Chapter 63: Chapter Sixty-Three: Floating Jade Lake

The sky was gradually turning dusk, countless rays of sunset spreading endlessly, crimson light swirling and lingering, shimmering and transforming in deep, magnificent beauty, like a priceless brocade silk too gorgeous to look away from.

And the figure on the nearby cushion was equally lofty and radiant as the clouds.

Hearing Wei Lingjiang’s voice, Chen Hang slightly turned his head, his expression as calm and unchanging as ever.

“You—”

“I won’t give up the Dao art, Sister.”

His tone remained utterly still, like an ancient well long dried up, naturally incapable of stirring any ripples or waves.

Wei Lingjiang fell silent for a moment, unable to help casting another scathing glance at Chen Hang; her slender fingers beneath her sleeves clenched unconsciously into fists, blood surging.

Shortly after her birth, she had been brought back to the Chi Ming Sect’s mountain gate by the clumsy and quiet Daoist, and had spent her entire life seated in quiet cultivation within the cave-heaven, rarely descending the mountain even during festivals.

Thus, those she encountered were mostly fellow disciples, attendants, Dao soldiers, and spiritual beasts.

All of them, before her, were humble and courteous, or utterly reverent.

Even senior members of the sect, mindful of her family background and talent, treated her with considerable warmth.

How could she have ever encountered someone like Chen Hang?

He was utterly impervious to persuasion or pressure, driven solely by self-interest, devoid of any grace or bearing—truly hateful and detestable!

“I didn’t come to talk about Dao art!”

Wei Lingjiang’s face was expressionless as she transmitted her voice: “Don’t you find it strange? Why did that horde of heavenly demons fixate solely on you and us? They’re locusts—drawn to spiritual energy. The Southern Region is vast—why must it be you and me they target?”

“What do you mean, Sister?”

“I just wonder—aside from that ancient primordial array, even the Gangqi layer alone should be sufficient to repel Demon Lords and Demon Gods. How did these lower heavenly demons even manage to enter the Southern Region?”

Wei Lingjiang frowned: “You’re from the Southern Region too—have you ever seen traces of heavenly demons in all these years?”

“Never. Today is the first time I’ve seen them with my own eyes.”

Chen Hang rose solemnly and asked earnestly:

“But what exactly is this ‘Gangqi layer’? What are Demon Lords and Demon Gods? Can their cultivation levels compare to Golden Core or Primordial Spirit True Persons?”

“...”

Wei Lingjiang felt a pang of helplessness; she realized she’d asked a blind man for directions.

She wanted to end the topic, but gazing into those deep, dark eyes, she merely turned her face slightly away, avoiding his gaze, and answered all his questions from start to finish.

When she finished, Chen Hang had already bowed and sat back down, his brows slightly furrowed, his expression thoughtful.

“Why were you so cold before, and now so deferential!”

At this moment,

The green-clad girl child, who had been sprawled on her cushion asleep, suddenly perked up, sensing something entertaining was about to unfold; she flipped upright with startling energy.

She glanced between Wei Lingjiang and Chen Hang, her eyes rolling, then deliberately placed her hands on her hips and shouted loudly:

“You’ve always been distant with my mistress—only warming up slightly when you need answers. How cold-hearted! In novels, people like you are called… what’s it again?”

She scratched her chubby face, looking helplessly at Wei Lingjiang—but received no response.

So she turned back to Chen Hang, rubbing her head in frustration.

“Unshaken by beauty, refined in conduct—you must mean ‘upright gentleman’?”

Chen Hang replied casually.

“Honestly, you’re shameless… saying that word without a flicker of embarrassment.”

The green-clad girl sighed in admiration and gave him a thumbs-up: “I don’t know about ‘refined in conduct,’ but whether you’re ‘unshaken by beauty’ remains to be seen—wait till my mistress actually sits in your lap—”

Before she finished,

Her forehead was sharply tapped, tears instantly springing to her eyes!

The girl in green clutched her head and crouched down, visibly wronged; when she lifted her resentful gaze, she saw Wei Lingjiang calmly withdrawing her hand.

“Spiritual bodies are so inconvenient! If my true body were here, even if my mistress beat me senseless as usual, I wouldn’t feel a single ache! Not one bit! Not at all!”

The green-clad girl screamed inwardly.

At this moment,

Through tear-blurred eyes, she sharply noticed a faint, jade-white flush creeping along the back of Wei Lingjiang’s ear—so subtle, yet gradually tinged with the hue of peach blossoms.

“...”

The green-clad girl stared, stunned—until Wei Lingjiang shot her a sharp glare, jolting her back to reality.

“Hahaha! My mistress is blushing? This is hilarious! So funny!”

She didn’t even bother wiping her tears, nor did she pretend to be pitiful on the ground; she burst into laughter, leaping up and scampering happily over to Chen Hang’s side.

“What do you think of my mistress?”

The green-clad girl patted his shoulder affectionately, speaking kindly: “Young man, be bold! If you don’t speak your heart, how will anyone know? And—”

Her words came fast as a fat sparrow chirping insistently beside the ear, noisy and irritating.

Chen Hang released the talisman coin beneath his sleeve, shook his head, and ceased drawing in spiritual energy.

He had considered driving the green-clad girl away, to avoid disturbing his cultivation.

But her earlier words held truth—he had, after all, received a great divine art for free, and countless pointers without cost; to act as he had before was indeed cold and ungrateful.

“Sister has cleared my doubts and taught me divine art—I hold nothing but reverence and affection for her, and dare not slight her in the slightest.”

Chen Hang said calmly: “If you keep speaking like this, once we disembark from this Golden Cloud Airship, you’ll surely be punished by Sister and suffer physical pain.”

“Reverence, affection, affection—you love my mistress… Hahaha!”

The green-clad girl’s eyes crinkled into slits as she rolled on the ground in delight, like a tumbling gourd, completely ignoring Chen Hang’s final words.

“Sister is indeed forgiving.”

Chen Hang smiled, his voice unruffled.

“She was born with a faulty mind—stupid since birth. Are you the same?”

Wei Lingjiang glanced at Chen Hang without emotion:

“Anyone who talks to a fool is a fool too. Seeing you chat so cheerfully with her, I’ll have to treat my younger brother the same way from now on—equally lenient.”

“Thank you, but Sister has already been generous enough to me…”

Chen Hang lifted his eyes quietly, a faint smile on his lips.

In the fading crimson twilight, a young man with jet-black hair and jade-like features, ethereal as a celestial being, gazed at her with a smile—posture upright, figure tall and slender, his white robes as pure as snow, evoking the image of a towering jade mountain.

His brow had always carried a distant, cold indifference, like heavy spring frost, making him seem unapproachable at a glance.

Yet now, when he smiled so rarely, it was as if spring mountains melted into snow—radiating a quiet, wordless warmth that made one involuntarily intoxicated.

Wei Lingjiang met his gaze for a moment, then softly snorted inwardly, unmoved:

“No matter how eloquently you speak, you still owe me a favor—don’t think you can slip away!”

“Your younger brother dares not forget.”

Chen Hang bowed.

At this moment, the green-clad girl’s laughter grew louder, shaking the cabin; as she rolled, she muttered under her breath words like “elopement” and “son-in-law,” making Wei Lingjiang’s temper rise.

Even the Daoist piloting the Golden Cloud Airship couldn’t help glancing over, several times nearly turning to watch, but restrained himself out of propriety, a faint smile barely visible on his face.

Wei Lingjiang pressed her lips together and flicked her slender fingers lightly.

The next instant, the green-clad girl’s laughter turned into cries of pain and pleading; when she finally sulked on her cushion, the airship finally fell silent.

Chen Hang smiled at this, saying nothing more.

He simply closed his eyes, resumed gripping the talisman coin beneath his sleeve, and slowly drew out the remaining spiritual energy, refining it into his own primordial breath.

Though the “Tai Shi Yuan Zhen” demanded immense primordial breath,

Each level of Qi Refinement advancement required a colossal quantity.

Yet after this period of cultivation, even though most spiritual energy had been channeled into the Tai Su Jade Body, he was already close to breaking through to the fourth level of Qi Refinement—just one step away.

As soon as the spiritual energy from the talisman coin entered his body, a warm, soothing sensation flowed through Chen Hang’s limbs and marrow, reviving him completely, as if all fatigue vanished.

But if this spiritual energy was not swiftly refined into primordial breath through Qi Refinement methods, it would leak from his flesh and return to heaven and earth, becoming one of the 129,600 forms of spiritual potential, never to return.

This is why Qi Refinement demands intense focus—

Many Qi Refinement cultivators who fail to subdue their restless mind and wandering thoughts, whose mental chatter is chaotic, find themselves exhausted not only during Qi Gathering, but also during Qi Refinement.

Often, a single lapse of concentration, and the spiritual energy painstakingly gathered would leak from the body before being refined, rendering all effort wasted.

Thus, though Qi Refinement is the simplest realm in the Immortal Path—merely requiring sufficient primordial breath to ascend—

Those who navigate it with ease are rare indeed.

Qi Gathering and Qi Refinement…

These two are the two great barriers of this realm.

Though Chen Hang’s “Tai Shi Yuan Zhen” has no trouble with Qi Gathering—capable of utilizing all 129,600 forms of spiritual energy, truly “Dragon Heaven Illuminated, All True Ones Gathered”—

He still spent long years testing himself within the True Realm to subdue his wandering mind and restless thoughts, achieving complete control over his thoughts and natural, effortless conduct.

Now, even while multitasking, he would not make a single error in Qi Refinement, let alone allow spiritual energy to leak from his body.

Watching the faint spiritual energy swirl and linger on Chen Hang’s face, his aura shifting between softness and strength, following some mysterious rhythm like a gentle inhale and exhale,

Wei Lingjiang knew he was in Qi Refinement and did not disturb him; she too gently closed her bright eyes and entered meditation.

On the cushion,

The girl pretending to be angry suddenly lifted her head, stealing a glance at the two seated figures, then grinned.

Just as she was about to laugh, Wei Lingjiang’s voice pierced her mind like lightning:

“Qing Zhi, if you misbehave again, you won’t get any food—not even your true body in the cave-heaven! At least fifty years!”

“...”

Qing Zhi, the green-clad girl, stared in disbelief, then scrambled over to Wei Lingjiang’s side; after several breaths of silence, seeing her mistress ignored her, she let out a long, desolate sigh.

"What ungratefulness! I was trying to help you arrange a wonderful match, and now you're getting angry? Clearly, the young lady was cuter when she was naive as a child—now she's just no fun!"

Qingzhi muttered under her breath:

"Isn't the Blue Bird supposed to tie red threads? I feel Miss will never find a Dao partner in her lifetime, leaving all my skills utterly useless! It's such a waste!"

Wei Lingjiang’s sleeve subtly stirred.

Qingzhi startled, quickly covering her forehead and crouching down.

After a long while, seeing she wasn’t struck, she lazily hopped onto the cushion and lay back, staring at the sky again.

An hour later.

The Golden Mist Airship suddenly shuddered in midair, then slowly descended from the clouds.

The tremor made Chen Hang and Wei Lingjiang both open their eyes and rise from their cushions.

The Daoist from Fuyu Lake, who piloted the Golden Mist Airship, stepped into the cabin at that moment, his dark face breaking into a cheerful smile as he bowed respectfully to the two.

"Dear fellow Daoists, you’ve waited long—look below: Fuyu Lake has arrived!"

"This... is Fuyu Lake?"

Chen Hang returned the bow, and as he gazed downward through the clouds, his eyes sharpened.

Before him stretched ten thousand hectares of emerald waves—a vast lake nestled between heaven and earth, its horizon unseen, its waters brilliant and dazzling, flanked by verdant, low hills and small mountains, lush and pleasing to the eye.

This was no mere lake—it was like a sea stretching to the sky, immense beyond measure, boundless as an ocean!

Hundreds of islets dotted the lake, scattered like stars.

From afar, each islet was crowded with pavilions, terraces, towers, and halls of varied designs, adorned with banners and flags—clearly markets and shops of all kinds.

Though the Golden Valley Market had not yet officially opened, these islets were already teeming with pedestrians, their streets packed densely.

Airships and grand river vessels occasionally flew past overhead, their lights flickering in rising and falling patterns, mingled with laughter and chatter—truly bustling with life.

"The Golden Valley Market will be rebuilt here in half a month, dear fellow Daoists. Among the hundreds of islets below, all are occupied by merchants and stalls—whatever you need, you’ll likely find it there!"

The Fuyu Lake Daoist clearly took pride in this:

"Don’t forget the timing of the ceremony in half a month! I hear even many great sects will send representatives—like Xuanyuan Sect, Lianyan Mountain, White Crane Cave... I’ve never seen so many cultivators gathered in one place—it’s truly lively!"

"In my memory, Fuyu Lake never seemed this vast."

Chen Hang smiled: "Today’s sight has truly broadened my horizons."

"Fuyu Lake is large, but not this expansive. My master and mistress together moved entire lands and mountains to create this scene."

At that moment, the Fuyu Lake Daoist suddenly slapped his forehead, as if struck by a sudden thought: "Ah! I nearly forgot my master’s instructions!"

He pulled out two small wooden boxes from his space bag and offered them.

Chen Hang and Wei Lingjiang exchanged a glance, silent for several breaths, yet did not take them.

"We’ve done no service at all—this is too much."

Chen Hang bowed with a smile: "Your master and senior brother are far too generous. We are unworthy of such gifts."