Tale of an Ordinary Cultivator

Since Lou Yuan had already decided to stay, Zhao Yunxiao naturally would not try to persuade him otherwise.

After all, it was only to Zhao Yunxiao’s advantage if Lou Yuan wanted to stay and complete a halberd blueprint that suited him!

With that, the trio slowly made their way back to Stoneyard Hill.

Dusk had fallen by the time they returned.

Witnessing the scene before him, Zhao Yunxiao had to admit that the bandits were rather resourceful.

During this time, the bandits had not only fetched Zhao Yunxiao and Nie Hanchang’s horses, but they had even managed to source a small amount of water for the horses to quench their thirst.

Zhao Yunxiao was unclear where this water came from, but it would appear that there was a reason why the bandits had been able to survive on this dry, rocky hill for so long.

“You are back, Young Sirs!” Jin Kequn exclaimed in joy upon seeing the group’s return. “But you too...?”

“What’s with that tone? Do you think I want to come back?” Lou Yuan snapped. “If not for your two young sirs wanting to find out just how amazing I am, I wouldn’t want to come back and see you degenerates, either!”

Huu-!

Jin Kequn let out a deep sigh without saying anything in response.

He knew from experience that arguing with Lou Yuan was completely meaningless since the latter held an unreasonably strong prejudice against them.

It would be best if Lou Yuan did not return. But since the two cultivators had implicitly agreed to it, he could only grit his teeth and tolerate Lou Yuan’s continued presence.

“Did anyone practise the Moonlight Sutra while we are away?” Zhao Yunxiao asked.

“Of course not!” Jin Kequn hurriedly answered. “Since Young Sir has already told us to forget about everything we have learnt so far, I made sure that everyone stopped practising the sutra. Right now, everyone is just patiently awaiting your guidance!”

“That’s good to hear,” Zhao Yunxiao nodded in satisfaction. “Unfortunately, the Moonlight Sutra is rather complicated, so I would still need a little more time to break it down further. We would have to continue staying here for the next few days. But don’t worry, we won’t need you to prepare any additional food or water for us.”

“We will do as you say, Young Sir,” Jin Kequn gave a slight bow before glancing towards Lou Yuan. “What about him? Is he staying too?”

“Just leave him in the same hut as before,” Zhao Yunxiao shrugged. “He’s more than capable of taking care of himself.”

“How can you say that?! Let me stay with you instead!” Lou Yuan protested.

Unfortunately for him, Zhao Yunxiao coldly turned around and walked away with Nie Hanchang in tow.

“You cold-hearted monster! Wait for me!”

Zhao Yunxiao did not bother responding to Lou Yuan’s request.

To be fair, it was not that the hut that Jin Kequn prepared for them could not fit one more person. However, they still could not afford to have Lou Yuan around.

After all, Zhao Yunxiao and Nie Hanchang still had to discuss how to simplify the Moonlight Sutra.

In the process of doing so, it was inevitable that they would take reference from other cultivation techniques, and the ones that they were most familiar with were none other than the cultivation techniques that were exclusive to disciples of the Black Tortoise Sect.

While these were not exactly top secret information that could jeopardise the sect’s existence when leaked, it was still taboo to spread such information to people who did not belong to the sect.

This was a rule that just about every faction abided by. Or at the very least, the orthodox factions did.

If Lou Yuan were to join them in the hut, they would have constantly to skirt around this topic, which would in turn greatly slow down their discussion progress. In the worst scenario, it might even cause their discussion to come to a complete halt!

Despite that, it was not like Zhao Yunxiao completely disregarded Lou Yuan’s well-being, making sure to at least remind Jin Kequn not to let his men bother Lou Yuan.

Of course, it was definitely not simply to prevent the latter from feeling too uncomfortable to work on a proper halberd design...

***

Two days passed in a flash.

During this time, Zhao Yunxiao and Nie Hanchang barely left their hut, spending the majority of their time in deep discussion.

Similarly, Lou Yuan kept to himself in his hut. Not to mention bothering anyone, he did not take a single step out of the hut.

The bandits dared not bother either group, so they had no choice but to wait patiently for further news.

They felt rather empty now that they were suddenly told to stop practising the Moonlight Sutra – something that they had literally devoted all their time to in the past few months.

Fortunately, something else happened that gave them a topic to chat about.

The weather changed.

Bit by bit, the hot and dry weather that had consistently plagued them over the past nine months was finally taking a turn for the better.

For the first time in months, a small cloud actually managed to block out the blazing sun, giving them a brief respite from the blazing heat!

The bandits looked up at the sky, relishing in the cool embrace of nature.

It was a simple phenomenon that they would not have thought twice about previously, yet now it had become something capable of putting them in such a trance.

In the end, people usually did not know how to cherish things when they were in abundance, only knowing how to lament their loss when these things were gone.

And while the bandits’ attention was still directed towards the sky, the door to Zhao Yunxiao’s hut creaked open.

Zhao Yunxiao and Nie Hanchang stepped out of their hut, took a quick glance at the sky, then turned their attention back to the bandits.

“Young Sirs! You are finally out!” Jin Kequn was the first to notice them, and hurried over immediately.

“Gather everyone and follow me,” Zhao Yunxiao said.

Without waiting for Jin Kequn’s response, he and Nie Hanchang made their way to the far end of the hideout, which was an area surrounded by rocky cliff walls.

“Here?” Nie Hanchang asked as they stood in front of a wide cliff wall.

“Here,” Zhao Yunxiao nodded.

With a flick of his wrist, a dagger appeared in his hands.

Slice-! Slice-! Slice-!

Zhao Yunxiao started carving away at the cliff wall, engraving word after word on the surface.

Words became phrases, and phrases formed sentences.

Soon, an entire corner of the cliff wall had been filled with word engravings.

Without someone to guide them, it was nigh impossible for the bandits to properly cultivate the original version of the Moonlight Sutra.

Zhao Yunxiao could try to clear their doubts while he was here, but it was not like he could stay here forever.

That was the reason why Zhao Yunxiao and Nie Hanchang had spent the past few days discussing how to simplify it, hoping to help the bandits understand it enough to practise on their own.

And this was the fruit of their labour.

Moonlight Sutra – cheat sheet.

What made it different was that not only did this include the original version of the Moonlight Sutra up to the first two chapters, but each individual line also came with an accompanying explanation.

With that, Zhao Yunxiao aimed to reduce the chances of the bandits experiencing cultivation deviation from misunderstanding what was stated in the Moonlight Sutra.

In fact, there was much more to the Moonlight Sutra than just the first two chapters, but the rest of it was beyond even Zhao Yunxiao and Nie Hanchang, both of whom were only at the Essence Condensation realm.

At their current level, all they could do was convert the first two chapters, though this would already suffice in leading a practitioner into and throughout the Foundation Building realm.

For the bandits who had no cultivation experience whatsoever, this should more than suffice for the time being.

By the time Zhao Yunxiao was done, Jin Kequn and the other bandits had all gathered around.

“As I said before, try to forget everything that you have learnt in the past, and follow this instead,” Zhao Yunxiao turned to them and said. “When I manage to decipher and simplify the rest of the sutra, I will return to add the following chapters.”

It was at this moment that the bandits understood why Zhao Yunxiao had only used a small corner of the cliff wall.

So, it was to make space for more in the future!

“Pardon me for asking this, Young Sir. But isn’t it a little too risky to engrave this openly onto the cliff wall?” Jin Kequn asked carefully. “This way, won’t anyone who sees this immediately realise that we are practising the Moonlight Sutra? To save ourselves from unnecessary trouble, isn’t it safer for it to be in the form of a manual so that we can at least hide it?”

“You had it in the form of a manual before, but did that stop us from finding out?” Zhao Yunxiao rolled his eyes. “On the other hand, if it is in a manual and someone does rob you of it, that would mean losing your only access to the technique. Now that it is engraved in the cliff wall, even if it is discovered, there is still a chance that you can share access to it with the other party. On top of that, most people would not expect something so precious to be out in the open as well. This way, others would be even more doubtful of its authenticity.”

There was also another reason that Zhao Yunxiao did not mention.

His calligraphy skills were not exactly the most exquisite. On top of that, having to carve the words on the cliff wall only made it more difficult than simply writing.

As a result, the words were not the prettiest, and that was already putting it nicely. Perhaps a harsher assessment would simply be that it looked sloppy.

So, even if it were to be discovered, most cultivators would be unlikely to pay it any mind, much less consider the possibility of it being the lost signature technique of the ancient Moonlight Heavenly Lord!

Of course, Zhao Yunxiao was not intending to tell the bandits that.

“I understand now. This lowly one pays my gratitude to Young Sir for the help!” Jin Kequn suddenly kowtowed towards Zhao Yunxiao.

Others might not have caught the nuance in Zhao Yunxiao’s words earlier, but Jin Kequn definitely did.

When Zhao Yunxiao spoke about returning to add the following chapters, it was a clear indication that he was intending to leave.

For that reason, Jin Kequn wanted to take this chance to show his gratitude before it was too late.

He knew that Zhao Yunxiao did not have to do all this for them.

With such a difference in strength, there was absolutely nothing stopping Zhao Yunxiao from just taking the Moonlight Sutra and leaving them stranded.

Zhao Yunxiao might be younger than Jin Kequn, but for him to go out of his way to stay a few days just to do this for them, Jin Kequn could not help but feel heartfelt admiration and gratitude towards Zhao Yunxiao!

“Hold on! Don’t do this just yet,” Zhao Yunxiao quickly stopped Jin Kequn before he could complete the kowtow. “Now, I will try to explain this to the best of my ability. I will only do this once, so instead of doing all these unnecessary things, why don’t you listen carefully instead?”

“Y-Yes, Young Sir!”

Jin Kequn did not need to be told twice, and neither did the rest of the bandits.

This was exactly what they had been hoping for, so all of them immediately gave him their undivided attention.

Facing the large group of people who were watching him intently, Zhao Yunxiao suddenly could not help but swallow a mouthful of saliva in nervousness.

This was not his first time being at the centre of attention. After all, most mortals would treat cultivators with a similar level of reverence, so it was not uncommon for him to be treated with immense respect while out on missions.

However, this would be the first time that he had to teach on the concept of cultivation from a position of authority!

This was completely unlike a simple exchange of ideas and interpretations among fellow disciples.

Every word that he spoke from now, the bandits would probably take as truth.

If he were to make any mistakes in his explanation, there would be a direct impact on the lives of these bandits.

Should that happen, hindering their cultivation progress would be considered a minor consequence.

In the worst-case scenario, that could even lead to the eventual deaths of the entire group by cultivation deviation!

Up in the skies, the small cloud began to float away, revealing the afternoon sun that had been hidden behind. The golden rays shone down upon them once more, as though meaning to free everyone from the cloud’s dark shadow.

Down on the ground, Zhao Yunxiao similarly prepared to reveal the truths behind the ancient Moonlight Sutra. His intention – to free the bandits from the doubts that were currently clouding their minds, as well as preventing further doubts from forming in the future.

He could only hope that his attempts at doing so would not end up clouding their mind even further.

Huu-!

Zhao Yunxiao took a deep breath to compose himself.

And with that, he began to give a cultivation lecture for the very first time in his life.