116 – Secrets of Lei Tie’s Past (2)
Qin Mian and Lei Tie took their ration and rode on horsebacks, galloping at full speed out of the village. White Spot, like a flash of black lightning, followed closely. After surveying the mountain slope, looking around, and saw no one, the two men and a wolf turned in direction and entered the mountain forest.
Once entering the mountain forest, Qin Mian and Lei Tie sent their horses into the space.
Two men and a wolf walked slowly in the mountains. Lei Tie and White Spot hunted prey from time to time.
Qin Mian had been very excited since he went out. He seemed absent-minded and just dilatorily followed Lei Tie. Lei Tie had said that he would teach him the Cultivation of Trueness1 on the night of the full moon on the fifteenth of the eighth month! Cultivation of Trueness, which was only seen in TV dramas, movies, and novels! How could he not get excited?
When Qin Mian got the magical ring by chance back then, he deluded that there were treasures such as manuals of Cultivation of Trueness, miraculous panacea, mystical celestial soldiers, and so on inside. However, he searched in the quadrangle courtyard and found nothing. Of course, he was not disappointed. After all, he was very lucky to have such a portable space. He was not greedy.
At that time, when Lei Tie told him that he was a cultivator and would teach him to practice, he was so surprised that he could hardly restrain himself. However, Lei Tie said that the ‘’Immortal Mantra of Examining One’s Conscience’’ that he practiced had the best foundation building effect and the least pain on the full moon night of the fifteenth of the eighth month, so he had been waiting until today.
During those years that Lei Tie ran away from home, he wandered alone for over a year and suffered a lot. Later, he saved an old man who was down and out. It was the old man who taught him the ‘’Immortal Mantra of Examining One’s Conscience’’ and built the foundation for him. Unfortunately, the old man did not wish to let Lei Tie know of his name and left without saying goodbye after half a year. Fortunately, Lei Tie was very talented in cultivation. By the virtue of his innate talent and a few cultivation manuals left by the old man, he reached the Golden Elixir period in just a few years.
This lucky event, combined with the torturous experience of Lei Tie, made Qin Mian sigh with emotion. There were several words suitable for explaining Lei Tie’s experience, “Heaven will bring great responsibility to humans; first of all, bring suffering to his will, toil his flesh and bone, starve his body, and destitute his life.”
He was so lost in thought that his footsteps stopped, unknowingly.
Lei Tie went over and worriedly put his big palm on his wife’s forehead, “Wife, uncomfortable?”
Qin Mian returned to his senses and hurriedly shook his head, “No.” He looked around. At the moment, they were by a shallow stream. The water flowing down from the mountaintop was so clear that one could see the stones and water plants underwater, as well as chopstick-long fish leisurely swimming in the water. There were two crossing logs next to each other on the stream, probably placed by the hunters who passed by. The meadow beside the stream seemed to have been trimmed very evenly, but in the ninth month, some weeds had turned slightly yellow.
Qin Mian enthusiastically said, “A-Tie, let’s stay here until it gets dark.”
Lei Tie nodded, took a chair from the space, and put it beside him.
“There are other good things.” Qin Mian ran into the space, brought out a thin blanket, and spread it on the grass. Then he took out several fruit plates from the space, filled with grapes and bananas he loved to eat and apples that Lei Tie loved to eat. Finally, he took out two large pillows. He lay on the blanket, supported his chin with one arm, ate the fruit, and beckoned Lei Tie, “Come here.” The world was boundless. It felt so great that no one would disturb them.
Lei Tie sat down beside his wife and put his arms around him.
White Spot saw that the camp had been settled and excitedly ran into the deep woods. It was unknown what small animals it disturbed when the rustling sound of the trees came from the distance.
Qin Mian picked up an apple and handed it to Lei Tie while he ate the grapes with relish.
Lei Tie took the apple but did not eat it. He held his wife’s nape, bowed his head, and covered his wife’s lips. The tip of his tongue first licked the grape juice on his wife’s lips.
Qin Mian felt numb as though he was electrified. He looked up at the man and saw that the man was just staring at his lips. He did not know what the man was thinking. Could he still be distracted at this time? He felt uncomfortable and opened his mouth to speak, but his lips were sealed. The hot temperature on the tip of his tongue showed that the other party’s mood was not as calm as his paralyzed face. Pride burst forth from Qin Mian’s heart. He put his hands on the other party’s nape so that they got closer.
After entangling for a long time, the two separated. Lei Tie’s thumb still lingered on Qin Mian’s face, and the eyes fixed on him were deep and profound, seemingly wanting to suck his whole person in before letting go.
Qin Mian was fully satisfied. He comfortably leaned on Lei Tie’s bosom, grabbed a grape, and put it into his mouth.
Lei Tie picked up the grapes in the fruit plate and fed them to him one by one.
Qin Mian accepted the feeding with ease, “A-Tie, we’ll plant more grapes next year. The wine in our winery sells well. It will certainly be more well-received.”
“Listen to you.”
A drop of grape juice flowed down the corner of his mouth, making him itchy. Qin Mian had wanted to wipe it with his hand, but something moist and warm stuck on his face and licked the juice away.
This kind of reverie action with a paralyzed face suddenly stabbed Qin Mian’s meng2 spot. He rolled over, pressed Lei Tie under his body, and unscrupulously kissed him.
Lei Tie’s pupils darkened. He tightly hugged his wife’s waist and slipped his hand into his wife’s clothes.
Qin Mian immediately thought of today’s business. He quickly got up from the man’s body and reminded him, “Today, can’t.”
Lei Tie froze and lowered his eyes. His Adam’s apple rapidly rolled and his chest fluctuated sharply several times before calming down. Then he slowly sat up and sorted his disordered clothes while pretending to be calm.
Qin Mian suddenly felt that he was very mean. He buried his head in the soft pillow and laughed, “Hahaha…”
Lei Tie stared at him for a moment before slapping his upturned buttocks. Then, he picked up a twig and pared it with a hunting knife.
After Qin Mian laughed enough, he crawled over, leaned on the man’s shoulder, and asked curiously, “Doing what?”
Lei Tie inclined his head and pecked his wife’s lips, “Stick in fish.”
Qin Mian then jumped to his feet with great interest, “I’m going to pick up twigs.”
“Don’t go too far,” Lei Tie advised.
“Rest assured.” Qin Mian waved his hand and picked up the dried twigs nearby.
When White Spot had played enough, it ran back, rushed to the thin blanket, and rolled on it. After that, it stretched out its four limbs and lay down.
Lei Tie frowned, grabbed its nape, and lifted it. White Spot looked up at him, maintaining the stretch-out posture, unmoved.
Lei Tie put it on the grass without saying a word and continued to pare the twigs.
White Spots shook the grass off its body, ran back to the thin blanket, and lay down.
With a poker-face, Lei Tie picked it up again and put it on the grass.
Speechless, White Spot stared at him for a long time, and resignedly lay down there, no longer moving.
Qin Mian came back with a bundle of dried twigs. Lei Tie had cleaned up five fish, threw one fish to White Spot, and set fire to roast the other four. Qin Mian took out the food he had made at home.
Lunch was settled simply.
In the afternoon, two people and a wolf took a nap for nearly two hours and then took a look around.
As the sky darkened, the round moon hung in the sky, like a jade plate.
Lei Tie looked at the sky and pressed Qin Mian’s shoulder, “Wife, sit cross-legged.”
Qin Mian did so.
Lei Tie sat down behind Qin Mian, pressed his hands on the other’s middle back, and then moved away, “Wife, it will be very uncomfortable, endure it.”
“A-Tie, don’t worry. You can do it, so can I.” Qin Mian looked at him with firm eyes. No matter how painful it would be to build a foundation, he would stick to it. He could not imagine what the young Lei Tie went through at that time, but he was older.
“I won’t let something happen to you.” Lei Tie kissed him and pressed his palms on his middle back again.
Foundation Establishment was a process of removing impurities and broadening meridians. When Lei Tie’s hands stuck to his back, Qin Mian’s body was immediately affected by two opposite impacts: pain and comfort. The pain was because Lei Tie used his vital spirit force to open up the meridians in his body; the comfort was because that vital spirit flowed in his body like a warm current, making his whole body warm.
Lei Tie watched Qin Mian’s expression carefully; although he frowned, he didn’t seem to have any difficulty. Lei Tie put down his worry and moved his palms down to continue to expand the other party’s meridians.
The process went so smoothly that both of them were surprised. Lei Tie remembered that when the ‘’master’’ built the foundation for him, there seemed to be countless searing irons stirring in his body, almost pained him to the extent of wishing to die. If his willpower was not strong, he would have collapsed physically and mentally.
They immediately surmised that it was because Qin Mian’s body had been nourished and nurtured by the spiritual spring water and various high-quality vegetables and fruits in the space for a long time that he became very strong.
The fact was exactly so. Qin Mian had never been ill because of this reason.
About an hour later, Qin Mian felt something invisible in the air entered his body gently through his numerous pores, making his whole body languid. This should be the spiritual qi. Unknowingly, his consciousness gradually drifted and his whole person seemed to have been put under a fixed body spell, absolutely still.
A trace of surprise flashed through Lei Tie’s eyes. His wife entered the state of ‘’Enlightenment’’ in the process of building a foundation, indicating that his wife was as talented as he was in cultivation. In this way, the gap between him and his wife would soon be shortened.
The moonlight was like the surface of the water, and the Lord of Heaven was cooperating3.
Lei Tie withdrew his scattered mind and continued to slowly and carefully input his vital spirit into Qin Mian’s body.
He didn’t notice that White Spot, which lay on the side with its eyes closed, was enveloped in faint white light that disappeared into its body soundlessly like water flowing into the dried ground.
After about four hours, the full moon gradually sank to the west. Only then Lei Tie withdrew his hands.
As if awakening from a dream, Qin Mian blinked somewhat blankly. For a while, he didn’t know where he was.
“Wife?”
“A-Tie?” Qin Mian suddenly remembered that he was building a foundation, “I just…”
Lei Tie bowed his head and pecked his lips, “Went smoothly. I’m going to teach you the Immortal Mantra of Examining One’s Conscience.”
He put his big palm on Qin Mian’s forehead. Instantly, a lot of content flowed into Qin Mian’s mind. He knew that this was precisely the ‘’Immortal Mantra of Examining One’s Conscience’’.
Lei Tie said, “Today’s a good time to practice. We’ll start to practice now. I’ll guide you first, and then you’ll follow the flow path of the vital spirit.”
Qin Mian nodded his head to show that he understood. After remembering the path, he guided the spiritual qi of the universe into his body according to the method. Then he refined the spiritual qi into a vital spirit and stored it in the dantian, over and over again…
After the sun rose and set, Qin Mian finally opened his eyes. He seemed to have lost 10 jin of weight. Feeling somewhat unaccustomed, he got up with a jump. He was overjoyed.
A ghost of a smile flashed in Lei Tie’s eyes as he watched his wife silently. His wife was originally handsome. At this time, he had more spiritual qi, which made his eyes bright and deep and his whole person even more charming.
“Wife.”
Qin Mian raised his smiling face, walked up to the man in a few steps, hugged his waist, and offered a kiss, “I feel great—ah! Why are your lips black—” He suddenly realized. He looked down and saw that his hands were black, his white clothes had turned grey, and there was an obvious foul smell. He wailed and escaped into the space.
The corner of Lei Tie’s lips curved, and he disappeared instantaneously.
By the time the two reappeared in the woods, they had cleaned up so neat and fresh.
Lei Tie brought out a plate from the space, which contained two baked sesame pancakes with meat stuffing, two scallion pancakes, two barbecued pork crisps, and two cream custard buns, as well as a bamboo tube filled with soup.
“Eat something first.”
Qin Mian was so hungry that he didn’t care to talk. He took a baked sesame pancake with meat stuffing and ate it.
Lei Tie handed a handkerchief to him, picked up a scallion pancake, and slowly chewed it. His action was so graceful it could drove someone to death.
Qin Mian squinted and looked at the only mouthful of pancake left in his hand before putting it into his mouth when Lei Tie didn’t pay attention.
Both sides of Lei Tie’s cheek were bulging, and in the blink of an eye, he had chewed the food well before swallowing it.
Qin Mian burst into hearty laughter and then worried, “Slow down, don’t choke.”
Lei Tie shook his head and patted his wife’s head placatingly.
Note:
Footnotes
Comments