CH 129
Chapter 129 Octopus Ball (b)
Translated by Gumihou
Edited by Gumihou
The 12th and 11th Martial Uncles must have plenty to talk about now that his illness was completely cured. Therefore, Shiyu left them to it and ran to her room. Once the door shut, she called Fat Cat out.
“Look, look, I have the Thunder Seed! What should I do next to help Lao Er Cultivate?” Shiyu was nearly hopping in place with excitement.
Fat Cat narrowed his eyes at the Thunder Seed. The lightning flashing from the seed was very weak. No wonder, it had been fending off evil spirits for the better part of a decade. No matter how strong it might have been, it would be severely weakened by now.
“It’s lucky that this Thunder Seed is so weak. Otherwise, the child might not be able to refine it,” said Fat Cat. “First, have the child soak in a medicinal bath to push his body to the very best condition. Once done, take a few large jars of the Spring of Life water out. As to whether he can successfully refine the seed, that’s all up to him.”
These special seeds were spiritual things born of Heaven and Earth. Therefore, how could they allow themselves to be easily refined by humans? Unless one is resolute in their conviction, they would never be able to conquer these special spiritual seeds.
Shiyu remembered her first experience refining a Fire Seed and nodded. She would do her best to prepare Lao Er.
Within the space were lots of rare herbs. Most of them were gifts from the 12th Martial Uncle. [2] Some were picked from the medicinal field around the cottage back at Leisurely Cloud Pavilion. Others were Fire Attribute herbs or plants that she had bought for Old Gu to ‘treat’ 11th Martial Uncle with. Shiyu had split those with Old Gu since Lin Fan could also make use of Fire Attribute herbs.
This meant that Shiyu’s collection of herbs was once again very substantial. It did not take long for her to locate all the needed herbs for a medicinal bath. Once she had collected all the necessary herbs, Shiyu called Lao Er in.
When she shut the door behind him, Lao Er glanced at his sister anxiously. There were only two of them in the room.
“Sister, is something wrong?”
Shiyu smiled and opened her hand. The Thunder Seed was only the size of her thumbnail. It emitted a faint, bluish-purple glow. Now and then, tiny flashes of lightning arched around it.
“Is this a Thunder Seed?” Lao Er suddenly grew excited too. “Wait, wasn’t this on 11th Martial Uncle’s body?”
When 11th Martial Uncle first came in, he had noticed the pendant on the man’s chest. It was hard not to as it was the only bright thing on the frail person’s person. The rest of him was covered in that creepy miasma. He never thought that the Thunder Seed he had been dreaming of was that very same thing.
“Yes,” Shiyu nodded. “Because the 11th Martial Uncle’s sickness has been cured, he let me have this as a gift. Lao Er, once you refined this seed, you will be able to Cultivate.”
Lao Er’s heart began to quicken up. He had dreamed of this very moment. Imagining what it would like to encounter a Thunder Seed. However, now that his dream was about to come true, his entire body began to shake.
“Sister…” his eyes felt a little sour. To think that sister had kept his wish in her heart all this while… [3] to think that she would go this far just to fulfil this foolish dream of his… If this sister of his had not gone looking for this seed, he was afraid that this dream might have remained a dream the rest of his life.
“Don’t be too happy yet.” Knowing how excited her brother must be, she had gone through the same excitement with her first Fire Seed, but now was not the time to be overwhelmed by happiness. “You better not think that this little Thunder Seed is easy to refine. Let me tell you, this seed is weak now and it’s the best time to refine it. However, success is not guaranteed.
I will help you prepare for maximum success, but whether or not you can do it, it’s all up to you. Moreover, Thunder Seeds are inherently violent. If you’re not careful, you could die. If it were up to me, I won’t even let you take this risk. However, I also know that you have the same disposition as me and would rather die than live a mundane life.”
At this, Lao Er understood that he would soon be facing a life and death test of his resolve to become a Cultivator. He tried to calm his racing heart and said, “I understand. I am too excited now and won’t have a good chance of succeeding. Please let me prepare myself first. Let me try when I am ready.”
Seeing her little brother doing his best to keep his head made Shiyu nod in approval. Considering how this child was the same child who had stubbornly trained himself against real Cultivators, it was an unexpected pleasure to see him be reasonable under these circumstances.
Yes, now that she thought about it, Lao Er’s reckless behaviour from before must have been beaten out of him while training with the Lin Clan, and later at the College. Those people may not openly mock him, but they would not hesitate to mock him in private. No matter what, though disdain may not pass their lips, their eyes would not lie.
Above all, Lao Er knew himself best and eventually learned the principle of not picking fights he could not win. Instead of recklessly charging into situations, he would consider the pros and cons of his actions and decide whether he could bear the consequences of his actions before acting on his impulse.
Over time, his character grew calmer and more cautious. This could be considered a pleasant surprise for Shiyu who had barely seen him in a year.
“That’s right, sister, would you grant me a name?” Lao Er’s eyes shone. “Once I enter the world of martial arts, surely I can’t carry the name Lao Er forever? I want a more heroic sounding name!”
Shiyu couldn’t help laughing at his enthusiasm. This Lao Er of hers had been so calm and mature that it was quite unusual to see him act his age like a restless teenager.
“Yes, yes, yes, give me some time to think about it.”
After all, who doesn’t harbour a secret wish to become famous?
Therefore, it’s not surprising that Lao Er would want a good name for himself. Speaking of which, the rest of her precious little radishes did not have proper names either. She should think of names for the rest too.
“What do you think of Shi Yi? [4] Yi for ‘leisurely’ or ‘outstanding’? Or Shi Xin? Xin for ‘confidence’ or ‘faith’?” Hmm, none of them sounded very lucky. Both are homophones for ‘frustration’ and ‘disappointment’…
Lao Er shook his head, “It’s not the same as sister’s. Since sister is called Yu for ‘jade’, just call me Jin for ‘gold’. I think Shi Jin is a good name. As for the rest of our brothers and sister, we can just call them Shi Yin, Shi Tong and Shi Tie.”
Shiyu, “… …” What the- you want to be known as Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron?
“Aren’t these names too random…?
“If they don’t like it, they can pick new names in the future,” said Lao Er straightforwardly. “I shall be known as Shi Jin from now on.”
Well, the naming issue was more or less settled that way. Shiyu privately resolved to discuss the naming of the rest of the siblings later… For now, the important thing to do was to adjust Lao Er’s body. Since there were plenty of other people at the villa, she took him deep into a forest on the outskirts of the Imperial City.
They found a suitable looking cave and entered it. After ensuring that it was safe, secure and more importantly, unoccupied, they settled down to begin the cleansing ritual.
Shiyu brought out a large bathtub, filled it with water and used her fire to bring the temperature up. Next, she took out a clean cloth bag filled with various precious medicinal herbs. After purifying the medicine with her fire, she allowed the ball of shimmering liquid medicine to sink into the tub. The clear water slowly turned green. The area around the tub began to grow dense with Spiritual Energy.
Once she deemed the medicinal bath ready, Shiyu said, “This is to remove excess impurities within your body. Getting rid of the impurities now means that you will suffer less later. However, that doesn’t mean it won’t be painful. You must grit your teeth and bear it.”
After that final instruction, Shiyu left. Leaving behind a few buckets and jars of Spring of Life water, more medicinal herbs and Fat Cat. She sat by the mouth of the cave, committing herself to protect the area from outside interference. After all, though they call themselves siblings and were indeed closer than most blood siblings, they were still a pair of young man and woman. Moreover, it’s not like Shiyu could help Lao Er better than Fat Cat. If something went wrong in the refining process, Fat Cat would be more knowledgeable and better equipped to help her brother.
Shiyu spread her awareness around the area and sat down to meditate. Anyone or anything that breaches this net of mental awareness would alert her immediately. For now, the best thing she could do was secure the area and prevent anything from disturbing them.
[Gumihou: Oooh, I can’t wait! Work hard, Lao Er! I mean, Shi Jin!]
[1] Gumihou is keeping track so that you don’t have to ~
[2] Additional Details for Descriptive Purpose: Let’s mention the garden at Leisurely Cloud Sect as well as the random errands Old Gu had them do to establish continuity, yeah?
[3] Adjusted the Language for Dramatic Purpose: It’s an emotional moment, refined it to my best ability.
[4] Creative Information Planting: Gumi could footnote everything, but it would be too clunky. Let Shiyu and Lao Er give their own verbal explanation.
Translated by Gumihou
Edited by Gumihou
The 12th and 11th Martial Uncles must have plenty to talk about now that his illness was completely cured. Therefore, Shiyu left them to it and ran to her room. Once the door shut, she called Fat Cat out.
“Look, look, I have the Thunder Seed! What should I do next to help Lao Er Cultivate?” Shiyu was nearly hopping in place with excitement.
Fat Cat narrowed his eyes at the Thunder Seed. The lightning flashing from the seed was very weak. No wonder, it had been fending off evil spirits for the better part of a decade. No matter how strong it might have been, it would be severely weakened by now.
“It’s lucky that this Thunder Seed is so weak. Otherwise, the child might not be able to refine it,” said Fat Cat. “First, have the child soak in a medicinal bath to push his body to the very best condition. Once done, take a few large jars of the Spring of Life water out. As to whether he can successfully refine the seed, that’s all up to him.”
These special seeds were spiritual things born of Heaven and Earth. Therefore, how could they allow themselves to be easily refined by humans? Unless one is resolute in their conviction, they would never be able to conquer these special spiritual seeds.
Shiyu remembered her first experience refining a Fire Seed and nodded. She would do her best to prepare Lao Er.
Within the space were lots of rare herbs. Most of them were gifts from the 12th Martial Uncle. [2] Some were picked from the medicinal field around the cottage back at Leisurely Cloud Pavilion. Others were Fire Attribute herbs or plants that she had bought for Old Gu to ‘treat’ 11th Martial Uncle with. Shiyu had split those with Old Gu since Lin Fan could also make use of Fire Attribute herbs.
This meant that Shiyu’s collection of herbs was once again very substantial. It did not take long for her to locate all the needed herbs for a medicinal bath. Once she had collected all the necessary herbs, Shiyu called Lao Er in.
When she shut the door behind him, Lao Er glanced at his sister anxiously. There were only two of them in the room.
“Sister, is something wrong?”
Shiyu smiled and opened her hand. The Thunder Seed was only the size of her thumbnail. It emitted a faint, bluish-purple glow. Now and then, tiny flashes of lightning arched around it.
“Is this a Thunder Seed?” Lao Er suddenly grew excited too. “Wait, wasn’t this on 11th Martial Uncle’s body?”
When 11th Martial Uncle first came in, he had noticed the pendant on the man’s chest. It was hard not to as it was the only bright thing on the frail person’s person. The rest of him was covered in that creepy miasma. He never thought that the Thunder Seed he had been dreaming of was that very same thing.
“Yes,” Shiyu nodded. “Because the 11th Martial Uncle’s sickness has been cured, he let me have this as a gift. Lao Er, once you refined this seed, you will be able to Cultivate.”
Lao Er’s heart began to quicken up. He had dreamed of this very moment. Imagining what it would like to encounter a Thunder Seed. However, now that his dream was about to come true, his entire body began to shake.
“Sister…” his eyes felt a little sour. To think that sister had kept his wish in her heart all this while… [3] to think that she would go this far just to fulfil this foolish dream of his… If this sister of his had not gone looking for this seed, he was afraid that this dream might have remained a dream the rest of his life.
“Don’t be too happy yet.” Knowing how excited her brother must be, she had gone through the same excitement with her first Fire Seed, but now was not the time to be overwhelmed by happiness. “You better not think that this little Thunder Seed is easy to refine. Let me tell you, this seed is weak now and it’s the best time to refine it. However, success is not guaranteed.
I will help you prepare for maximum success, but whether or not you can do it, it’s all up to you. Moreover, Thunder Seeds are inherently violent. If you’re not careful, you could die. If it were up to me, I won’t even let you take this risk. However, I also know that you have the same disposition as me and would rather die than live a mundane life.”
At this, Lao Er understood that he would soon be facing a life and death test of his resolve to become a Cultivator. He tried to calm his racing heart and said, “I understand. I am too excited now and won’t have a good chance of succeeding. Please let me prepare myself first. Let me try when I am ready.”
Seeing her little brother doing his best to keep his head made Shiyu nod in approval. Considering how this child was the same child who had stubbornly trained himself against real Cultivators, it was an unexpected pleasure to see him be reasonable under these circumstances.
Yes, now that she thought about it, Lao Er’s reckless behaviour from before must have been beaten out of him while training with the Lin Clan, and later at the College. Those people may not openly mock him, but they would not hesitate to mock him in private. No matter what, though disdain may not pass their lips, their eyes would not lie.
Above all, Lao Er knew himself best and eventually learned the principle of not picking fights he could not win. Instead of recklessly charging into situations, he would consider the pros and cons of his actions and decide whether he could bear the consequences of his actions before acting on his impulse.
Over time, his character grew calmer and more cautious. This could be considered a pleasant surprise for Shiyu who had barely seen him in a year.
“That’s right, sister, would you grant me a name?” Lao Er’s eyes shone. “Once I enter the world of martial arts, surely I can’t carry the name Lao Er forever? I want a more heroic sounding name!”
Shiyu couldn’t help laughing at his enthusiasm. This Lao Er of hers had been so calm and mature that it was quite unusual to see him act his age like a restless teenager.
“Yes, yes, yes, give me some time to think about it.”
After all, who doesn’t harbour a secret wish to become famous?
Therefore, it’s not surprising that Lao Er would want a good name for himself. Speaking of which, the rest of her precious little radishes did not have proper names either. She should think of names for the rest too.
“What do you think of Shi Yi? [4] Yi for ‘leisurely’ or ‘outstanding’? Or Shi Xin? Xin for ‘confidence’ or ‘faith’?” Hmm, none of them sounded very lucky. Both are homophones for ‘frustration’ and ‘disappointment’…
Lao Er shook his head, “It’s not the same as sister’s. Since sister is called Yu for ‘jade’, just call me Jin for ‘gold’. I think Shi Jin is a good name. As for the rest of our brothers and sister, we can just call them Shi Yin, Shi Tong and Shi Tie.”
Shiyu, “… …” What the- you want to be known as Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron?
“Aren’t these names too random…?
“If they don’t like it, they can pick new names in the future,” said Lao Er straightforwardly. “I shall be known as Shi Jin from now on.”
Well, the naming issue was more or less settled that way. Shiyu privately resolved to discuss the naming of the rest of the siblings later… For now, the important thing to do was to adjust Lao Er’s body. Since there were plenty of other people at the villa, she took him deep into a forest on the outskirts of the Imperial City.
They found a suitable looking cave and entered it. After ensuring that it was safe, secure and more importantly, unoccupied, they settled down to begin the cleansing ritual.
Shiyu brought out a large bathtub, filled it with water and used her fire to bring the temperature up. Next, she took out a clean cloth bag filled with various precious medicinal herbs. After purifying the medicine with her fire, she allowed the ball of shimmering liquid medicine to sink into the tub. The clear water slowly turned green. The area around the tub began to grow dense with Spiritual Energy.
Once she deemed the medicinal bath ready, Shiyu said, “This is to remove excess impurities within your body. Getting rid of the impurities now means that you will suffer less later. However, that doesn’t mean it won’t be painful. You must grit your teeth and bear it.”
After that final instruction, Shiyu left. Leaving behind a few buckets and jars of Spring of Life water, more medicinal herbs and Fat Cat. She sat by the mouth of the cave, committing herself to protect the area from outside interference. After all, though they call themselves siblings and were indeed closer than most blood siblings, they were still a pair of young man and woman. Moreover, it’s not like Shiyu could help Lao Er better than Fat Cat. If something went wrong in the refining process, Fat Cat would be more knowledgeable and better equipped to help her brother.
Shiyu spread her awareness around the area and sat down to meditate. Anyone or anything that breaches this net of mental awareness would alert her immediately. For now, the best thing she could do was secure the area and prevent anything from disturbing them.
[Gumihou: Oooh, I can’t wait! Work hard, Lao Er! I mean, Shi Jin!]
[1] Gumihou is keeping track so that you don’t have to ~
[2] Additional Details for Descriptive Purpose: Let’s mention the garden at Leisurely Cloud Sect as well as the random errands Old Gu had them do to establish continuity, yeah?
[3] Adjusted the Language for Dramatic Purpose: It’s an emotional moment, refined it to my best ability.
[4] Creative Information Planting: Gumi could footnote everything, but it would be too clunky. Let Shiyu and Lao Er give their own verbal explanation.
RECENTLY UPDATES
Action
Action
Drama
Mystery
Fantasy
Action
Action
Fantasy