Cultivation Nerd-Chapter 240: Bad News is Not That Bad

Spring arrived almost overnight. The city buzzed with energy from the spring festival, streets adorned with colorful banners and lanterns swaying gently in the breeze. Flowers bloomed in vivid clusters, painting gardens and roadsides in hues of pink, yellow, and white. Trees stretched their branches skyward, their fresh green leaves catching the sunlight. The air carried the sweet scent of blossoms, mingling with the hum of the season.

I was in the yard of my house, lying atop Speedy's shell with a book in hand. It was a book on the rare diseases that had afflicted cultivators throughout the ages and an interesting read overall.

Wu Yan lounged on her stomach by the porch, intently watching a half-blooming flower. Her dark robe, resembling my own, blended easily with the surroundings… or at least that was her excuse to wear similar robes to mine.

She had long since reached the peak of Qi Gathering and mastered the basics of the techniques I'd wanted her to learn. Thank God. Now, she was preparing for her breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, delving deeper into her element. I could only hope she wouldn't lose herself in the process; her element encompassed a vast range of underlying concepts. Still, her unique circumstances made it a perfect fit... theoretically.

I really didn't want her to walk down a dangerous path. But this was the only way we even had a slim chance of saving her.

As for me, I'd recently broken through again, advancing to a six-star Qi Gathering cultivator. My progress was slow but steady, with no major bottlenecks.

Spring brought many developments, some intriguing, though not all bad. The Liu Clan, for instance, had sold off the two cities it had acquired to minor sects from outside the region.

It made sense, given the clan's significant losses. But why go through all the trouble only to replace two old rivals with two new ones? I couldn't fathom their reasoning. At least the clan head had been shrewd enough to sell each city to rival sects. It seemed like he had a plan, after all, and it was a pretty solid one.

The Liu Clan now had a century, maybe two, to rebuild in peace. By then, the next generation would take over. Only time would tell if these sacrifices had been worth it.

Despite anticipating another war this spring, the situation was surprisingly calm. With no enemies to fight, the clan could even send its disciples to train at the new nearby minor sects.

It was a good outcome, all things considered. But I wasn't sure it was the right move. The clan would take decades to recover from this winter's losses, and who knew what future winters might bring?

Perhaps this was why I'd never make a good clan leader. I wouldn't sacrifice lives for land I had no use for.

As my thoughts wandered, I sensed a presence approaching rapidly. I didn't bother standing, merely closing my book and turning toward the source.

In less than a second, my grandfather appeared on the grass. The raw wound around his neck had healed into a scar, and his arm seemed to be in good shape again.

His gaze swept the yard before landing on me. His eyes briefly flicked to Speedy but quickly refocused.

"We have news about the Blazing Sun Sect," he said, his voice grave.

"Really?"

I didn't like the look on his face.

*******

Song Song let out a sigh in the dark room that had been her home for months. She circulated the Qi in her dantian, working to stabilize the volatile energy left from her breakthrough two days ago.

She'd been a three-star Foundation Establishment cultivator when she first entered this place. Now, she was five-star, with another technique engraved in one of the Qi pillars in her dantian.

A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead as her cultivation settled, and an involuntary smile tugged at her lips.

"Looks like I might make it to Core Formation ahead of schedule," she chuckled softly.

She was far ahead of her father's stringent timeline for breakthroughs. Talent had never been an issue for her when it came to gathering Qi, but comprehension? That was an entirely different matter. Fortunately, her chosen element aligned perfectly with her abilities, and Liu Feng had generously shared his deep knowledge of blood and its workings.

After some rough counting and loose calculations, she figured she'd reach Core Formation by the time she was twenty-three. At twenty-two, she was already right on track.

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Song Song sighed and stopped cultivating. Not that there was much else to do in this dreary environment. She lit an incense stick, its faint glow barely illuminating the room, and pulled out her ancestor's book. There wasn't much light generated by the incense stick, but it was enough for her eyes to make out the writing..

She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to recall something from Liu Feng's notes.

He talked so much, though, it was hard to keep everything straight. If she remembered correctly, he once mentioned learning this language from one of his ancestors, or was that her own situation she was remembering? She really needed to start paying more attention.

It had been so long ago that the details were hazy. Besides, she hadn't cared much back then. Most of the time, she had listened just to tease him.

"Well, I'll just ask him when we meet again," she muttered aloud.

Yes, she was definitely going a bit crazy here. The only person she could talk to was herself.

Still, she was genuinely curious about where Liu Feng had learned the language. It was probably like her situation; he had an otherworldly ancestor. Which was neat.

Then again, there was always the slim chance Liu Feng himself was an otherworlder. Not likely, though; they were incredibly rare. But if he was, that would explain a lot of his weirdness.

Not that she cared either way. But if it turned out to be true, she'd definitely ask him what another world was like.

What kind of strange place could produce someone so passionate about learning? Maybe it was a bright, creative world where knowledge was revered, and teachers were worshipped as gods. After all, what kind of world could create someone like Liu Feng?

That was a thought for another day, as the incense stick burned out, plunging the room back into darkness.

She was just about to return to cultivating when the door to her chamber creaked open.

"Don't tell me years have passed without me noticing?" Song Song squinted against the sudden light. "Sure, I haven't been keeping track of the days, but it didn't feel like years. I mostly measured time by my cultivation. Was my talent so bad that years flew by?"

"It's an emergency," her father said, ignoring her entirely. His voice was as calm as usual, which made it rather difficult for her to get into the mindset of someone who just heard that this was an emergency. "Something has happened to the Blazing Sun Sect."

Ugh, his voice was so dry he could calm down a chicken that was about to get its head cut off.

"Huh?" Song Song tilted her head.

Okay? It was not like she cared. But she had to act curious in front of her father. After all, Song Song had no plans to wait for her old man to die until she could get all his secret techniques. If she could do anything about it, then her father was going to have an early death.

"Their mountain is now a scorched ruin," her father continued, his dark eyes calm and unreadable. "There's a good chance the Song Clan has been destroyed as well."

"What?" Her eyes widened, shock rippling through her. The Blazing Sun Sect, which had been an immovable force throughout her whole life, was destroyed? "How could something like that happen? Are you sure this isn't just a rumor? Did you see it yourself?"

Song Song had plans to become Sect Leader one day, to eradicate her clan with her own two hands. The massacre would've been an afterparty for her and Liu Feng to celebrate reaching their goals. Having such plans ruined left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"Yes," her father said. "The Sect Leader is missing and may soon be declared dead."

"The Sect Leader? Dead?" Song Song frowned. This could have been the perfect opportunity, but it had come too soon. She wasn't ready to take over yet.

"I never liked him," her father muttered, his voice tinged with disdain. "Ever since he took over, he's toyed with the Song Clan, even though we helped him secure his position."

Why was he bringing this up now? It wasn't the kind of thing anyone would write in the history books. Also, should he be speaking about that last part so casually? Besides, her father hadn't even been around when the Sect Leader rose to power.

"Still," he added, "it's hard to believe someone like him would just roll over and die. He might've gotten bored, taken what he wanted, and used this Heavenly Calamity as a cover to disappear. Annoying bastard."

While the news was shocking, Song Song found herself oddly detached. Sure, her family and most of the Song Clan were probably dead. But she didn't care about them. If anything, it was a shame her father hadn't been there to die with the rest. Then, she could have gained access to the Song Clan's secret techniques. There was no doubt that the Clan Leader himself had some secret stash of Sky Grade Techniques, and a safety switch to transfer them in case he died without a direct succesor. After all, the Song Clan had been around for over a dozen millenia.

At least Liu Feng wasn't there. That was another flawless prediction on his part. She had no idea how he managed it, but she expected nothing less from someone so brilliant in strategy and scheming.

Her father droned on about losses and logistics, but she closed her eyes and resumed cultivating.

Her only concern was that relying on Liu Feng for so long might've dulled her mind. Now, without him around, Song Song had to do her own scheming.

Having Liu Feng do the scheming, Song Song was always a hundred percent sure that things would turn out okay and they would come out on top no matter who the opponent was.

Now, without that ticket of guaranteed success, reality had become quite dangerous and she had to be cautious not to overplay her hand.

With those half-joking thoughts, she continued her cultivation. It was just another day, even if one of the great sects might have fallen.

Without Liu Feng to warn her when things were about to get out of hand, Song Song knew she couldn’t affort to indulge in her favorite leisurely activities. And what a tedious hassle that was…