Mortal: Fifteenth Realm Sword Cultivator

Chapter 161 The path to enlightenment is not something that can be accomplished by relying on others

Chapter 162 The path to enlightenment is not something that can be accomplished by relying on others.

"I once swore an oath that whoever could slay the person from Jiyin Island would be offered up by the Miaoyin Sect with both hands. These are the sect's fundamental treasures, its most prized possessions, and all the tokens of its power—"

When she said this, Zi Ling's face showed no reluctance as she had handed over the sect; instead, it exuded an air of matter-of-fact acceptance.

Lu Jianghe did not answer, but slowly got up from the futon.

Seeing this, Zi Ling bent down and picked up the pair of boots from the bottom of the steps. She picked up one of them, then stood up and reached out to touch Lu Jianghe's ankle, intending to put the boots on for him herself.

It's hard to imagine that this aloof and beautiful fairy, Zi Ling, would perform such a service.

Lu Jianghe also frowned slightly.

With a slight thought, Zi Ling was instantly frozen in place, unable to move even her fingertips except for her eyes.

He stood up, looked down at her, and took the boots back from her slender hands.

From this angle, one can clearly glimpse a patch of snow-white, smooth skin beneath her clothes—

Lu Jianghe turned around, put on his boots himself, and then released the restraints on her.

With the restraints gone, Zi Ling's body swayed almost imperceptibly.

There was no shame or anger on her face, nor did she back down; instead, her long, clear eyes shone even brighter.

"There's no need for that. The oath is yours. Whether I keep it or not, whether I want it or not, is my own choice. Besides, Ji Yin didn't truly die or perish; he merely lost a wisp of his soul that possessed him."

77

Lu Jianghe put on his boots, walked to the window, and left with his back to the viewer.

Zi Ling said very earnestly, "In Wang Ning's heart, you are an elder, and after her parents passed away, you are the closest person to Ning'er in this world."

She heard a soft sigh.

Then, Lu Jianghe's voice came through.

"Don't do this again."

Zi Ling lowered her head slightly, her eyelashes trembling gently, her hands rubbing together as she murmured softly.

"Ning'er doesn't understand. Does this refer to the Miaoyin Sect, or is it like what happened just now—"

Lu Jianghe turned around, and it seemed as if there were black lines hanging down on his forehead. He tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"None of them will work."

Zi Ling knelt there quietly, her eyes lowered, appearing gentle, demure, and virtuous.

"Wang Ning understands."

Looking at her posture, Lu Jianghe was filled with suspicion.

Zi Ling knew that one couldn't force someone like Lu Jianghe.

That action just now was merely a test; it seems that from now on, we can only proceed gradually.

However, it allowed Zi Ling to truly see what her ideal Daoist partner was like.

The mind of Tao is clear and pure, undisturbed by external things, requiring no flattery or dependence from anyone, and will not be swayed by power or beauty.

The person standing right there is the answer itself.

At that moment, another streak of light gently descended from outside the quiet room.

Immediately afterward, Han Li's voice came from outside the door.

Lu Jianghe looked towards the doorway, a slight thought stirring in his heart.

What is this kid doing here instead of properly refining and cultivating that piece of Heavenly Thunder Bamboo?

As Han Li pushed open the door and stepped into the quiet room, his gaze immediately sharpened.

Inside, Lu Jianghe stood with his hands behind his back by the window, while Zi Ling Fairy, the renowned and beautiful sect leader of Miaoyin Sect, stood nearby.

He knelt quietly on the prayer mat, his head slightly bowed, his posture respectful.

Although there were a few steps between them, a subtle atmosphere filled the air, especially with Zi Ling's posture, which made Han Li instantly feel that he had arrived at the wrong time.

A hint of embarrassment flashed across his face. He was caught between a rock and a hard place, so he could only stand there awkwardly and bow, saying, "Brother Lu, Sect Master Ziling."

Lu Jianghe turned around, glanced at him, and said, "You better put away that idea."

Han Li touched his nose and coughed twice. "Then I'll wait outside."

After saying that, he lifted his foot to leave.

Seeing that he was about to leave, Lu Jianghe casually said, "Alright, alright, just say what you want to say."

Upon hearing this, Han Li stopped, his gaze quickly sweeping over Zi Ling before turning to Lu Jianghe.

At this moment, Zi Ling gently rose, her movements elegant and composed. She placed her hands together in front of her abdomen, bowed slightly, and performed an impeccable courtesy, her voice gentle and sweet.

"Then I'll take my leave now and come back another time."

Upon hearing this, Lu Jianghe frowned slightly and looked at Zi Ling: "What's the deal with a sect leader constantly running around here? There are many affairs in the sect, no need for this. You should go back and attend to your own business."

Zi Ling did not refute after hearing this, but simply nodded gently and replied obediently, "Yes, Wang Ning understands."

Her gaze lingered on Lu Jianghe's face for a moment before she turned around, took light steps, and silently left the quiet room.

Han Li watched Zi Ling's figure disappear outside the door, then looked at Lu Jianghe, who remained calm, and a thought churned in his mind.

Could these two have actually developed that kind of relationship?

How long has it been?

It's developing way too fast!

Lu Jianghe sat down on the futon again, his gaze calmly fixed on Han Li.

"Speak, what do you want? You seem rather distracted; you can't really be here just to watch the show, can you?"

Han Li took a deep breath and suppressed the distracting thoughts in his mind.

"Brother Lu, there is something I want to ask you to confirm."

Seeing his expression of being on high alert, as if he were about to give his last words, Lu Jianghe raised an eyebrow and a knowing glint flashed in his eyes, but he did not point it out. He simply gave a faint "hmm" to signal him to continue.

Han Li's palms were slightly sweaty as he organized his thoughts, trying to find a less abrupt opening.

But in the end, they found that any attempt to beat around the bush was futile in front of Lu Jianghe.

He didn't speak, but took out a potted spiritual plant from his storage bag and placed it on the ground.

Immediately afterwards, Han Li flipped his hand, and the small green bottle appeared in his other hand.

Lu Jianghe narrowed his eyes slightly as he watched this action, rested his chin on his hand, tilted his head, and looked at the other person with great interest.

This posture was something Han Li had never seen before, and his heart tightened involuntarily.

There is no turning back now.

With a determined heart, in front of Lu Jianghe, she carefully poured a drop of crystal-clear green liquid from the small green bottle and precisely dripped it onto the spiritual herb in the basin.

It's almost visible to the naked eye!

The moment the drop of green liquid touched the spiritual herb, the entire plant trembled violently, and then a rich emerald green light emanated from its body, with a halo of azure spiritual energy swirling around it.

A surge of vitality suddenly erupted, and the spiritual herb grew wildly, taller, and its branches and leaves stretched out at a speed visible to the naked eye!

In an instant, the spiritual energy it contained doubled and surged, and the medicinal power surged forth, dripping with vitality.

Even more alarming is that its age is also rapidly increasing.

One breath, ten years of medical experience!

Two breaths, and a full sixty years have passed!

Later on, its growth momentum slowed down slightly, but it was still astonishing.

In just a quarter of an hour, the originally small and inconspicuous spiritual plant had transformed into a mature spiritual herb, brimming with spiritual energy and exuding a fragrant aroma, nearly three hundred years old.

The entire process was completed silently under Lu Jianghe's watchful eye.

The most comfortable way for people to get along is to speak their minds directly.

Lu Jianghe was genuinely surprised at this moment.

Han Li has always been cautious to the core.

The little green bottle, which he cherished as his life and considered a life-changing miracle, was actually confessed to by him like this?

So direct, and leaving no room for negotiation.

After Han Li finished doing all this, he tightly gripped the small green bottle.

He didn't speak, but stared straight at Lu Jianghe with a look of determination, tension, and a sense of relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

Neither of them spoke.

The atmosphere became heavy.

"The book says, 'If Heaven gives something and you don't take it, you will suffer the consequences; if you don't act when the time is right, you will lose it and it will never come again.'"

Lu Jianghe looked at Han Li and said calmly.

Han Li's face turned pale instantly. He struggled to raise his hand, his movements stiff as a puppet on strings.

Watching the other person hold the small green bottle in their palm and hand it to them, taking it as they pleased.

"What, you don't want it anymore?"

Lu Jianghe raised an eyebrow and asked.

Han Li forced a bitter smile that looked more like a grimace: "I feel that it would be more useful for Brother Lu to have it."

Lu Jianghe sat up straight. "Alright, kid, you're just going to give away something so precious like that? You really—aren't you heartbroken?"

Han Li's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, his teeth almost grinding to powder, and he squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth: "I don't feel sorry for you."

This hypocritical and fearless demeanor finally made Lu Jianghe laugh out loud.

"Put it away, it's useless to me. Besides, you're too easily amused."

However, Lu Jianghe's laughter did not dispel the gloom in Han Li's heart.

His face grew even more sorrowful, and alarm bells rang in his mind.

Accept it?

What if this is a test?

What if I actually take it back, and the other party feels that I lack sincerity?

"I still feel it's better for you!"

Han Li's voice trembled, but his tone was unusually resolute.

"I don't feel like it's very useful."

Even he himself found these words utterly absurd and utterly unconvincing.

Upon hearing this blatantly insincere remark, Lu Jianghe could no longer contain himself and burst into laughter.

"Not very useful? You've really mastered the art of lying through your teeth."

Seeing that the other party really had no intention of taking it, Han Li felt a slight sense of relief. He took a deep breath and asked the question that had been lingering in his heart for many years.

"Brother Lu, did you actually know what this thing was all along? And did you know it from the very beginning at the Seven Mysteries Sect? Why did you say you didn't know back then?"

Lu Jianghe said calmly, "Actually, there's no point in you worrying about these things anymore. What you should be thinking about is how to hold onto them firmly and securely."

Han Li seemed to understand, but not quite.

He couldn't help but ask again, "Brother Lu, I've never heard of anything that can accelerate the growth of rare and precious objects. Even legendary ancient treasures would find it hard to compare, right? Is such a divine object truly useless to you, or is there another reason?"

Lu Jianghe remained silent for a moment before speaking slowly.

"Our hearts are not aligned with the Way."

This explanation was not for his own ears, but for Han Li's ears.

Do you really think that Lu Jianghe is inherently kind to others?

That would be a huge mistake.

The purest and most arrogant are the sword cultivators.

Their coldness and hardness of heart far exceed imagination.

Lu Jianghe's "goodness" and his "non-contention" are simply because there is no "enemy of the Great Way" that can shake his foundation or block his path.

If it is truly due to the scarcity or abundance of spiritual energy in the world.

Look at Lu Jianghe, what can he possibly do?

It is certainly true that "the mind is not in harmony with the Way".

We sword cultivators are destined to be tested by Heaven.

The path to enlightenment is not something that can be achieved through external means or the hands of others.

A swordsman among mortals, a swordsman from beyond the heavens.

Once the sword is handed over, before anyone arrives, one sees its cold light.

Of course, that's a story for another time.

If we can't even find a way forward, it's all just a pipe dream, an empty talk.

Although Han Li did not fully understand the deeper meaning of the other party's words, he understood that the little green bottle was indeed not indispensable to Lu Jianghe.

My heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

Putting the little green bottle back into the deepest part of the storage bag felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders, but I couldn't help but feel a new question arise.

"Brother Lu."

Han Li carefully considered his words before speaking, "Just what kind of treasure is this little green bottle? Could it be considered an ancient treasure?"

This time, Lu Jianghe did not refuse to answer; instead, he directly pointed out the source of the answer.

"This thing is not from this world. It can only be said to have been left in this human realm by accident or some unimaginable coincidence. As for ancient treasures, it is not even worthy of carrying its shoes."

Han Li's eyes looked strange.

"Brother Lu, are you not a cultivator from Tiannan either? Or are you from somewhere else?"

The other party is undoubtedly an old monster, but to know so much, they must be no ordinary old monster, right?

That's what he thought to himself.

At this moment, Lu Jianghe jokingly retorted, "Actually, I'm not that old."

Han Li smiled awkwardly and quickly composed himself.

He cursed himself for being foolish. In front of a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, his inner grumbling was as obvious as making a public fuss.

Then, Han Li looked up at Lu Jianghe, his eyes full of expectation, as if silently seeking the final answer.

The latter simply waved his hand casually, saying in a nonchalant tone, "Think about it yourself."

When Han Li stepped out of the quiet room, he felt a sense of lightness throughout his body, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

With smooth blood and qi circulation, one feels comfortable all over.

He looked up and saw a clear blue sky in the distance, without a single cloud, and his mind felt instantly refreshed.

From the moment the decision to confront each other to the moment the dust has settled, only a short period of time has passed.

However, this intense emotional turmoil caused his long-standing bottleneck in the fourth level of the Great Evolution Technique to begin to loosen.

"Never mind, I won't think about it anymore."

Han Li shook his head, suppressing his distracting thoughts.

Now that the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo has been planted, the most urgent task is to break through the bottleneck of the Great Evolution Technique.

"What exactly is this so-called tribulation of the mortal world?"

On Yuanci Mountain.

Under the gnarled peach tree, Ling Xiaofeng and Wen Qing sat side by side.

Across from the two men sat another woman.

The woman's dark eyebrows, sharp and pointed, resembled distant mountains, and with each slight lift, she exuded a dignified and heroic air.

Her temperament was completely different from that of ordinary women; she lacked the gentle charm of a young lady and instead exuded a quiet, reserved, androgynous spirit.

Her appearance was elegant and refined, without any hint of gaudiness; her beauty was naturally aloof.

The affection in the eyes of the two late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators was almost overflowing.

Wen Qing gently brushed her sleeve, a gentle smile on her lips, and spoke first.

"Little Ling'er, over the years—in your spare time from cultivation, have you ever met someone you like? Why don't you tell your mother about it?"