Chapter 163: Meeting by the Roadside, Departing After the Fun; Entering the City to Seek Opportunities

However, after listening for a while, Fang Longye's brows furrowed more and more.

"The Dao is the foundation of all things; Qi is the source of all things! Connecting heaven and earth, spanning ancient and modern times, it is nothing more than this one Qi."

Peng Zu sat cross-legged on a giant rock, pointing to the sky above and the earth below, saying with a solemn face: "That which is rooted in heaven is the Qi of heaven. That which is rooted in earth is the Qi of earth."

"When heaven and earth unite, all things are born; when Yin and Yang meet, changes arise; and only then do all spirits emerge!"

"The function of the transformation of Qi is Dao in heaven, Dharma in humans, and power on earth! It gives birth to the Five Elements; Dao gives birth to the sage, and Dharma gives birth to the divine!"

"As Qi varies in quantity, forms have their waxing and waning; when the upper and lower interact, the gains and losses become manifest. Thus, the birth, aging, illness, and death of all living beings are merely the gathering and dispersing of this one Qi."

"Therefore, if one can grasp heaven and earth, hold the Yin and Yang, breathe the Qi, stand alone and guard the spirit, and keep the muscles as one, then one can live without end and attain longevity!"

"……"

As he expounded on the Great Dao, reaching a point of fervor, a seven-colored auspicious cloud immediately appeared above his head, spanning an unknown number of acres.

From the inside out, clear light like water surged in all directions, layer upon layer, even suffused with purple and green, emitting mysterious, clear sounds that rippled all around.

The grandeur of the phenomenon was truly extraordinary.

A green wood Spiritual Root was rooted within the halo, its branches and leaves spreading out densely; the immeasurable halo swayed, and in a trance, it seemed as if it would fall to the ground, scattering green light everywhere.

The entire ancient wood Spiritual Root radiated a rich Longevity Dao Qi of green wood, giving birth to boundless Creation Vitality.

The Great Chun Spiritual Root!

The moment it came into view, the name of this green wood Spiritual Root appeared inexplicably in the minds of everyone present.

"In ancient times, there was a Great Chun, taking eight thousand years for its spring and eight thousand years for its autumn. This is a great age. Yet Peng Zu is now uniquely known for his longevity, and the masses compare themselves to him. Is this not sad!"

Fang Longye, who was well-versed in the Daoist canon *Zhuangzi*, could not help but have this passage from the "Free and Easy Wandering" chapter appear in his mind.

With the long-lived Great Chun tree as the vessel for his Dao Fruit, it was no wonder that Peng Zu's entire body radiated rich Long-life Dao Principles.

It was a pity that this Great Chun tree was merely a Post-Heaven Spiritual Root.

Following his path, the future of his cultivation could be described as bleak.

While he was pondering, this Peng Zu began to delve into his own cultivation philosophy.

"Heaven and earth are the great perfection of form. Humans are the great perfection of Qi."

"The life of a human is the gathering of Qi. Gathering leads to life; dispersing leads to Qi. The life of things is like a galloping horse; there is no movement without change, no time without shifting."

"It is clear that heaven, earth, and humans are all born because of the Dao and exist because of Qi!"

"I draw upon all things from heaven and earth, just like drinking water from the Four Seas, yet the sea does not lose its weight; I breathe in and out from the nine heavens, yet the nine heavens do not change their lightness."

"This is: heaven and earth are born together with me, and all things are one with me."

Upon hearing this, Fang Longye finally understood why Peng Zu had no qualms about entrusting his entire Dao Fruit to that Great Chun Spiritual Root.

It turned out that in his view, since all things in heaven and earth were formed from one Qi, what difference was there between the many Spiritual Roots, Spirit Treasures, and the primordial spirits of living beings in the world!

Of course, according to the principles taught by the sages, there was no problem with him saying this.

The key is that theory is theory, and practice is practice.

In front of truly powerful figures, "heaven and earth are born together with me, and all things are one with me" is an absolute fact.

But for the majority of living beings still struggling in the bitter sea of the mortal world, external objects are just external objects, and there is a difference between oneself and all things.

If ordinary creatures were to truly entrust their foundation to external objects like him, they might attain immortality, but their future path would ultimately be limited.

This was also the reason why Fang Longye furrowed his brows just after hearing him preach.

He had originally thought that even if Peng Zu's path was different from his own method of using a Companion Spiritual Root to Reverse Innate, it would at least be a path that complemented one's own innate Spiritual Root.

For example, as one's own cultivation progressed, the Spiritual Root would also strengthen accordingly.

But what was the result? It was not as he had guessed; instead, the upper limit of the entrusted Spiritual Root became the upper limit of the cultivator's practice.

Take Peng Zu for example; he entrusted his entire Dao Fruit to that Great Chun tree.

Although he did not need to comprehend the Great Dao, once entrusted, he gained an alternative form of longevity and did not even need to experience various Calamities.

After a little rest, he could even seize all the creation of this Spiritual Root, and his cultivation would advance by leaps and bounds.

But his future was likewise trapped by this Post-Heaven Spiritual Root.

Unless he had the opportunity in the future to Reverse Innate this Great Chun tree, the Taiyi realm would be his peak, with absolutely no chance to attain the Great Luo.

This was because Peng Zu was ultimately different from those grass and wood spirits that gained intelligence and took human form.

He had entrusted his foundation to the Post-Heaven Great Chun tree later in life, turning it into his own innate Spiritual Root.

His approach was even completely contrary to the way those grass and wood spirits took human form.

When grass and wood spirits take human form, they are walking a path that grows wider, seeking the hope of attaining the Great Luo through cultivation alone, without being able to improve their innate potential.

Whereas after he entrusted his Spiritual Root, he was clearly walking a path that grew narrower; to advance his cultivation, he had to first improve the grade of his innate Spiritual Root.

Of course, for Peng Zu, this might not be anything.

After all, no matter what, he was the great-grandson of Emperor Zhuanxu. It might not be that difficult for him to Reverse Innate a Post-Heaven Spiritual Root.

For ordinary creatures, it was different.

Although his method of longevity seemed to have a much lower threshold—as long as one entrusted a Spiritual Root, one could be considered an immortal with longevity—

it was easy at first but difficult later, and the road ahead would not be easy to walk—Reversing Innate was not something an ordinary person could achieve.

Moreover, if one did not choose their innate Spiritual Root well, there would be almost no chance to make up for it. If one truly regretted it and wanted to start over, even dispersing one's cultivation to start again would not work; one could only choose to enter the cycle of reincarnation.

However, it was clear that not everyone thought this way. Fang Longye looked at the eager expressions on many people's faces and sighed to himself.

It was no wonder; Peng Zu's path, when all was said and done, could be considered a shortcut to the top.

Once the Spiritual Root was successfully entrusted, one could ascend to the heavens in one step, and in no time at all, reach the cultivation realm of the Spiritual Root's limit.

Moreover, like the "Earth Immortal Dao," one no longer needed to experience any Calamities.

As long as one did not think about the future of cultivation, for ordinary cultivators, it was a wonderful method and principle.

Fang Longye looked at the crowd of immortals and mortals who were intoxicated under his seat, shook his head, and left quietly, taking Qingli and Ao Ying with him.

He did not care whether Peng Zu had noticed him or not.

Meeting on the road, those with different Daos do not conspire together; this is a common occurrence in the Honghuang.

Arriving at the gate of the Xianfang city, Fang Longye looked again at that empty valley still shrouded in heavy sounds of the Dao.

A thousand layers of auspicious light and ten thousand kinds of brilliant colors wove into the appearance of a canopy, covering a thousand miles.

He sighed and thought to himself: "I had hoped to find some reference for cultivating a Companion Spiritual Root in the acquired stage, something that would allow me to complement my Companion Spiritual Root while still at the acquired level!"

As it turned out, he was greatly disappointed.

The Companion Spiritual Root that Fang Longye cultivated in the acquired stage could only complement him once both parties had achieved Reverse Innate.

It allowed him to use the Dao principles he cultivated to promote the growth of the Companion Spiritual Root.

At the acquired level, no matter how much he progressed, he had no way to influence the Companion Spiritual Root.

Conversely, the same was true. At most, when the Companion Spiritual Root grew, it would provide its master with some insights into the Dao.

It was not like Peng Zu's life-bound spiritual root Dharma, which allowed one to ascend to the heavens in a single step once successfully entrusted.

Following his whim, he left in disappointment.

Casting aside these thoughts, Fang Longye shook his head, then paid the entry fee and, carrying Qingli and Ao Ying, stepped into the Xianfang city before him.

……

"Good heavens, compared to this, our Wanling Workshop is practically a beggar's den!" As soon as he entered, Fang Longye looked at the scenery before his eyes and couldn't help but click his tongue.

The gap was just too big!

The perimeter of the Xianfang city was often laid with layers of Forbidden Technique, making it impossible to see the interior from the outside.

Since entering Penglai, they had passed by quite a few Xianfang along the way, but they had not gone inside to take a look.

Although he had long known that his own little dump could never compare to these Xianfang that had been operating for who knows how many ten thousand years.

It still made Fang Longye feel a bit ashamed of his inferiority.

It was truly dazzling.

Ten thousand paths of golden light, a thousand strands of brilliant color; purple and green mists swirled before pearl towers and shell palaces, while golden water shone behind precious halls and deep pavilions.

On the branches of various precious trees hung flags of all colors, with Divine Light rising.

Rare flowers covered the ground, exotic grasses grew everywhere, immortal cranes and spiritual deer ran about, and white apes came and went.

Many mortals without cultivation, all dressed as attendants, moved back and forth. Under the auspicious light and divine mist, even without understanding cultivation, they were set off to have a bit more of an extraordinary and refined air of the Dao.

There were also numerous golden-armored divine men, each holding halberds or whips, carrying swords or blades, guarding every side.

They were majestic and imposing, filled with killing intent.

Many buildings were carved with phoenixes and painted with dragons, flashing with golden light, possessing a unique majesty that struck one's brow.

Fang Longye looked at these jade towers and palaces that resembled the scenery of the Heavenly Palace, full of complaints: "Are you sure this is a market for doing business?"

Of course, complaints aside, he still couldn't stop scanning the layout, nodding frequently at some buildings with special purposes.

He thought to himself, learned it! Learned it!

He kept the architectural layouts he hadn't thought of himself in his heart, intending to implement and imitate them in his own little dump of a market.

Just as he was about to follow the guidance of Heavenly Secrets to a certain place in the Xianfang.

The voice of a middle-aged man reached his ears, "May I ask if you need any help?"

Fang Longye followed the sound and looked over, only to see a thin, withered man of about thirty standing not far in front of him, looking at him with a face full of enthusiasm.

Oh my!

Fang Longye looked, and just like his own market, these were likely reception staff. But this level of enthusiasm and work initiative was just too strong!

If this were his own subordinate, he would definitely have to reward them.

However, this thought only stayed in Fang Longye's mind for a moment before it was shattered by what the middle-aged man said next.

"For asking directions, one hundred Incense Copper Coins; for a guide, three hundred Incense Copper Coins."

The middle-aged man smiled with a hypocritical face, just like a salesperson from his past life.

Good heavens! A market could be played like this? He thought of how he had specifically arranged a group of subordinates to serve as reception staff for the Wanling Market.

That was all free service!

Ten years!

Fang Longye seemed to see piles of money flying away.

How much money had he lost over these ten years?!

He couldn't help but stroke his chest~

Even if this wealth was not worth mentioning to the current Fang Longye.

It still made him regret it until his liver ached.

Dragons are greedy for wealth and lustful; Humans are even more so~ Fang Longye, who was a human in his past life and a dragon in this one, was merely carrying it forward.

Seeing Fang Longye's expression turn terrible, Ao Ying, as a member of the Dragon Clan, let her thoughts turn and immediately understood his idea.

She immediately sent a voice transmission to inform Fang Longye: "Master, although our Wanling Workshop provides free guidance in this regard, basically customers will give some tips to these reception staff."

Fang Longye, who had always been a hands-off manager and had never understood such things, calmed his mind after hearing this.

There were tips? That was more like it~ After all, once his subordinates earned money, they basically spent it in the Wanling Workshop anyway.

After some twists and turns, he ended up earning it back after all.

However, he still irritably dismissed the man who had just entered the Loose Immortal realm: "Get lost, I don't need it!"

Afterward, following the Heavenly Secrets, he flew to a palace location.

The palace did not look large, only about an acre in size. Clouds of three to five feet rose all around.

In front of the entrance was an eight-sided mirror with bronze-green patterns, very ancient and simple.

Every cultivator who entered or exited this place would have their figure reflected, and under special circumstances, it would even launch an attack.

In Fang Longye's view, this was clearly a device that integrated monitoring and anti-theft. It had the same effect as the setup at the entrance of a supermarket in his past life.

Passing through the shimmering portal, Fang Longye and his party arrived in a great hall one hundred and eighty zhang high, one thousand eight hundred zhang long, and over one thousand zhang wide, surrounded by countless independent Sumeru Space portals.

"Hmm, this palace is actually just a trading venue opened by a sect." Fang Longye sensed the information transmitted from the hall and understood immediately.

"That is the ore zone, that is the medicinal herb zone, and there are also the Dharma Treasure zone and the pill zone. Huh, there is even a zone selling cultivation techniques?" Fang Longye's eyes shone brightly as he kept looking around.

"Huh, what is this for? Restaurants, tea rooms, guest rooms—damn, so even immortals engage in the flesh trade!"

Fang Longye swept his gaze across, though he did not immediately see through one of the zones. But as his ears twitched slightly, under the power of his Shunfenger, a series of uninhibited moans and groans drifted over.

He understood immediately; this was the entertainment zone.

Good heavens, it's small but complete! Fang Longye clicked his tongue in admiration.

One must know, this palace was merely one seller within the entire Xianfang! There was no shortage of various shops clustered together.

Yet after observing for a while, the facilities here were complete, the services were thoughtful, and they covered every aspect of cultivation. Even the tertiary industry satisfying the various needs of cultivators was incredibly developed.

One can only say that the righteous immortals and gods have advanced experience! Although he had a mind to go Scripture Seeking regarding these romantic trades and see what the fairies who ran such businesses were like.

However, feeling the opportunity for Ao Ying close at hand, he still took Qingli and Ao Ying, flashed, and passed through a cyan-glowing arched portal, arriving at the location of the opportunity.

……

The voices were clamorous, and it was incomparably noisy.

After passing through the light screen, the three of them, master and servants, arrived at an area specifically for rogue cultivators to set up street stalls, which was very lively.

Walking along and looking at the flowers, following the sensation, Fang Longye led the two women and stopped in front of a horse-faced cultivator's stall.

"This young master, have you taken a fancy to any treasure?"

Seeing them stop to look.

This horse-faced cultivator immediately greeted them enthusiastically.

After all, although he was only an ordinary True Immortal, his eyes were not blind; not to mention the heavy Aura deliberately emitted by Fang Longye and his two companions.

Just looking at Fang Longye's bearing, he was clearly no simple character.

Fang Longye glanced at a crimson bead located in a secluded corner of the stall, the size of a dragon's eye with a dull luster, and feeling the indication of Heavenly Secrets, he thought: "It seems this is it!"

He turned his head to look at Ao Ying beside him, only to see a hint of joy appearing in her eyes, clearly having also recognized the value of this bead.

However, seeing that he could seemingly pick up a bargain, Fang Longye naturally would not make a scene.

He just pointed nonchalantly at a broken bronze shield and asked as if quite interested: "How much is this priced at?"

(End of chapter)