Chapter 82: An Unexpected Return and the Harvest

Chen Jin had returned, though he hadn’t expected it; he came back at the very moment he was holding the black bear’s head. Back in reality, he found his hands empty—no cumbersome bear’s head to lug around—just himself, still sitting cross-legged on the bed.

Half a year had passed as if in another world, and Chen Jin felt a sense of estrangement from reality. Yet, nostalgia warmed his heart—the softness of the bed beneath him compared to the rough ancient earthen kang he remembered. He summoned the black leather book with a thought.

The book appeared as always, open to the familiar page, but the previous line of text had vanished, replaced by new characters:

“Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio (unfinished)
Task: None
Acquired: Low-level vital energy cluster (107), mid-level vital energy cluster (32), top-grade talisman (1), fire essence (2), fallen earth essence (1), meteorite gold essence (2), wood element pearl (1)…"

His gains were substantial, the most significant being the five elemental spiritual items he had somehow managed to bring back to reality. Now, Chen Jin had a better understanding of how the black leather book distinguished acquisitions. Anything he learned actively was not counted as an acquisition; that knowledge belonged to him. Material items, however, if absorbed into his body, would be listed as acquired.

Well, this rule didn’t seem to be of much use. What puzzled Chen Jin more was how he had been abruptly sent back to the modern world. He hadn’t triggered any obvious checkpoint. He had merely slain a black bear spirit—could it have been the bear demon destined to block the monk’s journey westward in the future? If so, the bear’s migration was incredibly far-fetched.

Chen Jin could only respond to his own wild speculation with silence. Thinking back to his first crossing—he returned to reality after descending the mountain with Wu Song; the second time, it was witnessing Ge Hong kill his disciple; this time, he returned after slaying the bear spirit. It wasn’t as if he had accomplished anything earth-shattering.

Had he saved all living beings? At most, he had rid a region of a troublesome bear spirit. So truly, he hadn’t done anything extraordinary. The most impressive event he’d witnessed was his master attaining immortality—was that the real trigger point?

Chen Jin’s thoughts were in disarray, likely because the timing of his return had left him bewildered.

He proceeded to activate the Metal Qi formula and the Monkey-Rooster Metal Nature formula, using both at once. His mental clarity improved, and the myriad stray thoughts became fuel for his spiritual progress—a rather pleasing outcome.

Yet, his spirit was still just shy of reaching the Tranquil Mind stage. He’d have to wait for the Five Qi True Essence to condense before undergoing a true spiritual transformation, becoming a genuine Tranquil Mind cultivator. By then, he would likely have to face a lightning tribulation—a spectacle that wouldn’t be small. Given the current era of mass cultivation, the chances of being discovered and scrutinized were high.

Chen Jin was also concerned about the progress at Qian Nan Village and the situation at the Daoist temple on Mount Lao. After experiencing that strange village in reality during his second crossing, he wondered where Qian Nan Village would appear this time. He had recorded the village’s astral location and now could roughly deduce its position. He took out his phone, checked the map, and tried to correlate his calculations… but failed, only confirming it was somewhere near Suzhou.

He resolved to visit the place another day. Tomorrow, after all, he still had work.

He lacked nothing at the moment, prepared for the next step toward the Tranquil Mind stage. He was curious about Zhuang Yan—the ancient cultivator who had passed the lightning tribulation—how had she broken through? Had she also gathered five elemental spiritual items?

Otherwise, in this era where the world’s vital energy is extremely scarce, how could one slowly gather it, convert it to five elemental energy, then refine it to Five Qi True Essence? The process was lengthy—ten years in ancient times, a hundred or more in the present.

She must have used elemental spiritual items for the condensation of Five Qi True Essence.

Chen Jin planned to ask her about it. Both were ancient cultivators; exchanging insights was normal. He would tactfully probe with a few questions, and with the knowledge inherited from Xin Yang, he might deduce her cultivation method.

After a few minutes of contemplation on the bed, Chen Jin took out a mid-level vital energy cluster and absorbed it, adding a few drops of spirit-nourishing liquid.

Thus began his cultivation for the night.

Checking the time, though he remembered spending more than half a year in ancient times, in reality only three minutes and twenty-one… two seconds had passed—all spent thinking. Actual time in the other world must have been a second or two.

So, Chen Jin felt he had plenty of time left—for cross-legged cultivation.

…

Morning arrived.

Chen Jin went upstairs at his usual time to practice his martial arts, and Chen Lan followed him to exercise.

"Brother, are you going to teach at our school?" Chen Lan suddenly asked after their workout.

"I still have my job," Chen Jin replied, shaking his head.

"Oh," Chen Lan nodded.

"Do you want me to be a teacher?" Chen Jin tilted his head, looking at her.

"I don’t really," Chen Lan shook her head, "I’m almost in college now."

"Oh, I wouldn’t teach at a university either. Teaching a bunch of kids is too boring," Chen Jin said again.

"I’m grown up, not a kid," Chen Lan shot him a glare.

Her mind had become nimbler lately, catching on quickly to Chen Jin’s teasing. It seemed her cultivation was progressing well.

She was still awaiting a breakthrough, though. The whole family had cultivation talent; Chen Jin could vouch for that himself.

"Alright, you’re not a kid. But you mustn’t tell anyone you have a cultivation method, understand? Practice the method the state provides with everyone else, but at home, use the one I gave you. Got it?" Chen Jin smiled, rubbing her short hair, then spoke with a serious face.

"I know, don’t show off, play dumb, be the hidden tiger. Got it, got it," Chen Lan waved her hand carelessly.

"Good, as long as you know. By the way, did you copy the cultivation method for Mom and Dad?"

"I gave it to them, but they haven’t returned it yet. Apparently, you can’t copy it with a printer—you have to write it by hand…" Chen Lan replied.

"…" It seemed he had tricked his parents.

But they hadn’t mentioned it to Chen Jin.

…