Chapter 260: The Opportunity

In the northern border of the Shattered Domain, the mountains are perilous and strange; even birds find it difficult to cross.

Here, towering peaks and deep valleys often span several thousand zhang. Places where the difference between a summit and a valley floor exceeds ten thousand zhang are common. Whether it be the human race or the Shaman tribe, they only occupy the relatively flat areas in the south of the mountain region. This vast, treacherous mountain range stretching tens of thousands of li is a place where even the Shaman tribe cannot survive.

Little Wei Yuan and his two companions flew into the mountain region, flying higher and higher until they were already three thousand zhang above the ground. Upon reaching this height, the surroundings suddenly became silent and windless.

Little Wei Yuan had learned in the *Treatise on Heaven and Earth* that this "Still Wind Zone" is the last peaceful area in the sky. Entering any higher would mean entering the bizarre and unpredictable magnetic layer, which holds all sorts of dangers. In truth, fierce beasts also roam the Still Wind Zone, but in areas inhabited by humans—especially within the range covered by boundary stones—the distorted environment of heaven and earth leaves these beasts with no habitat, making them very rare to encounter.

After flying into the mountains for a while, Little Wei Yuan indeed saw a verdant mountain peak ahead, which stood out in stark contrast to the deep gray mountains surrounding it. Halfway up the mountainside was a small, dilapidated temple; this was the place Xiang Hou had appointed for their meeting.

The mountain was lower than the surrounding peaks, but it was still sheer and precipitous, with walls rising a thousand ren. It was impassable for anyone who was not a Foundation Establishment cultivator. If Little Wei Yuan had brought all three hundred of his cavalry, only the initial dozen or so would have been able to reach this spot.

A pavilion appeared beside the ancient temple, where Xiang Hou was already waiting, accompanied by his maid and the old servant. Little Wei Yuan landed outside the pavilion, entered, and introduced them: "These two are my seniors from my sect. This is Xiang Hou, who will be a benefactor to me in the future."

Xiang Hou stood up to return the greeting, not showing the slightest bit of arrogance despite the two seniors being only at the Foundation Establishment realm. Seeing Ji Liuli and Zhang Sheng returned the gesture, then naturally sat down first and began to size up Xiang Hou, showing no lack of rudeness.

Although Xiang Hou was well-traveled, he felt a bit uncomfortable at this moment.

The background information on these two so-called seniors of Little Wei Yuan had already been reviewed by Xiang Hou. However, data is data, and people are people; upon meeting them face-to-face, Xiang Hou discovered that the feeling they gave him was completely different from what was in the files.

Xiang Hou's sister was an Imperial Consort of Zhao, and the siblings resembled each other; his appearance and bearing were among the best in the world, so wherever he went, he was the focus of countless eyes. Whether men or women, they would all steal an extra glance at him, and Zhang Sheng and Seeing Ji Liuli were no exception.

However, Seeing Ji Liuli's gaze wandered wantonly over Xiang Hou's body, like a butcher encountering a lone beauty, looking wherever she shouldn't. Originally, Xiang Hou assumed that cultivators were often unrestrained and bold, and Seeing Ji Liuli was no different. But he was naturally keen, and suddenly he detected something unusual in Seeing Ji Liuli's eyes and expression.

What exactly was this feeling?

Xiang Hou pondered, relying on his spiritual sense—which was formidable even among Dharma Form cultivators—and his experience in observing the masses, he finally pinpointed the source of this feeling.

In a marketplace, when a butcher faces a carcass of pork, pondering where to make the first cut—that was exactly this expression.

For some reason, Xiang Hou's hair suddenly stood on end, and he felt a chill of terror. He was astonished: could this woman truly threaten him?

The scholar-dressed Zhang Sheng gave a different impression. He was also looking at Xiang Hou, but unlike Seeing Ji Liuli, who focused on sensitive areas, Zhang Sheng looked at the hat, clothes, belt, jade ring, and pendants. Wherever something was expensive, his gaze would linger longer.

Sitting across from Zhang Sheng, Xiang Hou felt like an antique waiting to be appraised.

Among the three, Little Wei Yuan's gaze was the most sincere and enthusiastic, and also the most normal—at least he treated Xiang Hou like a human being.

After they were seated, Little Wei Yuan asked, "I wonder what this opportunity Xiang Hou mentioned is?"

"Follow me," Xiang Hou said, rising to lead the way.

The maid and the old servant were somewhat surprised. Today, Xiang Hou was exceptionally concise; there was no opening, no buildup, and no routine "painting of cakes" to recruit him—it was not at all like Xiang Hou's usual style.

They did not know that Xiang Hou was feeling incredibly awkward under the gaze of Little Wei Yuan's two seniors. Usually, a glance or two would suffice, but these two kept staring endlessly, which was truly impolite. Little Wei Yuan followed Xiang Hou toward the small temple, while Seeing Ji Liuli and Zhang Sheng sat in the pavilion, not following. Xiang Hou might as well have written "Do not follow" on his forehead.

The small temple was built of stone and had long since fallen into disrepair, with most of its outer walls collapsed. Inside the courtyard was a main hall and a side room; other than that, there was nothing else.

Xiang Hou walked into the main hall first. The hall was the size of a regular family's main room, and inside sat a Buddha statue.

Buddhism in this world was not as prosperous as the Daoist sects, but it still held immense power, possessing multiple Great Daos that pointed directly to the end, as well as sects like the Great Precious Flower Pure Land that could rank among the Immortal Sects.

Therefore, Little Wei Yuan had also learned quite a bit of Buddhist common knowledge. At the very least, he recognized most of the Bodhisattvas, Arhats, and famous Dharma Forms that had achieved fruition. This education by the Profound Heaven Sect was not to make disciples study Buddhism, but to prevent them from being caught off guard if they encountered them during their travels. After all, the Dharma Forms of the Buddhist sect were passed down through generations of reincarnation, and their power was far greater than those cultivated by oneself.

But Little Wei Yuan did not recognize the Buddha statue in this temple; it looked like an old man, with one shoulder exposed, appearing somewhat gaunt and skeletal. It resembled the "flesh-body Buddhas" worshipped in small mountain temples. But usually, flesh-body Buddhas were not worshipped in the main seat; yet in this temple, he was the only Buddha.

Xiang Hou looked up at the Buddha statue, his expression complex. He watched for a while before turning his head to say to Little Wei Yuan, "A long time ago, a drop of an Luo Han's true blood fell here..."

An Luo Han's true blood!

Buddhist cultivation differed from the Daoist path; achieving fruition was equivalent to reaching the Return to Oneness Realm, separating the immortal from the mortal forever. By the standards of the Profound Heaven Sect, an Luo Han was equivalent to a successful Immortal, not an ordinary Immortal Lord.

True blood of the Buddhist sect was no ordinary thing. At the level of an Luo Han, some say it corresponds to the three souls of the human body, while others say it corresponds to the three incarnations of time. In short, an Luo Han has only three drops of true blood in total; losing one means a deficiency in their foundation.

The status of this drop of Luo Han true blood was far higher than the withered branch of the Moon Laurel Immortal Tree, and comparable to a fully grown Immortal Tree.

!.

"Such a treasure, why does Xiang Hou not use it yourself?" Little Wei Yuan asked.

Xiang Hou's expression was complex as he said, "Buddhist treasures require affinity. Taking them without affinity often brings disaster."

Little Wei Yuan felt a bit skeptical in his heart.

The so-called "affinity" had been explained clearly in the centralized lectures: it was due to the problems with Buddhist cultivation methods. Most Buddhist treasures carried heavy karma; if one could not bear the karma, it would naturally lead to disasters. Once this was explained plainly, it didn't seem so awe-inspiring anymore.

"Which Luo Han's true blood is it?" Little Wei Yuan asked. Knowing the Luo Han's name meant knowing the merits of their fruition, which would allow him to roughly guess what kind of karma it carried.

To his surprise, Xiang Hou said, "It is not an existing Luo Han."

A stormy sea rose in Little Wei Yuan's heart.

(End of Chapter)