Chapter 401: Embryo of the Dao [Monthly Ticket Bonus, Requesting Monthly Tickets, Combined Update]

"Brother Li, are you leaving the mountain?"

Sang Kong was just about to find Li Rui for tea when he saw Li Rui step outside.

Li Rui nodded: "I have some matters to attend to in the city."

Sang Kong was even more surprised: "Back to Qinghe?"

"Mm."

Li Rui smiled.

"Brother Sang, the Zi Jin Palace is still causing trouble—leaving now is hardly wise."

Li Rui: "Brother Sang, I know my limits."

Seeing this.

Sang Kong stopped his attempts to dissuade him; after so long together, he knew Li Rui was not impulsive.

The two chatted briefly at the gate.

Then Li Rui descended the mountain.

As soon as he stepped beyond the Qingwei Sect's protective array, the earth qi surged, and he vanished from sight.

He effortlessly slipped past the earth-elemental demons stationed outside Qingwei Sect.

"Poor wage slave."

Li Rui gazed at the earth-elemental demon dozing beneath a large tree, feeling a deep sense of sympathy.

These past days.

The earth-elemental demon had been watching him, yet he had been watching the demon just as closely.

Ever since the Thousand Souls Banner was sent away.

All the Zi Jin Palace beasts around had withdrawn, and the earth-elemental demon had grown lethargic, sleeping soundly all day.

It was easy to guess.

It must have been wounded in heart by its superior, the Blood Shadow Ancestor.

Of course.

Even if the earth-elemental demon had been fully alert, it could not have stopped Li Rui.

Moreover, he could use the Thousand Souls Banner to pinpoint the Blood Shadow Ancestor's location—the Blood Shadow Ancestor was indeed busy assimilating the banner and showed no intention of bothering him again. As long as the Blood Shadow Ancestor did not act, few in the Zi Jin Palace could threaten him.

Temporarily letting the Blood Shadow Ancestor hold the Thousand Souls Banner gained him valuable intelligence.

Not a bad deal!

Quietly.

He had already left the Ten Thousand Mountains.

But Li Rui did not rush to surface; he continued his earth Dun, traveling while searching for any hidden traps left by the Zi Jin Palace.

Only after confirming everything was safe did he quietly return to Qinghe City.

Li Rui entered the An Nan Town camp.

As soon as he appeared.

He happened to spot several familiar faces.

Fu Tao also saw Li Rui and was surprised: "Lord Li, why have you returned?"

The others were all deputy commanders and generals of An Nan Town.

Naturally, they all recognized Li Rui.

Li Rui: "I've returned to report."

The men understood.

Li Rui had joined Qingwei Sect—they were envious to the point of drooling.

Entering an immortal sect was a powerful lure for any martial artist below the Profound Mystery realm.

Qinghe was not far from Qingwei Sect, and exchanges were frequent.

They knew Li Rui's status as an Elder was even higher than that of an inner-disciple, saving him countless years of struggle.

Of course.

They were merely envious.

Rumors had spread from somewhere, claiming Li Rui's entry into Qingwei Sect had been prearranged by Supervisor Gu.

They could cultivate to the Primordial realm, but they lacked the means to climb onto Supervisor Gu's ladder.

No matter how hard they tried, they could not replicate it.

Naturally, they felt no jealousy.

Li Rui exchanged a few pleasantries with them, then headed straight for the Regional Commander's residence.

After the guards at the gate announced his arrival.

He walked inside.

There he saw Xue Gui practicing with a long spear in the courtyard.

"My lord."

Li Rui bowed respectfully.

Xue Gui glanced at Li Rui coolly, then set down his spear: "How was it at Qingwei Sect?"

"Everything went smoothly."

As he spoke,

he pulled a small booklet, a thumb's thickness, from his sleeve.

"My lord, all the intelligence I gathered is recorded in this booklet."

Xue Gui raised an eyebrow: "I knew I didn't choose wrong."

The court sent Li Rui to Qingwei Sect not merely to cultivate, but primarily to gather intelligence.

Li Rui had done well.

"Come, accompany me to visit Commander Zhou."

"Yes."

Li Rui bowed in reply.

He understood his current situation all too well.

Everyone envied him,

but the task of being stationed at Qingwei Sect was far from simple.

He had to balance relations between Qingwei Sect and the court.

After all, he lived on their land—he could not afford to be ostentatious—so Li Rui had always been discreet. But discretion did not mean neglecting intelligence.

Don't think his daily idleness was idle.

Did he really stroll at night for no reason?

Li Rui had already fully mapped out Qingwei Sect's inner workings and compiled them into this booklet.

Otherwise, merely occupying a position without contributing

would bring disaster.

He had Gu Changsheng's protection, yes—but if he remained too long disconnected from the court, or if suspicion arose that he harbored disloyalty, his fate would be grim.

The court would never allow a double agent to exist.

That was why Li Rui had returned to Qinghe to report.

Especially to be seen by Commander Zhou.

Xue Gui understood this well, which was why he had summoned him—it was a necessary step to demonstrate loyalty.

An hour later,

Li Rui stepped out of the Provincial Military Commander's office.

Zhou Dinghai was delighted to see him, lavished praise upon him, and even called him a pillar of the empire.

To this,

Li Rui remained calm.

This General Fu Bo may seem mild-mannered and pleasant, putting others at ease—but if Li Rui dared even a hint of overstepping, Zhou Dinghai would crush him with a single blow.

'Be cautious.'

Li Rui thought to himself.

At that moment,

Xue Gui smiled and said: "Li Rui, don't worry. As long as your heart remains loyal to the court, no one can touch you."

Li Rui: "I am deeply indebted to the Emperor's grace—how could I ever act against it?"

"Good."

Xue Gui nodded approvingly.

He laughed heartily and turned to leave.

But Li Rui did not relax because of Xue Gui's words.

Were those spies truly traitors when they were labeled as such?

Not necessarily.

As long as the powerful deemed them so, their own thoughts were irrelevant.

He was not a spy—but his situation was similar.

Of course, it would be much easier.

Li Rui merely preferred to anticipate the worst-case scenario, so he could prepare thoroughly.

After finishing the official formalities.

He then returned to his residence.

Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong had heard the news early and were already sitting in the courtyard, pouring tea for themselves with no sense of being guests; Liang He was attending to them—this was how they treated Li Rui as their true elder brother.

Seeing Li Rui return.

Nie Siming laughed heartily: "Big Brother Li, have you become so enchanted with Qingwei Sect that you've forgotten us brothers?"

Indeed.

Li Rui had stayed at Qingwei Sect for several years.

Although they exchanged letters, he had never once returned.

This was certainly Li Rui's own calculation.

Aside from the reason that Zijin Palace remnants were spying on him.

Also, if he returned to Qinghe too often, he might not feel as comfortable in Qingwei Sect.

Now was the perfect time.

"Cultivation knows no days or months; one blink, one open eye—and a year has passed."

Li Rui chuckled.

Upon hearing this.

Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong both deeply agreed.

Though their lifespans were long, they didn't actually feel it was lengthy.

Most of the reason was that during cultivation, one truly didn't perceive time passing.

In fact.

Aside from oddities like He Qianian, most top-tier cultivators spent their time in seclusion.

This was also why top-tier cultivators were rarely seen wandering the mortal world.

Yuan Xiong spoke up: "Big Brother Li, how are Qingwei Sect's immortal arts?"

Li Rui chuckled twice.

Then a yellow talisman flew out from his sleeve.

In the next instant.

A stunningly beautiful woman appeared before them.

Seeing this, Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong both brightened: "What an exquisite talisman technique!"

They had seen much.

They had encountered many masters of talisman arts.

But compared to Li Rui's display, theirs fell far short.

The talisman masters in the capital couldn't do this—our Big Brother Li must have hidden even more techniques since going to Qingwei Sect.

Liang He beside them was also greatly shocked.

His master had simply conjured a living person out of thin air—this completely overturned his understanding.

But soon, Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong realized the truth.

Li Rui's trick offered almost no combat utility.

Their interest gradually faded.

Both were military men, and they held the utmost disdain for such flashy tricks.

They pursued absolute combat power.

Li Rui merely pointed a finger—the beautiful woman dissolved back into a talisman and vanished.

If he ever mastered talismans fully.

Each talisman-man could possess formidable combat strength—then it would truly be the work of an immortal: turning beans into soldiers.

He chatted with Nie Siming and Yuan Xiong until deep into the night.

Only then did they leave, reluctant to part.

Though they didn't cultivate immortal arts, they still gained much insight from speaking with Li Rui.

After seeing the two brothers off.

Li Rui turned to Liang He: "Little He, you've worked hard these past days."

Liang He smiled slightly: "Not hard at all."

Li Rui then took out a brand-new small booklet from his chest.

"You can start practicing it—if you succeed, great; if not, it doesn't matter."

Liang He's heart surged with excitement.

He knew his master had given him an immortal art!

Inside the room.

Li Rui's eyes flickered with nostalgia.

By his count, he hadn't returned for several years.

Since beginning immortal cultivation, time had truly flown.

The booklet he gave Liang He was the Qi Refining Primer he brought from Qingwei Sect—every menial disciple received one.

It taught how to begin the immortal path.

It wasn't a secret—he had already confirmed this with Qingwei Sect's Elders.

He had tested his senior disciple and found him to possess a mid-grade spiritual root, with potential for cultivation.

As for why he didn't pass on the more advanced Five Spirit Body Refining Scripture:

First, the level was too high—Liang He couldn't possibly learn it.

Second, the Five Spirit Body Refining Scripture was of dubious origin; if discovered, it might bring disaster upon himself—and that would harm his disciple.

That's why he had sought out Qingwei Sect's orthodox path.

The room was clean.

Clearly, someone had kept it tidy during his absence.

He took off his outer robe and placed it on the bedside.

But he did not lie down.

Instead, he walked to a corner of the room and pressed lightly against a wall tile.

The entire wall turned.

A hidden chamber appeared before Li Rui.

Entering the hidden chamber.

Li Rui placed his boots inside, then summoned thick earth qi—his entire body sank into the ground.

Traveling a hundred miles underground.

An hour later, he arrived at a small hill a hundred miles outside Qinghe City.

No one was here.

Why was he so certain?

Because this hill was regarded by Qinghe people as a cursed mountain, often rumored to be haunted.

But Li Rui knew there were no ghosts here.

Only more abandoned graves—long ago, a merchant passing through, exhausted, had simply slept on one of the graves, woke up unharmed, and only realized later, back in Qinghe, how strange it was.

Li Rui knew the rumors were false.

As for why he came here tonight:

To break through.

Yes, the Dao Embryo in his dantian had already revealed most of its form—it was time to ascend.

This was another reason he had come to Qinghe.

The Dao Embryo was too important.

Qingwei Sect had too many powerful cultivators, and the unfathomable Qingding True Person presided over it—if his secret were discovered, it might trigger a major upheaval.

Even in Qinghe City, there were strong figures like Zhou Dinghai.

So Li Rui had long chosen this place.

As for the clothes and boots left in the room, they were merely a precaution.

A deception for potential enemies.

The more critical the moment, the less one could overlook such small details.

Li Rui took a deep breath.

He sat cross-legged on the barren ground; the pure moonlight bathed him, and a faint aura of immortality swirled around him, making him appear utterly sacred.

In the next instant.

Dozens of yellow talismans flew from his sleeves.

They exploded with bangs all around him.

These were Spirit-Infusing Talismans.

Spirit-Infusing Talismans enhance spiritual energy; the place where Li Rui stood had no spiritual energy, but now the spiritual energy became extraordinarily dense.

It was because the Spirit-Storage Talisman had another function.

That was to transport spiritual energy.

This spiritual energy had been brought from Qingwei Sect.

Indeed, Li Rui had begun preparing for today years ago, otherwise he wouldn't have spent every day refining such a low-grade Spirit-Storage Talisman.

The concentration of spiritual energy reached its peak in an instant.

Li Rui's gaze sharpened.

He pulled out three large elixirs at once and swallowed them all.

For today, his preparations were more than sufficient.

Meanwhile, the Great Hardening and the Divine Passage merged and spun rapidly.

"Not enough."

"Still not enough!"

Li Rui frowned slightly.

He looked toward the moon in the sky.

In an instant.

His Great Hardening forcibly seized the celestial lunar radiance—this moment, it seemed as if all the moonlight on the entire mountain converged upon Li Rui alone.

The spiritual energy within a foot of his body intensified again.

It reached a terrifying level, nearly becoming liquid spirit.

If He Qianian had seen this, he would have been deeply gratified.

We martial men must contend with heaven itself!

He turned his gaze inward.

A gentle breeze, source unknown, blew through the Immortal Court; vibrant peach blossoms swayed gently, petals drifting down.

Some landed precisely on the head of the stone embryo beneath the peach tree.

Suddenly.

At the very moment the petals touched its head, the stone embryo's fingers twitched slightly.

Then its crossed legs.

Then its eyes.

A soft rustling.

Large flakes of stone fell, scattering across the Immortal Altar.

Finally!

The stone embryo's head emerged fully, resembling a child barely over a year old, its entire body translucent and pure, as if the most perfect purity of heaven and earth.

Dao Embryo!

Li Rui's expression trembled.

It's done!

The spiritual energy surrounding him was completely absorbed.

The anomalous phenomenon on the mountaintop vanished.

Yet this mountaintop seemed inexplicably darker than elsewhere.

Li Rui gazed at the child within his dantian.

Exquisitely lively.

And the child mirrored Li Rui's every movement—sitting cross-legged, Li Rui stared at him, and he stared back at Li Rui.

This feeling was profoundly strange.

Li Rui blinked.

He and the child in his dantian seemed to share an unspoken connection.

As if you were in me, and I in you.

At the same time, Li Rui felt an overwhelming emptiness, urgently needing spiritual energy to fill him.

His spiritual essence had long been perfected.

Years had passed.

His spiritual energy had long been fully saturated.

What was starving was the Dao Embryo in his dantian.

Indeed, the Dao Embryo could also store spiritual energy.

This was the key reason why the Dao Embryo realm far surpassed cultivators of the same level.

One person, two capacities.

He could hold twice the spiritual energy of others—this advantage was immense.

It was like facing two opponents at once.

And the greater the cultivation level, the wider the gap became.

Thus, when a Dao Embryo master emerged, they almost invariably dominated their entire era.

Double the spiritual energy? Impossible to fight.

Li Rui's lips curled slightly.

Finally, it's done.

He silently thanked He Qianian—without He Qianian's Great Hardening, he would never have reached this point.

He Qianian's talent was something even Li Rui deeply admired.

Two years.

The Dao Embryo was complete; entering the Tongxuan realm now held no further obstacles.

All he needed was to wait until the Dao Embryo had fully absorbed spiritual energy.

Then Li Rui would be a true Upper Tier cultivator.

Yet he did not rush back to Qingwei Sect.

He had already forged the Dao Embryo—there was no need to hurry now.

His figure sank once more into the earth.

Half an hour later, he returned to the hidden chamber.

Then, as if nothing had happened, he crawled into bed and fell into deep sleep.

The next morning.

In a small courtyard of Qianhe Martial Hall.

He Qianian was lifting iron, the massive divine iron in his hands as light as a toy.

Year after year, it had always been this way.

At this moment,

A voice sounded at the gate.

"Senior."

He Qianian immediately recognized it as Li Rui.

"Come in."

The courtyard gate creaked open, and Li Rui stepped out from behind it.

He Qianian chuckled: "You've been stuck in Qingwei Sect for years—I thought the immortal maidens had spoiled you so much you didn't want to come down the mountain."

Li Rui: "Senior, I'm not that kind of person."

He Qianian lifted his head:

"What kind of person?"

Li Rui gave no reply, but suddenly said: "Senior, I've succeeded."

The words came out without context.

He Qianian froze in surprise.

His entire body stiffened.

Upon closer look, his fingers trembled slightly.

"Succeeded?"

He couldn't help but confirm again.

Li Rui nodded: "Yes. Without your Great Hardening, I never would have had the chance."

"Good! Excellent!"

He Qianian nodded heavily, his eyes reddening.

Then he burst into loud laughter.

Who says external arts are inferior paths?

His disciple has forged the Primordial Dao Embryo—he is destined to walk an extraordinary path.

Both men silently avoided uttering those two words.

Too heavy.

Secrets succeed through discretion.

The best course was to never speak of it at all.

He Qianian understood Li Rui's thoughts.

The Dao Embryo is too important; it will surely invite envy.

Yet even so, Li Rui told him first, showing great trust in him.

He Qianian's heart warmed.

Li Rui was treating him as his Master.

Li Rui said solemnly: "Senior, I will surely carry forward Da Henglian."

He Qianian had taught him Da Henglian precisely to promote external martial arts.

Otherwise, with no kinship or connection, why would he teach him?

In the Jianghu, transmitting techniques always requires rigorous trials.

But He Qianian waved his hand:

"Those are trivial matters—just focus on yourself first."

"Besides, you're nearly reaching Tongxuan—calling me 'Senior' won't do."

"From now on, call me Brother, and I'll call you Brother."

Li Rui blinked and tentatively said, "Brother He?"

"Ah, that's right."

(End of Chapter)