Chapter 93: Great Change in Spirit Fox Valley

Taiwu Zhenjun impatiently opened it, and after a sweep of his Divine Sense, his expression changed drastically; he said in both shock and joy, "This pill is not something commonly seen; the aura of Soul Power is dense, yet I do not know the name of this pill?"

Yuyangzi hummed and said, "Why do you care what it's called? Taking it back to save someone is a good pill. Let me be clear, this pill cannot be given for free, because in order to refine it, one of my sect's inner-gate True Essence Realm disciples met with disaster; you must provide sufficient compensation."

Taiwuzi was stunned for a moment, his expression becoming much more serious, and he nodded, saying, "That is only right. However, if this pill can truly repair the Soul, its value must be immense, and it may have great use in the future. I wonder if the pill formula could be shared?"

Yuyangzi immediately rolled his eyes and said, "Taiwuzi, how can your skin be so thick? You obtained the medicinal pill and yet you still want the recipe."

A burst of low laughter erupted in the great hall.

Taiwu Zhenjun's old face flushed, and he laughed dryly, "This poor Daoist would not take it for free; there should be a price. Just name it, whether it be Spirit Stones or Magic Treasures; as long as Longmen Mountain can produce them, we will certainly not treat you unfairly."

Yuyang Zhenjun curled his lip and said, "Our Yuqing Hall cannot make the decision on this matter. Although we researched the pill formula, the source of the information was the Taiyuan Sect. Because of this matter, the Taiyuan Sect also lost a high-cultivation elite disciple. If you want the pill formula, you must pay double the price!"

Taiwu Zhenjun was full of surprise, turning his head to look at Danchenzi and saying, "I wonder what Daoist Brother Xuan Chen thinks?"

Danchenzi waved his hand dejectedly and said, "Since our two sects have already ceased hostilities and made peace, naturally I will not make things difficult for you, Daoist Brother. However, if Longmen Mountain wants to obtain this pill formula, they must provide sufficient compensation. First, Daoist Brother destroyed my sect's great hall last time, which requires compensation. Second, Qingyunzi injured an Elder and several disciples of my sect, especially causing my Junior Brother Xuanhe's Dao foundation to be damaged, losing the best opportunity to advance to Golden Core. If you can resolve these two matters, the pill formula will naturally be handed over."

The great hall fell silent. Taiwu Zhenjun pondered intently for a moment and nodded, saying, "The matter last time was indeed due to my lack of consideration; my actions were somewhat reckless, and compensating for the losses is only right. For destroying the Taiyuan Sect's great hall, I will compensate one thousand Spirit Stones. As for Daoist Friend Xuanhe's damaged foundation, I have here a Sanyuan Golden Lotus, which I originally went to Shunan to find for the sake of waking Qingyunzi, and it has not yet been used. The Sanyuan Golden Lotus is the best Spirit Medicine for consolidating the foundation and cultivating the essence; I believe that after refining it, Daoist Friend Xuanhe will return to the peak of True Essence and will soon be able to attempt the Golden Core breakthrough again. To express my apologies, I will additionally gift one Descending Dust Pill. What does Daoist Brother think of this?"

After a period of silence in the great hall, there was then a burst of surprised clamor.

The Sanyuan Golden Lotus is a superior grade among Three-Grade Spirit Medicines, and its rarity is no less than that of breakthrough Spirit Pills like the Descending Dust Pill; it perhaps only appears once every few decades or a century. Using such a Spirit Medicine to repair the Dao foundation of a True Essence Realm cultivator basically poses no major problem.

In fact, the main function of the Sanyuan Golden Lotus is not to repair damage, but to strengthen the Three Souls and Seven Souls; it is generally used to refine Spirit Pills for better effect.

Once the Taiyuan Sect obtains such a powerful Spirit Medicine, they can refine several Three-Grade Spirit Pills, and the entire Taiyuan Sect will benefit greatly; perhaps they will be able to raise the cultivation aptitude of several disciples by one level.

As for the Descending Dust Pill, although it is not as scarce as the Sanyuan Golden Lotus, it is the pill most desired by all cultivators stuck at the late stage of the True Essence Realm. Several of its medicinal ingredients are very hard to find; even for the Taiyuan Sect, they had not been able to gather them for decades, otherwise True Person Xuanhe would not have been stuck at the bottleneck of advancement for more than ten years.

In other words, with these two Spirit Pills and medicines, True Person Xuanhe will soon be able to attempt the Golden Core breakthrough again, and the probability of success is extremely high.

Therefore, many people nodded secretly.

This compensation plan from Taiwu Zhenjun was indeed very sincere.

Danchenzi was naturally very satisfied as well, nodding with a smile and saying, "Since that is the case, my Taiyuan Sect has no objections."

Chixia Zhenjun also nodded slightly and said, "It is better to resolve grievances than to keep them; Daoist Brother Taiwu is full of sincerity, and our Yuqing Hall is also willing to share the pill formula. I hope that in the future, all Immortal Sects will be harmonious and peaceful, with less trouble."

Taiwu Zhenjun let out a long sigh of relief, a joyful smile appearing on his old face.

Now that the people had arrived and past grievances were fully released, the time had reached noon—the auspicious hour—so Danchenzi gave the order for the Spirit Transformation Ceremony to officially begin.

Surrounded by the crowd, Danchenzi and the four True Monarchs—Chixia, Taiwu, Baiyun, and Yuyang—each held a whisk. The accompanying Taiyuan Sect disciples followed, each holding Magic Treasures such as jade plates, yellow paper, ruyi, scripture banners, bells and drums, jade rulers, Jade Beads, and command flags, leading all the cultivators to pay respects to the Three Pure Daoist Ancestors and Taiyi Xianzun and many other immortals, burning incense and praying, performing three kowtows and nine prostrations, wishing for longevity together and celebrating the Spirit Transformation event.

These Magic Treasures and rituals were no different from the sacrificial ceremonies of secular Daoist temples.

Acting in this way was also to declare that although all cultivators are immortals, they must not forget their roots; they are still of mortal origin, cultivating the Dao and seeking longevity, but they must still protect the peace of the mortal world, taking the elimination of demons and the defense of the Dao as their own responsibility.

Therefore, the Immortal World has its own unwritten rules: all Immortal Sects, Daoist grounds, and rogue cultivator families must not bully the weak or interfere with or destroy matters of the mortal world, unless the mortal world suffers from disasters or demons and ghosts appear to wreak havoc on the common people.

Of course, ever since all cultivators stepped onto this path of immortal cultivation, they basically have no major connections or conflicts of interest with mortals, gradually drifting apart to become two completely different groups.

But it is precisely because of the self-discipline passed down by the Immortal Sects since ancient times and these seemingly meaningless sacrificial ceremonies that the Immortal Sects have never detached themselves from the secular world or their foundations.

Although there is a distinction between immortals and mortals, without mortals, the Immortal World would naturally be like a tree without roots or water without a source, and it would wither and die; there would be no talk of the Great Dao of immortality or eternal life.

Therefore, although this ceremony, which had been prepared for over a month, seemed extremely simple, everyone was serious and earnest, and not a single person had a heart of contempt or indifference.

After all, with five True Monarchs and over ten Danyuan Realm powerhouses presiding, they could suppress any dissatisfaction from the younger generation.

And this serious atmosphere was naturally a form of moral cultivation; completing it meticulously was equivalent to a trial of the Dao heart, from which one could feel the profound aura released by the various True Monarchs, using it to wash away the remaining mortal heart.

After nearly half an hour, the ceremony ended. Next, Danchenzi accepted the congratulations and gifts from all the cultivators on the plaza outside Taiyuan Hall.

At the same time, he officially announced the title of Xuanchen Zhenjun to the outside world, from then on officially becoming the fifth Spirit Realm Great Cultivator in the Great Song territory, sitting as an equal with the four Daoist Monarchs and jointly managing the order of the Song Kingdom's Immortal World.

Of course, with a Spirit Transformation True Monarch presiding, the Taiyuan Sect officially leaped from a small-to-medium-sized ordinary Immortal Sect to become the third-largest large-scale Immortal Sect in Great Song.

It is just that this large-scale Immortal Sect is large in name only; apart from Xuanchen Zhenjun alone having heaven-reaching cultivation, there is only a group of weak True Essence Realm and Kaiyuan Realm cultivators, plus pets; the entire Taiyuan Sect has fewer than twenty living souls.

And what is most sorrowful is that one went missing not long ago.

At present, the Taiyuan Sect's lack of manpower makes everyone sigh with emotion.

After the lively congratulations were finished, the ceremony entered its most relaxed segment. The Taiyuan Sect disciples set up stone tables and cushions on the newly built mountain gate plaza, serving fruits, Spirit Tea, and immortal wine, and so everyone began to drink happily and discuss the Dao and exchange ideas.

This was a rare exchange event in the Great Song Kingdom.

Even the Immortal Alliance Assembly held every ten years was not this lively, being able to encompass almost all the Great Cultivators and Danyuan Realm experts.

The appearance of a Spirit Transformation True Monarch indicates that the strength of the Great Song Immortal World has increased by a large margin, which brings more pressure to the Immortal Worlds of neighboring countries; in the future, in many disputes and the distribution of resources, the many Immortal Sects of Great Song will have a firmer backbone.

Therefore, although the Taiyuan Sect becoming powerful will increase pressure on some small and medium-sized Immortal Sects in Great Song and will also take away some benefits from the hands of Yuqing Hall and Longmen Mountain, overall, the benefits to the Great Song Immortal World are greater; after all, the demands for overall interests will be greater in the future.

Just like this time, when Chixia Zhenjun was able to forcibly take back a cultivation technique of the Taiyuan Sect from the Ming Kingdom's Immortal Sect, it can be said to be the most direct manifestation of the growth in strength of the Song Kingdom's Immortal World.

By rights, such an immortal treasure that had already been obtained by the Ziyang Sect would be impossible for them to spit out.

But Great Song suddenly had an extra Spirit Transformation Great Cultivator, and the high-end strength of the two sides became five to four; the Ming Kingdom's momentum immediately weakened quite a bit.

Moreover, Danchenzi crossed the eight tribulations of Spirit Transformation, and after crossing them, he directly entered the Spirit Transformation Mid-Stage; the strength that allowed him to make the veteran Great Cultivator Taiwu Zhenjun convinced and sit down to discuss the Dao also shocked the Ming Kingdom's Immortal World.

Chixia Zhenjun seized upon the Ming Kingdom's weak mindset, using courtesy before force, and actually forcibly took back the most precious cultivation technique, causing the Ming Kingdom to suffer a major setback while having to swallow their pride and accept the loss.

This is the benefit brought by strength.

And this kind of benefit will gradually become more prominent in future interactions with neighboring countries.

However, just as the lively banquet was in full swing, suddenly a violent fluctuation came from the southeast direction. Immediately, everyone turned their heads to look, and they saw a thick black smoke rising into the sky a hundred miles away. At the same time, there was a violent shaking, and the entire Zhaoyang Peak trembled a few times.

"Spirit Fox Nest?"

"What happened?"

Almost everyone stood up in surprise at the same time, and over a dozen Divine Senses swept toward the black smoke almost simultaneously.

"Chen'er!"

"You'er!"

The five True Monarchs' Divine Senses were extremely powerful, instantly piercing through the pervasive black fog to reach the depths of the black smoke. Xuanchen Zhenjun soon saw a figure fleeing in a sorry state while riding a sword in the churning black fog; the aura was exactly that of his disciple, Xu Chen.

And the three True Monarchs of Yuqing Hall also saw the young female cultivator following closely behind Xu Chen; it was exactly the inner-gate disciple Lan You.

So, amidst the exclamations, the five True Monarchs took a step forward almost at the same time. Amidst the churning spiritual light, they disappeared from the plaza together in an instant. In less than a dozen breaths, several clusters of spiritual light exploded one after another on the mountain ridges near Spirit Fox Valley. The five True Monarchs appeared almost simultaneously, just in time to block the escape route of Xu Chen and Lan You, their thick auras blowing away the pervasive, churning black fog for hundreds of feet.

(End of chapter)