Chapter 68

After the beginning of summer, the Yang and harmonious energy of heaven and earth grew heavier, but before the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, the day of extreme Yang, the poisonous insects, dragons, and snakes in the Great Swamp would never hibernate. On the contrary, during this period, they were tormented by their nature and became increasingly irritable, and the depths of the Jiuzhen Great Swamp gradually became more dangerous... After Qian Chen returned to the lake outside Jiaobu Town.

Every day, he still rode the Flying Cloud Pocket to gather qi in the blue sky, cultivating diligently. Apart from the daily progress of his true qi, his polishing of that external qi primordial pill also became increasingly proficient.

Until three or five days later, the message talisman Qian Chen gave to Cui Dan was ignited.

The message spirit talisman transmitted the thoughts of Cui Dan, who was silently holding the talisman there, into Qian Chen's spiritual sense.

It turned out that Cui Dan, relying on the facade of the Cui family, had indeed befriended many local family and sect elites. During this time, he had not forgotten Qian Chen's entrustment and had been silently inquiring. Now that there were some clues, he burned the talisman to inform Qian Chen.

Qian Chen naturally would not delay. He fell from the high sky, spent three quarters of an hour refining the gathered primordial qi, then stood up and drove the Flying Cloud Pocket towards the county government...

Cui Dan was waiting in the courtyard at this time. Seeing a cloud of auspiciousness descend, he hurriedly greeted him and said: "The matter that the senior entrusted me to inquire about earlier has already had some clues... Now I have several fellow Daoists from local great sects here, wanting to introduce them to the senior... They are the most familiar with the matters of the Jiuzhen Great Swamp."

Cui Dan lowered his voice and said quietly: "The junior has inquired a little bit. These sects indeed control several good Earthly Evil Yin Veins, but their locations are inevitably a bit remote and dangerous... And the junior also doesn't know what kind of malevolent qi the senior needs, so I invited them to come. If the senior is interested, you can exchange with them for news about the Earthly Evil Yin Veins."

Qian Chen smiled slightly and said: "This is naturally fine... Sorry to trouble fellow Daoist Cui!"

The two stepped into the inner room, but Qian Chen saw the two women who had flown over his head the day before yesterday were both there. Cui Dan stepped forward to introduce: "These two are true transmission disciples of the Jiuzhen White Deer Sect, Senior Sister Guan Pingxuan and Junior Sister Yan Cai... Senior Sister Guan, this is Senior Qian Chen... The senior's pill techniques are unparalleled. I have had the honor of seeing the external phenomena when the senior's pill was formed, turning malevolent energy into auspiciousness and casting the pill into ganoderma."

"Previously, the senior also took action to help the villagers of the nearby Sanyang Village... The act of casting a pill to save the tree that Ning Ning Shimei Yan inquired about earlier was done by the senior. The plums that grew on the tree could also bring the dead back to life, equivalent to spirit medicine of a not-low grade. Yet it was just done by the senior casually casting a pill, which shows his extraordinariness."

When the junior sister Yan saw Qian Chen, she gave a low exclamation, then realized her rudeness and shyly lowered her head.

It was Senior Sister Guan who looked at Qian Chen generously for a moment, then suddenly opened her mouth and said: "Fellow Daoist Qian does not seem to be the Daoist infant body transformed by primordial qi, but the original physical body?"

Cui Dan heard this in his heart and frowned, secretly thinking: "I have hinted so much, why is there still no sense? Alas! The senior is still too low-key! Usually, he only reveals the level of Qi Refinement. If I hadn't seen the senior take action with the magic power of returning pills to take down the demonic person of the Meishan Sect with my own eyes... I would definitely have missed that opportunity lightly."

Qian Chen nodded slightly and said: "This shell of mine is indeed not formed by primordial qi, but originates from the essence and blood of my parents."

That Senior Sister Guan seemed to intend to hint to Cui Dan, asking pointedly: "Fellow Daoist Qian can befriend the Qinghe Cui family, presumably he is also a child of a family, is he from the Qian family of Wu Yue, or a child of the Wu Yue Sword Pavilion branch?"

"The Qian family also inherits from ancient times and is a descendant of Peng Zu... However, apart from this Wu Yue branch, the other poor families are not included in the 'Genealogy of Clans'. Without inheriting the ancient Peng Zu lineage, it can be seen that most of them are falsely claiming fake names. The poor Wei family in this Jiaobu Town falsely claims Peng Zu as their ancestor, which in our eyes is ridiculous!"

"The Wu Yue Qian family leads the Sword Pavilion and, together with the Yanling Wu family, is the true lineage of the Wu Yue Sword Pavilion, which is naturally orthodox." Qian Chen smiled: "However, this Qian surname of mine has no background, just from ordinary people."

"Oh!" Senior Sister Guan nodded slightly: "The vicissitudes of life in the Divine Continent, the people are scattered, how many noble bloodlines have been passed down to the wild people... It is also common not to be from a family."

Cui Dan hurriedly smoothed things over: "The Dao Sect starts from the Supreme Dao Lord to the Nameless, who was once a shepherd boy in the countryside. The Dao Sect's acceptance of disciples and inheritance only looks at the heart and aptitude, regardless of noble or humble birth... It can be seen that this family theory is not the same for everyone."

"Qian Shidi Cui..." Guan Pingxuan interrupted Cui Dan: "The Dao Ancestor was born into the Ying surname of the ancient Three Emperors family. Although he was a shepherd boy, the green ox he herded was transformed by the Azure Dragon of the East, and he was even more cared for by the innate indestructible spiritual light manifested by the Great Dao. It can be seen that his bloodline is noble, and his birth is extraordinary..."

"The Dao Ancestor was born with white hair and white eyebrows like an old man, and had strange phenomena from birth... How could he be a nameless person?"

"Although he drifted in the wild, he had the Azure Dragon transformed into an ox as his mount when he was young, and when he was a little older, he was even more cared for by the innate spiritual light... After eighty-one reincarnations like this, entering the noble bloodline of the family, and experiencing ten thousand tribulations, he cut off millions of demons, ghosts, and witches to achieve the Dao, and was honored as the Dao Ancestor."

This was the first time Qian Chen heard this version of the origin of the Supreme One, which added many new plots, such as the Azure Dragon transforming into an ox. In the version of the legends of the Louguan Sect, the green ox obtained the fate to transform into an Azure Dragon because it followed the Dao Ancestor, and now it is also a god lord of the heavenly realm and a great sage of the demon race.

Now he heard a version that was reversed, as if the Azure Dragon first transformed into an ox and accompanied the Dao Ancestor.

White hair and white eyebrows, Qian Chen suspected that the Supreme One was cosplaying...

As the innate spiritual light of 'Great Dao manifestation'—Qian Chen felt a little shy. His brain was full of messy things. Apart from the orthodox Daoist treasury and the treasures left by the sages, there were also settings in novels and movies. Seeing the Supreme Dao Ancestor so deeply poisoned, he estimated that he had been poisoned when he was young and his three views had not yet formed.

Being able to achieve the status of Dao Ancestor is more because the Supreme One himself is awesome... and it actually has nothing to do with this 'Great Dao' of his.

And Qian Chen can personally prove that he absolutely did not throw himself into his arms voluntarily!

Hearing the story of himself and the Supreme One from the mouths of others, Qian Chen felt a bit strange in his heart...

And over there, Guan Pingxuan continued:

"Now the Li family of Zhaojun and the Li family of Longxi are all descendants of the Dao Ancestor. The Supreme Dao of the Dao Sect is quiet and inactive, and the Lingbao Dao has gone far overseas, both of which are immortal traces that are difficult to investigate. But the Primordial Dao holds the bull's ear of the Dao Sect, and the Orthodox Dao is even more responsible for supervising the ghosts and gods of the world for the Primordial Dao, lifting the three mountains, and is the place of orthodoxy. The Zhang family has held the Dragon Tiger Mysterious Altar of the Orthodox Dao for generations, and has the help of disciples from various families such as Yan, Yang, Lu, and Ren... In that Dao Academy, whether it is the inner sect or the outer sect, there are more disciples from our families... How can we talk about accepting disciples only based on heart and aptitude?"

Cui Dan's smile could hardly be maintained. He was really strange! Was he from a family, or was this Senior Sister Guan from a family?

This Bai Bai Lu Men was founded by the Nascent Soul True Immortal Bai Lu True Person. The Bai Lu True Person was originally a loose cultivator. At the beginning, the Bai Bai Lu Men also accepted disciples widely, but as the Bai Lu True Person ascended, the later Nascent Soul True Immortals had long lifespans. When they presided over the Bai Bai Lu Men, the bloodline multiplied and grew, and gradually several cultivation families appeared.

And as time went on, the true transmission disciples of the inner sect became the pocket of the cultivation family. Occasionally, there were a few Daoist lineages inherited by master and apprentice, and gradually they were either drawn in by the family, or squeezed out by the cultivation families who were intertwined with each other through marriage... They had to leave the sect and become loose cultivators...

The history of such small sects is mostly like this. At the beginning of the opening, there was still some atmosphere of opening the door wide. Gradually, with the monopoly of resources, especially the long lifespan of cultivators and the care of old ancestors, the development of family forces was very fast. Gradually, they bred internally and became the facade held by several families.

Apart from the Buddhist sect, the Dao Sect's several major sects either have precepts to cultivate, or are pure-hearted and few-desires, and rarely leave descendants. There are not a few who ascend with a pure Yang body... These Daoist inheritances are mainly master and apprentice.

Other sects, even the demonic sects and witch sects, are full of families.

Even if there are two or three non-family experts who have made a name for themselves, they are soon drawn in by the family. Focusing on bloodline is human nature. Once the lifespan is long and there are many bloodlines, even if they don't want to create a family, they gradually develop into a family. On the contrary, the true transmission lineage of the Dao Sect, because there is hope for ascension and longevity can be seen, does not like to leave bloodline descendants.

Even if they occasionally fall in love, they become Daoist companions with each other, hoping to ascend together and become a pair of immortal companions...

Even if they leave descendants, they hope that their own children can also enjoy longevity. Under such involvement, the Dao path is often hindered. When Qian Chen was in the Louguan Sect, he also knew a few people who ascended with their families. That was truly spending infinite effort and suffering ten times the tribulation...

The secular county families are at least based on 'family', and the great sects have strict sect rules, and there is the care of Nascent Soul True Immortals, Heavenly Immortals, and even Dao Lords from the heavenly realm. If the family parasitic in the sect gradually becomes powerful, they will bestow magic treasures and Daoist lineages from the heavenly realm to support disciples who have no connection with the family to become the sect master, and cut off the family in the process.

And the cultivation families in small and medium-sized sects are like parasites, often within a few generations, they occupy the magpie's nest and turn the sect into the private property of several families.

However, it is said that the atmosphere overseas is better... There are many loose cultivators there, and the inheritance is not as stable as in the Central Lands.

In Cui Dan's view, Guan Pingxuan is a cultivation family parasitic in the Bai Bai Lu Men.

Its rise is rapid, and its fall is sudden... Coming from the secular world, it will eventually return to the secular world. Why is there such a big view of the portal? It is truly puzzling.

Guan Pingxuan continued to ask Qian Chen: "Since fellow Daoist is not a child of a family, I don't know which Daoist lineage fellow Daoist is from?"

Qian Chen naturally couldn't say that he was a 'remnant' of the Louguan Sect, so he could only vaguely say: "Just a loose person in the rivers and lakes, who had the fate to obtain the legacy of the senior's Daoist books and inherited the legacy of the Supreme One."

"Fellow Daoist Qian is actually a loose cultivator?" Guan Pingxuan pointed out, seeing that Cui Dan didn't express anything, and her junior sister was secretly pulling her sleeve, she smiled slightly and didn't ask any further.

Since this member of the Cui family was obsessed and didn't wake up, why should she continue to offend people? She wasn't without befriending loose cultivators? Just treat it as recognizing a fellow Daoist for the sake of the Qinghe Cui family!

Next, Senior Sister Guan was no longer so aggressive, but instead showed some breadth of mind.

She also took the initiative to ask: "Previously, Qian Shidi Cui said that fellow Daoist Qian wants to find an Earthly Evil Yin Vein to refine spirit pills. The Bai Lu Mountain where my Bai Bai Lu Men is located is not far from the Great Swamp. Every year, disciples go deep into the Great Swamp to kill demons and eliminate demons or collect spirit medicine, and they know a bit about the dangerous malevolent qi in it... I don't know which kinds of malevolent qi fellow Daoist needs, and what taboos and requirements are there?"