ACWTE CHAPTER 32

“The Secret Art of Spiritual Cultivation”

An indescribable atmosphere spread across the top floor of Cloud-Ascending Tower.

Ji Chaoyun’s heart inexplicably began to race. For a moment, all he could hear was the wind howling past his ears. His fingers curled against the railing, and even without turning around, he could feel Feng Qi’s gaze resting on him, prickling against his back.

Ji Chaoyun closed his eyes. There was an almost imperceptible tremor at the end of his voice.

“How would I know?”

No answer came from behind him for a long while.

Then Feng Qi laughed.

“Come here. I’ll tell you.”

Ji Chaoyun slowly turned around and walked toward him beneath Feng Qi’s steady gaze. His face remained cold and unreadable, revealing nothing of what he was thinking.

Feng Qi looked up at him, then suddenly reached out with both hands and mischievously pinched Ji Chaoyun’s cheeks.

The flawless expression on Ji Chaoyun’s face finally cracked.

His eyes widened in shock, and he instinctively shrank back.

Still grinning, Feng Qi leaned closer and drawled, “Obviously, you have to defeat me in the Heaven-rank Tournament and rightfully win the use of Cloud-Ascending Tower.”

“...”

“Why are you making that face?” Feng Qi asked deliberately. “What were you thinking?”

Ji Chaoyun took a deep breath and quickly collected himself. He pushed Feng Qi’s hands away with a cold expression.

“Nothing.”

“Fine, if you say so.”

Feng Qi’s smile did not fade. He shifted to the side and patted the space beside him.

“Stop standing there. Sit.”

The couch was only large enough for one person to lie on. Although two people could sit side by side, there was not much room, and some physical contact would inevitably be unavoidable.

Ji Chaoyun had absolutely no desire to squeeze in beside him right now.

He glanced around the room, then silently walked over to the chair beside the table and sat down instead.

Feng Qi looked at his perfectly straight posture and could not decide whether to laugh or sigh.

He scared that easily?

How timid.

After all, Ji Chaoyun was no longer a young boy of merely one or two hundred years old. Feng Qi understood better than anyone the fixation in Ji Chaoyun’s heart. Until he was certain the other man could accept him, he was in no hurry to reveal his own feelings.

If he said it now, the little dragon would probably be frightened into running away and never speak to him again.

Right. He was only thinking of the little dragon’s feelings. It definitely was not because he was afraid.

Feng Qi comforted himself with that thought, cleared his throat, and looked away.

“I brought you up here because I wanted to speak with you privately about what Bai Qiuyue said today. There are too many eyes and ears in the library. It would be troublesome if someone overheard us.”

“Mm...”

Ji Chaoyun answered absentmindedly, so distracted that he did not even notice what was wrong with Feng Qi’s words.

They were the only two people in all of Cloud-Ascending Tower today.

Whose ears, exactly, would there have been to overhear anything?

Feng Qi composed himself and said, “Bai Qiuyue and I have known each other for many years. The celestial fox clan can be trusted. You don’t need to doubt him.”

“I understand.”

Ji Chaoyun glanced at Feng Qi and murmuring quietly, “If Feng Xiao trusted the celestial fox clan back then, then I trust them too.”

   Feng Xiao again...

Feng Qi forcibly suppressed his irritation toward this so-called ancestor of his and continued as though nothing had happened.

“Still, there’s no need to worry too much. You’re no longer in the Mortal Realm. Here in Hongmeng Academy, no one would dare lay a hand on you.”

“Mm.”

“At least now we know why that black-robed man wanted your phoenix feather.”

Feng Qi frowned as he spoke. “But...”

“What?”

“There’s something I’ve been thinking about ever since Bai Qiuyue told us all that.”

Feng Qi said, “If the phoenix feather really carries a key to the Demon Realm’s seal, why would Feng Xiao leave it with you?”

Ji Chaoyun froze.

A key to the Demon Realm’s seal was bound to attract countless people who wanted to seize it.

The danger of carrying such a thing was obvious.

Why would Feng Xiao place that danger upon Ji Chaoyun?

The more Feng Qi thought about it, the more at a loss for words he became. He said irritably, “That old phoenix... ahem, Divine Lord Feng Xiao. What exactly was he thinking, using you as a live target for the Demon Clan? Has he lost his mind?”

Ji Chaoyun lowered his eyes, shaking his head.

“I don’t know either. When he gave it to me, all he said was that it would protect me. He never mentioned anything beyond that.”

Feng Qi sighed. “What’s done is done. Whatever reason he had, you can only ask him yourself when you meet again someday.”

Ji Chaoyun did not answer.

Feng Qi studied his expression, then asked, “Right, what about what I mentioned earlier? Do you want to consider it?”

“What?”

“The Heaven Ranking Tournament.” Feng Qi smiled. “I’m not joking with you. There’s less than a year until the next Heaven Ranking Tournament. Don’t you want to participate? As long as you defeat me, Cloud-Ascending Tower will be yours.”

“I... I’ve never thought about it.”

“You may not have thought about it before, but you can start now.” 

Feng Qi continued, “Disciples who place in the top ten of the Heaven Ranking Tournament can skip the advancement examination and advance by one rank. If you place in the top three, you can advance directly to Heaven-rank. If you reach Heaven-rank......”

  Then they would have more time together.

Heaven-rank disciples did not have such a heavy academic workload and could often descend to the Mortal Realm together for practical training. It was certainly better than staying at the academy, where there were people everywhere they went.

Feng Qi naturally did not voice those thoughts.

Instead, he put on a serious expression.

“Don’t you want to go to the Divine Realm? Only Heaven-rank disciples are allowed to enter the Heaven-Ascending Gate. If you keep taking the examinations at this leisurely pace, year after year, how long will it take you?”

Ji Chaoyun naturally knew this rule, but the Heaven Ranking Tournament had always seemed far too distant for someone like him, leaving him little room to consider it. “But with my current cultivation...”

“There’s still so much time before the Heaven Ranking Tournament. You placed first in both examinations with Grade A results in your very first quarterly examination. Why are you already thinking of backing down?”

Ji Chaoyun shook his head.

“That’s not what I mean, but... I know the limits of my own strength. If it were only an examination, I could still manage. Yet the Heaven Ranking Tournament is a competition of cultivation and techniques. My innate aptitude is poor. There’s simply no way I can increase my cultivation that much in such a short time.”

“Raise your cultivation...”

Feng Qi suddenly thought of something. A subtle change passed through his eyes as he said softly, “What if I told you I had a way to help you increase your cultivation?”

Ji Chaoyun immediately looked up, his eyes brightening.

“What?”

Seeing him like this made Feng Qi’s heart itch. Without meaning to, he remembered that absurd night by the hot spring in the bamboo grove.

His memories of that night were actually rather unclear.

Everything had been driven entirely by instinct. The sounds, the movements, everything that happened seemed veiled beneath a thin layer of white gauze, hazy and impossible to grasp.

Only Ji Chaoyun’s misty eyes, and the softness with which he had clung to him, wanting and accepting everything he gave, remained vividly etched in Feng Qi’s mind.

The tips of Feng Qi’s ears turned faintly red.

He guiltily looked away.

“Maybe I shouldn’t tell you after all...”

Completely unaware of what was going through his mind, Ji Chaoyun frowned.

“Why not?”

“It’s... not exactly appropriate.”

“What is inappropriate about it?”

Feng Qi glanced sideways at him and asked tentatively.

“You really want to know?”

“Of course.”

Feng Qi remained deliberately mysterious. “Then we have a deal. You’re the one who wanted to know. Once you’ve heard it, you’re not allowed to lose your temper with me, and you’re not allowed to get angry.”

Ji Chaoyun looked at him in confusion. “If you can help me, why would I be angry?”

“See for yourself.”

Feng Qi raised a finger, and a booklet flew over from the writing desk in the outer room, landing steadily in front of Ji Chaoyun.

The booklet’s cover was already somewhat worn with age, and even the writing on its surface could no longer be made out clearly.

Ji Chaoyun flipped through a few pages.

His expression slowly changed from confusion, to astonishment, and finally to furious embarrassment.

“FENG! QI!”

Smack!

The book was hurled violently onto the floor.

On the open page were illustrations of two bodies entwined so closely they were difficult to separate.

And written neatly across the top of the page were several large characters.

“The Secret Art of Spiritual Cultivation.”

☁

Footsteps approached the courtyard on Wenqu Peak.

Bai Qiuyue lay sprawled beside the pool, flicking his tail lazily as he raised his head to look over. Ji Chaoyun pushed open the door and walked in with a dark expression. Feng Qi followed behind him, looking unusually hesitant.

Upon closer inspection, there was a thin line of blood above Feng Qi’s brow, conspicuous against his handsome, flawless face.

Ji Chaoyun strode quickly toward his room.

Feng Qi followed behind him and had just mustered the courage to say something when Ji Chaoyun slammed the door shut with a bang, nearly catching Feng Qi on the nose.

Bai Qiuyue could not hold it in and burst out laughing.

Feng Qi whipped around irritably.

“Damned fox, what are you laughing at?”

“Nothing.” Bai Qiuyue suppressed his laughter and tentatively asked, “It’s just... Second Highness Feng, what happened to your face?”

Everyone who knew Feng Qi knew that, aside from his feathers, the thing he treasured most was his face.

Bai Qiuyue had known him for more than fifty years and had never seen anyone manage to leave so much as a mark on it.

And yet...

This tiny wound was not healing on its own despite Feng Qi’s immortal body?

“...”

Feng Qi touched the cut above his brow.

The mark quickly vanished without a trace.

He lowered his hand and said calmly, “Nothing. I accidentally hit myself with the spine of a book.”

The white fox nodded solemnly.

“Understandable. You must have been extremely focused on copying scriptures.”

“Understandable my ass...”

Feng Qi muttered under his breath.

He took one last look at Ji Chaoyun’s tightly shut door, then returned to the courtyard and sat down.

Ever since that night, Ji Chaoyun had noticed nothing unusual.

Feng Qi, however, had discovered that Ji Chaoyun’s cultivation had increased. Curious, he had secretly searched through several relevant texts.

He swore to the heavens that he originally only wanted to investigate why Ji Chaoyun’s cultivation had suddenly improved.

Who could have known he would stumble upon something like this?

According to the Secret Art of Spiritual Cultivation, spiritual cultivation involved joining spiritual bodies so that their spiritual power could intermingle, nourishing and strengthening both sides.

This method was not suitable for everyone, and just like ordinary cultivation, it could not be mastered in a day or two.

For Ji Chaoyun’s change to be so obvious after only one time could only mean one thing.

Their immortal bodies were exceptionally compatible.

They were practically born to cultivate this way together.

Of course, that was even less something Feng Qi could casually say aloud.

He had never intended to bring it up today.

They had simply happened to start discussing ways to improve Ji Chaoyun’s cultivation, and Feng Qi could not resist showing him the book he had secretly kept for quite some time.

Who could have expected the little dragon to react so violently?

Ji Chaoyun had barely glanced at it before reacting as though someone had stepped on his tail and hurled the entire book straight at him.

Feng Qi had failed to dodge in time and nearly had his face ruined.

Bai Qiuyue observed him for a while, then said with great interest, “I’ve only been gone for four months, yet Hongmeng Academy really has changed. Even an old iron tree like Second Highness Feng has learned how to blossom.”

Feng Qi glared coldly at him. “Shut up before I throw you out.”

Bai Qiuyue wisely fell silent.

The white fox studied Feng Qi’s gloomy expression, but eventually could not resist asking, “You haven’t actually taken a liking to that little dragon, have you?”

“What if I have?”

“But doesn’t he already have someone in his heart...”

“I know.”

Feng Qi cut him off irritably. “But that was hundreds of years ago. Who knows whether that person even remembers him anymore?”

He paused, then continued. “What I don’t understand is, how do you know about this too?”

“The Phoenix Clan leader told me.” Bai Qiuyue said, “He asked me to help look after the little dragon once I returned. Your Phoenix Clan really is strange. Before he came to the Immortal Realm, none of you paid him any attention. Now that he’s here, one after another, you’re all suddenly treating him well. What, are you afraid Divine Lord Feng Xiao will return someday, discover that the Phoenix Clan neglected him, and punish all of you?”

“It wasn’t us. I didn’t know anything before either.”

Feng Qi glanced toward Ji Chaoyun’s room and lowered his voice.

“Besides, you think I’d be afraid of that man punishing me? If he dared show up in front of me right now, I’d fight him myself.”

“...And then get beaten half to death?”

“Shut up.”

Bai Qiuyue smiled. He was about to say something else when Ji Chaoyun’s door suddenly opened again.

Feng Qi immediately propped his forehead against his hand and adopted a pained expression. The bloody cut above his brow reappeared.

“Bai Qiuyue, do you think my face can still be saved? If you don’t think it can, then don’t waste your breath”

Bai Qiuyue: “...”

Ji Chaoyun ’s footsteps faltered slightly. He quickly walked up to Feng Qi. “It really hasn’t healed yet?”

“Of course not.”

Feng Qi cautiously glanced at Ji Chaoyun’s expression and spoke in a muffled voice.

“You didn’t hold back at all. How is this supposed to heal?”

Ji Chaoyun felt a little guilty.

Of course he knew how much Feng Qi cared about that face of his. At the time, he had clearly heard Feng Qi explain exactly what kind of method it was for increasing cultivation. He had obviously agreed not to get angry, yet he still failed to hold himself back.

He had not expected Feng Qi to simply sit there and let the book hit him without even trying to dodge.

Ji Chaoyun muttered, “Who told you not to dodge?”

Feng Qi immediately seized the opportunity. “If I didn’t let you hit me once, would you have calmed down?”

Bai Qiuyue was so thoroughly sickened by the sweetness that all his fur stood on end.

He shook himself and slipped around to the back of the house to continue basking in the sun.

Ji Chaoyun pursed his lips. Then he took out a bottle of medicine and handed it to Feng Qi.

“You... you should put some medicine on it.”

Feng Qi’s eyes immediately brightened.

He looked up.

“Why don’t you put it on for me?”

“Fine... All right, then I’ll...”

Ji Chaoyun could only nod. His gaze fell upon the wound above Feng Qi’s brow, and he paused.

He fell silent for a moment. Slowly, he ground his teeth.

“Feng Qi.”

“What?”

A smile that was not quite a smile appeared on Ji Chaoyun’s lips.

Through clenched teeth, he asked softly, “Why do I remember the wound being somewhere else just now?”

“...”

A moment later, Second Highness Feng’s miserable cries rang throughout the courtyard.

“Ji Chaoyun, put the sword away first! Put the bugs away too! Don’t make me fight back! Wait, don’t! I really didn’t mean to deceive you! Listen to my explanation!”

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☁︎₊˚⊹ The Author’s Jade-Slip Aside ⊹˚₊☁︎

Remember this Secret Art of Spiritual Cultivation. It’ll be on the exam later. 【jk】

PS: From now on, the novel will use “spiritual cultivation” instead since it fits the title/theme better. You all understand that it means dual cultivation anyway~ =w=

IsitRo: Will try my best to do a 2-chaps a day weekday sched starting this week! Huhu will update the sched portion too when i get a chance. *hopeful*

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