Life as a Rogue Cultivator

Chapter 299: Tracing the Origins

Liu Xiaolou had never really figured out where his sect’s cultivation method came from. All he knew was something Master Sanyuan had once mentioned in passing: their founding master came from the south, and by the time it reached Liu Xiaolou’s generation, it was already the third.There were millions of cultivators in the world. With nothing more than that one vague line to go on, there was no way to trace anything. For the moment, Liu Xiaolou felt completely lost.

“How close is close enough?” he asked, still unwilling to give up.

Han Jiuchian said, “Let me put it this way. The first three meridians you cleared during your Qi Refinement stage set the basic pattern. If another sect’s first three meridians match yours, that already counts as a fifty-percent similarity.”

That wasn’t much of a chance, and even then it was only fifty percent?

“Fifty percent? And what does that mean for actual cultivation?”

“Some people can bring out about half the power of a flying sword. Some a little more. Others fall far short. It depends on the individual. You can’t make a blanket statement. But at least it means you can cultivate it. Your flying sword will be able to take to the warming and nurturing process. If you switch to a method where even the first three meridians are completely different... forget nurturing the sword; you’ll just be feeding a sharp toy that ends up cutting you instead.”

“So that’s how it is… then when it comes time to form a core, how much does it affect things?”

“If the only thing that matches is the first three meridians, your chances of forming a core drop by at least half.”

Liu Xiaolou knew that out of maybe ten Foundation Establishment cultivators, only one might manage to form a Golden Core. Knock that success rate down by another huge chunk, and you’re looking at less than half a percent chance. Of course, the path of cultivation varies wildly from person to person, so you can’t really calculate it that crudely, but hearing it still made him feel a little cold.

The True Mysteries Scripture was the core inheritance of the Sanxuan Sect. He’d literally just met Han Jiuqian, so there was no way he could spill the details the contents of those first three meridians. That topic naturally came to an end.

After the banquet, everyone returned to their rooms. Sister Qing asked Liu Xiaolou what he planned to do next. He said, “What else can I do? I’ll try to ask around as much as I can.”

“Sorry I couldn’t help you this time,” Sister Qing said. “I’ll check with some of the other guests later and see if anyone knows something…”

Liu Xiaolou said, “Honestly, I gained a lot today. At the very least, I learned that the Sanxuan Sect’s method I cultivate was cut off somewhere along the line. If I want to keep moving forward, I’ll have to fill in the missing pieces one by one. Whether the replacement techniques match perfectly or only partly, I still need something that lets our sect’s inheritance continue past Foundation Establishment. That old man, seriously… … well, I guess I’ll start with the method for nurturing the flying sword.”

Naturally, the first place he could start was the marketplace.

Yueyang’s market had plenty of shops doing business out in the open. With the Qingyu Sect loudly promoting it, nearby sects, clans, and roaming cultivators had all come to set up stores. But no matter where you went, none of the shops in a public market would openly sell cultivation manuals; no one wanted to risk offending some sect or family without even realizing it.

So Liu Xiaolou had no choice but to visit the black market and ask the cultivators trading there, one by one.

He did manage to find a few, but most of what people sold were Qi Refinement methods. Foundation Establishment techniques were very rare.

After wandering around, circling Yueyang’s black market day after day, he finally found one: a method called

The method was said to come from a noble family in the northwest that had already died out. In the past hundred years, the most accomplished cultivator they’d produced only reached late Foundation Establishment, but the seller claimed that the manual included a method for forming a Golden Core. According to him, using it to attempt the Golden Core wasn’t out of the question.

Whether a technique was genuine or not was something the buyer usually had to judge for themselves. As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Liu Xiaolou certainly had enough experience to tell. With just a quick look, he could see that the High Sun Flowing Sands Sutra was the real thing and could be cultivated. The only question was whether its effectiveness was as good as the seller made it sound.

At least its first three meridians for the early Qi Refinement stage matched his own: Hand Greater Yin, Hand Yang Bright, and Foot Greater Yin.

Unfortunately, once it reached the second layer of Qi refinement, it didn’t use Foot Yang Bright like his did. If it had, the compatibility would’ve been even better.

Techniques like this usually weren’t very expensive, since the seller could copy and resell them as many times as they wanted. Liu Xiaolou only spent three spirit stones to take home a handwritten copy.

He wasn’t planning to start cultivating the High Sun Flowing Sands Sutra right away. He just wanted to keep it in reserve and only consider cultivating it if he truly ran out of options.

Liu Xiaolou couldn’t help missing Chicheng Market again. Its size, its crowds, its completeness... Yueyang Market didn’t even come close. If things didn’t work out here, he’d probably have to take another long trip.

Then, on what he thought would be his last visit to the Yueyang black market before heading east again, something unexpected happened.

He ran into someone there. The man’s face was wrapped in a black scarf and he wore a bamboo hat, but the moment he spoke, Liu Xiaolou recognized the voice.

And the feeling was mutual.

“Brother Liu? Xiaolou?” the man blurted out after a brief hesitation.

Liu Xiaolou gave a wry smile and cupped his hands. “Brother Han? Talk about a coincidence.”

This wasn’t Han Jiuqian from the great Han clan of Fengshan in Lingnan, but Han Wuwang, son of the sect master of the Dongyang Sect and an inner-sect disciple.

Three years after returning from the Ten-Thousand Mountains, Liu Xiaolou finally showed himself again. It wasn’t surprising... once you leave the mountain to take care of business, you have to deal with people, and sooner or later someone is bound to recognize you.

The Dongyang Sect had some ties with the Su family, and he and Han Wuwang had once shared drinks together on Shenwu Mountain. So when their eyes met, they both smiled and walked off to a quiet corner to talk.

“Brother Liu, this is... Foundation Establishment? Congratulations, truly!” Between cultivators, a single handshake is enough to tell each other’s level.

Liu Xiaolou smiled in return. "Likewise, Brother Han, congratulations on your breakthrough as well!"

Ten years ago, they had first met at the Jinping Manor, both just small-time cultivators at the second level of Qi Refinement. Now they had both stepped into Foundation Establishment. You could call it fate. Still, compared to Han Wuwang, Liu Xiaolou’s achievement was far more remarkable. Han’s breakthrough was expected, but Liu’s was hard-won.

After the congratulations, Liu Xiaolou quickly added, “Last year, I happened to stumble on an opportunity in the Ten-Thousand Mountains and managed to break through. I got homesick, so I came back.”

After some small talk, Han Wuwang brought the conversation back on track. “Brother Liu, you’re here to buy cultivation methods? What’s the story behind that?”

Since he had already hinted at his purpose earlier, Liu Xiaolou didn’t hide anything now. “You know how it is, Brother Han. My master passed away early, and by the time I inherited his mantle, a lot of our lineage’s teachings were already lost. Now that I’ve reached Foundation Establishment, I want to fill in those gaps so the sect’s legacy can continue.”

Han Wuwang understood immediately and thought it over. “Then you’d have to look for your sect’s ancestral roots. But… why search here in Yueyang Market? Why not go to Lingnan? For example… the Luofu Mountain Market?”

Liu Xiaolou asked, “Luofu Mountain Market? I’ll go take a look when I have time. Do they sell a lot of manuals there?”

Han Wuwang shook his head. “That’s not what I meant. I’m saying, doesn’t your sect have some connection with the Luofu Sect? Why not go there and look for clues?”

Liu Xiaolou froze for a moment, then gave a helpless laugh. “Brother Han… who told you that?”

Han Wuwang replied, “I heard it from Senior Brother Su. Isn’t it true?”

Liu Xiaolou shook his head. “Sounds like one of those wandering rumors. I wouldn’t believe it.”

Han Wuwang thought for a bit. “In that case, you could at least ask around on Shenwu Mountain. The Su family has deep ties with both the Danxia Sect and the Weiyu Soaring Crane Sect. Finding a cultivation method that suits you shouldn’t be difficult for them.”

Liu Xiaolou shook his head again. “The Su family cast me out. Unless I absolutely have to, going back to ask them for help wouldn’t go well... Brother Han, do you have any techniques yourself?”

Han Wuwang nodded. “I do have two manuals. One starts by cultivating the Hand Lesser Yang Meridian, the Foot Faint Yin Meridian, and the Hand Lesser Yin Meridian. The other starts with the Foot Lesser Yang Meridian, the Hand Greater Yang Meridian, and the Foot Lesser Yin Meridian. What do you think? Do either of them resemble your Sanxuan Sect’s method?”

None of the meridian points lined up, and Liu Xiaolou felt utterly deflated.

Then Han Wuwang explained why he had come. “I’m here in Yueyang Market hoping to find someone to train with. Would you be interested, Brother Liu?”

Liu Xiaolou asked, curious, “Train where? Did a new Grotoo-Heaven rift open up or something?”

Han Wuwang shook his head. “Not exactly.” He glanced around, lowered his voice even further. “Word is that the Jinting Sect’s Crane-Guard Peak has a protective formation that’s incredibly mysterious. Talented disciples from every sect are heading over to give it a try.”

Liu Xiaolou coughed lightly and turned him down. “I should focus on completing my sect’s foundational techniques first.”

Han Wuwang looked a bit disappointed. “Fair enough. Your lineage’s cultivation comes first. We’ll go together some other time if fate allows.”