Chapter 279

Dragon List, thirty-first.

Unmatched in the world!

Firelight seemed to flicker in his eyes, yet Li Yuan felt no joy; instead, his expression grew slightly Solemn.

Li Yuan had learned quite a bit about the Dragon List's rules: the ranking depends on Martial cultivation realm and martial arts attainment, with talent accounting for little.

And by common sense, a change in ranking should require at least practicing Wu Gong once within the inner sect, yet he had just returned, and the Dragon List had already updated?

"This furnace is far too sensitive. Moreover, it seems somewhat different..."

The moment this thought flashed through Li Yuan's mind, he sensed something amiss; the firelight surging in his eyes suddenly exploded, and a chill instantly flooded his heart, as if falling into an ice cave in the dead of winter.

Buzz~

The Sea-Splitting Black Whale Hammer trembled slightly, and the strange phenomenon vanished.

"No wonder the Dragon List updated so quickly; that Life-Nourishing Furnace was actually seeking me out?!"

Li Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly thought of Old Dragon Head.

Did the old man go to the Life-Nourishing Mi Jing?

"With both Dragon and Tiger appearing..."

After a slight start, Li Yuan had already calmed down; he did not wish to show off, but only to avoid unnecessary trouble, not out of fear.

As a direct disciple of the Great Dragon Sect Master, he was not without backing; even if they knew it was him, what then?

"Hmm... if it truly was Old Dragon Head who activated the Life-Nourishing Furnace, then he will likely come looking for me immediately..."

As Li Yuan pondered this, his peripheral vision caught a rainbow light glowing in the snowy night; looking up, he saw Long Xi Xiang, steps taken as if flying amidst swirling True Qi.

"This old man usually appears slow and steady, but he is also a decisive and forceful type."

Li Yuan straightened his robes and went to meet him.

However, Long Xi Xiang's figure did not pause; he swept straight across the sky above Li Yuan's courtyard and quickly vanished into the snowy night, seemingly returning to the Great Dragon Sect's main peak.

"Ah?"

Just as Li Yuan was suspicious, wondering if he had guessed wrong, he heard Long Xi Xiang's voice, transmitted by sound:

"Dragon coiled, tiger crouching; a disciple with such endowment in our Great Dragon Sect this generation is truly beyond my expectations."

Before the voice arrived, Long Xi Xiang appeared from nowhere; his Dao robe was slightly disordered, whether blown by the wind or from a fight with someone, and now his gaze, sharp as a torch, fixed upon Li Yuan.

The old man's eyes sparkled, looking as if he were gazing upon a rare treasure of the world.

Seeing his expression, Li Yuan's heart immediately settled.

Then, Long Xi Xiang spoke, his face full of praise:

"What is your surname and given name, and whose disciple are you?"

"..."

At this question, Li Yuan nearly lost his composure.

In one month, he had at least requested an audience five times; so he hadn't even remembered who he was?

"No, somewhat familiar."

Long Xi Xiang muttered, pulling a large handful of papers from his robe.

"Li Yuan."

Li Yuan bowed in greeting, and Long Xi Xiang simultaneously raised his head, the sharp light in his eyes almost becoming tangible:

"You... you are actually my disciple?!"

Shock!

Li Yuan heard immense shock in the old man's voice.

"Disciple Li Yuan, paying respects to Master!"

Li Yuan let out a long breath; he wanted to gift the old man a portrait to hang in his room, so he would see himself every time he opened his eyes.

"Good, good, good!"

Long Xi Xiang's Bai Xi face flushed, as if he had drunk a jar of strong wine; he instinctively reached out to place a hand on Li Yuan's shoulder, yet withdrew the force, brushing the snowflakes from his shoulder:

"Good child, come with me."

"Yes."

Li Yuan relaxed, not asking where he was being taken, simply obeying every word.

"Good child."

Long Xi Xiang's smile grew even broader, and he even began to explain:

"You made quite a scene today; although you hid in time, you were still spotted by two old rascals. You must hide better, or else there will be two more old rascals afterward..."

Whoosh!

Li Yuan felt a heat on his shoulder, and his entire body lifted into the air.

Opening his eyes to look, pure white True Qi flowed around both of them like liquid mercury, forming a barrier that wrapped them; with a light tap of his foot, Long Xi Xiang had already reached several li away.

Li Yuan's vision was now extremely keen; Long Xi Xiang was not merely hovering in empty space, but truly riding the wind, and that True Qi, flowing like a living creature, seemed to interact with invisible air currents in a way he did not understand.

"One, two, three li gone; no, five or six li already!"

Li Yuan's eyes sparkled; hearing about it and experiencing it were naturally different; this feeling, as if flying, thrilled him greatly.

Riding the wind, hovering in empty space; he had heard these words countless times in his past life, but this was a direct experience!

"Flying to the heavens, diving into the earth!"

Whoosh!

A few rises and falls, actually more like a single line drawn; upon landing, they had already reached the small temple behind Dragon Mountain, faster even than the white crane that Xin Xin Wenhua treasured so highly!

Inside the small temple, Long Xi Xiang swept his sleeve, and surging True Qi, like liquid mercury, enveloped the entire courtyard, isolating the inside from the outside and illuminating the whole temple.

"Those two old rascals still want to follow me?"

Long Xi Xiang snorted coldly, feeling quite pleased; though he could not recall when he had taken this disciple, he was naturally immensely satisfied in his heart.

"Master, you..."

Li Yuan returned to his senses, secretly startled in his heart.

That simultaneous appearance of dragon and tiger seemed even more exaggerated than he had imagined.

"Hmm, dragon coiled and tiger crouched; today's people surpass the old. You could attract the will of the Ancestor to manifest together, which shows your talent is at least superior to one of the two Ancestors."

As if seeing what he wanted to ask, Long Xi Xiang answered directly.

He was merely forgetful; whether in vision or otherwise, he remained top-tier in the world. Now, examining Li Yuan closely, he was truly somewhat shocked in his heart.

On the surface, this was just a tall, capable, and vigorous youth, but in his perception, he seemed more like a Jin Dan!

Perfectly rounded and without flaw, the Dao-body formed by heaven.

"This..."

This evaluation was too high; Daoist Li did not know how to be modest for a moment.

"It is just a bit strange."

Long Xi Xiang held a piece of paper in his hand, on which was written that he had taken Li Yuan as a disciple, and the feat where Li Yuan had once attracted the appearance of the Azure Dragon shadow.

Had he forgotten to record it before, or had he misjudged?

But he felt it was wrong; with his eyesight, unless a Earth Immortal stood before him, how could he possibly misjudge?

Furthermore, if he misjudged, did the Ancestor misjudge too?

"Hmm... with your endowment, logically, the Ancestor should have noticed it the moment you entered the sect."

"This..."

Li Yuan lowered his head, his thoughts flashing like lightning; on the road, he had been thinking about how to explain.

He knew little about Daoist Tianyun Daoist Tianyun Xuanbing, but in the books he had flipped through and in various legends, none mentioned that Daoist Tianyun Daoist Tianyun Xuanbing had a method of recreation.

Or perhaps it existed, but no one had passed it down?

"This disciple does not know either."

Unable to answer, Li Yuan could only shake his head.

"Hmm, or perhaps your endowment is special?"

Long Xi Xiang thought for a moment, but with over forty years of memory missing, he could not even recall what Li Yuan looked like when he last saw him, so he could only guess:

"This old man has heard that there are some extremely special physiques in this world that often require extremely harsh conditions to shine; perhaps you are this kind?"

He recalled many famous figures in history, such as that Great Destiny Taizu; it was said he bore the form of the Great Sun, yet only revealed his sharp edge at seventy or eighty years old,

and before that, no one could see any sign.

"Are there such physiques?"

Li Yuan wore a 'face of confusion', committing these words to his heart.

Next time Old Dragon Head asked again, he would know how to answer.

As for this time, even if the answer had some errors or omissions, it did not matter; after all, next time he would forget.

"Heaven and earth are vast, containing everything."

Long Xi Xiang had no intention of digging to the root; with a light remark, he passed over the matter and asked about Li Yuan's Wu Gong.

To this, Li Yuan did not conceal:

"Replying to Master's words, the Dragon Zen Vajra Sutra is still lacking some refinement; the Dragon Tiger Hun Tian Hammer has just reached Great Perfection!"

"Hmm, Great Perfection, hmm? Great Perfection?!"

Long Xi Xiang's eyelid twitched; he rummaged through a pile of papers again and quickly found it.

Li Yuan glanced quickly; scattered words were written on it: 'Today transmitted half of the Dragon Tiger Hun Tian Hammer to Li Yuan', 'Today lent Li Yuan a Nu Qing chicken egg; his hammer technique reached Minor Perfection', along with corresponding dates.

"Today is November twentieth..."

Long Xi Xiang pinched his fingers to calculate; he was calculating the time:

"Only a month ago I transmitted half the Hun Tian Hammer to you; now, you have already reached Great Perfection?"

Buzz!

Li Yuan raised his hand, five fingers clasped together; his fist fell like a hammer in the air. Only the sound of 'Buzz' was heard, and the entire small temple shook.

The Dragon Tiger Hun Tian Hammer values momentum over techniques; this punch of his was precisely control over momentum.

"Good."

Long Xi Xiang clapped his hands in praise; he looked Li Yuan up and down, feeling more and more satisfied the more he looked:

"Hmm, your attainment is very deep; you can already learn the second half of the Dragon Tiger Hun Tian Hammer!"

Old Dragon Head was very satisfied and very generous; he directly took out the second half of the Dragon Tiger Hun Tian Hammer and handed it to Li Yuan:

"At the back of the manual, there is a Mi Fa created by your master. Read it yourself first; if there is anything you do not understand, come ask this old man!"

"Thank you, Master, for transmitting the technique!"

Li Yuan bowed deeply, feeling somewhat moved in his heart.

Compared to the difficulty when first learning the White Ape Cape Hammer, now, a supreme art passed down by the Dao Sect, he obtained it easily.

"Your talent is supreme, but do not be showy. Regarding tonight's matter, this old man casually covered it up for you. As for the Dragon List..."

Long Xi Xiang frowned slightly; although he casually erased the traces of Li Yuan triggering the simultaneous appearance of dragon and tiger from the Health Furnace, the Dragon List ranking involved the Health Furnace choosing its master, which was beyond his control.

"To the outside world, just say you have mastered the 'Long Xiang Heliu' that I taught you!"

"Long Xiang Heliu?"

Li Yuan's heart stirred; previously at Dechang Prefecture, was Old Dragon Head's true qi manifesting form fighting that Crimson Flame Dragon King using this?

"This is a Mi Fa created by this old man."

Long Xi Xiang did not explain further; he only instructed him on what to say to the outside world and how to conceal himself.

"A tree that stands out in the forest will surely be battered by the wind. Your talent is too great, your endowment too high; you are easily coveted. If you can hide, then hide—it does no harm."

"Thank you, Master, for the guidance."

Li Yuan deeply agreed; he had always done exactly this.

"Mm."

Long Xi Xiang nodded: "With your talent, there is no need to aim too high. Do not force the True Transmission. What is meant to be yours will be yours."

"This disciple shall remember."

Holding the second half of the Dragon-Tiger Hun Tian Hammer, Li Yuan did not waste the opportunity and requested the second half of the Dragon Zen Vajra Sutra.

Long Xi Xiang only pondered for a moment before granting it to him.

Li Yuan let out a long breath, bowed, and withdrew.

Thus, in less than a year since entering the sect, he had already acquired two supreme arts!

"Hah!"

Watching Li Yuan depart, Long Xi Xiang let out a long breath, did not withdraw his True Qi, waved his hand, and summoned paper and brush.

"Mm..."

He thought for a moment, took out the thick stack of papers on his person and began to flip through them. After a short while, understanding dawned in his heart, and only then did he write furiously.

Before long, a painting appeared beneath his brush, lifelike, depicting Li Yuan.

"Dragon and Tiger appear together, the closed-door disciple, Li Yuan!"

"Today I transmitted the Dragon-Elephant Convergence to him. If it fits, the 'Dragon-Elephant Vajra Heaven' may also be transmitted to him..."

"He must hide. Guard against Cang Cang Xianzhi, Brother Helian Feng, mm, Nie Xianshan, and even Old Dragon must be guarded against."

"The only concern is Long Long Xinglie and the position of Dao Son..."

Long Xi Xiang wrote furiously, recording all his thoughts and speculations in his heart before he could forget them.

On the last sheet of paper, the three characters 'Li Li Yuanba' were marked.

"A transformation of talent, or perhaps the Heavenly Luck Daoist Tianyun Daoist Tianyun Xuanbing? Perhaps..."

Long Xi Xiang murmured to himself, wrote it down, then felt it was improper. He extended his hand and shook that page of paper into dust, only then nodding:

"If even I cannot remember, that is truly secure."