Sixty-six, Warm and Sentimental Kunlun

  Outside the Kunlun Mountain Cave, Xun Daozi and his group were slightly dusty as they waited to enter the cave. Su Xin's heart was tense and excited, with a hint of uncertainty, looking at Xun Daozi, fearing that following him into the cave would displease the three old men, hesitating about what to do next.

  Xun Daozi opened the cave's seal with a nonchalant expression and invited Su Xin to follow him in quickly.

  Su Xin hesitated for a moment, then followed Xun Daozi into the Kunlun Cave Mansion.

  Entering the cave, Xuanzang hurriedly quickened his pace towards several thatched cottages.

  As soon as they arrived at the open space in front of the thatched cottage, Laozi's face turned serious and he began to seek Dao. However, his disciple couldn't help but think of seeing his masters Yuan Shi, San Pian and Er Lang Shen, so he shouted loudly: "Master! Master's wife! Master's brother! Disciple has come to see you!"

  As soon as Xun Daozi's shouting stopped, the doors of the three thatched cottages all opened, and then Tongtian laughed and shouted from inside the house: "I knew it was you who came!"

  Then, Laozi, Yuanshi and Tongtian walked out of the house separately.

  "Hey kid, you still know how to come visit us?"

  As they spoke, the three of them had already walked ahead of Xunzi.

  Xun Daozi quickly kowtowed, and Su Xin followed suit. Xun Daozi exclaimed: "Disciple pays respects to Master Bo, Master Fu, and Master Shu, wishing Masters Bo, Fu, and Shu an early attainment of the Mixed Yuan, with blessings and longevity boundless!"

  Su Xin also said: "Su Xin greets the three immortal elders, wishing the three immortal elders to attain the Mixed Yuan as soon as possible, and their blessings and longevity will be boundless!"

  The old man stretched out his hand and beckoned: "Get up, all of you!" His eyes were filled with a warm smile.

  Yuanshi also nodded with a smile on his face, making Xun Daozi and Su Xin get up.

  Zengzi and Su Xin rose to their feet. Then they heard Laozi say, "Come to my hut!" After finishing speaking, he turned around and led the way to his thatched cottage.

  Yuanshi followed behind Tongtian as they walked towards Laozi's thatched cottage.

  Xun Daozi glanced at Su Xin, indicating that she should follow him. He quickly followed Yuan Shi and Tong Tian to Lao Zi's hut, with Su Xin closely following behind Xun Daozi.

  Everyone entered the house, Laozi, Yuanshi and Tongtian sat down. After that, Laozi asked Xun Daozi and Su Xin to sit down as well. However, Su Xin felt nervous but didn't dare to sit. Xun Daozi saw this and quickly invited her to take a seat.

  After Da Zhi and Su Xin sat down, Tong Tian chuckled and said: "You little brat, have you been bullied again? Come to find your master uncle to help you out?"

  "Impossible! This time, I really miss my Master, Father and Uncle, so I came to see them!"

  Tongtian chuckled and said with a smile: "Since you've come to see us on purpose, have you brought gifts?" He looked at Xun Daozi with a playful expression.

  Laozi looked at Xun Daozi with a smile and waited for him to speak.

  Xun Daozi smiled and took out six emerald green bamboo tubes, placing them in front of Laozi, Yuanshi, and Tongtian. He then said respectfully: "These are the gifts I specially brought for Master Bo, Master Father, and Master Shu. Masters, take a look and see if you like them?" After finishing speaking, he looked at the three with an expectant expression.

  Tongtian grabbed a bamboo tube with one hand, opened it casually, and said, "Let's see what you've brought for me." As he spoke, his eyes glanced into the tube, "Oh! It's Wudaozi tea, not bad, not bad; you still have a filial heart! Master Shifu accepts this gift. From now on, whoever bullies you can come to Master Shifu for help." After finishing speaking, he covered the tube and placed it in front of him.

  "This is the 'Wu Dao Zi Cha' and 'Wu Dao Cong Cha' that have been concluded over the past 4,000 years. The disciples of Wu Dao Zi Cha brought 98 pieces each to their Shibo, Shifu, and Shishu; the disciples of Wu Dao Cong Cha brought 1,000 pieces each to their Shibo, Shifu, and Shishu. In addition, there are 6,000 years' worth of 'Wu Dao Mu Cha' that have been concluded, which will be sent again by the disciples to their Shibo, Shifu, and Shishu."

  The old man smiled and said, "You have a heart! Now this 'Wu Dao Zi Cha' and 'Wu Dao Cong Cha' are of little use to us, it's just for the pleasure of taste. It still has some help for you, take it back!"

  Yuanshi said on the side, "Your Shibo is right. At our current level of understanding, 'Wu Dao Zi Cha' and 'Wu Dao Cong Cha' are no longer of much help. It's better to thank you all for the opportunity to participate in this discussion."

  Xun Daozi said respectfully: "Although this tea is of no help to Shibo, Shifu and Shishu, it's just a small token of my intention. Besides, I'm not as reckless as before when I didn't know any better. The 'Wudaozi Tea' and 'Wudao Cong Tea' are stored away, waiting for times when I need some help during my cultivation. Normally, I still rely on my own understanding and comprehension, and don't need much. This is just sent to Shibo, Shifu and Shishu for them to taste the flavor."

  At Xun Daozi's words, Laozi and the other two suddenly recalled Xun Daozi's previous mention of the Cowherd Boy drinking the tea of enlightenment, and couldn't help but smile.

  Yuanshi smiled and said, "In that case, we'll take it down." Laozi nodded and smiled without saying a word. Tongtian chuckled and said, "Although it's not very useful, the flavor is indeed good, I'm starting to miss that flavor." After finishing speaking, he also made a look of intoxication.

  Xun Daozi smiled and said, "Master Shu, there's still some good-tasting tea left!" As he spoke, he took out another green bamboo tube, opened it casually, and a refreshing aroma wafted out, refreshing the heart; The tube was filled with emerald-green tea leaves, like jade carvings, emitting a soft glow.

  Xun Daozi continued, "This tea is from the same tea tree that Shifu used to drink from. That tea tree has been carefully cultivated by Su Xin for thousands of years and has improved a lot. Today, let's have Shibo, Shifu, and Shishu try some!" After finishing speaking, he handed the bamboo tube in his hand to Su Xin beside him, asking her to help brew the tea.

  Su Xin took over the bamboo tube, stood up and bid farewell to Laozi and the other two, went out of Laozi's thatched cottage, and went to make tea by herself.

  Dai Su Xin came out of the house, and Yuan Shi laughed: "With your little thoughts, say it, what do you want to ask from Master and your Shifu, Shibo?"

  Laozi smiled and looked at Xun Daozi; Tongtian looked at him with a playful expression.

  Xun Daozi scratched his head and said in a low voice, "I knew it wouldn't work." He then bowed down in front of Yuan Shi and raised his voice to say, "Disciple has not obtained Master's permission, and has passed on the master's teachings to Su Xin and San Yan Xue Shi; therefore, I specially request Master to punish me!" After finishing speaking, he kowtowed and did not get up.

  "Take back that little mind of yours, I've already told you before, you can pass on what I taught you and naturally take charge of teaching yourself. What crime are you confessing to? What rotten excuse are you making up? Are you trying to get me to accept Su Xin as a disciple? Or do you still want your Shifu to teach Su Xin the art of alchemy?"

  Tongtian then 'heh heh!' laughed loudly. Laozi had a smile on his face, looking at Xunzi without saying a word.

  Xun Daozi secretly raised his head to look at his master, Shifu, and his uncle, Shibo, who were all smiling at him. Suddenly, his face turned extremely colorful, neither laughing nor crying, but somehow it felt a bit burning. He really didn't know what to say, so he just remained silent, letting them decide his fate.

  After a pause, the old man spoke up and said: "You can get up now. Matters of the heart are our own affair, you don't need to think too much about it. Just focus on cultivating your mind with peace."

  Xun Daozi stood up according to his words and looked at Yuan Shi. Yuan Shi opened his mouth and said: "Sit down!"

  Xun Daozi sat down, just staring at Tong Tian with a mischievous grin on his face, still feeling a bit nervous in his heart.

  Soon, Su Xin carried a jade tray into the house, lightly placing a jade cup in front of Laozi, Yuanshi, and Tongtian on the stone table. She picked up the jade pot and quickly poured tea water into the cups. Her movements were light and clean, extremely delightful to watch.

  A whiff of tea fragrance rose with the steam, making one involuntarily want to take a deep breath. The refreshing and distant tea aroma instantly made him reach out for the teacup, pour some into his mouth, close his eyes and savor it for a moment, then swallow in one gulp. After a brief moment, he slowly opened his lips and exhaled slowly. Opening his eyes wide, he suddenly exclaimed: "Good tea!" Then he drained the rest of the tea in the cup in one swift motion.

  Lao Tzu, with a faint smile, picked up the teacup and drank the tea in it to the last drop. He held the cup in his hand, closed his eyes lightly, as if savoring the fragrance of the tea carefully.

  After a long while, Laozi and Yuanshi opened their eyes, took a look at Su Xin, and Laozi nodded with a smile: "Not bad!" Yuanshi smiled and put down the teacup in his hand, also speaking: "Very good!"

  As soon as the three of us heard Laozi's praise, we felt a surge of excitement that brought tears to our eyes. This was the thrill of having our hard work recognized; the tension in our hearts disappeared instantly, replaced by the joy and excitement of years of quiet effort finally being acknowledged.

  Although the excitement in her heart was all over her face, and her nostrils were slightly flared; at this moment she was still very obediently refilling tea for Laozi and the three of them. She also poured a cup for Xunzi, and then stood quietly to one side with her hands clasped together. In a snow-white dress, pure and lovely, standing silently there, it made people who saw her feel a kind of peaceful and serene feeling in their hearts, and their minds would also become quiet.

  The old man saw Su's innocent and clever appearance standing beside him, and he nodded slightly, with a hint of fondness flashing in his eyes.

  Later, the three of us asked Xun Daozi some questions about his cultivation, and he carefully answered each of our questions. At the same time, he also raised some of his own insights and confusions in his cultivation to ask for advice from the three of us.

  After the most in-depth discussion, Yuanshi was still very satisfied with his disciple's performance. Although Xun Daozi's realm for nearly two thousand years was still in the Taiyi Golden Immortal Realm, his understanding of the 'Dao' had made significant progress, and many insights were enlightening to Yuanshi and the others. What was most satisfying was that Xun Daozi finally put his heart into practicing Yuanshi's most proud skill - alchemy, although the things he refined were worthless in Yuanshi's eyes, but Xun Daozi indeed practiced seriously and could refine simple magical artifacts, which for a master alchemist like Yuanshi was nothing, but among the many cultivators of the Primordial Chaos, it was still considered a small accomplishment. Therefore, Yuanshi gave him some affirmation.