Li Ximing was overjoyed at her words, feeling a quiet surge of relief. On the surface, he merely smiled with reserved warmth and nodded, musing inwardly:
*It really is a Lihuo! Nothing could be more convenient.*
Though he possessed the Runyang Method, which could convert most spiritual fires into one another, he had used this method a few times back during Foundation Establishment to convert his family's Continuous Motion Primordial Fire. The cost back then had been exorbitant, causing him considerable heartache...
Once at the Violet Palace level, the cost of conversion would inevitably be astronomical. If it required Violet Palace spiritual resources to aid the process, it would demand even greater trouble and expense, which would hardly be ideal.
Moreover, spiritual fires in the world were limited in number; overusing the Runyang Method would inevitably draw the attention of perceptive onlookers. Now that Huoyang cultivated Lihuo and had conveniently produced a Lihuo flame, it was truly a double blessing!
At present, he gazed intently at the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame, unable to tear his eyes away. Treasures such as spiritual fires were coveted by all; the man and demon beside him immediately cast their gazes over as well, looking somewhat envious.
The pills had not yet been concocted, so this Lihuo flame should rightfully have been held in Fuxun's safekeeping. Yet because of Liu Changdie's connection, Fuxun did not step forward to take the flame right away. Instead, he hesitated where he stood without moving, clearly according ample face and intending to hand the spiritual fire directly to Li Ximing.
Huoyang glanced at the two beside her, holding the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame steady in her hand, and explained steadily:
"The Red Pheasant Chongli Flame is not renowned among Lihuo for sheer might. It cannot compare to first-rate Lihuo such as the Zhefen Lihuo or the Tianxing Liyu, but it can suppress flames like the Shangrun Liyan or the Xuanmeng Karmic Fire. Judged purely by power, it stands firmly in the middle ranks.
"Yet the wonder of this fire lies in its ability to break through baleful evil and disrupt balanced spiritual mechanisms. Rejecting nothing that comes its way, it merges and refines all manner of chaotic Lihuo Balefulness and Earth Balefulness, burning them entirely to ash.
"And what is most renowned about it is the spirituality of the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame."
When it came to understanding True Fire and Lihuo, none of the three present could compare to Huoyang. They all listened attentively as the woman continued:
"'Of all Lihuo, the Red Pheasant is the most spiritual'—this refers precisely to the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame. It can be commanded, used to probe the heart, or sent out to perform tasks and slay enemies. Moreover, this spirituality is naturally endowed, neither increasing nor decreasing, making it extraordinarily formidable...
"Even if an exceptionally powerful mystical technique extinguishes its spirituality, it will slowly recover. Yet every coin has two sides; 'neither increasing nor decreasing' is no empty phrase. Its spirituality cannot grow by even a fraction. Even if it encounters some fortuitous opportunity that boosts its spirituality, it will gradually decline back to baseline. Since ancient times, many have achieved spirit cultivation through spiritual fires, but never a Red Pheasant... and this is the reason."
Li Ximing mulled this over, nodding with keen interest. Beside him, Liu Changdie seemed somewhat enlightened. Having finished detailing its virtues, Huoyang felt a touch embarrassed and continued:
"The Red Pheasant Chongli Flame is a Lihuo, and possesses the typical disposition of Lihuo—it neither aids alchemy nor smithing. Although Fellow Daoist has already attained a Violet Palace divine ability and possesses astonishing alchemical skill, if you insist on using the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame to concoct pills, it is not impossible to succeed... but in the end, there is no real benefit..."
It was precisely because of this that she appeared slightly embarrassed. After all, in everyone's eyes, when an alchemist sought a flame, it was naturally best if it assisted in alchemy. Now, having brought forth a pure-rooted Lihuo that offered little help for alchemy, it inevitably felt somewhat underwhelming.
Yet Li Ximing needed Lihuo in the first place, so he merely listened closely. Huoyang said:
"As for casting spells... setting aside Sheji, it fears no earth; Kan and Li run contrary, and it smelts metal and stone. These are matters of fundamental lineages, so there is no need to dwell on them."
The apricot-colored sparrow rested on Huoyang's fingertip, glancing around before quickly fixing its gaze on Li Ximing, not looking away either. Li Ximing suspected that Gu Wind Fire Summoning was exerting its influence in secret. Not wishing to display anything unusual, he simply said with delight:
"My heartfelt thanks to Fellow Daoist for parting with your treasure!"
With those words spoken, the apricot sparrow fluttered into the air and landed in his palm. It felt merely warm to the touch, and he could even feel the soft, moist warmth of its feathers as they trembled slightly.
*It is finally in my hands! The Dali Baixi Light has gathered dust for so many years, but at last I can cultivate it!*
Without a second thought, Li Ximing willed his mind:
Gu Wind Fire Summoning!
Huoyang had already wiped away her imprint from the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame, so the flame put up no meaningful resistance at all. In an instant, Li Ximing refined it, making it truly his own spiritual fire!
With a flip of his hand, the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame vanished, reappearing within his dharma body. Parting the roaring violet flames, it settled into his Juque Court.
This Juque Court had originally been the domain of the Three Hou Shuxuan Fire. When two spiritual fires, both at the Violet Palace level, met, there was naturally an edge of mutual hostility. Yet not the slightest spark flared. The wonder of the Talisman Qi immediately went into motion, and the Three Hou Shuxuan Fire instantly ceased its opposition, dutifully yielding half of the territory to the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame.
Thus, within the Juque Court, one side was apricot-red and the other pure crimson tinged with gold, clearly divided and occupying opposite sides.
The other three Violet Palace figures did not sense any of these fluctuations; they did not even imagine he had already refined it, assuming only that he had stored it away using some peculiar technique. Huoyang smiled and struck while the iron was hot, turning immediately to Fuxun:
"Zhuluo's future affairs will be in Senior's hands!"
Li Ximing had already obtained his spiritual fire. Had it not been for Liu Changdie serving as a reassuring anchor, Fuxun would have feared he might turn and flee on the spot. In this moment, Fuxun had no inclination to say much; he merely nodded in silence to signal his agreement to the matter, saying nothing further.
Seeing that he was distracted, Huoyang did not dawdle and escorted them out of the great array. Before parting, she finally looked at Li Ximing and said with notable anticipation:
"I hear the Master has an envoy visiting Poluoduo. If there is an opportunity, you may leave word in my Zhuluo State. Once I obtain fine spiritual resources in the future, I hope the Master will do me the honor... of concocting a pill for me."
"Certainly... certainly..."
For other pills it was hard to say, but for Lihuo pills, Li Ximing was more than capable of concocting them. Since it was something he stood to benefit from, he naturally would not refuse, patting his chest in assurance. Only then did the group set out to return to Xipo State.
"Congratulations, Ximing!"
Once they entered the Great Void, Liu Changdie immediately offered his congratulations. Having secured the spiritual fire, Li Ximing was also overjoyed and even somewhat absentminded—first wanting to test the might and wonder of this Lihuo, and second eager to cultivate the Dali Baixi Light.
Yet he still remembered Fuxun's affair, so he did not become overly smug. Shaking his head, he said in a sober voice:
"There is no hurry yet. Only after Fellow Daoist Fuxun's pill is concocted will congratulations truly be warranted!"
At these words, Fuxun's smile grew noticeably more genuine as he led them on their journey back. Li Ximing then remarked:
"I still need to borrow a Violet Palace spirit furnace, so I will inevitably have to make a trip back to Jiangnan... Senior Changdie..."
"Just call me Fellow Daoist!"
When the return to Jiangnan was mentioned, Liu Changdie's expression turned noticeably unnatural. He fell silent, and only after several breaths did he reply:
"I have no qualms letting Ximing know... For a mere rogue cultivator like me to achieve the Violet Palace, I naturally had a fortuitous opportunity. In my youth, rash and unaware of the gravity of things, I stumbled along all the way from Jiangnan. I thought everything was smooth sailing, but in truth, dangers lurked at every turn—I was walking along the fiery pits of hell! The pitiable thing is that the ignorant know no fear; I was completely oblivious!"
Once he said this, both the man and the demon fell silent. This opportunity was self-evident; it was impossible for a rogue cultivator to attain the Violet Palace without one. The likes of Ye Gui and Changxiao had attained the Violet Palace precisely because they obtained opportunities within grotto-heavens!
Liu Changdie clasped his hands behind his back and said quietly:
"Later, after witnessing certain events, I left Jiangnan all the way for the South Sea and finally attained my divine ability. Turning back to look, only then did I realize how perilous the journey had been... In truth, I thought I had acted flawlessly, but which of the lofty divine ability holders could fail to notice anomalies? Along the way, whether it was the various Violet Palace families watching in silence, the Taiyang lineage, or even several seniors on the lake... all of them had noticed!
"The reason these Violet Palace masters left me alone all along... was truly that the karmic entanglement on me was so immense they dared not make a move..."
His expression grew dejected, and he spoke softly:
"Now that I know the truth, I dare return even less. What kind of place is within the seas? Divine abilities walk everywhere, True Monarchs manifest their holy power, and the spiritual aura shifts thrice in a single century! North and South resemble a chessboard upon a table... the very vortex of the world's shifting winds and clouds. The more irregular one is, the less one dares step inside!"
His words held considerable truth, reducing Li Ximing to sudden silence:
*Whose family is any different? If my family did not possess the bloodline of Mingyang, under what pretext could we have risen so rapidly on the lake? We would have long been overturned by the divine ability holders of the North and South. Yet it was precisely the Mingyang bloodline that dispelled the suspicions of the world's divine abilities, while simultaneously binding our family within this single square of the chessboard, unable to move!*
He suddenly thought of Ye Gui. Pausing slightly, Li Ximing asked:
"The North and South are indeed the eye of the world's storm, yet they are also where the world's opportunities lie. Fellow Daoist has already attained a divine ability, enjoys a lifespan of five hundred years, holds a great opportunity, and is still so young—do you truly harbor no ambition to ascend the throne?"
Liu Changdie remained silent for a long time, then said wistfully:
"Ximing, having seen my divine ability, can you recognize my lineage?"
Speaking of this, it had long been a question in Li Ximing's mind. Known lineages were generally difficult to conceal; the slightest use of power would inevitably be noticed by others. Yet from start to finish, Liu Changdie had leaked no aura and displayed no divine ability, making it impossible to discern what sort of divine ability he possessed!
Seeing him shake his head, Liu Changdie raised his hand and opened his palm. A speck of circular silver light danced in his hand, constantly switching and shifting between square and circle, exuding a profound aura.
Li Ximing examined it closely and said in doubt:
"Unheard of and never seen before... It seems to belong to the Virtue of Metal..."
"Indeed!"
With a complicated expression, Liu Changdie whispered:
"The cultivation manual I practice is the *Daoxuan Cunxu Divine Scroll*, obtained from the cave dwelling of a fallen high-level cultivator. It ranks as high as the sixth rank and comes with a spirit qi called the Xuansuo Dao Jin Qi, which was born from Xuandao Kujin basking in the rays of Taiyang. Not to mention the present age, it was something already extinct even in the Middle Ancient Era!
"How could I have seen something so formidable back then? I eagerly took up the manual, considering it a priceless treasure. After finally mastering this path, the art was so restrained that no divine peculiarities showed. Ordinary people seeing me thought nothing more than that my Immortal Foundation was decent...
"I was young then and could not recognize the path I bore. I only knew it was high-grade and precious, so I dared not reveal it before others. I made up another name for my Immortal Foundation as an excuse, spent heavily to purchase several relevant magical artifacts, and from then on cast all my spells through artifacts, pretending to follow another path...
"I remained cautious for years in this manner, right until breaking through to the Violet Palace..."
He said faintly:
"Does Ximing know of the Two Metals beyond the Three Metals?"
A jolt went through Li Ximing's heart.
That there were Three Metals in the world—Geng, Dui, and Xiao—was common knowledge. Yet regarding the other Two Metals, while the Li family knew little, they were not entirely in the dark. Back when Li Zhouwei visited Li Qinghong at the Thunder Pool, he had mentioned this matter.
Li Qinghong had a special status and could no longer meet Li family members freely now, but Li Zhouwei had later recounted her words to him:
*Back then, the Liuxin Qijin taken away by the Master of the Wang family was one of the Two Metals. These two paths have lacked Qi for many years; they are difficult to cultivate and impossible to verify. For a thousand years, the Violet Palace masters of these two paths number no more than two hands can count—all peerless talents who strayed onto this wrong path, only to waste away and perish in early Violet Palace!*
Li Ximing stammered in shock:
"Fellow Daoist cultivates Qijin?!"
Li Ximing's utterance of the two words "Qijin" clearly took him by surprise. Liu Changdie paused slightly, then shook his head with a sigh:
"Ximing has great breadth of knowledge; it seems you know quite a bit... Though what I cultivate is not Qijin, it is indeed one of the Two Metals—it is Kujin."
"Kujin..."
An indescribable feeling welled up within Li Ximing. Beside them, Fuxun sighed quietly, clearly having known all along; he turned his head away in silence. After a moment of quiet, Li Ximing asked:
"Could it be that the ancient inheritance you obtained back then... contained only this single divine ability?"
Liu Changdie nodded and said faintly:
"Indeed. And far more than that... In today's world, even the Foundation Establishment methods for Qi and Ku metals are harder to find than the Violet Palace manuals of ordinary lineages!"
Li Ximing frowned deeply and asked:
"How could it have come to this..."
Liu Changdie sighed deeply:
"Because at the very inception of the Violet Palace Golden Core path, the two metals Qi and Ku were already uncultivable! How many lineages would bother studying a lineage that fundamentally cannot be cultivated? At most, a few stubborn souls made occasional attempts to adapt them, so how could they all be preserved through the passage of time?"
Having said this much, he could no longer keep his composure. Gritting his teeth, he said:
"Looking back now, how could a relic from before the Middle Ancient Era have had such simple formations? How could a lowly cultivator like me have obtained it? This was a scheme! A scheme by who knows which lineage! What an open and majestic scheme!"
Li Ximing was stunned for a moment, then everything became crystal clear in his mind.
*He obtained certain opportunities, perhaps tied to some formidable entity just like Lingyanzi back then. Thus, divinations could not pierce it, and stepping in directly to harm him was not only improper but also carried fears of unknown repercussions...*
*So they manufactured the supposed remains of an ancient predecessor, left behind treasures that were exceedingly precious to Embryonic Breathing and Qi Refinement cultivators, dropped a Kujin manual into the mix, and tested him with cards dealt face up!*
Sure enough, even someone with as mild a temperament as Liu Changdie could not help but speak with chilling bitterness now:
"The path of this manual was severed; let alone direct-line disciples, even ordinary Violet Palace masters know nothing of it... Some might even think it immensely precious. How could a mere Embryonic Breathing or Qi Refinement cultivator possibly refuse it?!
"For fear that I wouldn't take the bait, they even brought out such a high-grade manual. And to top it off, the spirit qi Xuansuo Dao Jin Qi happens to be something continuously born when Xuandao Kujin is illuminated by Taiyang—abundant and ceaseless for those who have it, but precious as the heavens for those who don't..."
Having spoken up to this point, he finally cut himself off.
Both of them were very young Violet Palace cultivators. Even someone as unambitious as Li Ximing harbored the thought of attempting the tribulation to reach Canzi. How could someone accept having only a single divine ability in his entire lifetime? The resentment in Liu Changdie's heart was beyond words. Only Fuxun, unable to watch any longer, sighed:
"There is always a way out in everything. The fact that no one has succeeded in a thousand years might mean the key lies with you... There is no need to be pessimistic..."
As they spoke, the group had already returned to Xipo State and sat down in the pavilion from before. The night had grown dark, and the surrounding five-colored brilliance shone brightly. Fuxun poured wine for Liu Changdie, and the man downed it in one gulp before whispering:
"You don't understand. That geniuses across a thousand years have met their downfall was not without cause... In practicing the *Daoxuan Cunxu Divine Scroll*, I by chance also obtained some fortuitous opportunities. Now that I possess a Violet Palace divine ability and can sense the Qi and Ku metals, I have come to understand certain things.
"The two paths of Qi and Ku already had occupants on their thrones. The two True Monarchs departed early for the Outer Sky, but not everyone possesses the magnanimity of Tianwu to 'invite descendants to ascend.' What those two thought of was 'preserving their Dao Fruit positions so that if unforeseen shifts occur in the Outer Sky, against all odds, they might reincarnate and return.' Thus, the two True Monarchs operated their profound wonders together, linking their Dao Fruit positions..."
He murmured in a low voice:
"The Virtue of Metal has three: Geng, Xiao, and Dui. As for the remaining two paths, Qijin is the metal of accumulation and storage, while Kujin is the metal that is stored. The two True Monarchs merged their Dao Fruit positions into one another, treating each other's as their Dao Fruit, and went so far as to store the Kujin Dao Fruit inside the Qijin Dao Fruit like an object!
"And so! The stored metal met storage, and the storing metal completed its accumulation, locking together in an embrace to form the Qiku Interlocking! Who could possibly verify it? Who could attain it? It is harder than ascending to heaven!
"To put it bluntly, once the Qiku Interlocking was formed, it was far more cunning than mere severed Qi—it cannot even be converted! Whoever seeks to attain the Dao must not only verify the position, but also single-handedly pry apart an interlocking embrace between two Dao Fruit positions that several True Monarchs could not separate over thousands of years."
He let out a self-mocking laugh:
"How difficult is that? I need not even spell it out."
Liu Changdie truly lived up to having fortuitous opportunities on his side, and regarding the man and demon as those closest to him, he revealed these secrets in a single breath. Both Li Ximing and Fuxun were so shocked they could not speak for a time.
Only after Liu Changdie drank several cups in a row, emptying the pot, did Fuxun finally sigh:
"I have heard others say that the world has Three Metals and that it has always been so, but I never imagined the crux lay here!"
Having vented this frustration, Liu Changdie gradually composed himself, smiling self-deprecatingly as he said:
"I am never willing to return to Jiangnan... It's just that the Kujin divine ability still has many profound wonders that can often be of help to Ximing. What I have cultivated is Tangliang Silver. Leaving everything else aside, opening certain array formations or secret vaults, nurturing metal essence resources... none of that poses much trouble.
"I have no family. Counting the days, even if I did... they would have long since passed away. Having drifted in this world for a century, all alone, with my Dao path severed and burdened with endless troubles, it wouldn't be right to let myself be driven at your beck and call. But whenever matters require exercising some wondrous powers, feel free to come to me."
Li Ximing merely offered words of comfort in a low voice, sighing silently for him. Knowing that he would refuse to return to Jiangnan under any circumstances, Li Ximing put aside his original thought of asking him to inspect the Zhaoguang Xuanzi Spirit Array. He simply spoke up:
"Please wait here, both of you. I shall make a trip back to Jiangnan."
Fuxun was naturally full of anticipation, escorting him all the way out of Xipo State. When he rode the wind back, he saw Liu Changdie still drinking in the pavilion and could not help but sigh:
"It is rare to see you willing to speak of so many things!"
Liu Changdie merely shook his head in silence. Only now that Li Ximing was gone could he allow his emotions to show, his eyes filled with desolation and unease:
"In this life, I attained a divine ability and gained five hundred years of life... yet I cannot return to my homeland, and my kin and friends are all gone. If Ximing hadn't attained the Violet Palace, I would surely have stayed in this Ends of the Earth, dealing with monsters until I died of old age..."
He spoke only half of what was on his mind; in his heart, he thought of the century in his previous life—the flavorful days blessed with both sons and daughters. Only after a long while did he say:
"This divine ability... is costly indeed!"
Fuxun poured wine for him, smiling instead of grieving, and said:
"Is it not so? For the sake of a divine ability, I could even gouge my father's heart from his corpse to concoct pills—and not just for pills, but eat every remaining piece clean. What else need be said?
"That you can harbor such thoughts today is perhaps precisely because your Dao path has been severed. Were that not the case, how could you ever draw comparisons? The Dao path, divine abilities, Dao Fruit positions... these are weighty matters indeed—so heavy that nothing else can compare!"
...
The Great Void.
Brilliant, luminous light condensed into the size of a person, streaking through the Great Void like a hurtling meteor and leaving an imperceptible trail of flames. Within that bright light, however, an apricot-colored sparrow the size of a fist soared freely.
Emerging from Xipo State, Li Ximing traversed the Great Void while extending his hand to summon the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame. Watching this fist-sized bird rest in his palm, he shifted his thoughts, connecting his spiritual sense to it, and surprisingly felt faint traces of excitement transmit from it.
"It truly is brimming with spirituality..."
Taking a look, he soon grasped its nature.
*If I cast spells using the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame to produce fire arts, I will not need to waste effort multitasking. It possesses some rudimentary intelligence, though it cannot be considered a true spiritual sense... I cannot have it read cultivation manuals and practice on its own...*
"As for burning away baleful evil, that is indeed useful. If I had possessed the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame during my prior battle with Helian Wujiang, I wouldn't have needed to take the Linguang Zhaoyi Pill for my injuries—a purge with the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame would have sufficed."
Li Ximing's Gu Wind Fire Summoning granted him extraordinary mastery over flames, and he quickly made his calculations.
*Brimming with spirituality, it is suited for long-lasting Lihuo spells. Once cast, the remaining control can be left to the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame, allowing my hands to immediately begin casting other arts...*
With a flip of his hand, the red sparrow formed by the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame vanished immediately. Bringing two fingers together before him, two tufts of spiritual fire immediately flared up from his fingertips.
They were none other than the Red Pheasant Chongli Flame and the Three Hou Shuxuan Fire!
Though spiritual fires were rare in the world, they were typically exceedingly domineering. It was not unheard of for someone to obtain two, but aspects of the Virtue of Fire were not always fully compatible; unleashing qualitatively transformed power during combat tested one's attainment to the utmost...
Yet True Fire and Lihuo shared deep origins. As he gradually activated Gu Wind Fire Summoning, the two sparks of fire whirled and intertwined, echoing one another. Li Ximing's eyes lit up, and he immediately closed them to savor the sensation in detail.
After a long while, he pondered inwardly:
*True Fire and Lihuo are indeed close and mutually complementary; otherwise, how could that great True Fire demon have inscribed those words... There seems to be an exceedingly vital crux here...*
Li Ximing's attainment in True Fire and Lihuo could not be called non-existent, but it was still quite shallow.
Employing a single fire to confront enemies was nothing more than a matter of its unique wonders and the amount of magic power behind it. But using True Fire and Lihuo together meant that the added variations would influence each other. Facing different divine abilities, different adversaries, and different weaknesses, maximizing their power required varying their relative strengths and proportions. Not only did it demand adaptability on the fly, but it also imposed extremely rigorous requirements on one's attainment.
However, Li Ximing possessed Gu Wind Fire Summoning. His control over fire was exquisite to the pinnacle and swift to the utmost; he had no need for profound attainment to make judgments. All he needed was a bit of time to test them out bit by bit... Now, looking at the two blossoms of spiritual fire at his fingertips, he contemplated:
"If that is so... I have no need to brood over all these intricacies. So long as both fires adhere to an enemy's dharma body during combat, or if the enemy uses a single magical artifact or divine ability to resist both flames simultaneously, I can utilize Gu Wind Fire Summoning to exert continuous, delicate control over both flames, thereby dealing catastrophic damage!"
Chapter 927