Chapter 411

"Senior, follow me."

Bi Chengjuan looked at Li Xuanxuan, estimating that he should be over a hundred years old, calling him Senior, and led the three down.

The mountain gate of the Hengzhu Dao is underground. There is a cliff-like opening in the prefecture. Cultivators come and go. Hengzhu cultivators use ancient flying techniques, which are different from today's wind-riding techniques, and they are very flexible up and down.

The Hengzhu mountain gate is called 【Hengzhu Blessed Land】, which was opened by ancient cultivators. Bi Chengjuan did not take the three inside, but found a cave entrance on the wall, where there was a small secret room.

"After all, it is cutting open the skin and flesh, which is inevitably painful. I ask Senior to endure it a bit."

Bi Chengjuan took the jade knife, and Li Xuanxuan accepted it. The old man had suffered a lot, and this bit of pain was naturally endurable. He took off his clothes and opened holes in his face, heart, and two backs, sealed the acupoints to stop the bleeding, and stuffed the golden elixir in.

Li Xuanxuan groaned, and Bi Chengjuan stroked lightly again. The six holes, like infant mouths, all closed. Bi Chengjuan led him forward, opened the secret room, and said softly:

"Senior, please enter, sit cross-legged inside, and wait quietly for the array to run."

Li Xuanxuan nodded and entered. As the heavy door slammed shut, Bi Chengjuan turned to the two and said softly:

Master Kongheng nodded, watched Bi Chengjuan leave, and sighed lightly:

"Murong clan... how could they do such a thing!"

Li Xijun looked at him and said softly:

"Hasn't it always been like this? Enjoying the bliss in their stomachs, and after eating, they still force you to be extremely grateful."

Master Kongheng was silent, as if he had a belly full of words to say, and only after a long time did he say:

"When I was eight, the Abbot was on good terms with a Yan Buddhist, and once used supernatural powers to take me into his stomach to see."

"Inside, the treasure pool was brilliant, merit flowed, golden sand paved the ground, glazed tiles were steps, lotus flowers were as large as cart wheels, green, red, white, and blue, hundreds of thousands of birds and beasts, all chanting Buddhism, chanting the Law, seeking truth, the people were happy, without suffering, without difficulty, without disaster, without evil, quiet and solemn."

This monk looked very confused:

"The Dao Gate regards this path as demon cultivation... but I really can't see the right or wrong. Zhao Buddhism seeks truth and establishes a Buddhist country on the ground. Yan Buddhism relieves suffering and opens a paradise in the stomach. They went and did it, while I, an ancient cultivator, only knocked on bells in the temple."

"Yan Buddhism allows thousands of people to ascend to paradise after death, Zhao cultivation allows the common people not to suffer while alive, and I, an ancient cultivator, lecture on scriptures in the temple."

"Every time Yan and Zhao Buddhist cultivators come, the people of Liaohe flock to them, the streets are empty, everyone has a smile on their face, very happy, only I, an ancient cultivator, am still growing vegetables in the temple."

"The Abbot said: Using supernatural powers to confuse and accommodate the common people is a crooked path and cannot become a World-Honored One."

"But I am clearly cultivating Buddhism for the sake of the common people. As long as the common people like it, I will do it. I can clearly use supernatural powers to make the common people treat unpalatable steamed buns as mountain delicacies, and treat simple clothing as rich and noble clothing. If I only think about whether I can become a World-Honored One and ignore the bitter pleas of the common people──how can this be the act of a Great Virtuous One!"

He asked:

"Fellow Daoist, if a mortal is in pain to the point of death, should I cast a spell to relieve his pain?"

Li Xijun frowned and said:

"Naturally, I should..."

A trace of fear climbed onto Master Kongheng's usually gentle face, and he muttered:

"Since the stomach is the true paradise... and the ground is also a joyful Buddhist country... why put the people of Liaohe in a sea of suffering!"

Li Xijun was stunned. Seeing him sweating profusely, his white and tender face looking both surprised and terrified, his crossed legs trembling slightly, the golden light that was originally coiled around his side dissipated, and instead, circles of colorful light were emitted from behind his head.

Li Xijun thought it was bad. He was afraid that Master Kongheng would shout "I have realized it" and immediately produce a paradise from his belly, becoming a Yan Buddhist. He made a prompt decision, hit him on the back with a palm, and shouted:

"Buddhist Master Kongheng!"

He used the Pine Snow True Essence, which made Master Kongheng's whole body cold, and he spat out a mouthful of black blood. The colorful light behind his head disappeared as if frightened, and his eyes immediately became clear.

This monk's eyelids closed, and he trembled as he chanted scriptures. After a long time, he said:

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist... Thank you, Fellow Daoist..."

But after the monk finished saying this, he gasped for a long time, his narrow eyes narrowed, and he muttered:

"My Liaohe clearly has a bumper harvest every year, and the people live better than those in Yan and Zhao. As a result, both the rich and the poor are unhappy. The Abbot said, to see through..."

His expression was low, and there was no longer a trend of changing the Dao lineage, but the disappointment on his face could not be covered up no matter what.

"But the cries of Liaohe are shaking the sky, and I cannot see through it."

Qingchi Sect, General Affairs Hall.

Li Xizhi flew over with colorful light and landed on the peak. He was already a Qi Refining cultivator and had to go out for general affairs every ten years... Li Xizhi had come seven times in ten years and had never found one that was satisfactory.

'If there is still none this time, there are not many years left to wait.'

There were actually not many disciples who entered the peak of the Qingchi Sect, and they often didn't meet fellow sect members in the mountains. Only in this General Affairs Hall could one see the scene of people moving. Li Xizhi stepped inside, and many green-robed cultivators were laughing and talking.

Qingsui Peak had no popularity, and Li Xizhi didn't often go out of the mountain, so he had no close friends. He looked up and down, and saw that the top of the list were several general affairs of capture and killing.

Although these general affairs had generous rewards, Li Xizhi never did them. His own roots were in Wangyue Lake, and there were many clansmen, so he didn't dare to provoke them.

Skipping over some general affairs of demon slaying, going out to the four seas, and the northern and southern frontiers, Li Xizhi searched for a long time before finding a few general affairs of searching for spiritual objects in the local Yue State. The first one that caught his eye was:

"【Moonlight Essence】... Those who find it will get thirty great merits, three Suiyuan elixirs..."

"【Tianyi Chunyuan】... Those who find it..."

Behind it was a long string of awards. Li Xizhi looked at it and clicked his tongue twice. This kind of general affair was often futile, so he skipped it quickly and found a few general affairs of long-term sitting in cultivation at the very bottom.

"【Libu Prefecture Market】... Sitting in cultivation... and also collecting Qi, about ten years in total."

Others disliked that this general affair was troublesome outside and required collecting Qi, which wasted time, but Li Xizhi was very satisfied. He was overjoyed in his heart and hurriedly took down the jade plaque on the side, thinking:

"It just so happens that I can go back home! Receive the register and take the elixir! Help out a bit before and after, so what if I waste some time!"

So he took it down quickly, and when he looked carefully, he saw that the name had already been written on the back of the jade pendant. It had been hanging for too long without anyone taking it, and it had already been assigned to Lingdou Peak.

This Lingdou Peak was even weaker than his own Qingsui Peak, and the peak master was only at the peak of Qi Refining. Li Xizhi sighed with regret, looked at the jade plaque in his hand, and his heart moved.

So he rode the rainbow and rose, traveling through the mountains with colorful light, and soon found the low and short Lingdou Peak. He asked a question in front of the mountain, and the peak master had already hurriedly greeted him.

"Old man... Yu Fuyu... has met the Fellow Daoist."

"I am Li Xizhi of Qingsui."

Yu Fuyu was short and fat. Li Xizhi had heard some news. This person was a cultivator of the Yu family, but there was a lot of filth within the Yu family. His branch had long since died out because of these filthy things, so he had broken off relations with the Yu family and was very poor.

"So it is the Li family of Qingdu... Long admired, long admired!"

Yu Fuyu said two sentences very humbly. Li Xizhi stated his intention, and Yu Fuyu said immediately:

"Easy to say! Easy to say!"

So he took out the jade plaque and handed it to Li Xizhi. Li Xizhi nodded and responded politely, did not entangle with him much, received this general affair in the General Affairs Hall, and then landed back on Qingsui Peak.

Just as he landed, Yang Xiaoer greeted him, holding a swaddle in her arms. Li Xizhi hugged her very gently and said warmly:

"I have already received the general affair, and now I will take Huai'er back."

Yang Xiaoer only held the child and didn't say a word. Li Xizhi felt guilty in his heart and said softly:

"In any case, Huai'er must never stay in the sect... He is a person of my Li family, not a person of the Qingchi Sect."

Yang Xiaoer choked and said:

"I understand... but he is only one year old, and he is going to leave you and me again. I can't bear it, and I'm not at ease."

Although she said so, Yang Xiaoer was even more uneasy about leaving him in Qingchi. She put Li Chenghuai into Li Xizhi's arms, took off a jade pendant from her neck, and tied it to the child, only then saying:

"Husband, take care of yourself outside."

Li Xizhi nodded, kissed her on the smooth forehead, and said softly:

"Take care of yourself in the sect."

The couple had already discussed it. After saying a few intimate words, Li Xizhi packed his things and rode the rainbow away immediately, leaving Yang Xiaoer and her son reluctant to part, silent and speechless.

Crossing layers of clouds and mist, Li Xizhi sacrificed the jade order, passed through the 【Tianyuan One-Dao Spiritual Array】, flew for a short while, and the Simin Prefecture outside the mountain appeared in front of him.

Simin Prefecture was the largest prefecture in the Yue State and the foundation of Qingchi. Li Xizhi had just left Qingchi when he felt the spiritual energy drop sharply, falling by two or three times. However, he rode the rainbow and flew faster and faster, full of ease, and finally felt a sense of freedom.

"Twenty years... finally came out..."

The scenery under his feet drifted away like a swift shadow. Li Xizhi looked forward to seeing his clansmen and accelerated his journey even more.

Qingdu Peak.

Li Qinghong landed on Qingdu Peak, and Li Wushao was already waiting there. The black-clothed youth bowed neatly and replied:

"There are two people in the late stage of Qi Refining, six in the middle stage of Qi Refining, and three in the early stage of Qi Refining. They are all very tacit."

Li Wushao paused and continued:

"The subordinate was afraid of alerting the enemy, so I didn't check carefully. I only saw that there were clouds of black mist there, and it looked like there was some movement."

Li Qinghong nodded, pondered for a while, and said:

"I will go and take a look from afar."

Li Wushao hurriedly followed, and the two flew up riding the wind, with Li Wushao leading the way in front.

Unexpectedly, just as they left their own territory, a middle-aged man flew up to meet them. He rode the wind at a very fast speed and blocked the two directly.

Li Qinghong drew the Du Ruo Spear, looked at him vigilantly twice, frowned, and said:

"This Senior... I do not know why you blocked us?"

The middle-aged man in front had a plain appearance, dressed in golden clothes, painted with bright white cloud patterns, with a knife tied to his waist. The magic robe on his body was very extraordinary, and he couldn't detect his cultivation level for a while.

He swept a glance at Li Wushao, which made Li Wushao's whole body cold, as if he had already revealed his true form, and had been looked at thoroughly by this person.

Li Qinghong also became alert and retreated silently, but saw this person say nothing, nor draw his knife, and just reached out to take Li Qinghong directly.

This hand was as clean as jade, magnifying in front of the two in an instant, and a suction force was faintly transmitted, confusing the spiritual sense, making people unwilling to move their eyes away.

"Boom!"

Li Qinghong had long been on guard, accumulating strength in her hands. Immediately, a purple thunder struck down on her face. Under Li Wushao's black robe, two shadows also secretly emerged, spreading silently.

"It is a Thunder cultivator."

The middle-aged man said leisurely, and with two fingers together, he destroyed this purple thunder in an instant. His cultivation was exposed without doubt, and he was actually at the peak of Foundation Establishment. He didn't even use his Immortal Foundation, which had already made the two of them terrified.

Although Li Wushao's two hooks were insidious, the middle-aged man's eyes were flashing with golden light. Obviously, he had practiced pupil techniques and saw through the tail hooks in the shadows at a glance. He flicked his golden sleeve, making him pale.

"Order!"

Relying on the short period of time Li Wushao fought for, Li Qinghong's eyes were filled with purple light, and the jade armor on her body also lit up with purple electricity. Her red lips opened slightly, her jade teeth opened and closed, and she spat out a small purple light spot. This light spot was round and smooth, and in an instant, it turned into the size of a fist, flashing with white light.

"Crack!"

Complicated purple patterns appeared in the air with a crackle, and a suppressed destructive aura spread. The middle-aged man's expression finally had some fluctuations, and he said with some appreciation:

"Li Tongya has a successor."

Li Qinghong was slightly confused, but she couldn't care about so much at the moment. She only drove the mysterious thunder to strike, and she and Li Wushao retreated together, riding the purple electricity and exiting several miles away.

The middle-aged man in golden clothes did not dodge or evade, nor did he chase the two. He stared at the thunder talisman with curiosity, finally touched the long knife at his waist, gave a light shout, and drew the knife from its sheath.

"Boom!!"

A round white light exploded in the sky. This thunder was like a mountain collapsing and the ground cracking, shaking the lake waves, and the mountain rocks on the shore rolling down. The white thunder drifted, turning into dense purple electricity like a waterfall, suppressing down.

"Clang!"

A bright white knife light lit up, and this thunder waterfall was forcibly split into two sides. The middle-aged man walked out leisurely, pinched the formula, and smiled:

"Fixed."

The thunder in the sky and the surging lake waves all dissipated like clouds. Li Qinghong and the two had already arrived in front of the mountain gate. The middle-aged man's formula changed, and he said softly:

"Come."

The two felt their figures stagnate, and the magic wind beside them didn't listen to their commands. Li Qinghong had already used the blood escape technique and barely stopped in front of the mountain gate, only a step away.

The middle-aged man in golden clothes used the escape technique, and in two steps, he arrived in front of them, looking at Li Qinghong.

In Li Qinghong's mind, the image of Fei Wangbai, whose head fell to the ground in twenty or thirty moves, appeared. She calmed down quickly and said softly:

"I do not know which Immortal Sect's Senior this is? This junior is Li Qinghong of Qingdu, I have met the Senior."

He raised his brows and smiled, and said softly:

"Li Tongya has taught a good successor! What a thunder talisman! If I had just entered Foundation Establishment and eaten this move unprepared, I would have suffered some minor injuries."

The middle-aged man stared at Li Qinghong with interest, and said faintly:

(End of chapter)