People who practice Taoism are indifferent by nature and rarely have a Taoist companion, so the master is like a parent, but also transcends the existence of an elder.
If it weren't for Qingxuzi, Chu Ci would have died on that chaotic night of war and smoke. There would have been no Lingyun Sword Master, and there would have been no Zong Ci in this life.
"I want to... take the Immortal as my teacher."
He spoke nervously, with obvious hope in his words.
The immortal lowered his eyes, his deep blue eyes full of indifference.
"I never accept disciples."
So, Zong Ci, who was only seven years old, held his breath and climbed nearly ten thousand jade steps from the foot of Taiyan Sect Mountain. Finally, he gritted his teeth and climbed to the top of the ladder with his hands and legs. He fell in front of the Lingguang Hall, and the disciples who were watching him were endless, shocking the whole sect.
His life was given by Qingxuzi. Even though Zong Ci knew at that time that Qingxuzi had no intention of accepting a disciple, he still stubbornly wanted to use this tiny and fragile body to break into the immortal's desolate eyes that seemed to embrace everything.
Finally, I got what I wanted.
Perhaps it was this persistence that touched Qingxuzi.
The man in green clothes and black hair glanced indifferently at the little prince kneeling on the ground, untied the jade crown, and let his three thousand black hair fly in the air.
"From now on, you will be my eldest disciple, and I will give you the name Lingyun."
The man's hands were cold and slender. When he gently stroked Zong Ci's head, the coldness seemed to spread through his hair to his heart.
"There aren't many rules in my sect. But there is one thing you need to always keep in mind—"
"If you go astray, I will personally take up my sword and clear you out."
The main peak of Taiyan Sect was shrouded in clouds and mist, and the sound of immortal bells and drums could be heard.
Zong Ci raised his head and could only see the ladder to heaven towering like a white silk ribbon. Thousands of people stood in the clouds watching. The small boy himself was reflected in those eyes that embraced everything.
Their long hair tangled in the wind, like a legacy.
The immortal touched my head, tied my hair and granted me immortality.
At that time, I had just entered the sect and did not understand what the wrong path meant.
Qingxuzi practiced the ruthless sword art, so naturally, as the eldest disciple, Zongci had to inherit his mantle.
The Way of Mercilessness is recognized as one of the top sword arts, and its difficulty lies in the harsh requirements for entry.
Just when Zong Ci became Qingxuzi's disciple and had just laid his foundation to officially embark on the path of cultivating immortals, Qingxuzi took him to a place.
The State of Qi in the mortal world.
After the demise of the State of Chu, the situation of the State of Qi was not much better.
The traitor who was sent into Chu by Qi State lived a prosperous life in Qi State and was promoted to prime minister.
Qingxuzi brought him to the Qi Palace, threw a sword at him, and said coldly: "Lingyun. Pick it up and go for revenge."
The twelve-year-old Zong Ci was still a young boy who had just grown up. When he picked up the sword, there was some hesitation on his face.
In the past five years, he has been practicing in the cave on the main peak and seldom went down the mountain. He often killed monsters, but killing people... ... Even if these people were the ones who once destroyed the State of Chu, Zong Ci still felt that the sword in his hand was extremely heavy.
Once they set foot on the path of cultivation, the gap between their martial arts and those of ordinary people is huge. Even those in the Qi Refining Stage can easily kill a mortal warrior with many merits. It is easy to kill a palace of people, but it is rare for cultivators to massacre without reason, fearing that they will be contaminated by karma and hinder their cultivation.
"Master." Zong Ci's expression still showed some struggle, "If I do this, will it be intolerable to heaven and will I owe karma for killing?"
Qingxuzi frowned fiercely: "Womanly kindness."
"You two have a cause and effect. Qi State massacred your entire palace, and now you are taking up your sword to seek revenge. It is reasonable and logical, and even the law of heaven cannot make too much of a fuss. Qi State owes you the cause of the murder, and you only need to repay him for the consequences of the murder."
"But—" Zong Ci wanted to say more, but was interrupted mercilessly.
"Foolish child, they once destroyed your country, washed the entire palace into a river of blood, and dragged out the women and children who had no power to fight back from the palace and beheaded them. You are the prince! National hatred, family feuds, and the hatred of destroying your country, can you easily forget it?!"
“The rest of the cultivators have unstable paths and don’t know about the ruthless path. If they don’t cut off their worldly ties, they will never be able to enter it in their lifetime.”
He said sarcastically, and suddenly swung out a palm, with his index finger pointing at the center of his eldest disciple's eyebrows.
In just a moment, Zong Ci felt that Qingxuzi's voice suddenly became very far away, as far as if it was thousands of mountains away.
The voice was cold and sighed: "Forget it, since I have long regarded you as my successor, I will give you a push today."
later
Zong Ci didn’t remember what happened afterwards.
The young man in white had lifeless eyes and held a sword in both hands. When he woke up, he found out—
He had turned Qi into a state similar to the night when Chu was destroyed.
The severed head lay quietly at the boy's feet, staining the soles of his shoes blood red, like the fire burning in the distance.
"There are still people alive. Take up your sword."
In the devastated and bloody sea of purgatory, Qingxuzi's voice was like the death-seeking ghost behind the gate of Hades, and he was not moved at all by the tragic scene in front of him.
Zong Ci hastily dropped his sword, knelt on the ground, and let the blood stain his white robe and imprint itself into his heart.
"Master, my disciple has avenged his great hatred. That is enough."
"My ties with the secular world have been severed. I will follow my master in cultivation and will never set foot in the secular world."
In the end, he used this mortal blood to repay hatred with hatred and built a road to heaven.
Later, Zong Ci learned some clues from the vague revelations of others.
It turned out that a long time ago, when Qingxuzi was still the eldest disciple of Taiyan Sect, he became a Taoist partner with a same-sex disciple in the sect.
Unfortunately, for some reason, the Taoist companion went wrong in his cultivation and fell into the devil's abyss.
"Then what?"
"And then... Then your master picked up the sword and killed it, and survived the thunder tribulation on the spot, leaping two small realms from the middle stage of the Nascent Soul to the Spirit Severing Realm, and became famous in the world of cultivation."
When the man talked about this past event, his expression was obviously a little scared. "Everyone says that we who practice Taoism are ruthless, but in fact, it is not easy to be truly ruthless. Look at those who practiced the ruthless way throughout history. How many of them were able to cut off all emotions and love and kill their wives to prove their Taoism?"
“Besides, even if the possession of the devil is irreversible, at least the two have been Taoist companions for hundreds of years. After being together for such a long time, even cats and dogs would have developed feelings for each other. But Qingxuzi did not hesitate at all. He raised his sword and chopped off the head of the Taoist companion who was kneeling on the ground and begging for mercy, proving that the Tao is ruthless.”
"Why do you think your master was able to become the leader of the righteous path without any opposition? Because he hates evil and does not tolerate any grain of sand in his eyes. He is also ruthless and absolutely fair."
Zong Ci was shocked, but he remained silent without much surprise.
Master has always been this kind of person, cold, heartless and extremely indifferent.
Sometimes even Zong Ci couldn't help but doubt whether he had any feelings at all.