Enlightenment

At the offer of being an equal, Fu Hao Xin couldn't help but feel honored, and at the same time deeply ashamed. Indeed, he had been too obsessed with the idea of relationships and status.

He couldn't help but reflect on himself, "When did I become so strung up on the idea of status and favors? Who am I? I am Fu Hao Xin, a man of the village, son of the mountain. What use is status? What use is wealth? I live to seek my happiness, I live to seek the Dao."

Thinking back on his experience here in the Academy, it seemed that subconsciously he couldn't help but feel inferior when dealing with the young masters and prodigies that populated the Academy. To compensate he had ended up wanting to prove himself stronger and better than them.

He had come here with the aspirations of being strong enough to protect himself and those he cared about. To become a carefree immortal. When had he become obsessed with becoming stronger than those around him?

His parents wouldn't have cared if he became a Golden Core cultivator or a Supremacy, to them it was all the same. So why did he say that he did it to make his parents proud?

All this time he couldn't help but look down on the shallow nature of the other people in his class who would look the other way and bend the knee when confronted with the injustice before them because of the resources and backgrounds involved, but at the very least he could understand them.

But for the young masters and prodigies who considered themselves better than everyone simply because they were born with an advantage, he couldn't help but think of them as despicable, but in a way, by thinking of himself as morally superior, wasn't he the same?

"Ten thousand paths to the Dao…"

Sighing, Fu Hao Xin couldn't help but smile as lifted himself out of the chair and took two steps back before kowtowing.

Startled, Di Tou wondered what the f*ck was going on this kid's head now. He had just offered to be a study partner right? Nothing special had occurred…

Di Tou couldn't help but question himself, were other people hearing the same things as what he was saying? Was there a treasure in front of his eyes that he couldn't see? What the heck was going on.

"Senior, today I have truly been humbled. Let me kowtow before you not as a disciple acknowledging a master, but as a fellow practitioner thanking another for their generosity."

Standing back up, Fu Hao Xin smiled, "If Senior is willing to consider me as a fellow practitioner on the road to Dao, I would be more than happy to accept."

Di Tou blinked. What just happened? Was accepting a study partner such a big deal here? "Of course."

"Senior, I seemed to have found a sort of insight in your words just now, I'm sorry for being impolite, but I should take my leave to consolidate my thoughts."

"Ah?" Was this what they called a prodigy? Pulling insights and enlightenments out of thin air? "Of course, don't let me hold you back."

Bowing again, Fu Hao Xin started heading for the door.

"Ah, Xiao Fu, wait a moment."

Surprised, Fu Hao Xin turned around, "Yes?" before seeing a stone thrown towards him. Quickly raising his hands to catch it, he realized it was a superior grade spirit stone. "This is…?"

Di Tou smiled, "I said I would sponsor you right? I might not be able to help you directly in cultivation, but at the very least I can share some resources." Inside, Di Tou couldn't help but sweat a little. Based on his observations, that stone should be worth quite a bit, but as for if it was considered enough to be worthy of being a gift, he wasn't quite sure. It'd be rather awkward if it wasn't worth much, right?

But considering that the 'worse' spirit stone that he had a collection of had caused such a reaction from the shopkeeper, this shinier one should be worth a decent amount, right?

Either way, he didn't feel quite right letting Fu Hao Xin head out without some sort of reward. After all, even if the young man seemed to have gained something from talking to him, that was based on his own comprehension abilities and talent, not Di Tou's 'experience' as he had just been spouting bullsh*t.

As for Di Tou, he had gained quite a bit from the conversation and felt bad about manipulating the young man, so at the very least it seemed right to tip?

Keeping up his Mu Di Bai cosplay, Di Tou waved his hand, "Go."

Fu Hao Xin bowed again before heading out, being sure to close the door lightly on his way out.

In his mind, his image of Mu Di Bai rose another notch.

As he walked, he muttered to himself, "Truly, what a selfless man. Mother, father, I think I've figured out what I want to do in life. I want to become a man like Senior Mu. Someone who is able to see beyond the petty squabbles of this world and do things with a pure, good heart."

With a new sense of resolve, he walked home with confidence in his steps. Although he was no longer quite as concerned about the speed of his cultivation, with the insight he had just come across and a resource as valuable as the superior spirit stone, he should be able to quickly consolidate his cultivation in the Foundation realm and be ready to ascend to Golden Core by the end of the next year instead of by the time he was 20 or 22.

With this sort of pace, he could once again be considered a genius. After all, it was rare for people to gain insights so early in their cultivation, and the superior spirit stone could be considered quite a valuable resource, with only one appearing in every mid-grade spiritual vein.

Even if used directly to cultivate it could sustain his growth all the way to the end of the Golden Core realm, and that was mainly because the realms after the Golden Core realm didn't rely on spiritual energy or Qi as much… Further if he exchanged it for specific resources that he needed he could probably make his way into the Nascent Soul realm before it's purchasing value ran out.