Journey to the West: The Immortal Clan Begins by Feeding Monkeys at Five Elements Mountain

Chapter 101 My mind is unsettled, the new house is settled.

The next morning, the Jiang family courtyard was unusually quiet, without the slightest sound of weapons clashing.

It's not that I'm lazy.

The family got up early as usual, but they all huddled together in the shady grass behind the old house.

A chill swept over us, the shadows of the grass were blurred, and as soon as we sat down, we felt a chill that made our bones shiver.

What's even more difficult is to stay focused and guard your spirit, so that the illusion doesn't slip through your fingers.

But Jiang Ming seemed to be sitting in his study, his clothes still, his expression indifferent, holding an old primer in his hand, speaking slowly and softly.

He spoke slowly but very clearly, like the gentle sound of flowing water, seeping into people's hearts little by little.

Although Jiang Yi had read many books, when he listened to his eldest son's words of guidance, he felt as if the stagnation in his chest that had accumulated over the years had suddenly been pierced through in one breath.

The logic that I couldn't understand in the past has been swept away like dust.

His brows relaxed a bit, and a smile appeared at the corners of his eyes.

This path may be slower, but it is more solid and stable.

He had been burdened with the responsibility of raising his eldest son and had been hiding away for too long, but now it seems that he has finally found his footing and a path has been opened up before him.

The little girl, Jiang Xi, couldn't sit still. She kept swaying left and right, looking around, and when she got close, she would lean against her second brother's legs.

But the title of "First Deputy Leader" weighed her down, so although she was talkative, she didn't dare to really cause trouble.

He was quick-witted, and occasionally a seemingly silly question would somehow land him on the crucial point of the lecture notes, forcing Jiang Ming to turn his head and explain in detail.

Liu Xiulian, on the other hand, sat cross-legged steadily and properly, her eyes fixed straight ahead and her spirit undistracted, her whole being resembling a still body of water.

The one who endured the most hardship was Jiang Liang.

This kid isn't lazy; he sits up straighter than anyone else.

But as I listened to every word, my mind became increasingly confused, like someone who had just woken up from a drunken stupor, not fully sober, but even more dizzy.

Soon, sweat beaded on his forehead and dripped down his temples.

But he was the kind of person who was stubborn and inflexible.

Without uttering a sound or shirking his duties, he simply stared intently at the book, as if trying to melt the words with his gaze before swallowing it whole.

Seeing this, Jiang Ming neither urged nor got angry, but simply read and spoke sentence by sentence.

As the sun rose higher and the chill dissipated, the biting cold in the grass softened.

Only then did Jiang Ming gently close the book, shake his sleeves, and get up to go to the school.

Jiang Yi and Liu Xiulian also parted ways to attend to their family matters.

Jiang Liang was left sitting there, looking like a lost soldier.

He stared blankly at the grass, at the sky, and at the increasingly unfamiliar page of the scripture.

After dinner, the sky darkened a bit, and the wind picked up, making the shadows of the trees behind the house rustle.

But the courtyard was not deserted; instead, it became lively.

Jiang Ming kept his word and didn't let his underlings suffer in the early morning cold wind for nothing. He led his men to set up their stances in the courtyard and taught the new stick-wielding techniques.

Unlike the old-fashioned staff techniques that focused on regulating qi and nourishing the body, this technique exudes killing intent from the moment it begins, and its edge is concealed when it ends. It strikes fiercely and ends ruthlessly.

Jiang Liang was fighting with great enthusiasm, as if he had found a treasure. His steps followed the moves, his hands moved with the stick, and his whole body was filled with a fiery aura.

His face was radiant, and his eyes shone brightly, completely unlike the bewildered look he had when reading in the morning.

Jiang Yi stood under the corridor for a while without saying a word. When the wind subsided, he slowly walked over and stood beside Jiang Ming.

The voice was low, very low, just a whispered sentence:
"In your opinion, is your brother's decision... really going to be finalized?"

Jiang Ming, who had been calm, frowned slightly upon hearing this question, no longer as composed as he had been yesterday.

After a long pause, he lowered his voice and said:

"Disaster."

It was just a single word, spoken so lightly, yet like a pebble thrown into a lake of the heart, it sank deep and solid.

After speaking, he seemed to feel the weight of the words, paused, and then slowly added:
"But Father, there's no need to worry too much. With his current level of composure, he should be able to keep it under control for the next three to five years. There's still time to find another way."

Jiang Yi listened without saying a word.

He knew his eldest son well; he was meticulous and always planned carefully before acting.

Since he's already said it, he's probably already inquired about it. But judging from his tone, even the one in the back mountain probably doesn't know what to do about it.

It's not that the person is incompetent.

However, they are on the right path of ascending to higher realms and cultivating the great path of the unity of all things, emphasizing the self-illumination of the mind and the inner cultivation of the spirit.

It's understandable that I haven't explored such unconventional paths as "peace of mind and tranquility."

A breeze stirred in the courtyard, circling the pillars, causing the lamplight to flicker and casting dappled shadows on the wall.

Jiang Liang continued striking with the stick, his steps firm and his shoulders steady. Sweat dripped down his chin, but his eyes shone like newly lit lamps.

His expression was as if he was afraid he would forget the moves after sleeping through the night.

While the effects of the medicine are still on and your memory is still sharp, you must memorize all those new moves into your very bones.

Jiang Yi stood under the eaves, watching quietly.

For a moment, whether it was the shock from the blow or the chill from the wind, I couldn't help but feel a little depressed.

It felt like a stone was pressing down on me; it wasn't heavy, but it was substantial and wouldn't fall apart.

The next morning, the grass tips in the yard were still covered with dew, and the whole family sat together on the shady grass behind the old house.

Jiang Xi shrank her neck, her nose red from the cold, but her back remained straight.

She knew this was a serious matter and dared not slack off.

But she was still just a little girl, and after sitting for a while, she became distracted, her eyes wandering aimlessly around the edge of the grass.

And indeed, she saw it.

The young man from the Liu family, dressed in shorts, was passing by the courtyard of the old house when he paused and met the little girl's burning gaze.

Jiang Xi's eyes lit up, as if she had caught a deserter. She darted out and pulled the person into the grass in three quick steps.

He kept insisting, "I can't be the only one suffering!"

The young man from the Liu family didn't hesitate and let her pull him. When they reached the edge of the grass, he didn't refuse and found a place to sit down.

At first, he sat upright with his eyes fixed and his whole body tense.

But as they listened, their initial restraint gradually dissipated, and their expression calmed down.

The seemingly plain and simple text actually possessed a certain power that swept away his restlessness.

Jiang Yi was sitting not far away. He turned his head slightly and his gaze fell on the Liu family's boy.

The child sat upright, his expression calm and his eyes serene.

Despite his young age, he showed no signs of impetuosity and seemed to genuinely listen to what was being said.

Jiang Yi's heart stirred slightly, and his gaze lingered for a moment longer as old memories quietly surfaced in his mind.

The head of the Liu family estate had mentioned it briefly when introducing the three levels of spiritual cultivation.

They said their family's ancestral method of self-cultivation involved "regulating the breath to nourish the spirit and concentrating the mind to guard the heart," a method that was extremely orthodox and tranquil.

Although it may not be a true orthodox method, one can still steadily enter the state of "concentration of mind," depending on whether one can keep one's mind focused and one's breath undisturbed.

This cold land beneath our feet is covered with Illusory Yin Grass, precisely for refining elixirs of tranquility that align with this path.

Jiang Yi thought that since this method was passed down from their ancestors, it was most likely not to be passed on to outsiders, so he did not covet it.

But now that the thought has arisen, the words spoken by Master Liu over tea that day resurface.

"If the two countries can learn from each other's strengths and make up for each other's weaknesses, they might be able to go even further..."

Sitting in the chill, Jiang Yi unconsciously stroked his knee with his fingers, his brows furrowing slightly, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

These days of lecturing and expounding on Buddhist scriptures and doctrines passed by in the blink of an eye.

Jiang Yi sat on the grass, the air was cold, but his mind became clearer.

In contrast, Jiang Liang, standing to the side, still had a furrowed brow, flipping through the pages of his book for a long time, but still couldn't find the key to the book.

Fortunately, the way of Heaven is not entirely restrictive.

Just when this period of quiet meditation was proving difficult, another piece of good news arrived.

The new house in Longshan County has finally been settled.

(End of this chapter)