Chapter Four: The Blessed Land of the Auspicious Beast

The sun was setting in the west, and the temperature in the mountain forest dropped sharply. A man and a beast sat around a campfire to keep warm.

“Little one, how did you come to be here? What about your parents?”

“I have no parents. I was born and raised naturally in a cave here, hatched from an egg. After breaking the shell, I ate it and quickly grew into this form.”

Liu An exhaled in shock, “A congenital spirit being, a blessed auspicious beast favored by heaven and earth. I’m truly lucky. My master said that the places where you are born are always blessed lands, where rare materials and treasures grow alongside you.”

“The cave where I live does indeed shimmer with radiant light. It’s quite beautiful. I’ll take you there later.”

Liu Xu Yi was instantly overjoyed. He picked up the strange creature and affectionately stroked its unusual body, his love for it plainly evident.

Since birth, the creature’s first encounter was with Liu An. Although their first impression was not good, over time it grew fond of him.

Impatient, Liu An lifted the creature and was about to embark on his treasure-seeking journey.

“My treasure, let’s set off now. Every minute we delay, my heart bleeds. Since your birth, the spiritual herbs and medicines around you have been rapidly losing their potency until they become useless. You really are a spendthrift. You should be eating everything you see at birth.”

The creature seemed to understand vaguely and grew restless. “Hurry, the cave isn’t far, my treasure. You mustn’t get hurt.”

Seeing how well they got along, Liu An quickened his pace, following the creature’s directions.

About half an hour later,

Liu An, gasping for breath, placed the creature down and panted heavily.

“You’re no good either, getting so tired after such a short run,” the creature taunted disdainfully.

Liu An wanted to retort, but thinking of the rare treasures inside the cave, he decided to leave the creature behind and dashed into the cave.

Upon entering, Liu An felt the air was exceptionally refreshing, invigorating both his mind and body. He practiced his breathing technique, opening every pore to greedily absorb the cave’s atmosphere.

While practicing, Liu An carefully observed the surrounding spiritual plants and laughed out loud, “Everything here is mine!”

Ignoring appearances, he uprooted an unknown herb and chewed it. It melted instantly into a cool liquid that flowed into his stomach.

After tasting it, Liu An greedily pulled out one herb after another, chewing them all up. The creature, almost on the verge of tears, imitated Liu An, chewing the herbs nearby and murmuring, “My grass, my flowers, so sweet.”

Together, man and beast devoured all the visible herbs in the cave, then lay down on the barren ground, grinning foolishly in satisfaction.

Feeling this was too little, Liu An scooped some soil, bit into it a few times, then spat it out. Seeing this, the creature mimicked him by licking the ground.

Liu An was amused by the creature’s clumsy imitation, and the creature laughed joyfully.

Just as Liu An wanted to tease the creature, he suddenly felt a vast vitality surging through his limbs and bones, cleansing and invigorating him. He sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and entered a meditative state.

The creature tried to imitate Liu An’s breathing but to no avail. It then took deep breaths but found no beneficial effect, so it obediently lay down beside Liu An and quietly fell asleep.

At dawn the next day, after a night of uninterrupted breathing exercises, Liu An’s body was covered in a layer of dried mud, forming a mud figure. The radiant glow of the cave had vanished, leaving it empty and no longer a blessed place—just an ordinary cave.

The creature stretched its forelegs lazily, opening its eyes to scan the surroundings and was startled. “What is this? Why is it so dirty?”

Looking disgusted, the creature moved away from the muddy Liu An. When it woke and didn’t see Liu An, it grew anxious and searched the cave frantically. After a long time with no sign of him, it let out a mournful cry.

“Shut up! That idiot’s yelling is disturbing my peaceful sleep,” Liu An grumbled, suddenly exerting force. The dried mud cracked and shattered like porcelain on the ground.

The creature saw Liu An jump out of the mud, feeling aggrieved. “I thought you abandoned me and ran away.”

“Alright, alright, stop crying like a child,” Liu An said with a smile, walking over to hold and comfort the creature.

“Now, let’s go see my master.”

“Your master? Is your master very powerful?”

Proudly, Liu An replied, “Of course. He’s a transcendent with an immortal aura, untouched by dust. Though he often tricks me, he treats me well.”

“Is your master an immortal?”

Liu Xu Yi pondered for a moment and said, “My master once mentioned the Twelve Towers and Five Cities of the Jade Capital in the Heavens, saying an immortal blessed me to have longevity. I think my master very likely is one. After we descend the mountain, we’ll report to Master Liu Xiaosheng and live well, eating and drinking richly.”

The creature, cheered by this, echoed enthusiastically, “Ah ha, all my spiritual plants and immortal herbs are mine!”

Meanwhile, Liu Xiaosheng, hurrying back, suddenly felt a bad premonition and was quite troubled. “That rebellious apprentice must be up to no good again. I need to hurry back and check.”

He didn’t use his spatial shrinking ability this time. Instead, he took out his sword-nurturing gourd from his sleeve and tossed it into the air. The gourd instantly expanded several times and hovered. Liu Xiaosheng gracefully leapt and sat cross-legged atop it.

With a command, the gourd shot forward at astonishing speed.

When Liu An returned to the so-called “dojang” his master boasted about, he plopped down on the ground.

The so-called dojang was a complete joke—just two large stones, one big and one small, surrounded by trees.

Once, when Liu An asked his master where their sect’s dojang was, Liu Xiaosheng spun a tale.

“Good disciple, beyond here is our training ground. Don’t mind the lack of palaces and pavilions. I despise such flashy nonsense. The Great Way is simple and returns to the original. Wherever your eyes fall is our training ground. As long as your heart is grand and your strength is great, anywhere can serve as our sect’s dojang.”

At the time, Liu Xiaosheng’s words stirred Liu An’s heart, but it was all bluster. Only now did Liu An realize his master was a boastful drinker who often went down the mountain to comfort widows and take advantage of young women—a disrespectful charlatan.

Yet now, Liu An found himself repeating his master’s rhetoric to the creature, painting grand dreams. Deep down, he thought it was fine, especially seeing the creature’s eyes shine with unparalleled admiration.

“Your master’s spiel, you’ve got to admit, when you say it aloud, it almost convinces even yourself.”