Chapter Seventy-Two: Innate Primordial Spirit

"Lin Yi was born with a primordial spirit, yet you taught him to refine essence and transform qi, a practice suited for those without it. Naturally, it was ineffective," Grandfather said, looking at Old Ox with a calm gaze.

Old Ox was utterly astonished. The tobacco pipe he was about to bring to his lips froze in his hand.

"What did you say? Lin Yi was born with a primordial spirit? That's... that's impossible!" Old Ox could hardly believe what my grandfather had said. Standing aside, I too struggled to grasp the weight of that simple phrase: born with a primordial spirit.

"Old Ox, if he didn't possess the power of a primordial spirit, how could he have shattered the earth energy of Broken Soul Cliff with a single punch? You, of all people, should know how difficult it is to break the earth energy there," my grandfather continued.

"But... the progression is clear: one must refine essence to produce true qi, then refine qi to cultivate the spirit, and only then can a primordial spirit be born. We've watched Lin Yi grow up; he's never practiced cultivation—how could he possibly have a primordial spirit?" Old Ox scrutinized me with an incredulous look.

"He was born with a primordial spirit. What need had he for cultivation?" Grandfather countered.

This answer left Old Ox gaping in shock. "In this age of heaven’s law, someone born with a primordial spirit? That’s unthinkable!"

At that moment, Daoist Master Li emerged from the house. He approached and said, "Nothing is impossible. Have you forgotten? Lin Yi managed to seize the elusive fate beneath the Thirteen Ravines of Yunmeng. Being born with a primordial spirit is not inconceivable. Yet, you should know how powerful a natural primordial spirit truly is, Master Niu. If, as a child, Lin Yi had revealed his talents, and the Daoist sects or the Underworld had discovered the truth, how many would have coveted his primordial spirit?"

Only then did I understand why Grandfather had never taught me any Daoist arts. It was not that he could not, but that he feared bringing disaster upon me if he did.

Speaking of the primordial spirit, another matter came to mind. Once, I had asked Grandfather whether it was possible that I was the child of the great white serpent he had seen in his youth. He had denied it, saying I had never cultivated and did not possess a primordial spirit. Without it, if I were the serpent’s child, I could not take human form.

But now Grandfather told me I was born with a primordial spirit, directly contradicting his earlier words. If a natural primordial spirit could indeed take human form, could I be the child of the white serpent, able to appear human because of it?

Wine can cloud the mind, perhaps even disrupt the primordial spirit. Was it, then, after drinking that my primordial spirit fell into chaos, triggering the atavistic transformation, scales erupting all over my body?

These doubts tangled endlessly in my thoughts.

Still, I did not voice them. The Daoist nun whose dream had come to pass had begged me not to investigate my origins further, and I had agreed. If I broke my word, who could say whether Grandfather and Daoist Li would have returned as they did?

Yet, the more she urged me, the more curious I became. Why had she made such a request? What concern could my past possibly be to her?

As I pondered, Grandfather approached and laid a hand on my shoulder. "Child, you're eighteen now, a grown man. I cannot shelter you forever. The taboos of the past are behind you. Now that you've found the rarest fortune beneath the Thirteen Ravines of Yunmeng, I will not hinder your cultivation any longer."

"Daoist Li is an excellent teacher. Even if you do not formally become his disciple, he can still instruct you," Grandfather said, glancing at Daoist Li.

Daoist Li nodded, his voice bright with excitement. "Good. Tomorrow, we enter the mountains!"

In his eyes, I caught a glimmer of anticipation and passion. My grandfather’s words stirred a fire within me, and I wondered just how extraordinary a natural primordial spirit might be.

Even with a primordial spirit from birth, mastery would not come overnight. I followed Daoist Li into the mountains, mainly to avoid prying eyes and hidden fates.

Time flowed swiftly; half a month passed in a blink.

One morning, the Master in Green herself ascended the Old Boundary Ridge.

Her expression upon meeting Daoist Li said everything; my suspicions were correct. But she did not say much. She simply mentioned that a woman waited for me at the White Purity Temple.

Curious, I asked who she was and why she wanted to see me.

The Master in Green replied that the woman claimed to hold a marriage agreement.

This was even more baffling. I glanced at Grandfather, hoping for an explanation, but he only shook his head, equally perplexed.

Old Ox interjected, "Don't believe a word that woman says."

I, too, found it doubtful. Grandfather had raised me; how could I have a marriage arrangement he knew nothing about? He asked the woman’s name, and the Master in Green answered: "She calls herself Zhang Xi. She says she will wait at the White Purity Temple until she meets Lin Yi."

Was she truly so persistent?

"I don’t even know her. I’d rather not go," I replied. I had already married Weiyang, and I had no interest in some mysterious marriage contract. Moreover, Weiyang and the Flower Maiden were secluded in meditation within the Forest of Hidden Repose; how could I possibly go down the mountain now to discuss marriage with another woman?

"Lin Yi, I’ve heard you mention to my sister that you have no clues about your origins. Zhang Xi claims to know your parentage," the Master in Green said.

I had no interest in the marriage, but the mention of my origins gave me pause. Still, I had promised in that dream not to seek the truth of my birth. So, suppressing my curiosity, I replied, "Master in Green, I—"

Grandfather abruptly interrupted me. "Child, you asked me about your parents many times as a boy, but I never answered, not because I was hiding anything, but because I truly do not know who they are. Now that someone offers you a chance, you should meet her."

"Our bodies and lives are gifts from our parents. They deserve to know you, and you deserve to know them. If you remain here, you’ll always be a frog at the bottom of a well. To enter the world and cultivate is the better path for you. Go with the Master in Green."

Since even Grandfather insisted, I had no choice but to agree.

What I didn’t know was that after I left, Grandfather said quietly to Old Ox, "Old Ox, this trip to the White Purity Temple is no matter of marriage or mysterious parentage; it’s a Daoist trap."

"If that’s the case, why let Lin Yi go with the Master in Green?" Old Ox asked.

"Since the Daoist sects have discovered Lin Yi and already covet him, let them see for themselves how formidable he truly is," Grandfather replied with a smile.

Thus, I followed the Master in Green to the White Purity Temple.

Upon arrival, the atmosphere felt immediately off. Climbing the mountain, I saw that the female Daoists of the temple had all been bound.

They knelt outside the temple gate, their clothes in disarray.

The Master in Green’s anger flared. She strode forward, surveying the bound disciples. "Who did this?" she demanded.

With a flick of her horsetail whisk, cords split with sharp cracks, and the disciples hastily straightened their robes, kneeling before her, trembling and speechless with fright.

"Who dares insult my disciples? Show yourself and face death!"

Her wrath echoed throughout the temple.

Just then, laughter boomed from the main hall.

A Daoist emerged. He wore a long robe, his hair tied with a jade pin—his appearance much like Daoist Li’s former style.

"Who is that?" I asked.

The Master in Green’s brows knitted in anger. "Lin Yi, step back. I will deal with this shameless cur myself!"

As she spoke, her aura surged. Her azure robe whipped around her in the rising wind.

Her eyes flashed, and her whisk lashed out, white threads streaking toward the Daoist’s throat.

Yet he did not move; I was certain his head would soon part from his body.

But in the next instant, the Daoist raised his hand and formed a mudra. The white threads halted in his palm. With a hiss, blue flames erupted, reducing the deadly threads to ash.

A sinister smile curled on his lips as he eyed the Master in Green with greedy intent. "I, Zhang Changlu, have cultivated at Dragon Tiger Mountain for many years, yet never have I seen such a beautiful female Daoist. To meet you now fills me with regret for lost time. Let us speak calmly, my friend in green—there’s no need for anger."