Chapter 795: Goodwill of Jiuqiu (122) (Bonus chapter for Alliance Leader Ji Ran)

"I know Zhaojing is worried about the peacock matter. There are few places in the world that can obtain the 【Small Peacock Karma】. Flaunting it in public is ultimately not good. It is not just the 【Great Bestowal Bronze Temple】 that is determined to have this fire; at least five of the seven Daoist sects of Northern Buddhism can use this karmic fire to achieve the Dao. Keeping it in your hands will bring endless troubles..."

"I will give Zhaojing three choices."

He shifted his cup slightly, stretched out his hand, and said:

"Although the 【Small Peacock Karma】 is a karmic fire born from the Buddhist lands, its essence still cannot escape being a 【Desire-Following Combined Fire】. It is not like the 【Great Peacock Karma】, which was refined by a Great Supernatural Power user personally. I have a deep understanding of the peacock lineage and can transform it into a type of combined fire for you, called 【Ultimate Return Flame】. It also has a connection with Mingyang and is one of the few gentle fires among combined fires. It can be used for alchemy, but not for artifact refining, and it cannot be used to combine water or move Geng metal."

"Although the transformation steps are cumbersome, time-consuming, and expensive, and the value of 【Ultimate Return Flame】 is far inferior to 【Small Peacock Karma】, there is one portion in the mountain that you can go and take first..."

"This is the first."

Li Ximing felt a slight stir and nodded respectfully, but immediately had doubts in his heart: 'I fear that even the Jiuqiu lineage can only turn the 【Small Peacock Karma】 into 【Ultimate Return Flame】 and cannot reverse the process... The True Person Yuandao's words imply he does not want to lose the 【Small Peacock Karma】...'

As he pondered, True Person Yuandao continued: "Second, hand over the 【Small Peacock Karma】 to my Jiuqiu lineage, and I will take out a type of spirit fire to exchange with you. This fire is a True Fire, called 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】."

"In the near-ancient times, the heavier the Sun and Mingyang were, and the lighter the Taiyin and Jueyin were, the fiercer the True Fire would be and the softer the Prefecture Water would be. True Fire often leaned towards the side of artifact refining. The 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 is an exception. The True Fire remnants it corresponds to still have responses to this day, retaining the characteristics of the distant past, and it is extremely adept at alchemy."

"It is just that its combat ability is not as good as 【Ultimate Return Flame】. No matter how gentle 【Ultimate Return Flame】 is, it is still a combined fire. The 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 does not possess the fierceness of current True Fire, making it a notch weaker."

He sipped his tea and finally said:

"Third, I can also compensate you with other spirit objects."

"Water and fire are prosperous, unlike other paths. I will not bully you. Besides the 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】, there is also a taste of Lu Water on Mount Jiuqiu."

After True Person Yuandao finished speaking, Li Ximing suddenly felt conflicted:

'Without Li Fire, I don't know if 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 can be turned into Li Fire... 【Ultimate Return Flame】 can be used for alchemy and combat, and it fits with Mingyang. It is not a bad choice.'

The spirit fires offered by True Person Yuandao were truly too tempting. The 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 sounded like something only these ancient lineages would bring out. Transforming it into Li Fire would be a waste of heaven's gifts. Li Ximing thought to himself that even if he got this fire, he would cherish it immensely and would really be reluctant to transform it into Li Fire...

Besides his conflict over these two flames, Li Ximing had an even more secret worry in his heart:

'This Great True Person and I are not related; why is he so kind? I only made a brief appearance in this trip, yet I receive such heavy compensation? Could it be that I am to form a great causal link?'

He hesitated, feeling belatedly:

'Alas... often when one sees rich immediate benefits, one acts rashly. I cannot think through things three times like Brother Jun, making numerous arrangements. Having just escaped one constraint, I seem to have entered a thicket of thorns. Fortunately, Jiuqiu's malice is not heavy, and it can still be remedied...'

Out of this worry, Li Ximing first left his seat and bowed, saying respectfully: "To be able to form a bond with Jiuqiu and contribute a meager effort, and to meet the Great True Person, Zhaojing was already satisfied early on. I had no greedy intentions and only held the thought of removing the mark. Now, fearing the peacock's lewd power, my terror cannot be calmed. I dare not accept the Great True Person's spirit objects, only hoping for a little shelter to avoid the poisonous beak."

Upon hearing this, Hou Fei was slightly stunned, while True Person Yuandao raised his eyebrows, the corners of his mouth curling up as he said:

"You are indeed a cautious one. Since that is the case, I can speak clearly to you... Once you hear it, do not speak of it again."

Li Ximing nodded quickly, and the Great True Person laughed: "You guessed correctly. Something extraordinary was indeed taken from this Daoist treasury, which is very important to the peacocks. If a treasure of this level were known, it would be enough to shake the Buddhist lands, alarming Mohe above. Pijia and Xipo would have to come personally to take it."

Li Ximing's heart sank suddenly. Seeing the other party speak openly, he felt relieved instead. True Person Yuandao stared at him with his slightly reddish eyes and replied: "But this matter was not done privately by my Jiuqiu lineage, do you understand? Pijia strictly ordered the abbot Yukuan to personally enter the Buddhist lands to report, which was also a set matter. This treasure cannot fall into the hands of the peacocks, and they cannot even know its tracks! Although the peacocks are not worth mentioning... their voices are very loud."

When he said the last sentence, Yuandao's expression turned gloomy. Li Ximing nodded in understanding, and Yuandao said softly:

"No matter how Yukuan reports the loss of the peacock treasury to Pijia and Xipo later, the two Mohe will not take real action, but will drag their feet and handle it lightly. They do not want you to fall into the hands of the peacocks and give them any chance to know."

"The only ones you have truly offended are the few peacocks in this temple. Even if this secret were exposed overnight, it would only cause an uproar in the Buddhist lands and internal chaos; no one would treat you as the culprit."

"As for the spirit fire."

Yuandao looked at him with a smile and said softly:

"Whether it is 【Ultimate Return Flame】 or 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】, both are inseparable from Jiuqiu. This means my Jiuqiu lineage has already protected you, showing the Buddhist lands that the Immortal Dao will not sacrifice even one Purple Mansion for this matter."

Li Ximing suddenly understood, nodded repeatedly, bowed to Yuandao again, and replied:

"Thank you, Great True Person! Junior..."

Yuandao waved his hand to signal, saying casually:

"No need to thank me. My Jiuqiu cannot help with big troubles, but we can support with minor matters. When your family truly encounters trouble, just don't blame my lineage for not saving you."

This sentence came abruptly and could not even be considered polite. Li Ximing was slightly stunned, but Hou Fei in front of him nodded slightly and took over the conversation: "The Great True Person has always been kind and charitable. The Jiuqiu Immortal Mountain has helped many people, so it is inevitable that such things happen... Zhaojing is a kind person, and his reputation in Jiangnan is very good. His grand-uncle... is a capable general under True Person Yuan."

Yuandao smiled slightly and signaled to Lingdu: "Bring the fire."

Lingdu went down immediately, and Yuandao started chatting: "It's a long story... Back then, True Persons Yuan and Yuanxiu both came to Jiuqiu. I count as their peer. At that time, these two brothers were always bickering and even had a big argument, parting on bad terms. Later, there were no more close interactions."

"But a few days ago, Yuanxiu came to see me. When talking about Yuan, he lowered his head and raised his forehead, as if on pins and needles. Thinking about it... there is still affection there."

Li Ximing nodded respectfully on the surface, but a slight doubt arose in his heart: 'If that's the case... Yuanxiu, the youngest of the three Yuans of Qingchi, doesn't have much lifespan left. How can this True Person Yuandao be any better? But looking at his appearance... his spirit and energy are still maintained at their peak, and he even looks like a young man. There is not a hint of twilight in his tone... If he isn't using supernatural powers to cover it up, he really has a great method for nourishing his lifespan...'

Just as he finished thinking, Lingdu had already come up from the side, holding two small bowls in his hands.

One looked like it was crafted from Geng metal, plated with something unknown, looking dull. The other was a vermilion ceramic bowl. Both were only the size of a child's fist.

Lingdu brought them in front of him, opened the Geng metal one first, revealing a grain-sized gray-gold light point, and introduced: "This is 【Ultimate Return Flame】, a combined fire. There is one portion stored in the mountain. This fire damages artifacts, so it is best to use seamless Geng metal to hold it."

He then took out the other one, which was a bright red light point, also the size of a grain of rice. Presumably, Jiuqiu had an extraordinary sealing method; no matter how fierce the fire was, once caught in this bowl, it was just a grain of rice.

"This is 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】, a True Fire. True Fire refines metal, so it is stored in a glazed ceramic artifact tempered with combined water."

Li Ximing knew these were for him to choose from. After a moment of hesitation, he took the vermilion ceramic bowl and said respectfully:

"Junior follows the Great True Person's decree, keeping the great kindness in mind, and will never forget it."

The rarity of 【Ultimate Return Flame】 and 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 was about the same. If comparing value, 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 was likely a notch higher. 【Ultimate Return Flame】 was slightly more powerful and could also be used for alchemy, with the added benefit of fitting with Mingyang. Li Ximing thought to himself that with the talisman energy 【Valley Wind Fire Induction】, he didn't lack that bit of compatibility.

Moreover, 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 was a True Fire, which most likely fit the changes of the "Runyang Method." Even if Li Ximing didn't intend to transform such a precious fire, having one more path was never a bad thing.

'Dali Bai Xiguang needs Li Fire to practice and perform; without fire, it won't work. Otherwise, it would be best to transform it, practice it, and then transform it back...'

The subtle wonders of 【Ultimate Return Flame】 and 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 were definitely not something Yuandao and the others could summarize in a sentence or two, and their applications in various scenarios were also different. Even if there were things to regret in the future, Li Ximing could only make his choice here.

"Congratulations, Zhaojing!"

Hou Fei congratulated him, and Lingdu also nodded slightly, smiling:

"【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】 is not easy to refine. Take this glazed bowl as well, so it is convenient to carry even if Zhaojing is not refining it on my Jiuqiu Immortal Mountain."

Li Ximing had long coveted this thing and wished he could pick up the gold bowl and wipe it on his clothes to put it in his bosom, but he said modestly:

"How can this be..."

In fact, Li Ximing really didn't need this thing. With 【Valley Wind Fire Induction】 in hand, any fire that fell into his hands, even 【Three-Watch Shuxuan Fire】, would be refined in an instant. It was just that, firstly, he wanted to keep a low profile, and secondly, he was getting something for free, so why not? He took the bowl, feeling satisfied. Lingdu then said in a gentle voice:

"There is still the 【Fangyin Pool】 that needs to be passed through... This... please let the Great True Person take a look..."

He didn't know if this hesitation was towards Yuandao or Li Ximing. After all, probing a Dharma body was often a taboo matter, and one couldn't be sure if any means would be left behind. But Li Ximing had treasures on him and was not afraid at all. He pretended to hesitate for a moment and reached out.

Yuan Dao cast a sidelong glance, lightly tapping him, making contact and then immediately withdrawing. The eyes of this great True Person shifted, sweeping over Li Ximeng, and he said with slight surprise:

"The so-called Douxuan orthodoxy that Lingdu spoke of, and the traces left by the silver bottle, have not been discovered. The karmic connection of the 【Peacock Child-Sending Plate】 has also been dissolved by the 【Seven-Abode Lotus Seed】... As for this physical body of Zhaojing... aside from some minor injuries, there is nothing else."

'That old thing Changxiao... he really is playing these games of illusion and reality!'

Li Ximeng cursed inwardly. Yuan Dao continued: "However... since you have come, you might as well take a trip. These minor injuries can be treated while we are at it, and it will also improve your cultivation a little."

"Please wait a moment in the cave dwelling, Zhaojing. The 【Fangyin Pool】 in the mountains will only thaw at the hour of the Rat. When the time approaches, I will send disciples to escort you."

Li Ximeng knew this was a dismissal. He offered thanks, performed a slight bow, and then walked down quickly. Only after he had left the area did Yuan Dao ask: "How is it?"

Hou Fei pondered for a moment and replied:

"His talent is not bad, and he has a kind nature. It is a pity his background is too shallow; he has never seen anything of real quality, is easily moved, and is not good at refusing others... To be able to reach the Purple Mansion, his mind is not bad either. At the very least, among ordinary clan cultivators, he is top-tier, though among those of the Purple Mansion, he can only be considered mediocre. There is only one point—the matter of Xuan Yue shows his stubborn and promise-keeping character. He can be befriended, and being an enemy would not cause much harm."

Yuan Dao laughed. He looked even younger than Hou Fei and simply said: "Stubborn and promise-keeping is not necessarily true; perhaps he values sentiment, or perhaps he just cannot back down."

Li Ximeng sat down by the stream in the maple forest. The gurgling sound of the water was pleasant to the ear. The white jade lamp base that the water flowed through had already been replaced with another kind of spiritual object, but unfortunately, compared to his cultivation base, the grade of this resource was too low and had almost no impact.

He took the small red-glazed bowl into his hands, rubbed it for a while, and pondered: 'The spiritual materials of this thing are not high, but the craftsmanship is extremely exquisite. It seems to be a special method of refining...'

Li Ximeng flicked his finger lightly, and several hazy red lights immediately lit up at the mouth of the bowl, revealing a tiny bit of golden-red. After only a breath, bright red flames surged out from the bowl one after another, like a cluster of golden flowers. They first bloomed, with petals of gold hanging in the air, displaying their beauty to the fullest.

These flames immediately wanted to leave, with two streams of bright red fire splitting off and resting on the rim of the bowl, struggling to pull half of their bodies out. Li Ximeng took the opportunity to observe them.

This fire was bright red overall, with a circle of scorching red on the outside, bearing layers of pale red patterns, while the inside was whitish, with golden flashes jumping out from time to time.

After all, this was someone else's territory, and he did not know if there were eyes in the forest or if the Purple Mansion grand formation here had any means. Li Ximeng did not immediately refine the 【Three-Hou Shuxuan Fire】, but sensed it slightly and reached his hand toward the scorching outer flames.

A piercing pain immediately came, and Li Ximeng withdrew his hand, his fingertips slightly whitened:

'It is much more profound than the Mingyang Purple Flame... the power of the fire is even less comparable. The True Fire has the power to incinerate artifacts, while Mingyang is the path of growth. Although this 【Three-Hou Shuxuan Fire】 is not fierce, its ability to burn artifacts and physical bodies is simply worlds apart from the Mingyang Purple Flame that comes with my divine ability...'

'My physical body should be considered quite good among those in the Purple Mansion who have not refined a body divine ability, but even so, I must retreat when facing the 【Three-Hou Shuxuan Fire】...'

Resisting the urge to refine this fire for alchemy, he closed his eyes and entered meditation. Soon, a fairy boy came up and said respectfully:

"Please follow me, True Person."

Li Ximeng followed all the way, soon arriving deep in the forest. Purple energy began to emerge under his feet. Passing through a path hazy with purple mist, he saw a small pool built with fine white stones, which seemed to be empty inside.

The boy had already retreated, but standing beside the pool was a person, none other than Tantai Muming from earlier. He bowed to Li Ximeng and said respectfully:

"Greetings, True Person Zhaojing."

"This is the 【Fangyin Pool】, a wonderful place with the nature of Clear Qi and Lesser Yin. The spiritual energy is pure and harmonious, suitable for all paths. Inside, there is a resource called 【Fangxi Wonderful Dew】, which is especially capable of healing spiritual sense, advancing magic power, removing impurities, dispelling foreign forces, nourishing life, and avoiding thunder."

Li Ximeng nodded slightly and saw Tantai Muming say: "Please sit quietly by the pool, True Person, and circulate your divine ability to practice."

Li Ximeng had been thinking about entering the pool to practice, but if there were any mishaps, it might endanger his physical body, so he was happy to sit by the pool. Just as he closed his eyes, Tantai Muming also retreated.

He practiced for a little less than half an hour, only to feel a coolness between his eyebrows, as if a drop of clear dew had fallen right between them. His mind was indeed clear, comfortable, and refreshing.

The Purple Mansion cultivator's Shengyang Mansion had already been pushed into the Great Void. Li Ximeng could see clearly that this clear dew flowed in from between his eyebrows and immediately dripped out from the Shengyang Mansion, turning into a torrential downpour, pattering inside the mansion.

Li Ximeng felt as if he were in the rain, and he pondered in his heart:

"If I were to break through to the Purple Mansion here, could the 【Fangxi Wonderful Dew】 fall at all times to clear my spiritual sense? If it had such a wonderful use, it would be a rare treasure indeed."

Just as he finished thinking, the divine ability within his body rose sharply, and a massive amount of divine ability magic power surged into his body. It turned out that white energy had already risen in this place, nourishing every corner of his physical body.

Li Ximeng hurriedly circulated his divine ability and meditated.

But the white energy was vast, and the speed of refining the divine ability was far from enough. Ninety percent of it dissipated outside his physical body. Li Ximeng saw this and felt a little regret: "Such pure magic power... it's a pity that refining a divine ability is far from just having sufficient magic power... It's fine that the magic power is enough, but how can the refining speed be so fast?"

Just as he was lamenting, a light rose in his sea of energy. The divine ability magic power that permeated his entire physical body surged toward the sea of energy like crazy. Amidst a storm of white energy, a brilliance suddenly rose: 【Valley Wind Fire Induction】! 【Valley Wind Fire Induction】 can manipulate fire to induce energy, refining True Essence and magic power!

In Li Ximeng's half-life of cultivation, 【Valley Wind Fire Induction】 had not played a big role. Although it was quite helpful for cultivation speed, it was far from as terrifying as Li Yuanjiao's 【Qi-Walking Spirit-Swallowing】. Only now did he realize that the vast magic power was surging in.

But Li Ximeng still could not refine the divine ability in time and could only circulate the Talisman Qi first.

If 【Qi-Walking Spirit-Swallowing】 were here, it might have converted all these things into cultivation. Li Ximeng could only watch helplessly as 【Valley Wind Fire Induction】 swallowed all this magic power in one breath, refined it, and gathered it all in the sea of energy.

Li Ximeng glanced at it twice and thought to himself: 'It's not bad.'

Only then did he open his eyes. Before him was still that bamboo forest. The white stone spiritual pool under his feet had already frozen into a thick layer of blue ice, reflecting a crystalline luster, and the mist in the forest had also disappeared completely.

His physical body was naturally as good as new, without any sequelae, and even slightly improved. His cultivation had also grown quite a bit. 【Valley Wind Fire Induction】 had helped a little, and 'Visiting the Heavenly Gate' plus his original practice had already reached the threshold.

'It also saved three years of effort.'

He flicked his sleeves, stood up, and walked out of the path. There were only two cultivators guarding the forest. Seeing him, they hurriedly knelt and bowed. Li Ximeng only asked: "How much time has passed?"

"Reporting to the True Person, we have been guarding here since you went into seclusion. Eight months have passed."

"Has True Person Hou Fei left the mountain?"

When Li Ximeng asked this, the other party immediately replied:

"Reporting to the True Person, True Person Hou Fei has been lecturing on scriptures and teaching arts in the mountain for the past few months, once a month. He has not left and should still be in the mountains now."

'He really knows how to do favors...'

Li Ximeng was in a great mood, so he headed toward the top of the mountain. Sure enough, he saw from afar that Hou Fei and Lingdu were discussing mysteries in the forest, with that chessboard still placed before them. This time, it seemed to be a new game, with only a few pieces placed.

As long as the two were playing, Li Ximeng did not worry about them pulling him into the game. He walked over generously. The two indeed raised their eyebrows to look, and Lingdu smiled: "Congratulations, Zhaojing!"

Li Ximeng returned the courtesy and asked:

"Where is the Great True Person? I still need to go and thank him!"

Lingdu shook his head and replied:

"He has already gone to visit friends and will find it difficult to return for three to five years."

Li Ximeng was full of regret and said a few polite words, but inwardly he breathed a sigh of relief. He sat down on the side, looked at Hou Fei, and whispered: "Senior Hou Fei, when will you return to Jiangnan?"

Hou Fei was surprised:

"Perhaps it will take a few more months."

Li Ximeng took the opportunity to speak, smiling:

"I do have a matter to entrust to you, Senior... I took in a Foundation Establishment cultivator overseas and am about to bring her back to Jiangnan, but I have many affairs overseas and cannot spare myself. I ask you to help me."

It actually does not take much time for a Purple Mansion cultivator to go to Jiangnan. The two naturally understood why he did not go back himself. Hou Fei only nodded:

"It must be that Xia Shouyu! She has come to listen to my preaching often these past few months. Earlier, I thought she was a disciple seeking the Dao from Jiuqiu. Although her cultivation is shallow, her heart toward the Dao is not bad."

Li Ximeng nodded and said with slight regret:

"I chose her carefully, but her background is a bit poor... and she doesn't have the surname Li. I'm afraid she won't have the prestige or status to suppress the others when she goes back... I'm just troubled by it! I was thinking of picking a background for her."

As he looked at Lingdu, this old man was shrewd and said leisurely: "That's not difficult. Let her hang a powerful identity. Being far overseas, whether it's true or false doesn't matter. If you don't mind, Fellow Daoist, you can give her the identity of a relative of a Jiuqiu cultivator and recognize a background..."

Li Ximeng had originally wanted to see if he could get an outer disciple identity. He did not expect Lingdu to not want to touch any karma at all, not wanting to touch his own orthodoxy even a little bit. He replied: "That is indeed a good method..."

Lingdu sighed deeply and replied:

"There is a disciple in the mountain who broke through to the Purple Mansion and fell, breaking the incense. Recognize her as a granddaughter and let her call him grandfather... Insert a few sticks of incense on the spirit tablet, and it will be settled."

Lingdu pulled out a dead person. Li Ximeng did not mind; it was just a matter of pulling a name. He smiled: "Good! It really is troubling you, Senior Lingdu!"

Not long after, Tantai Muming led Xia Shouyu up in a hurry. This woman appeared uneasy. She had no qualifications to speak here at all. Lingdu just glanced at her, and the old True Person said:

"Muming!"

Tantai Muming hurriedly stepped forward, and the two whispered for a while. Tantai Muming did not know if he really knew the truth, but when he retreated, his expression changed completely, and he said happily:

"So it is the granddaughter of Senior Yu Dui who was left outside! I will take her down to recognize her ancestors and return to the clan!"

Xia Shouyu reacted even faster. Her eyes turned red, and she nodded heavily. Tantai Muming led her out, talking about intimate things all the way, looking twelve points concerned.

Li Ximeng watched the two leave, while Lingdu sighed meaningfully:

"Zhaojing... one kind is ten thousand rains that cannot support, one kind is a light breeze that goes to the nine heavens, it is truly hard to say..."

Characters appearing in this chapter

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Yuan ○ Dao 【Purple Mansion Peak】 【Lord of Taiqiu Orthodoxy】 【Tantai Jiuqiu Orthodoxy】 【Purple Mansion Alchemist】

【Peacock Sea Tantai Clan】

Li Ximeng 【Purple Mansion Early Stage】 【Purple Mansion Alchemist】

Ling ○ Du 【Purple Mansion Middle Stage】 【Tantai Jiuqiu Orthodoxy】

Hou ○ Fei 【Purple Mansion Early Stage】 【Great Xiukui Temple】

Tantai Muming 'Qi Induction Pool' 【Foundation Establishment Late Stage】

Xia Shouyu 'White Li Heart' 【Foundation Establishment Early Stage】