Zhu Zhongquan looked up at Mount Dongting, his heart churning with turbulent excitement. "Just wait until I reach the Cross-Refinement stage," he muttered under his breath. "Then I can cast my cauldron, refine my Golden Dan, and defeat him!"
A fiery passion burned within his chest.
For every young man in Shendu, an immovable mountain pressed down upon their Dao heart, and that mountain was Xu Ying.
Three years ago, with just one snake and one bell, Xu Ying had fought his way from the Guo manor to Luoshui, and from Luoshui to the Shi Manor, crushing the passionate Dao hearts of countless hot-blooded youths throughout Shendu!
In the eyes of Shendu's younger generation, Xu Ying was already a legend!
*With new territories rising and imperial authority splintered, the Li clan no longer has the power to rule the world,* Zhu Zhongquan thought. *I need Xu Ying's fame. Defeating this ageless immortal, this undefeated myth, will build my momentum and make the Zhu clan back me with everything they have! In the future, I might even be able to claim the throne!*
Suppressing the boiling blood in his veins, Zhu Zhongquan murmured, "He's merely called an ageless immortal by mortals, but I have a true immortal backing me! I've had my fortune told, and the diviner said my military star encroaches upon the Ziwei constellation—I have the destiny of an emperor! Xu Ying, I will borrow your reputation to fuel my rise to glory!"
The Guo and Zhu clans set out once more, scouring Yunmeng Marsh in search of the dragon-headed divine being. Yuan Qi carried Xu Ying on his back, trailing behind the Guo clan's party.
Xu Ying suddenly remembered something and turned to ask Zhu Hongyi, "How did your younger brother manage to unlock all six secret depositories? The six depositories are secrets closely guarded by the great clans, and Bubbling Spring is especially enigmatic and exceedingly rare. How did he find it?"
Zhu Hongyi plucked a few notes on her pipa to tune the strings, replying, "Zhongquan's aptitude is far superior to mine. He caught the eye of the old immortal in the prisoner cart, who passed on Dao techniques and divine abilities to him. His standing in the Zhu clan has long surpassed my own."
Xu Ying cast an inquisitive glance at the prisoner cart draped in black cloth. "An old immortal?"
Zhu Hongyi gave a charming smile. "Indeed. Back when Demon King Xu was rumored to be an immortal person, it caused quite a sensation in Shendu. But nowadays, immortal people and ageless immortals are hardly a novelty among the prominent clans. Any clan without an old immortal to its name would probably be stripped of its status!"
She covered her mouth with a light chuckle. "Why, clans like the Pei, Cui, and Li have even hoarded several old immortals! Great clans like them are truly formidable, far surpassing minor families like ours."
Guo Xiaodie chimed in, "Our old ancestor has no filter on his mouth; he blabs about everything to anyone who'll listen. Back then, when you all entered our old ancestor's cave-heaven, you captured a little fairy. After she slipped away, our ancestor teamed up with others to explore the cave-heaven again and ended up capturing another immortal from the other shore. Once word got out, it created a massive uproar, and every major clan scrambled to find ways into the cave-heavens and reach the other shore in search of those immortals."
The "little fairy" she spoke of was, of course, Zhu Chanchan.
Yuan Qi inquired, "How do you treat those immortals of the other shore?"
Guo Xiaodie and Zhu Hongyi exchanged a glance. Zhu Hongyi kept silent.
Guo Xiaodie sighed. "We have no choice but to keep them imprisoned. We shackle their limbs so they can't flee, seal their Realm of Xiyi so they can't recover their cultivation, and suppress their spiritual consciousness so they can't bewitch people's minds."
Hearing this, Xu Ying looked toward the prisoner cart in the Zhu clan's procession, a thought stirring in his mind. *The one inside that cart is almost certainly an immortal from the other shore.*
Seeing that Guo Xiaodie had spoken so openly, Zhu Hongyi no longer concealed anything and added, "If they cooperate and are willing to explain Qi Refinement techniques to us, we spare them torture. But if they refuse to cooperate, they do have to endure a bit of punishment."
Yuan Qi felt a pang of sorrow and whispered to Xu Ying, "If Old Ancestor Chanchan ever fell into their hands, her fate would be worse than death."
The big bronze bell gave a cold sneer. "Seventh Master, you think far too highly of these prominent clans! Those immortals of the other shore are just substitutes for Ah Ying! If Ah Ying ever fell into their clutches, his end wouldn't be any prettier!"
Zhu Hongyi smiled without showing her teeth. "There is only one ageless immortal, so everyone would naturally pamper him, terrified of getting him killed. But there are plenty of immortals on the other shore. Even if one dies from torture, we can always venture back to the other shore and capture another."
Xu Ying inquired, "What exactly is that dragon-headed divine being in Yunmeng Marsh? Why are both your clans pursuing it?"
Both Zhu Hongyi and Guo Xiaodie hesitated. Seeing this, Xu Ying chuckled. "If it is inconvenient to say, you don't have to."
"What's there to hide?"
Li Yingzhu glided over gracefully against the wind. Her light, sheer dress clung tightly to her curves in the breeze, accentuating her fine figure. She smiled and said, "The immortal of the other shore imprisoned by our Guo clan revealed that the dragon-headed divine being in Yunmeng Marsh isn't a living creature at all, but the manifestation of a Heavenly Dao divine artifact."
*A deceitful vixen who never keeps her word!* The big bell felt nothing but annoyance toward this woman.
Xu Ying took in her appearance and quietly visualized to steady his spiritual consciousness. "Could Second Aunt elaborate?"
As Li Yingzhu arrived beside them, her presence instantly outshone the two younger women. Her enchanting eyes shimmered with a soul-stealing allure as she smiled. "It wasn't much of a secret to begin with. Most of the major clans probably know by now, though none of them have said it out loud. Our Guo clan's old immortal told us that the dragon-headed god is a Heavenly Dao divine artifact that crashed into the mortal realm while dispensing heavenly punishment. Unable to return to the heavens, it hid within Yunmeng Marsh. Back in that old immortal's era, many ventured into the marsh seeking it, but none ever succeeded."
She paused briefly before continuing, "Rumor has it that whenever this treasure moves, heavenly thunder accompanies it, rolling in waves, and within the lightning, one can see the dragon-headed god. If one holds this treasure while undergoing tribulation, they can withstand the heavenly tribulation head-on and ascend to the Immortal Realm! I don't know why the Zhu clan came to Yunmeng Marsh, but my Li clan and the Guo clan came solely for this treasure. Since I married into the Guo clan, I didn't join the Li clan's expedition."
Holding her pipa to partially conceal her face, Zhu Hongyi chuckled softly. "Our Zhu clan came for this treasure as well. That is why we brought the old immortal along."
Li Yingzhu turned her gaze toward her with a knowing smile. "Not only did you bring your old immortal, but you also want to pull this ageless immortal onto the Zhu clan's war chariot. Little sister Zhu, your neckline is cut so low that a pair of little bunnies are practically ready to burst forth!"
Never having faced such forward teasing, Zhu Hongyi's face flushed crimson. Shielding her face behind her pipa, she fled Yuan Qi's forehead in flustered embarrassment, likely heading off to change her clothes.
Li Yingzhu quietly nudged Guo Xiaodie with her elbow and whispered, "I've driven away the nuisance for you; the rest is up to you. That's as much as your aunt can do to help." With that, she reached over and tugged Xiaodie's collar downward.
"Second Aunt, if you pull any more, they'll burst forth too!" Guo Xiaodie snapped in embarrassment, sending Li Yingzhu flying with a punch.
Li Yingzhu flew into the distance with tears in her eyes.
*Splash!*
Suddenly, the waters of Yunmeng Marsh surged ahead. A colossal creature leaped out from the depths—a gargantuan fish equipped with two pairs of fleshy fins that resembled four broad wings. Flapping its fleshy wings, it skimmed across the water's surface, snapping its massive jaws down toward the Nuo masters scouting the way ahead!
*Boom!*
Its cavernous mouth slammed shut with a muffled, thunderous roar. The dozen or so Guo clan Nuo masters at the front were swallowed whole before they could even struggle.
Behind them, a flurry of Guo clan Nuo masters surged forward, unleashing their techniques in full force. Yet their attacks struck the giant fish's hide without leaving even a scratch!
"It's a full-grown primordial behemoth!"
Li Yingzhu and Guo Yue rushed forward, opening their cave-heavens to engage the giant fish in close combat. Other Guo clan Grand Nuo practitioners also swarmed in, but the colossal fish let loose a roar, unleashing an invisible wave of sound that threw everyone flying in all directions.
A Guo clan elder manifested eight cave-heavens to finally check the creature's charge. The crowd swarmed back in, leaving the giant fish bruised and battered, yet they remained unable to land a fatal blow.
Realizing it was outmatched, the giant fish lashed its mighty tail, swatting dozens of Grand Nuo aside, and plunged back into the depths, vanishing without a trace.
This ambush left over a hundred Nuo masters of the Guo clan dead or wounded, dealing a heavy blow to their morale.
Not long after, the Zhu clan suffered an attack from another primordial behemoth. That beast was also fully grown, its bloodline completely awakened, crouching among the mountains and waters like a small island.
Its surprise strike inflicted heavy casualties on the Zhu clan's Nuo masters. Only when several elders joined forces to manifest their unrefined Primordial Spirits did they finally force it to retreat.
Observing these two brutal battles, Xu Ying could see that the great clans had indeed made rapid progress.
*When the Nuo masters of both clans made their moves just now, nearly every one of them had cultivated two or three secret depositories. It seems uniting the six depositories through Qi Refinement techniques has already spread among the Nuo masters.*
Xu Ying felt quite gratified. The dual cultivation of Nuo and Qi had first been pioneered by Zhou Qiyun and later perfected by Xu Ying before spreading throughout Shendu.
Zhou Qiyun deserved credit as the forerunner, but Xu Ying's contributions were equally immense!
*When an impasse is reached, change is called for; change leads to breakthrough. Rigidly clinging to ancestral ways without adaptation will only leave you gathering dust on a shelf like an antique,* Xu Ying thought, his mind drifting toward Xu Fu.
Knowing that a single clan's strength was insufficient to explore Yunmeng Marsh, the Guo and Zhu clans banded together, advancing side by side to watch over and assist each other, which relieved much of the pressure.
The deeper they ventured into Yunmeng Marsh, the more perilous it became.
Monstrous birds with iron feathers lurked amidst the wilderness. Flying faster than flying swords, they would swoop down, seize a person in their talons, and take off. Other birds would swarm in, tearing the victim apart midair in their squabbling feeding frenzy.
After suffering repeated losses, the two clans had no choice but to activate their Dharma treasures beforehand, shielding the airspace above.
"Ah Ying, I'm hungry!" Yuan Qi cried out when he saw the strange birds swooping in once more.
Xu Ying leaped into the air. Yuan Qi surged forward, enveloped in sword qi, whistling through the sky as he chased down the iron-feathered birds, swallowing them one by one. The Nuo masters of both clans cheered in admiration.
Xu Ying drifted lightly down onto the water's surface, treading across the mirror-smooth lake as he kept pace with the two clans.
Over the past two days, he had finally perfected the orthodox method of the *Underworld Scripture*. Using the techniques of dragon-seeking and meridian-fixing, he began searching for his Bubbling Spring secret depository.
"Lord Bell, protect me!"
At Xu Ying's call, the big bell immediately flew out and hovered above his head.
As Xu Ying followed the two clans' main force deeper into Yunmeng Marsh step by step, inside his Realm of Xiyi, a Golden Dan radiant with ten thousand beams of light rose from the cauldron and descended from the heavens.
The countless rays of light seemed almost tangible, chiming crisply as they illuminated the land within his Realm of Xiyi.
The Golden Dan soared over mountains and rivers, illuminating every corner of the continent. Before long, Xu Ying pinpointed the dragon veins and located the Yellow Springs.
The Golden Dan sank into the Yellow Springs, shining downward as it delved deeper beneath the earth. Thick conduits ran everywhere through the underworld currents, with vitality and blood coursing within them, shimmering with an enigmatic, pulsing glow.
The location of the Yellow Springs was exceedingly covert, and its interior twisted through nine bends and eighteen curves, like a descent into the eighteen levels of hell.
Upon reaching the deepest expanse, one arrived at the Nether Sea. A single lotus floated upon its waters, poised to bloom.
That unbloomed lotus was none other than the Bubbling Spring secret depository!
*According to the records in the Underworld Scripture, this secret depository comes in a pair: one in the left foot and one in the right foot. Only by opening both can the Bubbling Spring secret depository truly be unlocked. The Six Secret Depositories of the Human Body actually contain seven depositories in total!*
At this realization, Xu Ying's thoughts stirred.
*Wait, I saw that Zhu Zhongquan only opened a single Bubbling Spring depository. Could the old immortal who taught him have held something back? If so, that old immortal harbors ill intentions!*
Besides Zhu Zhongquan, Old Ancestor Shi had also opened only a single Bubbling Spring depository.
With no time to dwell on it, Xu Ying propelled his Golden Dan. Radiance swirled from the Golden Dan and settled into the lotus.
A moment later, the lotus upon the Nether Sea erupted with brilliant light. Layer upon layer of petals unfurled, broad leaves sprouted from the waters, and the flower rose higher and higher!
It was a lotus-shaped cave-heaven rooted in the Nether Sea, drawing celestial medicine from its depths. Absorbed and purified by the leaves and petals, the medicine welled up from the blossom-like cave-heaven!
The energy contained within this celestial medicine was extraordinary, unlike any from the other depositories.
The medicine of the Mud Pill depository provided vitality, enhancing physical vigor and longevity. The Yellow Court's medicine provided spiritual consciousness, bolstering the mind and sharpening perception to harmonize with the Dao.
The Crimson Palace provided heart power, strengthening the physique and elevating vitality. The Jade Pool provided origin qi, nurturing fundamental essence and boosting innate talent. The Jade Capital provided yin and yang qi, refining medicine into the eyes to discern the dual forces and perceive all transformations.
Xu Ying was already familiar with the medicines of those depositories, but though he had fished celestial medicine from the Nether Sea before, he had never known the true function of the Bubbling Spring's medicine.
*Let me open the other Bubbling Spring depository first and see if anything changes!*
Xu Ying directed his Golden Dan out of the depository and flew toward the matching location on the opposite side of his Realm of Xiyi.
Once the second lotus cave-heaven opened, Xu Ying felt the celestial medicine from both depositories rise together, emerging from the Yellow Springs to merge into a single stream.
The moment the medicines united, the lotuses throughout the Realm of Xiyi burst into full bloom, bathing the surroundings in light.
He instantly sensed his soul gradually flourishing under the nourishment of this celestial medicine.
Xu Ying had an epiphany. *The Bubbling Spring secret depository holds the celestial medicine of the soul! It is meant for refining the soul!*
He was filled with pleasant surprise. For a long time, he had felt no advancement in his soul cultivation. Now that the Bubbling Spring secret depository was unlocked, he could temper his soul, strengthening both his imperishable true spirit and his ethereal souls!
In the second Knocking on the Pass stage, one must breach the Jiaji Pass, after which the soul and the Golden Dan would merge within the Twelve Storied Pavilions. Traversing those pavilions, they would transform into a Primordial Spirit to ascend to the Yao Pool, undergo baptism, cross the God Bridge, and finally knock on the Heavenly Pass to achieve ascension!
With the soul-refining celestial medicine of the Bubbling Spring, his path of cultivation would become vastly smoother!
Xu Ying opened his eyes and circulated the Taiyi Guiding Technique. Celestial medicine poured ceaselessly from the six great depositories within his body, refined layer upon layer before infusing his frame.
Summoning his Golden Dan, Xu Ying drove the orthodox arts of the six depositories to open three successive cave-heavens within the Bubbling Spring depository. Only when his Golden Dan's strength was exhausted, unable to breach a fourth, did he stop.
He now possessed six secret depositories and twenty-one cave-heavens, their radiant splendors reflecting against one another in the Realm of Xiyi. Simultaneously, the acupoints across his flesh linked to myriad heavens in the void, bestowing him with an overwhelming, majestic power.
Having eaten his fill, Yuan Qi flew over, plunged into the water, and reared up, lifting Xu Ying onto his head. "Ah Ying, I'm stuffed!"
Xu Ying said, "Seventh Master, I've opened the Bubbling Spring secret depository. I can locate the veins and find your Bubbling Spring depository for you now."
Yuan Qi was overjoyed, thinking to himself, *Three years ago, I was just a snake hunted by Ah Ying. A single choice led me to follow him for three years, and now I'm going to become a Qi Refiner with all six depositories unlocked!*
He cheered inwardly. *That foolish bell only learned the Eight Sounds of Primordial Nurturing from Ah Ying—it can't match me at all! As my strength grows and his wanes, the day will come when I can pin that silly bell down and give it a sound beating!*
Just then, a commotion erupted ahead. Someone pointed into the distance and shouted, "Look! Quick, look!"
Yuan Qi raised his head higher, and Xu Ying, standing atop the serpent's crown, gazed far into the distance. Wreaths of cooking smoke drifted gently ahead, and a stone city came into view.
Beside the stone city lay several villages, also sending up curling trails of smoke as midday approached.
"How could there be people living in Yunmeng Marsh?" Xu Ying murmured in disbelief.
At that moment, an aged voice drifted out from the Zhu clan's prisoner cart. "Zhu Zhongquan, they are the migrants of Yunmeng Marsh..."
Chapter 137