Original subtitles

Ziwei Abbey This Daoist abbey, standing here ever since Great Qin was founded, boasts a history of over six hundred years

Venture deep into Mount Heng and you come upon an elm forest; step into it and gaze at the roiling sea of clouds on the horizon

Walking through those steep mountain ravines, drifting amid the sea of clouds, after some several hours

you reach the end of the elm forest, a place wreathed in ethereal immortal vapors

and there you can faintly make out Ziwei Abbey perched on the mountainside

And I, Han Qi, have grown up in this abbey since I was small

Time flies, sun and moon race like a shuttle — in the blink of an eye eighteen years have passed

Han Qi: Aah~ this abbey is really so boring

Han Qi: Every single day it's cultivate, cultivate — yet my cultivation never seems to improve

Han Qi: At this rate I'll be outdone by those two stunted runts

Han Qi: Ah well, but lying here basking in the sun is still pretty comfortable

Han Qi: Watching the clouds drift by, listening to the birdsong in the woods — wonderful, simply wonderful

Han Qi: ♪～ Hmm hmm hmm ～♪～ la-di-la-di-la…

Han Qi: The mood of the moment, the sky of the moment — carefree as a little immortal～ hmm hmm hmm～♪

Han Qi: ♪ La la la～ ♪ Ah~ my wife~~ Wang Baochuan~

Han Qi: ♪ Poor you, keeping vigil in the cold kiln~ poor you, all alone and lonely～ ♪

Pei Zhaoji: Qi'er~ Qi'er~

Pei Zhaoji: Qi'er, hiding out here — you wouldn't be trying to slack off, would you?

The one who cut off my song was a woman's scolding, stern yet laced with a hint of playful reproach

That face, so exquisite it can only be described by the word "peerless," was so familiar to me

The woman wore a Daoist robe of matching grey and white

Her figure — full in front, curved behind — stretched the fabric taut; two round, lovely breasts all but spilling out

Pei Zhaoji: Qi'er, did you not hear me? What are you still standing there dazed for?

Han Qi: Heh heh heh~ Mother, what brings you here? Have those two stunted runts both gone back?

Pei Zhaoji: Haa~~~~ You~ they are your two junior brothers, mind your tongue!

Pei Zhaoji: Huan Yu and Huan Chong have both passed the Xuanzhao realm today

Pei Zhaoji: Only you fail to finish your daily cultivation on time, forever stuck at the Foundation Establishment stage

Pei Zhaoji: When your mother sets off for Luojing before long, how are you to take over this Ziwei Abbey?

Han Qi: Heh heh heh~

The moment this subject comes up my head aches. Mother's surname is Pei, her given name Zhaoji

I heard when Father was still alive that Mother's Daoist title is 【Lady Xueji】

Head of the Human Sect, and moreover the master of this Ziwei Abbey

Nineteen years ago she met my father — 【the Lone Blade of the Desert】 Han Shaogong, who then held the rank of Prince of Pengcheng

The two met amid the chaos of war; Father fell for her at first sight,

and through many a chance encounter, Mother too gradually grew fond of him

So the two each set aside fame and fortune and joyfully wed; the next year Mother bore me at the foot of Mount Heng

But Father, when I was five, because the frontier was invaded by the Hu people

took up his blade and mounted his horse once more for the distant border, and from then never returned

By the time Father was mentioned again, it was already when Mother, clad in white

her face solemn, knelt before a gravestone at the foot of Mount Heng's northern slope, lost in desolate grief

Han Qi: Heh heh… Your son will of course strive hard…

It's not that I don't work hard at cultivation — truly, I simply have no interest in it

On the contrary, I'm rather fond of blades, spears and staves; from childhood I trained a fine set of saber techniques

Most likely I inherited Father's blood

Though I don't have much of an impression of this father who gave his life for the country

just the title 【Lone Blade of the Desert】 alone is enough to make every subject of Great Qin sing his praises

Prince of Pengcheng Han Shaogong, one man against a hundred

fighting to the death in bloody battle to cover the retreat of Great Qin's main force — those heroic deeds

I learned of them only from the mouths of the townsfolk down the mountain

But such a glorious past of Father's, Mother never once brought up with me

Once I went to ask about it, and got a fierce scolding from her

In time, the cause of Father's death became a taboo in the abbey, never again heard spoken of

Pei Zhaoji: Haa~~~ Tomorrow's cultivation — do not slack off again

Mother seemed long used to this idleness of mine; with a light sigh, a flick of her sleeve, she left me standing there

Watching Mother's graceful, swaying back

my nose was filled with the faint plum-blossom scent on her, mingled with the body fragrance unique to a mature woman

My nostrils quivered faintly; I always felt a fire-like heat within my heart

Back in my room, I flipped through the basic scriptures and techniques again and again, thinking I must break through this damned Foundation Establishment stage

I couldn't let Huan Chong and Huan Yu, those two stunted runts, laugh at me; but after staring for ages

my mind was full of nothing but Mother's graceful, alluring jade body

When did Mother start dressing so daringly

Every time it set my mind wandering — but alas, mother and son are separate; I secretly shook my head

I'm a man too, and a man naturally has thoughts about women

But in my eighteen years, in this Ziwei Abbey I've only ever seen two women: Mother and her personal maid Ling'er

And don't think being Mother's son counts for anything — that Ling'er has never once given me a proper look

It's because the year before last, Huan Chong and Huan Yu tricked me into going to the lotus pond behind the mountain to play

and I happened to walk in on Ling'er bathing; the little wench went straight back and reported me to Mother

I got no small punishment from Mother, and from then that little maid and I became foes

This little minx is on good terms with the Huan brothers; every time I see these fellows my blood boils

Speaking of these Huan brothers, the two are about my age

brought up the mountain three years ago by Mother's own hand from the town below

The first glance at the two brothers displeased me, for the pair were sordid and ugly

freakishly short too — eighteen or nineteen years old yet developed no more than twelve-year-old children

dressed in rags and tatters, like beggars wandering the streets

Mother said their parents were murdered by mountain bandits, leaving them orphaned and forlorn

and because of their ugly looks they were shunned by the townsfolk

Mother told me that though these two brothers were of stunted stature

in her view they had spiritual roots, well suited to cultivating the Dao

On top of that, with only me in the abbey year-round, she wanted to give me a playmate, so she brought them up the mountain

I was of course a hundred times displeased inside; I'd long grown used to solitude

Each day practicing saber forms, reading scriptures — though my aptitude wasn't high

and I'd made no progress, Mother didn't seem to force me to inherit her cultivation or her title

so my days passed carefree and content

Then out of nowhere came these two freaks — how could I possibly accept it

But one look at Mother's tender, loving expression

and the pitiful eyes of those two brothers, and I was moved to compassion…

Later, standing before the cliff of Mount Heng and looking back at the familiar Ziwei Abbey, I recalled it all with a bitter smile

If I had chosen to open my mouth and refuse back then

If I had seen the desire hidden in those two brothers' pitiful eyes

perhaps today's irretrievable situation would never have come to pass, and perhaps Mother too would not have…

A night passed without a word…

The next day

After washing up in the early morning, I came to the cultivation grounds in the abbey and cultivated as usual

This Foundation Establishment is also called Hundred-Day Foundation, but it doesn't mean it's done after a hundred days

rather, "hundred days" is just a figure of speech; in truth it means it takes a fairly long time to complete

As for exactly how many days it takes to lay the foundation and seal the leaks

this is closely tied to the technique chosen, whether one has a wise master's guidance, the depth of one's immersion while practicing

the daily hours spent practicing, each person's differing physical condition, and many other factors

There's no uniform standard to follow, and it certainly isn't decided by the cultivator's subjective wishes

Though Mother is the Head of the Human Sect of the Daoist order, in the end she is still a mother

A mother naturally shows favoritism; there's no way she wouldn't give me a little extra help

Some of the secret pills and precious elixirs refined in the abbey's furnace that help low-level cultivators boost their power and break bottlenecks

I've eaten more than I'd care to admit, enough to tell the good from the mediocre

Deep in the night, Mother even personally channeled her power into me, helping me break through this first threshold

Yet somehow — whether because my six senses aren't pure, or I'm simply unsuited to cultivation at the core

in short, where others take a hundred days, I've spent nearly three years, becoming a good-for-nothing who can't break through in three years

No wonder that little maid Ling'er always mocks me behind my back, saying I'm not only a virgin

but that even my cultivation is like a child's…

My heart was surely a jumble of feelings; I could only console myself

telling myself I just wasn't interested in cultivation, since after all I wield a fine saber

But where is this? This is Ziwei Abbey, and my mother is Pei Zhaoji, hailed as Lady Xueji, Head of the Human Sect

How could her son be such trash, practicing the blade in a forbidden Daoist ground?

Said aloud, it's as absurd as expounding scriptures and the Dao in a courtesans' bureau

Huan Chong: Oh-ho, isn't this our sect-leader junior brother? Coming to cultivate so early?

Huan Chong: Cultivating so diligently — looks like you'll break through Foundation Establishment any day now

Damn it, it's these brothers again. I'd meant to cultivate early and leave early once done

I heard Mother say yesterday that the two of them have passed the Xuanzhao realm

which puts them a full tier above my Daoist attainment. Before, I could still trade a few barbs with the two of them

saying we were about even, no one looking down on anyone — but now I'm still muddling along in this damned Foundation Establishment

What face do I have left to answer them

Huan Yu: Right right right, junior brother works so hard, your cultivation must have advanced quite a bit

Huan Yu: Come to think of it, Shiniang guided the two of us brothers hand-in-hand yesterday

Huan Yu: past that whatever — oh, right, Foundation Establishment. I wonder how you're doing now, junior brother~

Watching the two look so smug, and catching the stench off their bodies, I was simply annoyed to death

These two fellows have been on the mountain over three years, yet have never known to keep up their personal hygiene

At first Mother chided them a few times, but later just let it be

Speaking of "hand-in-hand," though I knew this was said to needle me on purpose, my heart still churned with disgust

The thought of Mother's smooth, boneless hands gripping the grimy, coarse hands of Huan Chong and Huan Yu made my throat go sour

Huan Chong: Heh heh, junior brother, it's not that senior brother's picking on you, but you've been stuck at Foundation Establishment three years now, right?

Huan Chong: We two only started cultivating half a year ago

Huan Chong: yet it took us less than half a year to break through this Foundation Establishment realm

Huan Chong: Don't you want to know just what method the two of us used?

I swallowed a mouthful of saliva; there was actually some anticipation in my heart, but I still held down the urge

Damn them, these two definitely mean no good. Before, it was the two of them who schemed to send me to the lotus pond

where I ran into Ling'er bathing, got a fierce scolding from Mother, and was made to copy the Dao De Jing fifty times

Another time they egged me into going down to the market to watch the temple fair, but the two of them actually went back to the abbey early

leaving me alone at the fair; by the time I rushed back up the mountain it was already midnight

Mother stood before the abbey gate, whisk in hand, face full of anger, having waited a long while for me

That time I was punished over a month, forbidden to touch blade, spear or staff, only to cultivate behind closed doors and recite scriptures

From then on, I truly came to loathe these two brothers, bellies full of wicked schemes

Thinking this time surely wouldn't be anything good either, best to just ignore them

Huan Yu: Junior brother, I know you hold a grudge against the two of us, but that's all a misunderstanding

Huan Yu: In this Ziwei Abbey, now you're the only one still stuck at Foundation Establishment — think about it

Huan Yu: We two are now at the Xuanzhao stage; give it a few more days and we might well advance another step

Huan Yu: By then, if you're still cultivating like this… I'm afraid you'll disappoint Shiniang even more

Mother would be disappointed… hearing this, some knot deep in my heart seemed to be touched

Of course I don't want to disappoint Mother… but no matter how hard I try

I just can't break through this cursed Foundation Establishment

Yesterday Mother also said she's to set off for Luojing before long

The Grand Hundred Schools Convocation, held once every three years, gathers the elders, sect leaders and elite cultivators of all the great schools

Each trip to Luojing to expound scriptures for the Son of Heaven of Great Qin takes over a year

I must at least break through this bottleneck before she sets off

The deeper meaning in Mother's words is that she wants to take me to Luojing to preach the Dao

Three years ago she once took my then-only senior brother, Zou Anren; he was taken a liking to by the Great Qin emperor

kept at court as an official, and I hear he even became an imperial son-in-law

Though loath to part with him, Mother was overjoyed; she hopes to nurture me too into engaging with the world — but alas, I…

Han Qi: Then… I wonder what fine method senior brother might have…

Huan Chong: Junior brother, like I said before — it has to be hand-in-hand

Han Qi: Huh? What hand-in-hand?

Don't tell me I'm supposed to grip his grimy hand myself to have the technique passed to me?

Huan Yu: Of course it's the two of us brothers, stark naked, gripping Shiniang's soft little hands

Huan Yu: and having Shiniang impart the Daoist arts to us two together~

Han Qi: Fuck you! You're courting death!

Han Qi: I may not out-cultivate you two, but I know a bit of fist and kick

Han Qi: Watch me give you two a proper thrashing today

Huan Chong: Shiniang! Shiniang, save us quick!

Pei Zhaoji: Qi'er, how can you be so rude! Stand down at once!

Huan Yu: Shi… niang, Shiniang… junior brother's getting violent… boo hoo hoo…

Han Qi: I… Mother, it was him…

Huan Chong: Shiniang… mm-mm… the two of us were only asking junior brother how his cultivation's been lately…

Huan Chong: …but junior brother flew into a rage, demanding why we two were mock… mocking him…

Huan Yu: Right right… right… we two had just broken through Foundation Establishment and wanted to share some experience with junior brother…

Huan Yu: but junior brother, without a word, raised his hands against the two of us…

Huan Yu: Shiniang~ you have to take our side…

Han Qi: I'm absolutely furious!!! Give me your lives!

Pei Zhaoji: You… Qi'er… what more do you mean to do!

Huan Yu (Huan Chong): Heh heh…

Han Qi: You two bastards! I'll kill you!

(Smack!!!)

Han Qi: Mo… Mother… you hit… you hit me?

Pei Zhaoji: Qi'er… you've disappointed me far too much…

Han Qi: Mother… I…

Pei Zhaoji: You two, come with me, let's get you bandaged up

Han Qi: Mother…

Pei Zhaoji: Haa…

Huan Chong: Junior brother, what's the point of such a temper

Huan Chong: We brothers were just joking with you, you'd really eat us alive?

Huan Chong: Look, such a big slap-mark on your face — how are you going to show your face outside

Han Qi: You two dogs, what exactly are you scheming!

I felt the burning, scorching sensation on my face; that pain wasn't on my face, but in my heart

All the more so where Mother was concerned — she had never struck me from childhood to now

No matter how great my wrong, it was never more than copying scriptures and being denied play

This time she actually slapped me before these two little bastards — all because these two fellows were up to their tricks

Huan Yu: Don't put it so harshly, we're all under one master

Huan Yu: The lives of us two were saved by Shiniang — how could we harbor any crooked thoughts

Huan Yu: Still, just now you sure snuck plenty of peeks at your mother's long legs, tsk tsk — aren't they long and fair

Han Qi: Hmph, you two had better watch yourselves from now on!

Huan Chong (in a low voice): This silly boy still doesn't know how full and tender his mother's body is

Huan Yu (in a low voice): Heh heh, Shiniang's little triangle panties — really something

Huan Yu (in a low voice): That big fat round ass, and even that little cunt…

My head was in a daze as I returned to my room

On the way I even ran into Ling'er going to boil water; Ling'er didn't notice me standing there dispirited

because she was carrying a basin of hot water, cursing away under her breath in displeasure

At that moment my mind was a mess and I paid no heed to whatever she was saying

Back in my room, I picked up the treasured saber Father left behind, stroking the very blade Father wore in life

This was given to me by Mother back then; she told me it was Father's sole remaining token in this world

Father died under the Hu people's chaotic blades, his corpse barely kept whole; naturally this saber became my most treasured thing

Han Qi: Haa, Father, what kind of man am I to become after all?

Haa, no matter what, I must admit my fault to Mother, even though it wasn't my fault

but my rash behavior was enough to chill Mother's heart

A cultivator ought to be calm and even-tempered, undisturbed by outside distractions, yet I anger so easily

Not only does my cultivation not grow, I can't even control my temper

Those two fellows just wanted to make a fool of me; though in my heart I loathe the Huan brothers immensely

I also secretly admire how fast the two have grown in cultivation

Completing the Hundred-Day Foundation in just over half a year — could what Mother said back then be right after all

that these two truly have spiritual roots and can comprehend the Great Dao?

Haa, first thing tomorrow I'll go beg Mother's forgiveness; though I'm a bit hot-headed

once I've made out the right and wrong of a matter, I let it go

Perhaps because my thoughts were in disarray during the day, at night the nightmares came one after another

I dimly dreamed of a white swan with snowy feathers and neck, bitten to death in a lake by two toads

The two ugly toads opened their filthy maws, mounted the swan's body, and clamped down hard on its slender neck

The swan thrashed its snow-white feathers with all its might, but couldn't withstand the other toad mounting its body too

In the end, with a mournful cry, it collapsed beneath the toads, and the two beasts feasted upon the noble swan

I wanted to save that swan, but found I couldn't move

Lowering my head, I discovered I was actually still a fledgling

able only to huddle in the nest, watching those two beasts devour the still-wailing white swan…

Waking in the morning with an aching back, probably because of that strange dream last night

But thinking I had to go apologize to Mother today, I still washed up clean, changed into new clothes, and went to Mother's room

Ling'er: Isn't this Young Master Han? What, come to bid the Sect Master good morning?

Han Qi: Move aside, I've no time to bicker with you today

I couldn't be bothered with her today; this little girl has always been at odds with me

In the end it's just that I accidentally saw her bathing, and she chased me down biting like a mad dog

Ling'er: The Sect Master is busy, she's no time to see you

Han Qi: Hmph! Move aside, I don't believe you

Ling'er: Tch, believe it or not, suit yourself

???: Mmm… slower… don't… slower…

Han Qi: (??? What sound is that? Why is such a strange sound coming from Mother's room)

Han Qi: (Don't tell me I'm still not awake? That doesn't sound like Mother's voice either)

Han Qi: (And this voice even carries a hint of coquettishness? What is going on in there?)

Han Qi: (Strange, let me get closer and listen…)

Pei Zhaoji: You… don't… how can it be this… thick…

My head buzzed, my legs actually trembled a little, because this voice was Mother's very own

Before, I'd thought it impossible for Mother to make such a soft, delicate sound

But this voice truly was uniquely Mother's — I've heard it eighteen years, how could I mistake it

Don't tell me Mother is…

My mind went blank; though I'm still a virgin

I've heard no shortage of bawdy tales in the tavern down the mountain — Mother has kept an empty chamber so long

it's inevitable she'd have a woman's needs…

But the moment I thought Mother might be pleasuring herself, I grew all the more excited

Yes, I'll just take one look, one look is enough… heh heh heh…

Han Qi: (Ow, crap!)

Han Qi: (Damn it! Whose worn-out cloth shoe is this!)

Han Qi: (Not good, this place isn't safe to linger)

Han Qi: Phew… phew… phew (Damn, scared me to death, hope I wasn't spotted)

Han Qi: Phew… phew… phew (Good thing I wasn't spotted)

Han Qi: (If Mother knew I spied on her pleasuring herself, it wouldn't be just one slap)

Han Qi: (But Mother's got some nerve, actually daring to do such a shameful thing in broad daylight)

Han Qi: (Seems even Lady Xueji, about to enter the Spirit-Severing stage)

Han Qi: (in the end still has the mortal's passions and physical needs)

Han Qi: (But… just now…)

Han Qi: (It felt like there was someone behind Mother…)

Han Qi: (Is there a man in the room?)

Han Qi: (There are only five people on this mountain; besides the Huan brothers, I'm the only other man)

Han Qi: (It couldn't be Mother and…)

Han Qi: (Let me take another look…)

Han Qi: (Hm? A Sealing Barrier Formation?)

Han Qi: (This is one of the Daoist high-tier arts, usually only cast during secluded cultivation)

Han Qi: (used to prevent outside disturbance)

Han Qi: (But why would Mother cast such a forbidden art outside her own room? What on earth is she doing)

Han Qi: (Don't tell me I angered her yesterday into wanting to go into seclusion?)

Han Qi: (Haa, can't figure it out — a woman's heart is a needle at the bottom of the sea)

Han Qi: (Best to go back and cultivate properly, and come find Mother once her seclusion ends)

Ling'er: Oh? Young Master Han, why the unhappy face

Ling'er: Could it be you got shut out and didn't get to see the Sect Master? Hee hee

Han Qi: Hmph! None of your business! You'd best mind your own affairs

Han Qi: Careful you don't get punished by the Sect Master again!

I know Mother often has issues with Ling'er

Ling'er was originally the eldest daughter of the wealthy Yao merchant family in the town below; the Yao family later fell on hard times

At the age of seven, Ling'er was sold to the bandits on a nearby mountain

It was Mother who helped the Mount Heng prefecture's authorities wipe out that gang and saved Ling'er's life

taking her on as her personal maid

But this Yao Ling'er has a rather willful nature; though she usually acts all sweet and demure

behind the scenes I've heard her more than once curse Mother out of resentment at having to serve her

Pitying her wretched background, I was unwilling to report her

I never expected she'd now grow all the more brazen, taking her temper out on me

Ling'er: Hee hee, I haven't gotten any punishment lately~

Ling'er: Whereas yesterday a certain someone took a slap from the Sect Master~ hee hee

Han Qi: You!!! Forget it, I won't argue with you

Han Qi: Do you know why the Sect Master set up…

Ling'er: Aiya aiya, no time to fool around with you, I've business with the Sect Master

Han Qi: What the fuck! Isn't this the Sealing Barrier Formation? Why can Ling'er go in?

Han Qi: Why can't I get in? Surely Mother isn't still angry with me

Han Qi: Mother, it's Qi'er, I've come to see you!

Han Qi: Mother, I've come to apologize and admit my fault!

………………………………

Haa! I feel as if I've been abandoned by the whole world

For three whole days after that, I didn't see Mother at all

In the meantime I could only listlessly leaf through Daoist classics and cultivate, but my heart was such a jumble

that I could never calm down

In the end I shamelessly sought out Ling'er

Ling'er: What do you want with me! Young Master Han, I'm very busy

Han Qi: Um, Ling'er, I just wanted to ask, why did the Sect Master set up a barrier

Han Qi: How is it I haven't heard a single bit of news

Ling'er: Oh-ho-ho, does the Sect Master's business need your permission now?

Han Qi: Ling'er, just tell me, and I'll give you the osmanthus snow-cloud cake the Sect Master gave me

Ling'er: Heh heh, the Sect Master said she needs to go into seclusion to recuperate a while, maybe half a month before she comes out

Han Qi: Then why can you come and go freely from the Sect Master's room?

Ling'er: I naturally have to attend to the Sect Master's daily needs…

Han Qi: That's true too… come to think of it, I haven't seen the two Huan brothers lately

Han Qi: Ling'er, have you seen the two of them?

Ling'er: Cough… um, those two… are of course by the Sect Master's side, going into seclusion and cultivating together~

Han Qi (furious): How could those two possibly get Mother's permission!

Ling'er: …cough… it's because your aptitude is so poor

Ling'er: The two of them are about to step into the Aperture-Opening stage of Refining Essence into Qi

Ling'er: The Sect Master said the Huan brothers are quite gifted, taking less than half a year to reach Foundation Establishment

Ling'er: Had she known, she'd have let the two of them follow her in cultivation sooner

Han Qi (heart shattering): How could it be… how could it come to this…

Ling'er: I say, Han Qi, Young Master Han, you'd best try harder

Ling'er: In another half month the Sect Master sets off for Luojing to attend the Grand Hundred Schools Convocation

Ling'er: You've no idea — in private the Sect Master always sneaks off at midnight to the grave behind the mountain to talk to herself

Ling'er: telling the master's gravestone that she failed to raise you well

Ling'er: rather than words blaming you for low aptitude or laziness; each time she stands there a whole night

Han Qi (ashamed): Mother…

Ling'er: The Sect Master surely meant to take you to Luojing this time, but you've made not the slightest progress in three years of Foundation Establishment

Ling'er: This Ziwei Abbey has only five people all told; how many times has the Sect Master secretly pulled strings for you

Ling'er: Any fool can see it, yet you just won't better yourself, staring at that broken saber all day

Ling'er: utterly failing to grasp the Sect Master's heart

Ling'er: Sometimes I think, if I could get the Sect Master to teach me the way of cultivation, I'd surely surpass you

Ling'er: I was once a lady of a good family, gifted and clever; were I to cultivate and comprehend the Dao, I'd surely…

I no longer had the heart to deal with Ling'er; dizzy-headed, I returned to my desk like a walking corpse

staring blankly at the scriptures

My mind was full of Mother's past words of encouragement and the scene of her in white weeping before Father's grave

For a moment my heart ached terribly; I secretly cursed myself for being so useless

But the moment I pictured the Huan brothers' two ugly, hateful faces and sordid, hunched frames appearing in Mother's room, cultivating in seclusion together with Mother

I felt wave after wave of nausea, sour water welling up uncontrollably from deep in my throat

Recalling again the barrier Mother suddenly set up yesterday, with the whole Ziwei Abbey shutting out only me

I grew all the more stifled at heart, feeling the world spin, the sun and moon go dark; my mind sank, and I fell into a stupor

"Qi'er!"

"Qi'er!"

Han Qi: Fa… Father?

Han Qi: Father… I… I'm sorry… (sobbing)

Han Shaogong: Qi'er, no need to blame yourself… your father knows your aspirations; cultivation was never your forte

Han Shaogong: But you must inherit the Ziwei Pavilion; do not let your mother grieve

Han Qi: Your son… your son understands, I will surely strive from now on!

Han Shaogong: Mm… good, truly worthy of being Han Shaogong's son

Han Shaogong: Mm… Qi'er… is your mother well?

Han Qi: Uh…

I was slightly stunned; I'd meant to pour out everything that had happened lately and all the wrongs I'd suffered

but on second thought, I didn't want my departed father to worry about the family still

so I did my best to put on a smile

Han Qi: Rest easy, Father, your son's all grown up, I'll protect Mother

Han Shaogong: Heh heh, good! That's my boy

Han Shaogong: Qi'er, your father went to face peril for the country without regret; this is the duty of a man of Great Qin

Han Shaogong: Your mother is strong-willed, but she has the flaw common to women — she's too tender-hearted

Han Shaogong: Though she's the Head of the Human Sect of the Daoist order, of great skill with few rivals under heaven

Han Shaogong: in the end she's a woman, and having long dwelt atop Mount Heng, she's had little chance to engage with the world

Han Shaogong: The wickedness of human hearts in this world is not something she knows

Han Shaogong: You've come of age; you must stay by her side often and protect her well

Han Shaogong: Then your father's spirit in heaven can rest in peace

Han Qi: Qi'er will surely protect Mother well, and never let her come to the slightest harm!

Han Shaogong: Good! Good! Good!

…So it was a dream…

From then on, I cast aside the blade and took up cultivation, vowing to guard Mother's side at all times

Over the next few days, I shut myself away in the abbey's Scripture Pavilion, calmed my mind, and cultivated in earnest

casting all the messy, vexing matters of Mother and the Huan brothers to the back of my mind

Once my heart questioned nothing, my comprehension indeed opened wide

My whole body felt every pore slowly unfurling and opening…

Ten nights later, I stepped out of the Scripture Pavilion, eyes slightly narrowed as I gazed at the bright moon in the sky, my whole body at ease

By now I'd broken through Foundation Establishment!

Tomorrow should be the day Mother leaves seclusion; I must let her get a good look at the fruits of my many days of cultivation

Thinking this, I was of course overjoyed, and recalled Father's earnest teachings to me in the dream a few days back

So I decided to go bow before the old man's grave

Father, one against a hundred, died in battle on the field; the Qin army spent a fortune to ransom his remains from the enemy

Back then Mother, weeping, buried Father's remains atop this Mount Heng

the meaning being that Father could stay by her side here for years to come, never to part

Mother thereupon vowed never to remarry; in the blink of an eye thirteen years have passed

The steadfast, unwavering love between Lady Xueji and the Lone Blade of the Desert is also sung of by the world

Han Qi: Father! Your son has come to see you

Han Qi: Your son has broken through Foundation Establishment; this time I'll go to Luojing with Mother to expound scriptures, and won't disgrace you

Han Qi: Father, Qi'er will surely protect Mother well

I looked at the few lonely characters on that cold stone stele, and couldn't help my eyes stinging

Lowering my gaze, the fruit offered beneath the stele had already rotted; Mother must not have come since entering seclusion

I thought again of what had happened lately, and my heart was a jumble of feelings

But now that I've broken through Foundation Establishment, everything is slowly getting better

Father, your son will surely never let Mother grieve again! Your son will surely protect Mother well

(Rustle rustle)

Han Qi: (? A sound? Not good, don't tell me the bandits from the mountain across have crept up?)

I'd heard there's been banditry near Mount Heng again lately; it'd be bad if bandits robbed under cover of night

When I was little I often ran into bandit troubles on Mount Heng; later Mother finally agreed to leave the mountain to help the authorities suppress them

Only then did that pack of bandits quiet down — who'd have thought they'd dare come up the mountain again now

(Rustle rustle)

Bad! This might really be bandits who've climbed up

But around here, apart from this grove there's no cover; behind is a sheer cliff

I couldn't think much of it, and quickly slipped behind the gravestone

Figuring these bandits would retreat once they saw the cliff behind, and I'd think of something back at the abbey then

???: Hoo hoo… you really know how to play, brother, dragging her all the way here to fuck

???: You two go at it first; I'll head back and satisfy the other wanton slut

??? (the other): Haha, knew you were still thinking about that little slut

??? (the other): Off you go then. The moment Shiniang heard we were coming here, she clenched three notches tighter down below~

Shiniang? And these two men's voices! Don't tell me it's the two of them?

Pei Zhaoji: You two wicked disciples, how can you be so improper, aiya… oww… stop ramming so relentlessly

Pei Zhaoji: You've been ramming your Shiniang the whole way — won't you rest a while!

It's Mother… it's Mother's voice! The voice I've known most intimately these eighteen years!

No… impossible… how could Mother make such a coquettish sound

And this simpering, coy tone… how could it be…

This must be fake — Mother, a person as pure as an immortal maiden

how could she be tangled up with those two filthy things? They're just cultivating in the room

This must be some little slut from down the mountain seducing wild men…

I felt my back teeth clashing against the top ones with a grinding creak; I forced myself to turn and glanced sideways…

Pei Zhaoji: Mmm… you… slower… mmm…

Huan Chong: Phew… so good… how does Shiniang's tender cunt grip so well…

Huan Chong: …does coming to your dead husband's grave make you even more excited~

Huan Chong: Haha, Shiniang, though you've a face to topple nations and mastery of the Dao

Huan Chong: alas, past the bloom of youth — this middle-aged woman's waist is no match for Little Taohong in town~

Pei Zhaoji: Bas… you wretched disciple… how dare you compare your master to those women of the pleasure quarters…

Pei Zhaoji: Your master… ah… is the… is the Head of the Human Sect… ah… revered by ten thousand… ah…

Huan Chong: Heh heh heh! Head of the Human Sect, my foot — right now aren't you sticking out that big ass like a bitch, begging me to fuck you

Pei Zhaoji: Wretch!… how dare you… insult your master like this!

Pei Zhaoji: Nnah! How dare you strike your master there! Ah!

Pei Zhaoji: Ai! You sinful disciple, to think your master taught you the arts… ah… ah

Pei Zhaoji: Eee! Don't… don't hit there… it hurts…

Huan Chong: Heh heh heh… clearly getting hit yet clenching so tight — Shiniang, is it pain or pleasure after all?

Pei Zhaoji: It's not… ah! You sinful disciple… your master treated you no… ah

Huan Chong: Heh heh heh… for all your mouth still scolds, Shiniang's body honestly answers every single slap…

Huan Chong: One slap, and Shiniang's honeyed hole tightens, wringing my cock even tighter~

Pei Zhaoji: I do not… ah!

Huan Chong: Heh heh heh, look at the state of you now — where's there half a shred of the Head of the Human Sect left?

Huan Chong: Plainly just a bitch begging to be fucked!

Pei Zhaoji: Nnah! Eee-yah!

Pei Zhaoji: Oh… hnngh hnngh hnngh!!!! Stop hitting… I'm… going… I'm coming…

Huan Chong: Slutty Shiniang, does your disciple's fucking feel good? Such a big ass, jiggling and quivering with each thrust

Huan Chong: Who'd have thought the famed Lady Xueji of Great Qin

Huan Chong: is a slut who loves sticking out her fat rump at midnight before her dead husband's grave to have her slutty cunt fucked by her disciple!

Pei Zhaoji: Eee-eee-eee… slower… that thing of yours is too big… you wicked disciple…

Pei Zhaoji: how dare you be so improper with your master… oh oh… stop hitting…

Huan Chong: Slutty Shiniang, stick out that big fat rump, your disciple's coming!

I felt my heart was about to leap out

That pounding heartbeat was even more deafening than Mother's moans behind me

I felt my mind flush with blood; my head was full of Mother's every word and deed, her every frown and smile of days past

After Father died, Mother dismissed the disciples of Ziwei Abbey, and after taking senior brother Zou to Luojing, took in no more disciples

until these two lechers came up the mountain… perhaps it's because of me that today's situation came about

I've never achieved anything in Daoist cultivation; Mother dismissed the disciples and sent off senior brother Zou just to nurture me single-mindedly

But alas my aptitude is dull; Mother must have felt that with the trip to Luojing to preach approaching and me yet to break through Foundation Establishment

she let the Huan brothers learn the arts; Mother must have been bewitched by these Huan brothers

No — I must save her! I must take back my mother from that lecher's clutches!

Thinking this, my thoughts cleared in an instant; I bit down hard on the tip of my tongue, and the taste of blood at once filled my mouth

I sobered up a few degrees, and was about to stand and save Mother, to beat this bastard senseless

but a woman's shrill, heart-rending moan suddenly reached my ears

Pei Zhaoji: Hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh!!!

Huan Chong: My slutty Shiniang, your tender hole is clenching tight again

Huan Chong: My big treasure hasn't even pushed into the immortal palace, yet you're crying out like this — truly a lewd little thing

Pei Zhaoji: You… slower… don't ram so hard… ah ah ah ah

Mother… only half a month unseen, why have you become like this…

Time and again I strained to stand, to break up this filthy erotic show with my own hands

but my whole body seemed frozen in place; no matter how I strained

my legs just wouldn't move — instead my little brother between my legs kept stiffening…

Huan Chong: It's only because Shiniang's too seductive; this fleshy hole grips so tight your disciple just wants to fuck you nonstop~

That Huan Chong must have been feeling incredible

To indulge freely inside the body of a Daoist Human Sect head like Mother, of unfathomably deep attainment and world-famous renown

this is hardly something an ordinary person could even idly fantasize about

Seeing Mother's tender, pleading expression, his cock grew all the harder, stiff as an iron rod

With that thrust just now, he still hadn't pushed the cockhead into Mother's flower palace

It wasn't that he didn't want to, but that Mother had long passed the Spirit-Severing realm

After Father died, Mother used the 【Womb-Sealing Technique】 to seal her own womb

sealing off desire entirely; how could a mere mortal like Huan Chong break through this barrier

Pei Zhaoji: Hmph~ got your way and still playing coy — you two brothers really are cut from the same rotten cloth~

Huan Chong: Good Shiniang, lower that flower palace of yours, let your disciple's big cock plunge in and pound you good and proper

Huan Chong: That flavor is nothing your everyday self-pleasuring could ever compare to, Shiniang~

Huan Chong's lewd, shameless voice made me want to give him two blades of the saber

When Daoist female cultivators dual-cultivate, they can complement male cultivators to enhance their arts

But dual-cultivating with a newcomer who's just broken the Xuanzhao realm only drains one's own power

so many high-tier Daoist female cultivators activate this art during abstinence

Not only can it greatly reduce desire and boost cultivation

but even during intercourse, no matter how the flower palace is stimulated by the male member, it won't descend

so even if struck by ejaculated semen, the flower palace won't return to the position of the lesser pelvis

this way the cervical opening will never soak in the seed-storing pool, and the semen won't be absorbed

But because a high-tier female cultivator has long tasted the pleasure of dual cultivation, far surpassing ordinary intercourse

prolonged use of this art instead greatly lowers her own sensitivity

Yet once this secret art is undone, the womb, once fertilized, will naturally droop like an ordinary woman's

and the cervix opens fully; then the seed of countless men will pour into the female cultivator's womb

and that long-abstinent cervix will greedily suck and swallow these uninvited guests

Absorbing the semen of a low-cultivation man will instead have one's own power devoured by another

The Dao values the balance of all things, the Dao following nature; once this law of balance is broken, the consequences are unthinkable

Pei Zhaoji: Wretch… wretched disciple… didn't your master tell you… only thrust on the outside

Pei Zhaoji: Oh… slower… you mustn't have… greedy… thoughts…

Huan Chong: Heh heh heh, I really wonder what that precious son of yours would think, seeing his dear mother in such a slutty, wanton state

Huan Chong: Come~ let's change position

Pei Zhaoji: You… you mustn't mention Qi'er…

Though Mother's posture was exceptionally lowly just now, a coquettish figure at anyone's mercy, her mouth gave no quarter

And I also sensed that familiar current of air beside me

The aura unique to Mother when angry instantly wreathed the surroundings; deep in my heart a trace of secret joy stirred once more

It seems Mother hasn't yet drowned in this absurd carnal lust; in her heart, I still come first

Huan Chong: Though Shiniang's mouth gives no quarter, this flower hole is honestly clenching tight

Huan Chong: You won't let me mention your son — I'll say it all the more!

Pei Zhaoji: Faster… how are you so… skilled at… this…

Pei Zhaoji: Phew… mm mm… still… still not faster… don't tease… your master

Pei Zhaoji: You… wicked disciple… oh… so tingly and numb… you thieving disciple… still not… faster…

I felt my heart about to leap from my chest; that helpless feeling swept over my whole body again

Mother… Mother…

In my already muddled, chaotic mind, back and forth like a slideshow

played all the gentle, amiable, elegant and dignified images of Mother from days past

The scene of her feeding me medicine at my side all night when I was sick with fever

Her feigned reproach when I slacked and shirked

When on my birthday she, no great cook, laid out a whole table of dishes, full of anticipation for my reaction…

…yet all of this now…

Huan Chong: My slutty Shiniang, that precious son of yours is probably still fast asleep in the abbey right now

Huan Chong: while his dear mother is being dragged by me before his dead old man's grave, pinned down and fucked~

Pei Zhaoji: Wretch… talk nonsense again, and your master… will cut out that cheap tongue of yours…

Huan Chong: Shiniang, you jest~ how could you bear to cut out this precious tongue of your disciple's

Huan Chong: These past days in Shiniang's boudoir, us two brothers' tongues served you plenty~

Pei Zhaoji: No… really… really, faster, faster…

Pei Zhaoji: Your master… ah ah… no good… there… I'm going… it's coming out…

Huan Chong: Tight again! Slutty Shiniang, are you about to climax again? This slutty cunt clenches all the more

Huan Chong: Slutty Shiniang, good Shiniang, my precious Shiniang, disciple… disciple can't hold on much longer!

Pei Zhaoji: Oh… oh… oh… ah…

"Qi'er, you've grown up, you must protect your mother well!"

Father's charge in the dream still echoed in my ears, yet at this midnight hour

what replaced it was the clearly audible sound of Mother coupling with some wild man…

Mother by now had eyes brimming with spring, peach blossom flushing her face — the very picture of a widow unsatisfied in her desire

where was there half a shred of a Daoist immortal sect's dignity left

Huan Chong: Shiniang, disciple… is about to shoot it in… my good Shiniang

Huan Chong: Can't you show some mercy and open the flower palace? Disciple's begging you…

Pei Zhaoji: You… you spiteful… wretch… you want your Shiniang… to undo the technique that badly…

I saw that Huan Chong, drenched in sweat, panting hard, right at the crucial moment of fucking

suddenly lowered his stance, changing from his earlier unruly, hard-nosed manner

looking at Mother with a face full of pleading, like a fawning lapdog

Mother slightly turned her lovely head, and her eyes actually revealed a trace of hesitation; my heart secretly cried out this was bad

Pei Zhaoji: You sinful disciple, it seems your master owed you from a past life, actually boarding your pirate ship

Pei Zhaoji: But if you want your master to undo this Womb-Sealing art, you… must promise your master one thing

Huan Chong: Phew… precious Shiniang, then do tell… how can this cursed art be undone…

Huan Chong: …this wish-fulfilling golden cudgel of your disciple's just… can't wait any longer…

Pei Zhaoji: You really are… impatient as a monkey… like this… tomo… tomorrow… you two brothers will come with me…

Pei Zhaoji: come with me… to Luojing… if… oh~ thrust slower… if you can obtain…

Pei Zhaoji: obtain… the personal inscription… of the current Son of Heaven… your master…

Huan Chong: Shiniang~ do tell, promise your disciple what~

Pei Zhaoji: You bane of my life… oh~ so good… of course it's… if…

Pei Zhaoji: If you obtain His Majesty the Emperor's personal inscription… your master… your master will…

Huan Chong: Say it~ if your disciple truly wins this honor, then what will my good Shiniang promise~

I dared not imagine what on earth Mother was thinking? It's as if Mother were finding herself an excuse

an excuse to justify undoing the Womb-Sealing art she'd sealed away for eighteen years

willingly letting this filthy dwarf fuck into her own flower palace, plunging into her most sacred place

seizing that forbidden ground that once belonged to me!!!

No… no! My fingernails clawed my skin raw, fresh blood dripping down my palm

Mother… don't promise him… don't take him to Luojing… don't leave Qi'er all alone!!

I finally couldn't hold back any longer; I would stand up, I would stop this whole absurd affair

At the very least, I would tell Mother I'd broken through Foundation Establishment, that I'm no three-years-stuck good-for-nothing!

I would guard everything of Mother's! Mother, Mother is mine!

Pei Zhaoji: Hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh hnngh!!

Huan Chong: Quick, say it, does my fucking feel good, Shiniang, what exactly will you promise me!

Pei Zhaoji: Oh oh, I promise, your master promises, oh~ you wicked disciple… your master promises, so long as you obtain…

Pei Zhaoji: …the inscription… your master… will… undo the technique… let you… let you plunge… plunge into your master's… your master's flower palace, oh oh

Huan Chong: Haha, good Shiniang, disciple loves you to death~ To let Shiniang feel good sooner

Huan Chong: your disciple really will have to train hard; by then I'll let the whole court of officials witness your disciple's might

Huan Chong: and bring Shiniang even more glory!

Pei Zhaoji: Oh oh… slower… your master… has already promised… still not faster… faster… ram… ram your master's…

Huan Chong: Precious Shiniang, do you want it slower after all, or faster

Huan Chong: What should your disciple use to ram Shiniang's little sister good and proper~

Pei Zhaoji: Of course it's… disciple's… big… co… big cock!

Pei Zhaoji: Use that big cock of yours! Ram your master's… your master's flower hole hard!!

Huan Chong: What flower hole! It's plainly a slutty cunt!! Say it again!!

Pei Zhaoji: Oh oh oh oh oh oh! It's a slut… slutty cunt… it's a slutty cunt!!! Ram your master's slutty cunt hard

Huan Chong: Shiniang, my fragrant Shiniang, this big white body, hoo hoo~ I can never get enough of playing with it~

Pei Zhaoji: Wicked disciple… mm mm… mm mm… faster… a little faster… oh oh…

Huan Chong: ~Say it, does my fucking feel good, is it better than that dead-ghost husband of yours fucking you!

Pei Zhaoji: Yes… better than him… fucks better… fucks more comfortably… oh oh… so big… how is it so big

Huan Chong: Disciple, whose fucking feels so good~ say it, precious Shiniang, so long as you say it, disciple will give you everything

Huan Chong: I'll gift you this whole sac of seed and offspring!

Pei Zhaoji: Yes… I'll say it… I'll say it… fucked… being fucked by beloved disciple Huan Chong…

Huan Chong: Faster! I'm about to come, Shiniang, say it quick!!

Pei Zhaoji: I… Pei… Pei Zhaoji… am being fucked to climax by beloved disciple Huan Chong's big cock! Oh oh, coming, coming

Huan Chong: Hoo hoo… so good… this slutty hole… grips so well… I'm about to shoot it all out!!

Huan Chong: Shiniang… you did promise your disciple…

Huan Chong: Disciple will surely cultivate hard, awaiting the moment Shiniang personally opens her palace for disciple to fuck~

After the two left, my mind was blank; I stood up dully

feeling myself light as a sheet of paper, insignificantly light; I walked to Father's gravestone

knelt on the ground, and slapped myself who knows how many times, smack smack smack

until I felt dizzy, and finally toppled to the ground, falling into a stupor…