Watching the Mountain

Xu Ran went to find Little Xiyue right away.

He was worried she might have been practicing some kind of Evil Technique; otherwise, there was no way to explain why she had broken through so quickly.

She had broken through at an even younger age than Yue Qingyu and Zhang Zhentian, which was clearly unreasonable.

Breaking through quickly with an Evil Technique came with severe side effects, and he didn’t want Little Xiyue to become some kind of inhuman monster in the future.

In the face of Xu Ran’s concern, Little Xiyue was perfectly calm. She said she had come across some fortuitous encounters outside, adding that Master Xuan Zhen and the others from Inference Dao Peak could vouch for her.

Then she added that other masters would only be happy for their disciples’ rapid breakthroughs. Why was it that when it came to him, he was so worried instead?

Xu Ran checked her and found that her Spiritual Power was pure and her foundation was solid. There were no signs of her having practiced an Evil Technique, nor did it seem like she had forced a breakthrough through some special means. He could only conclude that his disciple was perhaps blessed by fortune, which was why she kept having such great fortuitous encounters.

"You can rest easy now, can’t you, Master?" Little Xiyue smiled at him.

Seeing her calm demeanor, Xu Ran’s worries subsided.

Little Xiyue then invited him to eat with her. Even after reaching the Golden Core Stage, she was still the same as always. Whenever the two of them were home, she would cook herself, and they would eat together just like a father and daughter.

That, at least, had never changed.

Perhaps she had long since moved on from being abandoned by her birth parents, but her inner longing for family and affection was something she had never given up on and always cherished.

After breaking through to the Golden Core Stage, Little Xiyue became elusive again, often leaving for over a month and only returning for a few days at a time.

She told Xu Ran not to worry, that she was only going out to study Arrays and wasn’t going far. Besides, as a Golden Core Stage cultivator now, she could protect herself.

The key was that during the few days she was back, she was always incredibly gentle and doted on Xu Ran. It was like a daughter taking care of her aging father, which made it hard for Xu Ran to scold her. He could only remind her to be careful.

*

*

*

Xu Ran never would have thought that he would run into the Little Witch, Ye Qingxue, on Qing Xuan Peak. This time, however, she wasn’t there to see him, but to pick up Ye Shu from the Instructor Hall.

Ye Qingxue looked utterly exhausted. It seemed that raising a disciple was truly taking a toll on her.

However, the look in her eyes was no longer as sharp as before; it now held a few traces of gentleness.

Xu Ran then learned from her that this was already the seventh Instructor Hall Ye Shu had attended. He had previously been to the Instructor Halls of the other six main peaks.

But he learned things too slowly and had been called an idiot and a dunce by the instructors there.

The Little Witch couldn’t stand it. Of course, she knew those instructors only said such things because they had been driven to frustration by Ye Shu.

As Ye Shu’s master and mother, she knew better than anyone how maddening it was to teach him.

But she still couldn’t bear to hear anyone else say that about Ye Shu.

’Senior Brother told me to treat Ye Shu as if he were our own son.’

’In that case, Ye Shu is my and Senior Brother’s child.’

’I won’t allow anyone to call my and Senior Brother’s child stupid. Even if I think so myself, no one else is allowed to say it.’

"In that case, Elder Qingxue, why do you insist on sending him to the Instructor Hall? The instructors there can’t be more powerful or have higher Cultivation than you, right? Wouldn’t it be fine if you just taught him yourself?"

Ye Qingxue shook her head at his words, her gaze turning distant as she said:

"I can teach him myself, but there are some things only the Instructor Hall can give him."

"What things?" Xu Ran asked, a little confused.

Ye Qingxue tilted her head back slightly and chuckled. "A life."

"Hm?" Xu Ran grunted in surprise, wondering if he had misheard.

Ye Qingxue continued, "That’s how Master taught me and Senior Brother Ye Shan, too. When we were young, he sent us to the Instructor Hall to study alongside all the other disciples."

"Master said that for a Cultivator, the further you go, the lonelier you become. The number of people you can converse with dwindles. That’s why you must take the chance to interact with others while you’re young. It’s worth it, even if it means sacrificing some of your training time."

"Because the life and memories you experience when you’re young will pay you back in the distant future, becoming the warmth that sustains you as you continue down the cold path of cultivation."

"Master often told us that we must enjoy life more. So now that I’m raising a disciple, I naturally have to pass on Master’s philosophy and give Ye Shu a complete life, rather than just having him cultivate alone by my side."

"Master said that disciples raised this way are incomplete. They lack interaction with people. And the naivety that develops from this lack of interaction isn’t a pure, untainted heart; on the contrary, it becomes an obstacle to cultivation."

Xu Ran stared blankly at Ye Qingxue. He never expected to hear such words from the Little Witch. It completely changed his impression of her.

’This Witch is far too gentle.’

This was his thought at that moment.

He fell silent for a moment before asking, "But if Ye Shu stays in the Instructor Hall, won’t it be even harder for you to satisfy Senior Brother Ye Shan?"

At his words, the Little Witch fell silent. She lowered her head slightly, a conflicted expression on her face.

After a long while, she looked up and said with determination, "No. Even with Ye Shu in the Instructor Hall, I can still satisfy Senior Brother."

*

*

*

"Did anyone call you stupid today?"

"Reporting to Mother, no one said anything about me."

"Good. The Instructor Hall of Qing Xuan True Monarch is truly worthy of its name. Even if he isn’t teaching personally, it’s still much better than the other peaks. Let’s go home."

By now, Ye Shu was actually taller than Ye Qingxue, but when they stood together, everyone could tell they were mother and son.

Watching Ye Qingxue’s departing figure, Xu Ran fell deep into thought.

He had only proposed this idea to Ye Shan as an experiment, and now it seemed the results were quite good.

Before long, she would probably become the person Ye Shan wanted her to be.

He just didn’t know how Ye Shan would treat her when that time came.

When Xu Ran mentioned what he had seen and heard to Ye Shan, a thoughtful expression appeared on Ye Shan’s face. He was silent for a long time, then tilted his head back slightly, looked at the sky, and said something cryptic.

"So that’s how it was. Is this how Master felt back then? I finally understand."

Xu Ran was taken aback for a moment. He couldn’t help but ask curiously, "Senior Brother, are you talking about sending Ye Shu to the Instructor Hall? I heard about it from Elder Qingxue as well. Nine Profound’s philosophy on teaching disciples is truly admirable."

He was speaking from the heart; he had rarely heard of such a philosophy in the Cultivation Realm.

But Ye Shan just shook his head and said nothing. After a long while, he finally asked Xu Ran, "Junior Brother, do you think our junior sister has changed?"

"I think so?" Xu Ran wasn’t sure either.

Ye Shan nodded slightly. "Then let’s put it to the test."