Thousand Dusts Ferry Me - Chapter 3

Stars shifted in the galaxy, and fifteen years passed in the blink of an eye.

When Yun Qing first entered Longshou Mountain, she only knew that her master was as powerful as an immortal, and that their Longshou Sect was invincible.

After following Master Le Chenzi for fifteen years, she gained a clearer and more direct understanding of Longshou Sect’s position in the martial world. That is—

Extremely, extremely insignificant.

First, among the three thousand great paths, our Longshou Sect practiced the most common path in the martial world: the “Path of Compassion.” What is the Path of Compassion? It means cultivating through compassion, which typically translates to “doing good deeds, accumulating merit, and becoming an immortal right away.”

Listen, just listen—isn’t this a fool’s dream? Yun Qing didn’t believe that being a good person could lead to immortality, and indeed, there had never been a precedent of someone cultivating immortality through the Path of Compassion.

However, the Path of Compassion had no barriers to entry; anyone in the martial world could practice it. Therefore, it had become an enduring cultivation method.

Second, since even the cultivation method was so casual, naturally they couldn’t have any exclusive techniques either.

The skills that Yun Qing and Fu Xue had been practicing were all purchased by Le Chenzi from outside—purchased! Something anyone could buy obviously wouldn’t be of superior quality.

In fact, according to Yun Qing’s observation, Longshou Sect, with neither proper methods nor techniques, had no qualification to establish a sect.

They were more like a wandering gang in the martial world, merely creating a sect to put up a façade, making it more respectable when announcing their name outside.

Furthermore, their Longshou Sect did have several magic treasures, but unfortunately, most of them couldn’t be used.

Yun Qing seriously doubted whether these treasures were obtained through legitimate means.

After all, most magic treasures required incantations to use them. The most common reason a treasure couldn’t be used was the lack of its incantation. If they were stolen, robbed, or picked up, it made perfect sense that the original owner wouldn’t share the incantation.

…..

Although Longshou Sect had some minor flaws, Yun Qing still took pride in being a member. After all, her life truly began in the early summer of her fourth year.

****

Among all the magic treasures, only three were usable, just enough for the master and his two disciples. Among them, Emperor Xi’s Wordless Book was given to Yun Qing, the Six-Path Sealing Bell to Fu Xue, and the Thousand-Mile Sound-Transmitting Conch was kept by Le Chenzi for his own use.

Though described as his own use, it should be considered for Longshou Sect’s public use, such as now—

In the courtyard with ancient towering trees, Yun Qing and Fu Xue sat on opposite sides of a small bamboo table, facing a large conch shell in the center of the table, chattering with smiles on their faces.

If ordinary people saw this scene, they might suspect these two young women had gone mad.

“Master, I’ve made sugar-preserved green plums, come back quickly to eat them, or senior sister and I will finish them all!”

“Master, guess how Fu Xue picked so many green plums. She—”

“Don’t tell, don’t tell, senior sister, you mustn’t tell!”

“Alright, alright…” Yun Qing rested her chin on her hand, her eyes curved in a smile.

Fu Xue stuck out her tongue at her, then quickly changed the subject. “Master, what good food is there on Qingyun Island? Did you bring any back for us?”

Their master had gone to escort Madam Fengyi of Qingyun Island.

The conch shell on the table, about the size of a fist, shimmered with five-colored light, surrounded by a halo, dazzlingly brilliant.

Now a distant voice came from the shell’s opening: “The islanders all eat flowers and herbs, and drink dew.” The tone was quite resentful.

“What?” Fu Xue was stunned for a moment, then persisted unwillingly, “Even during the New Year?”

“No, they do eat something better during festivals.”

“What do they eat? Roast chicken? Lamb soup? Fried meatballs? Or all of them?”

“Mica.”

“…What?” Fu Xue suspected she had misheard.

“You heard correctly, it’s that stone you can buy in medicine shops. Fu Xue, didn’t you say you wanted to visit Qingyun Island? Madam Fengyi is asking when you’ll come.”

“I, I…” Fu Xue stammered with a red face. She didn’t want to gnaw on stones!

Yun Qing tapped her fingers lightly on the table, thoroughly amused. Seeing Fu Xue looking at her pitifully, she composed herself and asked, “So, Master, when will you return?”

“I had planned to return directly, but got held up on the way. By the way, Yun Qing, I’ve arranged a marriage for you.”

“Huh?” Yun Qing was bewildered. How did the topic suddenly shift to her marriage? She coughed lightly in embarrassment. “A man from Qingyun Island who eats flowers and herbs? We probably couldn’t eat from the same pot, could we?”

“No. Do you know of Huayang Sect?”

“Of course.”

Huayang Sect was one of the top-tier sects, founded by Wen Zhongming, also known as Huayang Zi, many years ago. Wen Zhongming had long since ascended to immortality, and the current leader of Huayang Sect was his disciple Jiang Binghe.

Jiang Binghe’s Daoist name was Miansong Zi. He practiced the path of longevity and wielded a famous magic treasure called the Jade River Sky-Shaking Mirror. Anyone with the slightest interest in cultivation had heard of his great name.

Coincidentally, on her way back, Le Chenzi passed by Fuzhong Mountain and happened to find Jiang Binghe meditating there. His meditation site was shrouded in black mist. It is clearly evident that he who had attained enlightenment was about to suffer from qi deviation.

Le Chenzi couldn’t bear to watch and intervened, pulling Jiang Binghe back from the brink of madness, thus forming a bond of kindness.

Yun Qing strongly disagreed with Le Chenzi’s actions. “Jiang Binghe was nearly driven mad; weren’t you afraid he might harm you by mistake? That Jade River Sky-Shaking Mirror has never been defeated. You’re not related to him, so why take such a risk?”

“We’re not completely unrelated. I do have some connection with Huayang Sect.”

“Oh?” Yun Qing and Fu Xue immediately perked up their ears, ready to hear some secrets.

But Le Chenzi only said this one sentence without elaborating further, then continued with the marriage arrangement. “It was Jiang Binghe who took the initiative to propose the marriage. His son is a year older than you, and I’ve heard that he is dignified and handsome—he’s a good match for you.”

“Is that so.”

“I thought that if you became the wife of Huayang Sect’s young master, you could choose magic treasures and secret manuals freely, so I agreed.”

Yun Qing asked strangely, “Master, are you stupid? You saved Jiang Binghe’s life. Why not just ask him directly for a few magic treasures? He could also give you some money to improve our meals.”

“…” Le Chenzi was silent for a moment, then said quietly, “Not everyone has a face as thick as yours.”

Yun Qing also fell silent.

Fu Xue looked at her senior sister, then at the conch shell, and asked, “So what now? Will senior sister really go to Huayang Sect?”

Le Chenzi: “Yun Qing, find an opportunity to see him. If you really don’t like him, we’ll cancel the engagement, and then you can ask Jiang Binghe for magic treasures.”

“…Fine.”

“We’ll discuss everything when I return.”

“So when exactly are you coming back?”

“Two days, at most. Save some sugar-preserved green plums for me.”

“Sure thing!”

****

After that, they were never able to contact their master again.

Fine rain fell on Longshou Mountain for three consecutive days, washing the entire mountain clean.

In the old temple, Fu Xue sat hugging her knees under the corridor, watching raindrops from the eaves wash away the moss on the ground, listening to her senior sister recite the incantation for the Thousand-Mile Sound-Transmitting Conch for the umpteenth time.

“In the distant mountains,

In the vast waters.

Only you, only the heart,

Sound carries a thousand miles. Activate!”

The conch shell remained dull, showing no change.

Fu Xue slumped her shoulders and asked dejectedly, “Senior sister, could something have happened to Master?”

“Impossible! Don’t think nonsense.”

Her firm tone made Fu Xue feel slightly more at ease, and then she asked, “So what do we do now?”

Yun Qing stood up abruptly, “We can’t just wait, we need to find Master.”

“Where do we look?”

Yun Qing bowed her head in thought for a moment, then answered, “Master left Fuzhong Mountain and was heading back. We’ll search along the route from Longshou Mountain to Fuzhong Mountain.

If we can’t find any clues, we’ll go to Huayang Sect to ask Jiang Binghe, after all, he was the last person to see Master.”

“Yes!”

TN:

“云母” (Yúnmǔ) – “Mica”

Meaning & Context:

Mineral (Mica)

云母 refers to the mica mineral, which is a shiny, layered mineral often used in cosmetics, insulation, and decorative arts.

The name literally means “cloud mother,” possibly referring to its shimmering, translucent appearance.

Literary & Poetic Usage

In classical Chinese poetry and literature, 云母 can describe delicate, translucent materials (e.g., 云母屏风 (yúnmǔ píngfēng) – “mica screen”, a reference to elegant decorations).

Xianxia / Fantasy Novels

Might refer to a special spiritual material used in artifacts, formations, or alchemy.