No-Evil, No-Stain, No-Dust Heart; Utmost Affection and Pure Childlike Heart

In the north, there is a beauty, unrivaled and standing alone.

The moment you lay eyes on Princess Embroidered Jade, you'll know this line was written just for her.

At the very top of this quiet little valley stood a unique building. Though it was just a casually built, makeshift palace, it still had to fit a princess’s status. This was the residence of Princess Embroidered Jade and Princess Flower Shifter. When Princess Flower Shifter came in carrying The Fool, Embroidered Jade was busy embroidering. She wore very simple clothes—white with blue patterns, nothing fancy—but you’d still get the illusion that she must be draped in celestial robes.

If you look closely, you’ll notice that in terms of looks, Embroidered Jade isn’t as pretty as Flower Shifter. Her eyes are a bit narrower, her face more slender—not the flawless beauty of Flower Shifter. But that solitary, cold, otherworldly vibe she gives off is like the moon, hanging high and showering everything in soft light, making people respect her from afar.

"Sis, come quick! I found something really interesting!" Flower Shifter rushed over, while Embroidered Jade finished her last stitch before turning around unhurriedly: "What’s so interesting?"

"Look at him!" Flower Shifter yanked The Fool forward. "Doesn’t he look like the legendary No-Dust Mind State?"

"No-Dust Mind State?" Embroidered Jade stood up tall—she was surprisingly statuesque—and with a graceful step, came right up to The Fool. Embroidered Jade looked at the man in front of her, and he looked back at her; one was cold, one was calm, and somehow, there was a faint resemblance between them. After studying him for a while, Embroidered Jade mused, "He does seem a bit like it."

"Right?" Flower Shifter said excitedly. "In martial arts, the legendary ‘Three Hearts, Two Intents’ is the highest grade. Sis, you’ve always wanted to walk the No-Dust Mind path, but never knew how. If he really is in the No-Dust Mind State, that’s a huge treasure!"

Embroidered Jade’s eyes flashed with interest, but she still shook her head: "No-Dust Mind State is something you don’t see in a hundred years, and it’s always found in those who’ve seen through life and death, love and hate. If you really have the No-Dust Mind State, your martial arts would improve by leaps and bounds, and your level would be unimaginable. Even entering it for a moment is rare—how could anyone stay in it for long? He... probably isn’t..." Don’t blame Embroidered Jade for doubting. Anyone would. It’s like a homebody surfing the net, and suddenly a pop-up says you can travel to infinite worlds with a level five gene lock—would you believe it?

"Heh, whether he’s got the No-Dust Mind State or not, we’ll just test it out!" Flower Shifter’s eyes sparkled, like a kid who’s found a new toy. "Ancient texts say people in the No-Dust Mind State have all sorts of weird powers—why don’t we check them one by one?"

Embroidered Jade thought for a moment and nodded: "True, this is a big deal. If it really is the No-Dust Mind State, then it’s like fate dropping a gift from the heavens—worth a try. But the ancient texts are so mysterious and fantastical, they sound way too exaggerated to be real."

"Don’t overthink it!" Flower Shifter zipped through the hall, rummaged around in the back, and zipped back just as fast. Her movements were lightning-quick but graceful—top-tier lightness skill, no doubt. She held an ancient scroll, with four big characters on the cover: Heart of Impermanence Sutra.

"Found it, look here—The Three Hearts: 'No-evil, No-stain, No-dust heart,' 'Utmost affection and pure childlike heart,' and 'Ever-changing and uncertain heart.' People always say the human heart is hard to read, but the best thing about these Three Hearts is they let you see right through someone. That’s what makes them different from ordinary hearts…"

At this, the sisters exchanged a glance—Embroidered Jade gently shook her head, and Flower Shifter scratched her head with a wry smile.

Both of them knew the contents of this ancient scroll well, but this part was just too hard to believe. Embroidered Jade said slowly, "The scroll says the Three Hearts have nothing to do with cultivation level—they’re a matter of talent. People with the Three Hearts will naturally draw close to the virtuous and keep away from villains, and instinctively believe the truth and doubt the false. It’s amazing, but there’s no way to test it."

"Not true! You can’t test it, but isn’t he just like that? He looks silly, but it’s like he instinctively knows what’s good and bad."

"That doesn’t prove anything. Even birds and beasts know good from bad. The human heart is as deep as the sea—dark and hard to fathom. Not reliable."

"Let’s keep going." Flower Shifter flipped through the scroll: "Childlike heart… Uncertain heart… Here it is, No-Dust Mind! No-Dust Mind State means your heart is like a frozen lake and a clear mirror, reflecting everything without missing a thing. People in the No-Dust Mind State have all kinds of strange powers—can do things that are usually impossible, break through limits. Photographic memory, instant mastery, unity with nature, spiritual emptiness." Flower Shifter looked up, grinning mischievously: "Sis, I’ve got a great idea…"

"No idea what you’re scheming, but go ahead. Still, we should heal him first."

Whether The Fool has the No-Dust Mind State or not, the first thing is to save his life.

The two princesses sat cross-legged, one in front and one behind, with The Fool in the middle. Flower Shifter placed her hand on his back, Embroidered Jade pressed on his chest. Embroidered Jade said calmly, "The Golden Blade King's saber aura is all about killing, and your cold energy isn’t great for healing either. Both forces are battling inside him like dragons and tigers, tangled up for ages—this is tricky. Follow my lead, and don’t act rashly."

"Got it!"

In an instant, both princesses underwent a magical transformation. It was as if they turned into crystal and jade, becoming almost transparent. A hazy moonlight halo filled the room, creating a surreal vision where you couldn’t even make out their figures. But The Fool, sitting in the middle, seemed totally unaffected by these illusions—he stared straight at Embroidered Jade, as if his gaze could pierce through appearances and reach the truth. Embroidered Jade didn’t mind at first, but The Fool’s brazen, unblinking stare finally made her exhale and withdraw her energy.

The icy marks on The Fool’s body had disappeared.

"That’ll do for now, it’s suppressed." Embroidered Jade held back, then finally asked, "What are you looking at?"

"Qi."

"Qi?" Flower Shifter poked her head around from behind, laughing, "How could you see qi with your eyes?"

The Fool thought for a moment, then shook his head: "I don’t get it."

"Haha, what a weirdo. Someone, take this big goof to get a bath and change his clothes!" With that, two palace maids came in and led The Fool away. But nobody noticed that what he said just now wasn’t "can’t see," but "don’t get it."

During his bath, the palace maids kept pouring water over him, but he just looked down at his palm. "Qi…" Suddenly, he pressed his hand onto the water’s surface. A ripple spread out, and wherever it went, the water became as calm and clear as a mirror. The palace maids rubbed their eyes, but when they looked again, the water was just water. Maybe it was all an illusion—so they glanced at each other, baffled.

The Fool raised his hand. "Still… don’t get it…"

When the big goof showed up all cleaned up and looking fresh, a lot of people went "Huh?" Fiona Fang rubbed her eyes and sighed, "This big goof is actually kind of handsome!"

Princess Flower Shifter circled around him, looked him up and down, and nodded: "Now you’re worthy of my Flower Shifting Palace." Dressed in white, The Fool now looked tall and elegant. With his hair tidied up, his face actually looked pretty high-class—soft features, but also a certain strength. Not too warm, not too cold, just right. His skin was fair and unwrinkled, but you could tell at a glance he had stories to tell.

"Lily, come here." Princess Flower Shifter called a palace maid over and whispered a few words, then smiled at Night Lily: "It’s settled. Go ahead." With a string of silvery laughter and a swirl of her skirt, she was gone.

Night Lily looked after Flower Shifter’s retreating figure with a helpless smile, then turned to Fiona Fang and The Fool: "You two, want to learn some top-tier martial arts?"

"Of course!" Fiona Fang immediately said. "I dream about it! I’m sick of scraping by with little tricks just to survive in the martial world—I want to be a real master!"

Night Lily smiled, then looked at The Fool. Flower Shifter’s instructions were all about him—if he stayed clueless, it’d be a problem. But for some reason, maybe just psychology, the cleaned-up, handsome Fool didn’t seem quite so foolish anymore. He looked at Night Lily: "Can I learn ‘qi’?"

"Qi? You mean internal energy?" Night Lily nodded. "You can, and it’ll be the very best: the entry-level Bright Jade Technique of the Bright Moon Divine Skill."

Fiona Fang’s eyes went wide. "Will I get as strong as the Golden Blade King?"

"Well… Bright Jade Technique can reach up to sixty years of internal power. If you master it all, you won’t be able to beat the Golden Blade King, but you’ll be able to hold your own. Don’t aim too high—below the innate level, Bright Jade Technique is as good as anything out there." Night Lily tapped Fiona Fang on the head. "Don’t get ahead of yourself."

"Got it." Fiona Fang rubbed her head, then said excitedly, "So when do we start training?"

"No rush, no rush. If you want to train, you’ve got to pass the assessment first. Only those who pass can learn the real skills." Night Lily glanced at The Fool, remembering what Flower Shifter had said, and gave a wry smile. "This assessment… is really tough."