Chapter 405: Red Dust Wear and Tear, Five Elements Green Essence, Gambling Duel

When entering the hall, it was already the third sound of the jade chimes. At this time, the hall had been arranged. Below the main seat facing east, on both sides of the moon platform above the steps, red curtains were hung, and golden vessels of the sun were displayed below. After 150 steps, yellow curtains were hung, seats were set up, and silver vessels of the moon were placed on them.

Finally, blue curtains were placed 300 steps away. Guests without invitations could only stay here, using spiritual wood as wine vessels.

Qian Chen raised his eyes to look at the strictly graded and hierarchical seating arrangement above, but he had no intention of stepping forward, simply finding a casual spot to sit under the green canopy.

The waiter, who was a noble family disciple, didn't pay attention to him, just blindly leading Wang Longxiang forward.

Wang Longxiang pondered slightly and didn't go forward either, but sat down beside Qian Chen. The waiter's face changed, and he whispered: "Young Master, this is a seat reserved for the low-door!"

Wang Longxiang didn't commit, sitting down calmly.

Qian Chen laughed: "Three thousand feet of rolling red dust, etiquette and law are always the most wearing!"

"This matter of following etiquette, let's leave it to them to do..." Qian Chen picked up the copper goblet in front of him and signaled to the noble families around: "We will just be rude people!"

At this time, Yu Liang and the other also stepped into the hall. The etiquette at the hall door hurriedly bowed: "Lord Zhongyi, Lord Wen..."

For a time, the noble family disciples on both sides stood up one after another, saluting. Qian Chen looked at several immortal sect cultivators, and even scattered cultivators, who also followed suit.

In his view, the luck above the heads of everyone in the hall, at the moment the etiquette was completed, all separated a trace and merged into the cyan-purple luck above the heads of Yu and Wen.

Qian Chen still sat upright and did not stand up. He placed the bamboo pole at his waist at the table at will. When the people around stood up, they also blocked their side, so it was not conspicuous...

Looking at this scene, Qian Chen smiled slightly—today he finally saw with his own eyes how etiquette and law wear people down!

Etiquette and law are to clarify the noble and the humble.

If it were in the previous life, it could only be considered a subtle training of people's obedience, letting people know their class status.

But in this world where Dao techniques are manifested, faith can gather the power of the crowd, and etiquette and law can also nourish energy and accumulate momentum. The luck of noble family disciples is forged by destroying the dignity and backbone of the humble every day, wearing down their inner wisdom, benevolence, and courage, and seizing their spirit.

Therefore, why do those in high positions often have prosperous luck?

It is only because etiquette and law can gather luck, and the water rises and the boat floats.

This is just the general system of etiquette and law forged by noble families. If it enters the small patterns of various families, clarifying the status of master and servant, the deprivation is even more serious, and luck has a master and a servant, attached to others.

National luck is also forged by laws and etiquette binding people's hearts.

At this time, several noble family elders came from behind the hall, took the main seat, and there was another series of etiquette. Qian Chen watched as everyone around him, whether noble family or commoner, was tamed like dogs by these elders, calling those elders to establish their alpha dog status as a matter of course.

Even Wang Longxiang beside Qian Chen was deprived of a trace of luck. Only when the invisible etiquette fell on Qian Chen, it could not shake him at all. On the contrary, the luck of all the cultivators in the hall was like a candle blown by a gust of wind, trembling and unstable.

From beginning to end, Qian Chen had never stood up. For this reason, the scholars and cultivators beside him already showed dissatisfaction.

Someone whispered secretly: "Rude person!"

Qian Chen felt increasingly impatient. The Supreme Louguan Sect's Qi-Observing Art was truly annoying, as it always allowed people to see through the turbid qi of the mortal world and how it eroded the innocence of one's Dao nature. Though love, hate, and resentment were part of the mortal world, they were also the focus of spiritual affection; like mellow wine, it dissolved one's bones while intoxicating the spirit.

And etiquette, law, noble and humble, and human prejudice are the true destruction of bones, smelly and unbearable.

No wonder the successors of the Supreme Louguan Dao always have the heart to leave the world.

At this time, everyone had taken their seats. When the golden bell rang, Xie Anshi turned out from the side, followed by several elders from other noble families. He nodded slightly and laughed: "Just now I was recounting old feelings with several old friends, neglecting everyone, and I hope everyone will not blame me!"

Everyone in the upper seats stood up to return the salute, calling it no hindrance.

Xie Anshi was not arrogant, just greeted a few words according to etiquette, and then took his seat.

He scanned the seats below the steps and found two empty ones. He turned his head and asked Xie Lingyun. Xie Lingyun raised his eyes to look around, and through the bustling crowd below, he saw Qian Chen and Wang Longxiang sitting in a remote corner.

He bypassed the crowd's line of sight and walked down. Qian Chen had already drunk three goblets. Seeing this, he raised his glass to Xie Lingyun, who was walking quickly, and said: "Come and have a drink?"

Xie Lingyun stopped in front of him, examined him for a long time, and suddenly laughed: "Li Taibai, Brother Longxiang are actually good at stealing leisure! Why not take a seat?"

"I have always acted at will, and I am most impatient with the wear and tear of etiquette and law!" Qian Chen untied his hairpin, sat at will, and let his long hair hang down.

Xie Lingyun sighed: "It is Li Taibai who is the most at ease."

After speaking, he also sat down beside the two...

Xie An had a smile on his face, truly a harmonious elder, and said loudly: "By the imperial order of the Zhang Tianshi of the Zhengyi Alliance Dragon Tiger Mountain... the Jin Ling Blessed Land of Jiankang was originally scheduled to open in twenty-five years, but because the Four Symbols Zhou Tian Array changed three years ago, when the Tianshi observed the stars and calculated the day before yesterday, he actually discovered the signs of the Blessed Land opening."

"Therefore, this opening of the Jin Ling Blessed Land happened to be my Xie family's turn to host. Talents from all families, heroes from commoners, and disciples of immortal sects can all try their luck."

At this time, beside Xie Anshi, a stern-looking old man stepped out with smoke and dust. He reached out to support it, and the smoke and dust churned on his palm, turning into five colors.

This person deliberately showed off his magic power, making the smoke in his palm flash with five lights, as if there were infinite flames leaping, attracting everyone's attention, before pretending to be profound: "This thing is the Five-Flower Scattered Li Smoke, obtained by the elders of my He family after three hundred years of hard work."

He threw this thing, and it turned into a stream of light with ten thousand wonders in front of the hall, and laughed: "Today, everyone who comes is a talent of the Central Land, so let's use this as a prize. If any junior can suppress their peers and win the top spot, whether gentry or commoner, they can get this top prize!"

Once these words were spoken, the crowd below was in an uproar.

Many noble family disciples, sitting further back, all quietly stood on tiptoe to peek, and some asked the people beside them in a low voice what this Five-Flower Scattered Li Smoke was, that it was worth so many people peeking at.

Xie Lingyun was surprised: "Is it actually the He family's Five-Flower Scattered Li Smoke? This thing is produced by a spiritual spring that leads directly to the earth's orifice in a spiritual jade mine they occupy. Every Dragon Boat Festival, it sprays out a mouthful of essence jade sand. This sand is polished with magic power thousands of times until it is refined into a light that is formless and has substance, only then is a bit of Five-Flower Scattered Li Smoke refined."

"This thing is condensed, it needs no wind, no light, no turbid energy, no dust, and must be carried by top-grade spiritual jade, polished by a Golden Core True Immortal in a quiet room for a month, only then can a mouthful be refined."

"With so much quantity, saying it was accumulated for three hundred years is truly not false!"

Hearing him say this, Qian Chen also condensed his spirit to watch, only to see the other noble family elders present, all showing shock, obviously also shocked by such a big hand.

Looking at that group of smoke again, it is truly full of wonders and extremely brilliant, and it is difficult for ordinary spiritual sense to see clearly.

Qian Chen employed his Qi-Observing Art, and only then did he understand.

Looking at that group of smoke again, he lost interest...

This thing is rare, but it is not a good thing for him. That spiritual spring mostly connects to some extreme earth malevolent qi deep underground. It wears down spiritual energy, polishes spiritual jade veins, and deposits many five-element green essences. Only when the energy changes on the Dragon Boat Festival, the day of pure yang, does a mouthful spray out.

It is collected by people and carefully polished.

Such a group of smoke has about a dou of five-element green essence. If it is refined by someone, it is equivalent to one-fifth of a Xuanzhen Five-Elements Pill.

For ordinary cultivators, it is one of the very few spiritual objects that can temper pill energy after core formation, and its value is not low.

But Qian Chen refined the Five-Elements Heaven-Escaping Pill, and his own five-colored divine light is washed and refined by people, and it also has this effect. Therefore, for him, this thing is a chicken rib.

Xie An looked at the crowd below, eager to move, and understood in his heart. Originally, as long as one received an invitation for such a Dharma meeting, the candidates for the Blessed Land were decided. The competition and critique at the banquet were more like mutual flattery, with True Immortals praising and encouraging, just a formality to make a name for the juniors.

But now, He Shao used such spiritual objects to trigger the fighting spirit of a group of cultivators, obviously because the noble families were dissatisfied with the many commoner scattered cultivators he invited this time, and mostly they didn't like the immortal sect cultivators either, so they used this to trigger the fighting spirit of the cultivators below.

In this way, the noble family side mostly had preparations, and must make the scattered cultivators, and even the immortal sect disciples, make a fool of themselves.

Then use words to force them to give up their quotas, and let the noble family elites who defeated them take their place.

Sure enough, no sooner had He Shao started the topic than another great cultivator from a noble family stood up to respond: "Since True Person He has such elegant interest, how can we not echo it? So be it: if anyone catches my eye, this Green Tide Whisk I used in my early years shall be bestowed upon him!"

Wang Rong, who came on behalf of the Wang family, said reservedly: "Those with pill energy of second rank or above can get this!"

A thousand-year-old Moon Soul Profound Pearl slowly rose from his hand.

Yu Liang pondered for a moment and also said: "Well, I'll join in the fun too!"

He took out a cup of Clear Heart Rinsing Jade Spring. This thing is one of the best auxiliary spiritual objects for practicing the Dharma Eye. A cup of spring water, washed seven times, can mostly be used to refine a kind of eye technique.

The noble family True Immortals were generous, and the elders from the immortal sects were not to be outdone.

"This Myriad Things Universe Bag has no other benefits, it's just a hundred times larger than an ordinary universe bag... let's use it as a prize!"

"This Golden Snake Awl was refined by me with the bones of a strange snake, it can be considered a small toy, just for fun!"

Qian Chen took a look, three layers of seals, it really can only be for fun.

Of course, others didn't think so. Big or small, it's a magic treasure!

Strong has strong benefits, weak has weak wonders. Such small things, just winning a small game, can be bestowed! For most cultivators, it is probably more realistic.

Xie An sighed in his heart, gave Xie Xuan a look, and Xie Xuan came up to smooth things over: "Everyone, this banquet is a grand event in Jiankang, the duel must not hurt the harmony!"

"That's simple..." He Shao laughed: "We set the questions, and everyone tries voluntarily!"

Wen Qiao's eyes lit up, excited, and shouted: "Interesting, this time it's really interesting. I'll set a question first... this is the prize."

He took a spiritual turtle shell from his sleeve. The turtle shell was as big as a pot lid, with fine spiritual patterns on it, and hidden spiritual light, which was extremely extraordinary.

Wen Qiao fetched a golden cup and took from his bosom five wooden divination sticks; they were round and sharp at both ends, flat and broad in the middle, resembling flattened almonds. Each stick had an obverse and reverse side, one painted black and the other white.

This is a gambling game often played by the people nowadays, with Owl, Lu, Pheasant, Calf, and Plug as the colors of victory or defeat.

Among them, all black is Lu, the best.

Yu Liang saw Wen Qiao take out the toys he played with on weekdays, frowned slightly, and shook his head: "Isn't this the same as a peddler or a pawn? Extremely inelegant..."

He found an object, covered it within the golden cup, and said: "This round shall test your mastery of the Book of Changes. Whoever can calculate the object inside the cup shall be the winner!"

The Dao of Heavenly Machine calculation is broad and profound. There are very few Daoist true disciples who dare to claim to be proficient, let alone a group of noble families, immortal sects, and even scattered cultivators?

If it were an ordinary object, there would be some certainty in divination, but that golden cup is a magic treasure for collecting sun dew, with sun flower spiritual patterns on it, and it is under the eyes of so many Yin Spirit Great Cultivators.

To calculate it, there are quite a few difficulties.

Everyone present was in a dilemma. Several noble family disciples were quietly pinching and calculating in their sleeves. Unless they had a flash of inspiration and truly calculated it, they would not dare to go up and lose face easily. Their own reputation was a small matter, but if it hindered the family name, was the family law just for show? Just when no one went up, a scattered cultivator, seeing that Yu Liang had picked up the object from the table beside him, had a fluke mentality.

He secretly said: "There are not many utensils on the wine table, and they can't be separated from those few types? Why don't I guess one at will?"

If this spiritual turtle shell could be refined into a small shield, it would be a rare protective magic treasure, making this scattered cultivator even more hot-headed. He thought that anyway, he was just a Penetrating Law cultivator, a nobody, so what if he lost face once?

So he volunteered to go up and guess. ===== CHAPTER 406 =====