Chapter Eleven: Those with Different Paths Cannot Make Plans Together Section Eight: An Unexpected Encounter

Section 8: An Unexpected Encounter

Bu Jingxian remembered that his father would recite these words every time they prayed. Everyone would kneel devoutly, listening and imagining that world they had never seen but firmly believed existed.

Bu Jingxian knelt on the ground, pressing his right palm to his forehead.

Seeing this, Zhao Ji hurriedly knelt as well, mimicking his gesture. She had long since learned these rituals of the Soul Sect.

Bu Jingxian closed his eyes and prayed silently in his heart.

"Great Will of the Soul, your follower Bu Jingxian, with a pious heart, here seeks the shelter of your power. In this illusory and turbid world, I follow your will and yearn for your strength. Yet, despite my bitter searching, I cannot find the gate of hope to unlock the power of the Soul's Will, nor can I realize the ideals of the Soul's Will no matter how I rack my brains. Your follower here longs for your guidance, hoping to meet Lady Li once more, who possesses your power. Your follower begs for your strength to prove to the world that the power of the Soul's Will is real, and with this power and proof, to awaken the world to reclaim their resolve for the Soul's Will..."

The ancestral hall was silent.

Zhao Ji knelt with her eyes closed, feeling bored. Since Bu Jingxian did not move, she dared not move either. She did not share his unwavering faith in the Soul's Will, but because he believed in it, she was willing to follow suit, even though she knew that within the Wanxia Clan, such prayers were regarded as nothing more than a joke.

Bu Jingxian opened his eyes, rose slowly, and after leaving the ancestral hall, headed straight for the mountain cliff behind.

The Prayer Cliff was very close to the ancestral hall, and they arrived in mere moments.

Looking at the abyss beyond the cliff, thinking of the tens of thousands of remains of the Soul Mountain piled deep below, Bu Jingxian was lost in sorrow.

Zhao Ji accompanied him from behind, not understanding why he was staring blankly into the abyss. Bored, she looked around, taking in the scenery.

Suddenly, she saw a woman with glowing wings on her back soar into the sky from the opposite mountain, flying across in an instant to another peak before disappearing into the forest.

She couldn't help but raise her hand to rub her eyes, staring in disbelief at the mountain where the woman had landed, hoping to catch another glimpse to confirm if she had been seeing things.

Bu Jingxian stood there for a long time, and as he turned to leave, he noticed Zhao Ji still staring at the distant peak.

"What is it?"

Zhao Ji hesitated, then said, "I dare not say."

Bu Jingxian chuckled, "What is there to be afraid of? Speak."

"I... I think I saw an immortal," Zhao Ji replied, glancing at Bu Jingxian constantly, fearing he would think she was spouting madness.

"What kind of immortal?"

"It was too far away to see clearly, but it was a woman with a pair of glowing white wings on her back..."

"Where did she go?" Bu Jingxian was overjoyed, grabbing Zhao Ji by the shoulders and asking urgently.

"She landed on that mountain peak and hasn't flown out for a long time."

"Let's go." Bu Jingxian recognized that mountain; the Soul Sect called it the Ring Finger Peak. He hurried off immediately. He had never expected to find Lady Li here, whom he had been searching for without a single lead.

Zhao Ji followed him closely, asking in surprise, "Does the Lord believe in immortals?"

"I don't. But I believe even less that you would see wrong."

Zhao Ji quickly added, "I am also certain I did not see wrong."

Ring Finger Peak was over thirty miles away from Soul Mountain, a route that required passing through three other peaks: Thumb Peak, Index Finger Peak, and Middle Finger Peak.

By the time they climbed Ring Finger Peak, over three hours had passed.

Seeing they were nearing the top, Bu Jingxian still saw no sign of Lady Li, fearing she might have flown off somewhere else along the way.

Upon reaching the summit, however, he discovered a thatched cottage.

Passing through the earthen wall built with a fence, he saw Lady Li sitting at a stone table in the center of the courtyard before the cottage, her head bowed as she wrote something.

Noticing the arrival of Bu Jingxian and Zhao Ji, she looked up, smiled, and said, "It has been a long time." She set aside her work, invited them to sit at the stone table, and rose to fetch some water from inside. "Seeing how drenched in sweat you are, I believe you have traveled quite a distance."

Seeing that it was indeed her, Bu Jingxian let out a long sigh of relief, his joy overwhelming.

"I was just praying in the ancestral hall, hoping to meet you again, Lady Li. I never expected it to be so effective."

Lady Li laughed, "That was not the blessing of spirits. I have been living here for a year and a half."

Zhao Ji had been observing Lady Li the entire time and only now dared to ask, "Madam... are you an immortal?"

Lady Li laughed upon hearing this, guessing she had seen the glowing wings. "I am no immortal. How could an immortal be as old and ugly as I am? I merely learned some arts from an immortal, which allows me to manifest wings and soar through the sky."

"So there really are immortals in the world!" Zhao Ji exclaimed, caught between surprise and delight.

"Of course there are, but they live above the white clouds. We mortals have no destiny to see them."

Bu Jingxian then asked, "Lady Li, is there a kitchen here?"

"Of course. Are you hungry?" As she moved to get up, Bu Jingxian hurriedly told Zhao Ji to go to the kitchen to start a fire and cook. Seeing Zhao Ji insist on going, Lady Li sat back down. "This young woman is very beautiful; she must be your wife or concubine." She noted that Zhao Ji treated Bu Jingxian with respect, performing the rites of a subordinate. Finally, she added, "Sending her away—it seems you have something on your mind?"

"I will not hide it from you, Lady Li. I have been seeking information about you for two years for two reasons."

"Speak."

"The first is to ask you where one might find medicine to cleanse the marrow and change the constitution, or ancient martial arts manuals. The second is to ask how one might awaken the power of the original Soul Clan." Bu Jingxian then briefly explained how the Baiyue sisters had been burdened by the Soul Sutra, causing their internal arts to be crippled, and the unexpected turn of events where the Wanxia Sect became the State of Zhou. "Now, it is impossible for the State of Zhou to transform from a monarchy into a nation of the Soul's Will, and the current state of the world offers no conditions for me to create another Wanxia Sect. I have pondered bitterly and concluded that only by awakening the power of the original Soul Clan, and through this proving to the world that the power of the Soul's Will is real, can I continue on this path. I hope you can help me, Lady Li."

Lady Li nodded slightly after listening. "The Soul Sutra feeds on the earth's qi, and its energy has complex qualities. Aside from the energy of the Divine Sutra, it can easily contaminate the internal energy of other martial practitioners. It seems you are aware of the capabilities of the Soul Sutra's internal energy, yet you do not know how to manipulate it to harm enemies."

"I would welcome your instruction." Bu Jingxian had indeed tried everything but failed.

"I cannot help you with this. With your intelligence, you should be able to discern the key, but to put it into practice requires sufficient experience in real combat."

"Thank you for your guidance, Lady Li. I suppose it is because I have always fought ordinary martial artists within the Black Wolf tribe and lack the experience of battling masters that I have failed to truly uncover the mysteries of the Soul Sutra's power."

"A single hint and you understand. As for the immortal medicine to cleanse the marrow and change the constitution, there is none at present, though there are ancient martial arts that have such miraculous effects. However..." Lady Li trailed off, deep in thought, and sipped her tea.

Bu Jingxian quickly said, "If there are any difficulties, please let me know, Lady Li."

"That set of ancient martial arts is here, within the treasure of the Soul Sect, but I have lived here for over a year and have never been able to find it."

"This..." Bu Jingxian sighed despondently. "Lady Li, the treasure of the Soul Sect is entirely non-existent, purely a fabrication. Naturally, it cannot be found."