Chapter 265: Jade Dragon Transformation, Dragon Power Perfected

"Mm"

Li Rui opened his eyes to see the little white dragon grinning at him with a sly look.

The general idea was this.

If I'm suffering, you won't get off easy either.

A high-emotional-intelligence way to say it is: brothers share fortune and hardship alike.

Li Rui had both.

The pain was real, and the blessings were real too.

He slowly stood up, sensing the changes in his body, then widened his eyes: "The Dragon Power is already complete?"

After just one nap, the Dragon-Elephant True Qi Art had already passed the Dragon Power threshold.

He had originally needed at least five years to achieve this—and now it was done.

'This pain was worth it!'

Just now, the little white dragon had injected the last two-tenths of its residual Yinglong blood into Li Rui's body; the Yinglong blood forcibly reshaped and strengthened his body, causing the intense pain.

But the benefit was that his strength had more than doubled, instantly pushing his Dragon-Elephant True Qi Realm to its second layer's peak.

His power surged!

Li Rui felt he could now punch through a mountain.

Endless strength.

Only then did the little white dragon speak: "How's it feel, big brother? Did your little brother treat you right?"

Li Rui smiled lightly:

"You treated me right."

The little white dragon's transformation had left residual Yinglong blood that could have been saved for later use—but it chose to give it to him.

"Who in the Ten Thousand Mountains doesn't know Little White Dragon is the most loyal?"

The little white dragon proudly lifted its head.

Though it was a beast, it understood one truth: one must be willing to give. Now its life rested in Li Rui's hands; if it could trade Yinglong blood for Li Rui's genuine loyalty, it was the one who gained.

Then it wore a look of distress: "Looks like I'll need at least a year to recover."

After transformation, the little white dragon's power had been reduced to its original state—only slightly stronger than an ordinary snake—so most jade dragons choose to hide in safety until fully restored.

The little white dragon never expected to transform at the fifth rank, so it had made no preparations.

Li Rui paused, then said: "Shall I help you return to the Ten Thousand Mountains?"

With the old dragon's protection, a year's recovery wouldn't be a problem for the little white dragon.

Unexpectedly,

The little white dragon shook its head: "Going back is too dangerous. My brothers would love nothing more than to eat me. Better to stay with big brother."

The old dragon had too many offspring.

Before, it had been pampered by the old dragon and was powerful—so it had no fear.

Now, any beast could crush it. Even with the old dragon's protection, returning wouldn't guarantee safety.

Better to stay by Li Rui's side.

After all, their lives were linked; Li Rui would never harm it.

"Alright."

Li Rui paused, then nodded.

He gathered all the shed skin and scales from the room into a large chest—these were valuable treasures, not to be discarded.

Having done this,

He brought the little white dragon to his own room.

Before the little white dragon's astonished gaze, he slowly lifted a floor tile and stepped inside, soon arriving in a secret chamber.

The little white dragon stared at the chamber, eyes wide.

"Big brother, when did you dig such a big hole?"

Li Rui, while tidying, replied: "Many years ago. This place is safe enough. You'll stay here from now on. I'll come see you every day."

The little white dragon's gaze toward Li Rui grew even more admiring.

Beasts don't read books; they have no concept of benevolence or righteousness.

Survival of the fittest is what they value.

"Humans have a saying: 'A clever rabbit has three dens.' Yes, big brother is truly a clever rabbit!"

"..."

"Little White, we don't have to flatter people, do we?"

Li Rui was speechless.

The little white dragon looked puzzled.

Rabbits survive precisely because they have many dens—so enemies can't find them. That's a brilliant survival tactic! I'm praising you!

'Forget it. Humans are just this fickle.'

Li Rui settled the little white dragon in place.

Only then did he step outside.

As soon as he stepped out,

Wang Zhao, Yang Yong, and even Liang He appeared.

The three rushed forward upon seeing Li Rui: "Master, are you alright?"

Li Rui looked at Liang He, surprised:

"Little He, what are you doing here?"

Liang He: "I heard from Xiao Zhao that you've been locked in your room for two days and nights. I feared you'd suffered qi deviation."

Had you not been able to speak from inside, they'd have broken the door down.

Li Rui chuckled:

"Just a slight insight."

"Sudden enlightenment?"

Liang He immediately guessed.

"Something like that."

Li Rui smiled. He couldn't say he'd been waiting for a little dragon to transform and had received Yinglong blood.

"No wonder you're our master."

Liang He had grown numb to Li Rui's sudden enlightenments—nothing surprised him anymore.

Sudden enlightenment?

For his genius master, it was nothing.

Learning Li Rui was unharmed, Liang He took his leave. His and Liu Tong's status in the Heaven and Earth Alliance had risen steadily, and so had their duties—they were swamped.

Without the two of them, how could Li Rui have been so idle?

Hmm. Someone must bear the burden.

But Liang He and Liu Tong harbored no resentment, for every moment they sacrificed, Li Rui repaid tenfold—his martial progress now even outpaced his former pace.

Of course their drive was strong.

For ambitious youths, the best path isn't easy, stress-free cultivation—it's giving them space and resources to grow.

After two days and nights of fasting,

Even a martial artist's strong physique felt hunger.

Wang Zhao, hearing his master wanted to eat, immediately brought out the already warmed dishes.

A few simple home-cooked dishes—Li Rui ate them with relish.

Full and satisfied, the heavy, warm feeling in his belly brought peace.

After eating,

He checked his two disciples' cultivation levels.

He placed his right hand on Liang He's shoulder; Immortal Xuan Qi flowed between them.

"Good."

Li Rui sensed Liang He's internal qi had grown far stronger than before—clear signs of imminent Willow Tendon breakthrough.

Though slower than Liu Tiezhu's innate Golden Body, it was still impressive.

Once Liang He reached seventh rank, Li Rui could delegate more Heaven and Earth Alliance affairs to him.

It wasn't that he distrusted Huang Chui or Fei Laosan.

The Heaven and Earth Alliance was no longer the ragtag band it once was; its associates were rising in status. Too much banditry would inevitably cause trouble.

Mountains may change, but nature is hard to alter.

Just like the Zhu family's Second Master—Huang Chui and Fei Laosan's nature would never change.

So Li Rui preferred to keep two idle men around, rather than let the Alliance's structure remain unchanged.

If he himself took charge, it would hurt morale.

Unsuitable.

But a young man like Liang He? No problem. That faction didn't replace old with new—it was Liang He himself a disciple of the Alliance; the elders wouldn't resist.

Liang He smiled faintly: "All thanks to Master's teaching."

Li Rui laughed heartily: "You kid, your tongue's getting sharper by the day." Then,

he placed his hand on Wang Zhao's shoulder.

Immediately, he let out a soft murmur of surprise.

He looked at his youngest disciple with faint astonishment: "Xiao Zhao, when did you break through?"

Li Rui hadn't expected it—upon inspection, he discovered Wang Zhao had also broken through to the Eighth Rank.

Even he hadn't anticipated such speed.

After all, among his three disciples, Wang Zhao had the weakest talent and never pursued the pure martial path; for him to break through so swiftly was truly astonishing.

Liang He, upon hearing this, was also startled and pulled Wang Zhao aside:

"Brother, you broke through??"

Wang Zhao rubbed his head, confused: "I—I don't even know."

Please... Your Excellency... Collect_(!)

"."

Liang He fell silent.

What kind of nonsense is this?

So it turns out only he was seriously striving to break through—Wang Zhao and Liu Tiezhu hadn't even realized they'd broken through, and yet they did.

Li Rui narrowed his eyes slightly.

A flash of understanding passed through them.

It's a symbiotic bond!

Wang Zhao had spent every day with the three-eyed white tiger, and unconsciously, they formed a symbiotic connection.

Thus, he received spiritual energy backflow, allowing his disciple to break through all at once.

When Li Rui explained the symbiotic bond to Wang Zhao,

he finally understood why he could suddenly understand the three-eyed white tiger—it was because the beast had become his symbiotic companion.

Li Rui smiled and shook his head.

Truly, fools have divine fortune.

He'd asked Xia Xiaotang for the basic Wu Kingdom symbiosis technique and passed it on to Wang Zhao—never expecting him to actually master it.

Good thing.

Qinghe's ties with the Wu Kingdom are growing stronger; Wang Zhao has a bright future ahead.

His disciples are becoming capable.

Nothing brings greater joy to a master than seeing this.

Before long, another half-month passed.

"Senior Li, Father wishes to speak with you."

Jiang Yan knocked on Li Rui's door.

Li Rui had now learned Jiang Linxian's pattern: official matters were handled by Huaqing Sect disciples; personal matters were entrusted to his precious daughter.

"Alright."

Li Rui nodded.

He immediately followed Jiang Yan to Jiang Linxian's residence.

Upon entering,

he saw Jiang Linxian chatting warmly with an old Daoist—clearly not Zhang the Daoist from Wenxian Tower, whom Li Rui had met before.

'Could this be another high elder from a hidden sect?'

Li Rui muttered to himself.

Jiang Linxian spotted Li Rui and immediately beckoned: "Old Brother Li, come in, sit down."

Once Li Rui was seated,

he introduced him: "This is Daoist Xu from Wenxian Tower—he is Master Gu's uncle."

Upon hearing this,

Li Rui sucked in a sharp breath.

Wenxian Tower had only one Tower Master; the current Director of the Yu Kingdom's Imperial Astronomical Bureau also bore the surname Gu. The old Daoist's identity was obvious—he was Xu Xuan, the most senior and mysterious figure in Wenxian Tower, the Divine Wind Hermit.

Looking at the old Daoist, though his robes were disheveled and his sleeves stained with grease, his complexion was ruddy, his hair white as snow, his face youthful—truly like an immortal sage from a storyteller's tale.

"Your humble servant greets Senior Xu."

Xu Xuan chuckled: "I don't care for titles. Call me Daoist Xu if you like, or just Old Daoist if you prefer."

Li Rui took it as jest and chose a middle ground:

"Daoist Xu."

The old Daoist stroked his beard: "I cast a divination and sensed an echo of the Immortal Realm here. At first, I paid it no mind—but seeing the two of you, I now sense a glimmer of truth."

Immortal Realm

Upon hearing those two words, Li Rui's expression turned curious.

Xu the old Daoist seemed to notice and narrowed his eyes slightly: "Wenxian Tower has stood for a thousand years for one purpose: to seek immortals, to find the entrance to the Immortal Realm."

Li Rui ventured: "Senior, does the Immortal Realm truly exist?"

Xu the old Daoist nodded, speaking with near certainty: "It does."

"But for reasons unknown, the Immortal Gate closed in ancient times. Since the last batch of cultivators ascended thirty thousand years ago, no one has entered the Immortal Realm."

"Heaven's design is forty-nine; humanity escapes one."

"The founder of Wenxian Tower foresaw that the Immortal Gate had not fully sealed—someone still could ascend."

His words rang with finality.

Jiang Linxian and Li Rui exchanged glances.

Both saw shock in the other's eyes.

"I sense you two have an immortal affinity. Even if I hadn't spoken, you'd have learned it eventually. I'm likely too old for this—I just want to see what an immortal truly looks like."

Xu the old Daoist spoke calmly.

Jiang Linxian spoke up: "Senior still has twenty years left—no need to speak so lightly of your fate."

Perhaps sensing Li Rui's confusion, he added:

"Daoist Xu was a Earth Immortal a century ago; only recently did he regress to the Primordial Realm."

Earth Immortal?!

Upon hearing those two words,

Li Rui's pupils contracted slightly; he couldn't help but study the old Daoist more closely.

He'd lived this long, yet this was the first time he'd ever seen a cultivator at the Earth Immortal realm.

He couldn't help but take a second look.

Martial cultivation: if you don't advance, you retreat.

When lifespan nears its end, one enters the Five Decays of Heaven and Earth—realm after realm plummets, until finally falling to the Void, returning all martial power to the world—the moment the lamp burns out.

An Earth Immortal, at minimum, lives four hundred years.

Twenty years is no different from an eighty-year-old mortal on the brink of death.

Xu the old Daoist chuckled: "Having lived so long, life and death mean little to me. But seeking the Immortal Gate remains my unshakable knot—I cannot close my eyes until it's untied."

'Immortal Gate...'

Li Rui: "Then, Senior, have you found any trace of the Immortal Gate in Qinghe?"

Since Xu the old Daoist had brought up the Immortal Gate himself, asking was harmless.

Xu Xuan shook his head: "My journey here wasn't solely for the Immortal Gate."

Jiang Linxian chimed in: "Old Brother Li, Daoist Xu came to Qinghe because he has questions for you."

"For me?"

Li Rui frowned.

Xu Xuan spoke: "Young Brother Li, have you met my nephew Qu Chengfeng?"

Li Rui nodded: "I have."

Jiang Linxian had been present then—no need to lie.

Xu Xuan: "Tell me everything you know about Qu Chengfeng's time in Qinghe."

Li Rui froze.

Then, he recounted everything he knew.

Xu Xuan listened quietly.

Sometimes he confirmed minor details.

The matter wasn't complex—it took only a cup of tea to finish.

The old Daoist frowned, slowly uttering four words: "Nine Soul Dharma King!"

Upon hearing the name, Li Rui and Jiang Linxian tensed.

Li Rui asked: "Daoist Xu, why mention this villain? Did he harm Young Qu?"

Xu Xuan shook his head: "No. Quite the opposite—he gained a great fortune."

"I wandered far and wide, and just recently heard that young Gu had become Director of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau. I went to see him—and happened upon my own granddisciple."

"He used to be a blockhead, but now he's sharp as a needle, even earned the Top Graduate title."

The old Daoist priest only realized upon touching him that someone had swapped his soul!

(End of chapter)