Xu Ying examined the five immortal mountains, observing the flow and contour of the ranges, filled with astonishment in his heart.
"No wonder he is called the Ancestor of Earth Immortals. These five immortal mountains correspond to the five viscera of the human body. In the human Realm of Xiyi, there are Five Sacred Mountains corresponding to the five viscera, yet the Five Sacred Mountains in the Realm of Xiyi are mountains, not internal organs. Thus, removing the flesh-moon radical from the character for viscera transforms it into 'Wuzhuang.'"
As Xu Ying observed them, he remarked, "The character *guan* probably doesn't just mean a Daoist temple; it also means viewing and observing—it refers to inner contemplation. Wuzhuang Temple means internal contemplation of the five viscera and six bowels. The Ancestor of Earth Immortals was the first to discover the inner contemplation of the Realm of Xiyi and find the immortal mountains of the Five Sacred Mountains, thereby inaugurating the path of cultivation. That is why he was revered as the Ancestor of Earth Immortals."
The name "Wuzhuang Temple" held profound meaning.
Xu Ying glanced back along the path they had traveled. The threshold of Wuzhuang Temple was a person's Dao foundation. The deeper one's attainment, the lower the threshold; the shallower one's attainment, the higher the threshold. That was why vast numbers of immortals had been barred outside Wuzhuang Temple, unable to enter. Yet many had still managed to cross inside. Some relied on their own attainment to force their way in, but most had been carried in by masters utilizing treasures such as cave abysses.
Numerous immortals were already scouring the Five Sacred Immortal Mountains for treasures, some coming to blows over immortal herbs and medicines. When Xu Ying and his party arrived, they spotted over a dozen corpses of immortals, showing just how fierce the fighting had been. The imperial carriage moved deeper into the Five Sacred Immortal Mountains. Xu Ying stopped and started along the way, studying the ranges, while the immortals inside Yingzhou leaned out to look, mapping the layout and orientations of the Five Sacred Immortal Mountains of Wuzhuang Temple and organizing their findings.
Given their cultivation and attainment, most of them would have been blocked at the entrance, unable to cross even the threshold. Fortunately, by entering Yingzhou, Xu Ying was able to bring them inside. For them, this was a tremendous stroke of fortune. Merely contemplating the Ancestor of Earth Immortals' Five Sacred Immortal Mountains would substantially bolster the foundation of their cultivation!
Moreover, the mountains held all manner of immortal herbs and medicines that had gone unharvested for more than six hundred thousand years. They had long since transformed into spirits and monsters, respiring the heaven-and-earth spiritual qi and power within the mountains and growing exceptionally formidable. Many of the immortals who had entered earlier were drawn by these spirits; quite a few were battling them fiercely, while others fought over spirits that had already been captured.
The immortals within Yingzhou grew eager to try their luck and flew out from Yingzhou, attempting to capture the immortal herbs and medicines.
Many of these immortal herbs and medicines were formed from undying spiritual light. Consuming them could strengthen one's Undying True Spirit, presenting an immense temptation.
The Divine Mother warned, "Do not wander far, and return promptly, lest you invite fatal disaster!"
Although every immortal of Penglai possessed extraordinary natural talent and comprehension, and their inheritances were by no means weak, none had yet reached the Immortal King realm. They were likely no match even for the plants of Wuzhuang Temple, so the Divine Mother could not help but worry.
Looking into the distance, she even saw immortal herbs parading corpses impaled upon their branches to flaunt their might—presumably immortals who had ventured into the mountains only to be beaten to death by the flora.
Xu Ying paid little mind to the immortal herbs and medicines. Throughout his cultivation, he had rarely needed such things to break through realms.
While unimportant to him, they remained vital to other immortals. When breaking through, they required vast amounts of miraculous elixirs to supply their physical bodies and primordial spirits with immense energy in a single instant, allowing them to shatter their bottlenecks.
Xu Ying guided the imperial carriage higher into the air, viewing the Five Sacred Immortal Mountains from on high to study the Ancestor of Earth Immortals' insights into the Qi Harvesting Stage. He gained immensely, sensing his foundation grow even sturdier. His greatest takeaway was, in fact, this deeper understanding of the Qi Harvesting realm.
*Obtaining the Dao foundation of the Ancestor of Earth Immortals already makes this trip worthwhile!* he thought with deep satisfaction.
"The rebel Xu Ying! He's the rebel Xu Ying!"
Suddenly, an uproar rose from the Five Sacred Immortal Mountains as several people spotted Xu Ying inside the imperial carriage and charged over. Xu Ying was still ranked first on the Immortal Realm's wanted list, making him far more enticing than any immortal herb or medicine.
Xu Ying frowned slightly. With a mere thought, he summoned the strange Heavenly River flower residing in his Ruyi Great Luo Heaven. Instantly, an extraordinary, colossal Heavenly River blossom arose behind him, reaching from heaven to earth. It opened a gaping maw like a pool of blood and swallowed the sky in a single gulp, ingesting the several hundred rushing immortals at once! It even bit away a massive chunk of Wuzhuang Temple's sky, which did not recover for a long while.
"Old Demon Xu has unleashed a plant to eat people!"
Seeing this, the remaining immortals scattered in panic.
Xu Ying put away the strange Heavenly River flower and continued to comprehend the Five Sacred Immortal Mountains.
Inside Yingzhou, Yuan Tiangang frowned and whispered to the Divine Mother, "Master, this disciple just tried to divine that strange flower of the Immortal Master's, and the outcome seemed rather peculiar."
Fairy Gushe chimed in, "You divined it too? I looked into that strange flower's karma and found something unusual as well..."
"Shut your mouths!" The Divine Mother lowered her voice, looking far more anxious than either of them, her face as pale as dirt. "Don't divine recklessly—it will get people killed!"
She had evidently divined something as well, but dared not speak of it aloud.
Fairy Gushe and Yuan Tiangang pressed, "But..."
"No buts!" the Divine Mother snapped tensely. "Pay it no mind. Who knows, perhaps they bear no ill will!"
Fairy Gushe and Yuan Tiangang had no choice but to drop the subject.
The Divine Mother's expression shifted erratically as she thought, *There is an issue with that strange flower—a massive issue... But how could it have appeared in the Immortal Master's bodhimanda?*
Xu Ying waited a few days until all the Penglai immortals had made their gains before leaving the Five Sacred Immortal Mountains. Ahead lay a Mysterious Pass. The Penglai immortals hurried back, returning one after another into Yingzhou.
When the Divine Mother took a headcount, four immortals—including Jiang Yi and Wang Fei—had failed to return. After a brief divination, a pang pierced her heart.
"Jiang Yi, Wang Fei, and the other two were beaten to death by immortal herbs and turned into fertilizer," the Divine Mother informed the crowd. "Every corner here is filled with opportunity, but it is only an opportunity if you live to take it; otherwise, it is a life-claiming ghost. You must exercise the utmost caution and never stray too far from Yingzhou!"
Pavilion Master Lin Tianhua asked, "Does the Divine Mother mean the Immortal Master will protect us?"
The Divine Mother replied, "I have divined his fortune. The Immortal Master faces far more danger than safety, and can barely protect himself. When it comes to scheming, he is no match for old foxes like the Eastern King and the Imperial Monarch."
The immortals exchanged glances.
Master Fire Dragon asked, "Does the Divine Mother mean that if the Immortal Master dies, being close by allows us to drive Yingzhou away immediately and perhaps claim a bit of his inheritance?"
The Divine Mother shot him a glare. "I mean that while the Immortal Master faces far more danger than safety, he at least has a sliver of safety left! You bastards don't even have that much. Straying too far from Yingzhou means courting death! Behave yourselves, or every last one of you will be used to light sky lanterns!"
The immortals murmured subserviently, daring not speak another word.
Xu Ying arrived beneath the Mysterious Pass and looked up. The Heaven-and-Earth Mysterious Pass stood grand and imposing, with the waters of the Heavenly River coursing beneath it, corresponding precisely to the first pass of the Realm of Xiyi—the Weilu Mysterious Pass! Before the pass stood two or three people, each craning their necks to gaze up at it, some even sending their primordial spirits flying around it to examine its profound mysteries.
Xu Ying manifested the realm of his first life—the first Mysterious Pass—to cross-reference it against this Heaven-and-Earth Mysterious Pass, while also mobilizing his own Weilu Mysterious Pass to compare against that of the Ancestor of Earth Immortals. Seeing this, the three immortals revealed looks of surprise, though none spoke.
Xu Ying also remained silent, joining them in comprehending this pass.
Two days later, one of the immortals departed. Xu Ying likewise rose and left the Mysterious Pass behind. The remaining two immortals stayed before the pass, continuing their comprehension.
"Those two immortals need so long to comprehend it; their talent must be quite ordinary," Han Zekang chuckled.
The Divine Mother sneered, "Those two are disciples of Emperor Changsheng, geniuses handpicked from thousands by the Emperor himself. Although their cultivation realm is still that of Immortal Kings, beating impoverished wretches like you to death would be as easy as turning their hands!"
Everyone started, realizing only then the exalted background of those two immortals.
Fairy Gushe asked, "Then who was the one who left? His comprehension of the Mysterious Pass was actually faster than Emperor Changsheng's disciples, almost matching the Immortal Master!"
The Divine Mother performed a brief calculation and frowned slightly. "That man is named Ming Shuangxiu, an unattached cultivator of exceedingly brilliant talent and comprehension. In the past, he served as an official in the Immortal Court's Finance Department. After offending Celestial Venerable Guan of the Finance Department, he fled in the dead of night to the border wilderness. Yet for some reason, I divine that he has a fatal disaster in store. Strange... where does this fatal disaster originate?"
At the horizon, the Heavenly River wound upward.
The immortal named Ming Shuangxiu strolled upward, entering the first heaven. Seeing Xu Ying follow, he slowed his pace. Xu Ying, seated within the imperial carriage, arrived at the first heaven as well.
"The internal layout of Wuzhuang Temple is identical to a Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground. Comprehending things here allows one to grasp the cultivation mysteries of the Ancestor of Earth Immortals," Ming Shuangxiu muttered to himself. "It is laughable that so many fail to recognize true wealth and instead rush ahead to search for that Dao tree."
Xu Ying glanced at him. Ming Shuangxiu looked back and smiled faintly. "Yet Celestial Venerable Xu is an extraordinary man who knows where the real wealth lies."
Xu Ying replied, "Brother Ming is an extraordinary man as well."
Ming Shuangxiu looked toward the Yingzhou cave-heaven, his eyes flickering with interest as he chuckled. "Celestial Venerable Xu, is that the Yingzhou cave-heaven above your head? Could you lend it to this humble brother to cultivate in for a few days?"
Xu Ying smiled. "Did you come to hunt for treasure, or to commit robbery?"
Ming Shuangxiu struck without warning, closing the distance in a flash to attack Xu Ying inside the imperial carriage, laughing, "I came to hunt for treasure, and to commit robbery!"
Xu Ying remained motionless inside the carriage. Clouds of rosy mist billowed from the glow encircling the imperial carriage and burst into radiant clusters, deflecting every single one of Ming Shuangxiu's divine arts.
"What a fine treasure!" Ming Shuangxiu launched consecutive assaults, deploying his bodhimanda and raising his Dao tree, yet still failed to breach the imperial carriage. Xu Ying raised a hand and unleashed the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths Demon-Subduing Seal. Ming Shuangxiu took the blow, his body swaying slightly. With a hearty laugh, he retreated swiftly. "Celestial Venerable Xu is indeed remarkable! To have grasped the profound mysteries of the Imperial Monarch's divine arts commands true admiration!"
Xu Ying drove the carriage forward in pursuit. Suddenly, wherever Ming Shuangxiu's footsteps landed, gold sycees materialized in midair. As the imperial carriage passed over them, it jolted violently up and down, its speed plummeting.
"There's a divine art like this?" Xu Ying halted the imperial carriage and gave up the chase, smiling. "This man is a talent. Among the unattached cultivators of the Immortal Realm, I have encountered three masters so far, and each has been remarkable."
Moved by an appreciation for his talent, Xu Ying harbored no killing intent. Unexpectedly, a copper coin as large as a bushel basket plummeted from beyond the heavens, trapping the fleeing Ming Shuangxiu within its square center hole!
Tumbling into the coin's aperture, Ming Shuangxiu attempted to leap free, only to find the hole shrinking rapidly until it clamped tightly around his forehead.
"Celestial Venerable Guan, spare me!"
He had barely cried out the words when the copper coin constricted, crushing his head until it burst apart, splattering brain matter as he died a violent death! Just as his primordial spirit attempted to flee, another string of gold coins flew down, ensnaring and annihilating it! And so, this master met his end right then and there!
The corners of the Divine Mother's eyes twitched. "I thought Ming Shuangxiu's fatal disaster would fall upon the Immortal Master—after all, the Immortal Master is ruthless and terrifying. Who would have thought that instead of the Immortal Master killing him, his former master would be the one to do it?"
She shook her head.
The string of gold coins flew upward as an arm covered in coin apertures reached down from the sky, catching the string in its grasp.
"Ming Shuangxiu, if I allowed you to live any longer, would you not take my position in the future?" A chilly voice echoed from above the arm riddled with coin eyes. "Back then, I realized your talent was too high and intended to strike, only for you to slip away. This time, didn't you just deliver yourself to my doorstep?"
Xu Ying's face darkened. "The talents of the Immortal Realm slaughter one another, locked in such bitter infighting—when will new blood ever have a chance to rise?"
He looked up and saw a sleeve descend, covering the arm and its coin eyes. The instant before they were concealed, those coin eyes rolled about and fixed their gaze squarely upon him.
"So it is the Dou Department rebel, Celestial Venerable Xu!" The chilly voice rang from the sky. "Before you rebelled, you borrowed a massive sum of money from the Finance Department. When do you intend to pay it back?"
Xu Ying looked up in astonishment. "When did I ever borrow Dao Brother's money? Do not slander me without cause!"
A face descended from the high heavens, possessing three eyes; the middle eye was also a coin aperture. It was none other than Celestial Venerable Guan of the Finance Department. Reaching out a hand, Celestial Venerable Guan gripped a scroll and gave it a sharp shake. The dossier unrolled downward, densely packed with characters—all of them IOUs signed by Xu Ying in his first life, detailing his debts to the Finance Department.
Xu Ying's expression darkened. "Did I borrow that much money to raise troops and stage a rebellion?"
Celestial Venerable Guan's gaze fell upon his imperial carriage, and he said indifferently, "Whether you borrowed money from my Finance Department to rebel is none of my concern. Even if you proclaimed yourself Immortal Emperor, I wouldn't care. But the money you owe must be repaid! First, I'll collect some interest—your carriage looks decent enough, so hand it over!"
He splayed his five fingers, and a string of gold coins clattered downward, expanding rapidly. The apertures of the individual copper coins ranged from an acre to dozens of acres in size, coins encircling coins as they descended to envelop the imperial carriage!
Xu Ying burst into hearty laughter and rose tall within the carriage, declaring loudly, "Celestial Venerable Guan, if your true body had come, I would certainly pay you back knowing I couldn't defeat you. But this is not your true body, and you even brought the IOUs with you! I have no choice but to eliminate you and seize those notes—that way, my old debts with the Finance Department will be wiped clean once and for all!"
His golden bridge soared upward, lightly brushing against the string of gold coins. Celestial Venerable Guan immediately felt the essence within each large coin dissipate, causing them to clatter downward.
Catching the string of gold coins, Xu Ying tossed it casually in his hand and laughed, "Many thanks for the interest, Celestial Venerable Guan!"
Celestial Venerable Guan's face darkened. Just as he prepared to strike in person, a voice suddenly interjected, "Fellow Daoist Guan, it would be best for the Finance Department to stay out of Xu Ying's affairs."
Celestial Venerable Guan's expression shifted slightly, and he swept his sleeve and departed.
Xu Ying's expression gradually turned grave as he looked up toward the expanse beyond the heavens, where the face of the Imperial Monarch appeared.
Looking down from his exalted height, the Imperial Monarch wore an impassive expression, smiling faintly. "Xu Ying, that golden bridge divine art of yours is not bad. It seems your abilities in this life have improved considerably once more. Don't you wish to know how great the gap between us remains? I shall wait for you beneath the Ginseng Fruit Tree."
Fury flared up within Xu Ying's chest. Seated within the imperial carriage, he prepared to drive straight up into the Thirty-Three Heavens to slay him! A moment later, however, the carriage turned back. Seated inside, Xu Ying resumed his observation of the Ancestor of Earth Immortals' first heaven, remarking leisurely, "I have waited forty-eight thousand years; what need is there to rush now? I shall comprehend my way forward step by step, and then beat him to death!"
Chapter 514