Offering Salted Fish to Master - C1
Offering Salted Fish to Master
Chapter 1
Where am I?
Zou Yan sensed that something was off. She found herself sitting on a futon in a quaint, fairy-tale room, dressed in a green dress, her hands forming lotus poses as if she were in meditation. What on earth was happening? Her major degree was painting, not acting! What was she supposed to do now? Would she face some dreadful fate as a result of this situation? As expected, the Young Master didn’t seem to take any offense. Instead, he invited her to sit down, drink tea, and spoke to her in a teacher-like tone. “I called you over mainly because of the selection taking place three days from now. There’s no need to worry about anything. Just do what you feel is right. You’re already late in starting your training, your cultivation level is low, and you’re the newest in the hierarchy. This time, the Eight Palaces will be selecting outstanding disciples, and our Qinggutian will simply serve as a filler.” When she returned to the room where she had awakened, she sighed in relief and scratched her head in annoyance. “This is too much pressure. Pretending to be someone else is overwhelming! I just want to escape!” This significant event at Gengchen Immortal Mansion captured the attention of not only those within the mansion but also the entire cultivation world.
But hadn’t she worked overtime the previous night to revise a design draft and then fallen asleep on her bed without even taking a shower? The hand resting on her knee was too white and delicate, unlike her own. As she studied her slender hand, a sudden knock on the door startled her.
"Knock! Knock! Knock!"
Her heart raced. After hesitating for a moment, she took a few deep breaths and opened the door.
Standing outside was an older man who appeared to be in his thirties, wearing a gray-green Taoist robe, which gave him a refined and calm appearance. He smiled at her and said, "Junior Sister Liao, the Master is calling for you to go to Zhuqu Youpu."
Zou Yan's mind raced. Junior Sister Liao? Master? Zhuqu Youpu? What was going on? If this were a case of traversing to another world, why didn’t she have any memories or a novice guide? Panic set in.
"Um... Senior Brother?" she asked tentatively.
The older man replied kindly, "Junior Sister, are you nervous? That’s alright. The Master just wants to speak with you for a few moments. Hurry up."
Zou Yan hesitated but eventually called out to him again, "Senior Brother, can you take me there?" How was she supposed to find her way without any maps?
Without questioning her, the older brother led her away easily.
"Junior Sister Liao, you don’t have to worry too much. Our Qinggutian is no more important than any other place; we don’t place excessive value on status here."
Zou Yan followed behind, trying to absorb his words, occasionally nodding as he spoke. However, her mind was a whirlpool of confusion. She didn’t understand anything. None of it made sense!
As they walked, she noticed other disciples wearing Tsing Yi, who smiled and nodded at them. Some greeted her, calling her Junior Sister Liao or Senior Brother Su. There was even a shorter boy in a simpler robe who addressed her as Senior Sister Liao. Observing the people and the unfamiliar flora around her, she mentally noted a few key phrases: soul wear, immortality, martial arts.
Before she could ponder for too long, Senior Brother Su guided her through a sea of bamboo, gestured for her to enter a small path, and then left her with an air of nonchalance.
Zou Yan had no choice but to gather her courage and continue, entering a narrow pathway surrounded by bamboo. Along the route, she passed several bamboo-like archways. After going through nine consecutive gates, she arrived at a bamboo building—a small hall.
There was no plaque to indicate what this place was. Wait, why was there no plaque? Was this really Zhuqu Youpu? As she wandered outside the door, someone inside called out, "Stop lingering outside; why don’t you come in?"
So this was it. She concluded that her body belonged to Liao Tingyan. Taking a deep breath, she entered and saw a young man in his twenties turn around to look at her with warmth and kindness.
Zou Yan said hesitantly, "Master?" Senior Brother Su told her his age but her mind had a hard time to connect. "Three-hundred freaking years old?" she thought, staring at him with open mouth.
The young man smiled and replied, "You’ve been in my school for three months. Why are you still so shy? As your Master, I’ve said that you’re like my biological daughter, so you can treat me as a father. There’s no need to be formal with me."
Zou Yan exclaimed, “Are you serious? You look younger than me! How can I see you as my Dad?”
Realizing she had said too much, Zou Yan decided to use a familiar trick. During the New Year celebrations, she would simply laugh and smile shyly in response to relatives and elders, especially when it came to questions she didn’t want to answer.
Zou Yan was momentarily dazed, mistakenly thinking that her teacher was critiquing her exam results. After a moment of silence, the young master continued, “Three days from now, I’ll be there to see you off, so get ready.”
Zou Yan reflexively glanced up at him, half-expecting to see a scroll or an exclamation mark, reminiscent of an non-player character in a video game giving out tasks.
━━━━༻❁༺━━━━
Turning her head, she caught sight of a mirror in the corner, and her heart skipped a beat. She jumped up and touched her face in disbelief. “Wow, this body is stunning! Am I really a beauty? I can work with this! I can't give up now; each day I live is another chance!”
Regardless of how she got into this situation, she had to confront Liao Tingyan first.
Being Liao Tingyan wasn't too difficult for her, especially since she quickly gathered some basic information from fellow disciples and younger students. For instance, she learned that Liao had been accepted by a real master named Dongyang this year, but her cultivation level was low—only at the Qi period with an average three-spiritual root talent.
Zou Yan also discovered she was part of the first major school in the cultivation world, known as the Gengchen Immortal Mansion. This mansion was vast and populated enough to form its own country. Her specific faction, Qinggutian, was a branch of this larger establishment.
To summarize, she found herself with a low cultivation base and junior status, a mere small fry in a giant organization.
Additionally, she overheard some gossip: it was said that Master Dongyang accepted her as a disciple largely because Liao bore an uncanny resemblance to his late daughter who had passed away decades ago. This connection made Master Dongyang particularly fond of her, and even her fellow students treated her kindly, as she was the only female disciple in the small branch of Qinggutian.
Because of this, Liao Tingyan finally understood the significance of the message her master had conveyed earlier. This connection was not just personal; it tied into a significant event.
The senior master of Gengchen Immortal Mansion, known as Cizang Daojun, was about to conclude his five-hundred-year retreat and finally emerge! This venerable ancestor was of a higher generation than the current head of the mansion and serves as the head of the lineage. If they were to compare him to an emperor, he would be the Supreme Emperor. Additionally, he was revered as both a "double meaning" and "double ancestor," indicating his unique and esteemed status.
It was noteworthy that Gengchen Immortal Mansion existed for hundreds of thousands of years. The founder, originally of the Sima surname, saw many generations of Simas leading the mansion, with the most recent being the Daoist Monarch Cizang.
The emergence of an ancestor at the pinnacle of the hierarchy was indeed a momentous occasion. As such, the top leaders, elders, and palace masters from the Eighth House decided to provide the utmost quality of service for the ancestor's return. They specifically chose a selection of exceptional female disciples to serve him. Among them was Liao Tingyan, the sole female disciple of Qinggutian and a newcomer to the mansion.
Liao Tingyan shook her head and thought to herself, "This feels more like an emperor's choice of concubines."
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