Chapter 53: A Sudden Realization

“Master, what happened?” Yan Chixia asked anxiously.

Before the Daoist Master Qingxu could respond, Bai Xiaoyue, who had been listening intently, suddenly spoke up:

“I think I know. In the past, you wielded the Flashing Step technique with complete mastery, instantly arriving at your intended destination, no matter how far. But today, when you tried to use it to return directly from the Desolation to Qingxu Monastery, you failed to reach your goal…”

“Exactly!” Daoist Master Qingxu answered, a look of shame crossing his face. “Bai Xiaoyue is correct. Disciple, when I was in the Desolation, I intended to use the Flashing Step to return straight to the monastery, change my robes, wash away the dust of travel, and then come meet you. Yet, to my great embarrassment, as soon as I cast the spell, I felt a searing pain in my chest and lungs, and all the true energy I had amassed vanished in an instant. I plummeted from the air… Fortunately, I fell upon an ancient pine tree. It was a thousand-year-old giant, with lush branches and verdant leaves, a thick layer of needles blanketing the ground below. I crashed through the branches, landed in the thick carpet of pine needles, and was buried within.

Though I was shaken, I was unharmed. Not knowing where I was, I endured the agony in my chest and forced myself to sit up and look around. Not far ahead stood a massive boulder, on which were carved seven ancient characters: ‘Chisongzi passed through here’…”

“Taoist Master, I’ve seen that rock too!” Tu Xiaomeng couldn’t help but interject. “It’s on a peak over by Mount Zhongnan—maybe several dozen li from here?”

“That’s right,” Qingxu replied, nodding. “To be exact, that boulder is thirty-eight li from the monastery. When I realized I’d fallen on Mount Zhongnan, I thought to myself, well, at least I landed near home, even if my Flashing Step failed…”

“Ah?” Tu Xiaomeng stuck out her tongue, “You call thirty-eight li ‘near home’? That’s quite a stretch!”

“Naturally,” Bai Xiaoyue answered with a gentle smile before the Daoist could respond. “Master’s cultivation is at the Tribulation Crossing stage. For him, even the distant southernmost lands, tens of thousands of li away, are within reach—what’s thirty-eight li to him?”

“Haha…” Qingxu gave a wry smile at Bai Xiaoyue’s praise. “And yet, those mere thirty-eight li took me five full days to traverse…”

“Master, after your true energy vanished, did it never return?” Yan Chixia asked urgently.

A look of melancholy appeared on Qingxu’s face. “No, disciple. Since my true energy disappeared, all my Daoist arts were lost as well. I couldn’t summon anything from my internal storage space, and the paper talismans in my pockets had become nothing but scraps of paper—utterly useless! Worse yet, I was chilled to the bone, hungry, thirsty… My legs felt leaden, and every step on those icy, snow-covered peaks was a struggle. If not for the resolve in my heart to see you again, I might not have made it back at all. After five days of hardship, I finally reached the monastery and, upon seeing you, could support myself no longer.”

“But Master, didn’t you have Ninefold Golden Pills with you? Why didn’t you take one when you fell from the sky?” Yan Chixia reminded him.

Qingxu smiled bitterly. “Disciple, you don’t know. Before I set out, I refined many pills, but only five of the Ninefold Golden Pills were truly up to my standards. I left two in the pill room and took three as spares, thinking I wouldn’t need any. Yet in the end, not only did I need them, but I used them all.”

“Unbelievable,” Yan Chixia replied. “Master, you said you felt cold, hungry, and thirsty after losing your true energy… How do you feel now? Should I use the Paper Talisman Art to conjure a table of food for you?”

“No need,” Qingxu immediately waved his hand. “Disciple, I’m neither cold, nor hungry, nor thirsty now… Only my strength has not returned—that’s from the shock of the Thunderbeast’s explosion…”

“Indeed, you have a point,” Yan Chixia nodded. “Master, there’s something I can’t figure out: you reached a bottleneck in cultivation and needed Heaven-Uranium Crystals to refine the Nine Yang Golden Pill. Why not use the Paper Talisman Art to conjure some crystals, instead of venturing into the Desolation to obtain them?”

“Yes, exactly!” Bai Xiaoyue chimed in. “Why go to such lengths, Master, when you could simply summon them?”

Qingxu laughed awkwardly. “Disciple, Bai Xiaoyue, do you think I didn’t try? I thought of it, but I simply couldn’t. With my current Paper Talisman Art, I lack the power to conjure Heaven-Uranium Crystals. It’s like you, disciple: you can use the art to summon a table of food, a tent, or a small boat, but if you tried to conjure a house or a large ship, you couldn’t do it. Your current mastery isn’t strong enough.”

“But Master, you can use the art to animate an entire mountain! The Heaven-Uranium Crystal is just a meteorite—much smaller than a mountain. Why can’t you conjure it?” Yan Chixia argued.

Qingxu patiently explained, “Disciple, you don’t understand. The Heaven-Uranium Crystal is an object from beyond the heavens. Though its size cannot compare to a mountain, its internal structure is extraordinary, and the special energy it contains is unimaginably vast. Even at my current Tribulation Crossing stage, or even if I reached the Loose Immortal stage, I doubt I could use the Paper Talisman Art to activate it.”

“Oh, I see!” Yan Chixia exclaimed in sudden understanding.

Qingxu nodded, then sighed deeply. “Disciple, though I failed to obtain the Heaven-Uranium Crystal during my journey to the Desolation, the trip was not in vain. The devastating blow dealt by the Thunderbeast taught me a profound lesson: no matter how high your cultivation, never overestimate yourself; no matter the opponent’s level, never underestimate them. Otherwise, you’ll be utterly defeated, perhaps even destroyed…”

“A timely repair of the pen is never too late,” a voice rang out—chilling, brimming with true energy. “Qingxu, you’re clever enough. But you still underestimate the true power of the Thunderbeast. Do you think escaping the direct blast and avoiding instant annihilation means you’re safe? Hmph, if that’s what you believe, you are far too naïve. Let me be clear: half a month ago, in the Desolation, you were exposed to the Thunderbeast’s explosive radiation. You’re already afflicted with the Terminal Scorching Disease—your end is near! Don’t waste any more time—put your affairs in order.”