While searching for someone in the Nanzhao Kingdom, Xie Lingjun sensed his disciple’s critical condition and immediately used a teleportation talisman to appear beside Jiang Yishu, urgently channeling his spiritual energy.
Jiang Yishu could barely keep her eyes open, in so much pain that she could hardly maintain her posture. The usually gentle water spiritual energy was rampaging wildly inside her body, having already broken several of her meridians.
“Master… it hurts…”
“Don’t resist. I’m channeling spiritual energy into you to help guide the energy clusters. Try to lead the energy through a minor circulation cycle as well.”
“Okay.”
Jiang Yishu had never experienced such agony before. It felt as though her body was about to explode, yet it was being relentlessly suppressed by surges of water.
By the time the spiritual energy within Jiang Yishu had calmed, she was so drained that she nearly got swept away by the current. Fortunately, Xie Lingjun caught her in time and brought her back to her residence.
“Besides water spiritual energy, your body also contains traces of thunder, fire, wood, and earth spiritual energies. Although each is faint, if you continue absorbing only water spiritual energy, it will disrupt the balance and cause spiritual energy chaos.”
“Little Shushu, you can try to trust your master. As long as it doesn’t endanger your life, you can keep your secrets for as long as you wish. But for matters that can help you cultivate and grow, I hope you’ll feel free to speak up.”
Jiang Yishu’s eyelashes fluttered slightly as she bit her lower lip tightly.
Could she still trust others?
Xie Lingjun sighed softly and took out seven cultivation manuals, handing them to her.
“These are beginner-level manuals for metal, wood, fire, earth, ice, and thunder spiritual energies, each containing methods for absorbing the corresponding energy and how to use it.”
“You’ve already learned to condense a water dragon for the water element, so you can try studying this intermediate-level manual. Once you’ve mastered it thoroughly, I’ll give you an advanced water technique manual.”
“I won’t be going out recently. If you encounter difficulties in your cultivation, you can come ask me. Don’t struggle with it alone.”
Seeing that she had regained some strength, Xie Lingjun turned to leave.
Just as he was about to step out the door, Jiang Yishu called out to him.
“Master…”
Xie Lingjun turned back, tilting his head to look at her, waiting for his conflicted and guarded little disciple to speak.
Regardless of whether Jiang Yishu was the child of his martial brother and sister, he felt a pang of sympathy for her.
Jiang Yishu removed the concealment from her bracelet. “Do you have a Spirit Testing Stone? I might have more than just a Water Spiritual Root.”
Xie Lingjun took one out from his Storage Bag and handed it to her.
“Don’t be afraid. No matter how many Spiritual Roots you have, there are cultivation methods for them.”
The moment Jiang Yishu placed her hand on the stone, it emitted a seven-colored light. Jiang Yishu was stunned for a moment—she hadn’t sensed the presence of an ice spiritual root.
“It’s actually a Chaotic Spirit Root.”
Xie Lingjun murmured, his heart instantly filled with joy.
The same Spiritual Root talent as his junior martial sister!
Feeling anxious and conflicted, Xie Lingjun hesitated before finally speaking up. “Little Shushu, could you let me take another look at your bracelet?”
Jiang Yishu didn’t sense any malice or killing intent from him. After hesitating for a while, she extended her wrist.
She vowed that if Xie Lingjun tried to take it for himself, she would self-destruct before letting him succeed.
Xie Lingjun turned the bracelet over, examining it carefully. Last time, he had only glanced at it briefly and hadn’t noticed that the golden segment was identical to his junior martial sister’s.
Xie Lingjun pricked his fingertip and let a drop of blood fall onto the bracelet. As the golden area shifted forward slightly, tears rolled down his cheeks.
“I knew there couldn’t be so many coincidences. You really are my junior martial sister’s child. Did your mother also give you a white jade pendant? Shaped like a teardrop, it emits a faint purple light.”
Jiang Yishu shook her head: “Master, my mother was just an ordinary person. She died before I was taken to the Qingyun Sect. As for the white jade pendant you mentioned, I don’t have one, but my sister Jiang Yijun does wear one.”
“You’ve seen your mother?”
“Half a year after my father passed away from illness, my mother also died. I was the one who arranged her funeral.”
Xie Lingjun took out a scroll and handed it to Jiang Yishu. On the scroll were two young men and a woman. The young man holding a sword with a dogtail grass in his mouth was unmistakably Xie Lingjun.
The other young man exuded an air of nobility, smiling brightly and openly, his arm draped over the shoulder of the girl beside him. The girl had gentle features, warm and radiant, bringing joy to anyone who saw her.
The three of them were playfully roughhousing. Just looking at the scroll, one could feel their youthful energy and vibrant spirit.
“You’ve truly seen your mother?”
Back during that great battle, he hadn’t even been able to retrieve the remains of his junior brother and sister. If they were alive, they would have surely sought him out.
Although this was the first time Jiang Yishu had seen the woman in the painting, tears welled up in the corners of her eyes unbidden, and she felt an inexplicable closeness.
“My mother isn’t her. She was just an ordinary wealthy lady from Caihuang Kingdom. But why do I feel like crying when I look at her? Master, what was her name?”
Xie Lingjun gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, mimicking his junior sister’s gesture.
“Lin Qinghuan. Qinghuan, as in ‘clear skies bring warmth, and every year is filled with joy.’ She also possessed a Chaotic Spirit Root. Look at the scroll again—isn’t her bracelet the same as yours?”
“Master doesn’t know why part of your bracelet has changed color, but I’m certain it’s the same one Qinghuan wore. It should be called the Chaotic Bracelet, and perhaps Qinghuan sealed it.”
“You can try dripping more blood from others onto it. It might help break the seal sooner and allow you to use the Chaotic Bracelet.”
“The blood of cultivators has minimal effect in breaking the seal. Perhaps you could try the blood of demons or fiends. The higher their rank, the better the effect.”
“Master, can you determine whether I’m related to them based on their remains?”
Jiang Yishu didn’t want to believe that the parents who raised her weren’t her biological parents. Although they favored her sister, they never deprived her of food or clothing.
But as she gazed at the young woman in the painting, Jiang Yishu couldn’t ignore the sense of closeness she felt.
“Yes. Cultivators resonate spiritually with those who share their bloodline. Even if the other person is an ordinary mortal, your spiritual energy will feel drawn to them. This is the Bloodline Seeking Art, effective for both the living and the deceased.”
“Little Shushu, you should give yourself more time. The truth might be something you can’t bear.”
A determined resolve flickered in Jiang Yishu’s eyes: “Master, I’d rather know the truth about my origins than live in ignorance. Can you accompany me now?”
“Of course.”
Xie Lingjun noticed Jiang Yishu’s distracted state and used multiple teleportation talismans and swiftness talismans in succession. By the time they arrived in Caihuang Kingdom and followed Jiang Yishu’s guidance to the Jiang family ancestral graves, only a bright moon hung high in the sky.
Xie Lingjun formed hand seals in the air, and two coffins emerged from the earth, revealing two sets of skeletal remains lying quietly within.
“Apologies to both of you.”
“Little Shushu, evenly channel all the spiritual energy you can muster to your fingertip. Focus your mind and see if you can feel a thread pulling you.”
Jiang Yishu shook her head. The ball of spiritual energy at her fingertip remained motionless, showing no inclination to be drawn toward the remains.
“Master, I can’t feel anything.”
Xie Lingjun extracted the bone spirits left by the two corpses and placed them around Jiang Yishu’s spiritual energy cluster, but there was still no change.
Jiang Yishu withdrew her spiritual energy cluster.
Knowing she had realized these two were not her relatives, Xie Lingjun silently infused the bone spirits back, restored the two coffins to their original positions, summoned a flying artifact, and took Jiang Yishu back to the sect.
Jiang Yishu lay on the flying boat, gazing at the bright moon overhead, and softly called out.
“Master, tell me their story.”
“Your mother was picked up by my father and brought back to Qingyun Sect as a child. Her origins were unknown, but her talent was extraordinary—she could cultivate even while lying down, and her cultivation soared rapidly. She was also the only sword cultivator who could simultaneously control seven swords.
Your father, Jiang Cheng, came from the Kingdom of Nanzhao and was the most outstanding artifact refining master of his time. The armor he crafted would always cause a frenzy whenever it appeared.
Back then, Qingyun Sect rose to become the leader of the four great sects, and much of the credit goes to them. In fact, most of the cultivators who came seeking knowledge and guidance were drawn by their reputation.
But after the great war of the three realms a hundred years ago, I never saw them again.
When your mother was pregnant with you, Master Jiang prepared a jade pendant for you. It was made from leftover material of the Purple Cloud Jade Pendant, emitting a faint purple glow—truly beautiful.
It was also a divine-grade defensive jade pendant, capable of withstanding a full-force strike from the Unity Stage. When combined with the Chaotic Bracelet, it had extraordinary effects, but your mother kept it mysterious and never told me. You’ll have to explore its secrets on your own.
Jiang Yishu, your parents loved you very much.”