Chapter 461

The layout of immortals and Buddhas is unavoidable.

Since it is his own karma, Wei Yuan feels that whatever the enemy does directly to him is acceptable; to defeat the enemy and achieve victory, any means used is justified.

But attacking those around him is something Wei Yuan absolutely cannot tolerate. No matter how powerful this force may be, he must at least cross swords with them first. If he truly cannot win, then he will think of other ways, but to surrender without a fight before even engaging is not an option for Wei Yuan.

It is just that the methods of this force are mysterious and unpredictable; even Ji Liuli fell victim to them, and since he does not even know how they struck, it is indeed difficult to deal with and requires careful planning.

According to Fenhai Zhenjun Yan Shi's speculation, they likely leveraged the power of karma to project a weak force, then sought out the weakest link to strike. However, there is one thing Fenhai Zhenjun Yan Shi did not say: Ji Liuli's problem originally should not have been serious enough to reach this point.

Ji Liuli's natural constitution is truly terrifyingly strong. Even with her Dao heart lost to the point that her sea of consciousness nearly shattered, she woke up after only one day of unconsciousness, and her cultivation base was fully restored. Upon receiving the news, Wei Yuan rushed over and finally saw the senior sister he had been separated from for so long.

Ji Liuli is still her old self, only with a little less flamboyance on her face and a little more sorrow that cannot be dissolved.

Wei Yuan sat opposite her, appearing somewhat reserved. All along, Wei Yuan has both respected and feared this senior sister, harboring a kind of instinctive dread, though he does not know why.

It was Ji Liuli who spoke first: "It hasn't been long since we last met, yet your cultivation base has already surpassed mine. It seems I will have to rely on you to support me in the future."

"Senior Sister, your Dao heart..."

Ji Liuli said indifferently: "Let it be. It was just some old hidden injuries being triggered. If you have the heart, then go and finish off those fellows for me!"

"No problem. Is there anything else I can do?"

"Just helping me finish off those fellows is enough. Especially that old pervert who is over a thousand years old yet still pretends to be young! This fellow ran into my sea of consciousness to disturb my Dao heart; although the karmic arts he used were bestowed by immortals and Buddhas, which I indeed could not resist, I also dealt a heavy blow to his Dao heart. That should be enough to keep him occupied for a while."

Wei Yuan suddenly thought of the inexplicable city-building behavior of mortals in the human world, as well as the barrier with defensive functions inherent to the young girl's yin and yang, and his heart skipped a beat. He finally discovered that his own sea of consciousness might not necessarily be absolutely safe. If he encounters an opponent with brilliant methods, it is possible for them to sneak in without him knowing.

Thus, Wei Yuan carefully inquired about the details so that he could respond in the Mind-Reflection World in the future.

Ji Liuli covered her mouth and chuckled, saying: "Do you really want to know?"

Wei Yuan nodded.

"He borrowed the power of karma to manifest his true form in my sea of consciousness. When my attempt to fight him failed, he went to destroy the luck-gathering array set up by our founder. At that moment, I asked him if he wanted to take advantage of the situation and commit a lewd act..."

Wei Yuan blurted out: "Is that possible in the sea of consciousness?"

Ji Liuli suddenly stared at him, the corners of her mouth slightly raised: "Your words have exposed you... Hmm, it seems you haven't been idle during this time. You didn't just achieve a Dharma Form, did you?"

Wei Yuan hurriedly asked: "And then?"

"Hmph, his true form is that of a child, so what 'and then' could there be? I caught him off guard, tore off his bellyband, and saw that object. It really was just that tiny bit."

Ji Liuli held out her thumb and index finger to compare the size, which was roughly similar to a pea.

Wei Yuan suddenly felt his own image grow taller.

However, Wei Yuan still did not understand one thing: that which manifests in the sea of consciousness is not the true physical body; clothing and body are actually one. How did Ji Liuli manage to grab the clothing off?

Ji Liuli had long known what Wei Yuan was thinking and smiled: "Manifesting a true form is actually the appearance one identifies with in daily life. That old pervert has been a child for over a thousand years and has worn a bellyband for over a thousand years. When I suddenly tore it off, he subconsciously assumed that the thing had truly fallen off, and then his body manifested its true appearance. Hahaha, it really was just that tiny bit! When you were six years old..."

Wei Yuan was greatly alarmed and coughed violently, barely managing to stop Ji Liuli from continuing.

Wei Yuan was also speechless. This senior sister does not suffer losses even in the sea of consciousness. This blow to that old pervert's Dao heart is likely no less significant than the blow to his physical body caused by Wei Yuan selling his true blood to the Shaman tribe.

Wei Yuan's heart stirred, and he said: "What did he look like without the bellyband? Let me see."

Ji Liuli looked at Wei Yuan suspiciously: "Have you been playing so wildly lately? Or is this your true nature finally erupting?"

Seeing Ji Liuli's thoughts veering further and further off course, Wei Yuan hurriedly explained: "It's not like that. I just felt from your words earlier that this child's body must be a major flaw in his Dao heart, and it must be put to good use. I am about to trap him in a big way, so he should come looking for trouble with me again.

I am preparing to make several puppets in the image of him without his bellyband and place them nearby. If he comes, I will let him admire them thoroughly. Later, if I find out his background and origins, I can even mail a few to his friends and family."

Ji Liuli was stunned, then burst into loud laughter, and the hidden injury to her Dao heart immediately improved quite a bit.

With a wave of Ji Liuli's hand, a stark-naked little child appeared before Wei Yuan, only the eyes were exceptionally mature and world-weary. Wei Yuan looked at the important area; sure enough, it was not only small but also had a distinct side-curve.

With such obvious characteristics, Wei Yuan naturally recorded them carefully.

Wei Yuan chatted with Ji Liuli for a while longer, wanting to understand exactly what problem had occurred with her Dao heart, but Ji Liuli refused to say anything. It seems the problem is indeed not small.

After bidding farewell to Ji Liuli, Wei Yuan returned to Fenhai Zhenjun Xuanyue's residence, preparing to discuss the training of the next batch of Dao soldiers with the founder. There are not many Dao soldiers left in the Grand Void Palace who have not yet been trained, roughly over three thousand, which is just enough to open one more class. The war situation at the Northern Shanmen is no longer in imminent danger, so transferring a few thousand Dao soldiers will not affect the overall situation.

Fenhai Zhenjun Xuanyue naturally agreed, and at the same time, he prepared to select the top-tier Body Forging cultivators from the ordinary soldiers to make up the number of five thousand and send them to Qingming together. Once the main business was settled, Wei Yuan chatted with the founder about the future development of Qingming, which made Fenhai Zhenjun Xuanyue's eyes shine with excitement, as he was already preparing to go there for his retirement.

Just as they were talking enthusiastically, Wei Yuan suddenly felt something and looked outside the hall, seeing Zhang Sheng walking over.

"Teacher! You have come out of seclusion?" Wei Yuan stood up subconsciously.

Zhang Sheng was dressed in a scholar's robe, her long hair simply tied behind her head, elegant and natural.

Looking from afar, she seemed to exist in harmony with heaven and earth, her aura lofty and distant. Although her face was peerless, this beauty was like the beauty of mountains and rivers, the beauty of heaven and earth—the more one looked up to it, the higher it seemed. If it were not for Wei Yuan, others would likely not dare to harbor any thoughts of intimacy.

As Zhang Sheng entered the hall, Fenhai Zhenjun Xuanyue said: "A flawless Dao body—not only have the hidden injuries been fully restored, but you can also advance further. This is a good thing. But has there been any progress with your Dao heart?"

Zhang Sheng said: "This disciple intends to observe the mortal world and fill in the missing link from the past."

Xuanyue asked: "That is also a way. Do you have a plan?"

"This disciple intends to return to Qingming and seek the opportunity for enlightenment there."

Founder Xuanyue was about to agree when his heart suddenly stirred, and he vaguely remembered something.

With Fenhai Zhenjun Xuanyue's cultivation base, a sudden flash of intuition is certainly not a trivial matter. He immediately set up an array and cast a divination, wanting to calculate the reason, but his skills in luck and feng shui were not refined. After working for a long time, he only had a vague omen, which seemed to be related to the first meeting between Zhang Sheng and Wei Yuan, but beyond that, he knew nothing.

!.

Busy with no results, Xuanyue had to cough and say: "I just thought of something else. Hmm, going to Qingming is fine. When do you plan to set off? In a few days, there will be flying boats transporting Dao soldiers to Qingming; you can take that ship."

Zhang Sheng said: "We can just go to Qingming ourselves."

Founder Xuanyue looked at Zhang Sheng, then at Wei Yuan, and suddenly let out a heavy snort, saying: "One or two of you, at such a young age, and you already know how to be rebellious!"

Zhang Sheng faced him calmly, while Wei Yuan's old face flushed red.

Fenhai Zhenjun Xuanyue stood up, took a scroll from the shelf nearby, threw it to Zhang Sheng, and said with annoyance: "This is a handwritten manuscript left by the first founder of my Heavenly Azure Hall. I, an old man, have never been able to bear using it and have kept it until now. Now that I no longer have a use for it, and you have lost your cultivation base, I will give this thing to you. In critical moments, there is no need to activate it; it will naturally protect your life."

Zhang Sheng received the heavy scroll, feeling moved in her heart, her eyes slightly reddening, but her voice remained indifferent and lofty as she said: "Many thanks, Founder."

Wei Yuan watched from the side and thought to himself that his teacher is indeed like a duck—no matter what she thinks in her heart, her mouth is always hard. If this were him, he would have long since prostrated himself on the ground, weeping and thanking the founder for his love, and then the founder would have kicked him out of the hall with a laugh and a curse of "you little brat"—that would be the perfect ending.

After bidding farewell to Xuanyue, Zhang Sheng said: "I will go see Ji Liuli and discuss some things with her. We will set off when I return."

Wei Yuan looked at the sky, seeing it was getting late, and said: "Why not wait until tomorrow to leave?"

"We cannot wait. I have a feeling that my opportunity for enlightenment is in Qingming; the sooner we go, the better."

Having said this, Zhang Sheng went to Fenhai Zhenjun Yanshi's residence to visit Ji Liuli. Unexpectedly, she was gone for several hours, only returning at midnight.

Wei Yuan did not know why she had been delayed for so long, but Zhang Sheng clearly did not want to talk about it, so he did not ask.

Zhang Sheng said: "Where is that flying device you used when we escaped from the north? We will use that to go back."

Wei Yuan was already prepared and manifested the flying device. This flying device had been optimized by the human world, with a specially designed reinforced cockpit that could accommodate two people. As for the rest, there were no major changes, and it used eight standard spray tubes for propulsion. Normally, four are activated, but in critical moments, all eight can be opened; ordinary Dharma Forms simply cannot catch up.

A moment later, a flying device shot up into the sky amidst the night, leaving the Northern Shanmen and heading toward Qingming.

Inside the cockpit, Wei Yuan and Zhang Sheng were one in front of the other. Wei Yuan was still habitually sitting in the front, preparing to use his body to block the gale. However, after taking off, Wei Yuan remembered that the new cockpit was fully enclosed, and there was no longer a need to use his body to shield against the wind and rain.

On the way, Zhang Sheng habitually asked about Wei Yuan's cultivation progress. Wei Yuan answered one by one, and Zhang Sheng remembered something, saying: "We will go to the main mountain first. You need to comprehend the true meaning of Taiyin, and I also need to comprehend the true meaning of the immortal ancestor in the 'Qianqing True Law Imperial Time Scripture' again."

Thus, Wei Yuan changed direction and flew rapidly toward the main mountain.

A few days later, the two arrived at the main mountain, and after ten days of comprehending the true meaning—one in the Heavenly Azure Hall and one in the Water Moon Hall—they reunited and headed to Qingming.

On the return journey, Zhang Sheng said: "Now it is time for you to know about your teacher's past. Your teacher... I was born into a small, wealthy family, and my biological mother died in childbirth. My stepmother did not like me, and my father was somewhat cowardly, so they gave me a name from a rural family."

"Later, I met a hermit who was traveling through this place. Seeing that I had talent, she took me away from the main family, gave me my initiation, and gave me the single name 'Sheng'. After my initiation, she sent me to participate in the Immortal Sect's unified examination, where I was favored by my master, Fenhai, and entered the Grand Void Palace, becoming a disciple of the Heavenly Azure Hall. But since then, I have never seen my initiation teacher again."

Speaking of this, Zhang Sheng sighed rarely, with a hint of melancholy.

Wei Yuan, however, had a wandering mind and really wanted to ask what Zhang Sheng's original rural name was, but he instinctively felt that this question was asking for a beating, and the consequences of asking would be unpredictable.

The small flying device carried the two of them, flying over the earth toward Qingming.

The sky was high and the wind was cold, the mountains were treacherous and the waters were far, and the evil thoughts of immortals and Buddhas were lurking with powerful enemies; at this moment, none of it could overcome the warm comfort inside the cabin.

(End of chapter)