World's No. 1 Swordsman-Chapter 585: Most Lovesick Man

Beside the Immortal-Nourishing Pool in the Small Immortal Realm, several Daoist masters pulled over a stone table and sat together, drinking and chatting.

There were a total of sixty-two people in the pool. Several layers of arrays had been arranged around it, blocking sound and aura from the outside world so that they could cultivate in peace.

With a trace of worry in his eyes, Qing Yanzi slowly set down his wine cup. "I wonder if, at this very moment, Little Xuan and Little Sheng have already met up safely."

His two most beloved disciples had both already gone beyond the Realm of Exiled Immortals. Meanwhile, he was still on the Moon, busy yet accomplishing nothing.

When a child travels a thousand li, the mother worries. When a disciple isn't around, the master feels sorrow.

Qing Yanzi sighed deeply. Though he was once a pillar of the Daoist sects, he now looked particularly desolate.

At the side, Qing Long, Yuan Pu Zhenren, and the Celestial Master simply stroked their beards and smiled lightly, offering no commentary.

Jingyun poured Qing Yanzi a full cup of celestial wine and softly said, "Fei Yu and Bu Yu each have their own destiny. As a master, you cannot keep your disciples tied to your side for their entire lives. There is truly no need to worry so much."

"It's not Little Xuan I'm worried about," Qing Yanzi replied. "Little Sheng has always been stubborn and especially prone to acting on impulse. Now that he's been outside for so many years, I don't know if he has become wiser and steadier. All I can do is sigh and talk idly here. The difference in the flow of time is deeply distressing."

Qing Long calmly replied, "Didn't the arhat say that Fei Yu already carries the heavenly fate of the Heavenly Court? I have always felt that your disciple handles matters calmly and always plans before acting. Considering he is now several hundred years older than us, perhaps he is even more mature than these old bones of ours."

Imagining his own disciple with white hair and a full beard rendered Qing Yanzi speechless.

As though reading Qing Yanzi's mind, Jingyun smiled and gently nudged his arm. "Senior Brother, stop thinking nonsense. As the saying goes, 'appearance is born from the heart, and form arises from the mind.' Fei Yu has already reached the True Immortal Realm and possesses a long lifespan. His appearance and mentality certainly won't change much."

Qing Yanzi visibly relaxed. "That's a good point."

He then continued to drink and sigh.

Ignoring him, the Daoist elders began discussing recent matters regarding Earth's cultivation world.

The Hua Republic had introduced a series of policies to further separate cultivators from ordinary citizens who practiced the Universal Cultivation Method. After all, the destructive power of cultivators was no longer what it once was. Although the various Daoist sect traditions imposed restraints and most cultivators abided by the law, accidents still couldn't be entirely ruled out.

The separation between immortals and mortals had already reached its third stage. The mountain gates of the various sects remained closed year-round, and those seeking immortality were mostly turned away.

The Universal Cultivation Method was a major innovation, and spirit pills and wondrous medicines had improved the medical system. Still, social productivity could not be neglected. Following that foundation, the Hua Republic continued to encourage people to create wealth and generate value for society.

Cultivators had shifted from their high-profile behavior of previous years to extremely subdued conduct. Following the mediation of experts from the Heavenly Rankings like Qing Yanzi, cultivators of all levels fully cooperated with official directives to avoid conflict.

Earth's cultivation world was like an incubator. Once a cultivator had gone beyond the Nascent Soul Realm, they would fly out of the Realm of Exiled Immortals and cultivate in the broader world beyond heaven. Should Earth's cultivation world stagnate and fail to send anyone out, primal qi would keep decreasing, which would inevitably lead to a catastrophe.

That was precisely the reason Wang Sheng's struggles outside over these years were significant for the Hua Republic. It was also why the Daoist elders praised him endlessly whenever the name "Fei Yu" was mentioned.

Qing Yanzi, on the other hand, viewed matters related to Wang Sheng purely from the perspective of a master worrying about his disciple. He feared that Wang Sheng hadn't been eating properly or dressing warmly, or that some ill-intentioned female cultivator had taken advantage of him, causing him to lose his Pure Yang Physique.

Ahem. That last concern was rather unlikely. Very unlikely.

"Will we also go out there in the future?" Qing Long asked.

The Daoist elders all fell silent.

Qing Yanzi smiled. "It'll be a while before I can leave. I still have to act as the lubricant between the cultivation world and the mortal world." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"I don't plan to leave either," Yuan Pu Zhenren said. "A few people always have to stay behind to manage affairs. Let's leave the exploration of the wider world outside to our disciples and grand disciples."

"Won't it be awkward?" the Celestial Master chuckled. "In the blink of an eye, our disciples and grand disciples will surpass us in cultivation."

Yuan Pu Zhenren slapped the table. "Cultivation is cultivation; seniority is seniority! Would they dare disrespect their elders?"

The Daoist elders exchanged smiles. They all intended to remain on Earth.

Soon, Qing Yanzi drifted off again. He had been counting the days. Around this time, his eldest disciple should be about to leave the Realm of Exiled Immortals and meet his second disciple. He could not help but feel deeply concerned.

Qing Yanzi laughed. "Junior Sister, tell me, will Little Xuan and Little Sheng be bringing back a child the next time they return?"

"Well..." Jingyun hummed softly, unsure how to respond.

Qing Yanzi seriously started to imagine it. "If they really do give me a little grand disciple, what name should we give the child? Yun Yu? No, that won't do. We cannot keep using the Yu generation."

Jingyun couldn't help but raise a hand to her forehead. Her gaze was gentle, yet filled with helplessness.

***

Dazed and half-aware, Wang Sheng seemed to drift into a dream about him and his senior sister on the rooftop of a mountain villa. They were locked in an intimate moment that could not be described.

The dream should've been filled with the warm aura of spring. However, just as their garments loosened, Spiritless suddenly flew in from the side and cut in between them, instantly turning the dream into a cold and chilling nightmare.

A sorrowful Xi Lian then appeared. Donning a red ceremonial dress, she stood at the edge of a cliff. With quiet desolation, she said, "We'll be together now, Daoist Master Qinglin."

She then leaped down.

Wang Sheng instinctively reached forward to grab her, causing him to jolt out of meditation.

A dream? Of course, it was a dream. Big Sister is already an immortal. How can jumping off a cliff harm her? Still, I can't really hide Daoist Master Qinglin's death from Big Sister for the rest of my life, can I? That would be too unfair to her.

Wang Sheng mentally struggled for a while, finally getting a brief moment where he did not think about his senior sister.

It had been another ten years since he had forced himself into deep meditation. There was no telling when she would arrive. Perhaps three to five years at the earliest, or another decade, if things moved slowly.

He decided to discuss his predicament involving Xi Lian with his senior sister. After all, she could look at it from a completely different angle.

Rising to his feet, Wang Sheng paced back and forth inside the Buddha statue. He originally wanted to carve a conspicuous greeting with his sword, something like "Welcome, Mu Wanxuan! Congratulations on getting out of the ivory tower!" However, he felt that Earth's cultivators likely saw this place as a public space, and doing such a thing would be somewhat uncivilized.

I should just wait.

When he saw his senior sister, he had to show enough enthusiasm and longing. Whether she agreed or not, he would go up and hug her first! He nodded solemnly, then began seriously thinking about how to proceed from there.

He would definitely have an intimate interaction with his senior sister. After all, their relationship had already been confirmed. Moreover, his senior sister cultivated in the Great Dao of Yin and Yang, while he was a lone yang. Receiving even a thread of gentle yin comfort would surely feel like the long-awaited rain after a drought, or dry wood meeting raging flames.

Ahem. He still had to restrain himself since he had no idea how much his senior sister understood about matters between men and women now. If she had already gained a normal level of understanding, he would certainly make advances little by little.

In truth, he also knew that he did not possess a strong desire to bed his senior sister. He much preferred to simply protect her and stay by her side.

Finding someone to stay with and understand each other was already precious to Wang Sheng, who had been in several relationships in his previous life. Of course, it would be even better if things were also very harmonious when it came to the balance of yin and yang.

Rubbing his hands together, Wang Sheng paced in place. He truly wanted to fly in and wait for his senior sister now. However, he soon calmed himself down.

He would treat this period as a trial for his Dao Heart.

Wang Sheng found another conspicuous spot and sat down cross-legged. He recited the mind-calming mantra, wanting to restore his restless state of mind to tranquility.

If one recitation did not work, then two, three...

Even in the blood mine, he had never felt time pass this slowly.

Wang Sheng steeled himself and treated the mind-calming mantra like counting sheep before sleep. After mentally reciting it sixteen times, he yawned, tilted his head, and fell fast asleep while still sitting.

He was a sword cultivator at the late stage of the True Immortal Realm. Though he closed his eyes and snored, he couldn't possibly just be sleeping! He was clearly cultivating in a dream.

Wang Sheng had no idea how much time had passed. It could have only been half a day, though three or four years could have gone by as well. Regardless, he remained seated, quietly regulating his breathing. He was still comprehending the Dao, but part of his consciousness had fallen asleep.

While he was in such a hazy state, he felt a cool, small hand gently brush across his face. He opened his eyes with some alertness, but all he saw was soft light.

The person he longed for day and night was kneeling in front of him, her dark hair flowing like a waterfall and her beautiful eyes moving with quiet grace. She looked so pure and cold that it seemed untouched by mortal dust.

She gently pressed her lips together as her eyes shimmered with starlight.

Wang Sheng murmured, "Ah, just another dream."

Yet his gaze never left the woman in front of him. Even though it was only in a dream, he was still glad to see her.

He bent forward slightly at the waist and stared blankly at the woman. Weariness showed in his eyes, along with exhaustion, a trace of bitterness, and faint helplessness.

In truth, after so many years outside, he found this kind of longing to be the hardest to endure.

Wang Sheng wanted to return and see his senior sister, but a single round trip required more than a hundred years. In that time span, he could grow stronger and better protect his senior sister. He didn't know when he had fallen into this cycle of conflict.

He sighed and raised his hand, wanting to touch the face before him, yet fearing that his palm would pass through an illusion and cause the dream to end too quickly.

To his surprise, though, the woman before him raised her hand and pressed his outstretched palm against her unadorned cheek. The delicate, smooth, and perfectly balanced sensation made his heart tremble slightly.

He had already forgotten this feeling in the blood mine.

"S-Senior sister? Is that you?"

"Mm."

Mu Wanxuan gently bit her lip, yet still lost control of herself entirely. Leaning forward, she tightly embraced Wang Sheng, who looked utterly exhausted.

She wanted to ask how he had lived all these years—to know what grievances he had endured and how much hardship he had suffered.

However, the thousands of words in her mind were reduced to only a single utterance.

"Junior Brother."

At the side, four people stood with their hands clasped behind their backs, all wearing nearly identical smiles that were full of indulgent affection. Spiritless also hovered quietly nearby, making sure not to disturb the moment.