Chapter 107: 106. Auntie, I've Enlightened!
Chapter 107: 106. Auntie, I've Enlightened!
In the quiet room of the private residence, Lei Jun sat in a pool crafted from Yin-Yang Warm Jade.
Rather than submerging himself, he hovered above the water as if weightless.
Behind him hung a shimmering giant spirit talisman—his very own Yuan Fu.
Intricate patterns weaved across the Yuan Fu, inscribing countless ordinary-sized spirit talismans.
Each one was a basic spirit talisman that Lei Jun had practiced before.
Now engraved on his Yuan Fu, he could casually draw basic spirit talismans in the air without the need for ceremonial altars and incense.
Advanced spirit talismans were also depicted.
Although Lei Jun still needed to follow the proper rituals to create advanced talismans, having them on his Yuan Fu imbued them with sentience, allowing for increasing ease of use in the future.
After a moment of silent cultivation, the shimmering giant Yuan Fu behind Lei Jun retracted, and he sank back into the water.
Spending more time nourishing his body and mind, Lei Jun emerged from the water, his body devoid of any moisture, and changed into fresh clothes.
Exiting the quiet room, Lei Jun strolled through the courtyard.
As he walked, his hands were not idle.
One hand remained still, firmly holding a mudra in front of his chest.
The other hand constantly changed mudras as it wandered through the air.
As Lei Jun circled around, specks of light began to appear around him.
The light specks were as minute as grains of corn, yet as enchanting as stars.
Though limited in number and sparse, these starry specks orbiting Lei Jun exuded a sense of wonder.
Following a specific sequence of steps, Lei Jun continued walking without pause.
As he moved, the starry light around him grew in number and density, eventually forming a dazzling nebula.
This was the Longhu Mountain orthodox secret art—Treading the Stars and Fighting the Big Dipper.
Having just started practicing, Lei Jun was still a novice.
Thus, the effect was slow to manifest, and the movements were grand.
As his cultivation and strength improved, and he became more adept at Treading the Stars and Fighting the Big Dipper, he would be able to deploy this art within a mere moment, even in a confined space.
Lei Jun cultivated amid the night's hues.
The starry specks on the ground seemed to resonate with the stars in the night sky, creating an enchanting spectacle.
As dawn approached and the sun began to rise, Lei Jun halted his steps.
He quietly gathered his spirit and aura, retracting the starry specks back into his body.
Opening his eyes, Lei Jun greeted the sunrise with a long exhale.
The new year had passed.
The 15th of January of the new year was fast approaching.
For Lei Jun, it had been around eight years since he came to this world, and six years since he officially became a true disciple of Tian Shi Manor.
The Initiation Ceremony was held once every three years.
Six years ago, he had participated as a disciple.
Three years ago, as a true disciple, he had assisted Master Yuan Mo Bai in hosting the ceremony.
This year, he could take it easy and merely observe from the sidelines.
Yuan Mo Bai had consecutively presided over the previous Initiation Ceremony and last year's Investiture Ceremony.
Naturally, he didn't need to take charge of this year's Initiation Ceremony.
However, he would still need to attend.
Because this year, Yuan Mo Bai would be the initiation master, once again accepting disciples.
Over a year had passed, and now, at the age of fifteen, Chu Kun's cultivation had reached the twelfth floor, attaining the perfect level of Qi Refinement.
This wasn't particularly surprising.
After all, Chu Kun had already attained a higher level of cultivation than just the first layer of Qi Refinement when he joined the mountain.
Coming from the Chu family, his upbringing and environment were far from ordinary.
Although the various cultivation traditions differed greatly, they often shared similarities in the initial stages, and Chu Kun had transitioned from Confucianism to Taoism in time.
However, the higher the cultivation, the more difficult it was to progress.
If one had already crossed the tribulation of the first heavenly layer to reach the second heavenly layer, then they had basically committed to their path, and it would be extremely difficult to change courses.
Hence, it was no surprise that Chu Kun would be able to catch up in time for this year's Initiation Ceremony.
In comparison, many people were more curious if Chu Kun, after joining Yuan Mo Bai's sect, could achieve the same brilliance as Lei Jun had demonstrated not long ago.
"How could I compare?"
Chu Kun shook his head, his face doubtful. "Lei Jun's talent and aptitude are among the very best in the world."
Lei Jun said, "The very best? I dare not claim that. If I can be considered among the second batch, I would already be very happy."
While that was true for now, Chu Kun blinked his eyes, sensing there was more to it.
Both Longhu Mountain Tian Shi Manor and his native Suzhou Chu family had produced numerous talented individuals.
To be objective, it would be an exaggeration to claim that Lei Jun was among the very best of the young generation.
However, Chu Kun noticed a problem.
This Lei Daoist, who was about to become his senior sect brother, didn't seem to be progressing at a constant speed...
Lei Jun cultivated in a low-key manner, but the outside world was generally aware of his major milestones.
Starting from his initial foray into the path at the age of eighteen when he first entered the Taoist Academy, he had rushed to the twelfth layer of Qi Refinement within two years.
Then, through the Initiation Ceremony, he successfully built his foundation in the same year.
In the following years, in less than four years, he had progressed from the initial stage of foundation building to perfection, and even crossed the heavenly tribulation, successfully cultivating to the Triple Heaven Law Altar realm.
If it was still somewhat unexpected up to this point, it was generally within the realm of normalcy. However, what came next was outrageous.
He advanced from the Triple Heaven Law Altar realm to the Quadruple Heaven Yuan Fu realm in a shorter time than it took him to progress from foundation building to the Law Altar.
It only took him about one or two years!
That was truly astonishing.
Even some of his distant relatives from his hometown in Suzhou were discussing this matter.
Chu Kun recalled the time when he and Chu Yu discussed Lei Jun, and he sighed in his heart:
"Little Aunt, your nephew finally understands what you meant back then!"
"Master, which master will Li's young master be accepted by this time?" Lei Jun asked Yuan Mo Bai at this time.
Yuan Mo Bai replied, "Feng He will be accepted by Master Zhongshan."
Upon hearing this, Lei Jun nodded slightly.
The so-called young master Li is named Li Fenghe, the legitimate grandson of the third master, Li Ziyang.
His father is Li Xuan, who left the mountain to go to the capital not long ago.
There was a significant age gap between Li Xuan and his younger sister, Li Ying. As the older brother, Li Xuan was more than forty years older than his younger sister.
In the secular world, one could say that they were almost two generations apart.
Li Ying was only in her early twenties this year, only a few years older than her nephew, Li Fenghe.
However, this was generally not the case.
In the cultivation world, late marriages were not uncommon, but most couples tended to have children later in life.
Childbirth was not particularly difficult, but it was considered detrimental to one's foundation.
This was especially true for female cultivators.
The moment of childbirth was the weakest point in a female cultivator's life, comparable to a serious injury, and it would take a significant amount of time to recover afterward.
In other words, it could affect one's cultivation progress and potential.
Not only did it concern the present, but it also had implications for the future.
Therefore, it was rare for cultivators to have children during the first quarter of their lifespan, which was considered the golden window for cultivation.
Even if they had formed a bond with a cultivation partner, they would temporarily set aside thoughts of having offspring.
At the very least, they would wait until they reached their mature platform phase before considering it.
Some people even chose not to have children during their mature platform phase, when they still had some hope of progress.
A large proportion of cultivators would only consider starting a family when they were approaching the later stages of their mature platform phase, just before stepping into middle or old age.
Li Xuan had a lifespan of four hundred years, and he was still quite far from reaching a hundred years old. He was currently in the golden period of his cultivation journey.
It was highly unusual in the cultivation world for someone like Li Xuan to have a child so early in life, and his situation could be considered a special case among special cases.
What led to Li Xuan and his wife's decision was unknown to the outside world.
However, if one were to count from Master Li Song, down to Li Ziyang, Li Xuan, and now Li Fenghe, it could be considered four generations under the same roof.
Hence, Li Fenghe also had the nickname "Li's Young Master."
Unfortunately, the young master hadn't had much luck in recent years.
As far as Lei Jun knew, a few years ago, Li Fenghe had been internally designated to become the first disciple of the former Young Celestial Master, Li Zhengxuan.
He was supposed to become Li Zhengxuan's disciple once he reached the appropriate age and fulfilled the conditions for initiation.
However, things took an unexpected turn with the incident involving his second uncle, Li Ming.
Since then, the Li family had been working to quell the dissatisfaction within the family and appease the emotions of the outsiders who had become their disciples.
Three years ago, during the initiation ceremony, Li Zhengxuan officially accepted disciples, and in the end, an outsider became his first disciple.
Young Master Li was heartbroken.
Alright, alright, if he couldn't become the first disciple of the Young Celestial Master, it would still be fine to be accepted by the Young Celestial Master himself, right?
...Unfortunately, that was not to be!
Li Zhengxuan had lost the Celestial Master's sword, which not only resulted in him losing his position as the Young Celestial Master but also led him to the ancestral tomb in the back mountain for reflection.
While Young Master Li could remain steadfast in his desire to become Li Zhengxuan's disciple, even if it meant accompanying his master to the ancestral tomb, he would still receive the treatment due to him, but even Li Zhengxuan himself would not want his nephew to share his downfall.
Thus, the path to becoming the disciple of the Young Celestial Master, which Young Master Li had prepared for since he was old enough to understand, had completely fallen through.
This year, it was time for him to officially become a true disciple.
In the end, Young Master Li chose Master Linshan as his master.
She was the first disciple of Elder Shangguan.
Although she rarely showed her capabilities, Elder Shangguan Ning was from the Shangguan clan and was truly a member of the imperial family.
On Longhu Mountain, whether it was her or Zhang Jingzhen, the county master, it was debatable which of them had a closer relationship with the Tang imperial family.
Young Master Li eventually became a disciple of this lineage.
When one considered that his father, Li Xuan, had been summoned to the capital by imperial decree, it became quite intriguing.
Chu Kun had also heard the related news.
Although he was still accustomed to subconsciously considering the impact on the Suzhou Chu clan in many situations, he had been adapting and correcting himself over the past year. He was now trying to view the development of events more from the perspective of a disciple of the Celestial Master's Mansion.
Back then, when Chu Yu left the Celestial Master's Mansion, her parting words were:
"Just like Anton, from the moment you entered the mountain, unless you are returning to your hometown to worship your ancestors, always remember that you are a true disciple of the Celestial Master's Mansion and nothing else."
Chu Kun did not dislike or oppose this idea; instead, he deeply agreed with it.
"Chu, get ready. Later, we will send the application and incense letter to the recommending master and the supervising master," Wang Guiyuan said with a smile.
He happened to have not attended the initiation ceremony three years ago, so Lei Jun had accompanied Yuan Mo Bai at the time.
This year, it was Lei Jun's turn to take a break, and Wang Guiyuan would be the "disciple" accompanying Master.
Chu Kun followed Wang Guiyuan to meet the other two masters, while Lei Jun stayed with Master Yuan Mo Bai, waiting for the day of the ceremony.
However, a chill suddenly filled the room as the door opened.
A petite girl wrapped in a pitch-black cloak walked in. It was the long-absent senior disciple, Xu Yuanzhen.
PS: This is the second update for today. I'll try my best to bring you a third one.
(End of Chapter)
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