Thousand Dusts Ferry Me - Chapter 60

When he was young, Jiang Baiyu lived a life that many envied. His father was highly respected and virtuous, his mother was the most beautiful woman in the martial world, his parents loved each other deeply, and they also doted on him extremely.

Around him were many attendants. Just the children who accompanied him in play numbered six—three boys and three girls. Additionally, there were more than ten servants and over twenty maidservants.

Whenever he showed even the slightest interest in something, that item would appear before him the next day.

Whenever someone displeased him, that person would quickly disappear from his world. Naturally, he didn’t care where the disappeared person had gone.

They all tried their utmost to please him, yet Jiang Baiyu always felt that in their eyes when they looked at him, besides flattery, there was something else. He was young then and couldn’t understand it.

Young Jiang Baiyu, raised in extreme indulgence and extreme flattery, developed a selfish and domineering character.

Soon, he reached the age for early education. He found learning characters troublesome and refused to study earnestly, often playing tricks on the old scholar who taught him to read.

When the old scholar complained to Jiang Binghe, Jiang Binghe said, “If he doesn’t want to study, then he doesn’t have to. My son doesn’t need to read so many books.”

After hearing this, Jiang Baiyu was very moved. He thought to himself that Father truly loved him.

Of course, Mother loved him too.

As the most beautiful woman in the martial world, Qin Ranqing was beautiful at every moment.

She often held Jiang Baiyu on her lap, opening books or scrolls to teach him to identify things. When Jiang Baiyu cried, she would hold him, gently rocking his body while singing softly to him.

Jiang Baiyu felt there was no place warmer in the world than his mother’s embrace.

Sometimes Qin Ranqing would cook for Jiang Baiyu, and at such times Jiang Binghe would say sourly, “I’ve never eaten even one bite of your cooking, yet you only think of cooking for him.”

Jiang Baiyu was usually very picky with food, but anything Mother cooked, he was willing to eat completely, even if it made him uncomfortably full.

Unlike Jiang Binghe’s indulgence of their son, Qin Ranqing often urged her son to study. Sometimes, to attract Jiang Baiyu’s interest in learning characters, she would hold illustrated books and tell him the stories depicted in them.

Jiang Baiyu’s most vivid memory was when Qin Ranqing once told him about a type of large bird from the far south.

These birds lived in places that were frozen year-round. They built nests on the ice, laid eggs, raised their young, and when hungry, would jump into the sea to catch fish.

Jiang Baiyu asked in confusion, “Mother, didn’t you say that the further south you go, the hotter it gets? Why can hot places be frozen year-round?”

Qin Ranqing pondered for a while without an answer, and finally said, “Perhaps the book got it wrong. You must remember that not everything written in books is correct. Believing everything in books is worse than having no books at all.”

“Oh.”

Jiang Binghe, who was nearby, said, “Right, why don’t we go see for ourselves?”

So the family of three set out.

They traveled south continuously, and indeed the weather grew increasingly hot. In the hottest places, people barely wore any clothes.

Further south lay the boundless ocean.

Jiang Baiyu said, “Father, Mother, have we reached the edge of the world?”

Jiang Binghe laughed, “We’d have to touch the edge to know for sure.” He took out a glass bottle.

This glass bottle was absolutely pure. If placed in the mortal world, it would be a priceless treasure. Legend had it that even the imperial palace had a pair of beautiful glass bottles, though they were slightly inferior to this one.

It was called the Frozen Jade Pure Glass. Jiang Binghe threw the Frozen Jade Pure Glass onto the sea surface. When the magic treasure touched the seawater, it expanded like a ship. The family of three jumped into the bottle’s opening and continued south aboard the Frozen Jade Pure Glass.

Jiang Binghe channeled his cultivation, and the Frozen Jade Pure Glass moved faster than a swordfish.

Jiang Baiyu witnessed the ocean’s scenery, saw fish larger than ships, and even encountered a great storm.

The family of three held each other tightly, rising and falling violently with the sea surface amid the wind and waves, with purple lightning flashing continuously.

Each time lightning split the sky outside, Jiang Baiyu could see black giant waves crashing against the bottle, as if trying to bury them in endless darkness.

Such terrifying scenes didn’t frighten him, because he knew his father and mother were by his side.

Continuing south, the weather began to grow cold again. Eventually, they truly saw the ice plains.

And the strange birds on the ice plains.

These birds walked in formation, waddling as they moved like toddlers just learning to walk, endearingly clumsy.

Jiang Baiyu pointed at the strange birds and laughed heartily.

Later, for a period of time, whenever he recalled this scene on the ice plains, he would think that if only his life had forever remained on the ice plains at that moment—then his entire life would have been complete.

****

After returning to Huayang Mountain from the far southern ice plains, Jiang Binghe began urging Jiang Baiyu to cultivate.

Naturally, Jiang Baiyu refused. He was only eight years old, at an age when even dogs found him annoying. Making him sit in meditation, memorize texts, practice martial arts, and guide qi daily was like tying a flea to a doorpost.

He preferred wandering freely around Huayang Mountain.

When Jiang Baiyu slacked off, he felt quite justified. After all, he had heard the elders say that a person’s two fields and two seas formed late. Although he wasn’t clear what the two fields and two seas were at the time, they formed late nonetheless!

The art of cultivation differed from ordinary martial arts training. Martial arts could be practiced as childhood exercises, but cultivation required waiting until the two fields and two seas—especially the sea of consciousness—had formed before one could begin, otherwise one could easily suffer qi deviation.

Jiang Baiyu felt that at only eight years old, why should he start suffering so early? And wasn’t Father worried he might suffer qi deviation?

Jiang Binghe was quite confident about this. “You’re eight years old now. Your two fields and two seas have already formed, so you can begin cultivation. Don’t worry—even if you suffer qi deviation, I can pull you back. Cultivate boldly and without fear.”

Jiang Baiyu thought to himself: Cultivate my ass.

When Father explained cultivation methods to him, he would nod obediently. When Father asked him to demonstrate, he would fumble about confusedly, then forget everything completely by the next day.

This finally made even Jiang Binghe sigh toward heaven. “Your bone structure is excellent, but your comprehension is terribly poor!”

Jiang Baiyu was poor with complete peace of mind.

After being forced by Jiang Binghe to practice for two years like this, he had barely begun to gather qi. As for enlightenment, that was still far off.

On the day of qi gathering, Jiang Baiyu felt strange changes in his body.

Not just the qi sea filling with a power—that was something everyone who reached Qi Condensation experienced.

More specifically, he felt a strange warm current in his heart region, like a spring bubbling outward with power. This power circulated throughout his body before returning to that spring.

This feeling was both comfortable and novel. No one had ever told him that qi gathering would feel like this.

He told his father and mother about this discovery. After hearing it, Jiang Binghe and Qin Ranqing exchanged glances. After a moment, a smile bloomed on Jiang Binghe’s face.

Jiang Binghe stroked his head and smiled, “Child, you’ve grown up. It’s time to tell you some things.”

“Father, what things?”

“First try this—drive your thoughts, just as I taught you before, and try to separate that thing at your heart.” Jiang Binghe spoke while patiently guiding Jiang Baiyu.

Jiang Baiyu was extremely curious and followed his father’s instructions, closing his eyes to control his thoughts and slowly separating that mysterious spring at his heart.

When he felt it completely leave his body, he experienced a sense of powerlessness, like a flower wilting, with life force draining away. This made him very uncomfortable.

Then he opened his eyes.

At his chest hovered a beautiful lotus flower.

Jiang Baiyu stared in shock.

And Jiang Binghe, like a wild beast attracted by food, couldn’t help but lean in very close, staring fixedly at the lotus.

The lotus glowed, illuminating the gleaming light dancing in his long, narrow eyes. He grinned, and that smile seemed somewhat greedy.

Jiang Baiyu suddenly thought of jackals and wolves. Startled, his thoughts scattered, and the lotus fell back into his heart.

“Father, you…”

Jiang Binghe seemed to realize his loss of composure. He straightened up, clasped his hands behind his back, his expression returning to kindness as he looked gently at his son and said, “It’s called the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus. It used to be my natal magic treasure, and now it’s yours.”

Then Jiang Binghe recounted the origins of the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus. It had originally been the natal magic treasure of his master, Huayang Zi Wen Zhongming. After Huayang Zi ascended, he passed it to his disciple Jiang Binghe.

“According to Master’s rules, this Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus is our sect’s secret treasure and must be passed to the most talented disciple. Therefore, although I wasn’t the sect leader when he ascended, he still gave the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus to me. For this reason, your martial uncle harbors great resentment toward me.” Speaking of this, his expression couldn’t help but darken.

Jiang Baiyu had heard some things about his martial uncle, Tuishan Zi Yu Wanzhi. At this moment, he pressed further. “What happened after that? Why did this flower become my natal magic treasure?”

“Because when you were small, you fell seriously ill. Your mother and I sought doctors and medicine everywhere, all to no avail. Even Sect Master Ding of Hundred Herbs Valley believed you would surely die. I couldn’t accept this reality and would have gladly taken your place.”

Hearing this, Jiang Baiyu’s eyes reddened, “Father…”

“So I thought of the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus. Even if there was only a thread of hope, Father was willing to try. Fortunately, after I transmitted the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus to you, your body gradually recovered, and this magic treasure naturally took residence in your heart field.”

“Father, once I’m better, I’ll return the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus to you!” Jiang Baiyu said. He felt some regret that his illness wasn’t cured yet—when the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus had left his body earlier, he had felt very uncomfortable.

“Mm,” Jiang Binghe nodded quickly, then explained, “I don’t mind, but I’m afraid of letting down your Ancestral Master.”

Ten-year-old Jiang Baiyu secretly resolved to work hard on curing his illness so he could return the Golden Frost Jade Dew Lotus to Father as soon as possible.