Ascending, Do Not Disturb!

Chapter 12: Ordeal Surpassing

With a heavy sound, Cheng Yi slammed the storybook onto the table. The thick stone table swayed and managed to stand strong without falling or cracking.

Cheng Yi had heard his shidi had taken Shimei down the mountain to play. He hadn’t thought anything of it. He felt that Kong Hou was young and it was good for her to go see other things. But when he returned today, he found his shimei who claimed she was cultivating was immersed in a storybook, not even realizing he had walked in.

Tan Feng and Kong Hou jumped back in fright. Tan Feng swallowed and gathered a burst of bravery to block Kong Hou behind him. He said guiltily, “Eldest Shixiong, don’t be angry. Let’s talk about this.”

Kong Hou pulled Tan Feng’s sleeve and looked pitifully at Cheng Yi.

Facing Kong Hou’s gaze, Cheng Yi weakened. If Kong Hou only wanted to play, or liked gold and jade, he would let her. But being obsessed with books was not anything good. Kong Hou was young and did not know much about the world. She could not recognize which parts of the books were true or false. If she thought the stories were true, and accidentally caused problems in her cultivation, no pill would be able to rescue her by that time.

Cheng Yi took a deep breath and tried to make his expression seem gentle. He beckoned towards Kong Hou. “Kong Hou, come here and sit.”

“Eldest Shixiong, I was wrong. I will not use cultivation as an excuse in the future to read storybooks.” Kong Hou felt both regret and guilt. She thought of the care Eldest Shixiong had given to her in this past year. Yet she had deliberately lied to Eldest Shixiong, and had been immersed in the storybooks for several days to the point she forgot her cultivation.

“You are still a half-grown child—it is time for you to want to play. I do not blame you for this.” Cheng Yi saw Kong Hou was already full of regret and pulled her to sit beside him. He flipped through the storybook on the table. “Is the storybook a good one?”

“No, no.” Kong Hou shook her head. She thought of how Eldest Shixiong had been busy but still remembered to buy her good things to eat and play with. But she had slacked off and now felt that she was really dislikable. The more she thought, the worse she felt. Kong Hou blinked a few times, forcing her emerging tears back. “Eldest Shixiong, I’m sorry.”

She had to suppress it, she couldn’t cry. Someone who made a mistake could not be finicky.

Cheng Yi patted her head, pointed at the storybook and said, “This story is illogical. Regardless of whether a small sect like this could have a secret manual that would attract everyone in the world—even if that sect had it, not everyone would target this secret manual. The most important thing to a cultivator is cultivating the body and mind. Any secret manual is auxiliary help. The same sect, the same cultivation method, yet the cultivation of disciples will be different. Who can rely on a secret manual that one doesn’t know the validity of to become an invincible expert?”

Kong Hou thought that Eldest Shixiong would lecture her for slacking off. She hadn’t thought that he would discuss the rationality of the story with her. She stilled and didn’t know what to say.

Cheng Yi thought she didn’t understand what he was saying and said, “After drawing spirit energy into the body, one has to circulate it in certain ways. The worst is to rush. No one dares to cultivate according to a secret manual which hasn’t been proven. If something were to occur, a decrease in cultivation would be minor; most likely, one would lose their cultivation or their life. You are still young, but you have to remember—do not easily trust strangers who give you pills or secret manuals. They may be bad people who are lying to children.”

At this moment, Kong Hou felt that Eldest Shixiong seemed like the elders in the mortal world who told their children not to open doors to strangers.

Seeing Kong Hou’s dejection, Cheng Yi said, “It’s my fault for not thinking of this. You are at an age where you are curious about everything you don’t know. I will buy some suitable books for your age. As for these books…”