Lady Cultivator

Mo Tiange was rather afraid of this uncle she just met. Not only had she not once called him “Uncle,” but she also appeared evidently vigilant towards him.

But Ye Jiang didn’t care. He was already old. Even though he married and had children before, there was now already a gap of several generations between him and his living descendants. Moreover, they were mortals and thus destined to never be close to him. On the other hand, the relationship between him and his elder brother had always been very good. Now that he met Mo Tiange and confirmed she was indeed a child of the Ye Clan, he felt very excited.

After Ye Jingwen left, Ye Jiang tenderly asked Mo Tiange about her life in the secular world before proceeding to enthusiastically teach her some matters about cultivation. He even picked up a lot of weird items and gave them to her.

Having followed Ye Jingwen for several days, Mo Tiange had seen him taking out strange things from inside the collar of his robe; sometimes he even took out his flying sword. However, when he put them back inside, she couldn’t see that there were other things inside. Ye Jingwen told her that he actually put aQiankun Bag ¹ inside his robe and that he took everything out of this bag. This caused Mo Tiange to feel extremely envious.

Now Second Uncle actually gave her one! This Qiankun Bag looked just like a fur bag. It was yellowish-brown and felt very smooth in her hands. She didn’t know what it was made of, but the inside looked snow-white when she opened it. It looked extremely delicate.

According to what Second Uncle told her, Mo Tiange inserted a bit of spiritual aura into it. Sure enough, she could smoothly stretch her hand into the opening of the bag. When she groped around, the inside was empty, a very vast empty space.

On the side, Ye Jiang was watching her with a smile.

Second Uncle had also given her a bottle. When she pulled its plug, a dense spiritual aura instantly hit her right in the face. She hastily put the plug back then put the bottle along with several other items into the Qiankun Bag she just received. After she looked up, she stared with embarrassment at Ye Jiang and whispered, “Second Uncle.”

Ye Jiang laughed and stroked her head. He said, “No need to be so reserved. I’m your Second Uncle, so just be yourself.”

Even though Mo Tiange answered with an “en,” her attitude was still a bit distant.

Ye Jiang didn’t force her. He asked warmly, “Tiange, how has that Ye Jingwen been treating you along the way?”

After pondering, Mo Tiange answered, “Big Brother Ye has been very kind.”

“Oh… Then do you want to follow him into Xuanqing School?”

“Well…” Mo Tiange hesitated.

Ye Jiang said, “I think you don’t really understand. Let me explain it to you: if you enter a school, especially a large one like Xuanqing School, you’ll gain a lot of benefits. Each month, not only will you be rationed items like spirit stones and medicinal pills, but in the event you worship a good master, your cultivation will benefit greatly. Furthermore, the most important thing is that Xuanqing School’s reputation will protect you.”

He paused for a moment before sighing. “Of course, there are some disadvantages. First, in such influential sects and schools, high-level cultivators each have their own faction while among the young cultivators, there are also small groups. It will be hard to get along with others. Second, schools have strict rules. You’d have far less freedom in a school than on your own as an individual cultivator. Third, I’m afraid they may already have a plan for your Pure Yin Constitution…”

Mo Tiange understood what he meant by “already have a plan.” It would be just as the Ancestor who passed on the cultivation technique to her said—when she was young and ignorant, her future would be decided by other people.

Ye Jiang said, “Although your father said with his last words that this Master Daoist Shoujing established a Heart Demon’s Oath, you entering into Xuanqing School can’t be categorized as violating the oath. Moreover, this Ye Jingwen is too enthusiastic, and I’ve always felt that things can’t be that simple.”

After hesitating for a long time, Mo Tiange finally answered, “Second Uncle, you can decide, I… have no opinion.” If it was between Ye Jingwen and Second Uncle, she still believed her uncle more. After all, she wasn’t at all related to Ye Jingwen.

Ye Jiang muttered to himself hesitantly for a long time. Finally, he had an idea and said, “Tiange, wait here for a while. Second Uncle will be back soon.”

“En.” Mo Tiange was looking forward to being alone. She was still very unfamiliar with this uncle of hers, thus she felt quite uncomfortable.

Ye Jiang took out several Jade Slips from his robe and said, “If you’re bored, you can read this to pass the time. Second Uncle laid a formation inside this cave, so you should be careful. If you enter the formation by accident, don’t move – just wait until Second Uncle is back.”

“I know.” Mo Tiange took the Jade Slips.

When he finished instructing Mo Tiange, Ye Jiang stood up and left the cave.

After Mo Tiange saw his silhouette disappearing, she looked down and stared at the Jade Slips in her hands. Her divine sense was still very weak, so she could only see the content by sticking the Jade Slip on her forehead.

Some of the Jade Slips were filled with knowledge and experience; some were filled with cultivation techniques. After looking through each of them, Mo Tiange’s attention was attracted to one of them.

The title of that Jade Slip was a simple one, only four words long: “the Law of Formations.” The Jade Slip began: “There’s Yin and Yang in the world and Five Elements in the Eight Trigrams ² ; to understand formations, one has to comprehend these first.” Then it started to explain in detail the meaning of Yin and Yang, the Five Elements, and the Eight Trigrams. One had to be proficient in using them before one could master the so-called formations.

Mo Tiange was obsessed with looking at that Jade Slip. Daoism and cultivation techniques, for the most part, were interlinked; although the Art of Sunu Mo Tiange practiced also discussed the matter of Yin and Yang, the Five Elements, and the Eight Trigrams, it didn’t discuss them as deeply as this Jade Slip did. Moreover, a few simple formations were also listed in the latter part of the Jade Slip, causing her to sigh with wonder.

After a long time, the cave’s gate was opened, and Ye Jiang walked in with a gloomy look.

Mo Tiange looked up. She didn’t have the chance to greet Ye Jiang since he came towards her and pulled her up. “Tiange, we should go now.”

“Huh?” She was bewildered and said, “Second Uncle, what happened?”

Ye Jiang sneered, “Luckily, I still have a bit of vigilance and stealthily went to eavesdrop on what they were talking about. That Zheng Xuan asked Ye Jingwen what was going on. Although Ye Jingwen didn’t say it outright, he definitely wants you to enter Xuanqing School! That’s the intention of Master Daoist Shoujing! Hmph! They clearly have something planned for you.”

Mo Tiange was dumbfounded and said nothing. So Ye Jingwen took really good care of her along the way with evil intentions in mind?

Ye Jiang said, “Tiange, quickly pack your things up. We should go now.”

She didn’t have anything to pack, so she only asked, “Second Uncle, where are we going?”

Ye Jiang paused for a moment and finally sighed. “Kunwu is very vast, so we’ll go to the east. Presumably, they won’t be able to find us for the time being. But it’ll be hard for you—you’re very young but you already have to follow Second Uncle around.”

Mo Tiange shook her head. She naturally knew that if it weren’t for her existence, Second Uncle wouldn’t be plotted against by others. It was because of her that he was forced to leave. With this in mind, she felt a lot closer to him. In the end, he was her family; other people didn’t think she mattered, but Second Uncle considered her wellbeing.

Uncle and niece packed their things up very quickly. Ye Jiang also removed the formation he laid on the cave’s gate. The two of them stealthily departed from Mount Dongmeng, and Ye Jiang didn’t even ask for the excess rent payment back.

Mo Tiange looked down, staring at the cultivators heading towards Mount Dongmeng. She clenched her fists before she finally followed Second Uncle.

Maybe it was because of their natural blood connection, but Mo Tiange was more willing to trust Second Uncle. She had never hated herself like she did now. If it wasn’t because of this constitution, they wouldn’t have had to flee in haste; Second Uncle could enter Xuanqing School and cultivate properly. He might still have a chance of entering the Core Formation realm. But now? Second Uncle was an individual cultivator and had to escape from western Kunwu, carrying her along. He probably wouldn’t be able to enter the next realm for the rest of his life.

She secretly vowed in her heart that one day, she would enter the Foundation Building realm, the Core Formation realm, and even the Nascent Soul realm like her Ancestor. That way, she would no longer need anyone to make sacrifices on her behalf and she also wouldn’t have to be afraid of other people’s greed. This was how important cultivation had become for her.