"Damn it, what do we do now? The clan leader is dead."
An elder scratched his head as he spoke in frustration.
"Bai Feng is the only successor of the late clan leader. We must immediately set him in place to contain the instability."
"Wait, where is Bai Feng?"
Outside the pavilion and into the streets, a young Yin Ren was walking with Bai Feng. They were conversing, and after some time, they returned to the meeting. Most of the people present were shocked to see the two together, appearing quite friendly.
"This… Bai Feng, good, good. As long as he remembers the best interests of the clan and repairs relationships, there is nothing to fear," an elder sighed as he spoke.
Bai Feng walked through the officials and stood at the center, declaring,
"Since Bai Yun Shen has passed away, I, Bai Feng, shall take over his position as clan leader. I'm sure most of you already held this regard for me, but because you are all present, I thought it best to publicly say it."
Bai Feng was attempting to psychologically maneuver the situation; this way, it would appear that the Bai Clan had stabilized because there was now a central power that had taken control.
Xuan Ren was casually leaning against the wall as he munched on a fruit. He noticed a subtle detail on Bai Feng, his hand was twitching occasionally. Although Yin Ren did not have the vision to notice this, he smirked a bit and commented,
"I've completed my mission here, to receive confirmation of Yun Bai Shen's death. I shall take my leave now." Xuan Ren waved his hand as he walked out the door; thereafter, the rest of the guests also took their leave.
Yin Ren was the last person left. He spoke leisurely with Bai Feng and thereafter cupped his fists, showing respect to him as a senior.
"I'm sorry to ask such a thing, but I was curious if senior brother could give some insight into cultivation for me. I've recently formed some interest in it, and although I am second in line as heir to the Yin Clan, I do want to learn this mandatory thing."
"Cultivation?" Bai Feng looked at Yin Ren and saw that the space around him was empty. However, to accurately test this theory, he brought forth a Bai Clan physician to check his body. These physicians are like physicians on earth, but on top of checking for health, they also examine the state of the body and its capacity to cultivate.
The physician came forth. "Please, young master, let me hold your wrist."
Yin Ren gently raised his pale arm. He had a rather strange appearance. His entire body had a pale white color, as if he were stricken with sickness or had been exposed to the cold for some time. The physician stood up without saying a word; thereafter, he asked to speak with Bai Feng in private.
"Young Master Feng, I've never in my life seen such a strange condition. His body is essentially dead; there is only a subtle pulse. That's why his body has such a pale color. As for his cultivation, I'm afraid he cannot condense any matter."
Bai Feng's eye twitched, and he turned around, asking Yin Ren to take off his upper clothing.
Yin Ren complied. He took off his attire, and there were bandages wrapped all around his body.
Bai Feng's heart dropped.
"This… His cultivation has been sealed," he inwardly thought. Then he expressed his concern, asking,
"Yin Ren, do you know what happened to you?"
His expression was ice calm as always, and he leisurely responded,
"I'm not sure. Father only told me that I was not allowed to reveal this to anybody. However, I trust you, Bai Feng. I wanted to ask you to take a look at it."
Bai Feng replied, "How much do you know regarding cultivation, Yin Ren?"
"I'm unfamiliar, although my older brother is quite good at it. I don't see him that often; only on family occasions does Yin Yue appear. And I am not always invited to attend family matters or politics." Yin Ren gently touched the area around his eye. "My vision excludes me from the majority of things in my life."
Bai Feng felt a ripple in his heart, and he inwardly thought,
"Yin Yue of the Yin Clan, the one who cultivates the split path. His ability shouldn't be less than mine. The last time I saw him and Yin Ren was during my expedition to the Yin Clan for political reasons. Yun Bai Shen and the Yin Clan leader, Yin Chen Ren, had been acquainted with each other. The reason why he did not come to pay respects to Yun Bai Shen was because he was apparently dealing with a visionary in the outskirts of the Moon Flow River.
There were various creatures in the world, a visionary, was a skinless tall being whose main habitat was in dense forests. The Yin clan was located near the esoteric forest, because of the Yin clans split path, they could effectively counter visionaries. Especially Yin Chen Ren, Yin Rens father. A visionary was terrifying, and would hunt people in strange patterns and because their thinking was rapid, they could also strategize.
Yin Yue would also have been a better representative; however, he was tagging along with his father in order to gain more combat experience. Yin Ren appears to have no abilities; thus, he was merely a messenger sent."
Bai Feng heaved a sigh.
"Yin Ren, you must know that cultivation isn't merely a method for power, but a system of methods for understanding reality.
Everything around us in which is material or abstract is dependent on a specific structure of concepts which are hierarchial.
The general reality encompasses, all that we can see and understand with the naked eye, mortals lie within this category."
Bai Feng moved his hand in a circular emotion and something strange seemed to happen, from Yin Ren's perspective space was warping although he could not see anything. Bai Feng explained," Right now i am moving my hand through water, would you he able to confirm that?"
Yin Ren was stunned and replied "No, i only see something warping."
Bai Feng continued"Just like how we cannot physically see the air, we know it exists because of its inherent effect on everything else. We breathe something; thus, it must mean something exists in the air that we breathe.
This matter shapes everything we currently know of and controls phases of existence such as life and death. When we die, the matter that makes up our body simply dissolves into the vast world. It is never truly destroyed; similarly, when life sprouts, it is there to form something and give it shape."
Yin Ren replied in curiosity, "Is the matter formless?"
Bai Feng held up a blade and swiped his fingers across its surface as he said,
"Do you see this sword? What is the first thing you think of when you see this object?"
"I think of an object that is formed to be sharp and can deliver swift attacks."
Bai Feng shook his head.
"This blade is imperfect, only a representation of the ideal form of sharpness. The blade's composition only creates the physical attribute of sharpness. It is not the object that matters, but its inherent nature." Bai Feng threw the blade away and sliced it midair.
Yin Ren watched this, and his heart rippled. "I see, so there is an underlying force that makes up the world?"
Bai Feng nodded. "Something incomprehensible to a human. For now, we can refer to it as the ineffable.
As such, cultivation strives to manipulate these unknown forces and reach a higher order of understanding.
As for how cultivation works, you must have a degree of aptitude, which is not merely talent but contains a trace of awakening. The higher the aptitude, the higher the chance of achieving said state. When you awaken, you start to see the world differently than mortals.
Your path may be intrinsic to what cause you seek to act upon, the paths are not limitless but seeks to develop variations of foundational paths ensuring structure and uniqueness. If your cause is to protect someone, your path may aswell tread towards that path according to your heart. If you wish to harm someone out of spite or vengeance then your path may slide towards the dark.
Mortals are short sighted, often drawn to natural laws and regulations. Cultivators see the world as a living being, something that is interconnected with everything else. Is the world static, Yin Ren?"
"No, it is in constant motion. Time regulates change, and everything transitions between forms."
"Precisely. Thus, we must look at everything with depth. Something may appear simplistic, but every characteristic it shares has structure and is dependent on maintaining a specific motive.
"What about people with no aptitude?" Yin Ren asked.
"People with no aptitude, although they are mostly weaklings, there exists a very rare few in each generation who dominate the battlefield. Even without aptitude, there are unorthodox means to walk toward awakening."
Bai Feng sighed.
"This world is heading toward chaos, Yin Ren—something catastrophic…"
Back to the present, the smoke dispersed, and a figure stood there unfazed: Xuan Ren.
"Smart. You tried setting up a trap with a talisman."
Wu Qiong escaped by setting up two talismans. Because he did not have the essence to use abilities, he had to rely on talismans. He set up one across the cave and the other toward the exit. When one detonated, the other subsequently followed, creating a distraction. Both the target, Xuan Ren, and the exit were covered in thick smoke, giving him some time to flee.
"This can only distract him for a moment." Wu Qiong ran across the outskirts when a hand forced its way through the ice wall, a devilish grin following.
"Already? Damn it."
Xuan Ren taunted him, "If your reaction were a bit slower, I would've ripped your heart out."
Wu Qiong's eyes were quite sensitive; he had extraordinary observation. Although he did not have any abilities, this alone allowed him to try to make the most of it. Wu Qiong jumped midair and dodged two phantoms, one flying from below and the other from above.
The place was chaotic. Everything was collapsing, various avalanches were slipping downward, and the lightning gathering in the clouds was intense.
"Hand over the paper, and I'll consider letting you live."
Wu Qiong took this chance to gain some insight. "Why? Why is there so much destruction over it? Why must you kill? Do you have no honor?"
He scoffed inwardly. He knew that Xuan Ren was simply a demon; there was no point in quarreling with one because they refused to change and were stubborn. Thus, this method of questioning was meant to gather some information under the guise of a preconceived threat.
Xuan Ren displayed a sad expression and appeared to border between sarcasm and genuine emotion as he said,
"I don't want it, although I'd like to be in possession of it."
Wu Qiong was flabbergasted. "What?"
They were both running downward along a slope.
"Do you think we desperately wanted the paper so we could enter the Knowing Dark? Fool, it's because of leverage. With it, I can control anyone. No one will be able to overpower me."
"Knowing Dark?" Wu Qiong solemnly replied.
"Oh, you don't know, do you? You're in possession of such a powerful object, yet you do not even understand its function. Hmm, what shall we do with you? Well, since I'll kill you anyway, it wouldn't hurt to tell you a little bit of a story. I want to see your reaction to this." Xuan Ren couldn't hold his laughter as he swiftly waved his fan.
As Wu Qiong was running, his surroundings slowed down as he felt his vision dispersing. He opened his eyes and awoke in an empty room. Wu Qiong looked around him, and only the sunlight seemed to beam toward the bed. He pushed the blanket aside and gradually stood up; however, his leg suddenly gave out, and he fell to his knees. He caught himself, and an expression of shock permeated his face.
"This? Whose body is this?" As he voiced his concern, a servant entered the room, her face distorted into a terrifying "thing" and flickering from time to time before returning to normal.
"Young Master Ru Ming, you're awake. Come quickly, your mother has something urgent to discuss with you."
"Ru Ming?" Wu Qiong's eyes flickered with cold light as a certain memory resurfaced in his head—the gaze of Yin Ren sent his heart into fear.
"Im in the past!"