Though the night was deep, Ziyan Blessed Land was brilliantly illuminated.
Here, purple qi rose and coiled like wisps of silk, ethereal and celestial, ebbing and flowing like tidal waters. Rows upon rows of mountain peaks emerged and receded in turn amidst the dense purple clouds, while the radiance of formations shot straight into the sky, lighting up everything around.
At the very center, pavilions and towers floated above the purple qi, resplendent and magnificent. A Real Person clad in a white robe with gold patterns arrived upon rays of light, followed behind by a junior who carried the graceful bearing of an elegant scholar. The purple qi on either side parted on its own to make way, revealing a long, translucent flight of purple jade steps.
The disciples of Ziyan Gate encountered along both sides bowed their heads in salute even if they did not recognize this Real Person, rising only after he had passed far ahead. Seeing this, Li Ximing nodded inwardly in approval:
*Ziyan Gate truly boasts an ancient heritage and strict decorum.*
Coming for a visit this time, the matters concerning Xuanyue Gate were only one part of his purpose; there was much that the two houses needed to become familiar with and discuss. Li Ximing had never intended to come alone in the first place, but the direct line of his own family were either in seclusion or nursing wounds, while the remaining one or two had to oversee major affairs. After picking and choosing, he had ended up bringing Cui Jueyin along.
*Those few guest elders would only be an embarrassment if brought out. Ding Weizeng is qualified enough, but he is slightly wounded; furthermore, he lacks tact and hasn't seen much of the world. Cui Jueyin, a direct scion of Chongzhou, is the most suitable.*
Just then, a female cultivator riding a cloud came speeding over, dressed in pale yellow feather robes, the silk sash at her waist fluttering gracefully in brilliant colors.
"Greetings, Real Person Zhaojing!"
The female cultivator bowed in salute. The Real Person before her in the white and gold Taoist robe responded cordially, asking, "Is Real Person Tinglan present?"
Li Ximing had exchanged letters with Ziyan Gate days ago and had only made this trip after confirming that Real Person Tinglan had returned to Ziyan; his question was merely an opening remark. The yellow-robed female cultivator replied:
"Our Real Person returned to the blessed land half a year ago and originally intended to depart on the twenty-second. Upon reading your letter, she stayed a few days longer and dispatched this junior to wait for you here."
She led the way in front as purple mist rose and diffused. Li Ximing turned his head slightly and said in a low voice:
"This is the Ziyan Immortal Gate, of the Qingsong Taiyang lineage."
These words were spoken to Cui Jueyin behind him. With an upright posture, the young man looked at the purple qi amidst the mountain range with slight wonder, respectfully voicing his assent while feeling greatly reassured in his heart.
Cui Jueyin was unfamiliar with people and places in the interior realm, but no matter how quietly he had lived over the past year or so, he certainly knew something of the Three Sects and Seven Gates. Li Ximing, an exalted Violet Palace cultivator, only mentioned this because he regarded him as a junior of his own family. Were he an ordinary Foundation Establishment subordinate, how could he receive the slightest notice?
The three ventured deeper inside and landed upon the palaces floating above the purple qi. The purple qi grew increasingly dense here, its spiritual energy surging majestically. Beneath their feet, a special kind of spiritual qi seemed to flow along the steps, dispersing like smoke.
Although Ziyan Gate was only one of the Seven Gates, its foundations ran deep. This mountain gate was renowned as a blessed land, magnificent to the utmost. Chongzhou Island had also been a fine place, but compared to this Ziyan Blessed Land, it lagged far behind. Cui Jueyin looked around in considerable awe.
Moreover, the *Purple Qi* lineage was exceedingly rare overseas; one might occasionally encounter it among demonic cultivators, but an orthodox sect of such ethereal immortal grace had never existed there. As Cui Jueyin's gaze swept over this drifting purple qi, he found it all the more profound and formidable.
The yellow-robed female cultivator guided them to the highest elevation, where no palaces were to be seen anymore, only a smooth, translucent terrace of purple jade. The purple qi here already shimmered with faint hints of bright yellow, weaving to and fro beneath their feet.
Only then did a light laugh ring out:
"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Zhaojing!"
Li Ximing saw a woman standing upon this terrace. Unlike the customary purple attire of Ziyan Gate cultivators, she wore a robe and skirt of autumn-leaf yellow satin patterned with butterflies, looking quite radiant. Her face was delicate and lovely, her eyebrows slender, and the corners of her eyes touched with cyan, adorning her features into great beauty.
*This Real Person Tinglan... appears to be quite fond of dressing up.*
Only Li Ximing and Tinglan had the standing to size each other up here; neither the Ziyan cultivator nor Cui Jueyin dared to look directly upon a Violet Palace master. Whatever Real Person Tinglan might be thinking, Li Ximing merely smiled and replied:
"You are too courteous, Fellow Daoist... Hearing that your Daoist title was so elegant, seeing you in person now reveals you are indeed such a celestial fairy."
Real Person Tinglan chuckled, nodding in thanks before replying:
"I was originally a cultivator from the northern land of Qi. My attire is somewhat different from that of Jiangnan... so long as Fellow Daoist does not find it strange."
Li Ximing was enlightened and immediately understood in his heart:
*A cultivator from Qi? It seems this Real Person Tinglan does not belong to the Kan family... Qi is the territory of the Gao family. Surely... she wouldn't be from the Gao family, would she?*
While Li Ximing was still pondering, Real Person Tinglan spoke up, her voice gentle:
"My surname is Yi. Originally, I was a rogue formation master from Bolie Commandery. Having received the guidance of my master, Real Person Zipei, I cultivated within the blessed land until I formed a divine ability."
Li Ximing nodded, and Real Person Tinglan continued:
"In recent years, I have been traveling far and wide and rarely stay in the sect. I only saw your letter upon my recent return. I have kept you waiting, Zhaojing..."
Li Ximing did not believe a single word of this.
*Back when Changxi was alive, he visited Ziyan several times without catching a glimpse of anyone. Even when my family sent people to inquire, there was no response... Now that Changxi has fallen and a battle has been fought on the river, and everyone is turning around to carve up Shanji Commandery, suddenly she can be found.*
Rising from a rogue cultivator to receive Zipei's personal legacy and break through to the Violet Palace, Real Person Tinglan was by no means a simple character. Li Ximing did not hold it against her, however—avoiding risk to seize maximum profit was what everyone sought after all. He merely answered:
"It is no trouble... Searching for the senior's whereabouts was the foremost priority."
Hearing this, Real Person Tinglan merely smiled and nodded without dwelling on it. Raising her sleeve, she gave a light sweep, and a low table immediately emerged on the jade terrace, blending seamlessly with it. A jade pot rested upon the table, its tea already boiling and billowing white steam from its spout.
"Please!"
The two took their seats, and Tinglan asked:
"Zhaojing, did you seek me out for the sake of your noble clan's formation?"
Tinglan had offered an easy opening, which aligned with Li Ximing's intentions in the first place, so he nodded and said:
"My clan has newly ascended to an immortal family and indeed lacks a Violet Palace spiritual formation. Ziyan is a grand sect of formations, and you are a master of the craft, so I have come to consult you."
Tinglan glanced at him and smiled:
"You are not far behind yourself, Fellow Daoist."
In truth, Li Ximing had only recently broken through to the Violet Palace, so his alchemy skills could hardly be called those of a grandmaster, nor did Tinglan possess the ability to arrange a Violet Palace formation single-handedly. This exchange brought a smile to both of their faces. Ceasing to flatter each other, Li Ximing said solemnly:
"Please enlighten me."
Tinglan nodded and said softly:
"The key to a grand Violet Palace formation lies in three factors: first and foremost are the spiritual objects within the formation; second is the formation's foundation; and last is the divine abilities and magical power of the cultivator setting the array..."
"The formation's foundation consists of spiritual energy, earth veins, the Great Void, and the node positions within the array. Though exceptionally costly, these are generally not a problem for cultivators like us... The real difficulty often lies in the fact that spiritual objects suitable for laying a formation are scarce, and the divine abilities of the cultivator laying the array cannot always communicate with and draw out the miraculous properties of various spiritual objects."
Li Ximing pondered slightly, watching as Tinglan continued:
"Your noble clan must first possess a Violet Palace spiritual object before inviting me to inspect it. Once settled, I also have one or two close friends who can assist. It should take around three to five years before the formation is ready for use."
She paused, evidently having thought of the Xuanyue Sect Gate immediately as well. Pouring tea for Li Ximing, she added:
"If there is an existing Violet Palace formation that can be relocated, it will be vastly different. I would still need to visit your lake to inspect it, sort out the earth veins, and fill lakes or carve mountains at critical points. Though it would take some toil for a time, setting it up would be very swift, and it wouldn't cost too much."
Tinglan's tea was unexpectedly good—at least far better than his own and Real Person Changxi's. Li Ximing took a sip of tea and noticed that Tinglan was overly enthusiastic about this matter. He asked:
"So it requires this much time. I had thought to ask for your assistance, yet it demands such great effort..."
Tinglan had been waiting for him to say this for a while, and replied:
"Do not worry, Zhaojing. I, too, need you to lend a hand and refine a pill for me."
"Refine a pill?"
Li Ximing frowned. "Can your divine abilities not refine it?"
For a Violet Palace cultivator, a casual wave of the hand could knead together pills for ordinary use. If it had reached the point where she needed Li Ximing to step in, this pill was certainly no simple concoction.
At his question, Tinglan nodded gently without answering immediately, turning instead to the yellow-robed cultivator of Ziyan Gate:
"Danying, take this young friend to look around the blessed land."
Cui Jueyin reacted at once, and seeing Li Ximing nod, the two quickly departed. As the purple mist on the ground closed back together, Tinglan finally said:
"Those of us who rely on divine abilities to refine pills can only produce pills for Foundation Establishment and Qi Refinement at best. We cannot compare to those like you who cultivated the alchemical Dao early on. When your Shengyang reaches the Great Void, yin and yang are balanced. But for us, whenever we exert our full strength in refining pills, our divine abilities will inevitably perturb the Shengyang Mansion over time, throwing yin and yang out of balance. I even have to ask Hengxing to trade for decent Suiyuan Pills, so I am utterly powerless when it comes to these more formidable elixirs."
She took out a jade slip, casually dispelled the secret seal upon it, and placed it on the table with a smile:
"Please take a look, Fellow Daoist... and see if it can be refined."
Li Ximing had not expected such a pleasant surprise. Taking it up, he read:
"Tianyi Tucui Pill."
As expected, this was an elixir of the Violet Palace tier, remarkably profound. It required using the exceedingly precious Violet Palace spiritual object, Wuzhang Water-Fire, as a harmonic mediator, followed by sixteen thousand two hundred rounds of refinement with a divine ability, before forming the pill body with Tianyi Pure Element.
Reading up to this point, Li Ximing inwardly ground his teeth:
*Well done, Ziyan Gate... truly filthy rich. Tinglan is not even of the Kan family, yet she is this lavish—both Wuzhang Water-Fire and Tianyi Pure Element! If I could obtain just one of those, I would be so overjoyed I wouldn't sleep for three days...*
The rest of the pill's primary ingredients were not recorded; only the auxiliary medicines, general techniques, and descriptions of the refining difficulty were written, without detailing the pill's effects. But Li Ximing was an alchemist after all, and having finished reading, he already grasped its nature:
"It is a *Female Water* spiritual pill that plunders essences and reaps vital energy... not quite an orthodox creation..."
He pondered for a breath, then asked:
"I must also ask you, Real Person: do the main ingredients include spiritual objects of the *Jueyin* or *Xi Qi* kind?"
"Naturally not!"
Hearing that he had not refused immediately, suggesting there might be hope, Tinglan became noticeably warmer and smiled:
"I thought of that long ago! It is precisely because it contains *Female Water*, which conflicts with *Hengzhu*, that Fellow Daoist Hengxing did not dare refine this pill for me. If it contained things of the *Jueyin* sort... I would not dare ask you to step in either."
Li Ximing now understood why she had not turned to Real Person Hengxing. After weighing things inwardly for a moment, he thought to himself:
*The difficulty of this pill is unprecedented. Fortunately, the difficulty lies in the refinement; at worst, fewer pills will form and it will take more time, rather than posing an insurmountable barrier of divine abilities. It is not impossible to refine.*
After some thought, he sought confirmation:
"Do you possess the Wuzhang Water-Fire, Fellow Daoist?"
Tinglan nodded and had someone bring up a large stone box from beneath the mountain. Opening it with a divine ability, she brought out a clay pot. Only the size of a palm, its surface was smooth and carved with numerous gold and white patterns.
The moment this pot was brought out and set quietly on the table, it appeared completely ordinary to the naked eye. In Li Ximing's spiritual sense, however, it was as if a clap of thunder had detonated. In his perception, water and fire intertwined across the pot, and spiritual energy fled as if avoiding an ill omen, causing a peak to sprout out of nowhere within the Great Void.
Tinglan said with a touch of hope:
"I do possess this Violet Palace spiritual object, but Wuzhang Water-Fire drives away spiritual energy, and commanding it with divine abilities is extremely taxing on the mind. Fellow Daoist, are you confident? If you are to refine the pill with this fire, I fear you will need to prepare some spiritual pills that clear and steady the spiritual sense."
Yet Li Ximing could not care less about what Wuzhang Water-Fire was. When his spiritual sense swept over it, his talisman qi indeed responded. So long as it was fire, none could escape the grasp of the talisman qi's Gufeng Yinhuo. Li Ximing never relied on spiritual sense to control fire, let alone suffering exhaustion from it—otherwise, how could he alone have sustained the Li family's pill consumption alongside his cultivation back then? He merely said:
"As long as the primary ingredients are not living cultivators, and it does not result in something that violates my clan's ancestral precepts, it can be refined. It is only that my skills are unpolished, so I fear no more than three pills will be produced."
"Splendid!"
The Real Person in the autumn-leaf yellow dress was pleasantly surprised by his confidence, guessing inwardly:
*Mingyang is accompanied by Lihuo, possessing the power to control fire while not being fire itself. Perhaps he has an extraordinary command over Wuzhang Water-Fire...*
Her confidence in the man before her grew by several degrees. Real Person Tinglan smiled, nodded, and said solemnly:
"As long as Fellow Daoist can refine the pill for me, and your noble clan possesses a suitable spiritual object, leave the formation at Lake Wangyue to me... If... you plan to relocate a formation... you may also leave it to me. The values may not be equal, so I will compensate you with other things."
His clan possessed a Quandan Violet Palace spiritual object, but Li Ximing had no intention of revealing it for now. Breathing a sigh of relief first, he raised his brows and said:
"I do have one doubt... Real Person Chuting of the Xiao family in Lixia possesses alchemical skills far superior to mine. Why did you not seek him out? Perhaps you could have obtained far more spiritual pills, rather than risking such a precious portion of Tianyi Pure Element going to waste."
One must know that Li Ximing had heard of the renown of Tianyi Pure Element since his Qi Refinement days. It was a Violet Palace spiritual water that could cleanse and temper an immortal foundation and bring the dead back to life, also known as primal water. Its preciousness was only slightly inferior to spiritual objects on the level of Taiyin Moon Splendor.
There were many spiritual objects that could save a life in a crisis, but few that could truly be said to bring the dead back to life. Moreover, its ability to cleanse and temper an immortal foundation could practically allow an unremarkable cultivator to leap through the dragon's gate, matching the direct descendants of a Violet Palace lineage in immortal foundation quality.
Once this pill was refined, Wuzhang Water-Fire, acting as the harmonic mediator, would remain, but Tianyi Pure Element would be completely consumed. Were it Li Ximing, his heart would ache to death...
At his inquiry, Real Person Tinglan shook her head:
"I considered that senior as well... but even if I went, I might not see him; even if I saw him, I wouldn't dare trust him; and even if I gritted my teeth and placed my trust in him, the price for refining the pill would be astoundingly high... That old man's thoughts are as deep as an abyss, nowhere near as approachable as you, Zhaojing."
Li Ximing nodded, feeling that this sounded rather strange.
*So it turns out I'm just a budget substitute—and one asking for a favor, so I'm easier to deal with...*
Real Person Tinglan stole a glance at him, chuckled twice, and simply said:
"Do not overthink it, Fellow Daoist. There are many pills Ziyan needs refined, and several of my close friends suffer from the same plight. If this succeeds, there will be many more pills to refine, and both our families will reap great benefits in the days ahead."
Li Ximing listened to her paint this pie in the sky, chiming in with yesses and all-rights. Tinglan nudged the jade slip forward and said:
"I shall entrust this jade slip to you first, Fellow Daoist. Within it are also records and insights on alchemy left by predecessors, which may serve as some reference for you."
Li Ximing was indeed quite enticed by the Violet Palace insights within this jade slip, yet he did not move, finally understanding where that faint sense of strangeness had come from:
*So Tinglan met with me all along for the sake of refining pills, and it likely had nothing to do with Shanji Commandery... Oh, Kong Guxi, Kong Guxi... you're willing to give away Shanji Commandery, yet they might not even care for it! You'd probably have to beg her on your knees to take it!*
Chapter 743