Seeking Fortune and Avoiding Misfortune: Starting from the Celestial Master’s Mansion
Chapter 138: What's a good name?

During this period, Lei Jun focused on cultivating diligently.

The task of looking after the giant panda fell to Wang Guiyuan and Chu Kun.

Fortunately, that lazy glutton, though greedy, didn’t cause much trouble this time.

After all, Yuan Mobai had specially brought some Upper Qing Golden Bamboo for it from the Upper Qing Thunder Altar Grotto-Heaven.

Since these spirit bamboos weren’t yet refined by Yuan Mobai and Lei Jun’s magical power, the panda found them easier to chew.

It ate to its heart’s content, completely satisfied.

Now, even if they wanted to chase it off Mount Longhu, it would find a way to sneak back on its own.

However, this creature wasn’t just greedy but also picky.

After tasting Upper Qing Golden Bamboo, it started turning its nose up at other spiritual plants, constantly craving the Immortal Bamboo Grove inside the grotto.

But Upper Qing Golden Bamboo was limited, and there was no way to let it eat to its fill.

Thus, the daily theme between the humans and the panda became a battle of wits.

Chu Kun, however, found great amusement in this.

Every day, after cultivating, his favorite pastime was to find different types of spirit bamboo and pass them off as Upper Qing Golden Bamboo, then feed them to the panda.

Sometimes, the panda would sniff and refuse to be fooled.

Other times, it would chew for a while before realizing the trick, making Chu Kun laugh out loud.

When Lei Jun emerged from his seclusion, the giant panda immediately ran over, its eyes spinning, looking pitiful.

Master, did you ever go through a phase like this before you took human form? — Wait, stop! Let’s not go down that line of thinking.

Lei Jun shook his head with a smile, halting his runaway thoughts.

“By the way, Senior Brother, have you named it yet?” Chu Kun asked casually, teasing the panda with a bamboo branch.

The chubby panda turned its head away, ignoring Chu Kun.

But perhaps hunger got the better of it, as it soon swiped the branch with its paw and chewed the tender leaves.

“Not yet. No rush. For now, let’s just call it Gungun,” Lei Jun replied offhandedly.

He had once considered naming it Yuan Zai, but since it wasn’t related to his master, he had to give up on that idea.

As for a specific name, there was time to figure it out. The “child” was still young, after all.

Yes, despite its massive size, it was still young.

This had been confirmed by Lei Jun, his fellow disciples, and his master Yuan Mobai.

The panda’s size was due to consuming some spirit creatures in the Bashu mountains.

This also laid a solid foundation for its future cultivation—when it truly embarked on the path, it would be a prodigy.

When Lei Jun taught it Daoist techniques, it was clumsy but intelligent, making noticeable progress.

In a few years, it would likely achieve results.

Of course, Lei Jun’s primary focus wasn’t raising a panda.

His priority remained his own cultivation.

Only by improving his cultivation could he achieve more of his goals.

For instance, the world was vast, and he wanted to see it.

The mysteries of Daoist arts were endless, and he longed to learn more.

And some people… Lei Jun wished they would disappear from this world.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. He had made a good start and intended to cherish it.

In the following days, Lei Jun stayed at the mountain gate, focusing on his cultivation without distractions.

With four Primal Talismans complete, achieving perfection in that realm, his soul grew stronger, and his magical power advanced significantly.

He could now assign his Three Life-Bound Spells to the four talismans, making his spells more flexible and powerful.

His Yin-Yang Sacred Physique was taking form, deepening his foundation.

He could almost see the gateway between the Fourth and Fifth Heaven, ethereal yet within reach.

It was just a matter of accumulating a bit more to push that door open, revealing a whole new world.

In theory, a true disciple of the Tianshi Mansion who reached the Fifth Heaven Realm could establish their own sect, spreading the ancestral teachings.

Lei Jun had no such plans for now, but he looked forward to achieving the Fifth Heaven.

Furthermore, reaching the Fifth Heaven would make him eligible for Talisman Promotion.

This was not just an honorary title or a boost in privileges.

It determined whether a true disciple could access more advanced Daoist arts.

However, promotion required not only cultivation level but also time since their initiation.

Typically, disciples needed to wait a certain number of years after their initial Talisman Conferral Ceremony.

This was mainly because cultivation took time—most disciples met the time requirement but not the cultivation level.

Lei Jun’s case had an accepted “loophole”:

Disciples who made significant contributions to the sect could be promoted early.

Lei Jun had some ideas about this.

Of course, his Tianshi Seal remained a secret for now.

Fortunately, he had other preparations in place.

For now, he focused solely on his cultivation.

With an undistracted mind, time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, another year passed, and Lei Jun celebrated the New Year at his mountain gate.

He was now 29.

He had been in this world for over a decade.

On January 15th, the Tianshi Mansion held a new Initiation Ceremony.

This time, it had little to do with Lei Jun or his master, Yuan Mobai.

Yuan Mobai attended only as a sponsor, while Lei Jun and his fellow disciples simply observed.

The ceremony went smoothly, bringing a period of peace to the Tianshi Mansion.

However, the outside world was not so peaceful.

The new emperor’s ascension was marked by turbulence beneath the surface.

Lei Jun heard rumors that after half a year, the capital had only just begun to stabilize.

But the power struggle was far from over.

The chaos would ripple out from the capital, affecting the entire Tang Empire.

A new balance would emerge only after much conflict.

Though the late emperor left a decree, a smooth transfer of power was unlikely.

The Tianshi Mansion would also be affected, especially since the Li family had recently aligned itself more closely with the Tang court.

The sudden death of Emperor Zhang Qilong was a heavy blow.

From Elder Ziyang down to the younger generation like Li Xuan, the Li family had to tread carefully.

Lei Jun heard that Elder Ziyang had gone to the capital during the new emperor’s ascension.

Soon after the New Year, a tragic event occurred.

Li Zhenchang, a true disciple, was killed while traveling outside the mountain.

His death shocked the Li family and the entire Tianshi Mansion.

Li Zhenchang was a promising disciple, groomed as a potential future leader.

Elders immediately set out to investigate.

“According to his talismans, it wasn’t an accident—he was ambushed. But the killer’s identity remains unclear,” Wang Guiyuan said to Lei Jun with a sigh.

Two years ago, Li Zhenchang had finally completed his Talisman Conferral Ceremony.

He had endured many delays due to Elder Li Qingfeng’s seclusion.

Afterward, Li Zhenchang faced a cultivation bottleneck and decided to travel to clear his mind before attempting the Heavenly Chasm Tribulation.

No one expected his journey to end in death.

Lei Jun remembered his interactions with Li Zhenchang.

He was somewhat proud but always polite to Lei Jun.

To thank Lei Jun for saving his life once, he had gifted him a Nine-Return Stone, which Lei Jun had long since used.

Now, the giver was gone.

“Some suspect… Chen Yi,” Wang Guiyuan said slowly.

Lei Jun nodded. “I heard Chen Yi joined the Demon Suppression Guard and fought in the Western Regions.”

Wang Guiyuan confirmed, “Yes, a senior in the Guard appreciated his talent and promoted him twice.”

Lei Jun nodded. No wonder Li Xuan hadn’t been able to act against him.

But had Chen Yi now taken his chance for revenge?

The elders would find out soon enough.

Another shock followed: Chu Andong, Li Zhenchang’s close companion, failed his Heavenly Chasm Tribulation.

Though he survived, his path of cultivation was effectively over.

Lei Jun fell silent at the news.

Chu Andong, like Li Zhenchang, had been a promising disciple.

No wonder many cultivators spent their whole lives avoiding the Heavenly Chasm Tribulation.

Lei Jun couldn’t help but worry for others, like Luo Haoran and Xia Qing, who were also in seclusion.