“Oh…”
Li Zhouwei’s remark choked the words right back down the monk’s throat. Minghui stood tongue-tied for a long moment, awkwardly bowing with cupped hands. “I have offended you!”
He raised his brows, still feeling he had not appeared greedy enough, and offered a shameless, ingratiating smile. “There is… there is also the Soul-Listening Mulberry Wood that Fellow Daoist Zhaojing promised me back then. He did agree…”
Only now did Li Zhouwei feel the man finally acted like a monk. He pondered inwardly:
‘True enough… There is the matter of Real Person Yan in the East Sea. Once Granduncle achieves Clear Illumination Heart, recovering that Soul-Listening Mulberry Wood is only a matter of time.’
Yet seeing how wealthy this monk was, Li Zhouwei’s interest was piqued.
‘The north has been occupied by Buddhist cultivators for many years. Vast quantities of Daoist treasures have fallen into their hands, most of which are useless to them… Just as Buddhist instruments have virtually no value in the south, bartering for spiritual materials from the north could be an excellent avenue.’
‘Lotus Temple plays both sides, harboring discontent toward Mount Dayang and Guanxie. Whether that grievance is merely superficial or genuinely felt, their words cannot be trusted blindly, but this channel for disposing of Buddhist instruments cannot be severed.’
Though he did not trust Lotus Temple, he would acquire no small number of Buddhist treasures in the future. Becoming considerably more lenient, he accepted the treasure from the monk’s hands and replied, “Granduncle already has word of it; he will not keep you waiting long. I shall pass your message along… However…”
He raised an eyebrow and asked, “I wonder how many spiritual materials or resources the Mohe—or rather, Lotus Temple—has in hand for me to choose from?”
Minghui was taken aback for an instant, then nodded repeatedly. “My master is fond of collecting Daoist items, so we have… quite a few…”
Li Zhouwei considered for a moment. “I require something that aids in a breakthrough of divine abilities.”
Minghui racked his brains. After rummaging through his sleeves for a good while, he produced a box and hesitated. “Has my lord heard of… the Fuyuan Secret?”
Li Zhouwei nodded and asked with mild skepticism, “You possess such great skill?”
Minghui shook his head vigorously, pressing his palms together in reply. “Rumor has it that Mount Dayang possesses the Fuyuan Secret. When that item interacts with Immortal Pure Qi, catalyzed within a grotto-heaven, it gives rise to a spiritual qi called Listening Purple Intent Qi.”
“This substance is beneficial to Daoist cultivation. Though it does not increase one’s cultivation level much and can hardly be used to concoct pills, it possesses some efficacy in assisting divine abilities… My master had quite a bit left back then. When I achieved Mohe, he also granted me a portion for my cultivation, enjoining me that the north and south originally share one Dao, and that meditating upon it frequently would surely bring benefits…”
A look of heartache surfaced on his face as he opened the jade box. “Please have a look, my lord!”
Li Zhouwei opened the box and indeed saw layer upon layer of purple luster sealed within by Dharmic power. As his spiritual sense brushed past, he felt his divine ability stir. His golden eyes flashed as he asked, “This is… Purple Qi?”
Minghui smiled. “Indeed! Purple Qi belongs to the nature of Tianxiu Purple Qi Immortal Origin and is intimately connected to Daoist arts. It perfectly matches Fellow Daoist’s requirements!”
Li Zhouwei inspected it for a while and nodded. “Not bad.”
Minghui broke into a smile and nodded. “I lack my master’s talent. Meditating on it back and forth always yielded nothing, so I would rather exchange it with Fellow Daoist for some useful spiritual materials. Melting them down alongside these golden vessels, I can forge a fine treasure—many of your subtle Daoist mysteries are lost on me. It is best to have something direct… indestructible, traversing the Great Void, the sort of traits guaranteed to be effective!”
Li Zhouwei pondered briefly and asked, “Crane-Embracing Stone… would Fellow Daoist have any use for that? It can adorn magical instruments, possesses the ability to traverse space, and belongs to the path of True Qi, which harmonizes with all paths.”
Minghui had never heard of any Crane-Embracing Stone. But hearing that it could traverse space, he felt obtaining it would not be a waste, secretly rejoicing in his luck. On the surface, however, he assumed a look of sudden comprehension and smiled. “That is precisely what I need!”
Li Zhouwei nodded.
Unfortunately, the Crane-Embracing Stone remained in Li Ximing’s hands and could not be retrieved immediately. Thus, they agreed to have someone deliver it later. Li Zhouwei patted his sleeve and sighed inwardly:
‘Aside from the Lihuo spiritual materials, the gains from the grotto-heaven have been mostly spent. Even among what was obtained from Mount Changxiao, only the Choumou Heart Ice is worth mentioning… In the end, it is still not enough!’
The Hong Fire in Minghui’s hands had come from the north and undergone refinement by Buddhist cultivators. Coming straight from Minghui into Li Ximing’s hands was clearly not prudent, nor was Hong Fire what the clan currently needed… Fortunately, the clan possessed the Runyang Method. Though it touched upon Hong Fire very rarely, he could try it first; at the very least, he had to erase all traces of the Buddhist cultivators.
‘This matter… is as easy as turning one’s hand for Granduncle.’
Minghui was, after all, a northern Buddhist cultivator, so Li Zhouwei did not converse with him further. Riding the wind, he soared off toward the west.
Minghui lowered his hands. Though he had parted with a treasure, there was not much genuine heartache in his expression. He wiped his hands twice on his cassock, swept the pile of golden vessels into his sleeve, and pondered:
‘It accounts for only thirty percent of that spiritual fire. I wonder how many portions of Soul-Listening Mulberry Wood there are.’
His master’s soul had suffered an issue, once shattering his cultivation. Fortunately, he had broken through and reestablished himself over these years, switching to another path and advancing by leaps and bounds in his techniques, achieving success in both the Daoist and Buddhist ways. The matter of his soul was actually no longer urgent.
Minghui felt secretly anxious:
‘Not a single matter this lord involves himself in is easy to deal with… Merely standing on the sidelines makes one worry for one’s life. This time he clashed with a dragon prince again—how am I supposed to navigate this!’
‘Forget it, forget it… I will return and ask Master, recounting the words spoken by those two just as they were. Let him listen; perhaps there will be some insight to gain… That White Qilin is already somewhat suspicious. Next time, I must not act so generously… I have to appear greedier…’
Dispersing his auspicious cloud, he kicked off the ground and instantly transformed into a streak of brilliant golden light, tearing into the Great Void and vanishing without a trace.
***
No one knew how long passed before the mists over the sea grew dense. Thunder rumbled endlessly across the sky, heavy black clouds piling high as if some colossal behemoth were gliding through the heavens.
Amidst the thick fog, demonic clouds surged. The black-robed man still stood against the horizon with his hands behind his back. Layers of purplish-black qi swirled in his eyes, his expression somewhat complex:
‘The Dragon King of Beihai… Dongfang You has been fallen for many years… The White Dragon Branch is already under his command.’
Though he had fought a fierce battle with Li Zhouwei and had been hurriedly driven off by Dongfang Lieyun, Guangfou’s gaze held not the slightest ripple. Instead, he stared quietly toward the west until a faint voice spoke beside him:
“How was it?”
No cold murderous intent remained in the demon dragon’s eyes, only clear suspicion. “Their guess was steady, but I do not believe Luoxia would do such a thing.”
“Oh?”
The voice beside him grew slightly more emotional. “You think they are incapable of it?”
Guangfou shook his head. “They can do it, but they will not do it right under the eyes of the Underworld Court… It is meaningless, and it goes against how Luoxia conducts matters. Or rather—Luoxia disdains to do such a thing.”
The voice nearby paused, then asked, “Even if… it means allowing Bright Sun to enthrone a new lord?”
Rolling demonic qi billowed from the demon dragon’s sleeves. He raised his brows toward the heavens, gazing all the way to the distant sun sinking into the sea of clouds, and said calmly, “Whether he can ascend is hard to say, but they will not be afraid. When Yuzhen ascended to the seat, did you ever see the heavens fear? On the contrary, they celebrated for heaven and earth, celebrated for the rosy sunset glow, rejoicing that the Lord of Yuzhen would never return again.”
“From then on, there was one more measure of peace and order.”
***
Heaven of Sun and Moon in Mutual Splendor.
Mists coiled gracefully, intertwining with iridescent hues. Li Ximing slowly awoke from his deep meditation, and the celestial radiance within the pavilion receded accordingly.
He stood up and raised his hand. A speck or two of golden light emerged from his fingertips, circled his wrist, and settled back between his fingers. The Real Person in white-gold Daoist robes lifted his head slightly.
“Clear Illumination Heart is perfected!”
Cultivating this Clear Illumination Heart immortal foundation had cost him more than one Violet Palace spiritual pill, and a Bright Sun Linguang Zhaoyi Pill at that… not to mention the immense time and energy expended!
‘No wonder people seize others’ immortal foundations… For this cultivation, aside from the Violet Palace spiritual pill and a Golden Core-grade grotto-heaven, I even had the enhancement of talismanic qi! Without such a boost, the pace would have been three or four times slower. Just how long would it have taken to cultivate!’
He sighed inwardly:
‘Even having succeeded, the likelihood of failure this time was not small… If I had lacked the technique or been stuck before the immortal threshold, that would have been fine; I could have roamed outside to lay down pieces on the board and enjoyed some leisure. Yet with the divine ability right before me, unable to grasp it, it was truly a trial of one’s mind…’
Li Ximing stepped forward and exited the grotto-heaven, emerging from the inner formation. Taking another step, he arrived amidst Mount Zhijing.
Sunlight shimmered over the mountain. Under the gardenia tree stood a young man, pondering in silence. Seeing Li Ximing appear, Li Zhouwei turned and clasped his hands.
“Granduncle!”
Li Ximing smiled. “You returned so quickly!”
“It has already been nearly half a year.”
Li Zhouwei’s expression was slightly somber as he shook his head. “I clashed with a dragon prince in Yinzhou, and my tracks were exposed. I did not have time to go to the South Sea and had to rush back in haste… Luckily, the matter with Minghui was settled, so the trip was not entirely in vain.”
“What?!”
Li Ximing was startled. “A dragon prince? Dingjiao? How did it come to this!”
Pacing slowly, Li Zhouwei recounted the events in Yinzhou one by one, then said in a deep voice, “I had long suspected that Guangfou could not kill me, but the moment Dongfang Lieyun appeared, I finally had my reassurance—by now, both the Underworld Court and Luoxia have met with me. Furthermore, with the Yang clan conferring kingship upon me, I, Li Zhouwei, am already an exposed piece upon the chessboard. The dragon kind has no chance of rashly plucking it out.”
“Perhaps if I had declined the Yang clan’s kingship back then, there would have been a sliver of possibility that I might have died in Yinzhou today… If anyone were to strike, it would likely be the white dragons killing me.”
Li Ximing was stunned and asked doubtfully, “The white dragons? Dingjiao? But… isn’t he on friendly terms with you!”
Li Zhouwei shook his head silently and replied, “Not him, but Beihai… Dingjiao was merely following orders. Back then, he was only at Foundation Establishment, so his vantage point was entirely different.”
In truth, Li Zhouwei had never felt there was any true conflict among the dragon lineages. They might hold differing stances, but their ultimate objective was identical.
“Granduncle, the differing attitudes the lineages show toward me merely represent the dragon kind’s various considerations…”
Li Zhouwei lowered his voice slightly and said, “Toward me, Li Zhouwei, the dragon kind faces conflicts both emotionally and strategically. Naturally, the dragon kind does not wish for me to accelerate Bright Sun’s demise… Yet that does not mean they feel any great affection for Li Qianyuan. Just as I said during the duel: if the dragon kind truly possessed the ability and desire to rescue Bright Sun, why would I, Li Zhouwei, exist today?”
“Since Li Zhouwei exists, and the White Qilin comes and goes from the dragon palace, the dragon kind must, at its root, harbor a component that desires Li Qianyuan’s death!”
He enunciated each word deliberately:
“As long as the throne has a master, who is to say who may sit upon it?”
Li Ximing exchanged a glance with him, understanding dawn in his heart.
The dragon kind’s contradictory stance actually pointed to another possibility—they also hoped he would seek to prove Bright Sun, but the outcome of proving the fruit status had to be ascending to Bright Sun! As a True Monarch friendly to the dragons, he would lend support to their pursuit of the truth!
‘Either you do not seek to prove it, Li Zhouwei, or you must succeed!’
Li Ximing opened his mouth to speak but hesitated, watching Li Zhouwei break into a mocking smile.
“As for reincarnating through Golden Nature? I do not know if Granduncle believes it, but I do not.”
How could he, Li Zhouwei, have such immense face? Why did the dragons help him? Because of Bright Sun. If he reincarnated to cultivate another path, why would they bother helping him? Since he could bring no benefits to the dragon kind, why would they show mercy and spend a portion of Golden Nature to let him reincarnate? Did they lack a single Violet Palace cultivator?!
‘Retract the nature and become a golden rainbow; if there is a path to immortality, how could it be granted to you!’
As the methods of an immortal of Luoxia, the demon-ghost’s mockery of the mountain in the play was not merely Luoxia’s speculation about the dragons’ tone, but a satire of the dragons’ methods!
From beginning to end, reincarnating through Golden Nature was likely just a perfunctory pretext to coax him to seek his own death!
‘It is precisely for this reason that the dragons appeared so hesitant and indecisive. It was never about showing leniency toward me out of old sentiments for the Wei Li clan. What a joke—how could the exalted dragon kind remember any sentiment for an offspring of the Wei Li clan!’
In other words, the so-called reincarnation promoted by the White Dragon Branch led by Dongfang Lieyun was utterly meaningless. The dragon kind could not do it, nor did they wish to! They merely sought stability; not believing he could succeed, they simply wanted him not to assault the fruit status, but to die peacefully!
Only for this reason did Guangfou sneer during the great battle, uttering words such as, ‘Who loathes the Wei Li Bright Sun? Dingjiao or me? Li Zhouwei… you had best think carefully!’
Was Guangfou truly friendly toward the State of Wei as he claimed? Likewise, no! What was he friendly toward? He was friendly toward the Wei Li Bright Sun, not Li Qianyuan. Whoever could sit upon that throne was the one he would support… In essence, it was simply that the dragon kind preferred the backing of a new Bright Sun True Monarch over a half-dead Li Qianyuan! It was this will that drove Guangfou to act!
Yet the radical Black Dragon Branch did not have complete faith in him either. Guangfou had merely been testing the waters, deliberately provoking him with words—to see whether he possessed both the rebellious intent and the capability to prove the seat!
In that confrontation, the rebellious intent was even more critical than capability.
Yet with the White Dragon Branch eyeing him like a tiger watching its prey from the side, Li Zhouwei was ninety percent certain—this Dragon King of Beihai prioritized stability above all else, desperately wishing for him to draw the attention of the entire north, walk through the world for a spell, and ultimately perish quietly and peacefully!
It was precisely for this reason that Dongfang Lieyun had specifically pointed out the implication of the Qianyang Bracelet!
Li Ximing gazed into his golden eyes and only spoke after a long silence: “They have… caught you in the middle, without taking a definitive stance…”
Li Zhouwei slowly closed his eyes. “A definitive stance… Whether killing me or fully supporting me, there is a price to pay, and they would be countered by the other two factions… It is not that they cannot afford the price; they are waiting.”
“If I truly prove incompetent, they will scheme to kill me. If I am truly a rebellious usurper of Bright Sun who can ascend to the sovereign seat, I might not be as domineering and fierce as the righteous seat of Shangyao, governing subjects through rectitude, but I will surely be like the inverted seat of Yangji—feigning loyalty while harboring betrayal, defying the sovereign through unorthodoxy… How could I fear the tug-of-war between two dragon branches?”
Li Ximing looked at him quietly, watching this junior reveal a chilling smile:
“They… are merely worried that I am not wicked enough!”
Chapter 1022