"The spirit dwells within the elixir of the mind;
the lung-spirit is Hao Hua, named Xu Cheng.
Within the heart's square inch, hide your thoughts;
neither square nor round, shut the window to the world.
Walk within the body's eight scenic spirits,
the twenty-four true ones emerge of their own accord."
Verse after verse, each like a seven-character quatrain, flowed gently into every listener's ears.
Yes—flowed.
From the summit of the mountain, the words descended, ink-dark yet limpid, streaming like a clear brook straight into the ears of those gathered below. Even the great beasts could hear them.
All, however—human and beast alike—sat cross-legged as Zhongli had done, eyes closed, listening to The gentleman's Huangting Jade View Classic.
At first, Ningguang and the others hadn't understood the point of sitting like this. On bare ground, no less—undignified. And the scripture itself? Mysterious to the point of being unintelligible. Surely, hearing it would be pointless.
But once she sat, closed her eyes, and truly listened, Ningguang realized just how wrong she had been.
Some truths need not be spoken to be understood.
Some words need not be parsed to be felt.
Though they could not comprehend the meaning of Jiang Yan's lines, their hearts could still receive them. Fatigue melted away. All uncertainty was swept clean. What remained was pure tranquility.
Elemental power gathered unceasingly, flowing into their bodies; with every moment of listening, their strength grew—not in a sudden burst, but in a steady, enduring ascent.
It was a peaceful power, like a mother wiping the sweat from her child's brow and murmuring, "I know you're tired. Rest now, just for a while."
A single tear slipped from the corner of Ningguang's closed eye. In that moment, she began to understand Ganyu.
Even here, far below the summit, the scene was one of serenity. Newcomer beasts padded quietly into the crowd and lay down beside people's feet. Cold, slit-pupiled snakes softened their gaze; even they seemed to shine with a trace of benevolence.
Gradually, as the violet qi at the horizon thinned, Jiang Yan's Huangting Jade View Classic reached its final lines.
When the last words fell, a gentle breeze swept over the land—
and the mountains burst into bloom.
Withered grass turned lush and green.
Zhongli and the others slowly opened their eyes, not even pausing to note the changes in the scenery.
"Mortal wear," Zhongli said calmly, "gone by another one percent… At this rate, it won't be long before I'm free of it entirely."
The other adepti too opened their eyes, gazing toward the summit. For the first time, they understood why Zhongli would not permit them to call themselves immortals before The gentleman.
If one of such presence called himself merely a cultivator who has returned the spirit to emptiness—
then what right did they have to claim the title immortal?
Their immortal force had grown purer; their old battlefield wounds had eased. And yet, none felt jubilant—only peaceful.
Ningguang's lashes fluttered as she opened her eyes. Not far away, a tiger also blinked awake. She could smell the tang of blood on its breath, yet felt no fear, as though a voice in her heart told her there was nothing to worry about.
The tiger's eyes held a human warmth. It dipped its head to her in a nod, then bowed low toward the summit before leaping away into the wilds.
All around, beasts were waking. None fought. One by one, like the tiger, they bowed toward the peak, then slipped quietly into the forest, careful not to disturb whatever dwelled above.
Even the caged beasts in the caravan lay still, silent.
Ningguang glanced toward Keqing, who was smiling faintly.
"My elemental power… it's stronger now!"
Her words broke the hush. The Millelith began speaking at once, marveling at their newfound vigor. Some discovered that their old scars had vanished; many looked years younger.
Keqing even felt she could push through another three days and nights of overwork without pause. If she could hear such scripture every day, she thought, she'd gladly do it.
"Ningguang… you were crying?" Keqing asked in surprise.
Once, Ningguang would have denied it without hesitation. The pride of the Tianquan Star allowed no trace of weakness. But now… she felt something in her heart had grown. She nodded slightly, smiling.
"Just remembering the past. But it's a good memory."
"You've changed…" Keqing said, a complicated look in her eyes. She said no more, but Zhongli cast a satisfied glance at Ningguang. A Tianquan whose heart had ascended another step—this was Liyue's fortune.
"So this is the power of that the gentleman?" Granny Ping sighed, feeling years lighter.
"To soothe all living things, strengthen our cultivation, and heal our wounds—all without showing his face, and from such a distance… Truly worthy of the title cultivator."
Had Jiang Yan heard that, he might only have waved it off. For all that he was a cultivator of the Spirit-Refining and Returning to the Void stage—the near-peak of the mortal path—a drop of his blood could work wonders for lesser practitioners. And this was the Huangting Jade View Classic. If it didn't have such effects, he'd wonder if it were a fake.
"The gentleman has not gone out of his way to help us," Zhongli said with a wry smile. "As I told you, this is merely his daily morning lesson."
"Morning… lesson?" Keqing stared at him in disbelief.
"Just his own morning cultivation, and it can ripple out so far, touching even the heavens?"
"Are all cultivators… truly this powerful?"
Zhongli did not answer. But in his heart, he felt a spark of hope. Now that he had seen with his own eyes the effect of the gentleman's cultivation, could The gentleman's claim to restore life truly be possible?
Perhaps not yet—but one day. And if Zhongli himself took up cultivation… might he, too, walk far enough to bring back an old friend?
He found he wanted to try.
"Up the mountain," he said at last. "Now that The gentleman has finished his morning lesson, we should pay our respects without delay."
The others nodded gravely—though some glanced toward the Millelith still chattering about their newfound strength, and the long train of gift-laden wagons.
"Lord Rex Lapis," Keqing said, frowning toward the caravan, "we can't exactly get these carts up the mountain…"
"That is… a problem," Zhongli admitted. Asking the adepti to haul them seemed unseemly, and the sheer volume would tax even their strength. He sighed.
"Very well. Since we've come this far, we can't leave the gifts at the foot of the mountain. I'll carry them myself."
"Lord Rex Lapis, that…" Xiao hesitated. Was it fitting for the object of their faith to serve as porter? But Zhongli only waved a hand.
"It's no trouble. Why should others do what I cannot?"
Yet before Zhongli could act, a figure in black robes drifted down from the summit on a flying sword.
The wide sleeves of his Daoist robe lent him an air of immortal grace. Clouds parted to form a clear path, as though the heavens themselves welcomed him.
"A guest arrives bearing gifts—how could I allow the guest to carry them to my door?"
Zhongli looked up to see the man approaching, leisurely and unrestrained, a purple-gold cloud-mark between his brows gleaming in the light. His robes and hair streamed in the wind; his face was like that of a jade-faced immortal, his eyes carrying the glimmer of a thousand stars.
With a casual wave, the endless train of wagons dissolved into streaks of light and vanished into the depths of his sleeve. In an instant, the mountainside lay open and empty.
The breeze lifted his robe; the morning sun set him aglow.
Ganyu's cheeks flushed hot. Beside her, Keqing and Ningguang felt their own hearts skip. In that instant, they understood why Ganyu had become so lovestruck.
The bearing of a cultivator—it was too much to resist.
Jiang Yan's lips curved faintly as he looked over the group and inclined his head.
"A first meeting, I suppose. Forgive me for not coming down to greet you sooner."
And in the sunlight, his figure seemed brighter than the rising sun.
Ningguang and the others could only stand quietly, looking up at him.
In that single gaze, it felt like a thousand years had passed.
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