They became comrades-in-arms when they fought side by side on the North Mountain Road, which made their relationship stronger than usual. Moreover, Ning Que's outstanding performance undoubtedly left a deep impression on the people present.

As a result, this carriage, which was disliked by the cavalry of Gushan Mansion, has been frequently patronized by several bodyguards such as Peng Guotao in the past few days. The barbarian soldiers also gave some spirits as gifts to Ning Que and Sangsang. However, they rarely came close to a distance of a hundred zhang, and they hardly spoke to Ning Que and Sangsang. Maybe they were scared after hearing the story of Shubi Lake.

"I know you can go back to the city on your own, and I know you don't want to travel with a group. However, there is still no response to submit your request. Peng Guotao looked at Ning Que apologetically. "You are a soldier sent by Wei Cheng, and we can't let you go without the permission of the princess."

Ning Que scratched his head and said, "Then I'll accompany you for a while."

...

...

Ning Que thought that the next trip to Chang'an would be boring. However, the next night, he suddenly received an invitation to a second carriage. Lu Qingchen wanted to meet him.

Ning Que was both surprised and happy. He frowned and thought for a moment. Then he decided to be a little more indifferent, he extinguished the bonfire next to the carriage, and walked with Sangsang to the second carriage.

The curtains had been drawn, and the carriage was dimly lit by candles. Soul Master Lu Qingchen looked at Ning Que and his young maid and bowed respectfully to him. He was surprised. He reckoned that the lad understood why he had been invited. If there is a third person present, he will not enlighten him. Haven't young people thought about it?

Then the elders remembered the story they had overheard by the campfire at the entrance to North Mountain Road. Although he was meditating, he couldn't help but eavesdrop...... The story is about a boy and a girl who struggle to survive in the vast and dangerous Minshan Mountains. Only then did Lu Qingchen know why Ning Que wanted to bring Sang Sang with him. Seeing this, he was very happy, he preferred Ning Que.

Although, Ning Que didn't think about this. Bringing a mulberry is just a deep-seated habit.

"Do you know why I want you here?" The elder folded his hands, knelt on the ground, and asked warmly.

Ning Que was speechless. Immediately, he pressed his left fist on his right hand and knelt on the ground. He knelt, put his wrapped fist on the ground, and bowed until his forehead touched his ball-ridden hand. This is the most sincere respect of the Tang Empire.

This gesture often comes only after a great favor. Even if Lu Qingchen hadn't done anything yet, even if he couldn't help him, it was really a generous and noble move for a cultivator to help an ordinary person with no obvious potential. Only those who have memorized the entire "Answer to the Dao" like this but still can't find the way will realize this. It's a place that only those with exceptional talent can enter.

Although Sang Sang didn't understand the young master's action, he also bowed in front of the Great Elder.

Seeing this, Lu Qingchen smiled and rubbed his beard. Then he helped Ning Que up, closed his eyes, and concentrated. He put his hands on Ning Que's body, one on his chest and the other on the back of his waist. After a while, the warm candlelight in the carriage inexplicably blurred. It's almost like there's a fast-moving stream of dust swirling in the air.

There was a dead silence, and time flew by imperceptibly.

The light in the carriage began to regain clarity and power. The Great Elder gradually withdrew his hand and stared at Ning Que with a calm expression. There was no expectation in his eyes, but his hands were trembling slightly, and the old man sighed softly.

"There is a breath of heaven and earth. This is called primordial gas. If a cultivator has a strong psyche, he can detect it. Therefore, it depends on your psychological strength to determine whether you can cultivate or not.

The first time I saw you in Wei City, I found that you had no breath in your body. Today, I thoroughly examined the inside of your body and I was right. There is nothing in your Qi Snow Mountains and Oceans.

"... Absolutely nothing.

The last sentence made Ning Que silent for a long time before he raised his head and stared at the Great Elder. He raised his right arm and pointed his index finger at his temple, looking as if he was ready to kill himself with a crossbow. Then he asked the elder in a serious tone: "Doesn't psychic power, or should I say, consciousness and the like, come from the mind?"

Great Elder Lu Qingchen looked at him tenderly and said slowly, "What you said is not entirely wrong. However, if psychic power comes from the mind, how can it be interconnected with the natural external breath?

"Cultivation is to gather the mind in your chest, like snow in the mountains, and your back like a sea of qi. Surrounding the snow-capped mountains and the sea of air are 17 air holes, just like the thousands of holes found at the bottom of the mountain. As wind and water pass through the holes, the sounds produced by each hole come together to form a unique melody played by the duo. Thus, this allows them to intertwine and interconnect with each other.

"As for the opening and blockage of the stomata in a person's body, they are innate and decided at the moment a person is born. No matter how much one tries to pursue and change the situation, they cannot change. That's why there is a proverb, "Cultivation... Just to get back the gift that Haotian gave us'.

"I have observed the seventeen stomata in your body that surround the snow-capped mountains and the sea of qi. Of these, 17 were blocked. Therefore, no matter how hard you try to practice your psychic power to any state, you will never be able to connect with nature.

"You don't have to be disappointed, though. Although there are many people in this world, there are very few people who have 17 of the 13 pores. In fact, it's completely normal for you to have such physical fitness......"

The Great Elder slowly comforted him, and Ning Que lowered his head and showed an embarrassed smile.

He had indeed comforted himself countless times in Wei Cheng, telling himself that only truly abnormal geniuses could pursue cultivation. Now it seems that he was right. According to the standard parlance, the genius that the elders say has 15 to 16 air openings, but in fact there is a gift from heaven, like a cookie suddenly falling from the sky and you are walking outside.

"Then why am I not the lucky chosen one?"

He sighed in his heart, and only then did he sincerely express his gratitude and get out of the carriage with Sangsang.

The light of the oil lamps in the carriage was dim, and after a long time, the curtains in the carriage were pulled back again. Li Yu, the fourth princess of the Tang Dynasty, sat in front of the elder, leaned forward slightly, and asked the great elder for advice. "Completely impossible?"

Lu Qingchen admired Ning Que very much. However, for a soul master who entered the Dongxuan realm and used spiritual power to investigate Ning Que's physical fitness to lower his status, there must be other reasons, such as His Highness's order.

"A strong-willed person with a great temperament is often able to meditate and reach great spiritual power. There is no doubt that Ning Que is such a person. So I actually had hope in him. I thought that if only ten of his seventeen air holes were opened, then maybe he was about to awaken, but due to the lack of proper skills, he was unable to awaken his mind to enter the early stage of cultivation. Unfortunately, 10 stomata in his body were blocked. This means that he has not yet received a gift from Haotian. No matter how much potential he has, it's useless.

The Great Elder's face was full of regret. For him, if Ning Que was really able to embark on the path of cultivation, even if he only opened ten air holes, with his great temperament and beautiful handwriting, the future would be bright. It's a pity, the lad is not destined to have a good life.

"In that case, then you don't have to bother anymore." Li Yu's eyes showed a hint of tiredness, because he had been busy for several days. She lowered her head and pondered for a moment before speaking calmly. "I shouldn't bother you for something like this."

Lu Qingchen gradually raised his snow-white eyebrows and quietly looked at the face of Her Royal Highness the Princess. He knew that what he had said before would determine Ning Que's future. After knowing that Ning Que would never be able to embark on the path of cultivation, she immediately gave up this idea.

The elder was silent for a moment before suggesting. "Chang'an is a city full of experts. Maybe Ning Que is such a young man, and it is not a big deal, but I believe that in a few years, he will definitely grow into an excellent soldier in the Tang Empire.

Li Yu didn't expect the Great Elder to have such a high opinion of Ning Que. She frowned slightly, and gradually explained. "That lad's martial arts skills and temperament are considered the best of all the candidates. If he stays in Wei City or within the army, I must keep him by my side and serve me at all costs. However, today he chose to take the path of the academy. If we take the time to recruit and train him until he is strong enough to influence the situation in the Empire, he and I will be too old. So what is the purpose?

The Great Elder was silent for a long time, and then suddenly spoke: "Although only six of his seventeen air holes have been opened, it is difficult for such a person to embark on the path of cultivation under normal circumstances, but ...... Haotian is always changing, nothing is fixed.

"My state is still too low, but he is the one who can step into the academy, a supreme holy place, and he is in a different place from me. In the future, he might... I mean, he might be able to get into the second floor of the academy. At that time, who knows if a miracle will happen to him, maybe then he will be able to embark on the path of cultivation?

"Second floor?" Li Yu shook his head and said, "How many people in this world can enter the second floor of the academy?" Although Ning Que is not bad for this young man, don't you think you are too confident in him?

Lu Qingchen glanced at her, smiled softly, and replied. "Your Highness, when you mentioned earlier that he chose to embark on the path of the Academy, you didn't seem to think that it was impossible for this lad to enter the Academy, although you know how difficult it is to pass the Academy's entrance exam. It means that you also have faith in him. If that's the case, who can be sure that in the future this little soldier from this border city will be ...... Can't get to the second floor?