Is It Reasonable for Me to Start a Sect at 12?

Once only Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu remained in the cave, Lin Xiao sent a telepathic message to Jiang Youfu:

"Fuzi, see how good I am to you? I brought you here specifically to witness how a Nascent Soul cultivator is affected by a heart demon. Make sure to observe carefully—this kind of situation doesn't come around often. Once we return to the sect, explaining it to the others will be your job."

Hearing this, Jiang Youfu didn't even bother responding. He immediately ran over to observe the Yuan family ancestor up close, determined not to miss a single detail so that he could provide a full account back at the sect.

Meanwhile, Lin Xiao sat down near the ancestor. He mentally reviewed the Purification Technique, specifically the third-level Purification of the Mind, a skill he had never used before. He then gazed at the figure of the tortured Yuan family ancestor, barely resembling a person anymore under the torment of the heart demon.

After a moment, Lin Xiao closed his eyes and began casting the spell.

This was his first time using this particular technique.

When he had first created it, he hadn't given it much thought. The only time he had used it was to help Yi Gao's mother, and since then, within Lingxian Sect, this spell had mostly been used for cleaning.

This was only the second time he'd used it for a serious cultivation matter.

Luckily, since the spell was synthesized by the system, he had mastered it instantly, making it ready for use now. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been so convenient.

However, after a short time of casting, Lin Xiao felt something was off.

His cultivation level was only at the Golden Core stage, but he was now facing a heart demon strong enough to suppress a Nascent Soul cultivator. He had to be completely focused for this to work.

Since he had agreed to help, Lin Xiao naturally wanted to give it his all. After all, he was helping Yuan Qing, a potential future ally of his sect, and assisting the Yuan family, the top family in Yuanling City. It certainly wouldn't hurt to form this connection.

But now, Lin Xiao couldn't seem to fully concentrate on the spell, unlike when he had helped Yi Gao's mother before.

After thinking for a moment, an idea suddenly struck him.

He reached into his personal storage space and rummaged around, eventually pulling out a book titled The Doctrine of the Mean, which he handed to Jiang Youfu, saying:

"Fuzi, here. Read this out loud next to me. Don't stop until I tell you."

With that, Lin Xiao closed his eyes once again.

The books in his personal collection had been gifts from Sun Yi Gao, given to him when Lin Xiao had mentioned he was bored during a visit to the private school. Sun Yi Gao had given him several books to read, but Lin Xiao hadn't found the time to read them. Now, however, they seemed to have found their purpose.

Jiang Youfu was a bit confused when Lin Xiao suddenly threw him a book. However, knowing Lin Xiao, he didn't need an explanation to follow through with the instructions. Without questioning why, Jiang Youfu opened the book and began reading.

Thanks to Sun Yi Gao and Liao Pantou's teachings over the past year, Jiang Youfu had no trouble reading aloud from non-cultivation-related texts.

Suddenly, the cave, previously filled with the eerie atmosphere of heart demon energy, was filled with the sound of clear, rhythmic reading:

"Nature is the mandate of Heaven; to follow the nature of things is the Way, and cultivating the Way is the means of teaching."

"The Way cannot be left for an instant; if it could be left, it would not be the Way. Therefore, the superior man is cautious of what he does not see and fearful of what he does not hear..."

While the cave was protected by many defensive and safeguarding formations, it didn't have any soundproofing enchantments.

Thus, Yuan Bi and Yuan Qing, anxiously waiting outside, suddenly heard the sound of someone reading from within the cave.

Yuan Bi: ?

Yuan Qing: No wonder it's Lin Daoyou.

Back inside, with the sound of reading echoing around him, Lin Xiao felt his mind calm almost instantly.

As his mind settled, the Purification Technique began to flow smoothly.

Meanwhile, Jiang Youfu continued reading while also observing the Yuan family ancestor closely, occasionally glancing at Lin Xiao.

Suddenly, Jiang Youfu noticed strands of clear energy emanating from Lin Xiao. The strands moved steadily towards the Yuan family ancestor.

As these strands of clear energy spread, they gradually dissolved the black heart demon mist in their path.

When the clear energy finally touched the thick black mist surrounding the Yuan family ancestor, the two forces collided silently before vanishing together.

Jiang Youfu was astonished at the sight.

He then quickly focused his attention on the Yuan family ancestor's face, which was faintly visible through the remaining black mist.

He noticed that the ancestor's previously tightly furrowed brow had relaxed slightly.

Jiang Youfu let out a breath of relief. It's just as Lin Xiao said—the Purification Technique really works!

He couldn't believe that the spell their entire sect used for cleaning teeth had such miraculous effects.

At the same time, Liao Pantou, still within the Soul Nourishment Pendant, was equally surprised.

He had seen the Purification Technique before and knew it was a useful spell, but he hadn't expected it to be this effective.

To think that a Golden Core cultivator like Lin Xiao could use it to directly diminish the severe heart demon of a Nascent Soul cultivator!

Originally, Liao Pantou had assumed that with Lin Xiao's current cultivation, the best he could hope for was to slightly weaken the heart demon, perhaps giving the Yuan family ancestor an extra year or two.

But now, as soon as the clear energy was released, the heart demon was being actively erased!

This technique had far exceeded his expectations.

Meanwhile, Lin Xiao was completely unaware of what was happening outside.

He had become fully immersed in the spell.

Lin Xiao felt as though he had entered a completely silent space. In this space, only a faint voice could be heard, and each word seemed to carry a mysterious power that guided him.

Before him was only darkness.

In his hands, however, he held something that could erase the darkness.

And so, he continued, guided by his intuition, gradually pushing back the darkness, bit by bit.

...

Time passed in the blink of an eye.

Outside, Yuan Bi and Yuan Qing had spent the entire night listening to the sound of reading.

Luckily, Yuan Bi had activated a soundproofing formation right after hearing the reading begin, isolating the sound within the cave. Otherwise, every cultivator in the Yuan family might have overheard it.

Yuan Bi glanced at the sky and realized that morning had already arrived.

He couldn't help but feel a growing sense of concern.