The few junior disciples who came down the mountain had never heard Shifu mention any cauldron before.
So, when Bai Boshan heard Mu Xian Shi's question, he quickly volunteered and ran up the mountain to ask their Shifu if he had left any cauldron behind.
Su Yishui rarely had such leisurely moments. He was adjusting the strings of his zither by the pavilion in the courtyard. When Bai Baishan came to ask, Su Yishui responded with a question of his own, "Did your little junior sister personally give those things away?"
Bai Baishan respectfully replied, "You instructed her to do so, she naturally delivered everything perfectly. However, there was no pill furnace among the things she took!"
Su Yishui used his long fingers to pluck the freshly tuned zither strings, producing ancient and clear melodies. Then, he lowered his gaze and said, "Tell the visitors from below that the furnace was refined from meteoric iron that I personally extracted from the Snow Peak and refined. It was only loaned to Mu Qingge and does not belong to her. If I don't want to give it, no one can take it away."
After remembering Shifu's instructions, Bai Baishan hurried back down.
While Bai Baishan went to inquire, Mu Qingge had been chatting with the remaining three disciples. Despite just falling from the tree not too long ago, Mu Qingge was a great conversationalist, worldly-wise, fitting her experiences from two lifetimes.
In just a few words, she had managed to inquire about the background and origins of Su Yishui's new disciples.
Ranran didn't say much. Whenever Mu Qingge asked about her, Ranran only pretended to be enchanted by Mu Qingge and kept smiling foolishly.
It's not that Ranran had any secrets about her family background. She was just cautious because she felt that Mu Qingge had too many entanglements and conflicts with their Shifu. Currently unclear if she was friend or foe, Ranran wondered what she should do if Mu Qingge remained unchanged in her ways, used her family as leverage to coerce her into harming her Shifu.
So when Gao Cang saw that she wasn't speaking and was eager to answer for her, Ranran quickly interrupted him, pointing to the persimmon tree beside the mountain road and smiling, "Teacher Mu, are you thirsty? Would you like me to pick a few persimmons for you to eat?"
Mu Qingge smiled and shook her head, but she did take a few more glances at this girl named Xue Ranran.
Among Su Yishui's disciples, only this girl seemed to have some brains and looked quite decent…
As her thoughts wandered, she suddenly reached out and grasped Ranran's slender wrist, concentrating to feel her pulse and spiritual power.
However, after a grip, she found there was nothing, no echo, no trace of spiritual wood aura… This girl was just average in talent, an ordinary person with nothing exceptional.
Su Yishui used these few mediocre disciples as an excuse to reject her outright, unwilling to continue the Master-disciple relationship with her…
She remembered hearing Su Yishui's heart-wrenching "Qingge" before her soul had scattered. Why did he look so indifferent now that they met again?
Could it be that he knew about the spirit fruit that had fallen earlier?
Thinking of this, Mu Qingge took a deep breath. She had discreetly asked Grandmaster Kaiyuan of Jiuhua Sect before, and he didn't know about how many spirit fruits had been on the tree.
Let alone Su Yishui, who had always been reclusive!
The unripe fruit which had fallen prematurely sixteen years ago, indicating that "she" had no will to survive. Now that was no sign at all and was probably gone by now.
And she just needed to focus on managing everything well for herself.
Thinking of this, Mu Qingge felt a little relieved. But when she heard the message from Bai Baishan, something seemed to be swirling in her eyes. A shimmer of tears evoked sympathy from others.
Beside her, Wei Fang glared, "Your Xishan Sect is too arrogant. You should know that this furnace is for the current Emperor's alchemy purposes…"
Before he could finish his words, Mu Qingge shot him a sharp look, and Wei Fang immediately realized his mistake and shut up grudgingly.
Since she had been rejected, Mu Qingge didn't mention the furnace again and instead changed the subject to talk about how she missed the old houses of West Mountain and wanting to take a walk up the mountain.
Unfortunately, Mu Qingge's requests to revisit Lingxi Palace and see the ice lotus she had planted in the back mountain were also turned down by their master.
Poor Bai Baishan had to climb up and down to relay messages, his back aching terribly. He also had to carefully consider how to convey Shifu's words without hurting Mu Xian Shi's feelings.
But since she had retrieved the sword bestowed by the Emperor, Mu Qingge didn't say anything further. She just kindly instructed the younger disciples of West Mountain to take care of the lotus pond in the Xishan Lingxi Palace before leaving with the disciples of Jiuhua.
It's well-known that Mu Qingge especially loved lotus flowers. It was said that she was so obsessed, that in order to collect a rare ice lotus, she had ventured into the lakes in the Snowy Mountains and fought dragons for them!
So her parting instructions were reasonable, showing her reluctance to part with her beloved possessions from the past.
However, after she returned, Second Uncle Master sighed slightly when Ranran and her were chatting as they prepared their meal.
Few people knew that Mu Qingge had built the lotus pond back then solely for Su Yishui. At that time, his internal fire was too strong, and he could not control the early formation of his Golden core, which almost caused him to rupture and die.
Fortunately, Mu Qingge found a pool of ice lotus from Yaochi and she personally blessed it. She soaked herself and Su Yishui in the lotus pond for forty-nine days, slowly guiding back his heart that was going out of control.
At this point, the Second Uncle Master had to admit that although Mu Qingge's actions were bizarre and absurd, she was exceptionally good to her disciples.
Its unfortunate that she didn't follow the right path and eventually caused a disaster, leading to her downfall.
Ranran, after listening to the Second Uncle Master, suddenly realized something.
She had been puzzled before why Mu Qingge had mentioned the lotus pond so specifically before leaving.
Now, thinking about it, she was indeed nostalgic for the flowers and plants of West Mountain, but she probably also hoped to evoke Su Yishui's memories, remind him of her kindness, and salvage their past master-disciple relationship?
After finishing her meal, Ranran took a walk in the mountains and specifically went to the back mountain to look at the lotus pond.
Now that it was almost winter, the lotus flowers had long withered, and all that remained was desolation. There was nothing particularly unforgettable about this lotus pond.
After looking for a while, she rolled up her pants, took a shovel and tried to dig for some lotus root by the pond.
Since that day she had expressed her ordinary mortal aspirations, just wanting to go down the mountain early to serve her parents, and perhaps marry and have children for a peaceful life, she noticed that her Shifu seemed somewhat displeased when he looked at her.
Ranran thought it might be because her Shifu had been in seclusion for too long and hadn't eaten anything to his liking. So today, she planned to make some refreshing Fried lotus root.
Regrettably, the ground by the pond was too slippery. Ranran almost slipped into the pond several times, which frightened her, as she can't swim. She quickly retreated, ending up with only muddy feet for her trouble.
Because her feet were now dirty, Ranran washed them with a bucket of water. She then decided to take a bath too. As a cultivator of Pills, the most convenient thing was a constant supply of warm water throughout the day.
When she wanted to take a hot bath, she could use any of the large stoves in the alchemy room. But after bathing, Ranran looked at the pill furnace that the Second Uncle Master had returned to her a few days ago. Its surface was blackened and dirty, somewhat displeasing to the eye.
Since she had taken a bath herself, she thought she might as well clean the cauldron too. Perhaps her sincerity would move the cauldron, and it wouldn't embarrass her during the next alchemy session.
Holding onto this thought, Ranran found a rag and some alkaline water to remove the dirt and grime from the furnace. She hummed a tune as she wiped the furnace.
After wiping it a few times, Ranran found that this Pill furnace's surface was actually quite good, with beautiful patterns engraved on it, so she wiped it even more vigorously.
After cleaning most of the furnace, she discovered that it was originally made of a material that resembled gold but wasn't gold. It seemed like the bottom of the furnace got burned later on, and a black metal was used for repairs.
It was evident that the repairs were done very carefully, as even the patterns were seamlessly restored. Ranran accidentally saw a line of engraved characters on the bottom of the furnace.
It was evident that the repairs were done very carefully, as even the patterns were seamlessly restored. Ranran accidentally saw a line of engraved characters on the bottom of the furnace.
She carefully looked at it and softly read aloud, "Nine Revolution Black Iron."
After reading it, Ranran fell silent for a moment, then her eyes gradually widened: could this "Nine Revolution Black Iron" be… the one Mu Qingge had wanted to take?
Since the disciples from Jiuhua Sect had come from afar specifically for this item, it indicated that it was precious and rare enough. But, did Shifu just casually give this furnace to her, a mediocre novice?
Ranran felt uneasy. She quickly washed her hands, picked up the wild persimmons she had picked from the foot of the mountain and ran to find her Shifu.
When she entered her Shifu's courtyard, she didn't find him. She searched all the way and then circled back to the dried-up lotus pond.
Before she could see anyone, she heard a melodious tune of a Guqin.
The simple melody played with this ancient tone had a kind of lingering excitement. Ranran couldn't help but slow down her steps, quietly listening to the melodious tune.
At this moment, the man with long hair draped over his shoulders was sitting on a wooden bridge, closing his eyes and plucking the strings facing the withered lotus pond.
At first, it was like a nocturne softly murmuring in half-revealed moonlight. Gradually, the Guqin became intense, like the solemnity of a battlefield, ringing with sharpness. In a trance, Ranran seemed to be in a noisy battlefield, countless arrows were shooting towards her.
But the next moment, someone pulled her onto the White Tiger. Someone beside her angrily roared, "You save others, why not save yourself first?"
In her daze, the stirring zither sound calmed again. It was only then that she came to her senses, touched her somewhat itchy face, and realized that tears were streaming down her face.
The zither sound now ceased and the fragrance of lotus filled the air. In the time Su Yishui played the zither with his eyes closed, the already dried-up lotus pond miraculously bloomed with lotus flowers again…
The Yaochi Ice Lotus were not ordinary. Each one was snow-white and translucent, as if carved from ice and snow, crystal clear and bright…
Ranran didn't even have time to wipe away her tears. She was full of joy and amazement as she came to the edge of the lotus pond, looking at the blooming flowers and saying, "Shifu, you really have miraculous powers, these flowers…"
At this point, she paused slightly.
Only just now, Mu Qingge mentioned that she hoped someone would take care of her lotus pond. And afterwards, Shifu used music to channel his spiritual power, growing a pond full of rare and beautiful ice lotuses.
This former Master and disciple seemed to be of the same mind!
People always said that Su Yishui and Mu Qingge's relationship was ambiguous, and now it seemed to be true!
Shifu seemed tough and cold but clearly, his zither music contained deep worldly affections, showing great longing.
Ranran, who had heard many variations of stories of Master-disciple relationships from third senior sister, was very bright. In an instant, she inferred that Su Yishui was only firm in speech but soft in heart towards Mu Qingge.
If he still cherished their past relationship, why did he refuse to let her come up the mountain earlier? If he could let Mu Qingge see her beloved lotus flowers, surely then they could let go of their unresolved grudges!