As Shen Lian looked at Qing Xiao, he could feel her gaze.
Her gaze was special. It was cold and detached, and she seemed to look down on everyone as though they were no more than ants.
Such gaze was supposed to make someone uncomfortable, as most would not like to be seen as mere ants. However, most would not find Qing Xiao's gaze repulsive, as she clearly saw everyone as ants; it showed that what she saw did not make any difference in her heart.
An impartial heart; this was considered as an advanced state of attainment in both Daoism and Buddhism.
He remained silent, and he finally spoke, "Master Qing Xiao, Daoist Dengfeng's Taiyue Real Shape Incantation is not the only reason behind your injuries."
A hint of shock flashed past Qing Xiao's face, but it was a fleeting emotion. She replied coldly, "Why, you want to help me heal?"
Shen Lian seemed to be in a complicated mood. He bowed respectfully as he said, "I shall excuse myself now."
Qing Xiao's cold glare fell onto Shen Lian like daggers. For normal humans, facing against the intensity of her gaze was comparable to being cut by daggers.
Shen Lian did not dare to engage even the slightest bit of his mana. The metaphorical daggers made a few cuts on his Daoist vestment.
He remained calm and excused himself.
The following took place after Shen Lian had left.
Qing Xiao spoke, "Do you know why he left so suddenly? Because he did not want to help me. The price for helping me would be to do harm to you."
The green clothing shifted into purple. The cold expression melted away like that of snow and ice.
She became Ziling again, "But I would never do harm to you, and he would not too," she replied. The breeze caressed her clothes, and they fluttered like waves in response. At that split moment, one could not help but feel melancholic.
Shen Lian left suddenly because he realized that there was no way that he could help his founding master out. If it was just any other injury, he could utilize their combined mana and speed up her recovery process.
However, the injuries that she sustained were not as simple as they seemed.
Perhaps, one could even say that her injuries were not an urgent matter.
What Shen Lian had discovered was the true problematic issue. Ziling and Qing Xiao were not just two different personalities. To be precise, they were two different entities altogether, but their natural divine aura was one and the same.
If it was not for Shen Lian's prior cultivation of the Mastery of Senses, which led to his spirit being significantly stronger than most immortal Zhenrens', and the fact that he was cultivating Taixu Strategy just as Fairy Ziling did, which led to the resonance of their divine Qi, he would not have realised this.
They were two different people, and yet they shared the same spirit. This was as ridiculous as it could get; and yet, this was precisely what happened right before his eyes.
To a certain extent, this changed everything that Shen Lian thought he knew about cultivation.
It was as though someone had lived her life, and was then turned into a blank sheet of paper. Subsequently, she was sent away to experience another life again.
Hence, she now had two different set of personality.
To outsiders, these two might look exactly the same, and there might not even be any differences in their spirit. However, they were indeed, two different people.
Unlike a paper, a spirit was not something that one could doodle on and turned into a blank state once again.
This was so as even after the memories were erased, there were still some marks that were ingrained deep in one's soul.
Just as how some experts in Buddhism could recall the memories of their past life once they were at the pinnacle of cultivation. Even if he had been reincarnated plenty of times, but certain experiences had been ingrained into him through the passing of time.
However, this was not the vibe that Shen Lian got from Ziling and Qing Xiao. Even if the vital force of their spirit was the same, Shen Lian could tell that they were completely different.
When he was looking at Qing Xiao, he could see Ziling at the same time too. Both of them did not take their turns to appear and disappear, but they had always existed together at the same time. The decisive factor was who managed to gain control over the body.
Shen Lian guessed that they should have the same natural divine aura and Primordial Spirit. This was why they were unable to solve the problem by splitting their spirit apart and creating another body to contain it.
The most efficient way would be to eliminate one of them. Then, Yin and Yang would be able to be reunited. Only then would the real Fairy Ziling return. Having attained Dao twice, she could rely on that as her foundation and finally complete her cultivation by stepping into the realm of Tian Xian. Then, she would just have to wait for the right moment to transcend beyond the mortal world.
Even though he shared the same source of mana as them and was the best candidate for the task, Shen Lian would never help Qing Xiao to do harm to Ziling.
Of course, he would not offer to help Ziling to eliminate Qing Xiao; not that Ziling would let him do so in the first place.
Initially, he came with the intention of healing the founding master's injuries; now, he had no choice but to leave - how unexpected!
Shen Lian could not do anything but to let go of this for now.
Half a month later, Gu Caiwei returned with news relating to the Dragon Transformation Pond. Apparently, it would only be activated in another thirty years, which was twenty years after the Bier Discourse of Dao.
The dragon could not wait to take over Heishui Kingdom; however, demons and monster perceived time differently from normal humans. To the former, thirty years were the same as thirty days.
As for the true water of the sky, unfortunately, it was no longer at the Heishui Kingdom anymore.
Right before he died, the King of Heishui Kingdom had sent away the true water of the sky along with the princess.
This was common knowledge at the sea regions, and the dragon even went as far as putting a bounty on the princess.
After he heard about this, Shen Lian started calculating as to the designs of nature. However, the whereabouts of the princess of Heishui Kingdom was shrouded in mist, and he could not obtain any information in relation to that. He knew that something must have veiled the designs of nature.
At this rate, he would have to delay his plans to bring Jing Qing to the Dragon Transformation Pond. After all, it would be another thirty years before the pond was activated.
As for now, Shen Lian used the monitoring technique to observe the disciples who were out exploring.
He was focusing on Zhao Siming and Choushi.
Choushi hid his identity and had partnered up with the non-formal cultivators beyond the seas to explore the ancient relics left behind by the previous experts. However, he ran into great danger on his first expedition. He was the only lucky person who managed to escape.
Even though he was probably thinking that he was in luck, but before every disciple left, Shen Lian had planted a strand of his divine thoughts on them. His Primordial Spirit was strong and he had understood hints of the profoundness of the Dream Heart Sutra. The divine thoughts attached to the disciples would come in handy in time of danger.
After all, he was not a cruel chief who was void of emotions. He was not about to treat the disciples in the sect as livestock and let natural selection take its course.
If they have joined Qing Xuan, so long as they did not betray the sect, Shen Lian would want the best for them. He would not want to see any of the disciples die without a good cause.
Of course, the rest of the disciples were unaware that the chief was looking after them and monitored their every move.
Zhao Siming was proud, and the first thing he did was to look for demon beasts.
There were plenty of spiritual materials where the demon beasts dwelled; it was just as how the cows and goats would live near water and food source.
In Qing Xuan, Drunken Daoist was considered as capable. He had mastered Dao of Talisman and swordcraft. However, Zhao Siming did not have the patience for Dao of Talisman, but he managed to learn the essence of swordcraft.
He had a smooth beginning by relying on the sword pill given to him by Drunken Daoist and his sword techniques. However, he had been fighting against stronger demon beasts.
As Shen Lian looked at Qing Xiao, he could feel her gaze.
Her gaze was special. It was cold and detached, and she seemed to look down on everyone as though they were no more than ants.
Such gaze was supposed to make someone uncomfortable, as most would not like to be seen as mere ants. However, most would not find Qing Xiao's gaze repulsive, as she clearly saw everyone as ants; it showed that what she saw did not make any difference in her heart.
An impartial heart; this was considered as an advanced state of attainment in both Daoism and Buddhism.
He remained silent, and he finally spoke, "Master Qing Xiao, Daoist Dengfeng's Taiyue Real Shape Incantation is not the only reason behind your injuries."
A hint of shock flashed past Qing Xiao's face, but it was a fleeting emotion. She replied coldly, "Why, you want to help me heal?"
Shen Lian seemed to be in a complicated mood. He bowed respectfully as he said, "I shall excuse myself now."
Qing Xiao's cold glare fell onto Shen Lian like daggers. For normal humans, facing against the intensity of her gaze was comparable to being cut by daggers.
Shen Lian did not dare to engage even the slightest bit of his mana. The metaphorical daggers made a few cuts on his Daoist vestment.
He remained calm and excused himself.
The following took place after Shen Lian had left.
Qing Xiao spoke, "Do you know why he left so suddenly? Because he did not want to help me. The price for helping me would be to do harm to you."
The green clothing shifted into purple. The cold expression melted away like that of snow and ice.
She became Ziling again, "But I would never do harm to you, and he would not too," she replied. The breeze caressed her clothes, and they fluttered like waves in response. At that split moment, one could not help but feel melancholic.
Shen Lian left suddenly because he realized that there was no way that he could help his founding master out. If it was just any other injury, he could utilize their combined mana and speed up her recovery process.
However, the injuries that she sustained were not as simple as they seemed.
Perhaps, one could even say that her injuries were not an urgent matter.
What Shen Lian had discovered was the true problematic issue. Ziling and Qing Xiao were not just two different personalities. To be precise, they were two different entities altogether, but their natural divine aura was one and the same.
If it was not for Shen Lian's prior cultivation of the Mastery of Senses, which led to his spirit being significantly stronger than most immortal Zhenrens', and the fact that he was cultivating Taixu Strategy just as Fairy Ziling did, which led to the resonance of their divine Qi, he would not have realised this.
They were two different people, and yet they shared the same spirit. This was as ridiculous as it could get; and yet, this was precisely what happened right before his eyes.
To a certain extent, this changed everything that Shen Lian thought he knew about cultivation.
It was as though someone had lived her life, and was then turned into a blank sheet of paper. Subsequently, she was sent away to experience another life again.
Hence, she now had two different set of personality.
To outsiders, these two might look exactly the same, and there might not even be any differences in their spirit. However, they were indeed, two different people.
Unlike a paper, a spirit was not something that one could doodle on and turned into a blank state once again.
This was so as even after the memories were erased, there were still some marks that were ingrained deep in one's soul.
Just as how some experts in Buddhism could recall the memories of their past life once they were at the pinnacle of cultivation. Even if he had been reincarnated plenty of times, but certain experiences had been ingrained into him through the passing of time.
However, this was not the vibe that Shen Lian got from Ziling and Qing Xiao. Even if the vital force of their spirit was the same, Shen Lian could tell that they were completely different.
When he was looking at Qing Xiao, he could see Ziling at the same time too. Both of them did not take their turns to appear and disappear, but they had always existed together at the same time. The decisive factor was who managed to gain control over the body.
Shen Lian guessed that they should have the same natural divine aura and Primordial Spirit. This was why they were unable to solve the problem by splitting their spirit apart and creating another body to contain it.
The most efficient way would be to eliminate one of them. Then, Yin and Yang would be able to be reunited. Only then would the real Fairy Ziling return. Having attained Dao twice, she could rely on that as her foundation and finally complete her cultivation by stepping into the realm of Tian Xian. Then, she would just have to wait for the right moment to transcend beyond the mortal world.
Even though he shared the same source of mana as them and was the best candidate for the task, Shen Lian would never help Qing Xiao to do harm to Ziling.
Of course, he would not offer to help Ziling to eliminate Qing Xiao; not that Ziling would let him do so in the first place.
Initially, he came with the intention of healing the founding master's injuries; now, he had no choice but to leave - how unexpected!
Shen Lian could not do anything but to let go of this for now.
Half a month later, Gu Caiwei returned with news relating to the Dragon Transformation Pond. Apparently, it would only be activated in another thirty years, which was twenty years after the Bier Discourse of Dao.
The dragon could not wait to take over Heishui Kingdom; however, demons and monster perceived time differently from normal humans. To the former, thirty years were the same as thirty days.
As for the true water of the sky, unfortunately, it was no longer at the Heishui Kingdom anymore.
Right before he died, the King of Heishui Kingdom had sent away the true water of the sky along with the princess.
This was common knowledge at the sea regions, and the dragon even went as far as putting a bounty on the princess.
After he heard about this, Shen Lian started calculating as to the designs of nature. However, the whereabouts of the princess of Heishui Kingdom was shrouded in mist, and he could not obtain any information in relation to that. He knew that something must have veiled the designs of nature.
At this rate, he would have to delay his plans to bring Jing Qing to the Dragon Transformation Pond. After all, it would be another thirty years before the pond was activated.
As for now, Shen Lian used the monitoring technique to observe the disciples who were out exploring.
He was focusing on Zhao Siming and Choushi.
Choushi hid his identity and had partnered up with the non-formal cultivators beyond the seas to explore the ancient relics left behind by the previous experts. However, he ran into great danger on his first expedition. He was the only lucky person who managed to escape.
Even though he was probably thinking that he was in luck, but before every disciple left, Shen Lian had planted a strand of his divine thoughts on them. His Primordial Spirit was strong and he had understood hints of the profoundness of the Dream Heart Sutra. The divine thoughts attached to the disciples would come in handy in time of danger.
After all, he was not a cruel chief who was void of emotions. He was not about to treat the disciples in the sect as livestock and let natural selection take its course.
If they have joined Qing Xuan, so long as they did not betray the sect, Shen Lian would want the best for them. He would not want to see any of the disciples die without a good cause.
Of course, the rest of the disciples were unaware that the chief was looking after them and monitored their every move.
Zhao Siming was proud, and the first thing he did was to look for demon beasts.
There were plenty of spiritual materials where the demon beasts dwelled; it was just as how the cows and goats would live near water and food source.
In Qing Xuan, Drunken Daoist was considered as capable. He had mastered Dao of Talisman and swordcraft. However, Zhao Siming did not have the patience for Dao of Talisman, but he managed to learn the essence of swordcraft.
He had a smooth beginning by relying on the sword pill given to him by Drunken Daoist and his sword techniques. However, he had been fighting against stronger demon beasts.
