Ji Shaoli spoke with easy confidence. "If I am not mistaken, the treasures each person can obtain from this fishing pond are relatively independent and do not interfere with one another. In other words, there is no life-or-death competition between us. That is the first point.
"Furthermore, we share a common interest: the fewer cultivators who know the secret of this fishing pond, the better. Fellow Daoist Zhong, do you believe you can protect this secret with your strength alone?
"I was able to discover the abnormality here today. Sooner or later, other cultivators will notice it as well. Can you stop them?"
Ji Shaoli fixed his gaze on Zhong Shentong, asking bluntly.
Zhong Shentong could only remain silent.
"However, with our help, the risk of being discovered by others will be drastically reduced. It might not even be impossible to possess this supreme treasure forever!" Ji Shaoli said with a smile.
"Our?" Zhong Shentong's expression finally changed.
After hesitating for a long while, he dispiritedly stowed the purple-gold gourd in his hand and said with a touch of resignation, "Fellow Daoist, come down and let us speak."
Only then did the prickling sensation of impending crisis hanging over Ji Shaoli's heart completely vanish.
"Fellow Daoist Zhong, was that purple-gold gourd of yours also fished out from the pond?" Ji Shaoli asked, his eyes flickering.
Yet he did not draw close.
Zhong Shentong gave a self-deprecating smile. "This old Daoist has guarded this fishing platform for more than half my life, and this is the only real treasure I ever managed to catch.
"The Hunyuan Purple-Gold Gourd, purple quality. I do not know which cultivation world produced it, but it contains Hunyuan Dual Qi within. With a single thought, that qi can be transformed into flying daggers to slay enemies. It is said that even Soul Formation cultivators could be decapitated in an instant. Unfortunately..."
Zhong Shentong shook his head slightly. "That is only true in other cultivation worlds. In our Xuanhuang Realm, any cultivator from the Nascent Soul realm upward lodges their essence in heaven and earth. So long as heaven and earth endure, the cultivator does not perish. Thus, this Hunyuan Purple-Gold Gourd is not quite as formidable here."
These words revealed why he had not rashly chosen to strike.
Empowered by the aura of numerous defensive treasures, the pressure Ji Shaoli exuded far exceeded the scope of a Golden Core cultivator.
Zhong Shentong could not be certain of his true cultivation and lacked the confidence to kill him in a single blow.
Moreover, upon hearing that an organization might stand behind Ji Shaoli, he had no choice but to stand down.
"How many years has it been since Fellow Daoist Zhong discovered the wonders of this fishing pond?" Ji Shaoli finally descended from the clouds.
A flicker of reminiscence crossed Zhong Shentong's eyes. "I can hardly remember clearly. It was back when I was still young. How time flies..."
Meanwhile, Ji Shaoli discreetly examined the Daoist child, Liuli, whom Zhong Shentong had kept shielded behind him all this time.
With exquisite features like a porcelain doll and dressed in an oversized Daoist robe, one could not immediately tell their gender at a glance.
Liuli now poked out a head, without much fear in their eyes.
Instead, the child glared fiercely at Ji Shaoli with puffed-up cheeks.
"This little child..."
Zhong Shentong smiled without mirth. "Just a mortal orphan I took in..."
Just then, Liuli's eyes widened, looking up at Zhong Shentong in utter shock. "Master, didn't you say I was also fished out of this pond—"
"Mmh mmh..."
Before the child could finish, Zhong Shentong clapped a hand over their mouth in frantic regret.
"Hahahaha!" Ji Shaoli threw his head back in laughter, then abruptly stopped.
With an ominous look, he sized up Zhong Shentong. "Fellow Daoist Zhong, if you insist on playing these games, do not blame me for showing no mercy.
"Lin Ling!"
Liuli knew a mistake had been made and immediately stopped struggling.
Zhong Shentong did not scold the child, merely stroking the little Daoist's head to comfort the tearful Liuli.
The two sides stood in a tense standoff for a while.
Then, as a figure manifested in the sky, the oppressive might of Dao Integration descended, blanketing the area.
Zhong Shentong's face turned deathly pale. Letting out a long sigh, he finally yielded completely.
"Little Liuli was indeed fished out of the pond by me.
"At first, it was just a translucent fruit resembling colored glaze. Just as I was preparing to eat it, I faintly heard a baby crying from within."
...
Having given up resistance, Zhong Shentong plopped down onto the ground and began to recount slowly.
Lin Ling, on the other hand, was deeply curious about this pretty little Daoist and kept scanning the child with divine sense.
To her surprise, the little girl actually sensed it, and not one to be outdone, she glared right back at Lin Ling.
The two of them stared each other down with wide eyes, neither willing to yield.
The sight left Zhong Shentong caught between laughter and tears, and the anxiety in his heart faded.
When the other party revealed Dao Integration power, he had felt despair.
Yet judging by the actions of this Dao Integration Immortal Venerable, the situation did not seem as dire as he had imagined.
At that moment, Ji Shaoli walked over to the edge of the fishing pond.
Turning his back to Zhong Shentong, he said slowly, "I am not a bloodthirsty man. Unless driven to extremes, I have no desire to create senseless slaughter. However, the secret of this fishing pond can never be leaked.
"Fellow Daoist Zhong, you now have two choices.
"First, sacrifice yourself and take your own life. If you do, I promise that this child will live comfortably for the rest of her days.
"As for the second..."
Zhong Shentong narrowed his eyes as Ji Shaoli intentionally paused.
"Join our Myriad Realms Association. As long as we are family, there will be no need to worry about any secrets leaking."
"The Myriad Realms... Association?" Hearing this completely unfamiliar name, Zhong Shentong was taken aback for a moment.
Yet with a Dao Integration cultivator in its ranks, it was clearly no ordinary force.
With no real choice, Zhong Shentong readily agreed without delay.
"I am willing to join you."
"Good! Fellow Daoist Zhong truly knows how to recognize the times!" Ji Shaoli applauded in praise.
"Lin Ling!" he called out again.
Lin Ling looked at Ji Shaoli, then tapped lightly toward the empty air.
Immediately, the blurred phantom of a faceless stone statue appeared above Zhong Shentong's head.
Though he could not make out the statue's features, a sudden wave of creeping horror gripped Zhong Shentong's heart.
Having faced orbs of light as vast as the stars day after day at the fishing pond, he had developed an almost instinctual ability to appraise the grade of items.
With virtually a single glance, Zhong Shentong could tell that this statue had an extraordinary origin!
Sure enough, he heard Ji Shaoli say in a reverent tone, "This is the effigy of the Compassionate True Immortal of the Mortal Realm. All who enter the association must recite an oath before this stone statue."
As he spoke, an oath of over two hundred words was transmitted into Zhong Shentong's mind.
"A True Immortal..." Zhong Shentong's heart jolted.
Could it be that behind this Myriad Realms Association...
Zhong Shentong did not dare contemplate further.
Having seen countless items from different cultivation worlds through the fishing platform, he was completely convinced of the real existence of the Immortal Realm that reigned above all cultivation worlds.
With an utterly solemn expression, Zhong Shentong recited the oath of entry before them.
The process seemed immensely long, and the oath appeared to contain an unfathomably wondrous energy.
Chapter 855