disappeared.
Fairy Fengqing remained very cautious. After hiding in the water for two days, she wandered about on the sea surface. Although this place was already deep in the East Sea, as a Nascent Soul cultivator, it was easy for her to deceive demon beasts below the eighth rank.
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi followed aimlessly behind her.
They were so leisurely because, firstly, their mission was already complete, and they could return anytime. Secondly, Fairy Fengqing's bizarre actions had piqued their curiosity. If there really was treasure, they wouldn't necessarily rob her of it, but they could take a share.
After wandering the East Sea for three days, Fairy Fengqing finally stopped at a small island.
She summoned a thatched hut and entered it.
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi found a spot around the island, used a peach branch to conceal their traces, and hid within the Ten Thousand Li Solitary Boat.
The first day passed without movement. The second day also passed without movement. Several days went by, and Fairy Fengqing never stepped out of the hut. They could also sense that the aura inside the hut was stable; she hadn't secretly left, nor was she doing anything particularly special.
"What do you think she's doing?" Mo Tiange said doubtfully within the soundproof barrier. "Meditating? She hasn't lifted a finger these past few days and is completely unharmed. Cultivating? If that's the case, she's being too idle, insisting on cultivating in this remote, uninhabited part of the East Sea."
"Perhaps she's studying clues," Qin Xi suggested. "She probably only obtained this information after arriving at the Bixuan Pavilion. In such a short time, it's possible she hasn't fully understood it yet."
"How long will this study take?" Mo Tiange felt a headache coming on. "Three to five days is one thing, but what if it takes one or two months?"
"We have nothing else to do anyway. Even if it takes one or two years, we can wait," Qin Xi said calmly. They had already sent the Immortal Alliance disciples back to Kunwu and could return anytime. Returning later might even mean fewer assigned tasks.
"Alright." Mo Tiange thought about it; there was nothing urgent requiring their immediate return. Manpower was somewhat tight, but it hadn't reached the point where they were indispensable. The Xuanqing Sect's mountain-protecting grand formation was fully activated, making it very safe. Her master and several senior brothers and sisters were also not in any danger.
Before Fairy Fengqing showed any movement, Xiaofeng woke up first. After undergoing the Human Transformation Heavenly Tribulation and Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering, the spiritual energy throughout its body had condensed and solidified, its pressure had become heavy, and that wisp of Breath of the Vermilion Bird had become purer, guarding its dantian.
Qin Xi entered the Void Heaven Realm to spar with it and was very satisfied. Now, Xiaofeng's strength was equivalent to that of a Nascent Soul cultivator and could be taken out to fight. Besides themselves, they also possessed a Nascent Soul stage puppet and an eighth-rank Chongming Bird. Even if they encountered a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, they would have the power to put up a fight.