Chapter 206: A Sudden Impulse, the Change of the Heavenly Ladder!

Li Junxian's expression was slightly melancholy, and Gu Yunsheng, who was at his side, immediately took his hand and comforted him in a soft voice:

"Brother Li, don't say that. A Yuan must not have received the news; otherwise, it would be impossible for him not to come see us."

Gu Kanshan and his disciple Fan Zhenxiong also smiled and comforted him:

"Sheng'er is right. He is now the Supreme Heavenly Master, the divine pillar of the nation. If he really came here, the commotion caused would be unimaginable, and your wedding would be difficult to manage instead."

"Uncle Li, my master is right. After all, the Heavenly Master is no ordinary figure. If he really came here, we wouldn't know how to host him."

Li Junxian was not a pretentious person either; he smiled and said:

"That is true. Let it be for now. When there is an opportunity in the future, we will go to Tianjing to visit him ourselves."

While they were speaking, hundreds and thousands of guests arrived one after another.

After all, it was a twilight romance, so the two did not hold an overly complex ceremony. They simply waited until all the guests had entered and taken their seats, then Wu Yixian, a titan of the Martial Arts Association, stepped onto the ceremonial stage as the witness and announced with a smile:

"Dear relatives and friends, honored guests, Master Li Junxian is a friend of the Supreme Heavenly Master. Today is his joyous wedding day. This old man is honored to serve as the witness to celebrate the happy event of these two."

"Many years ago, Shenzhou underwent a great upheaval and Jinjin was in turmoil. Master Li led his disciples to help the people of Jinjin stabilize the situation, and his contributions were immense. In those chaotic times, the two of you kept each other in your hearts and never forgot. Now that the world has changed and taken on a new look, it is truly time for the wedding hall to be adorned with silk and embroidery, for songs to be played in joy, for a banquet to be set to invite friends and family, and for cups to be raised to praise this wonderful couple!"

As Wu Taidou spoke on the stage, some people in the audience whispered:

"It is rumored that this Master Li is a friend of the Supreme Heavenly Master. Is this true or false?"

"It should be true. After all, the Heavenly Master came out of Jinjin, and Wu Taidou has an excellent relationship with him. Even he acknowledges it, so there shouldn't be any problem."

"Then does that mean the Heavenly Master might also come to offer his congratulations?"

"This, this shouldn't be. The Heavenly Master is like a dragon that shows its head but not its tail; how could he appear at this mundane wedding? It would be a big deal if he just sent disciples from the Heavenly Master Mansion to celebrate."

"That's true."

Soon, Wu Yixian finished his congratulatory speech. Li Junxian and Gu Yunsheng, who was wearing a gold-red wedding dress, walked to the front of the stage hand-in-hand and bowed to the guests. Just as the two were about to perform the formal wedding bows, the thousands of guests in the audience suddenly let out a clamor:

"Look, what is that!?"

Everyone on and off the stage looked up one after another.

Immediately, they saw golden flowers falling from the sky above, scattering all over the sky above Boxiyuan;

At the same time, amidst clear, long chants and cries, a dragon and a phoenix, formed purely from immortal light, condensed from the rain of light. They then descended with brilliant radiance, circling and dancing around Li Junxian and Gu Yunsheng, making the two look like a divine couple.

Finally, the light shadows of the dragon and phoenix merged into their bodies. Both Li Junxian and Gu Yunsheng immediately felt a nimble, life-filled, and strange power fill their entire bodies, causing their spirits to tremble in unison.

Such a miraculous sight immediately left all the guests in the city stunned and speechless. Li Junxian, however, understood something at once and looked at the sky with excitement: "Is the Heavenly Master here?"

Immediately, a sound of light footsteps approached.

Then, a figure in plain, unremarkable clothing appeared outside the gate at some point. He walked over step by step, cupped his hands, and smiled:

"Master Li, I am late."

"You and Aunt Yun have cared for each other for many years; today you have finally reached a happy conclusion. I am sincerely happy for you both and have come specially to offer my congratulations today."

It was Lu Yuan.

Whoosh!

In the vast New Nation, almost every household worshipped portraits of the Immortal, so no one present failed to recognize Lu Yuan. Everyone stood up from their seats as if struck by lightning, and in shock and immense reverence, they bowed one after another:

"We pay our respects to the Supreme Heavenly Master—!"

Lu Yuan looked around and waved his sleeves lightly, and a gentle breeze blew past: "Everyone, no need for such formalities. Today is the joyous day of my former elders; do not let me steal the spotlight."

Li Junxian and Gu Yunsheng were also incredibly excited:

"It is enough that you could come, it is enough..."

"A Yuan, we have no more regrets now that you could be here."

Lu Yuan smiled slightly, presented a gift box with both hands, and said:

"Master Li, I have prepared a small gift for coming here. This is a Pill I refined. One box is the Face-Fixing Returning Pill, which can keep one's appearance youthful and preserve one's grace; the other box is the Qi-Benefiting Longevity Pill, which can replenish vital energy and increase one's lifespan slightly. With this gift, I wish you both a union of hearts and a harmonious life for a hundred years."

"Good, good, good."

Without even needing to think, the items gifted by Lu Yuan were definitely not ordinary. Li Junxian excitedly took the gift box and said repeatedly:

"Quick, sit down. I didn't know you were coming, so I haven't prepared anything. Please don't mind..."

"No need."

Lu Yuan smiled and interrupted, his gaze sweeping one by one over Xu Dahu, Xu Erhu, Lin Xingchao, Gu Kanshan, and even Wu Yixian of the Martial Arts Association, all of whom wore equally excited expressions:

"Coming here this time, seeing that all my former friends and family are well is enough. Today is your joyous day; the gift and my intentions have been delivered, so I will not stay to steal the spotlight."

"I will be traveling the world, and perhaps it will be a long time before we meet again. If Master Li or other friends and family have any matters, you can go to Xiantai Mountain to find my disciple Chen Zhantang; he will do his best to help."

"Everyone, until we meet again."

Having said that, he bowed slightly to Li Junxian and the other familiar old friends. Immediately, his figure turned into a ray of light and dissipated from everyone's sight in an instant, leaving no trace behind.

Gazing at the ray of light dissipating into the air, Li Junxian was stunned for a moment. As if sensing something, he murmured:

"Until we meet again..."

After the banquet.

Lu Yuan's appearance caused a great sensation. From this, everyone in Jinjin confirmed that Li Junxian indeed had a deep relationship with him, causing his status to leap to a level higher than even Wu Taidou. All the high-ranking officials and nobles treated him with great respect.

And after settling this matter, Lu Yuan officially began his journey to travel the world.

To avoid being recognized, he used the False Form Technique to change his appearance, wore coarse cloth garments, and carried a bundle on his back, walking the earth like an ordinary traveler.

While traveling everywhere, he would not only go to those rapidly developing, bustling cities to personally experience the seven emotions and six desires, but he would also explore and visit some deep mountains and old forests where few people ventured, to realize the wind, rain, thunder, and the nature of Heaven and Earth.

Three months, five months, half a year, a year...

He completely forbade the use of Dharma Techniques, letting himself walk ten thousand miles just like a mortal. When walking in the deep mountains, he would drill wood to make fire like a primitive man, weave rain capes and baskets, and climb mountains and ridges.

Volcanoes, swamps, wilderness, the sea... His footprints began to cover the millions of miles of Shenzhou's territory. His hair and beard grew longer and longer, and his clothes and straw sandals became more and more tattered, but the tiny spark of spiritual light and insight in his heart became clearer and clearer.

Until one day.

Lu Yuan traveled to the northwest desert. As he watched the ten thousand miles of yellow sand with his own eyes, the howling of the violent wind, and the sky filled with sandstorms, a feeling of indescribable palpitation suddenly arose in his heart.

With a flash of inspiration, he sat cross-legged in the desert without hesitation, letting the vast and mighty sandstorm bury him in an instant.

The breakthrough to Refining Qi into Spirit, it is at this very moment!

No one knew of Lu Yuan's whereabouts or experiences. Under the Council's diligent governance, the entire land of Shenzhou continued to forge ahead at an astonishing speed.

With the development of science, technology, and industry, the New Nation had caught up to the level of Shenluo in just over ten years since its founding, and it even showed signs of surpassing it.

Because steam power was replaced by oil combustion as the driving force, steam engines were gradually phased out; internal combustion engines, with their vastly superior efficiency, became the mainstream and drove a massive transformation.

Automobiles, trains, airships, steamships, warships, and so on, all gradually became driven by internal combustion engines. At the same time, the utilization of electricity continued to be developed and innovated, with novelties like the telephone, phonograph, and even motion pictures emerging one after another.

As for military industry, it went without saying; the New Nation could independently manufacture multi-barrel heavy machine guns, mortars, steel tanks, heavy bombs, and more, basically reaching a world-class level.

It was just that under the deterrence of Lu Yuan, there was not a single country in the world that dared to provoke the New Nation, so these formidable weapons almost had no place to be used, which often left the New Nation's military, from top to bottom, feeling regretful.

This day.

On the Arctic Ocean.

An icebreaker with a strange design, weighing fully ten thousand tons, sailed on the sea surface. Wherever it passed, large swaths of ice sheets and icebergs floating on the sea were crushed and shattered, splashing up countless ice mists.

This was a new type of ocean-going icebreaking exploration ship built by the Shangdu Manufacturing Bureau according to Chen Zhantang's requirements after the New Nation's industrial leap.

On the deck, Chen Zhantang stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze looking far toward the direction of the center of the Extreme North. Behind him stood two young men and women, both just over twenty years old, who were also looking out in wonder at the vast, boundless ice field not far away:

"Senior Martial Brother, is that the ice field we are going to land on?"

Chen Zhantang looked at the two and said helplessly:

"Not us, only me. The place I am going to is at least several thousand miles deep into the ice field, where it is tens or hundreds of degrees below zero. You two have only refined a few wisps of True Qi so far; following me in would only lead to freezing to death halfway."

The two young people clearly had a very good relationship with Chen Zhantang and could not help but click their tongues:

"Goodness, it's actually that far."

"Senior Martial Brother, you come here once every year; is this a task entrusted to you by the Heavenly Master? What exactly is in the deepest part of the Extreme North?"

Chen Zhantang glanced at them:

"Your cultivation is too low right now; it is not yet time for you to know. When you can refine thirty wisps of True Qi, I will tell you."

The two young people immediately pulled long faces:

"Thirty wisps of True Qi? When would we ever reach that level of cultivation? Even if you gave us another three years, I'm afraid it wouldn't be enough!"

"Senior Martial Brother, we don't have your exceptional talent and aptitude. This Guiding Technique is just too difficult to practice. I really don't know how the Heavenly Master created it."

Chen Zhantang smiled and said nothing.

Lu Yuan had disappeared for more than three years since he set up the great array in the Extreme North. During this period, all the Daoist children with excellent aptitude at Xiantai Mountain were taught by him personally.

However, although these children did not lack aptitude, practicing the Guiding Technique in such a world where spiritual energy was cut off was extremely difficult. Even relying on the various resources continuously provided by the Dao Palace, the best of these disciples had only refined eight or nine wisps of True Qi, still lingering at the threshold of Refining Essence into Qi.

The main reason for this was that without Lu Yuan's permission, these disciples had only learned the Guiding Technique; without the coordination of Ingestion and even the use of Pills, no matter how gifted they were, they could not progress quickly.

Just like Chen Zhantang himself, three years had passed and he had refined another seventy-plus wisps of True Qi, but most of these were refined using the Bait Stone Pill left behind by Lu Yuan; relying solely on Ingestion would have at least halved that amount.

Amidst various thoughts turning in his mind.

The icebreaker slowly docked.

"You two stay on the ship honestly and don't run around. I will be back in as long as eight or nine days, or as short as three or five days."

Chen Zhantang carried a sizable pack on his back, then formed a seal with his hands, and his whole body rose into the air, riding the cold icy wind, flying toward the depths of the ice field.

On the deck, the two young disciples watched his receding back with immense envy:

"Controlling the wind to fly through the sky, covering a thousand or ten thousand miles in a day—this is what it means to be an immortal."

"Never mind the Heavenly Master himself, if only we could be like Senior Martial Brother one day."

Naturally, he did not know of the envy of the two junior disciples accompanying him.

After Chen Zhantang left the icebreaker, he flew all the way toward the deepest part of the ice field, where the Great Evolution Mending Heaven Array set up by Lu Yuan was located.

Because Lu Yuan had given instructions before traveling the world, he had to come over every year to inspect it and ensure there were no issues with the operation of the Mending Heaven Array.

Including this time, it was his third visit, so he flew rapidly toward the established direction with ease and familiarity.

Of course, his hundred-plus wisps of Dharma Power were truly limited; he had to stop and meditate to regulate his breath for a good while after flying for an hour before continuing his journey.

Thus, for the journey of several thousand miles, he flew intermittently for nearly three days before finally catching a distant glimpse of those brilliant light mists between heaven and earth ahead.

Arriving before the light mists.

Chen Zhantang scanned the area. This place was rarely visited by humans. The Great Evolution Mending Heaven Array, set up with forty-nine Array Flags, was attracting the power of the stars of Heaven and Earth as usual, while simultaneously agitating a chaotic, extremely miraculous power that was constantly affecting the light mists within the array.

And after repeated identification and confirmation, Chen Zhantang clearly discovered that two light mists at the center of the array, which had originally been completely shattered, had now actually connected together. Clearly, the repair of the array was yielding significant results!

"Huh?"

Chen Zhantang was quite surprised:

"I remember that when I came last time, these two light mists were completely unrelated. In just one year, they have actually connected into one piece."

"If we look at it this way, if all the light mists re-condense together, does that mean the Ladder to Heaven will be completely repaired?"

Gazing at the bizarre and dangerous-looking light mists, a complex expression mixed with a hint of apprehension appeared in his eyes.

He was one of the few people who understood the ancient secrets, knowing that the shattering of the Ladder to Heaven was intended to completely cut off the descent path for Qi Refiners. Although this act led to the severance of Spiritual Machine and a great change in the environment of the world, the sentient beings of this world had also completely stood up for themselves and would no longer be wantonly enslaved or abused by ancient Qi Practitioners.

And if the Ladder to Heaven were successfully repaired, he was truly worried about what would eventually happen and what kind of impact it would have on the current world.

"One hundred years... I hope the Master has a foolproof plan."

Confirming that there were no issues with the Great Evolution Mending Heaven Array, Chen Zhantang sighed deeply, then turned and left to head back home.

And what he did not know was.

Just a few days after he crossed the ice field, returned to the icebreaker, and set off on the return journey.

Within the Great Evolution Mending Heaven Array, a certain patch of light mist located in the central area suddenly trembled slightly, and then a faint, almost imperceptible trace of Spiritual Machine flowed out from within.