Chapter 14: The Price of Recklessness

So warm, so comfortable, her body felt light as air, as if she were floating in a sea of freshly fluffed, sun-drenched cotton… *Hiss!*

In a daze, she plummeted from paradise into hell itself. A piercing pain shot through Lian Yueying’s left shoulder, tracing its way down her upper arm muscles, and by the time it reached her forearm, she was abruptly jolted awake.

Opening her eyes, she was met with an unfamiliar ceiling. She lay naked, covered only by a thin quilt on a hard plank bed. Before her, a graceful woman in blue was gently kneading her forearm, and where their skin touched, a peculiar spiritual energy pulsed.

“Don’t move, even if you’re awake. Endure the pain; your shoulder and arm aren’t severely injured.”

‘She’s a cultivator, and I can’t discern her cultivation level. I’d best behave myself.’

Yun Meng glanced at Lian Yueying, rubbed her entire arm, then moved to the other side and began working on the right shoulder. “You’re quite the curious child,” she remarked, “daring to brazenly probe anyone’s cultivation. Do you not know that it’s highly impolite in the cultivation world to presumptuously investigate another’s cultivation level?”

Upon hearing this, Lian Yueying was about to apologize when the stinging pain returned. Yun Meng’s touch wasn’t particularly forceful, yet with each squeeze, Lian Yueying felt as though her muscles were being kneaded with immense power, causing her body to instinctively tense up.

The excruciating pain barely subsided until it reached her wrist. Yun Meng carefully assessed the limb, then lowered the arm and gently guided Lian Yueying to turn over. It was only then that Lian Yueying realized her legs seemed utterly incapable of movement.

“Senior… may I ask your esteemed name, Senior?”

“My surname is Chen.”

“Oh, Senior Chen, I… AAAAAAH!”

Mid-sentence, Lian Yueying suddenly felt as though her back were being vigorously pressed by a rolling pin. Though the pain wasn’t as intense as that in her arm, her mouth was open to speak, and she involuntarily cried out.

“Your master mentioned you’re disinclined to speak, yet your mind is quite active. It’s unhealthy to constantly suppress yourself, isn’t it more comfortable to just let it out?”

After loosening her back muscles, Yun Meng turned Lian Yueying onto her back again. Only after sensing that the circulation of qi and blood in her upper body was no longer obstructed did she place her hand on Lian Yueying’s thigh, smiling. “Of course,” she added, “this is merely my suggestion.”

For some reason, Lian Yueying still found Yun Meng’s smile gentle, yet the scene itself felt profoundly unsettling. In the very next breath, a searing, tearing pain erupted from her long-numb thigh—a pain several times more intense than anything she’d experienced while climbing the mountain. No matter how tightly Lian Yueying gritted her teeth, she couldn’t endure it, and immediately shrieked aloud.

Yun Meng, having anticipated this, had already activated a sound-dampening artifact, which functioned as usual. With a delicate hand, she gently pressed Lian Yueying’s chest, immobilizing her, before continuing her ministrations.

“Good child, just let it out. I truly wonder how you, with your slender limbs, managed to climb Mount Song relying purely on physical strength.”

Yun Meng maintained her smile, as if accustomed to such agonizing scenes. Her jade-like finger traced a path down Lian Yueying’s right thigh, only pausing at the knee to allow her a moment’s respite.

“Senior, what exactly are you… AAAAAAH!”

Within approximately a single breath, that jade-like finger crossed her knee and descended directly to her calf. Lian Yueying felt the muscles in her calf churn violently, as if, like her thigh, they had been sliced horizontally from within, then swiftly chopped a hundred or eighty times with two cleavers.

Screams, accompanied by the shaking of the bed frame, continued unabated. Lian Yueying’s eyes were squeezed shut, her expression a mask of pure agony. This excruciating pain did not numb her legs; on the contrary, with each successive treatment, the sensation of agony only grew sharper and more distinct.

Just as Lian Yueying felt as though half her body had gone numb, the other leg began to undergo the same torment. The treatment lasted for two kezhong (TL Note: An ancient Chinese unit of time, approximately 15 minutes), and for the entirety of those two kezhong, she screamed without cessation.

Finally, the inhuman torment ceased. Yun Meng observed Lian Yueying lying on the bed, tears streaming down her face, her beautiful eyes half-rolled back in her head, the bedsheet thoroughly crumpled. Only then did Yun Meng nod and withdraw the sound-dampening artifact.

“Don’t just lie there. Go soak in that new bathing tub. You can come out once the medicinal broth turns colorless.”

“Can I… still move?”

Lian Yueying uttered the words, her voice barely a whisper. She wasn’t joking; she genuinely felt as though her lower body no longer belonged to her.

Observing Lian Yueying’s listless state, Yun Meng recalled Yue Yixuan’s words. As she tidied the medicine pots, she said, “The more painful the treatment, the better the body-refining effect from your mountain climb. Just look at the color of the medicinal broth you just soaked in; it will tell you how many impurities were in your body.”

At these words, a spark returned to Lian Yueying’s beautiful eyes. She tentatively moved her legs, finding them considerably lighter than before. With each breath, Lian Yueying channeled streams of spiritual energy throughout her body, discovering that she could now circulate five such streams simultaneously.

Yun Meng, understanding Lian Yueying’s actions, watched her excited demeanor and couldn’t help but recall Yue Yixuan from a century ago.

“Your ability to persevere to the mountain’s summit, with willpower far surpassing ordinary people, naturally brings numerous benefits. However, there are two sides to every coin. Just now, your body was on the verge of collapse; had you not received timely healing, your entire musculature would likely have torn, and all your meridians would have severed.”

Lian Yueying’s wobbly legs paused for a moment, and then she rose to look at Yun Meng.

Yun Meng wore a sky-blue silken outer robe over a pearlescent white inner garment. Her long, black hair, numbering three thousand strands (TL Note: A poetic idiom for abundant, beautiful hair), was gathered to her chest and secured with a purple hair tie, while a remarkably translucent jade bracelet adorned her right wrist. By all appearances, she seemed the very embodiment of gentleness.

Alas, Lian Yueying’s memory of Yun Meng was dominated solely by the smile she wore during the recent treatment. To face such agonizing screams without a change in expression, Lian Yueying genuinely doubted Yun Meng was as delicate as she appeared. But none of that truly mattered.

“Senior Chen, you are as beautiful as you are kind. This immense kindness you’ve shown today, this disciple will never forget.”

“Your words are quite sweet. There’s no need for such formality. Go and soak in the tub now; you can settle the bill when you’re done.”

With that, Yun Meng departed. Lian Yueying, still somewhat bewildered, approached the two bathing tubs. Noticing one emanating a foul stench, its entire contents having turned blackish-brown, she hastily covered it with a cloth before settling into the other, clean tub.

As the hot water enveloped her shoulders, she let out a long sigh, feeling a tingling, sore itch all over her body, yet it was profoundly comforting. Only then did she open her eyes to look at the water’s surface.

‘Yaoshan Chrysanthemum, Buting Flower (TL Note: “Buting” means ‘not a court’ or ‘not a palace,’ suggesting an uncultivated or wild flower), and some other spiritual plants I don’t recognize. Each of these herbs in the tub must cost dozens of spirit stones. Calculating that…’

Lian Yueying was so startled she almost didn’t dare to soak. She quickly rose, only to hear Yun Meng’s voice drift from outside the room: “This final step is the most crucial—it strengthens your foundation, cultivates primal energy (TL Note: ‘Gu Ben Pei Yuan’ is a traditional Chinese medicine concept referring to strengthening the body’s fundamental vitality), and nourishes your tendons and bones. Besides, the medicinal herbs have already been used; whether you soak or not, you’ll still have to pay.”

Thus, Lian Yueying could only obediently sit back down and properly experience this luxurious medicinal broth.

‘It seems these spirit stones I just acquired won’t last long. Still, I was truly too reckless today. It really goes to show that cultivation techniques depend on how they’re used.’

Leaning against the tub, Lian Yueying focused intently on sensing the changes within her body.

‘Although the cultivation technique’s effects are minimal, my meridians are indeed more resilient than before, and spiritual energy circulates faster. My dantian, however… remains as it always was.’

Even the slightest alteration brought Lian Yueying immense excitement, for it signified the strengthening of her foundation—the very reason she had risked joining the sect.

Closing her eyes, with each breath, Lian Yueying felt her pores open and close, absorbing the medicinal power into her body. She remained there, unaware of how much time had passed, until the water had cooled considerably.

Opening her eyes, she saw that the medicinal broth had turned transparent, and she could no longer detect even a trace of its power. Only then did Lian Yueying rise and exit the tub. She grabbed a bath towel, quickly dried herself, and then located her dirty clothes in the room. From the storage bag on them, she retrieved a fresh set of clothes and put them on.

Of course, she didn’t discard the old clothes; she intended to pack them to wash and keep as spares.

Having completed these tasks, Lian Yueying stepped out of the room. She saw Yun Meng standing before a medicine cabinet, arranging herbs, and took a moment to survey the entire room.

From the perspective of the main entrance, the counter was to the left upon entering, flanked by rows of medicine cabinets. Lian Yueying stood amidst these cabinets, where empty spaces every few cabinets served as doorways. The entire room was thus composed of several small rooms’ entrances and medicine cabinets. In the center of the main hall, numerous medicine grinders were at work, with an equal number of puppet wooden figures incessantly grinding herbs.

It was simple, yet practical.

Upon seeing Lian Yueying emerge, Yun Meng returned the herbs to their places, then walked to the counter, picked up a piece of paper, and handed it to Lian Yueying.

“Considering your master’s standing, I’ll count the treatment as a charitable act, and the medicinal herbs will be discounted by thirty percent. The total comes to six hundred and thirty spirit stones.”

Even without Yun Meng’s explanation, Lian Yueying naturally saw the itemized list of herbs on the bill. It was then she realized that the medicinal broth she had soaked in after waking was the cheaper part; the truly expensive item was the first tub, which assisted the cultivation technique in expelling impurities.

After paying the spirit stones and bowing to Yun Meng in farewell, Lian Yueying exited the medical hall and descended the steps, gazing at the setting sun with a feeling of despair.

‘A thousand spirit stones, a huge sum, just acquired. Three hundred-plus gone last night, and six hundred and thirty just now. I almost didn’t have enough to cover it.’

The feeling of gaining something only to lose it is the most painful; it’s better never to have possessed it at all.

It was now approximately *youshi* (TL Note: The period between 5 PM and 7 PM in traditional Chinese timekeeping), and after taking only a few steps, Lian Yueying felt intensely hungry. She patted the provisions in her storage bag and then glanced at the large mess hall across the plaza.

Cultivators at the Qi Condensation stage couldn’t yet abstain from food, and they needed to expel impurities from their bodies as much as possible. Thus, the sect’s meals didn’t feature rich meats and fish, yet they weren’t as bland or purely vegetarian as Lian Yueying had imagined.

‘I restocked my dry rations before setting off on my treasure hunt; they should last me at least a month. I should focus on my main task now.’

Lian Yueying turned her gaze towards the Scripture Pavilion and quickened her pace.

The Scripture Pavilion remained unchanged. She walked directly to the counter, bowed to the elder, and said, “Disciple wishes to seek guidance from the elder.”

“Speak plainly.”

The elder was as unyielding as ever, yet his tone suggested he had anticipated Lian Yueying’s arrival. Lian Yueying, aware of her previous day’s impudence, spoke with even greater deference: “Disciple is dull-witted and failed to grasp the elder’s earlier guidance. Formations are difficult to comprehend, so I humbly request the elder’s generous instruction and permission to borrow ‘Elementary Formations.'”

Lian Yueying had expected to offer more pleasantries and perhaps receive another lecture, but the elder said little. With a gentle wave of his hand, the weighty book reappeared on the counter.

“This unique copy is not for loan. If you wish to read it, you may copy it here.”

“Thank you for your guidance, elder. As dusk has already fallen, disciple will return tomorrow to begin copying.”

Upon hearing this, the elder said nothing, merely retracting the thick book. Throughout, he maintained his reclining position in the rocking chair, his face covered by a book. Accustomed to his manner, Lian Yueying bowed and departed.

Leaving the Scripture Pavilion and crossing the plaza, Lian Yueying stood before the mountain path. She did not employ a movement technique but continued to circulate her Buried Qi Body Transformation Art, relying on her physical body to descend the mountain.

In the half-year since joining the sect, Lian Yueying only left her abode to replenish food and exchange or purchase elixirs. Apart from that, she spent every day secluded in her room cultivating. Despite such diligence, it had still taken her six months to progress from the fifth layer to the threshold of the sixth. Cultivation grew increasingly difficult with each successive stage; at this rate, it would likely take another decade before she could even begin preparations for Foundation Establishment. Fortunately, Lian Yueying had discovered a better method.

‘It seems my daily routine needs to change. Body refinement and copying scriptures during the day, then reading and cultivating at night. As for martial techniques, I’ll consider them once my body refinement has achieved some small success.’

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