Seeing this little countryside dwelling, Xue Ranran cautiously pulled out her mechanism staff.
After experiencing the enticing and dangerous water demon from the Wangxiang river incident, who knew if this cottage in front of her was some demon's illusion, intending to take people's lives.
Ranran bravely walked along the stone path for a while but found that the path was soft, like wet soil. After taking a few steps, she saw patches of green sprouts.
She often helped Su Yishui dry medicinal herbs and immediately recognized that all the herbs here were medicinal.
Just then, she heard someone in the courtyard saying, "Strange, why is someone here so early? Could it be some ignorant bumpkin who doesn't know the value of that Vermilion Bird?"
Ranran looked closely and saw an old man with white hair and beard, wearing Taoist robes and lifting up his trousers, examining several rows of green seedlings in the ground.
Ranran blinked hesitantly… This old man with white hair and beard… wasn't he Elder Jiu from Cuiwei Mountain?
He had gifted her with many talismans back then, all precious life-saving treasures!
But when Ranran smiled and waved at him, the old man looked at her indifferently, seemingly not recognizing her.
Ranran didn't immediately call out his name but tentatively asked, "Old sir, how have you been lately?"
The old man didn't respond but stood up straight, examining her up and down. After a while, he suddenly asked, "Young girl, have you ever eaten Dragon Molt?"
Ranran, following her gourmand instincts, asked in return, "Dragon Molt? What does it taste like?"
The old man replied unhurriedly, "Very fishy and stinky; a sip of it will be unforgettable for a lifetime."
After this hint by the old man, Ranran immediately thought of the disgusting medicine her master once gave her to drink, making her unable to eat for days.
She had asked Su Yishui what it was back then, but he refused to tell her, saying it was better for her not to know. Could it be… that drink was the Dragon molt the old man mentioned?
Seeing no reply from Ranran, the old man didn't seem to mind either. He just took another look at her again and said, "Dragon molt can conceal a person's spiritual essence, making it difficult to discern the cycle of reincarnation. What kind of demon are you? That you need to disguise this way?'
Ranran crouched down, glanced at the crops he was planting, and cleverly replied, "I'm just an ordinary little girl. I don't understand what you're talking about, sir. Those who can live in these deep mountains must be immortals. Do you have a demon-revealing mirror to test on me?"
The old man grinned, no longer concerned about whether she was human or demon, and went straight to ask, 'Why don't you go and contend for that Vermilion Bird?'
Ranran smiled, "In this world, there are many other things as precious as the Vermilion Bird. If we try to claim everything that we see as ours, won't that be so exhausting. Besides, who knows if a misfortune might turn out to be a blessing? If I hadn't come here earlier, how could I have met you, Old Sir… The Huai Shan and Dang Gui in your field are really good things. When cooked with black chicken, they are not only delicious but also nutritious and beneficial for health!'"
The old man listened to Ranran's playful reply and laughed heartily again, "I thought you were a saint, turns out you're just a greedy lazy girl! It's a pity, this is just an illusion. These herbs can't be used to make chicken soup for you."
Xue Ranran blinked a few times, and reached out to touch the herbs. Sure enough, there was nothing there at her touch.
However, the old man looked around the scenery with great nostalgia and said slowly, "When I first met Dun Tian, I was just a teenager. He lived on the mountain, I lived below. Like a teacher and friend, really unforgettable. Later, he ascended, and I focused on cultivation, thinking we would meet again in the immortal realm. But who knew when I ascended, he had turned into nothingness, such is fate…"
Ranran listened, blinking at the old man. It seemed he was already over a hundred years old… She thought for a moment and suddenly asked, "May I ask if you know Elder Jiu?"
The old man nodded with a smile, "You actually know my younger brother? No wonder you used Little Jiu's talisman when you were crossing the bridge."
Ranran nodded and said, "I've had a brief encounter with Elder Jiu before, and drank wine once with him. You really look like Elder Jiu, just missing a red wine-soaked nose. That talisman had been given to me by Elder Jiu."
When she first saw this old man, she thought Elder Jiu had come here from Cuiwei Mountain.
But seeing his steady demeanor, with an aura of an old immortal, completely different from Elder Jiu's mischievous childlike temperament, she ventured to guess that this old man should be the powerful brother of Elder Jiu, The Medicine Immortal who had already ascended. That's why she asked.
However, she wondered why he, who had ascended long ago, would appear in Tianmai Mountain and seem to be very updated with the situation of these younger disciples passing through the trials.
The Medicine Immortal laughed after hearing Ranran's words, "My brother had very few close friends in his life, never knew he made such a young friend like you. But now, it does seem like you have some extraordinary qualities…"
As he spoke, he picked up the whisk hanging from his waist and waved it in the air, revealing the situation at the Vermilion Bird's location.
ability, undeserving virtue, they only magnify their greed infinitely. With only brute force and no compassion, they will eventually be consumed by uncontrolled greed… Of course, those who can kill spiritual beasts also pass the test and are qualified to enter the pool… It's a pity for that black dragon. Last time, it only lost its skin, but this time, its gall was taken…"
Ranran suddenly recalled that she had once drunk dragon molt. How could her master possess such a precious thing? It was priceless!
Could it be her Shifu Su Yishui, who defeated the black dragon last time? But the elderly man said that only those not on the righteous path would encounter the black dragon, right?
Ranran was confused and nodded helplessly, "Tianmai Mountain's powerful being Dun Tian must have trained many outstanding disciples before. Just like my Shifu who enjoys putting people through rigorous tests. However, aren't these tests too cold-blooded and harsh? There has already been many deaths from yesterday till now."
The Medicine Immortal retracted his whisk, his smile slightly reduced, "Even though the trials are horrifying, aren't people even more attracted to it? Great Immortal Dun Tian sat in loneliness and turned into a mountain. His ancient divine power condensed into his eyes, evolving into pools. To obtain such pure divine power from the Great Immortal, how could it be obtained easily without paying a price? My task is to come here every ten years and supervise those who pass the trials. However, you have passed too quickly, which really surprised me."
Ranran scratched her head in embarrassment, feeling like she had *stumbled upon a treasure unknowingly. She then asked politely, "My eldest senior brother and I are not the most talented among these people. It's just a coincidence that we came here. May I ask where he is?"
*瞎猫撞到了死耗子 literally a blind cat who stumbled onto a dead rat
The Medicine Immortal said calmly, "He didn't pass through with his own strength but was led here by you. So even though he glimpsed the immortal realm, he was immediately bounced out. As long as he doesn't try to kill the Vermilion Bird, he should be fine. This is an illusion formed from my secular memories before I ascended. Your ability to enter here is also a fate connection with me."
Ranran tilted her head and asked, "Do you have to give up the joys of mortals when you became an immortal? What's the point of becoming an immortal then?"
The Medicine Immortal smiled, "Without worldly desires of mortals, there's no joy or sorrow. What then is unhappiness?"
Since Ranran heard that her senior brother should be fine, she relaxed a little and asked, "Old sir, in that case when can I leave, otherwise it will be dark soon, and I'm afraid my senior brother will get lost."
Medicine Immortal's smile deepened as he looked at this whimsical and clever girl and said, "Although your spiritual power is not profound, your intelligence and adaptability is the best among these people. Although the Dragon molt has obscured your innate spiritual foundation, you are by no means ordinary. Because of your outstanding performance, you now have the opportunity to choose the Marrow Cleansing Spirit Pool first. Follow me."
Ranran followed behind the old man. Just a few steps in, she saw a chubby boy poking his round head out of a grass hut, holding a water jug and crying, "Big brother, what's in here, it's so spicy! I don't want to drink this, I want to drink goat's milk!"
Ranran was momentarily stunned. Although the boy was young, his eyebrows and eyes, especially the pouting expression of stubbornness, resembled Elder Jiu, who was fond of drinking.
She stopped for a moment, realizing that this boy had repeatedly cried out from inside the house, and his words were exactly the same each time.
Ranran suddenly understood, that these were the memories that Medicine Immortal found hardest to let go of as a mortal. And the person he found hardest to let go of should be his younger brother.
However, no matter how the boy cried, the old Medicine Immortal didn't turn back. He just floated in mid-air with crossed legs, leaving this illusionary scene, leading Ranran through a bamboo forest, to a mist-covered poolside.
As the mist dispersed, Ranran discovered that there were actually two lake-like pools here. The surrounding mountain ridges and huge rocks were fully exposed, giving the impression of an old wrinkled face, with the two pools resembling the eyes on the face.
However, these two pools were quite different. One was milky white like cow's milk, while the other was a deep pitch black.
Medicine Immortal pointed and said, "This is the Marrow Cleansing Pool. You can choose whichever one you like."
Ranran looked at the two pools, both exuding profound and mysterious energies. She couldn't help but ask curiously, "May I ask, Great Immortal, what is the difference between these two pools?"
Medicine Immortal said mildly, "Both are the divine powers that cultivators dream of. Before Dun Tian ascended, he once fell into demonic cultivation, where good and evil were hard to separate. He feared losing control, so he divided his spiritual power into two pools. The white one follows a gradual path, slightly slower in spiritual advancement. The black one, however, can advance one's cultivation rapidly, but…"
At this point, he paused, then continued, "After bathing in the black water, one must sever emotions and resolve, and give up their deepest love in this lifetime."
Ranran gasped at this and thought for a moment before saying, "My Shifu and Grandmaster Mu should have chosen the white pool, right? Life might be short, but we shouldn't be too hasty. I will build up my spiritual power slowly ."
The Medicine Immortal was not surprised that this free-spirited girl would choose the white pool. But since she mentioned Grandmaster Mu, did she mean Mu Qingge?
When Medicine Immortal asked, Ranran nodded honestly.
Medicine Immortal looked at her with some surprise and said with a smile, "So, you're Mu Qingge's grand-disciple. No wonder, no wonder…"
When he asked about her master, Ranran said, "Of course, it's Su Yishui from XiShan."
Upon hearing this, the divine smile on the old man's face disappeared instantly. He looked at her in astonishment and said, "You said your master is Su Yishui? The son of the former Prince Ping?"
Ranran nodded, feeling puzzled. "Old Immortal, do you know my Shifu?"
Medicine Immortal's smile completely faded, his expression cold as he extended his finger to calculate for a while. Finally, as if encountering an unsolvable problem, he shook his head and sighed, "Forget it, forget it. What heaven decrees is not necessarily what fate dictates…"
With that, he said no more, waved his whisk, and turned to leave, leaving Ranran standing alone by the poolside.
It wasn't until he disappeared into the mist that a faint voice came, "Your master's choice back then was different from yours."
Ranran was confused, not quite understanding what the Old Immortal meant.
Was her Shifu's choice different from hers? Did he choose not to bathe in the pool, or… did he choose that eerie and terrifying black pool?
But thinking about it, there should be some ambiguity in the Old immortal's words. Shifu is a person of integrity, how could he choose the black pool that extinguishes human relationships and true love?
It must be some misunderstanding in his words.
But she also needed to quickly bathe in the pool and go down the mountain. After all, her seniors were all still waiting for her.
So, she took off her shoes and outer clothes, slowly walked into the pool glowing with light, and as soon as she entered the pool, she immediately felt an indescribable warmth gathering in her dantian, circulating throughout her body along her meridians. Ranran involuntarily closed her eyes, floating on the surface of the water…
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself suspended in mid-air, feeling an inexplicable heaviness of spiritual energy on her body. This feeling of a filled dantian seemed to also be very calming and sets one at ease.
And at some unknown point, the Geng jin White Tiger had been sitting by the side of the pool, looking at her with an indescribable sense of melancholy, appearing mysterious and profound…
When Ranran lightly landed on the ground with her toes, she found that her clothes were completely dry. She asked the White Tiger, "Are you going to have a bathe too?"
But the white tiger slowly turned its head and looked towards the other side of the black pool. Following its gaze, Ranran saw someone in the black pool.
As she approached, splashes of water flew from the black pool, and suddenly, a shirtless man emerged from the pool.
That dark face was unmistakable; it was Gui Baqian, who had single-handedly defeated the black dragon earlier.
Clearly, they had all arrived at the same destination despite taking different paths. Although he captured spiritual beasts by succumbing to greed, his overpowering strength still earned him the qualification to enter the pool.
But he had chosen the Black Pool for rapid cultivation. At this moment, the water in that pool seemed a bit lighter, while the depths of his eyes remained black and indiscernible.
Ranran noticed the stark contrast of the skin between his face and his body, making his dark face even more conspicuous against his white body…
At this moment, Gui Baqian seemed to have just noticed Ranran standing in the white pool. He raised an eyebrow in surprise and said,
"You actually made it here too?"
Ranran cautiously took a few steps back but didn't say anything.
Just then, Gui Baqian seemed to have finished soaking. He leaped out of the water and charged straight at Ranran!
Although the little girl seemed quite capable and qualified to enter the Marrow-cleansing pool, Gui Baqian felt that there should only be one winner here. Tianmai Mountain truly did not judge strength accurately, allowing a laughable weakling like her to enter the white pool.
So, he decided to make the choice for heaven and eliminate this useless thing!
And so, his attack was a ruthless kill move and aimed directly at Ranran's throat.
However, as he approached, there was a loud "clang" as if Gui Baqian had hit an invisible barrier and was instantly rebounded.
It so happens that there was a spiritual shield between the black and white pools. Once a choice was made, there was no turning back, and one couldn't soak in both pools simultaneously.
Seeing the ferocious Gui Baqian unable to break through, Ranran felt completely relieved. She slowly opened her mouth and said with a smile, "Wei Jiu, have you no shame, pretending to be a disciple of the Kongshan Sect to cheat your way into the pool?"
Gui Baqian stabilized his posture upon hearing this and squinted at Ranran, saying, "How did you recognize me?"
Ranran leisurely put on her shoes and outer clothes, tilted her head, and said, "When you crossed Snake Bridge, your movement technique seemed familiar to me. I have a good memory, so I immediately remembered your fight with Shifu in the forest. And… your name is *Gui Baqian. If you add 'woman,' it becomes 'Wei Jiu'... When I thought about your ambiguous appearance, neither male nor female, I immediately realized that you are Wei Jiu."
魏 = 禾 +女+ 鬼 禾=八+千
Another 'coincidence' is 禾 is read as 'he', so his name is quite literally he,she,ghost
In fact, the name Wei Jiu was just something he casually used; he had never intended to imply anything about his naturally feminine appearance?
Everything else Ranran said was fine, but she inadvertently hit Wei Jiu's raw nerve, telling him to his face that he looked like a woman. This made Gui Baqian clench his fists and smirk coldly. He then tore off his mask, revealing his androgynous face… indeed, he was the demonic cultivator Wei Jiu!
"You little brat, what's your name again?" he asked through gritted teeth, his eyes gleaming with malice.
Ranran wasn't going to answer him. After saying that, she made a face at Wei Jiu and ran away at top speed, with the white tiger at her side.
Wei Jiu swung his fist again. This time, he actually cracked the invisible barrier like a spider web. "You little brat, next time we meet will be your end!"
Meanwhile, Ranran fled like the wind from the marrow-cleansing pool, but she no longer saw the Medicine Immortal or the cottage and medicinal fields. Instead, she went straight back to the valley where they had separated from the others earlier.
Seeing Ranran return, Gao Cang, who had been frantically searching for her like a headless fly, was crying with joy. "Junior sister, where did you go? You nearly worried me to death…"
As he looked closely at Ranran, Gao Cang's voice grew softer and softer until he couldn't help but ask, "Junior sister, what's that on your forehead?"
Hearing that, Ranran walked to the stream nearby, using its surface to look at her reflection. To her surprise, there was a flower-shaped pattern on her forehead, resembling the character "mai" in seal script.
At that moment, those who had been struggling with Vermilion Bird like Mu Qingge, Weifang and the others also approached. When Mu Ranwu saw the pattern on Ranran's forehead, she was immediately shocked and widened her eyes, "How… have you already entered the marrow-cleansing pool?"
For the younger generation of cultivators, being able to enter the marrow-cleansing pool meant a smooth cultivation path in the future. Those who entered the pool would eventually become the heads of major sects, whether in the immortal or demonic path, reaching a level of cultivation that others could only dream of.
Mu Ranwu knew well that her elder sister entering the marrow-cleansing pool, was an important step on the path to fame and power in the past.
Although she had acquired most of her elder sister's spiritual power, this body was brand new. If she could cleanse her meridians and enhance her cultivation in the marrow-cleansing pool, the benefits would have been immense.
Most importantly, she had hoped that the marrow-cleansing pool would help her break free from the control of Grudge water. Who would have thought that Xue Ranran would bypass all obstacles with such ease like she had divine assistance, and successfully gain the opportunity to enter the pool.
Upon hearing Mu Ranwu's words, Wei fang, covered in bloodstains, also noticed by now. He howled in frustration, "You worthless person, how could you be eligible to enter the pool? You must have pulled some trick when we were fighting the Vermilion Bird!"
As he spoke, he began to believe his own words, and he actually reached out to attack Ranran.
In the past, although Ranran could dodge, she definitely couldn't confront Wei fang head-on and win. However, this time, she not only evaded skillfully but also handled it effortlessly, flicking Weifang's forehead on a whim.
Although it seemed like only a playful action, this seemingly light flick sent Wei fang flying straight into the bushes.