Jade fled and gold flew; the sun and moon stread by.
Jiang Yi remained seated, not having moved an inch, in the main hall of the Everlight Celestial Pool, single-mindedly engaged in ascetic cultivation.
When hungry, he consud ginseng and ganoderma; when thirsty, he drank jade nectar. He was the very picture of a true Immortal.
With the Five-Flavor Great dicine continuously nourishing his body, his rit advanced by leaps and bounds, the montum almost impossible to restrain.
’For ordinary Cultivators, breakthroughs are like drops of water forming a river, or grains of sand building a mountain. Every sliver of progress is hard-won. But for , it’s the exact opposite. With just a little effort, my Cultivation level steadily climbs.’
Jiang Yi opened his eyes. The halo suspended behind his head abruptly shimred like a crumpled sheet of water, sending out concentric ripples.
The Profound Light Magical Power from his Combined Refining of Bingding trembled violently, threatening to erupt with enough force to shake mountains, sunder peaks, burn rivers, and boil seas.
The next mont, Jiang Yi activated his Dao Embryo. His entire fra felt like a series of golden gates slamming shut, firmly sealing all one hundred and eight thousand of his pores.
His profound Cultivation, having reached a level twenty percent beyond Great Perfection, was like a giant Jiao or a furious Mang chained to a dragon-suppressing pillar, unwilling to be silenced.
Jiang Yi lifted his eyelids. His gaze flashed, and a line of golden-white light shot through the hall, as if a sword’s edge had sliced open the dim world.
’Such pure Cultivation from the Daoist.’
Standing outside the hall, He Shouzheng witnessed this, his expression twitching as a shock went through him.
’He’s actually forcing himself to stay at the Qi Cultivation Tenth Layer... Just how deep must his foundation be to manage that!’
As the Jieyun Hall Master of the Lower Courtyard, even though He Shouzheng had yet to achieve Foundation Establishnt, he was a veteran Cultivator at the Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer and could be considered worldly and knowledgeable.
He could see clearly that it wasn’t that the Daoist’s Cultivation was low, trapping him at the Tenth Layer without any hope of progress.
Rather, he was actively suppressing his rit, deliberately holding himself at the threshold of the Great Perfection of the Qi Cultivation Tenth Layer.
’The rumors in the Lower Courtyard say the Daoist wants to gather the complete Six Harmonies Great dicine to form the ultimate True Qi... I suppose they weren’t baseless after all.’
He Shouzheng lowered his head in thought. If not for the Six Harmonies Great dicine, the Daoist would have absolutely no reason to expend such effort suppressing his rit.
By common logic, one absorbs Baleful Qi at the eleventh layer of Qi Cultivation and refines Astral Qi at the twelfth. Once the Earthly Baleful Qi and Heavenly Astral Qi are fused, one’s Profound Light Magical Power becos unstoppable, pointing directly toward the Foundation Establishnt Realm.
Every one of the Eight Peaks True Inheritance ticulously planned for this step, seeking the Opportunity to achieve their breakthrough and prove their Dao.
As long as the Daoist could successfully reach Foundation Establishnt, most of the criticism against him within the sect would vanish.
A crisp ring from a Copper Chi echoed through the air, interrupting He Shouzheng’s thoughts.
The formation spirit, Chang Jing, walked slowly out of the main hall and called out,
"Jieyun Hall Master He Shouzheng is summoned to enter the hall for an audience with the Daoist."
He Shouzheng quickly composed his Heart Spirit and carefully adjusted his robes and cap, lest he display improper etiquette. Only then did he bow and step into the main hall.
"Jieyun Hall’s He Shouzheng pays his respects to the Daoist!"
He walked forward for about a hundred paces before stopping at the foot of a white jade dais. His eyes were downcast, fixed on the floor paved with golden bricks.
Above the dais rose a long staircase of eighty-one steps, each carved with the likeness of a different auspicious beast.
At the top of the stairs was the Daoist’s throne. It was carved from a single block of warm jade, its armrests a pair of jade Chi lying opposite each other, holding wind-calming pearls in their mouths. Before the throne sat a long, gold-lacquered table decorated with motifs of cloud dragons, the sun, and the moon. Engraved upon its surface was a topographical map showing the lay of the land and Sheji of the Nanzhan Continent.
Jiang Yi raised a hand and tapped the table twice. His gaze fell upon the man standing below.
The formation spirit, Chang Jing, understood at once. He stepped forward and asked,
"Hall Master He, what business do you have to report to the Daoist?"
He Shouzheng imdiately fell to his knees in a full prostration.
In his mind, there was nothing at all improper about a Cultivator of the Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer kneeling to a Daoist of the Qi Cultivation Tenth Layer.
The title of "Daoist" carried more weight than a thousand Daoist Skills or ten thousand Techniques.
"He Shouzheng, Master of the Lower Courtyard, kowtows before the Daoist!"
With his forehead pressed to the floor, He Shouzheng said in a solemn voice,
"When the Daoist returned to the sect, I was drunk and neglected my duties, showing disrespect to your procession. My cri is worthy of ten thousand deaths!"
Seated upon the throne, Jiang Yi was filled with emotion.
’Just half a year ago, I never would have imagined that I could make a High Cultivator of the Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer kneel before .’
’Putting my current predicant aside, I suppose this counts as bringing honor to my ancestors and making a na for myself.’
A glint flashed in Jiang Yi’s eyes as he suppressed his wandering thoughts. He smiled warmly and said,
"Hall Master He, you speak too gravely."
He Shouzheng was so frightened he barely dared to breathe. ’This Daoist first took two Daoist Scriptures from the Hall of ritorious Records in the Lower Courtyard, then publicly gathered True rcury and True Lead on Kan Peak. He’s absolutely no weakling.’
’If I were to underestimate him just because he’s at the Qi Cultivation Tenth Layer, my end would be miserable.’
’I’ve been set up this ti, pushed forward to be the nail that gets hamred down. Sooner or later, he’ll settle the score.’
’That’s why I haven’t been able to eat or sleep for days, terrified that Li Peak would call to account, shatter my Inner Mansion, cripple my Cultivation, and drag off to the Fire Prison to suffer endless torture!’
"The Daoist is the sect’s Crown Prince. I was muddle-headed and lazy, careless and dismissive. Failing to prepare a proper welcoming procession was a terrible mistake, the height of dereliction of duty!"
He Shouzheng’s voice grew even more deferential.
"The Daoist is magnanimous and does not wish to punish —that is a testant to the Daoist’s profound kindness. Every ti I think of this matter, I am filled with self-reproach!"
Listening to this speech, the corner of Jiang Yi’s mouth curled into an almost imperceptible smile.
’This Old He is sharp. He isn’t just wildly blaming others or trying to drag anyone else down.’
’This whole affair isn’t major, but it isn’t trivial either. It all depends on how I, the Daoist, choose to handle it.’
’If He Shouzheng had tried to shirk responsibility and implicated Shao Guansu of Zhen Peak’s Upper Courtyard, it would have forced my hand. I’d have had to make an example of True Master Shao—the one backed by a True Monarch Dongtian—and the whole situation would have spiraled out of control.’
’But now, by taking all the bla, He Shouzheng is de-escalating the situation, turning a big problem into a small one, and a small one into nothing. He’s conveniently giving an easy way out.’
’No one who manages to secure a foothold in a Demon Dao Ancestral Sect is ever a simple character.’
Jiang Yi had long experienced the Magical Combat between the peaks and understood one truth profoundly: with a title but no real power, with no subordinates to command, one could accomplish absolutely nothing.
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