Chapter 43 - 40: Heaven-Ascending Ladder
Miao Yu Palace was situated on the highest peak in a continuous mountain range. The area was wreathed in clouds and mist, rich with Spiritual Qi. At the foot of the mountains lay a small town. To enter Miao Yu Palace, one had to climb the Heaven-Ascending Ladder from there to reach its Glazed Mountain Gate.
By the time the Immortal Vessel arrived, the sky had already darkened.
Looking at the sprawling mountains, Xia Lianxue said, "Sir, let’s rest at the foot of the mountain for the night."
Entering the mountains at night was naturally a bit dangerous, so it was better to rest for a night at the foot and enter the next day.
But the thought of returning to the mountain so soon left Xia Lianxue’s heart in a tangled mess.
She wasn’t sure what she was feeling. Throughout the journey, she often found herself staring blankly at Lu Changyuan—she discovered that looking at him calmed her heart.
Although night had fallen, the town was brightly lit.
Upon entering the town, the first thing that greeted them was a small tavern. Brown wine jars were draped with crimson cloth, and the fragrant aroma of wine wafted over.
Before the three could enter the tavern, someone came out to greet them. "Are you three here to pay respects to Miao Yu Palace? Do you need to buy any auxiliary tools?"
Lu Changyuan glanced at Xia Lianxue, only to find that she also found it baffling.
The man explained, "Climbing Ascension Mountain is extremely difficult. Miao Yu Immortal Palace is deep within the mountains, so you have to watch out for fierce beasts along the way. On top of that, just climbing the ninety-nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine steps is incredibly hard. If you three are planning to climb the mountain, you can buy some ointments, Fasting Pills, and the like."
Xia Lianxue understood and shook her head gently. "That won’t be necessary."
It was also her first time in this small town at the foot of the mountain; she was completely unfamiliar with it.
Lu Changyuan couldn’t help but ask curiously, "What’s this about climbing the mountain?"
Xia Lianxue explained softly, "The Palace accepts new disciples once every three years. The mountain gates are opened wide at that time. But often, some who seek the Immortal Path can’t wait three years, so the Palace established another method."
That would be this Heaven-Ascending Ladder.
If a mortal has the perseverance to cross the mountain range and then climb the ninety-nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine steps, an Immortal from Miao Yu Palace might come out and grant them a chance to become a disciple.
This gave rise to a local industry, with the town providing low-grade auxiliary tools for those seeking the Immortal Path.
The three of them, of course, had no need for such things.
Xia Lianxue seemed to recall something and added, "Sometimes, disciples from the Palace will patrol the mountains and bring any mortals who have fainted back to this town. But every year, there are still unlucky ones who get eaten by the tigers in the mountains."
Seeking the Immortal Path is difficult.
Seeking the Great Dao is even more difficult.
Without talent, seeking the Dao is the most difficult of all.
Compared to other Sects, Miao Yu Palace is considered relatively gentle. Most Sects are completely devoid of human compassion, treating mortals as nothing more than weeds.
Lu Changyuan smiled. "Let’s go, to the inn."
The inn was not far from the tavern. An oil lamp burned by the entrance, and the sign above had "Yingfeng Inn" scrawled crookedly on it.
The innkeeper was at the counter, working an abacus. "Eating or lodging?"
Lu Changyuan asked, "Can you still fire up the kitchen this late?"
"We can, but it’ll cost extra."
"In that case, we’ll just lodge. Three rooms."
The innkeeper grunted and handed the room tags to Lu Changyuan. "Don’t wander around at night."
The inn looked like it had been around for some years. You could clearly hear the stairs CREAKING as you went up, and the tables in the main hall bore the marks of swords and knives.
They had three adjoining rooms. Lu Changyuan chose the one on the far left, which faced the street. Opening the window, he could hear the wind outside.
Lu Changyuan yawned, placed Broken Thought by the window, and prepared to sleep.
But unexpectedly, a knock soon came at his door.
"Sir, are you asleep?"
"I am."
"Then I’m coming in."
The door was pushed open by Xia Lianxue. She had taken off her hairpin, and her soft hair cascaded down. Her eyes curved into gentle crescents, as if she could make time itself slow down.
Lu Changyuan sighed. "Why aren’t you sleeping? Can’t this wait until tomorrow?"
Xia Lianxue bit her lip. She truly couldn’t sleep.
"There’s something I want to ask you, Sir."
Lu Changyuan got up and sat on a round mahogany stool. "Go on. Is there a problem with your cultivation?"
The Fairy shook her head. Her slender, fair neck swayed in the candlelight, exuding an alluring orange-yellow glow.
"No, it’s just... I keep thinking about your fiancée, Sir."
Lu Changyuan found it a little amusing. "Why think about her? I don’t even remember her anymore."
Xia Lianxue couldn’t help but bite her lip harder. "I just... I can’t help but feel concerned. Can you tell me your story, Sir?"
Ever since she learned that Lu Changyuan once had a fiancée whom he had sent away to cultivate, thus preventing her from staying by his side, she had felt downcast, a heavy weight clogging her heart.
"You want to know more about me?"
"Mhm," the Fairy said obediently. "I want to know."
She had become much more honest.
’If I want to know something, I’ll just ask!’
Lu Changyuan narrowed his eyes, trying hard to remember, but he couldn’t recall much.
It had been too long.
"Back then, I told her I would wait for her in the Mortal World. Once she made a name for herself, she could come back for me and take me to the Yu... to the Immortal Palace to live a good life."
Xia Lianxue’s emotions churned like ocean waves, so complex that even she couldn’t understand them.
The gentle light cast a warm yellow halo on her long eyelashes, making the Fairy’s beauty seem even more breathtaking.
Xia Lianxue asked in a small voice, "And then?"
"And then? About a year later, the Immortal Palace sent me a letter saying she had died. To compensate me, an Immortal offered to find me several more wives. I refused."
That’s how the Cultivation Realm is. The more talented and ambitious you are, the easier it is to die.
Silence spread in the candlelight.
Xia Lianxue said softly, "Sir, there are many good women in this world. There’s no need to dwell on the past."
Lu Changyuan studied Xia Lianxue carefully, as if seeing her for the first time today. "Why are you just like your senior sister? Back then, Qiu Yuehan also told me there were many Fairies in Miao Yu Palace for me to choose from."
’This pair of senior and junior sisters is really something. Do they want to pick a wife for me?’
Xia Lianxue exclaimed coquettishly, "Sir!"
She herself didn’t realize how alluring that cry was.
Lu Changyuan looked at the moon outside the window. It was perfectly round, unlike the joys and sorrows of the Mortal World. "By the way, what is your Miao Yu Palace’s Palace Master called?"
"We don’t know. We only know there is a Palace Master, but no one knows her name."
"No one knows?"
"Mhm, none of us know. Perhaps the few True Masters know?"
Now that was strange.
Lu Changyuan narrowed his eyes slightly. "Isn’t it written in the Sect’s records?"
Xia Lianxue shook her head. "There is a long corridor in the Palace with white jade statues and introductions of the past Palace Masters. But the current Palace Master is the only one missing. It’s probably because erecting a white jade statue for someone who is still alive is considered inauspicious."
The Palace Master Lu Changyuan remembered was named Feng Xianlong. Based on what Xia Lianxue said, Feng Xianlong had probably died in that turmoil. Then, the current Palace Master had taken charge in a time of crisis, broken through to the Yao Guang realm, and led Miao Yu Palace through the last hundred years.
’Feng Xianlong’s disciples... none of them seemed capable of breaking through to the Yao Guang realm. Just where did this Miao Yu Palace Master come from?’
Lu Changyuan waved his hand. "Hurry back to sleep. We’re returning to Miao Yu Palace tomorrow. I imagine Hanyi Master’s expression will be quite interesting."
’Seeing the Fairy whose cultivation she personally destroyed return to the Dao Realm, and even advance a step further... I wonder if Hanyi Master will tremble with fear?’
"Mhm."
And so, the Fairy carefully closed the door behind her.
Lu Changyuan gazed at the moon outside the window and poured himself a cup of cold tea. The tea on the table was cold, and so bitter it left a white coat on his tongue.
"Waiting, always waiting. Waiting for the eighteenth of the twelfth moon to finally sweep away the old dust."
In truth, he had been waiting for many years.
He was twenty the year the engagement was set. Chang’an Daoist had entered the Immortal Dao at fifty.
He waited thirty years for the fiancée whose name and face he could no longer remember. Only after being certain that he wouldn’t be able to live off her did he set foot on the Immortal Path.
Later, after he achieved the Yao Guang realm, he had gone to Yuyue Immortal Palace to look for her, even getting into a fight with Feng Xianlong. But he still found nothing. She had probably died in some secret realm.
’But with her talent, if she hadn’t died, she would probably be the Miao Yu Palace Master by now.’