Chapter 52 - Matchmaker’s Vow
He looked at Su Ming. The young Peak Master had a brilliant concept, but his explanations of the formation showed he lacked practical experience. Even if Su Ming built the formations, he could not contain them properly. But he could easily handle the rest.
Still, the elder liked the idea, a faint spark of interest lighting up his tired mind.
Beside them, Bai Qingxian watched her uncle with a flash of surprise. She knew how proud he was; he had rarely offered guidance to any cultivators before. To see him so quickly engaged by this Peak Master Su Ming’s idea was unexpected.
She wondered if he was simply bored or already scheming. Still, she kept her voice calm. "It will require precise calibration. If the Yang energy in the fusion garden is too strong, it will burn the Yin roots, and only if the circulation is perfectly balanced, the cycle will maintain itself."
"Indeed," Bai Zhen agreed, looking at Su Ming with a trace of genuine interest. "Peak Master Su has only the concept for now. If you do not mind, I will look into the formula and help you lay out the formations. Tending these plots is simple, but tuning this yin-yang cycle is something I would like to try."
"That would be excellent," Su Ming said. In his mind, he noted the success of the exchange. He had the concept and the working knowledge of formations, but he lacked the ability to implement them practically. Leaving the execution to the Elder solved his problem entirely, and the shared project would naturally integrate them into the peak over time.
As the sun finally dipped below the horizon, painting the sea of mist in deep hues of crimson and gold, the three of them stood on the eastern slope, looking over the quiet valley. The cold wind of White Lotus Peak stirred the pines, lifting the long, jet-black hair of Bai Qingxian as she watched the light fade in silence.
A new beginning was already on the horizon.
***
Lin Yao stood at the edge of the courtyard, watching the guest pavilions. She had observed Bai Qingxian since her arrival—her cold, radiant aura and the quiet dignity she carried. More importantly, she had watched how her master, Su Ming, interacted with the guest. He had never brought a guest to White Lotus Peak before, let alone a woman of such striking beauty. Moreover, he had personally arranged their release, prepared the pavilions, and now spoke to her with such respect.
In her mind, it was as if a massive, invisible array of celestial gears and heavy iron shafts suddenly began to move slowly. One by one, the cogs ground against each other, shifting with the weight of absolute clarity.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
Illuminated by a flash of sudden, profound mental enlightenment, she realized something.
’This must be the Peak Mistress,’ she thought, her chest tightening with a sudden, intense conviction. Why else would her normally reclusive and practical master go to such lengths for a stranger?
As Su Ming’s first disciple, Lin Yao felt a heavy weight of responsibility settle onto her shoulders. Her master had suffered in silence for years, carrying the declining White Lotus Peak on his back while facing the mockery of the entire sect. Even now, after his Golden Core breakthrough, he remained solitary and guarded, carrying unseen burdens alone. If this beautiful, cold, talented lady could bring him comfort, Lin Yao was resolved to support it.
She clutched the hilt of her Cold Abyss sword, her eyes narrowing with a fierce, dark determination. ’Master has given everything to guide me. I, Lin Yao, under the heavens, will ensure this match succeeds. If anyone dares to get in the way of Master’s marriage, I will see them to their absolute end.’
Unaware of the young disciple’s matchmaker vow, Bai Qingxian spent the morning resting. The pure Qi of White Lotus Peak was gentle on her meridians, allowing her to recover far faster than in the crowded Medicine Hall.
In the afternoon, wanting to stretch her limbs, she stepped out onto the stone pathway. She found Lin Yao practicing her sword forms in the clearing. Bai Qingxian waited until the younger girl finished a flow of strikes before stepping forward, bowing politely.
"Miss Lin," Bai Qingxian said, her cold voice carrying a polite tone. "Does White Lotus Peak have any flying spirit beasts I might use to travel to the Medicine Hall? My cultivation is still healing, and I cannot fly safely on my own yet."
Lin Yao halted, her sword held mid-air. She stared at Bai Qingxian, completely speechless. She opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out.
’A flying beast?’ Lin Yao thought, a wave of embarrassment washing over her.
White Lotus Peak had been destitute for decades. Before Su Ming’s meteoric rise, they had barely possessed enough spirit stones for basic food, let alone the purchase and maintenance of flying beasts.
Lin Yao had never once considered the logistics of transportation.
"We... we do not have any flying mounts on the peak yet," Lin Yao stammered, lowering her blade.
"I see," Bai Qingxian murmured, a faint trace of confusion passing through her clear eyes, though she quickly masked it.
"I will arrange a temporary solution," Su Ming’s voice cut through the quiet clearing.
He stepped forward, his hands in his sleeves. "Lin Yao can retrieve whatever materials you need from the Medicine Hall. If you must travel, let me know, and I will request a carriage."
Bai Qingxian bowed. "Thank you, Peak Master Su. That will be sufficient." She turned and walked back toward her pavilion.
Su Ming stood in the clearing, looking up at the empty sky. Other peaks possessed massive flying beasts to carry their disciples across the mountains; White Lotus Peak lacked even a basic mount.
’We need a guardian mount,’ Su Ming thought. He felt the awakened Void Dragon Embryo in his soul, its slitted eyes glowing.
’Maybe I should look for a dragon or something, or at least a Demon Lord grade beast, to serve as the peak’s mount.’
***
Later that evening, Su Ming retreated to the secluded summit of the peak. He sat cross-legged on a flat boulder, spreading out a blank sheet of parchment.
For now, he focused on calibrating the formulas for the artificial Yang and Yin formations, mapping the node distances and flag alignments. The Yin-Yang fusion formation was far more complex, so he set that layout aside for later, focusing on establishing the two basic chambers first.
Once the configurations were finalised, Su Ming stood up and drew the Crimson Heaven Sword. The red blade hummed, reflecting the crimson light of the setting sun.
He began practicing his sword forms. After his recent Dragon Soul Awakening, his Cloud Dragon Sword Technique had undergone a qualitative change, flowing naturally with the draconic rhythm in his soul. Yet, he was not satisfied. The technique’s primary move, the Dragon’s Roar Break, was an AOE attack that dispersed energy over a wide range. Su Ming wanted a concentrated, single-target strike—something that compressed the vast, terrifying draconic power into a single, sharp point.
He began conceptualizing a new move to focus this force, meditating on how to compress the dispersed shockwave of the Dragon’s Roar Break into a single thread of sword Qi.
Later, he moved to the Sky Sovereign Sword Technique. With his consolidated foundation, the conceptual understanding of a ’Sovereign’ began to take root in his mind. A sovereign did not rule through numbers or external force, but through absolute, unyielding mastery over his own path.
This time, Su Ming did not want to take immediate shortcuts or use his cheat to rush the progress. He wanted to feel the physical and spiritual weight of every stance, consolidating his understanding step-by-step through steady, repeated execution.
***
At dusk, Su Ming returned to his quiet study. On his wooden desk sat a freshly delivered spatial pouch from the Wang Clan deacons. Even during his two-and-a-half-month seclusion, the monthly sales from their joint business venture had continued without interruption. Opening the pouch, he inspected the latest batch of profits—a substantial sum of spiritual stones and several high-grade herbs, and several Azure Iron ores.
Setting the pouch aside, he picked up a blank jade slip. He carved the letter with calculated simplicity, framing the Bais as wandering cultivators applying to join the sect. He listed their cultivation details clearly.
An elder in the Core Formation realm with damaged cultivation who would remain on the White Lotus Peak to tend the gardens, and a lady in the Foundation Establishment realm seeking to work in the Medicine Hall, where Elder Lu could already vouch for her skills.
Signed by a Peak Master and backed by the Medicine Hall, Su Ming hoped his requests would pass through the Administrative Hall in silence, without raising any suspicions.
With a flick of his sleeve, the slip flew out the window, caught by a waiting spiritual crane that vanished into the distance.
With the Bai’s residency established, the White Lotus Peak was quietly expanding.