Cultivating Together with the Fairy

"Stop hitting me, stop! I've got no money left, just this worthless life of mine!"

Seeing that Tian Er had started making a scene, Zhao Liang said coldly, "Your life isn't worth a thing to anyone. From tomorrow on, get out of Jimo. The farther you go, the better. If I ever see you again, I'll beat you every single time. Do you understand?"

"Zhao Liang, you bastard, you think you own Jimo City now?"

"Hmph, spare me your nonsense! Say another word and I'll keep teaching you a lesson. Are you leaving or not?"

"Fine, you win! I'll go, I'll go. I'll leave Jimo City tomorrow, alright?"

"Hmph, I'll come back tomorrow. If you're still here, don't blame me for bringing the whole Tian Family Village to deal with you."

With that, Zhao Liang left with Bai Ling.

After the severe beating, Tian Er was seething with rage but helpless. Last time, when they tried to rob Zhao Liang of his jade, not only did they fail, but Mouse and Black Ox ended up injured. Afterwards, those two also turned on Tian Er and beat him up. There was no way he could count on them to help him trouble Zhao Liang again.

He'd already made enemies with almost everyone in Tian Family Village; there was simply no one left to help him. If Zhao Liang returned tomorrow with a group, he'd only get beaten again.

After much thought, Tian Er could only pack his belongings overnight and leave with his wife to seek refuge elsewhere. The world is vast—why cling to this place and wait for death?

Zhao Liang and Bai Ling left Jimo City. Bai Ling summoned her Snowcloud Silk once more, and they flew toward Tian Family Village.

At the village entrance, both landed. Noticing Bai Ling's silence along the way, Zhao Liang asked, "Miss Bai, do you think I was too domineering, too unreasonable?"

"My mother always said to show mercy and let people off when possible. I think you were a bit too harsh."

"My principle is: a true man must seek justice for himself. Some people can only be taught through pain. Only when they're afraid will they stop seeking revenge. Did you see how Tian Er kept denying everything, even accusing me of framing him? With such scoundrels, reasoning is useless. The world of mortals is nothing like that of cultivators."

"You have a point, but are you really going to let him go just like that? What if he's still here tomorrow?" Bai Ling nodded thoughtfully.

"Then I'll keep teaching him a lesson until he leaves."

"That doesn't seem very good either," Bai Ling said, blinking.

Zhao Liang continued, "With people like Tian Er, only fists make sense. If you reason with reasonable people, use reason. With the unreasonable, use force."

"Heh, Zhao Liang, you’re young, but you’ve seen a lot. Who taught you all this?" Bai Ling found herself agreeing with his words.

"These are the teachings of Master Jiang from the Charity Hall. He always said, 'A man who doesn’t seek revenge is no true man; one who passes up a gain is a fool.'"

"Uh, well... this Master Jiang is certainly... quite an interesting teacher."

Seeing Bai Ling's slight disapproval, Zhao Liang changed the subject, "By the way, Bai Ling, I have a favor to ask."

"Don’t keep calling me 'Miss Bai.' It sounds so awkward. My mother calls me Linger, you can call me that too. So, what’s your favor? You can ask, but I might not say yes!" Bai Ling flashed a mischievous smile.

"Well... Linger, could you teach me some spells?" Zhao Liang hesitated, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Why do you want to learn magic? Tell me."

"To help those in need, to save people from danger," Zhao Liang replied with righteous fervor.

"Your intentions are pure enough. So, why aren’t you kneeling to become my disciple?" Bai Ling said, feigning seriousness.

"Ah?" Zhao Liang was stunned.

"What are you surprised about? If you don’t become my disciple, how can I teach you? My immortal arts are not taught to outsiders."

Gritting his teeth, Zhao Liang dropped to his knees. Bai Ling burst out laughing, "You actually meant it! Get up, get up. I wouldn’t dare take a disciple like you."

Only then did Zhao Liang realize she was teasing him. He stood up with a laugh, "Well, it wasn’t for nothing—I’ll consider it kneeling to thank you for saving my life."

"You sure know how to turn things to your advantage! But I can only teach you the most basic external spells, and you must keep it secret, especially from my mother. If she finds out, she’ll give me a good beating."

Hearing Bai Ling agree, Zhao Liang was overjoyed. "Don’t worry, Linger, I’ll keep it to myself!"

And so, Bai Ling began teaching Zhao Liang the essential principles of cultivation.

"True cultivation is about refining the heart; only by elevating your state of mind can you ascend in realm. Immortal arts require spiritual energy as their guide. The same spell will manifest very differently depending on the practitioner’s level and power. I’ll first teach you the basic Gathering Spirit Incantation. You can’t write it down; you must memorize it with your heart."

"Alright, I’m ready."

"Sit cross-legged and calm your mind, relax naturally, lightly close your lips and teeth, let your breath flow evenly. Hands must be clenched, eyes forward, gather divine light, focus on your mind. Enter the spiritual center, descend to the energy core; maintain the flow unbroken. When the lower abdomen is warm, the kidneys feel as if boiled, the energy flows in the belt vessel, refining the self to completion. When energy fills the lower abdomen, the governing and conception vessels operate together, always alert to danger, following the meridians. Circulate throughout the body, merging within, energy returns to the lower abdomen, and the art is achieved."

After hearing it, Zhao Liang silently repeated the incantation twice, then recited it word for word.

Bai Ling was amazed, "Zhao Liang, I didn’t expect your memory to be so good! You mastered it after hearing it twice."

Zhao Liang scratched his head, "That’s thanks to Master Jiang’s strict teaching. He’d make me recite an essay after two readings, and if I couldn’t, I’d get the rod. Ninety-six words—this Gathering Spirit Incantation is easy."

As dusk approached, Bai Ling bid Zhao Liang farewell. They agreed to meet again at noon the next day on the mountain peak.

The next day, Bai Ling began explaining the incantation to Zhao Liang line by line at the peak, teaching him the location of acupoints, how to breathe in spiritual energy, how to sink the breath to the lower abdomen, and how to circulate energy through the governing and conception vessels, completing the body’s internal circuit.

The essence of the Gathering Spirit Incantation was to connect with heaven and earth, drawing external spiritual energy into oneself. The more energy absorbed, the deeper the power, and the more formidable the immortal arts.

For three days, Bai Ling taught Zhao Liang on the mountaintop, passing on basic spells such as invisibility, passing through walls, and earth escape. Zhao Liang memorized the formulas after hearing them twice.

Under Bai Ling’s guidance, Zhao Liang began practicing the spells. At first, he succeeded once in ten attempts, but with more practice, his success rate climbed to three or four times out of ten.

This delighted Zhao Liang beyond measure, itching to find an opportunity to try his new skills.

Seeing that he had grasped the essentials, Bai Ling stopped coming every day, only visiting the peak every few days to check Zhao Liang’s progress.