Chapter 5: A Shallow Affinity, Nothing More

The moment Li Qingyun stepped through the door, the gaze of the graceful young woman in white slid toward him — curious, languid, and faintly imperious.

She looked him over with a subtly elevated air, as though peering down from a height.

He sensed something cool and unrestrained in her eyes. It was not an ordinary glance but a kind of scrutiny — even appraisal.

"Features like a painting, yet by nature she seems cold and indifferent..."

A thought stirred in his heart, and he quietly lowered his gaze.

To any observer, it would look as though he had been struck by the young Daoist woman's beauty and did not dare meet her eyes.

A little bashful, a little shy — perfectly in keeping with the nature of a sixteen-year-old boy.

Having grown up in the treacherous depths of the Marquis's manor, Li Qingyun had long since mastered the necessary art of performance. Displaying a touch of youthful infatuation now came without the slightest flaw.

Giggle.

The graceful young woman found his reaction rather interesting. A light smile curved her lips, and some of the coldness in her eyes softened.

Lin Wanjin gave the young woman a respectful nod and lowered his voice to remind Li Qingyun:

"This is Senior Sister Lu Liqian — Master Lu's beloved daughter. From now on, Junior Brother, you'd best not show her any disrespect!"

Li Qingyun gave a slight nod.

He committed the name to memory.

Yet his instincts told him that this Senior Sister Lu Liqian was someone he would be better off keeping at a distance.

"You must be Li Qingyun. As is customary, offer a cup of tea, receive the Qi Absorption Art, and then you may go..."

At that moment, the middle-aged Daoist seated at the center of the grand hall — clad in a purple robe — spoke up in a somewhat languid tone, idly turning a gleaming jade ruler in his hand.

According to Lin Wanjin's earlier introduction, this middle-aged Daoist was Li Qingyun's nominal master and the Keeper of Records at Lingbao Temple: Lu Nanling.

Lu Nanling wore a dark black Daoist robe embroidered with golden thread. His features were handsome, his skin pale and luminous, his eyes bright with vitality — altogether a figure of considerable bearing.

Yet when his gaze fell upon Li Qingyun, his manner and tone were utterly casual, bordering on indifferent.

As the esteemed Keeper of Records of Lingbao Temple, wasting time on a "worthless" disciple naturally left him with little patience.

Each year, in order to accumulate resources for his daughter's cultivation foundation, he issued all ten Dao Affinity Tokens within his authority — and had thus taken on a great many nominal disciples.

Through Lu Nanling's cultivator's eye, the young man in the hall was plainly deficient in both qi and blood, his vitality depleted and his spirit dim. His Three Treasures were dull and withered — even worse than the nominal disciples he had taken on before.

He thought to himself: "Many years ago, when I traveled through Qinghe County searching for Clear Yang Fish, I accepted the Marquis of Qinghe's invitation and tested this young lord's Dao Bone and Spiritual Root. The boy had not the slightest trace of either. Seeing him now, he is even more wretched than before — he cannot even restrain his own desires..."

Had it not been for the cartload of fine Cinnabar and two Clear Yang Fish the Marquis of Qinghe had sent just days ago, he would not have bothered meeting the boy at all — he would simply have shunted Li Qingyun off to the menial servants' courtyard to do chores.

After all, illegitimate sons and daughters with a bit of family background, like Li Qingyun, mostly came to the mountain gate to idle away their days. Expecting them to one day enter true cultivation and bring honor to the sect was utterly unrealistic.

These ordinary folk — they squeezed their way into the gates of various Daoist temples by any means necessary, seeking shelter from demons and monsters, hoping for a powerful backer and a comfortable life. That was all there was to it.

"Junior Brother Li, quickly offer tea to Master. From this day on, we are fellow disciples under Master Lu!"

Lin Wanjin handed Li Qingyun a cup of hot tea and gestured for him to step forward and present it to Lu Nanling.

It was clear that Senior Brother Lin had long grown accustomed to this and knew Master Lu Nanling's temperament and habits well.

Li Qingyun's handsome face grew composed. He accepted the teacup.

In his heart, he paid no mind to Lu Nanling's attitude.

Maintaining a respectful posture, he carried the tea forward and bowed to Lu Nanling, whose expression was relaxed and whose gaze wandered slightly.

"Disciple Li Qingyun pays his respects to Master Lu!"

After speaking, he hesitated for a moment, then began to kneel.

Since he was here to pay his respects and observe the rites of a disciple, kneeling seemed appropriate.

He had entered the temple on the strength of Lu Nanling's Dao Affinity Token — by all reckoning, he now belonged to Master Lu's lineage.

But his body stiffened mid-motion as a gentle, cloud-like force surged toward him, catching and supporting him before he could kneel.

At the same moment, the teacup vanished from his hands, reappearing in Lu Nanling's grasp as if by magic.

Lu Nanling took a casual sip of tea, waved his hand, and said with a mild smile:

"No need to kneel. Since you entered on my Dao Affinity Token, you should already know something of the situation."

This Keeper Lu was rather candid and straightforward.

"Demons, ghosts, and monsters roam the world. Too many people wish to take refuge within the gates of a Daoist mountain, seeking protection. Each year I issue ten Dao Affinity Tokens as gifts to those with a measure of affinity. But this is a shallow affinity — nothing more. It ends here."

"When you have truly made progress in your cultivation — when you have condensed One Furnace of Dharma Power — come back then, and it will not be too late for us to properly become master and disciple."

Hearing these words from Lu Nanling, who did not even bother to conceal his meaning, Li Qingyun felt a sudden clarity.

This Dao Affinity Token, obtained so easily, truly carried no real weight.

A nominal master was not so easily claimed after all.

But thinking it over, Li Qingyun felt at peace with it.

"A master like this — better not to have one. It saves future entanglements."

He understood Lu Nanling's meaning clearly.

From childhood, he had been tested by Daoist priests from the various temples around Qinghe County — including Lingbao Temple — and it had been confirmed: he possessed neither Dao Bone nor Spiritual Root.

In the world of cultivation, he was a complete failure, with no hope of achievement.

To have entered Lingbao Temple at all — riding on the coattails of Lu Nanling's indiscriminate, profit-driven Dao Affinity Tokens — and to secure half a lifetime of peace was already a stroke of fortune.

Being a cultivation failure, how could he dare ask for more?

As for the One Furnace of Dharma Power Lu Nanling had mentioned — Li Qingyun had gathered some knowledge of cultivation while still at the manor. He knew that one furnace's worth represented the universally recognized minimum threshold for entering cultivation in this world's sects, signifying that one had officially stepped into the Qi Refinement Realm.

"This disciple takes his leave..."

Having thought it through, Li Qingyun wasted no time. Maintaining a cupped-fist salute, he stepped back a few paces.

Then he stopped, standing straight as a pine — and did not leave.

"Give me the Treasure Furnace Qi Absorption Art — wasn't there supposed to be a technique included?"

He muttered inwardly.

"Hehe, this little Junior Brother is rather amusing! Father, he's afraid you won't give him the Treasure Furnace Qi Absorption Art!"

The charming young woman at the jade table could not help but laugh softly at the sight, her laughter like the chime of a clear bell — pleasant and melodious.

Her gem-bright eyes shimmered with a flicker of interest as she looked Li Qingyun over once more, studying his bearing and appearance.

She decided that, aside from the obvious signs of excessive indulgence, the boy's looks and temperament were actually quite fine.

In particular, his frail yet self-contained air — and what seemed like a stubborn, youthful earnestness — stirred a faint and unusual ripple in her heart. Something like pity, or perhaps something else entirely...