Just now, that really was a Dao Oath about secrecy, wasn't it?
As she walked out of the thatched cottage, the eyes of Blue Ling'e—those orbs like black pearls—had lost a bit of their luster. Her whole body wobbled, and her steps were unsteady.
"Here," a hand reached over from the side, its palm holding a light green medicinal pill.
Li Changshou said in a warm voice: "This is a Foundation-Settling Inhalation Pill. It has no toxicity whatsoever, and its medicinal properties are extremely gentle. Even a mortal who hasn't begun cultivation can take it to replenish their vitality."
"Thank you, senior brother..."
Blue Ling'e replied timidly. She took the pill and, turning slightly, placed it into her small mouth.
The moment it touched the saliva in her mouth, the pill melted instantly, like a mouthful of sweet spring water. She couldn't help letting out a soft hum and immediately perked up.
'This junior sister really is quite adorable.'
Li Changshou's large hand reached over from the side and gently stroked the top of her head, saying warmly:
"From now on, you're a part of Little Emerald Peak too. Let me show you around first, so you can get familiar with the surroundings.
In a little while, once Master gets past the effect of the medicine—cough—once Master finishes his meditation, he should pass down the entry mind-method to you. If there's anything you don't understand about cultivation, feel free to come ask me at any time."
"Thank you, senior brother," Blue Ling'e replied with her hands behind her back, as faint as a mosquito's hum.
Li Changshou walked with his hands behind his back toward the lakeshore. "First, let's take a look at the spirit fish raised in the lake. These are all fine goods, and they're also an important part of our Little Emerald Peak's assets."
Blue Ling'e hurriedly followed, stepping onto the soft grass and standing on tiptoe to peer into the lake.
The lake water was extraordinarily clear. Inside, the schools of fish swam about freely, playfully and carefree.
"Look," Li Changshou pointed at several spirit fish with their colorful scales. "Pretty, aren't they?"
"Mm!" Blue Ling'e nodded heavily. She was also drawn to these spirit fish and kept letting out soft exclamations of admiration.
Then she heard her senior brother's gentle voice from beside her:
"Once you've cultivated your first breath of qi, we'll hold a spirit fish feast. These colored-scale spirit fish are called Lianwei. Not only are they delicious—whether pan-fried, steamed, roasted, or fried, they're first-rate delicacies—but more rarely, they can enhance the quality of the first breath of qi for a qi-refiner."
Blue Ling'e's forehead instantly creased with two black lines. "They, they have to be eaten?"
"How else would we raise them?"
Li Changshou raised his left hand, swung his sleeve, and scattered a handful of rice grains, calling out: "Dinner time!"
One by one, the spirit fish swam over from all directions, and the lakeshore immediately grew lively. Blue Ling'e watched with her eyes sparkling.
"Here," the large hand was offered again, this time holding a small cloth pouch. "This is fish feed. If you like it, the mission of feeding the fish every day is yours from now on."
"Mm! Thank you, senior brother!"
Blue Ling'e answered happily. She took the pouch, poured out some rice bits, and scattered them over the lake.
From the careful way she did it, one would think the fish feed might crack the spirit fish's beautiful scales.
Beside her, Li Changshou smiled calmly.
Ah, that's a little less work every day, which means more time for cultivation...
From this angle, having a junior sister isn't so bad after all.
Blue Ling'e raised her small hand and scattered handful after handful of fish feed. The spirit fish in the water gathered in schools, darting around and having a grand time.
Li Changshou waited a while, then flicked his fingers. Two small columns of water burst from the lake surface, pushing two Lianwei out of the water. He then drew them over through the air with magic, wrapped them in lake water to form water orbs, and sent them into his sleeve.
Watching from the side, Blue Ling'e was stunned for a moment and asked quietly: "Senior brother, why did you put the fish into your sleeve?"
"A gift," Li Changshou said calmly. "Don't think that just because our Immortal Crossing Sect is a cultivation sect, human relations and social niceties differ from the mortal world. In a little while, I'm taking you to register, and we can't exactly go over empty-handed."
Blue Ling'e blinked. Although she didn't quite understand, she still obediently said: "I'm sorry to trouble you, senior brother."
"No trouble. Once you've had your fill of playing, come over here."
Li Changshou drifted with his hands behind his back toward the nearby medicinal garden. Blue Ling'e glanced at the cluster of fish gathered by the lake, waved gently at them, then hurriedly followed.
At the medicinal garden, Li Changshou briefly introduced the types and effects of the several hundred spirit herbs within.
Blue Ling'e tried hard to remember, unaware that she had just been marked down as the new gardener. Listening to her senior brother's warm voice, she couldn't help thinking of her mother, who had always spoken so gently...
The scenery on Little Emerald Peak was quite nice, but there wasn't too much that needed introducing.
Li Changshou led his new junior sister around the thatched cottage twice, marking out an area for her future new cottage, then cast a spell to summon a white cloud and flew on it with Blue Ling'e toward the ranges of mountains.
Blue Ling'e couldn't help asking: "Senior brother, can you also fly through the air riding an immortal crane?"
"Mm, as long as one can control objects," Li Changshou said. He gently tapped the white cloud beneath his feet, and the cloud suddenly let out a light cry. A huge immortal crane spread its wings and carried the two of them slowly forward.
Blue Ling'e's big eyes immediately gleamed. She clutched her senior brother's Daoist robe and let out admiring exclamations as she looked down.
"They're just some simple illusion spells. Compared to that, when it comes to flying within the sect from now on, there are a few things you need to remember."
"What things, senior brother?"
Li Changshou cleared his throat and organized the teaching approach he had prepared. He decided to start small, to guide his junior sister starting from the little things.
So he said earnestly: "First, regarding altitude when flying within the sect—it can't be too high, and it can't be too low. When you fly too high, you often run into various senior figures of the sect. Encountering them head-on risks giving offense.
Junior sister, you must remember: when these senior figures take notice of you, there's a fifty percent chance they'll be left with a good impression and a fifty percent chance with a bad impression.
A good impression doesn't necessarily bring any benefit, but a bad impression is bound to leave behind some hidden troubles.
So, the best thing is not to be noticed by them at all. If you do run into them, just offer a polite greeting and mind your own business—that's enough."
"Oh, Ling'e will remember!"
"Also, don't fly too low, because flying too low can easily take you over some peaks where there are buildings.
Although the sect appears peaceful on the surface, there's competition going on behind the scenes, and many people care about meaningless rankings. If you fly too low, you'll easily become a target for them.
So, after a hundred years of fumbling around, yours truly, the senior brother, has settled on a suitable altitude for flying within the sect. Starting from our residence, ascend three hundred to five hundred feet. At this altitude, you rarely encounter fellow disciples, let alone senior figures..."
Blue Ling'e listened to her senior brother's long-winded discourse and tried hard to commit it all to memory. She couldn't help tilting her head up to look at his chiseled face.
The senior brother really is handsome, and he thinks things through so thoroughly...
...
Accompanied by her senior brother's ceaseless reminders, Blue Ling'e was brought to the main peak of the Immortal Crossing Sect.
This peak stood at the very center of the sect's mountain range, the most towering and the tallest of all the peaks—like a sword piercing the heavens, driving into the clouds.
That's why it was also called the Sky-Breaking Peak.
At the summit of the Sky-Breaking Peak stood an immortal hall, the place where the sect leader and the various elders and peak masters discussed matters. On ordinary days, it was also a no-fly zone; sect disciples were not permitted to approach without special authorization. At the mountainside of the Sky-Breaking Peak lay a stretch of pavilions and halls built to follow the terrain, where many figures came and went every day.
Through her senior brother's introduction, Ling'e also learned that this was the sect's "office" for handling internal affairs. Disciples from every peak had to come here to claim their monthly allowance and periodically report their progress in cultivation.
Walking along the bluestone path here, Blue Ling'e was surprised to discover that she and her senior brother seemed to be invisible. There were all sorts of fellow disciples in this place, yet not a single gaze landed on them.
Even if someone's gaze happened to drift this way, it would slide right past...
Li Changshou's voice sounded in Ling'e's ears, still tirelessly teaching: "Ling'e, you must remember: not being noticed, lowering your presence, is the best way to avoid tangling yourself in karma.
I've improved a Dao spell to conceal one's aura. Once you've started down the path of cultivation, I'll pass it on to you."
"Mm, thank you, senior brother."
"No need. This is all your senior brother's duty," Li Changshou said with a smiling answer, leading Blue Ling'e along the roadside to the hall hanging the plaque reading "Hall of a Hundred Mundane Affairs."
Inside the hall, Blue Ling'e watched as her senior brother produced the two spirit fish and chatted warmly and casually with a middle-aged Daoist in charge of registration, and couldn't help blinking.
Senior brother...
He's so mature.