Chapter 20: Balancing Labor and Leisure

At this moment, Li Yan, since having sensed spiritual energy, feels an inexhaustible strength and experience, extremely alert, cannot fall asleep no matter what, can even be said to remain in the excited state from sensing the spiritual energy, even foolishly pinching her own thigh, fearing it might be a dream, but the pain quickly shatters that thought.

She now looks forward to tomorrow's cultivation, curious how Ye Yun will have her cultivate then—won't it be another new insight? The more she thinks, the more she anticipates, and she unwittingly drifts into sleep, even dreaming of sitting cross‑legged to cultivate.

"This kid must be… possessed, right? How can her whole mind be about cultivation."

The voice clearly came from Ye Yun's room; he had left a trace of Divine Perception inside Li Yan to monitor her sensing condition, and indeed saw exactly this—now the foolish girl's mind is filled with cultivation, even forgetting to eat.

It seems he must let her relax tomorrow; he can't keep her in this state, lest it backfire and become trouble, even threatening Li Yan's life—he doesn't want to gamble. Though Ye Yun also wants Li Yan's cultivation to advance quickly, it's better to proceed step by step now; ruining this promising seed would be bad, and he can't bear that.

The night passed in an instant, and Ye Yun's Divine Perception returned to his body; that evening he let his mortal form rest while his Divine Perception kept cultivating. The group soon gathered in the living room, ready for today's cultivation.

But Ye Yun stopped Li Yan and Liu Cheng.

"Today we won't cultivate; today's task is to stroll the market and relax. You must understand that while ambition is good, cultivation also requires a balance of work and rest. You can't constantly demand to become stronger, and walking around might give you insights into your surroundings, which will aid your cultivation even more."

"I see, understood, Master. So where are we going to have fun today? I'll have someone arrange it."

Liu Cheng's remark reminded Ye Yun and Li Yan that Liu Cheng is the behind‑the‑scenes operator of a top‑hundred enterprise; although not yet on par with the Sun family, his prospects are limitless.

"Alright, I'll leave it to you. As for the destination, you decide; I'm not very familiar with this place either."

"Got it! Don't worry, Master, I'll definitely make you satisfied."

Liu Cheng pounded his chest as he spoke to Ye Yun, looking hardly like a man past his fifties, more like a child. However, after Liu Cheng breakthroughs, his appearance should change, reverting to how he looked in his youth; after all, cultivation defies the heavens, so reversing one's body to become younger is normal.

Of course, Ye Yun is an exception; when he attained the Dao, he was indeed this age, highlighting the importance of talent and opportunity.

Liu Cheng's efficiency is truly high; within a short while he had the itinerary set, complete with food, drink, and entertainment.

Li Yan fully understood Ye Yun's plan for today; perhaps Ye Yun sensed her overly excited mindset yesterday and arranged this outing to prevent a backfire. Li Yan felt moved—she had gone from finding Ye Yun annoying, like a monk, to now being unable to feel any disgust toward the man before her; the contrast is striking.

After waiting a while for Liu Cheng's arranged carriage, the three set off on their leisure journey. Initially they had planned for the Sun family to handle it, but recalling the disciple's status, they decided to let their own disciple manage it. After all, constantly burdening others isn't ideal, and they feared Sun Liwen and his group would stage another grand spectacle like last time, which would ruin the fun—crowds would block the road.

The three first went to a mall to shop, buying clothes and accessories, then to a nearby restaurant. The day repeated back and forth; it must be said that Li Yan truly knows how to shop—she spent almost an entire day browsing the mall. Fortunately Ye Yun and Liu Cheng are cultivators; otherwise they would have collapsed from exhaustion.

Finally the three returned laden, which could also be said to be Li Yan's return laden; Ye Yun and Liu Cheng seemed to buy nothing, constantly helping Li Yan carry items.

Time flew by; three days passed in a blink. Liu Cheng was nearing his breakthrough, while Li Yan had been sensing spiritual energy these days. Though she found it tedious, she believed Ye Yun had his own reasons for making her do so, so she persisted.

Indeed, because Ye Yun has his own ideas, a solid foundation makes later cultivation far more efficient, and sensing spiritual energy is like a building's foundation; only with a firm base will the structure be stable. Ye Yun aims for Li Yan's future cultivation to be steady and balanced.

These days' spiritual energy perception has become sufficient; they can proceed to the next step.

Then Ye Yun had Li Yan sit cross‑legged again and recite a mantra with him: "Abundant Qi in the dantian, governing and duty proceed together. Guard against danger, follow the meridians' flow. The cosmic cycle circulates, body smooth and merged. Qi returns to the dantian, achievement brightens the law."

Now Li Yan can officially begin cultivation, truly stepping into the path of cultivation. This mantra is meant to open the blood vessels throughout the body, drawing spiritual energy into the body and circulating a small cosmic cycle in the dantian—essentially the cultivation practice of absorbing Qi for oneself.

Clearly Li Yan's talent is indeed high; she learns extremely quickly, and her execution is excellent, never lagging. Perhaps her current diligence is to ease Ye Yun's mind, since many future matters await Ye Yun's emergence, and the forces sent from other worlds won't be weak; thus Li Yan must be prepared. She wants to protect Ye Yun, not be a burden.

She even wants to become stronger herself, to share those troublesome matters with Ye Yun. She knows Ye Yun's pressure has been especially heavy lately; she can feel his Divine Perception never resting, constantly cultivating. Ye Yun once told her his understanding of the Dao deepened a bit, yet he still cannot unravel its mysteries. Just as today ended, Ye Yun again gained some insight into the Dao.

She is curious about what kind of being Ye Yun truly is—why his cultivation speed is astonishing and his Dao insights come so quickly. Li Yan once asked Liu Cheng whether perceiving the Dao is difficult; Liu Cheng simply replied that he has never felt the Dao in his life. Though brief, that answer proves the difficulty of sensing the Dao, and Ye Yun's occasional fleeting insights over the past days surprised her.