"Lass, your taste in spirit beasts is… unconventional!" The Boundless Spirit Ancestor sounded bewildered. "Ironclaw Bearlings are undeniably plush dumplings now, but grown? Mountain-cracking paws! A single swipe could flatten a nascent Gold Core cultivator! Most female adepts fawn over Spirit Fox kits or Shadow Lynx cubs… Yet here you are, mooning over a walking siege engine… Ah!" He abruptly cut himself off, a belated realization dawning. Of course the little demoness favours such a titan. It mirrors her own potential for cataclysmic fury. This insight, however, he prudently kept locked within his mental void – certain opinions were best left unshared when reliant on her digging prowess.
The tranquility shattered like brittle jade. From the emerald depths of the bamboo grove, a mature Moon-Graced Ironclaw Bear emerged. Her immense frame radiated divine power, thick fur patterned in stark celestial ink and sacred chalk. Powerful nostrils flared instantly, locking onto the foreign scent intruding near her precious cub. With a thunderous roar that vibrated the very air – a sound like splitting mountains – she charged, a primal tempest of protective fury aimed straight at Gu Qingxi.
Instinct screamed: FLIGHT! Not fear of defeat, but reverence. To harm even a single strand of that holy fur was unthinkable. Gu Qingxi pivoted and ran, darting into the dense bamboo with the speed of a startled Spirit Deer.
What followed was pure pandemonium. The verdant slopes of Verdant Peak became a racetrack. Gu Qingxi wove through the thick stalks, leaps propelled by enhanced agility born of sheer self-preservation. Behind her, the enraged Thunderous Guardian pursued relentlessly, her thunderous footfalls cracking stone and flattening smaller bamboos. Roars like celestial artillery shook the canopy, sending startled Spirit Birds exploding skywards in panicked clouds. Da-Da, having witnessed the initial charge from his grazing spot, squawked bloody murder and vanished into the high foliage.
Like a celestial mallet chasing a fleeing needle! The Ancestor mentally cackled, utterly enthralled by the spectacle. He narrowly swallowed the observation chased like a flea-bitten mongrel! Supreme self-preservation instincts kicked in – the little demoness must remain willing to dig!
Only when the guardian judged herself sufficiently distant from her cub's location did the earth-shaking pursuit cease. She whirled, unleashing a final, reverberating snarl back towards the fleeing human, before lumbering back towards the clearing. Her cub's safety superseded chasing the insignificant irritant.
Panting heavily, sweat plastering hair to her temple, Gu Qingxi finally dared to stop, leaning against a massive bamboo culm. She watched the powerful creature's retreat, its immense form majestic even in repose. A slow, genuine smile spread across her flushed face. Still beautiful.
"Ahahaha! That escape technique! Truly inspired!" The Ancestor crowed, abandoning any pretense of gravity. "One for the annals!"
Gu Qingxi ignored him. She slid down the bamboo trunk, landing lightly in a patch of soft moss. Settling into a lotus position, she closed her eyes, breathing deeply to calm her racing heart. The absurdity faded, replaced by a wave of poignant nostalgia.
The End Times… chaos incarnate. She remembered another giant panda, then just a terrified, magnificent refugee from a shattered world. She'd soothed its panic, calmed its fear, ensuring its safe passage to sanctuary personnel… only to have duty whisk her away before she could even touch its legendary fur. One soft touch, denied.
Regrets? She contemplated the question deeply. No. That brief life – vibrant, fierce, lived on her own terms, even amidst the apocalypse. She had embraced the fleeting nature of existence, understanding death as perhaps… a doorway.
But a doorway to this? A world of soaring peaks and spiraling Qi? The corner of her mouth lifted. The Gu family will mourn… but move forward. So will I.
Honor the past. Her resolve crystallized.
Charge headlong into the future.
This new canvas… mine to paint!
In that precise, unguarded moment of absolute clarity and acceptance, the world shifted. Ambient Qi, dense and vibrant, suddenly surged towards her like iron filings to a lodestone. The air hummed. Whispering bamboo leaves froze mid-tremble. She closed her eyes, yet saw – the boundless tapestry of the universe, the silent pulse of creation itself. Heat, electric and potent, exploded through her meridians. Deep within her core, something ancient, long dormant… cracked open.
The Boundless Spirit Ancestor's mental exclamation died, replaced by sheer, stupefied disbelief. Enlightenment?! He gaped at the converging torrent of elemental forces. From fleeing a bear?! AND… ascension?! Impossible! From Qi Refining's first infant step… straight to Foundation Establishment?! This isn't talent! THIS IS DEFYING THE HEAVENS THEMSELVES!
Back in his courtyard, Lu Tianyu dropped the bamboo stake he was holding. His head snapped towards the sudden stormcloud of gathering Qi swirling over the back mountain. Alarm flashing across his face, he snatched his spirit sword from its rack. In a heartbeat, he was airborne, blade a silver streak against the violet-tinted horizon, hurtling towards the epicenter.
Landing in the clearing where Gu Qingxi sat, the gathered Qi already swirling back into calm, Lu Tianyu stared, utterly dumbfounded. The spiritual tempest had passed, leaving behind Gu Qingxi. But she was… different. The subtle aura of a newly established Foundation wrapped around her, bright and steady. Her eyes snapped open, crystal clear and sparkling with newfound power. She felt… lighter, stronger, senses sharply attuned to the whispering bamboo, the thrum of the earth beneath her.
"LITTLE SISTER!" Lu Tianyu's shout was half-disbelief, half-unbridled joy. "Foundation Establishment! YOU DID IT!" He bounded forward, unable to contain his exuberance. He'd mentally budgeted for expensive Foundation Establishment Pills! Mentally composed lengthy lectures about overcoming bottlenecks! And here she was, having vaulted over the monumental hurdle like it was a pebble! Flawlessly!
"I… broke through?" Gu Qingxi murmured, flexing her hands, feeling the condensed power humming within her meridians. The world felt crisper, brighter.
Leaping from nascent Qi Refining to the solid ground of Foundation Establishment? An earth-shattering feat! Most cultivators spent years, even decades, grinding away at the barrier. Pills, guidance, seclusion – all necessary crutches for many. But being chased into enlightenment by an ancient guardian beast? The Ancestor could only choke on the absurdity. History's first!
"Witnesses or not? Unbelievable! First Layer Refining to Foundation? Directly! Amazing! Our Shimei!" Lu Tianyu beamed, circling her like a proud tutor inspecting a masterpiece. His joy was pure and infectious.
Gu Qingxi smiled, but inwardly, she understood. The body she inhabited wasn't merely flawed with conflicting elements. Its original owner's rigid fear had been a lock. Her acceptance of this world, her unyielding spirit forged in apocalypse – that was the key. Releasing the pent-up potential. And more… she now knew. Not merely fire and water battling within her Soul Veins. Buried deeper, rarer than phoenix tears, was a Nether Spirit Root! The legendary conduit allowing one to touch the very boundaries of spirit and soul, to guide creatures and command energies unseen! One destined to become… an elusive Soul Shepherd!
"This means I can learn Flight!" The practical benefit struck her, replacing the introspective calm with delight.
"Yes! YES!" Lu Tianyu bounced on his heels, even more thrilled than she was. "No need for the Triple Inquiry Hall now! The Master will guide your blade personally! And your Shixiong can teach you everything! We'll race across the peaks! See whose blade parts the clouds faster!" His eyes gleamed with anticipation.
Perhaps not… that particular contest, Gu Qingxi thought dryly, vividly recalling Lu Tianyu's meteor-like "piloting." Aloud, she only smiled wider. "We should tell Shifu."
Lu Tianyu was already nodding vigorously when his gaze snagged on the nearby earth. Several roughly dug pits marred the mossy ground. "Shimei?" He tilted his head, perplexed. "Did you… dig these?"
Rotten luck! Forgot to cover my alibi! Panic flared, ideas scrambling. Burying treasures? Looking for truffles? What plausible lie exists for random holes?!
"Planting bamboo?" Lu Tianyu mused aloud, his face clearing. "Smart! We rotate the duty – replenishing the grove for our honored Guardian kin. They do devour staggering quantities! You even prepared the holes? Brilliant efficiency! Here, let's finish! Plant them quick, then we fly to Shifu with the DOUBLE news!" He beamed, grabbing a spare bamboo sprout he just happened to have tucked away.
"Those sacred beasts… Shifu personally tends them?" Gu Qingxi seized the topic shift with gratitude, eyes alight again at the mention of the pandas.
"Absolutely!" Lu Tianyu nodded vigorously, thrusting a sprout into a hole. "Guardian kin descended from his noble lineage! Shifu hopes one day celestial wisdom may awaken within one! Though…" He lowered his voice conspiratorially, "…none have yet ignited their divine spark. And Shimei! Heed my urgent advice: Steer clear of the adults! Shifu's bond is unique! Outsiders? Considered vermin! Why, just last moon-phase, one colossal beauty took offense to my breathing in her meadow! Chased me from one peak to the next! All ten li! Like a celestial avalanche after a squirrel!" He shuddered dramatically. The beasts fed on mountain spirit-bamboo, their strength immense. Striking back was forbidden; fleeing was the sole honorable option.
Shixiong… Gu Qingxi thought with wry amusement, carefully patting earth around the bamboo sprout, your warning arrived a little late… a celestial avalanche gave me a personal tour just moments ago.