Chapter Forty-Nine: Homeward Bound

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Chen Jin gripped his phone with calm composure, unshaken enough not to fling it away in fright. Since the voice on the other end had uttered such words, perhaps it was capable of communication.

"Are they alright?" Chen Jin asked a question he himself found improbable.

"Hehehe... Such a meddlesome little fellow, and yet so concerned about others, hehehe..." Laughter echoed endlessly from the other end.

The sound made Chen Jin’s head spin, prompting him to silently recite the Metal Qi Formula of Geng and Xin in his mind. With its recitation, the dizziness swiftly vanished.

"...They're doing quite well, actually. They're eating right now and have no time to answer your call, so I’m taking it for them, hehehe..." The voice made Chen Jin feel an urge to vomit.

"Once they finish their meal, they'll be heading back... Hehehe... Our village doesn't have any extra houses for them to stay overnight, hehehe..." The next words struck Chen Jin as odd.

"What... are you planning?" His first thought was that there must be some hidden scheme.

"Hehehe... What an amusing little one... I’d love to bring you over here, hehehe... But alas, that’s all for today, we'll chat again some other time..." The voice was full of mocking.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jin truly felt nauseated—not physically, but psychologically—as he recalled the appearance of the speaker: a woman in her forties, saying she misses you... Who could tolerate such a thing?

Certainly not Chen Jin, a young man in his twenties.

The call was cut off.

Chen Jin felt even less inclined to ponder the matter at Ge Hong Mountain. He decided to see if things would resolve tomorrow; if not, then there was nothing he could do. He couldn't risk his life for people he'd only met for a few minutes, barely exchanged words with, and who might even wish him harm.

Chen Jin was no modern-day saint, not even the sort who only preaches but never acts, so he would never attempt a rescue unless his own family was involved. Otherwise, it was extremely unlikely he'd muster the courage to risk it all for strangers.

He slowly drove home, receiving no further calls except those from his parents.

Activating the remote for the garage door, Chen Jin drove inside.

Upon getting out, he saw his parents and younger sister waiting for him at the foot of the stairs.

"You rascal, you actually dared to knock me out? Is that how capable you are now?" his father scolded.

"As long as you're unharmed," his mother replied, much calmer, unlike his father who could go on nagging forever.

"But... this kid actually dared to knock me out..." His father was about to continue, but under his mother's stern gaze, his resolve faltered and he fell silent.

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Chen Lan hid behind their parents, making faces and gesturing playfully at Chen Jin—an endearing sight.

"Son, the food you ordered arrived early, go and eat," his mother added.

"Alright," Chen Jin nodded.

Truth be told, his mother’s demeanor seemed different today, unlike before. His father was fine, but his mother appeared preoccupied.

Chen Jin didn’t ask further; in any case, she wouldn’t answer unless she chose to. That was the family custom.

After dinner, the family discussed the events Chen Jin had encountered outside.

Chen Jin wasn’t sure whether Chen Lan or his parents knew about cultivators yet. Judging by their tone, it seemed they didn’t.

So he recounted one of his two pre-prepared versions of the story—one for when they didn’t know about cultivators, the other for when they did.

After vividly narrating the story, his parents seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

There was certainly more behind it, but Chen Jin didn’t press. After all, for a family to have achieved so much, it was impossible not to have their own stories.

With the tale told, Chen Jin went upstairs to rest.

He sat cross-legged on the bed, glanced at his phone and computer, browsed WeChat, but no one was chatting in the group. Everyone was busy cultivating, not always available to chat or send laughing emojis.

Some were probably still experiencing life, running a food stall or something on the side, waiting for others to challenge them, so they could respond in kind. That was their way of life.

Chen Jin thought again about the group leader and the whole crowd, swallowed up by that village. He decided to wait until tomorrow to see if they would return; if not, the group might really need a new leader.

"Still too weak," Chen Jin shook his head, recalling his earlier anxiety—it was truly unpleasant.

He summoned the black leather book, drew out a cluster of low-grade vital energy, then applied the spiritual elixir to his brow.

Both the energy and elixir were absorbed by his body and spirit, transforming into primordial energy in his dantian.

The process lasted a quarter of an hour.

As Chen Jin’s cultivation advanced, the effective duration of both the spiritual elixir and the low-grade energy cluster steadily diminished.

"What are you looking at?" Chen Jin suddenly said.

His sister, unbeknownst to him, had entered his room and was sitting before him, watching.

"Brother, teach me," Chen Lan pleaded coquettishly.

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"Of course," Chen Jin nodded.

"Really? You're the best, brother! Tomorrow I'll make you a loving breakfast," Chen Lan exclaimed with delight.

"I’ll recite it for you. You need to memorize it, then silently repeat it in your heart every day. When you feel yourself suddenly getting smarter, that means you've stepped into cultivation," Chen Jin explained simply.

"That’s all? I thought it would be difficult," Chen Lan remarked in surprise.

"You have to be completely focused, or you won’t succeed," Chen Jin tapped her head to quiet her.

"Alright, no problem," Chen Lan straightened up, awaiting Chen Jin’s recitation in earnest.

Chen Jin began: "The Way that can be spoken of is not the eternal Way; the name that can be named is not the eternal name..."

Wait, he realized he was reciting the Tao Te Ching.

But he was thinking of the Metal Qi Formula of Geng and Xin—how did he write the Tao Te Ching, and now recite it as well?

"Brother, what's wrong? Why did you stop?" Chen Lan asked in confusion.

My foolish sister, how could you not recognize the Tao Te Ching?

"Try to repeat what I just said," Chen Jin thought suddenly—perhaps others heard something different.

Or maybe his sister simply didn’t know the Tao Te Ching.

"The Way that can be spoken of is not the eternal Way; the name that can be named... Wait, isn’t this the Tao Te Ching? Are you trying to fool me, big brother?" Chen Lan stopped midway, realizing something was off.

That settled it—she confirmed Chen Jin’s suspicions.

"I’ll recite another one," Chen Jin sighed helplessly and switched to reciting Xin Yang’s cultivation method for Chen Lan.

This time, it went smoothly, without turning into a popular Taoist classic. However, it was a bit difficult for Chen Lan to memorize.

Still, it counted as a success.

………