Chapter Thirty: The Dojo Ascends

At the very instant when the vibrant spiritual spring emerged from the heart of the mountain, the entire Red Pine Mountain seemed to awaken. An indescribable, lively, and exuberant vitality surged forth! The clouds in the mountains rolled and unfurled, crystalline springs flowed through rocky crevices, and deep within the roots of pines growing from the fissures, clusters of spiritual herbs sprang up. The once withered grasses and trees on the ridges began to show hints of green, as though time itself had reversed and spring had returned once more.

A cool breeze, infused with the delicate fragrance of grass and wood, swept gently toward the gathered crowd, as if capable of cleansing the dust from their hearts. In that moment, clarity of mind emerged, and all distracting thoughts melted away. The fears harbored within everyone dissipated with the mountain wind, disappearing like snow under the sun, and the world before their eyes felt suddenly renewed.

Lin You, clad in a blue Daoist robe, sat cross-legged beneath the ancient pine. His sleeves fluttered softly in the breeze, making him seem like a true immortal from beyond the mortal realm. The aura of the Dao flowed around him, etching a faint blue mark between his brows—like the pattern of a pine or the swirling script of the clouds—radiating an ineffable sense of the Great Way. His bearing was noble, untouched by the dust of the world.

As Lin You opened his eyes, the blue mark slowly faded, and his aura gradually returned to calm, withdrawing from the state of unity with heaven and earth. His clear eyes pierced through layers of barriers, gazing at the pure spring nestled in the valley.

This was his greatest gain: a spiritual spring, born from the Dao seed, brimming with vitality. With this spring, his Daoist sanctuary had taken a critical step toward becoming a true blessed land.

In the past, the Red Pine Daoist Sanctuary, though anchored by the little jade tree that stabilized the earth’s veins, produced only a modest increase in spiritual energy. It had gone from three threads of spiritual energy per month to about five—a typical standard for ordinary spiritual grounds. Yet even these five threads per month were far from sufficient for cultivation.

Now, after Lin You planted the purple-gold Dao seed into the earth’s veins, not only did his bond with the earth deepen, but the veins themselves grew stronger. Not only did a natural spiritual spring emerge, but the monthly output of spiritual energy increased severalfold! Now, thirty threads could be produced each month—one thread born anew every day.

This spiritual energy would not dissipate, but instead gathered on the branches of the little jade tree, transforming into flawless, luminous jade leaves of spiritual energy.

However, Lin You had many needs to support such a large sanctuary. The greatest expenditure of spiritual energy at the moment was the newly born spiritual spring of vitality. Second was the ancestral pine, followed by Lin You himself. To maintain the vitality of the spiritual spring, nearly half of the monthly spiritual energy was required.

Furthermore, these fifteen threads of spiritual energy were merely the minimum required to nourish the spring, just enough to prevent it from drying up. If Lin You wished for the spring to continue growing, the investment of spiritual energy would need to be even greater.

The ancestral pine had long been conserving its resources, absorbing only three threads per month, which was far from enough. As a crucial node in the sanctuary’s earth veins, the ancestral pine played an essential role: all plants and creatures on Red Pine Peak relied on it for the cycle of yin and yang and the flow of vitality. In this age of decline, the ancestral pine had barely been surviving, unable to protect the mountain’s flora and fauna, let alone manage the earth’s negative energies and other responsibilities.

Now that Lin You’s resources had increased, he naturally restored the ancestral pine’s supply, allocating ten threads of spiritual energy each month. Thus, only five threads remained for Lin You himself.

Looking at the five remaining jade leaves on the little jade tree in his sea of consciousness, Lin You felt not a single pang of regret. He knew that investing those twenty-five threads into the sanctuary was not only necessary but the right choice. It was a long-term investment, not something that would yield immediate results. He was not short-sighted, focused only on present gains.

Red Pine Sanctuary was Lin You’s foundation. If, one day, it transformed into a blessed land, all he invested now would be returned a thousandfold. He pulled his thoughts back, sensing the joy emanating from the ancestral pine beside him, and could not help but smile.

With the changes in the sanctuary now settled, it was time to fulfill the promise he had made to Bai Yi. He looked around, but could not see Bai Yi. Lin You’s spiritual sense swept through the entire sanctuary in an instant and quickly found her, together with Liu Xiyue, who had recently ascended the mountain.

A moment’s reflection brought clarity: Bai Yi, ever perceptive, had not brought Liu Xiyue to the ancestral pine when gathering the other disciples. Since Liu Xiyue was still an outsider to the Red Pine Sanctuary, no matter how much Bai Yi liked her, she did not wish Lin You’s secrets to be revealed. Therefore, after settling the disciples, she led Liu Xiyue to another, safer place.

That location, not far from the valley, was a gentle slope near the spiritual spring. Seeing that the two, though somewhat disheveled, were unharmed, Lin You relaxed, preparing to meet Bai Yi shortly.

But before that, he had another matter to attend to: now was the perfect time to ask Elder Yu Yin about the origins of the apricot kernel.

At this moment, the other Daoists had largely dispersed under the guidance of the three elders. Only Yu Jing, Yu Yin, and Yu De remained, standing in place and waiting for Lin You.

When Lin You rose, they rushed over eagerly and asked, “Brother Yu Chen, are you all right? The earth’s veins trembled so fiercely just now—was it because of you?”

Their excitement was understandable. What had just occurred was unprecedented; they had never even heard of such a thing. How could one person command the forces of heaven and earth? Had anyone told them this before, they would not have believed it.

Yet, when it came to their younger brother, it somehow seemed perfectly reasonable.

The three looked at Lin You in astonishment, their eyes filled not with envy but with pure admiration.

Lin You bowed to them and smiled, “Thank you, brothers, for waiting here! The tremor in the earth’s veins was due to a spiritual spring being born in the valley. This spring is excellent for nourishing medicinal herbs; I suggest you move the herb fields there.”

“Is it true?” Daoist Yu Yin was overjoyed, never doubting Lin You’s words, and immediately wanted to dash to the spring to investigate. However, he stopped himself awkwardly, realizing he had forgotten to ask the location. Red Pine Peak’s terrain was connected to many mountains, with several valleys and ravines; searching them one by one would take considerable effort.

Lin You nodded, “It is indeed so. If ordinary disciples drink the water regularly, their martial aptitude will improve, and over time, they may even be reborn.”

Hearing this, even the usually calm Yu Jing’s eyes shone, barely able to contain his excitement. Yet he retained his composure, knowing that now was not the time to study the spiritual spring.

Though the tremor had caused no harm to the disciples, many old halls had collapsed. The sanctuary’s affairs were in disarray and required their attention.

Lin You saw what Yu Jing was thinking and smiled, “The sanctuary suffered considerable losses just now; it would be best if you three take charge. I will tell Elder Yu Yin the location of the spring shortly.”