Chapter 250: Yun Ting Appears as a Jade Pool Immortal; Entrusting Feelings, Severing Feelings, the Scripture of the Pure Maiden

"Very well—you may dispense with the formalities!" After a brief appraisal, a brilliant light shone in the beautiful eyes of the Queen Mother of the West; she nodded slightly and gestured for Fang Longye to rise.

Auspicious Qi and precious colors rose all around, naturally forming morning mists and evening rains that drifted down in sparse, scattered droplets.

She sat upright on the Cloud Couch, her entire being reflected within a halo of light, and smiled as she said, "Although I had my expectations, you have still given me quite a surprise."

"I had assumed that while your cultivation had progressed remarkably, you would be lacking in other areas. I did not expect your foundation to be so solid."

"Not only solid, but comprehensive."

Essence, Qi, and Spirit, Bloodline, True Body, Divine Abilities, and even your comprehension of the Great Dao—all have attained a certain level of accomplishment; even your path in the Inner World is coming along quite well.

To have such a leap in transformation in such a short time is truly rare.

"I merely rely on the legacy left by my predecessors," Fang Longye said, bowing and speaking with feigned humility.

At the same time, he stole a glance at this Great Divine Ability who was so renowned in his past life, yet he could see nothing at all.

A rich, fragrant aroma permeated the air, like mist and clouds, or perhaps fine gauze, obscuring the face of the Queen Mother of the West and making it impossible to see clearly.

Never mind her face; Fang Longye felt as though her entire being was shrouded in a thick fog, rendering everything indistinct.

The Queen Mother of the West saw Fang Longye's stolen glance but did not mind it. She flicked the Peach Wood Branch in her hand and said, "Do not belittle yourself. Without your own efforts, what use would even the greatest of favors be?"

Around the cloud bed, the crimson silk curtains were drawn back, and the bead curtains were hooked onto the crescent moon. The Queen Mother of the West reached up to adjust her hair; the hairpin inserted at an angle cast a faint light, and it seemed as if a Phoenix were crying out. She looked at Fang Longye again and said, "However, do not become complacent and slacken now. As your senior, I must remind you: the era has changed."

"If this were in the past, such progress in your cultivation would have been sufficient. But now, it is far from enough."

Fang Longye raised his sword-like brows, lost in thought. Indeed, the present is different from the past; we are in the midst of a magnificent new epoch. The opportunities and fortunes within it are things even a Great Luo would covet.

If small fry like them do not possess the terrifying speed of cultivation progress seen in past prodigies like Yang Jian or Nezha, they will only be reduced to mere spectators in the grand events to come—no, being a spectator would be the best-case scenario.

Without a powerful background, drifting with the tide and living in constant peril is the norm.

Seeing this, the Queen Mother of the West nodded slightly; this little fellow before her was not at all impetuous and had taken her words to heart.

She immediately encouraged him further: "We are currently in a great era of surging winds and clouds. If you wish to make your mark in this new epoch and not remain obscure, you must maintain a spirit of courageous advancement."

"Put it this way: if you want to involve yourself in the future Calamity, reaching the Great Luo is merely the entry requirement."

"Enough! I have said all I will say. Work hard! I hope that one day, you will be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with us."

The Queen Mother of the West pointed with her slender, jade-like finger, and a Jade Box landed in Fang Longye's hand. She said, "I see that you are but a hair's breadth away from the next step in your cultivation. Let me give you a helping hand."

Fang Longye's heart leaped with joy; when Wangmu acts, it is never anything ordinary.

"Many thanks for your generous gift, Niangniang!"

"Very well! Go now."

The Queen Mother of the West flicked her cloud-like sleeve, signaling for him to withdraw.

Seeing this, Fang Longye bowed once more, retreated a few steps, and then turned to walk away.

But he had not gone two steps when the Queen Mother of the West called out, "Wait!"

Fang Longye turned back to look at the Queen Mother of the West.

He saw her laugh softly, her voice like the warmth of the early sun or flowers blooming on a branch, and she said, "I had forgotten! I happen to have an old acquaintance of yours here; you two have yet to meet!"

Afterwards—

Regardless of Fang Longye's reaction, she turned to one of the many female immortals beside her and instructed, "Yun Ting, you shall see this Dragon Lord off on my behalf!"

"Afterward, it will also be just the right time for you to present a congratulatory gift to the Human King for me."

Having spoken, she shook the Peach Wood Branch in her hand, and one by one, the Six Ding and Six Jia, along with divine generals and jade maidens holding banners, chariots, Jade Talismans, bows, and swords, appeared silently in the hall.

Immediately, they condensed into a bright pearl and fell into the hands of the female immortal who had stepped forward at the sound of her name.

After all, nominally she was there to celebrate the Human King's birthday; although those five Purple-Veined Xiang-Kernel Pan Peaches were already sufficient as a gift, they could not be openly declared.

It was better to use the previously promised 'Hundred Gods Protection, Ten Thousand Spirits Mutual Protection' as the public gift to be presented.

Since she had already decided to give face, why not make it perfect? Having one of her own female immortals appear at the Human King's birthday banquet to present the gift was enough to give the Human King face! "The Six Ding and Six Jia, the Dharma conch and drums... this chariot—"

As these Six Ding and Six Jia, divine generals, and jade maidens appeared, Fang Longye glanced at them and thought to himself, "So that is what 'Ten Thousand Spirits Mutual Protection, Hundred Gods Protection' is all about!"

I was wondering! With the Human King's intense Dragon Qi, how many gods could withstand it?

And still be able to provide constant protection all around?

This type of chariot, with divine generals holding flags and jade maidens waving fans, is the most common way for Heavenly Court Divine Immortals to travel.

And these Six Ding and Six Jia, along with those divine generals and jade maidens, are not true Divine Immortals, but a type of top-tier Dao Soldier refined using secret techniques.

Of course—

These specially refined Dao Soldiers, whether in the Heavenly Court or within the Profound Gate, count as a type of Dharma-protecting god, possessing extremely powerful defensive capabilities.

By scattering these Six Ding and Six Jia, divine generals, and jade maidens around one's side and hiding them in the void, they can basically block out all Demons, heterodox paths, and lewd, evil magic.

Just like the Human King's pillar of Dragon Qi, they can form an extremely strong defense, worthy of being called 'impervious to ten thousand evils.'

Moreover, as these Dharma-protecting Dao Soldiers appeared, the specific information that emerged in the dark made Fang Longye understand that these Six Ding and Six Jia, divine generals, and jade maidens were not Liu Che's exclusive Dharma-protecting gods.

Rather, they were existences that could endure for ten thousand generations.

Later, after Liu Che passes away, these Ding-Jia divine generals will naturally transfer to the side of the next Human King.

Even if the Great Han perishes, as long as there is a new dynasty, these Dao Soldier-type Dharma-protecting gods will still return to the void surrounding the future Human King.

Protecting all around, impervious to ten thousand evils.

This was the 'Hundred Gods Protection, Ten Thousand Spirits Mutual Protection' that the Queen Mother of the West had promised to the successive Human Kings in their covenant.

Perhaps, as the Human King's Dragon Qi refines them generation after generation, these Dharma-protecting Dao Soldiers might even develop sentience and become true Dharma-protecting gods of the Human King.

Gods who do not fear the Human King's Dragon Qi.

And once they have sentience, the possibility of having selfish motives arises. And these Dharma-protecting gods who do not fear the Human King's Dragon Qi naturally possess extraordinary value.

"Not only fulfilling the promised conditions but also using the fortune of successive Human Kings to temper these Dharma-protecting Dao Soldiers, while also planting a hidden piece."

Fang Longye thought to himself, "This Queen Mother of the West truly hides schemes in every step she takes!"

However—

At this moment, he had no mind to dwell on this.

That female immortal who had received the congratulatory gifts and followed the instructions of the Queen Mother of the West had already come fluttering over, like a crane dancing.

The shadows were clear and sparse, and time moved slowly.

"Dragon Lord, long time no see!"

After Fang Longye bade farewell to the Queen Mother of the West once more, he emerged from the palace, let out a breath, and surveyed his surroundings.

He could not help but secretly think to himself: "This is the Weiyang Palace of a mythological world, after all; such magnificent scenery is far beyond comparison to anything like the Forbidden City of my past life."

He saw that all around, cloud-towers stood towering, and jade springs bubbled with pearls.

In mid-air, there were celestial sounds of zithers and lutes that mortals could hardly hear, the singing voice graceful, ethereal, and exquisite.

A rain of flowers filled the sky, scattering and drifting down, fragrant upon hitting the ground.

Because the Queen Mother of the West and a group of Yaochi female immortals were stationed there, what Fang Longye saw in his eyes could be called a display of wondrous phenomena, as if he had arrived in an Immortal Realm.

He looked back at Yun Ting, who had followed him out, this little sparrow with whom he was deeply bound by a Love Thread.

He raised an eyebrow and smiled: "I hadn't expected that you, little sparrow, would have such good fortune to actually be valued by the Queen Mother of the West and become a Yaochi female immortal."

"I cannot compare to the Dragon Lord's opportunities~" Yun Ting came over trailing her skirt, the hem swaying like a blooming narcissus, beautiful and moving, intoxicating to behold.

She sneered: "Yaochi is cold and desolate, and I am alone and bitter; how could I compare to the Dragon Lord, who has been happy all these years and has not let his cultivation fall behind?"

"I fear you have long since 'only seen the new person laugh, never heard the old person cry'~"

"Tsk~" "Where did this resentment come from?" Fang Longye clicked his tongue and headed straight for a pavilion not far away.

"It seems you and I only had one night of pleasure!"

Moreover, he remembered very clearly that after that one night of pleasure, this little sparrow had run out of Beiju Luzhou.

How was it that now, she acted as if he were a heartless man? Upon hearing this, Yun Ting felt a sudden, inexplicable sourness in her heart, and immediately a Sword of Wisdom rose within her, cutting away this sourness, along with the various inexplicable feelings that had arisen after seeing Fang Longye, and so on and so forth, wishing to make her heart as still as stagnant water.

Yet, these feelings seemed endless, impossible to cut away, and ripples rose in her heart once more.

She glanced at that exceptionally sturdy, thin thread within her primordial spirit; even though she had already attained the Golden Immortal realm, it remained unbreakable. The bond was embedded in her True Spirit; in heaven or on earth, in any time or space, it would never break or end.

Yun Ting sneered: "I do not believe, Dragon Lord, that you do not know where this feeling of mine comes from?"

As they spoke, Fang Longye had already arrived at a pavilion.

The pavilion was octagonal in style, covered with azure Glazed Tile; he stepped up the stairs and entered, the windows facing a small forest where many cranes resided, their cries clear and bright.

The sound traveled from afar, echoing under the eaves.

Added to the sound of the spring nearby, it was uniquely quiet and secluded.

Fang Longye stood in the pavilion with his hands behind his back, his eyes calm as he looked at Yun Ting, who was following closely behind.

He saw that she was dressed in a dress the color of sparse rain, her cloud-like sleeves waving and her skirt fluttering; as she walked, she was very classical and elegant.

Her whole being had ice-like skin and jade-like bones, her posture extraordinary and not of the mundane world.

Except for her appearance remaining unchanged, her entire temperament was already completely different from his memory.

"I truly do not know! I hope the little sparrow will enlighten me." Glancing at that tough Love Thread in his primordial spirit, Fang Longye feigned ignorance.

"You—"

How could Yun Ting not see his feigned ignorance? In her anxious rage, she was about to open her mouth to scold him. Yet, facing him, she could not even summon such thoughts from the bottom of her heart.

An inexplicable fear~ She hadn't noticed it before, but now, alone with Fang Longye, she felt that the affection she had previously been able to barely suppress was becoming increasingly intense.

Looking at his face between his brows, the anger she had just felt vanished completely.

Even the horror born from it was cast aside, and instead, a romantic thought grew in her heart: "If he were to do something to me right now, I fear I would be completely unable to resist!"

For a moment, her thoughts ran wild, all sorts of romantic ideas growing and flooding into her mind in an instant, completely impossible to suppress.

Forcing herself to endure, she turned her softened body away so as not to look at him, brandishing the Sword of Wisdom in her heart, constantly cutting at the various distracting thoughts and feelings sprouting in her mind.

She recovered her cold tone: "Today I accompanied the Lady to the mortal world and happened to meet the Dragon Lord; I have a favor to ask."

"Oh?" Fang Longye raised an eyebrow and teased: "Could it be that you want to rekindle our old flame?"

"It seems that although Yaochi female immortals are not completely forbidden from love, there are still strict rules, right!"

Yun Ting steadied her mind, ignored his glib tongue, and said coldly: "I wonder if the Dragon Lord dares to make a wager with me?"

"Wager on what?"

"Heh~" Yun Ting chuckled and actually turned back to look directly at Fang Longye.

Her gaze was sharp, and she had returned to the posture of when they first met, three parts more imposing than being heroic and spirited, her entire Aura leaking out.

Behind her, a halo of divine light appeared, and a weapon resembling both a sword and a hook slowly rotated within it, echoing up and down, its sharpness fully revealed.

"'Su Nu Jing'?"

Feeling the Aura leaking from her body, Fang Longye could not help but exclaim in surprise, and in his heart, he understood what she intended to do.

"It seems that even the Lady has no good solution for the Love Thread bond between you and me!"

"Entrusting feelings to cut off feelings is indeed a good strategy. Although I do not know if this will actually have any effect on the Love Thread bond between us."

"However—" Fang Longye sneered: "Why should I wager with you?"

"Although saying this is somewhat despicable and heartless, I must say, even if I do not cooperate with you in this wager, as time passes, won't you still be mine?"

"Why should I give you the chance to break free from this bond? And take the risk that if you succeed, I will be left with a lingering concern in my heart?"

Yun Ting smiled sweetly: "If I succeed, I will naturally walk the path of the Supreme Forgetting of Emotions, and you and I will naturally be finished once and for all."

"As for the concern, for a Dragon Lord who is naturally cold and thin-blooded, does it really have a big impact? Perhaps it could even serve as a heart anchor."

"At worst, with the Dragon Lord's foundation, can't you eliminate it?"

"But if I fail, a top-tier cauldron forged by the perfection of the 'Su Nu Jing', does the Dragon Lord not want it?"

The lingering, wonderful sounds rose and fell.

A moment later~

Fang Longye dispersed the coldness in his eyes, suddenly smiled, and said: "Good! Since you are willing to wager with your own body, I will accompany you to the end~"

"But there is one thing you must think through clearly," Fang Longye said meaningfully, "I am quite proficient in the 'Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon'~"

The 'Su Nu Jing' is a Dao Scripture created by Su Nu Niangniang in the past.

Its core tenet is—

To entrust and tether the purest love to a single person, and with a heart of ultimate emotion and nature, cultivate this wondrous Dharma.

Hearts beating as one, using emotion to imprint emotion.

Upon reaching great success, one wields a sword to sever the Love Thread, attaining emotion yet forgetting emotion.

Thoroughly casting off all shackles of love, one steps onto the path of Supreme Emotional Oblivion, with no more tethers.

As for the person used as a furnace by her to entrust those tethers.

At best, they remain unable to shake their adoration for her, leaving a trace of a tether in the depths of their heart; at worst, they completely degenerate into a "sycophant," coming when called and leaving when waved away.

However, perhaps it was fate playing a trick, or perhaps it was an unexpected scheme.

That Su Nu Niangniang actually chose Xuanyuan Huangdi as her furnace, entrusting her emotions to Xuanyuan Huangdi—the result, as one can imagine.

The sword was held by the blade, and the situation reversed.

Unable to sever her emotions, Su Nu Niangniang suffered a backlash, her state of mind was shattered, and she became deeply rooted in love for Xuanyuan Huangdi, falling into being a prisoner of love and instead becoming the furnace for Xuanyuan Huangdi's cultivation.

Her entire repertoire of Dual Cultivation wonders also became the fodder for the summary of Xuanyuan Huangdi's Dual Cultivation path—the 'Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon'.

It can be said that the creation of the 'Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon' could not have happened without the assistance of the 'Su Nu Jing'.

Not to mention the 'Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon' which governs the path of Dual Cultivation, even the 'Yellow Emperor's Outer Canon', which governs the medical path and nourishment, benefited greatly from Su Nu Niangniang during its creation and writing.

You must know, this Su Nu Niangniang, whose full title is 'Great Emperor Mother of the Nine Nether Pure Yin Primordial Woman Yanzishi', is the goddess of medicine worshipped by the medical school.

Her achievements in the medical path can be seen from this.

It is just that all of this fulfilled Xuanyuan Huangdi.

From this, one can also see how dangerous the path of Dual Cultivation is; one careless move, and the whole game is lost.

One's entire Great Dao can only be left for others to take or give at will.

And Fang Longye's meaning was very simple: while one might not dare say the 'Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon' is a natural counter to the 'Su Nu Jing', it is not far off~

At the very least, in the contest with Xuanyuan Huangdi, Su Nu Niangniang lost everything.

Facing Fang Longye's warning, Yun Ting was stunned for a moment, but she did not hesitate for long.

Immediately, she gritted her teeth and said, "Now that things have come to this, how could I lightly speak of giving up? I ask the Dragon Lord to form a Heart Contract with me~"

"No regrets?"

"No regrets once the move is made! You are not the Emperor Huangdi of the past, and I am not Su Nu Niangniang!"

"Who wins and who loses is still uncertain~"

(End of this chapter)