Under One Person: Starting with the Dual Cultivation of Body and Soul

"Grandpa, how can we cultivators be so pessimistic, always saying that we're on our last legs? Maybe one day you'll succeed?" Li Chang'an said.

"It's done?" Lu Jin was taken aback. "Done what?"

"Reverse three and return to one," Li Chang'an said.

Lu Jin was stunned, opened her mouth, but ultimately couldn't say anything.

How could he bear to dampen the enthusiasm of a child who had just begun their spiritual practice?!

"I'm very pleased that you have this idea."

Lu Jin smiled and said, "The sect will have successors. Don't cultivate today. Go and say goodbye to your family. Go to the Lu family with your grandfather tomorrow."

As the head of the Lu family, it was somewhat inappropriate for Lu Jin to be gone for several months. Moreover, the Li family did not have many of the resources for reverse cultivation.

He couldn't wait to bring Li Chang'an back for systematic training.

"Yes, sir."

Li Chang'an stood up and walked out. He didn't take the matter too seriously. The Li family and the Lu family were both in East China, not far apart. There was no need to make it seem like a life-or-death separation; he could go back anytime he wanted.

……

……

The next morning.

Li Chang'an got up to practice his spiritual cultivation.

My luggage was packed last night—a small canvas bag containing a few changes of clothes and my meditation diary.

The eight-sided Han sword that Lu Jin gave him was not easy to carry around, so it was put in a long wooden box and wrapped in a layer of blue cloth.

Li Chang'an carried a canvas bag and a sword, went out to say goodbye to his family one by one, and then followed Lu Jin to the train station.

When going through security, Li Chang'an gave the sword to Lu Jin and put it into the sword pouch.

Upon entering the train station, Lu Jin bought two soft-seat tickets and boarded the train with Li Chang'an.

It wasn't the Spring Festival travel rush, so there weren't many people in the carriage. Li Chang'an sat by the window, watching the scenery outside recede into the distance.

Lu Jin was reading a newspaper she had bought on her way to the train station.

In this day and age, various news portals are already quite common, but they are still using 2G networks. Opening a website can take several minutes. Not only is the network speed slow, but in many places there is no network at all.

Therefore, even though Lu Jin was a very trendy old man, he could only pick up the newspaper again to read.

There is no high-speed rail yet, but the railway network in East China is very developed. It was also upgraded a month or two ago, and some sections can even reach 200 kilometers per hour. So, not long after, the train pulled into Suzhou Station.

The grandfather and grandson walked out of the station, where a black sedan was already parked.

The driver was a middle-aged man in his forties. When he saw Lu Jin come out, he quickly went up to her and took her luggage.

"Master, Second Master sent me to fetch you!"

Thank you for your trouble!

Lu Jin nodded and opened the car door for Li Chang'an to get in first.

The car drove out of the station and through the streets of Suzhou.

Looking out the car window, Li Chang'an saw white-walled, black-tiled houses passing by on both sides, and willows along the riverbank just sprouting new buds, their branches drooping softly over the water.

After about thirty minutes, the car stopped in front of a large mansion; we had arrived at the Lu Family Compound.

The Lu Family Compound is in Gusu, the same Gusu that Murong Fu lived in.

Before Li Chang'an even got out of the car, he saw a large group of people standing at the gate. Most of them were elderly men with gray hair and children; there were very few middle-aged and young people.

Lu Jin's face darkened; he disliked ostentation and such things the most.

He opened the car door, got out with Li Chang'an, and said with a displeased expression:

"What are you doing? What are you doing piling up at the door?"

A thin, gray-haired old man said with a smile, "Father, we heard you've taken on an apprentice, so we're just curious."

Another old man chimed in with a smile, "That's right, Uncle. After searching for so many years, we've finally found a suitable successor. We've come to take a look."

Lu Jin looked surprised: "How did you know I took on a disciple?"

When he went to the Li family, he didn't tell his family that he was going to take on a disciple; he only said that he was going to visit an old friend.

Only he, Li Chang'an, and some members of the Li family knew about this from beginning to end. How come it's like everyone knows it as soon as he gets home?

Who leaked the information?

"That's what the old master said," the thin old man said with a smile.

Li Chang'an: "..."

Lu Jin: "..."

How could you forget to open your mouth wide?

Lu Jin still remembers that once when he was chatting with Tian Jinzhong at Longhu Mountain, they talked about how Zhang Zhiwei had slapped him so hard that he cried back then at the Lu family compound.

Tian Jinzhong said that the old Celestial Master instructed Zhang Zhiwei not to publicize the matter.

Within two days, even the vegetable vendors on Longhu Mountain knew about it. Every time they met him, they would say that his apprentice had made something of himself, beating up a young master from a prestigious family who had made him cry, which had greatly angered the old Celestial Master.

Lu Jin was also furious. Anyway, once something gets out of Zhang Da's mouth, it's no different from everyone knowing.

Li Chang'an couldn't help but chuckle. The old Celestial Master was so old, yet he still had such a temperament!

Perhaps this is what true nature is—a genuine love of sharing and an inability to keep secrets.

At this moment, all eyes were on him.

"Father, is this your new apprentice?"

The thin old man sized up Li Chang'an, his gaze lingering on his face for a moment before he nodded and exclaimed in admiration:

"His eyes are clear and bright, full of spirit and energy. This is not something an ordinary child can possess."

"As expected of your uncle's disciple!" another old man laughed.

"How old are you? I wonder if you've reached the Foundation Establishment stage yet?"

"It looks to me like he's already reached the foundation stage. Look at him standing there, rooted to the spot, completely still and unshakable. That shows he has a strong foundation!"

"My uncle searched for decades before finally finding this disciple. How could his foundation be anything but good? Look at his eyes, so clear and bright. Nowadays, kids are either too playful or have too many worries. This child's eyes are so clear and bright; you can tell he has a calm mind."

The elderly men took turns praising Li Chang'an from head to toe.

Surrounded by so many people praising him, Li Chang'an felt a little uncomfortable.

The once calm lake of my heart was now rippling as if a handful of pebbles had been thrown in, giving rise to a multitude of thoughts.

These thoughts are a response to their praise.

This is undoubtedly a form of self-shaping.

Many children have gone through this kind of shaping.

Especially during holidays when elders gather together.

The children who are molded will either be precocious and worldly-wise, or have limited self-expression and anxiety.

Li Chang'an, in his intermediate state, witnessed the process of self-creation.

He could see clearly that all sorts of thoughts were mixed together, like a tangled mess, including shame, embarrassment, joy, excitement, vanity... These thoughts rose and fell, impacting his own consciousness, urging him to respond to the outside world.

Li Chang'an naturally wouldn't accept this kind of shaping, so he quickly began to suppress these thoughts and try to calm himself down.

At the entrance of the compound, after praising Li Chang'an, a group of elders looked at him, anticipating his reaction.