Watching the Mountain

The others were even more surprised.

Xu Ran also looked at the Little Witch in surprise. He was a bit taken aback that she had denied it, and seeing her unwillingness to explain, he took the initiative to tell the others what had happened.

"I see." The others nodded in understanding. "But isn’t your child already grown up?"

"He’s still my child. Until he can stand on his own two feet, he’ll always be my child," Ye Qingxue said with great seriousness.

The others were slightly taken aback. Liu Yunge, her face full of curiosity, asked, "Can we meet him then?"

Ye Qingxue hesitated for a moment before giving a slight nod. "You can, but you can’t call him slow."

*

*

*

Ye Shu greeted Xu Ran with a stiff, formal salute. "Uncle Xu," he said respectfully.

Xu Ran was taken aback by the title. Ye Shu had never addressed him like that before.

"Mother insisted," Ye Shu said, glancing at Ye Qingxue, who stood to the side.

After a moment of silence, Xu Ran smiled faintly at him. "Then you can call me that."

’Having a nephew... not bad at all.’

Chen Chang’an, Zhao Wuyang, and Liu Yunge silently sized up Ye Shu from head to toe. They couldn’t see anything slow about him and wondered why Ye Qingxue had specifically warned them.

However, when they sensed the fluctuations of Spiritual Power from Ye Shu—only at the Qi Cultivation Third Layer—they immediately fell silent.

If they remembered correctly, Ye Qingxue had mentioned that Ye Shu was over thirty years old.

’A Cultivation at only the Qi Cultivation Third Layer at his age...’

’Is this really Ye Shan’s child? Even if he wasn’t his by birth—just a child he found in the Mortal World—he was still a child found by *the* Sword Dao Ye Shan. For a child he picked up to be so ordinary... it was truly unexpected.’

Looking at Ye Shu’s Cultivation, Zhao Wuyang glanced toward the heavens and sighed. "The path of the Great Dao is truly a hard one."

Hearing this, Xu Ran looked at him in surprise. "Elder Zhao, would the top prodigies of this generation truly feel such a thing?"

Zhao Wuyang turned to him with a strange expression. "What? In your eyes, Fellow Daoist Xu, do you think Cultivation is easy for people like us?"

Xu Ran quickly shook his head. "That’s not it. It’s just that I thought prodigies like you, Elder Zhao, would meet any challenge head-on, breaking through all obstacles with an invincible will."

Hearing Xu Ran’s words, Zhao Wuyang just shook his head and smiled. "Fellow Daoist Xu, have you ever heard anyone refer to a Nascent Soul True Monarch as a ’prodigy’?"

Xu Ran paused, and after a moment of thought, he shook his head.

Zhao Wuyang nodded with a smile. "Exactly. The term ’prodigy’ only applies up to the Golden Core Stage. Once someone becomes a Nascent Soul True Monarch, they are simply called ’powerful,’ not a prodigy."

He shook his head again. "Don’t be fooled by our glamorous reputation. We’re hailed as prodigies wherever we go, but in truth, none of us so-called prodigies can guarantee we’ll break through to the Nascent Soul Stage. If even one or two out of ten of us succeed, that’s considered a good outcome."

Xu Ran was stunned. He knew breaking through to the Nascent Soul Stage was difficult, but from what Zhao Wuyang was saying, it seemed far more difficult than he had ever imagined.

Seeing Xu Ran’s reaction, Zhao Wuyang let out a long sigh.

"It may sound incredible, but throughout the history of the Cultivation Realm, how many so-called prodigies who formed their Golden Core before the age of one hundred have ultimately fallen at the threshold of the Nascent Soul Stage, unable to break through for the rest of their lives?"

"We may be called ’Divinity Transformation Seeds’ or ’True Immortal Seeds,’ but in reality, among all the young prodigies in the entire Eastern Domain Cultivation Realm today—not counting those from the Upper Three Sects—the only one universally acknowledged as capable of breaking through to the Nascent Soul Stage is your sect’s own Yue Qingyu."

"That...?" Xu Ran looked at Zhao Wuyang in astonishment. "Not even you are acknowledged, Elder Zhao?"

Zhao Wuyang shook his head and gave a bitter smile. "I don’t even have confidence that I can break through to the Nascent Soul Stage, so how could anyone else be confident in me?"

’It seemed unbelievable to Xu Ran. Even people like Zhao Wuyang, who were considered the representatives of their generation by both the Righteous and Demon Daos, lacked the confidence to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage.’

He took a deep breath and asked wistfully, "Is the Nascent Soul Stage truly so difficult?"

Zhao Wuyang didn’t answer directly. Instead, he asked a question of his own. "Fellow Daoist Xu, what do you believe is the ultimate goal for us Cultivators?"

"Longevity?" Xu Ran answered instinctively. ’Although I’ve already achieved it, that doesn’t mean I disagree with the answer. All I’m missing is the power to protect my eternal life.’

Zhao Wuyang smiled. "To a mortal whose lifespan is less than a hundred years, wouldn’t our lives, spanning hundreds or even thousands of years, be considered longevity?"

Xu Ran paused, saying nothing. He simply watched Zhao Wuyang, waiting for him to continue.

Zhao Wuyang went on. "Conversely, why do you think our lives as Cultivators are longer than those of mortals?"

He didn’t wait for a reply. "The fundamental reason is the ’Dao.’ The different lifespans at each Realm are also because of the Dao."

"Take the Qi Cultivation Stage, with its one-hundred-and-fifty-year lifespan. Those at this stage have only just begun their Cultivation. Their Dao is like a tiny, fleeting spark, granting them a life not much longer than that of a mortal."

"At Foundation Establishment, lifespan increases to three hundred years. Their Dao is like a small flame that can burn for a while. Following that logic, the Nascent Soul Stage grants a three-thousand-year lifespan, like a candle flame that can burn for a very long time."

"Therefore, longevity isn’t the goal of Cultivation; it’s the inevitable result."

"When your Dao can exist for all time, your life, too, will be without end."

"Now, back to the question of why the Nascent Soul Stage is so hard to break through. The Golden Core Stage is merely the beginning of walking one’s own path. The Nascent Soul Stage, however, requires one to transform their Dao into the tangible Power of Law, just like the Laws that naturally exist between heaven and earth."

"The ’True’ in True Monarch refers to a Law that has become real and tangible. I don’t think I need to explain how difficult that process is, do I?"

’Xu Ran fell silent. If one’s Dao could persist, one’s life would be endless. Longevity wasn’t the goal, but an inevitable consequence. It was the first time he had understood this so clearly.’

*

*

*

Perhaps because they had been hiding their relationship for so long, Zhao Wuyang and Liu Yunge were incredibly enthusiastic after finally relaxing. They would pull Chen Chang’an and Ye Qingxue into gatherings every day.

The pretense of ’exchanging insights on the Dao’ was just that—a pretense. When they actually got together, they hardly ever talked about Cultivation. Instead, they would discuss interesting rumors and tidbits they’d come across.

They would also pull the others into discussions about their future, dreaming about a time when they would become powerful experts at the Nascent Soul, Divinity Transformation, or even Above Divinity Transformation Realms. Then, they could be together openly, without fear of their Sects’ disapproval.

They enthusiastically invited Chen Chang’an and Ye Qingxue to join them in the future, once they too became powerful, to frequently meet for discussions, travel the world, and walk among mortals. They even extended the invitation to Xu Ran.

When they talked about their imagined future, they were always full of passion and anticipation, their aspirations soaring.

At times like these, Xu Ran felt as if he were back in his school days. The brimming confidence on the faces of Zhao Wuyang and Liu Yunge reminded him of the spirited nature of young students, full of life and dreams.

But whenever the topic turned to the Nascent Soul Stage, they would fall silent.

Divinity Transformation and the realms Above Divinity Transformation were still distant goals, but Nascent Soul was the hurdle right in front of them.

Even they lacked absolute confidence.

’To Xu Ran, it felt like when they discussed the Nascent Soul Stage, it was like they were discussing graduation.’

The reality was much the same. Reaching the Nascent Soul Stage meant ’graduating’ from being a prodigy and becoming a true powerhouse.

A few days before his match with Chen Chang’an, Zhao Wuyang and Liu Yunge had a public argument, which escalated into a fight that left them both severely injured.

Then, during the match, he was defeated by Chen Chang’an.

The Dao discussion conference, which had been arranged to test Yue Qingyu, thus came to an anticlimactic end.

Before their departure, Zhao Wuyang and Liu Yunge came to see Xu Ran one last time. They bid farewell to Chen Chang’an and Ye Qingxue, wishing each other a swift breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Stage.

At the last moment, Ye Qingxue said to them, "Since you’ve already made me so envious, please continue to do so."

Hearing this, Zhao Wuyang and Liu Yunge looked at her. They grasped each other’s hands, nodded firmly, and replied with a smile, "We will."