When Lord Liu heard the news and rushed to the warehouse, Zhao Dayou had just recovered from his shock. After repeatedly patting himself from head to toe to confirm that he had indeed survived unscathed, he finally calmed down. He puffed out his belly, ready to speak, but suddenly his limbs weakened and the teapot he was holding fell straight to the ground. Fortunately, Yao Dingguo was standing beside him and quickly grabbed the teapot, narrowly preventing it from shattering into pieces.
It turned out that the man’s limbs had been so terrified they had gone limp. Earlier, he hadn’t noticed, but now he couldn’t even hold onto the teapot, something he never left his side. His initial intention to boast was swallowed back into his belly.
As soon as Lord Liu entered the warehouse and saw the scene inside, before he could even speak, his eyes suddenly fell upon Mei Qing. He looked her over for a moment, and his face immediately showed shock. His eyes widened like copper bells, and his mouth opened in stunned silence.
Everyone in the room knew of Lord Liu’s usual severity and had never seen him react this way. They were puzzled by his expression and also felt a strange sense of confusion and surprise toward Mei Qing.
After a while, Lord Liu finally regained his composure and asked a few questions of Lu Zeyou and Mei Qing. After he understood the entire sequence of events, his face darkened, but he did not scold anyone. Instead, he ordered that the strange man be imprisoned first and issued a strict gag order, forbidding anyone from revealing what had happened that day.
“Mei Qing, come with me first. Everyone else, go about your business,” Lord Liu said, his expression shifting unpredictably as he looked at Mei Qing.
Once inside Lord Liu’s chamber, Lord Liu ignored Mei Qing and sat down in a chair himself, fiddling with the paperweight on his desk for a moment in deep thought before finally speaking. “Alright, kid, tell me what’s going on.”
“What do you mean, what’s going on?” Mei Qing asked calmly, his expression unchanging.
“Don’t play dumb with me,” Lord Liu snapped, eyes narrowing. “Didn’t I seal your golden core? How did it suddenly get unsealed? And don’t tell me someone helped you.”
“So that’s what Lord Liu is asking,” Mei Qing replied indifferently. “It’s not a big deal, really. But first, I’d like to ask Lord Liu—why was my golden core sealed in the first place? Could you enlighten me?”
“It wasn’t me who sealed your golden core. Why are you asking me?” Lord Liu shouted, his mustache bristling. “How should I know why it was sealed?”
Mei Qing remained unmoved, simply gazing silently at Lord Liu. After a while, Lord Liu sighed in resignation. “Fine, you stubborn brat. If I don’t explain, you won’t talk either. Alright then, since you managed to break free even with your golden core sealed, it seems Heaven itself is on your side. We can only accept it.”
He turned the paperweight in his hand a few times and sighed again. “Mei Qing, if I told you that sealing your golden core was for your own good, you probably wouldn’t believe me. But it’s the truth.”
Seeing Mei Qing’s skeptical expression, Lord Liu didn’t get angry. Instead, he chuckled. “Don’t rush to disbelieve me. Do you think someone of my status would lie to a brat like you? I know you’ve always been curious why I helped you.”
“That’s right,” Mei Qing said. “Earlier, I asked you, and you said you wouldn’t tell me until I completed the matter at Mount Dongyue.”
“Hmph, back then I just didn’t want to tell you. I knew your father and mother. I was entrusted by them to look after you a bit. There’s nothing strange about that,” Lord Liu said, a trace of sorrow flickering across his face as if reminiscing about the past.
Mei Qing was stunned. If Lord Liu claimed to know his parents, why had he been so secretive before? Moreover, Mei Qing had no memory of his parents at all. Even the people in the mansion, including Zhong Shu, had never mentioned anything about them. Although he had asked, Zhong Shu only sighed and said they were good people before refusing to say more.
“You were sickly from childhood, so naturally no one told you much. Even after you recovered later, you still had a hidden ailment. Now that you’ve entered the path of cultivation, you must have some understanding. You possess what’s known as the Pure Yang constitution. Now do you understand what I mean?” Lord Liu stared intently at Mei Qing.
Pure Yang constitution? Mei Qing vaguely recalled hearing Bi Zhen mention it before. Normally, humans are balanced between Yin and Yang. Pure Yang is the nature of immortals, while Pure Yin is the nature of ghosts. Being born with a Pure Yang constitution was not a good thing.
Solitary Yang cannot sustain life. Those with a Pure Yang constitution are usually weak and sickly, with short lifespans. Worse still, in the cultivation world, they are considered ideal vessels for others’ cultivation. If they attempt to cultivate themselves, it’s like drinking poison to quench thirst—not only is there no hope of achieving the Dao, but it also accelerates their death.
Although Bi Zhen hadn’t explained in detail, Mei Qing could roughly understand. The path of cultivation is about harmonizing Yin and Yang to refine true energy. A person with a Pure Yang constitution is inherently imbalanced, making it impossible to achieve the Dao.
Lord Liu sighed. “None of us expected that with your constitution, you’d actually be able to build a foundation in cultivation. To be honest, after you succeeded, I had those two Taoists from Taiqing Palace brought in and thoroughly investigated the whole story, but we still couldn’t figure out how it happened.”
Mei Qing could only smile bitterly. He was no longer the clueless novice he once was. After intensive study, he had become quite knowledgeable about the basics of cultivation. Reflecting on how he had built his foundation, he could only describe it as confusing. The only explanation he could think of was sheer fate.
“I myself don’t understand how I managed to build a foundation,” Mei Qing said thoughtfully. “It should have been impossible. Even if I did manage to pass the foundation-building stage, my Pure Yang constitution lacks the Yin to balance and nourish it. My energy flows abnormally, and continued cultivation would only make things worse, eventually leading to my body exploding.”
“That’s exactly what puzzles us,” Lord Liu said, frowning. “First, how could you cultivate at all? Second, your speed is terrifying. From what I know, cultivators are as numerous as river carp, but none have ever been as fast as you. Even the famous Taoist Fan Wentai, who formed his golden core in ten years after entering cultivation, was considered a miracle. If he knew about your progress, he’d probably die of shame.”
Mei Qing naturally understood the difference between his own cultivation and that of others. Most cultivators followed strict alchemical practices (danfa), carefully blending water and fire, refining mercury, and advancing step by step. However, he possessed mysterious purple flames within him, and simply refining these flames caused his power to skyrocket. If Bi Zhen had not taught him the Nineteen Methods of Alchemical Dao (Dandao), he would still be refining purple flames every single day.
“But even if you found a way to cultivate, you should never have been able to reach the golden core stage. Some people even said that the day you formed your core would be the day you died. As a cultivator myself, I can tell you that’s not an exaggeration. At the time, I tried various methods to damage your foundation, hoping to stop your power from growing and endangering your life. But fate had other plans—you not only remained unharmed, but Bi Zhen was reckless enough to help you go even further and actually form a golden core,” Lord Liu shook his head in exasperation.
After hearing Lord Liu’s words and recalling Bi Zhen’s earlier remarks, Mei Qing gradually pieced together the truth. It seemed that when Lord Liu and others saw him form a golden core, they had no choice but to seal his powers for observation. Thinking this through, Mei Qing couldn’t help but ask, “Lord Liu, if you say you were entrusted by my ancestors to look after me, I’m naturally grateful. But who exactly were my parents? You’ve never told me before, yet now you’ve chosen to reveal everything. What’s the reason behind all this?”
Lord Liu’s expression turned serious. “You’ll know who your parents were when the time is right. As for why I didn’t tell you before but am doing so now—it has to do with this inkstone.”
Mei Qing felt puzzled. The inkstone had been taken from the thief and was kept in a small leather pouch on Lord Liu’s desk, but Mei Qing still couldn’t sense its presence, as if the pouch had some special isolating property.
“I wasn’t sure before,” Lord Liu said slowly, “but this time, I’m convinced that the many inexplicable aspects of your cultivation must be connected to this inkstone in some way.”
Mei Qing was shaken by these words, his heart filled with shock and suspicion. In truth, he had always suspected something about this inkstone. Now, hearing Lord Liu say the same, his doubts only grew stronger.
Reflecting on all the strange events since he first touched the inkstone, he realized that many things had been difficult to explain. If there was no mystery behind it, it would be hard to believe.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage