187: Su Ming's spiritual root

The night was as dark as ink, thick and unyielding.

The back hall of the External Affairs Hall on Reception Peak, usually bustling with the noisy handover of various tasks, was now eerily quiet.

Only a lone lamp flickered at the end of the corridor, stretching Su Ming's shadow long and distorted.

Su Ming stood before the heavy red sandalwood door, taking a deep breath, trying to calm the slightly rapid beating in his chest. Just half an hour ago, an urgent communication talisman had directly broken through the Formation of the Bing Zi Qi Hao Courtyard, landing in his hand.

There was no official format, no bureaucratic prose, only Elder Ma's familiar, slightly weary voice: "Come quickly."

"Disciple, this atmosphere doesn't feel right." Inside the xuantian ring, Lin Yu's soul-sense, uncharacteristically serious, spoke with a hint of gravity. "In the middle of the night, a lone man and an old man, in such a quiet room... Based on my extensive experience, there are usually only two situations: either entrusting a child, or Possession."

Su Ming's eyelid twitched slightly, and he responded in his mind: "Master, can you wish me something good?"

"Ahem, your Master is conducting the worst-case risk assessment," Lin Yu said.

Su Ming's heart tightened. Death Qi?

Su Ming hesitated for a moment, straightened his clothes, and gently knocked on the door.

"Enter."

Su Ming pushed the door open and entered.

No lamps were lit inside the room; only the cold moonlight from outside poured in like mercury, outlining the withered silhouette by the window.

Elder Ma stood with his back to the door, hands behind his back, gazing at the surging sea of clouds outside the window.

The incense in the burner had long since burned out, and the air was filled with a sense of desolation after a mission accomplished and dust settled, along with a faint, almost imperceptible... determination.

Su Ming said nothing, merely bowed respectfully, then stood by with his hands at his sides.

After a long while, Elder Ma slowly turned around.

By the moonlight, Su Ming clearly saw his face, and his heart skipped a beat.

Old.

Too old.

If Elder Ma had previously appeared like a vigorous old scholar, now he resembled a withered piece of wood about to burn out. The wrinkles on his face were as deep as ravines, his eye sockets sunken, yet only his eyes shone astonishingly bright in the darkness, like a final flicker of life before death.

"Sit," Elder Ma said, pointing to the meditation cushion opposite him.

Su Ming sat down as instructed, his back straight.

"In three days, this old man will enter a death seclusion."

Elder Ma's first sentence was like a giant stone, heavily smashing into the dead silent air.

Su Ming suddenly looked up; although he had a premonition, the news still came too suddenly.

"Succeed, and I will break through the Golden Core to form a Nascent Soul, extending my Lifespan by another five hundred years; fail, and my Dao will perish, my soul returning to heaven and earth." Elder Ma's tone was as calm as if he were discussing a trivial matter unrelated to himself. "This is fate, and a hurdle this old man must overcome in his life. You need not worry, nor act like a child."

Su Ming opened his mouth, a thousand words ultimately condensing into a dry: "Elder... a blessed man is favored by heaven, you will surely..."

"Spare me the pleasantries." Elder Ma waved his hand, a faint hint of mockery on his lips. "In the Immortal Realm, there is no such thing as being favored by heaven; it is merely a struggle against fate. This old man has been stuck at Golden Core Perfection for over one hundred and sixty years, and my end is near. If I don't take this gamble, I would merely prolong my meager existence for a few more years, ultimately turning into a handful of yellow earth."

His gaze, like an ancient well, quietly fixed on Su Ming: "Before entering seclusion, there is one more matter, to establish your Foundation. This is my final responsibility as your guide."

Su Ming's heart trembled, and he sat up straight: "Please instruct me, Elder."

Elder Ma did not speak immediately, but instead took out an ancient bronze mirror from his sleeve.

The bronze mirror was only palm-sized, its back intricately carved with cloud patterns, but its surface was not smooth bronze, but a chaotic gray vortex, as if it could swallow all light.

Su Ming's heart tightened, but he remained outwardly calm.

"Extend your hand and press it on the mirror," Elder Ma's voice was unquestionable. "I will personally re-test your Spiritual Root."

Su Ming hesitated for a moment.

If something unusual were discovered... "What are you afraid of?" Lin Yu's voice sounded at the opportune moment, with a hint of disdain. "We Cultivate the Righteous Path, not a Demonic Technique. Besides, with the 'Formless Mark' concealing it, unless he's a Soul Transformation old monster personally present, he won't see the trick with the ring. As for your Physique... hehe, that's a good thing, let him see!"

With Master's endorsement, Su Ming no longer hesitated, extending his right hand and slowly pressing it onto the cold mirror surface.

"Buzz—"

A faint hum echoed in the quiet room.

The gray vortex on the mirror surface began to spin wildly, and a faint but pure suction force emanated from his palm.

Immediately after, a vast radiance suddenly burst forth from the mirror!

It was a brilliant blue.

Pure, profound, vast, like an endless azure sea, it instantly illuminated the entire dim quiet room, even overshadowing the moonlight outside the window.

Water Spiritual Root!

And it was an extremely pure, excellent Water Spiritual Root!

Two sharp rays of light instantly burst from Elder Ma's originally cloudy eyes, fixedly staring at the blue sea of light.

However, an anomaly suddenly occurred.

Just as the boundless water light was stabilizing, a ripple suddenly appeared in the depths of the azure sea.

A wisp of verdant Spiritual Qi, full of vigorous life, slowly grew and swayed like tenacious seaweed at the bottom of the ocean. It was not powerful, yet exceptionally resilient, spreading its branches and leaves within the vast water light, blending with it but not being swallowed, instead becoming even more lush and vibrant by leveraging the water's momentum.

Water gives birth to Wood!

"Indeed! Just as I thought!"

Elder Ma suddenly stood up, his movement so forceful that he even knocked over the incense burner behind him. He didn't notice, however, as he stared intently at the swaying green Spiritual Qi in the mirror, a look of sudden realization on his face.

"Water-Wood Interacting Spiritual Root! No wonder... no wonder!"

He turned his head, looking at Su Ming with burning eyes, as if gazing at an uncarved jade.

"Su Ming, your previous success in Cultivating that unorthodox wood-elemental Cultivation Technique was not by chance, nor was it a mere coincidence! It's because your Spiritual Root inherently possesses this hidden wood attribute! It usually lies dormant, nourished by the Water Spiritual Root, and once it encounters guidance from a wood-elemental Cultivation Technique, it's like a withered tree meeting spring!"

Elder Ma let out a long sigh, as if a great weight had been lifted from his heart.

"You told me before that your Cultivation Technique was an incomplete 'Nourishing Life Art,' and I always had doubts. How could there be so many coincidences in this world? Now it seems it was because of your special Physique that you spontaneously completed the deficiencies of the Cultivation Technique!"

At this point, he paused, his tone becoming serious: "Your Dao path lies in being as good as water. With water as the root and wood as the auxiliary, water and wood mutually generating is the Righteous Path. Previously, you only Cultivated wood-elemental techniques; although there was no great harm, you went astray and wasted this excellent talent!"

Su Ming was stunned.

He instinctively asked in his mind: "Master, is this... is this true?"

Inside the xuantian ring, Lin Yu's soul-sense also fell silent for a moment, then burst into an embarrassed cough.

"Ahem... well, Disciple, this old man has truly sharp eyes! But, he's right! Ours was 'theory first,' and in practice, we slightly... hmm... took a detour. I was only focused on having you practice the Green Wood Longevity Art to save your life, and I overlooked your body's original attributes."

Su Ming smiled bitterly inwardly, but outwardly put on a look of sudden realization and profound humility, bowing deeply to Elder Ma.

"This Disciple is foolish. If not for Elder clearing the fog today, this Disciple would probably still be fumbling on the wrong path. Thank you, Elder, for enlightening me!"