"Yue Liang, is something bothering you?"
Yue Liang swished her tail, the fur striped in shades of brown and gold, and hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"It's boring to walk them around in circles every day. Yue Liang wants to go out and explore."
"Alright," Jian Dan said with a smile. "I'll make arrangements to take you out for a bit."
Delighted, Yue Liang gave an eager nod, then vanished in a flash and leapt up to the banyan tree outside the cave residence. It was time for her daily sunbathing.
Jian Dan had only spoken casually, but Yue Liang took her words to heart. From then on, she basked in the sunlight by day and soaked in moonlight by night.
The beginner body-tempering course had concluded, and today Jian Dan gathered the little ones together.
"Today, I'll demonstrate how to draw qi into your bodies."
"Yes, Zhūnzhǔ!" the children chorused.
Jian Dan opened her right hand. A transparent projection of a human body formed in her palm, every meridian within clearly outlined.
Then, she conjured glowing motes of energy representing the eight spiritual elements: metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, lightning, and ice. Step by step, she demonstrated how the motes entered the body, flowed along the meridians, and finally gathered in the dantian.
The children watched, wide-eyed and entranced. It was their first time seeing a visualization of this process.
"Did you all understand?"
"Yes!" they responded in unison, their voices ringing with confidence.
"Then grab your meditation mats and head to the sword training grounds. It's time to begin drawing qi into your bodies."
Clutching their mats, the children raced off to claim their spots. By the time Jian Dan strolled over, they were all seated and ready. She nodded in approval.
"Why are you all looking at me? This is your cultivation. If you're ready, then begin."
"Yes!"
The training grounds fell into a focused silence. Yue Liang leapt onto Jian Dan's shoulder, quietly overseeing the small cultivators below.
At first, a few couldn't sit still. They peeked around curiously, eyes wandering. But once they looked up and saw Jian Dan smiling patiently at them, they quickly shut their eyes and began focusing inward, trying to sense the flow of spiritual energy.
Two hours passed.
Jia Yushu was the first to succeed.
A swirl of wind-aspect spiritual energy, glowing pale green, surged toward him. It encircled his small frame, then followed the path of his meridians, flowing smoothly into his dantian and settling at its base.
Jian Dan observed it all clearly and nodded in satisfaction.
Jia Yushu's success seemed to trigger something. The spiritual energy around them grew more vibrant, as if a barrier had been broken. One after another, the children began successfully drawing qi into their bodies.
Jian Dan casually swept her divine sense across the group. The children who had used the body-tempering decoction she had prepared all stabilized around the third layer of Qi Refinement. Those who hadn't still reached the first layer after initiating the process.
By the time the sun began to set, every single child had completed the ritual.
With a quick hand seal, Jian Dan cleared the impurities expelled from their bodies.
"Congratulations. You have successfully drawn qi into your bodies. From this moment on, you are cultivators, ones who walk the path of defying the heavens."
"Thank you for your guidance, Zhūnzhǔ!"
Jian Dan opened her left hand. A five-pointed spatial domain contracted into her palm. The children stared in awe. It was their first time witnessing her use such advanced magic.
Once the domain dissipated, the waiting attendants outside could finally see their young masters again, but none dared to step forward without permission.
"That's all for today. Go on. Rest for two days and take time to settle your energy."
"Yes, Zhūnzhǔ!"
Jian Dan gave a final nod and vanished from sight.
"Xiao Si, when do you think I'll become as powerful as the Zhūnzhǔ?"
Xiao Si scratched his head and asked curiously, "Young Master, how do you know the Zhūnzhǔ is powerful? I didn't see anything special."
"Hmph! Of course she's powerful. Her teachings are clear. I finally understand things that used to confuse me. I even reached the third layer of Qi Refining. I'm officially a cultivator now."
"Yes, yes. Young Master is amazing."
When the twenty children returned home, their elders examined their cultivation levels and were very pleased. Naturally, they were equally impressed with Jian Dan as an instructor.
But soon, some comparisons began. When the elders exchanged notes, they quickly noticed a pattern.
After some discussion, they realized the body-tempering decoction had made a significant difference. Only then did they truly start to value it.
A few even sent messages directly to Jian Dan. Her reply was concise:
"This decoction is only effective before cultivation begins. It awakens a child's potential without harming their foundation."
In other words, they were already too late.
With the first phase of training complete, Jian Dan gave the children a holiday and took Yue Liang down to the city at the foot of the Heavenly Sword Sect's mountain to relax.
This time, Yue Liang had taken on the form of a little girl. She wore a brown-yellow dress, her hair done up in two buns tied with matching ribbons. Around her neck hung a storage collar Jian Dan had gifted her.
She looked like a miniature immortal child, clutching Jian Dan's hand as she wandered the bustling marketplace. She peered around with bright eyes, tugging on Jian Dan's sleeve whenever something caught her attention, and Jian Dan indulged her whims with quiet amusement.
To keep a low profile, Jian Dan suppressed her cultivation to mid-stage Golden Core. Not too weak to be dismissed, not strong enough to attract attention.
After buying Yue Liang a small collection of trinkets and snacks, Jian Dan let her lead the way to a teahouse called Youjian Teahouse, a place Yue Liang had heard about.
"Zhūnzhǔ, they tell stories here. I heard a few cultivators talking about it earlier. I want to listen too."
"Alright."
A server led them to a table near the wall in the main hall.
"Immortal Lady, what would you like to order? Besides our teas, our snacks are especially famous. You and your young companion can enjoy them while listening to the storytelling."
"A pot of osmanthus tea. Four types of pastries. You pick the best ones."
She casually tossed the server a low-grade spirit stone.
"Right away, Fairy. Your order will be ready shortly."
The server eagerly accepted the tip and rushed off.
In no time, the tea and snacks were served. Yue Liang asked seriously, "What story is being told today?"
"Today's tale, Young Immortal, is about the Mo Yue Zhūnzhǔ from the Heavenly Demon Palace. It's the story of how she wreaked havoc in the Ming Valley and crushed the insect tribe's invasion..."
Jian Dan nearly spat out her tea. She hadn't expected to become the subject of a public tale.
Yue Liang nodded with approval, then produced a spirit stone from her storage collar.
"This is for the storyteller. Make sure he gives it his best."
"Yes, thank you, Young Fairy. I'll deliver it to him at once."
Jian Dan chuckled and patted the twin buns on Yue Liang's head.
"You pick things up fast."
The storyteller had begun narrating the tale of the Heavenly Demon Palace's ancient post at the Ming Valley, his voice dramatic and expressive. Yue Liang listened intently, nodding along now and then.
Jian Dan found the story fairly accurate. The plot roughly matched the real events. There were, of course, exaggerations, but nothing too outrageous.
The storyteller had just reached the part where the Mo Yue Zhūnzhǔ entered the valley for the second time when a flying sword message arrived at Jian Dan's table.
With a flick of her sleeve, she retrieved it. It was from Lü Se.
"Zhūnzhǔ, I've received the reply from the Buddhist Sect. Masters Le Chen and Le Kong will be visiting the Heavenly Sword Sect soon to meet with Jian Lu Zūnzhǔ."
"Well, that counts as good news… sort of."
After reading the message, Jian Dan removed her barrier and returned her focus to the story.
The teahouse was gradually filling up with more patrons.
Suddenly, an exaggerated voice rang out beside Jian Dan's ear.
"Oh my! A spirit beast in human form!"