Liaozhai: Immortality Begins with Becoming Yan Chixia's Apprentice

Chapter 200 Dustless Notes

Yan Chixia was meditating in the main hall when he heard footsteps and opened his eyes.

His gaze first fell on Zhou Ning, then shifted to Jing Chen, his brows furrowing slightly.

He didn't speak, but just looked at her quietly, his eyes scrutinizing her.

Jingchen looked at him too, and their gazes met in the air, as if invisible sparks were colliding.

"Bodhisattva Jingchen, I have long admired your name."

Yan Chixia finally spoke, his voice flat, revealing neither joy nor anger.

Jingchen smiled bitterly: "I am no longer worthy of the title 'Bodhisattva.' Please just call me Jingchen, Immortal Master."

Yan Chixia nodded, gesturing for her to sit down.

Jingchen sat cross-legged on the futon, while Zhou Ning and Ashu sat down beside him.

"Zhou Ning has already told me about your situation," Yan Chixia said.

"You intend to retreat to Lanruo Temple to refine the Phoenix Feather?"

Jingchen nodded: "Yes. I need a safe and quiet place. Zhou Ning said you can protect me."

Yan Chixia was silent for a moment, then said, "I can help you. But there's one condition."

Jingchen asked, "What are the conditions?"

Yan Chixia said, "During the refining of the Phoenix Feather, you must seal your cultivation and not use a single trace of demonic power. I will set up a restriction around your room to prevent you from backing out halfway."

Jingchen hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Okay. I agree."

Yan Chixia took out a jade talisman from his sleeve and handed it to Jingchen.

"This is a sealing talisman. Place it between your eyebrows to temporarily seal your cultivation."

Jingchen took the jade talisman and affixed it to his forehead.

A golden light flashed, and most of the demonic energy on her body instantly dissipated, her face turning much paler.

Her body swayed slightly, as if she were a little unaccustomed to it.

"How do you feel?" Yan Chixia asked.

Jingchen took a deep breath and said, "It feels like a mountain has been lifted off my shoulders, I feel so much lighter."

Yan Chixia nodded, stood up, and led Jingchen to the side room in the backyard.

The room was small, but very clean. Outside the window was a bamboo grove, which rustled in the wind like whispers.

Yan Chixia placed talismans in the four corners of the room and on the doors and windows, setting up a simple restriction.

"This room will be your place for seclusion. The restrictions will isolate you from external interference and prevent you from leaving midway."

"Someone will bring you food every day. How long it takes to refine the Phoenix Feather is up to you."

Jingchen entered the room, turned around and bowed deeply to Yan Chixia and Zhou Ning.

"Thank you both very much. I will never forget your great kindness."

Yan Chixia waved his hand, turned around and left.

Zhou Ning stood at the door, looking at Jing Chen, and said, "Refine it well. When you come out, I hope to see a different Jing Chen."

Jingchen nodded and closed the door.

Zhou Ning returned to the main hall, where Yan Chixia was meditating on a prayer mat.

He opened his eyes and gestured for Zhou Ning to sit down.

"What do you think of the 'wine-and-meat bodhisattva' thing?" Yan Chixia asked.

Zhou Ning thought for a moment and said:

"I believe she genuinely wants to reform. But her inner demons are too deep-seated to be eliminated overnight."

"The Phoenix Feather can only suppress inner demons, not cure them. The real antidote lies within her own heart."

Yan Chixia nodded: "The fact that you can see this shows that your abilities have improved again."

He took a yellowed old book from the bookshelf, turned to a page, and handed it to Zhou Ning.

The book page depicts a young monk with delicate features, a determined gaze, and a long sword in his hand, standing atop a mountain peak.

A few lines of text were written in small regular script next to it.

Yan Chixia, a disciple of Lanruo Temple on Qingyun Mountain, reached the Nascent Soul stage at thirty, the Dao Integration stage at forty, and the Tribulation stage at fifty. At fifty-five, his cultivation level was suppressed to the half-step Dao Integration stage.

"Master, is this you?" Zhou Ning asked in surprise.

Yan Chixia nodded: "It was painted when I was young. Back then, I was full of vigor and felt I could save the world."

Looking back now, it was so naive.

He paused, then continued, "When I was young, I also encountered many demons and monsters, including some who indulged in wine and meat."

Zhou Ning's heart skipped a beat: "Master fought with her?"

Yan Chixia nodded: "That was shortly after I broke through to the Dao Integration stage. I heard that there was a 'Blissful Sect' in the Western Regions that was bewitching people, so I went there alone."

"I found her lair. By then, she had been released by the Black Mountain Demon, but she had never shown herself. I fought her for three days and three nights."

"And the result?" Zhou Ning's spirits lifted, and he hurriedly asked.

Yan Chixia smiled bitterly.

"As a result, I was almost bewitched by her. Her illusions could evoke the deepest, most hidden desires in people's hearts."

"I was young and impetuous back then, and my resolve in the Dao was not firm enough. I almost fell into it."

"Luckily, a senior colleague arrived in time and saved me."

He pointed to a line of text in the ancient book.

"This senior is one of the experts who investigated the Black Mountain Demon back then, tracked him down to the Western Regions, discovered the Black Mountain Demon's plan, and together they resealed the Wine and Meat Bodhisattva who had been released by the Black Mountain Demon."

"His name is Wuchen, and he is the abbot of Baima Temple."

Zhou Ning's heart skipped a beat.

The abbot of Baima Temple?

Isn't that the old monk who helped him out of trouble at the White Horse Temple before?

Yan Chixia continued, "He once left behind a notebook that recorded the weaknesses and origins of the 'Wine and Meat Bodhisattva'."

"The jade slip I gave you before was copied from that notebook."

Zhou Ning suddenly realized.

It turns out that Master already knew about the Wine and Meat Bodhisattva.

"Master, why didn't you tell me before?"

Yan Chixia said, "Because the time is not right. Telling you would only distract you."

"Moreover, the loosening of the seal on the Wine and Meat Bodhisattva is a recent event. Before, I thought she would never come out again. It seems that the sealing techniques of today are ultimately inferior to those of ancient times."

He stood up, walked around with his hands behind his back, and looked towards the distant mountains outside the hall.

"Now, she's out. And she's chosen to trust you. This is an opportunity. If you can truly reform her, that will be more meaningful than defeating her."

Zhou Ning nodded: "This disciple understands."

Yan Chixia turned around, looked at him, and her eyes were full of relief.

"You've grown up. From now on, you'll have to walk your own path."

Zhou Ning felt a warmth in his heart and solemnly said, "This disciple will not disappoint Master."

On the third day after Jingchen went into seclusion, Zhou Ning was practicing his sword on the back mountain when Ashu rushed over, looking anxious.

"Young Master Zhou, that woman... the wine and meat bodhisattva has come out."

Zhou Ning sheathed his sword, frowning, and asked, "Wasn't she in seclusion?"

Ashu said, "She didn't leave the room, but... her aura changed."

"A strange, multicolored light emanated from the room, accompanied by bizarre laughter—sometimes cold sneers, sometimes manic laughs, and occasionally muttering to himself; it was quite frightening."

"I don't dare to go in and look, you should go and take a look."

Zhou Ning quickly went to the side room in the backyard.

The door was tightly closed, but through the crack, one could see that there were indeed colorful lights flashing inside, changing unpredictably like the aurora borealis.

Laughter emanated from the room, sometimes sounding like a woman's soft chuckle, sometimes like a man's boisterous laughter, and sometimes mixed with the playful antics of children, eerie and mysterious.

"Jingchen, what are you doing?" Zhou Ning asked in a deep voice.

The door slowly opened, and Jingchen stood in the doorway.

Her face was more serene than it had been three days ago, and her eyes held less gloom, but a playful smile lingered on her lips.

A phoenix feather hovered above her head, its seven-colored light enveloping her entirely, making her appear like a fairy descended to earth.

"Zhou Ning, I'd like to ask you to look at something." Jing Chen stepped aside.

"Come in."

Zhou Ning hesitated for a moment before going inside.

A-Shu also wanted to come in, but Jing-Chen stopped him with a gesture.

"You stay outside. This illusion is not something you can bear."

A-Shu looked at Zhou Ning, who nodded to signal him to stay, so A-Shu had no choice but to retreat outside the door.