Book One: The Stream Through a Thousand Years Chapter 26: Becoming Each Other’s Disciples

Jiang Yujin knelt halfway in the courtyard, her hands gripping the hilt of her blade to steady her trembling frame. Having been drained of all her energy, she was nonetheless forced by Sun Zikai to continue practicing her swordplay.

Possessing a resilient nature, Jiang Yujin struggled to pull herself up. With a desperate effort, she managed to lift the blade, but as soon as the tip rose an inch from the ground, it collapsed back down.

Sun Zikai was merciless. "If you don't move, I will strike you—truly strike you."

"Don't... be so arrogant..." Jiang Yujin’s retort was weak and pale. She steeled herself, then lunged forward with a fierce slash, but lacking the strength, she relied solely on the momentum of her falling body.

Sun Zikai tapped her shoulder with a single finger. A wave of force surged forth, sending her reeling ten steps back. Sun Zikai followed instantly, striking her pressure points with surgical precision. Each point elicited a different reaction: some caused excruciating pain, others unbearable itching, and one touch even left half her body paralyzed.

"Use your strength! Find a way to squeeze it out!" Sun Zikai’s strikes grew heavier. Jiang Yujin would manage to draw out a sliver of power, only for it to be instantly devoured. She was on the verge of total collapse, yet Sun Zikai kept forcing her back up.

Driven by an iron will, Jiang Yujin gripped the hilt again despite the agony. Just then, Sun Zikai injected a stream of energy into her body. Like a parched land receiving rain, she focused intently on the flow, desperately grasping onto it. Sun Zikai’s lips curled into a smirk, and he began pumping more and more energy into her. Jiang Yujin’s "strength" gradually restored her energy source; the stream converged into a river, and Sun Zikai flooded her with an ocean of power.

Feeling as though her body might burst from the sheer volume of energy, Jiang Yujin instinctively swung her blade at him. Sun Zikai retreated six steps as her blade unleashed arcs of light formed from pure energy. She struck desperately, and Sun Zikai parried solely with his hands. This lasted for half an hour until, finally, all the energy gathered at the tip of her blade. Jiang Yujin lunged, but Sun Zikai caught the blade between two fingers. The deflected energy exploded on both sides, shattering the water vats in the courtyard.

Water splashed over them, drenching both. Jiang Yujin gasped for air, yet she felt brimming with power. Sensing herself, she could finally perceive the location of her energy.

Sun Zikai immediately taught her the theory of pressure points, helping her map the energy meridians within her body over the next half-day. From that moment on, she had truly discovered where her energy resided. However, unlike Sun Zikai’s realm, she had not grasped the Great Dao of energy; she had only achieved the most basic level of manipulation and perception. Even so, this was far beyond the capabilities of others.

The awkward reality was that in this region, there were no techniques for energy manipulation. Thus, while she understood the path, she had to intuit every technique herself. Sun Zikai could handle that, but it was too harsh a demand for Jiang Yujin, so she still focused primarily on spiritual cultivation.

By the end of the day, Sun Zikai had taught Jiang Yujin an energy-based binding technique. By dusk, a light drizzle began to fall.

Accompanied by the delicate sound of rain, night descended. Clouds obscured the moon and stars, and Sun Zikai lit a lamp under the eaves. Its faint flame flickered in the slow, rhythmic rain. He sat by the edge of a pit, weaving an energy ring to create stones, lining the bottom and walls of the pit before circling the perimeter to form a large pond.

As water filled the basin, Sun Zikai extended his hand, accumulating water in his palm. He broke down a single droplet into a primordial energy knot, then formed an energy ring to create a special gravitational pull, spontaneously forcing the surrounding energy to "knot" into water. This process drained his own energy reserves.

Soon, the pond was full. Sun Zikai sat quietly in the rain with his legs submerged.

A paper umbrella shielded his head. Jiang Yujin crouched down and asked, "Aren't you cold?"

"No."

"What are you thinking about?"

"My parents."

Jiang Yujin sat down beside him. Rain tapped against the umbrella as they leaned on each other, sitting in silence for a long time until the wind picked up and they retreated indoors.

The rain continued, relentless, for three days and three nights.

Early in the morning, Jiang Yujin woke, dressed, and opened the door. The rain rustled outside. The west room remained closed; she called out twice but received no response. She returned inside, then suddenly went back to the door, sensing the energy of the west room. She realized Sun Zikai was not there; he must have left early.

Sun Zikai crossed the high bridge of the Xian Garden in the rain and reached the western part of the sect. As soon as he crossed the bridge, a figure blocked his path.

Fu Zhe held no umbrella, yet the rain did not touch him. "Why are you here? Outer sect disciples are not permitted in the inner sect unless they are heading to the Manqian Pavilion."

Sun Zikai asked, "Are you from the Ma family?"

The question caught Fu Zhe off guard, but after a moment’s hesitation, he replied, "No."

Invisible air currents swirled around Sun Zikai. He asked again, and Fu Zhe gave the same answer.

Sun Zikai then asked, "Do you despise the Ma family?"

Fu Zhe frowned, his voice cold. "That is not your concern. Go back and do what you are supposed to do."

"Ah... I want to enter the inner sect. Is there a way?"

"To enter the inner sect, you must at least reach the Qi Refining stage. You are not qualified."

"Oh? Is that so?" Sun Zikai stood calmly as his cultivation realm began to climb: Qi Condensation stage two, three... all the way to seven, without a pause. His realm stabilized at the first stage of Qi Refining.

The rain fell silently. Fu Zhe drew a cold breath, struggling to suppress his emotions, but the unease on his face betrayed him.

Sun Zikai said calmly, "Am I qualified now?"

He was more than qualified. Fu Zhe desperately wanted to say so, but he couldn't. His greatest fear seemed to be coming true; this guy was truly a devil among men.

"Whether or not we admit you to the inner sect requires a multi-faceted assessment. Go back and wait patiently," Fu Zhe said.

Sun Zikai ruthlessly exposed him. "You are lying. I am clearly qualified."

Invisible currents, visible only to Sun Zikai, exposed the turbulence of Fu Zhe's emotions.

Fu Zhe said coldly, "Whether the sect accepts you or not is not for you to assume."

Sun Zikai fell silent for a moment, then gave a detached "Oh," turned in the drizzle, and walked back toward the high bridge.

"Wait." Fu Zhe called out. Unable to bear his confusion, he asked, "How did you do that just now?"

Sun Zikai did not lie. He turned back and said, "My path of cultivation has always been self-taught, so it is different from you orthodox ones. Spiritual energy... to me, it isn't anything impressive."

With that, he walked back onto the bridge.

An hour later, Fu Zhe and Wu Lanmu arrived at the Ansheng Residence.

They did not enter the house. Fu Zhe gestured in the air, creating a barrier so no rain could fall into the courtyard. They stated their purpose directly: they had come to take Sun Zikai as their disciple.

Fu Zhe’s final question at the bridge had made him realize something: even if he kept Sun Zikai in the outer sect forever, given the boy's aptitude, he would likely discover an evil path and grow into a regional hegemon.

He had only two choices: cut his losses immediately by expelling or killing Sun Zikai, or impart knowledge and cultivate his heart with the righteous path. Perhaps one day, he could become a pillar of strength, still holding onto righteousness and preventing him from becoming a scourge to the world.

There was another reason: Sun Zikai’s name had already been leaked to everyone present in the Black Forest of Xian Garden by Feng Yueyi, and every sect had members of the Ma family. The Ma family valued power and excelled at grooming lackeys. Every year, they recruited the best of the new disciples with lavish gifts, indifferent to morality. Over time, they had seized half of the sect’s territory. They would never let someone like Sun Zikai—who could catch eight hundred rabbits in half an incense stick’s time and leap from Qi Condensation to Qi Refining in an instant—slip through their fingers.

If such a "malicious entity" fell into the hands of the Ma family, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Fu Zhe had harbored murderous intent, but he failed to reach a consensus with Wu Lanmu after an hour of arguing. Wu Lanmu adamantly opposed harming Sun Zikai and insisted on taking him as a disciple herself. However, Fu Zhe knew her temperament; letting her teach him was no different than handing him to the Ma family. After much debate, Fu Zhe abandoned his murderous intent and decided to educate the child himself.

Sun Zikai asked, "Can you take her as a disciple as well?"

Wu Lanmu looked at Jiang Yujin and said, "Her realm is too low. It is too late for her to cultivate."

"Cultivation has a deadline?" Sun Zikai was baffled. He whispered a few words into Jiang Yujin’s ear.

Jiang Yujin sat cross-legged on the ground, gathering the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. In truth, she was gathering energy, and that energy pulled the spiritual aura into her body, drastically increasing her speed of condensation. Within tens of breaths, she jumped two levels, reaching the first stage of Qi Refining.

Even so, it still failed to catch Wu Lanmu’s eye; after all, her youngest disciple, Feng Yueyi, was already at the second stage of Qi Refining at only nine years old.

Just as Sun Zikai was about to plead, Jiang Yujin spoke up: "Respected elders, I already have a teacher I aspire to follow. I cannot join your sect."

Sun Zikai was confused. "Who? Me?"

"Pah, of course not you."

"Who else is there besides me?"

No sooner had he spoken than two figures walked into the courtyard, leaving Fu Zhe and Wu Lanmu stunned. The newcomers were none other than the thirty-five-year-old Master of the Artisan Sect, Hu Xincheng, and his thirteen-year-old disciple, Gao Yang.

Wu Lanmu asked in confusion, "Brother Cheng, why are you here?"

Fu Zhe also greeted him, but Hu Xincheng, unversed in social niceties, ignored them and walked directly to Jiang Yujin. "How is the practice coming along?"

"I have mastered it," Jiang Yujin replied.

Sun Zikai was completely bewildered. He didn't even know who this man was. Aside from himself, who else had Jiang Yujin been seeing?

Jiang Yujin drew her blade and performed a set of sword techniques. Augmented by her footwork, her movements left countless afterimages, the techniques flowing seamlessly, crisp and decisive.

Wu Lanmu gasped in shock. "What footwork is this? Brother Cheng, did you invent this?"

Sun Zikai was equally puzzled; he had never seen this footwork either—it wasn't the Wind-Walk.

Jiang Yujin explained simply. It turned out that every night when Sun Zikai went to the Xian Garden to practice, the competitive Jiang Yujin would go to the courtyard to drill her swordplay. The core of her technique remained the slash, thrust, and retreat. She had gradually developed imaginary enemies, simulating various situations, and slowly discovered agile footwork to complement those three moves. Her repertoire had expanded from three moves to six, then ten.

Of course, the Wind-Walk Sun Zikai had mastered was at a much higher realm, but it was too free-spirited and ill-suited for fixed kill-moves. Thus, while Jiang Yujin’s footwork was ordinary, it was highly efficient.

Jiang Yujin had encountered Hu Xincheng two days prior while searching for Sun Zikai. Hu Xincheng was obsessed with immortality and cultivation, never confined to the inner sect; he wandered everywhere, seeking inspiration from all kinds of people. He cultivated the Way of the Tool, and he considered self-seclusion the greatest taboo.

At that time, Jiang Yujin had broken a tree branch to use as a sword, and Hu Xincheng, with his discerning eye, had spotted the uniqueness of her footwork and stopped her. He had Gao Yang use a branch to spar with her without using spiritual energy. Though Gao Yang was not a master swordsman, he had been under the Master’s tutelage for years and had studied many secret manuals, yet he never expected to be struck at the neck by the second move.

Gao Yang couldn't understand how he had been defeated by such plain swordplay. Jiang Yujin, upholding Sun Zikai’s philosophy, replied, "In a battle of life and death, there are no fancy tricks. It is often about a single lethal strike. Strip away the unnecessary movements; no one cares how pretty you look."

The remark was startling. Hu Xincheng admired her greatly. Upon learning who he was, Jiang Yujin, desperate to cultivate, had rashly produced a piece of gold and offered it to him, hoping he would take her as a disciple. To her surprise, neither Hu Xincheng nor Gao Yang showed any reaction to the gold brick. Hu Xincheng took it, weighed it, and calmly returned it, saying, "This object is useless for cultivation. Why give it to me?"

Jiang Yujin was flustered. Gao Yang returned the gold to her, whispering, "Master doesn't care for such things. Put it away quickly, don't let others see."

Jiang Yujin awkwardly hid the gold, but she developed immense respect for Hu Xincheng. He was the only man she had ever met who was unmoved by gold and silver, and the second who hadn't tried to steal her money.

From the bottom of her heart, she recognized him as her teacher. When she requested it again, Hu Xincheng, who never cared for status or cultivation levels, didn't look down on her despite her being only at the third stage of Qi Condensation. He gave her a sword manual and told her that if she could master it in ten days, he would take her as his disciple.

She had mastered it in only two days, thanks to both her innate aptitude and Sun Zikai’s year of training and the Wind-Walk.

Hu Xincheng was very satisfied. He said coldly, "Let’s go."

"Uh... Master Hu, then I..."

"Call me Master."

"Master."

Hu Xincheng nodded, then repeated coldly, "Let’s go."

"Master, don't I need to pack?"

Gao Yang signaled for her to hurry up. Jiang Yujin looked at Sun Zikai in distress, but he gestured for her to follow, so she did.

Hu Xincheng’s recruitment was incredibly whimsical. Wu Lanmu and Fu Zhe tried to engage him, but he was lost in thought and ignored them entirely.

After they left, Wu Lanmu said, "Look at Brother Cheng’s realm. He doesn't care about these mundane matters."

Fu Zhe replied, "You underestimate him. He sees things very clearly; he is on a different level than us."

Both seemed to hold Hu Xincheng in high regard. They turned their attention back to Sun Zikai. Fu Zhe said, "If I take you as a disciple, there are three conditions."

"I never had the intention of taking a master. Where does this talk of discipleship come from?"

"You don't want to enter the inner sect?"

"What does entering the inner sect have to do with being your disciple?"

Wu Lanmu spoke up, "Of course you want a master. You came to this sect with a purpose. Entering the inner sect is about getting closer to your target. You have mentioned the Ma family many times. Who do you hate? Ma Guanzheng? Ma Dairan?"

"I have no purpose."

"Liar." It was Wu Lanmu's turn to expose him. "I have lived with beasts since I was a child; a beast’s heart is the hardest to hide. Your resentment is hidden beneath that calm skin, and it is almost ready to burst. Look, you are shocked now. What a powerful soul, yet your face remains so calm."

It was the first time Sun Zikai had his inner thoughts read so thoroughly. He realized that this woman could do exactly what he could.

"Little ghost, do you want to enter the inner sect?"

"I do," Sun Zikai replied directly. "But I am used to my freedom. I will not accept your conditions. Therefore, I will not take a master."

Wu Lanmu laughed. "Without a master, you will never see that girl again, nor will you see the Ma..."

"I accept." Sun Zikai knelt before Fu Zhe, looked up, and repeated the question from years ago: "Master, can you teach me cultivation?"

Fu Zhe frowned and remained cold for a long time before saying, "Pack your things and come find me."

With that, Fu Zhe and Wu Lanmu flew out of the courtyard.