Lin Bei’s Diary of Restraining Desire

“Poison bees?”

Chu Liang leaned in closer when he heard this. “I’m a disciple of Mount Shu. Let me take a look—perhaps I can help treat your wounds.”

“Oh? You’re a young hero from Mount Shu?” The fishmonger’s demeanor immediately turned respectful.

The residents of Yunhua Town were quite accustomed to seeing disciples from Mount Shu, so they were not usually so deferential. Clearly, the shopkeeper was hoping Chu Liang could heal him.

Chu Liang examined the swelling on the shopkeeper’s face carefully and sensed a faint trace of demonic energy lingering there.

No wonder the usual physicians couldn’t cure him. These poison bees must be demonic beasts, and their venom, therefore, demonic poison. Even if the toxicity was mild, it was not something an ordinary doctor could handle.

Demonic beasts...

At this thought, Chu Liang’s drowsiness vanished.

He took out a packet of Hundred Flowers Powder and said, “Here, take half of this medicine orally and apply the other half to the affected area. You should recover quickly.”

“Really?” The fishmonger was overjoyed and hurriedly accepted the medicine.

Chu Liang poured him a bowl of water to help take the medicine.

The Hundred Flowers Powder was famed for neutralizing all manner of toxins; it could easily handle basic demonic poisons. Compared to other threats, these minor poison bees were hardly worth mentioning.

Sure enough, in no time, the swelling on the shopkeeper’s face and leg subsided, leaving only a faint red mark.

“Amazing!” he exclaimed in delight. “The medicine worked instantly—truly worthy of the Mount Shu sect!”

“It’s not as miraculous as you say. I simply had the right remedy,” Chu Liang replied with a smile.

“No, no—this is an immortal’s medicine! Young hero, your kindness is beyond measure. I don’t know how to repay you,” the shopkeeper said earnestly.

“There’s no need for thanks. Perhaps you could give me a fine koi as a gift,” Chu Liang waved his hand dismissively.

“Well…” The shopkeeper looked troubled. “I dare not return to the Jinhua River, and the koi from elsewhere aren’t of nearly the same quality…”

“Don’t worry. I’ll go to the Jinhua River myself. If there are still poison bees causing trouble, I’ll get rid of them for you,” Chu Liang assured him.

“Young hero, your kindness is overwhelming…” The shopkeeper was moved to the point of tears and tried to rise to give Chu Liang a formal bow.

“Please, rest and recover. No need for such ceremony,” Chu Liang pressed him gently back down, then stood up. “I’ll be back soon.”

With that, he left the flower-and-bird market, exited Yunhua Town, and made his way toward the banks of the Jinhua River.

After a short journey, he arrived at a riverside alive with birdsong and fragrant blooms. It was the height of spring: grasses lush, orioles flitting, willow leaves dancing. Normally, this would be a lively place, but lately no one dared approach because of the poison bees.

Chu Liang extended his spiritual sense and soon spotted a black poison bee, about the length of a knuckle, prowling among the flowers. Its appearance was menacing.

As he drew closer—still a full pace away—the poison bee became alert, buzzed into the air, and charged aggressively toward him.

Such a highly aggressive creature…

Chu Liang had no fear. With a flick of his wrist, he summoned his flying sword and sliced the bee cleanly in two. As it fell, dark fluid dripped from its body, sizzling as it hit the ground.

If these things were allowed to remain by the Jinhua River, the locals would be in constant danger. They had to be eradicated completely.

With a thought, Chu Liang unleashed the Hundred Sword Technique. Instantly, a hundred streaks of light flashed back and forth, scouring the area under his spiritual sense. In a matter of moments, more than twenty poison bees had been cut down.

Facing these extremely weak demonic beasts, Chu Liang was reminded of the simple pleasure he once felt slaying lantern monsters—he even felt a bit nostalgic.

Perhaps he’d revisit the lantern monster if he had time.

Yet Chu Liang did not exterminate every last one. He spared a lone poison bee that was flying in the opposite direction, apparently trying to escape.

Perfect—he could follow it to the hive and destroy the nest at its source, so these poison bees would never threaten the area again.

He pursued it for a distance, arriving at a verdant mountain valley. A few poison bees lingered there, perhaps forced out to forage due to the scarcity of flowers.

Seeing Chu Liang approach, they swarmed at him, but he dispatched them as quickly as before. Only the first poison bee, buzzing desperately, darted into a crevice in the cliff and disappeared.

Chu Liang stared into the deep fissure, unable to see the end. Even probing with his spiritual sense yielded nothing. If these bees were emerging from the depths of this chasm, it would be difficult to eliminate them at the root.

Such is the greatest frustration in life: depths unfathomable, dangers beyond reach.

Even a hero could only sigh in resignation.

…

With no one else around, Chu Liang sat down in the wilds to reward himself.

Entering the White Pagoda, he found it bustling this time—the little poison bees’ shadows now occupied dozens of cages. Who knew how many iron cells lay shrouded in the black mist? Chu Liang guessed it could hold thousands upon thousands of demonic creatures.

He pressed to refine them.

Boom—

A white glow drifted forth. Chu Liang reached out and found a long bamboo canister in his hand.

[Honeybee Nectar Tea]: Sweet and delicious.

“?”

Chu Liang paused for a moment.

He knew these poison bees were not strong, but the reward seemed a little too perfunctory.

He had never seen a monster less impressive than the lantern creature until now.

Excessive.

They couldn’t even be bothered to write a proper description?

He opened the canister and tasted it. Sure enough, it was sweet and pleasant, with a hint of fruit tea flavor and a pure, natural aroma. Drinking it left him refreshed and comfortable. He had not tasted such a fine drink in this world for a long time.

But… that was all.

After all, he was a cultivator.

No matter how delicious, what did it matter?

…

Chu Liang didn’t linger long. After checking that there were no surviving poison bees nearby, he set off back to Mount Shu.

The mountain winds roared and the sea of clouds billowed. Mount Shu looked just as timeless and unchanging as ever.

Landing outside his hut, Chu Liang noticed several small paper cranes on the table beneath the eaves—the sect’s common method for short-distance communication.

As long as one left a trace of spiritual sense for someone, they could send a paper crane to find you, though the range was limited to Mount Shu.

Yet Chu Liang hadn’t left his imprint with many people, only his master, Lin Bei, and Jiang Yuebai.

So many paper cranes—he was rather surprised.

He opened the first crane. It was from Jiang Yuebai.

When he left, he had sent her a message saying he couldn’t visit and had urgent business down the mountain. Jiang Yuebai replied: Very well, stay safe.

Just five simple words.

Chu Liang studied it for a while, then put it away.

The second crane was from Lin Bei.

He wrote that he was preparing to abstain from desire and attempt to break through to the middle stage of Divine Will. This time he would focus completely; he would either succeed or perish trying. Next time they met, he promised he would not be weaker. Today was day one of abstinence—he hoped it would be a success…

He wrote at length, but little of substance.

Chu Liang glanced over it and tossed it aside.

He opened the third crane—again, Lin Bei.

He wrote: Day one of abstinence. Feeling full of spirit.

The fourth crane—still Lin Bei.

He wrote: Once more, day one of abstinence. This time I must succeed.

The fifth crane—again, Lin Bei.

He wrote: Still day one of abstinence. I must succeed.

“…”

Chu Liang did a quick calculation.

Each letter was sent about a day apart.

Hmm.

Young men certainly brim with energy.

He immediately began to write replies.

His letter to Jiang Yuebai was a bit longer. He recounted his recent experiences and expressed his gratitude for her teaching him the Hundred Sword Technique. Without it, his journey wouldn’t have gone so smoothly.

It was all true, spoken from the heart.

He closed by politely asking when Senior Sister Jiang might next have time to instruct him in more divine techniques.

His reply to Lin Bei was much simpler.

“Having seen your situation, you have my full support. I have only one suggestion for you:

‘Eradicate the problem at its root.’”