Chapter 1: The Teacher's Family

  The old jeep had traversed the city, passed through villages, crossed small rivers, and turned for a long time on the winding mountain roads. Shi Yi'an pressed his forehead tightly against the cold glass, suppressing the turmoil in his throat, breathing hard in the cramped car compartment filled with the murky air mixed with gasoline smell.

  His stomach was now like a tightly twisted broken skin bag, and the things inside might return through his throat at any time.

  The driver who drove the car was an old man with dull eyes, wearing shabby clothes. At the airport, he held up a sign with the name "Shi Yian" and smiled brightly at him, revealing a mouthful of black and yellow teeth, and called out to him in a hoarse voice, "Young Master". This "Young Master" not only made the two of them the center of attention at the airport, but also shattered Shi Yian's glass heart into pieces.

  "How much longer until we arrive." Shi Yi An weakly asked, he could no longer bear it, now he especially wanted to directly break the window and jump down from the cliff beside.

  Along the way, the two men had almost no communication. Old Lin seemed to be a man of few words, which was probably related to his voice. His voice was not only hoarse but also carried some high-pitched whistling sounds that were similar to the sound of air flowing quickly, making people feel uncomfortable.

  "Almost there, just turn around the bend up ahead."

  The old forest's sentence "turning the corner and arriving" really didn't deceive him, as the car, which was not very fast to begin with, had just turned a bend in the mountain road and slowed down again. Shi Yinan stared blankly through the windshield at the scene before him. The crimson gate was somewhat dim against the light, but the brass door knocker was polished until it shone brightly. Above the gate hung an empty plaque with nothing written on it. At the entrance stood two stone statues, one black and one white, which couldn't be identified as any particular animal. If you had to compare them to a familiar animal, they would probably be more like wolves. The two stone statues, one black and one white, did not follow the principle of symmetry at all. Not only were their colors and postures different, but even the feelings they gave people were worlds apart. The white one sat upright on the pedestal, its head held high, chest out, chin raised higher than the sky, as if telling others to look at it, how handsome it was. The other black one lay lazily on the pedestal, its eyes slightly narrowed, as if telling others not to look at it, how cool it was.

  Shi Yi'an swallowed his saliva, judging from the height of this door, it's absolutely impossible for there to be a small courtyard with four combined houses or even a three-sectioned house behind it. The delicate and exquisite craftsmanship is obviously not a product of modern times. If this is indeed the legendary family business, Shi Yi'an's expressionless face suddenly bloomed with joy. This place is a bit remote, but rich people these days like this kind of style. In this deep mountain and old forest, locking up two girls to play, it's really impossible to run away even if you want to.

  Lao Lin came to the front gate and pulled the shiny copper door ring with his thin hand. Then he turned his head to Shi Yi'an and said, "Young Master, you go in through the main entrance yourself, I'll take your luggage in from the back door."

  Behind the vermilion gate, a "ka-chunk" sound of opening door bolts was heard. The two large gates creaked open with an ear-piercing screech, and in the brief moment when the doors were opened, Shi Yi'an blinked, and Lao Lin had already disappeared without a trace.

  Hey, are you just going to leave like that? Is it really okay? This place is so gloomy and scary-looking. Even the underworld has a Black and White Impermanence leading the way, but you took advantage of my distraction to slip away, how sneaky!

  Without Lao Lin, Shi Yian had to go in alone. As a small-town citizen who had never seen such a grand scene before, he was somewhat intimidated by the majestic atmosphere of the mansion. He first looked around cautiously, then glanced at his surroundings, making sure there was no one around, before taking a deep breath and walking in with a confident stride.

  It was midsummer, and the flowers in the courtyard were in full bloom. He didn't know much about plants, but he thought these flowers looked exceptionally beautiful, reflecting a dazzling red color under the scorching sunlight at noon. In stark contrast to the vibrant flowers, the entire large courtyard was eerily quiet, with not a single person in sight. The windows and doors of the two rows of low houses flanking the main gate were all closed, but they didn't seem abandoned either.

  The creaking sound came, and the vermilion gate closed again with a loud noise.

  It's so advanced, and this gate is still fully automatic. Shi Yi anxiously looked around in a circle, but couldn't find where the camera was installed. It seemed to be some new technology that he didn't know about.

  After passing through the gate and then through an archway, there is a spacious courtyard inside, thirty meters square, with blue bricks on the ground. Except for eight stone lanterns, there is nothing else. The doors of the rooms on both sides are tightly closed, and the carved doors and windows are well preserved, apparently having been regularly maintained. The only house in the entire courtyard that has its door open is the one directly opposite the archway. Perhaps due to the angle and design, even at noon, the sun only shines just inside the doorway of that house.

  It looked cool inside, Shi Yian thought to herself, covering her head from the scorching sun with her hand, and her footsteps quickened unconsciously. Indeed, as soon as she stepped into the house, a damp and cold air enveloped her, this humid and chilly air rising from the earth sent shivers down her spine. Shi Yian crossed her arms, rubbed her elbows, and called out loudly: "Excuse me, is anyone there?"

  "Coming, coming." With this response, an old man with white hair, wearing a pair of glasses, dressed in an old-fashioned shirt and slippers, emerged from behind the screen at the back of the main seat. Shī Yǐ ān really didn't want to use the word "emerged", but felt that the old man's modern attire was somewhat out of place with this classical room.

  "Grandfather?" Shi Yifei called out cautiously, the last time he saw his grandfather was when he was three years old, at that time he was still a little ball wearing open-crotch pants, less than 70 centimeters tall, and had long forgotten what his grandfather looked like. If he got it right, it would be fine, but if he got it wrong, someone else would take advantage of him for nothing.

  "Come, come, come." Grandfather pulled Xi'an's wrist and sat down, clicking his tongue in wonder: "This root, I said that the second child's son must not be inferior. In the future, he will surely make our Shi family prosperous."

  What's the big deal about martial arts? It can't be that we're actually a legendary martial family, and I'll master some incredible skills. Although this sounds pretty cool, thinking about it, so-called "martial arts" naturally can't be like those in certain wuxia stories where one move creates a stormy atmosphere and changes the color of the sky - that completely defies scientific principles. In other words, these martial arts are at most just external skills, training skin, bones, and muscles. That being said, at his age, it's probably too late for him anyway.

  "Grandfather, may I ask impolitely, what exactly does our family do?" Shi Yinan felt that this topic was a bit abrupt for a newly met grandfather and grandson, but he couldn't help himself. Living in the deep mountains and old forests, with a wordless red sign hanging at the door, it didn't look like a decent household no matter how you looked at it.

  "We are the descendants of a Heavenly Master lineage that has been passed down for over 1,300 years."

  "......" Uh, did he hear it wrong or was there a misunderstanding? Shi Yian asked cautiously: "Tian Shi?"

  "Yes, what's wrong?"

  Yes, I've always had a materialistic worldview, but suddenly discovered that I come from a family of idealists. My ancestors' business was actually being a Taoist priest. What? You ask what a Taoist priest is? In the countryside, it's like being a shaman, in the city, it's like squatting under a bridge to tell fortunes. In ancient times, there were still many followers, but after the destruction of the Four Olds, today it's just spreading feudal superstition. If serious, one would have to go sit in a small black room (i.e., be imprisoned).

  Shi Yi'an lifted his head, suddenly unsure of what expression to use in the face of this benevolent old man. He wanted to say that although you have great expectations for me, I also have great hopes for our family's ancestral business, but this Xuanxue stuff is completely beyond my comprehension, I'm afraid I won't be able to do it.

  "I just met Old Lin at the back, it seems that Little An has arrived." The speaker had not yet arrived, but his loud and energetic voice had already reached.

  He emerged from behind the screen, the person who had just spoken, dressed to the nines, wearing a white sleeveless jacket with a high collar, black leggings and a pair of soft-soled kung fu shoes, looking like a butcher in an old-fashioned market.

  Walking beside him was a serious-looking man about his height, wearing a light-colored long shirt and having a square-shaped face that could be considered dignified, but with no smile. Further ahead was another person, wearing an orange-yellow floral shirt, black shorts, and exuding a carefree air as if he had just returned from a summer vacation in Hawaii in the 80s.

  These people standing together always give off a sense of being out of place in this era.

  "Xiao An probably hasn't met them before." The old man enthusiastically pulled Siyuan An over and introduced him, "This is your great uncle."

  "Great uncle is well."

  The serious man nodded.

  "This is Third Uncle." The robust man smiled, revealing a set of white teeth.

  "Third Uncle is well."

  Shī yì ān guāi guāi dǎ zhāo hū.

  Translation: Shi Yi said hello politely.

  "This is my younger brother-in-law."

  "Hello, young uncle."

  The old man smiled and held onto Shi Yian's hand, his dry and chilly hands feeling like a snake shedding its skin wrapped around his. The loose, sagging skin hung from the bones, giving Shi Yian goosebumps on this sweltering summer day. The old man concluded, "Alright, Little An has just returned today, so rest first after your long journey. We'll start training tomorrow."

  "Grandpa, you misunderstood me, I didn't come back to cultivate, I just came back to see you, and I'll be leaving in two days."

  "Is that what the second elder told you?" The old man was taken aback at first, then burst out laughing like a blooming flower. He continued, "The descendants of our sect have no right to choose whether or not to cultivate, only the obligation to cultivate."

  "What do you usually watch? How did rights and obligations come out?"

  "Practicing is the mission and fate of our family's descendants for generations to come." My elder uncle suddenly spoke up, his expression as serious as ever, without a hint of smile, saying something that sounded like a joke.

  Shi Yi'an suddenly remembered that his career guidance teacher had once said that college graduates should be on guard against pyramid schemes, but he had been vigilant for half a day and was still deceived by his own father.

  "Let's not talk about that for now, let's eat first. Xia Anzi, don't rush to leave either. You learn and see if you're suitable for this or not. If you're not, we absolutely won't force it." Xiao Shu said with a familiar tone, his voice filled with enthusiasm as he patted Shi Yian's shoulder.

  "Haha." Shi Yinan smiled foolishly on the surface, but silently rolled his eyes in his heart. As expected of brothers, even the nonsense they made up was the same. Before coming back, when his old man deceived him into returning, he hemmed and hawed and couldn't clearly say what their family's ancestral business was, so he let him come back to take a look first. If he believed them again this time, then he wouldn't be a socialist youth who advocates for anti-imperialism, anti-corruption, integrity, and anti-feudalism.

  "Come on, I'll take you to taste Liu's culinary skills. Once you eat, you won't want to leave." As he spoke, Xiao Shu glanced at the jade pendant hanging from Shi Yi'an's neck and snatched it off with a swift grab, as if performing magic. He continued, "We're already home, what's the point of still wearing this thing? It's not even valuable or good-quality jade, just some trivial trinket meant to deceive people."

  This jade was something that Shī Yì ān had always carried with him. At a glance, it was clear that it was made from inferior jade material, and its dull color hadn't changed even after being worn for over twenty years. His mother had instructed him back then not to take it off, or else she would break his arm. When he was younger, Shī Yì ān had also been annoyed by the jade pendant getting in the way, and at the time, he had tried every method to remove it. However, the red string didn't seem to be made of anything ordinary, as scissors couldn't cut through it, and it couldn't be removed. He got used to wearing it after a while. Who knew that his younger uncle would grab it and take it off with ease? His younger uncle clenched the jade pendant in his hand, gave it a light flick, and it instantly turned into dust. Shī Yì ān's eyes widened in shock.

  "It's just a minor skill."

  Oh no, Mom is going to break my arm...

  The dishes for lunch were exquisite and light, and they were all exquisite dishes that were rarely seen in daily life. Maybe because he was hungry, Shi Yi'an didn't eat less. At the dinner table, everyone also didn't speak, it seems that this traditional family still adheres to the principle of not speaking while eating and not speaking while sleeping.

  The waitress was a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl, with two braids tied up, and although she didn't look particularly good, she had a rare kind of rustic and shy charm. The only thing was that the pink floral padded jacket she wore was a bit tacky, if she changed into a white skirt it would probably be much more becoming on her.

  Wait, pink floral padded jacket?

  He looked up at the scorching sun outside, which was almost deforming the bluestone floor, and suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. What kind of people had Grandpa hired to work here? There was the old man who spoke like a broken windbox, the village girl wearing a cotton-padded jacket in the middle of summer, and the man with a shaved head sweeping the yard while keeping his head down, wearing a long green robe. And then there was the family business of ancestral master that wasn't reliable at all. It seemed he had really arrived at a place that was beyond salvation.