Chapter 56: No Regrets for the Idealist

Liang Yan had already formed many conjectures in his mind, but he had not expected her to make such a request. For a moment, he failed to react and stood frozen in place.

Seeing his silence, Yan Xinyu mistakenly assumed he was dissatisfied and intended to haggle. She thought to herself, "In the end, he is merely someone waiting to be appraised; I should first use kind words to persuade him."

Though she felt disdain in her heart, she did not show it on her face. Maintaining a gentle expression, she said, "If it were any other woman, it would be one thing, but Tang Diexian's status is extraordinary. It is absolutely impossible for her to be with a disciple like you. I have experienced the awakening of romantic feelings myself; compared to the pursuit of the Dao, such things are merely passing clouds. Listen to my advice: getting entangled with her will bring you nothing but harm."

Liang Yan's gaze grew cold as he suddenly asked, "Is this your intention, or Tang Diexian's?"

Yan Xinyu sighed and said, "Why ask what you already know? Her refusal to see you makes her attitude quite clear, does it not?"

Upon hearing this, Liang Yan sneered, "If it were her own intention, why wouldn't she come and tell me herself? Although this junior is dull and lacks the insight and cultivation of the Lord of the Zither, I am not so easily fooled."

Yan Xinyu frowned, thinking, *This boy is indeed no pushover. He uses the title 'Lord of the Zither' to flatter me, hoping I will consider my reputation and refrain from using my superior status to suppress him.*

She cleared her throat and said, "She has already returned to seclusion to focus solely on the Dao; naturally, she has no interest in dealing with your trivial matters. If you find the conditions I proposed unsatisfactory, you may propose your own. As long as your request is not too excessive, I can decide to grant it."

By now, Liang Yan was filled with nameless rage, yet he still suppressed his temper and said slowly, "Liang is not a man of insatiable greed. Everything the Dao Lord just mentioned is of immense benefit..."

Thinking he had come to his senses, Yan Xinyu smiled slightly, intending to say something, only for Liang Yan to continue, "Unfortunately, none of these are what Liang seeks. What Liang seeks... is a heart without regret."

Yan Xinyu's expression changed instantly, and she said coldly, "It seems you intend to persist in this harassment? Hmph, have you looked at yourself? You are a piece of filth—your five elements are chaotic, your aptitude is inferior, and even reaching Foundation Establishment in this lifetime is a delusion! Instead of minding your own business, you dream of climbing the social ladder. If you have even a shred of self-awareness, I advise you: accept the benefits now while they are available. If you remain obstinate, you will end up with nothing but an empty basket!"

Liang Yan had been suppressing a belly full of anger because he found it inconvenient to lash out against a Lord of the Dao. But hearing this sentence, blood rushed to his head. He stood up abruptly from the stone stool and said loudly

"The Dao Lord has 'considered me in every way,' truly worthy of being a senior of this sect. I must thank you in advance! However, I am poorly informed and have never heard that practitioners of the Zither also practice divination. The Dao Lord has predicted that I shall never reach Foundation Establishment in this life, but I do not believe in such superstitions. I must try for myself. One must know that while Heaven may determine fate, Man can also overcome Heaven!"

Yan Xinyu narrowed her eyes and said coldly, "Boy, you are being incredibly boastful, making reckless comments about the Heavenly Dao. When you truly encounter your own bottleneck, you will know how helpless you are. I have seen many like you; they have all turned to yellow dust, and I cannot even remember their names."

Liang Yan burst into laughter. "Cultivating the Dao is for attaining immortality, but it is also for the freedom of the heart! I cultivate only to ensure my heart has no regrets. If I were to agree to the Dao Lord's request today for the sake of a little favor, I fear my state of mind would be damaged, and I would truly be destined to never touch the Great Dao in this life."

"You—" Yan Xinyu's face stiffened. She wanted to say more, but Liang Yan cut her off with a laugh

"The Dao Lord need not worry. Although I am merely a handyman disciple with mediocre talent, I am not the type to pester someone. Since the Dao Lord says I cannot reach Foundation Establishment, then I shall test it. I can guarantee you this: as long as I have not reached Foundation Establishment, I will not meet her! As for the position of Outer Sect Deacon you mentioned, I am inexperienced and unfit for such a heavy responsibility; leave it to the other senior brothers!"

With that, he bowed to Yan Xinyu and turned to leave without looking back.

Watching his departing figure, Yan Xinyu thought to herself, *He walks away just like that, treating me, a Lord of the Dao, as if I am nothing. But he has calculated my mindset perfectly: first, I value my status and it is inconvenient to strike at him; second, it is currently difficult to explain things to Xian'er. Hmph, in terms of wit, this man is a talent. But can the path of cultivation be swayed by such petty cleverness? Very well, since you have built your own prison, I shall see how you manage to reach Foundation Establishment in this life.*

After dismissing Yan Xinyu, Liang Yan quickly left Listening Plum Peak and returned alone to his thatched cottage in the Apricot Grove. Although he was not an impetuous person, he was still young and hot-blooded; provoked by Yan Xinyu's words, he had lost control for a moment and had openly clashed with a Lord of the Dao.

While he did not covet her favors, he could not guarantee she wouldn't strike at him in secret later. Thinking of this, Liang Yan sighed and thought, *Since the bridge is already burned, there is nothing to regret. I must be even more careful in my future actions. Given her status, she won't be able to strike at me openly, otherwise she wouldn't have wasted so much breath on me.*

*The most critical thing right now is to quickly increase my strength. To others, my Qi Refining cultivation is nothing more than an ant that can be crushed at any time; there is naturally no respect or fairness to be found.*

Liang Yan took a deep breath to calm his turbulent mind. He flipped his hand to take a piece of parchment inscribed with the "Thunder Training Technique" from his storage bag and began to cultivate.

Since the incident at Listening Plum Peak and his fallout with Yan Xinyu, Wang Yuan had not assigned him any tasks. It was unclear whether this was due to instructions from Yan Xinyu or if Wang Yuan simply believed Liang Yan's promotion to an Outer Sect disciple was a certainty and wanted to curry favor in advance.

Regardless of the reason, Liang Yan enjoyed the peace. During the day, he diligently practiced secret techniques like the Thunder Training Technique and the Red Pine Needle Formula in his cottage; at night, he practiced his cultivation methods in the Spirit Spring Cave to increase his strength. He tried to make one day feel like two, not daring to waste even a single minute. Thus, another ten days passed.

One evening, Liang Yan sat cross-legged on his bed in the cottage. He held his index and middle fingers together like a sword, with blue light flickering upon them and faint threads of electricity swirling around. His expression was calm as he muttered incantations. As the electric threads gathered more and more with the movement of his spiritual power, just as a blue orb of light was about to form, Liang Yan suddenly pointed toward the window and shouted, "Go!"

The blue orb flashed and transformed into a bolt of arc lightning, racing toward the window. *Boom!* It struck an empty patch of ground outside, exploding a pit about a foot deep and leaving the surrounding surface charred black. In the silent night, the thunder was exceptionally loud, startling Li Dali and Sun Qianli. However, once they realized it was Liang Yan practicing magic, they both curled their lips in unison and returned to their respective rooms.

Liang Yan withdrew his technique, a hint of dissatisfaction appearing in his eyes.

"The power of the Thunder Training Technique is indeed extraordinary, but it takes me too long to condense the lightning Qi, and I cannot control its release at will. I am still some distance from the stage of minor mastery..."

Although Liang Yan was not entirely satisfied with his progress, he knew this could not be rushed and required more hard work.

"Calculating the time, today is the day I promised to play chess with Senior Hou Musheng. I have already broken our appointment twice because of the incident in Yongle Town; I wonder if the old gentleman will still be waiting for me at Cangmu Peak today."

Liang Yan felt quite grateful toward Hou Musheng. Although Hou Musheng had never mentioned becoming his master and treated him only as a friend of a different generation, Liang Yan had long since regarded him as a mentor. If not for the "Law of the Unsettled Heart" he had created, Liang Yan might never have broken through to the third level of Qi Refining in this lifetime.

"Right, that strange red orb inside my body—I can just as well ask the old gentleman about it to see if there is a way to eradicate it completely!" Realizing this, Liang Yan immediately jumped off the bed, pushed open the wooden door of the cottage, and strode toward Cangmu Peak.

(End of Chapter)