Chapter 103 – The Three Innate Treasures

Zhan Changfeng noticed that many things in this house were for one person, with no trace of a second individual, and only the two of them were at the dining table, so she understood the situation.

Yu Sheng seemed to have no reservations either, casually saying, “I live alone here, so don’t feel constrained.”

“Is this the back mountain of the community school?” Zhan Changfeng had just looked outside the window and realized she was still on Green White Mountain.

“Yes, there are fifty or sixty courtyards here, mostly residences for the teachers and their families.”

They did not speak while eating or sleeping, so neither said another word.

Zhan Changfeng recalled the scene she saw when she peered into the Wolf King, seemingly discovering a fundamental difference at the root.

The soul essence of all living things actually has similarities, commonly referred to as essence, qi, and spirit.

Essence is the generative essence, the primordial energy of heaven and earth, transformed from the power of food entering the body.

Qi is the breath qi, entering through the mouth and nose, sustained by essence to circulate endlessly.

Spirit is the thinking spirit, also the unconscious perceptual spirit.

These three can also be called the three acquired treasures. Correspondingly, there are naturally the three innate treasures.

When she entered the innate realm, she transformed the thinking spirit into the innate true one spirit, also known as the primordial spirit.

The primordial spirit is also called the nature spirit, referring to the spiritual mind; Buddhists call it “seeing nature and illuminating the mind,” while Daoists call it “cultivating truth and nurturing nature.” The “nature” in the so-called dual cultivation of nature and life is precisely this.

And the generative essence corresponds to the innate primordial essence, also referring to life.

Spell cultivators focus on the cultivation of “nature,” to break through the innate realm and open the purple mansion, first transforming the thinking spirit into the primordial spirit. Martial cultivators focus on the cultivation of “life,” splitting the qi sea to refine the generative essence into primordial essence.

Both of these involve transforming from the acquired to the innate, only qi is different.

Before embodiment, the innate one qi first enters the womb; after the melon ripens and falls, the innate one qi is severed, and the acquired qi enters through the mouth and nose, becoming primordial dew.

Actually, based on the divergence between martial and spell cultivators, she originally thought both sides should choose one to cultivate. But she saw from the Wolf King that it possessed both primordial spirit and primordial essence simultaneously, with primordial essence generating primordial dew, and primordial dew nurturing the primordial spirit, forming a trinity of mutual support and complementarity.

Does foundation establishment require transforming all three acquired treasures into the three innate treasures?

This content was something she couldn’t find in any of the various texts she had perused; whether it was true or not, she would have to verify it through cultivation.

But even if this time was correct, what should she do next time she encountered unknown critical points in cultivation?

Ultimately, she lacked a master’s guidance.

Zhan Changfeng decided to take it step by step, first becoming a lay disciple, after all, if she were just a common believer that anyone could become, she wouldn’t be able to access any cultivation secrets.

“Do you know when the community school organizes the conversion ceremony?”

Yu Sheng was a bit surprised, “You haven’t paid respects to a guiding teacher yet?”

She pondered, “Generally, there are no conditions to become a lay disciple. First, report your name to teacher Yangming, and he will arrange for you to receive the conversion.”

“Then I’ll go sign up later.”

Before that, she diligently cleaned the quilt cover—first, she genuinely felt it was inappropriate to sleep on someone’s bed without tidying up, and second, she was accustomed to erasing traces of her presence.

Outside the courtyard, a group of children ran past, even making faces at her, but they scattered upon seeing Yu Sheng.

Zhan Changfeng exclaimed in surprise, “You’re so pretty, yet they’re afraid of you?”

Yu Sheng smiled faintly, smoothing her dress as she sat on a small stool beside her, “Once, I saw them throwing small stones at my window. I asked them what they were doing, and they said righteously, ‘Our grandfathers and fathers are all your teachers, so we can throw if we want. If you dare tell them, they won’t teach you anymore.'”

“What domineering little brats.”

“Yes, so I told them, small stones are useless; they just demolished a house to the east, so there are plenty of large gravel pieces.”

“When they threw large gravel at the window, I happened to have prepared a table of dishes to feast the teachers, thanking them for their guidance.” Yu Sheng blinked, “Unfortunately, the table of dishes was ruined by stones thrown from outside the window.”

Zhan Changfeng could completely imagine the teachers’ darkened faces and the beatings the little brats received. What a clever girl—she both taught the unruly children a lesson and gained the teachers’ guilt, achieving victory without bloodshed.

“Compared to the children, their parents deserve the lesson more.” Zhan Changfeng disliked ill-mannered children, even if they were only five or six years old.

Yu Sheng smiled ambiguously, “Sometimes children trust other children more.”

“Sister Zhou, Sister Zhou.” The group of children ran into an open space behind the woods, which was arranged like a training ground, with three people sparring against each other.

Zhou Yiru walked over and picked up a little boy. “What’s wrong, Little Treasure? Did someone bully you? Tell me, I’ll beat them up for you.”

The other three also stopped and gathered around. A gentle, graceful girl chided, “You’re the king of the back mountain now. Who would dare bully you, right, Little Treasure?”

Qin Little Treasure nodded, looking smug. He was now the boss among his little friends, with big brothers and sisters like Zhou Yiru watching his back. Who could bully him?

“Sister Zhou, Sister Wang, I wasn’t bullied,” Qin Little Treasure said, as if seeking praise. “I saw someone came to Yu Sheng’s house. It was a pretty sister.”

After saying this, Qin Little Treasure scrunched up his little eyebrows in confusion and added, “But she looked really fierce.”

Zhou Yiru and the other two looked at each other in surprise. Besides those stubborn fools Han Zhigao and Li Baimao, was there actually someone else who would befriend her?

Wang Susu asked softly, “Little Treasure, tell us, what were they doing?”

Several children rushed to answer at once: “Washing clothes!” “No, washing quilts!” “I think it was washing curtains!”

It didn’t seem quite right no matter what they were washing. Someone came to Yu Sheng’s house, and then they washed clothes or quilts together?!

Was this a friend she made, or a servant she hired?

A young man grinned mischievously. “Want me to go release a few more snakes? Guaranteed to scare anyone away.”

“Guangzhi!” Wang Susu called out his name, then took out a handful of candy for the children. “You all go play now, be careful.”

The children ran off happily.

Only then did Wang Susu say, “But we haven’t seen her get scared away.”

“Where could she run to? Aren’t we all the same? No family, no connections. Besides the Community School, where else is there to go?” He Guangzhi spread his arms and spun in a circle, then with a push of his hands, hoisted himself onto a rocky outcrop, giving them a roguish grin.

Wang Susu’s smile froze at the corners of her mouth, her eyes turning a bit gloomy. Seeing this, Zhou Yiru said loudly, “We still have each other! As long as we’re together, what difficulty can’t we overcome?”

“Yiru is right,” Wang Susu said, smiling again. “We were all displaced in the past too. But luckily, I met you all on Green White Mountain. For ten years, it’s no exaggeration to say we’ve relied on each other for survival. Doesn’t that make us siblings?”

“Of course it does,” Zhou Yiru nodded firmly.

The two of them stared at He Guangzhi. He Guangzhi rubbed his nose, tilted his head, and grunted an “Mm-hmm.”

Zhou Yiru said happily, “That’s more like it. Let’s go find Jiang Tian and Shao Bai tonight. It’s been a long time since we all got together.”

At this point, Wang Susu sighed. “If only Yiman were here too. If it weren’t for Yu Sheng…”

Mentioning Zhao Yiman, both He Guangzhi and Zhou Yiru frowned. Mentioning Yu Sheng, they couldn’t help but feel dislike.

If it weren’t for Yu Sheng, how could Zhao Yiman have parted ways with them?

Zhou Yiru said fiercely, “She made us lose a friend. She shouldn’t get to have friends either.”

“But… does having friends or not really affect her much?” Wang Susu hesitated. “What she has now is far more than us. She’s appreciated by the teachers, and she even snatched Brother Huai’s teacher. She’ll probably go to Eternal Capital to take the unified exam after next spring. We’re just ordinary students at the Community School. Forget Eternal Capital, we don’t even know if we can leave this Falling Blossom City.”

Throwing stones, hiding snakes, isolating her… those are just childish games. My friends, it’s time you grew up too.

“Then what should we do?” Zhou Yiru scratched her head. “Is there anything that can make her stay here forever?”

The three fell silent for a moment. Later, Wang Susu said, “I’ve heard several ladies discussing her. They seem quite satisfied with her.”

Wang Susu originally came from a prominent family and was betrothed to the Yu family. Her family, like the Yu family, declined in the power struggles and eventually settled in Falling Blossom City after many twists and turns.

The difference was, the Yu family still had elders, but she didn’t. However, the Yu family elders were relatively honorable; her engagement to Yu Zhihuai was still valid. Madam Yu also treated her like a daughter-in-law, teaching her various matters and often taking her to gatherings among the ladies.

The gatherings of ladies from the big mansions included composing poetry, admiring flowers, and enjoying the moon. But in the end, they often turned to gossip. Those with children talked of nothing else, along with the criteria and considerations for choosing daughters-in-law and sons-in-law. Yu Sheng was often mentioned.

Wang Susu said, “For a girl, when she’s alone, she belongs to herself. But once she marries into a family, she’s no longer her own master.”

Zhou Yiru thought about it and felt it was absolutely right. She still remembered when she was very, very young, her mother was utterly obedient to her father, enduring all hardships without complaint. She remembered her mother saying, “For a woman, taking good care of the home, pleasing the in-laws, being close to the husband, and having well-behaved children is the greatest honor.”

Zhou Yiru kept this saying firmly in mind. Every time she trained in martial arts desperately, it was to make herself stronger and stronger, to strive for the top, so she could be worthy of the person she admired. If she could be with the person she liked, then nothing else mattered. Fantasizing about a warm, cozy little home filled her with satisfaction.

“So clever,” Zhou Yiru shifted her thoughts. “Then who does Yu Sheng like? Li Baimao? Doesn’t seem like it, he’s a bit foolish. Han Zhigao? Not right either. These two feel more like brothers. Then the talented scholar from Wangmei Residence?”

“Who she likes isn’t important. What’s important is the parents’ orders and the matchmaker’s words, and a man who can keep her in check,” Wang Susu said.

He Guangzhi thought these two women were terrifying. When scheming against someone, they could even start with their marriage. But this was indeed extremely effective.

Wang Susu smiled gently and said, “However, we should go see Brother Shao Bai first.”

(End of Chapter)