This dramatic turn after such a long pause made it clear to Zhao Rui that the man wanted him to owe a favor.
"In that case, thank you. I will rember this."
Zhao Rui was not an ungrateful person. No matter how wonderful this Exotic World was, it wasn’t ho.
After all, he was used to modern life.
Zhao Rui still preferred the world of Blue Star. Besides, his family and friends were there.
"You are too polite, Zhao Zhenren."
After chatting for a while longer about interesting things they’d seen and heard in Gui Xu, Wei Zhen Taoist led Zhao Rui to a guest room to rest.
The whole ordeal of a journey hadn’t been physically tiring, but being constantly on edge was ntally exhausting.
After returning to his room, Zhao Rui closed his eyes to recuperate and took a short nap.
As for Su Wanyun and the others, they stayed in their respective rooms. After eating, they all lay down to rest without changing out of their clothes.
They were more exhausted than Zhao Rui. The entire journey had been terrifying; they had to worry about external enemies and be wary of their own companions.
The ntal and emotional strain was comparable to having gone through several life-and-death battles.
While Zhao Rui and his group were resting, Master Weiyang and the others arrived at the Qingcheng Sect’s encampnt on the rear mountain.
"There isn’t much Fuyao Water and True Essence Dew left. If we give them to Zhao Rui, I’m afraid there won’t be enough for all of us to leave."
Wei Zhen Taoist took stock of the treasury and shook his head. Clearly, not many treasures were left.
"Since we’ve decided to foster a good relationship with Zhao Rui, we can’t go back on our word."
Master Weiyang said with a grave expression, "Even if it makes things tight, I’m sure we can gather so more in the ti we have."
"Very well, Senior Brother. All the required Exotic Treasures are here. Please unseal them."
Wei Zhen gathered the treasures and bowed to Master Weiyang.
Master Weiyang nodded. Suddenly, True Qi swirled around his body as his hands moved continuously, forming the seals for a Magic Technique.
Strands of True Qi, like fine threads, wrapped around the selected Exotic Treasures. In just a mont, they all lit up as if soone had flipped a switch.
All of them shimred with a strange light.
"Take them out."
After saying this, Master Weiyang turned and walked away. To be honest, he felt the loss keenly.
Resources in the Song Realm were too scarce. What little they had was funneled into cultivating the Sect’s experts and forging top-tier Divine Weapons.
If the chaos in Gui Xu hadn’t been upon them, what Sect would have been willing to waste such Exotic Treasures?
Qingcheng Mountain’s peaks were lush and overlapping, with nurous Daoist Temples and pavilions built into its slopes. Wisps of green smoke drifted about, resembling the mists of an immortal realm.
"Over five hundred years ago, the ancestors of the Central Plains Sects were trapped here and had no choice but to find a place to settle. Among them, the Qingcheng Sect and the Ei Sect have always been the closest..."
As they walked along the wide mountain path, Master Weiyang explained the relationship between the Qingcheng and Ei Sects to Zhao Rui.
The two Sects were established not far from each other, a distance of only about 150 miles—though that was much farther than their counterparts on Blue Star.
But this was Gui Xu, after all. Even an ordinary Martial Artist knew at least a little of the Divine Movent Skill.
So, in terms of speed, they were actually a bit faster.
For this trip, Master Weiyang brought two Elders and several of his personal disciples to accompany Zhao Rui’s group to the Ei Sect.
"So, it sounds like there won’t be much of a problem on Ei’s end."
Zhao Rui felt a little apprehensive. After all, the Ei Sect wasn’t exactly known for being reasonable.
’Who knows if they’ll refuse to open the passage because of ?’
However, Zhao Rui didn’t dwell on these issues. ’With my power, where in the world can’t I go?’
Right now, he was more curious about what the passage on Ei’s side was actually like, and how dangerous it was.
The last ti he’d gone through a Two Realms Passage, he hadn’t truly experienced it firsthand. After all, he’d been inside the belly of a giant beast with no idea what the outside looked like.
The group’s pace seed casual, but it was incredibly swift. Even the weakest mbers, Zhou Moshu and her two sisters, were experts at the Grandmaster Realm.
When they traveled, their speed wasn’t much slower than a car’s.
After traveling like this for an hour, a towering, unbroken mountain range that pierced the clouds appeared before them.
The peaks were capped with white snow, while the base of the mountain was lush and temperate. It reminded him of the Himalayas on Blue Star.
"The Ei Sect resides on this mountain," Master Weiyang explained. "They’ve built several Zen Monasteries and live perpetually surrounded by snow..."
Zhao Rui hadn’t expected the Ei Sect to be so bold as to build their dwellings directly on a snow-capped mountain. ’That must have required incredible perseverance and extraordinary power.’
’It seems that whether on Blue Star or in Gui Xu, the Ei Sect’s power is not to be underestimated.’
When the group arrived at the foot of the mountain and looked up, they were t with the sight of steep slopes and majestic peaks.
There were no Guest Monks stationed at the base, so the group began their ascent. After climbing for a couple of hours, they finally saw the faint outline of a Zen Monastery and heard the distant strains of a Buddha’s Voice.
Just as Zhao Rui was marveling at the monastery’s ingenious construction and the mountain’s beautiful scenery, several Grand Monks approached from a distance to greet them.
Apparently, an expert from Ei had detected their approach and sent a party to welco them.
Master Weiyang knew them, and after a brief exchange of pleasantries, he explained the purpose of their visit.
The arriving Monks were high-ranking mbers of the "Zhi" generation. Their leader, a tall, broad-shouldered middle-aged Monk, had the Dharma na Zhi Yuan.
Upon hearing that Zhao Rui was a visitor from Blue Star, the monk Zhi Yuan looked at him in astonishnt. He then chanted a Buddhist na and said, "Everyone in our humble temple has long heard of the great Zhao Zhenren. We never imagined we would have the honor of eting you today... What a blessing!"
"You’ve heard of , Master?" Zhao Rui asked with a casual smile. "I doubt it’s for anything good."
"Not at all. My senior brother Zhi Shan and junior brother Zhi Sheng from our temple have ntioned you many tis. They said that Zhao Zhenren possesses outstanding talent and noble character..."
"The two Zen Masters flatter ... I, too, hold them in high regard. It’s a sha we parted in such a hurry last ti and didn’t have a chance to speak more..."
After the bout of mutual flattery, Master Zhiyuan led the group up the mountain.
From a distance, the Ei monastery was already a magnificent sight. Bathed in a radiant glow, it looked like a Buddhist paradise.
As they drew closer, the monastery appeared even more majestic. Its high walls and grand halls all spoke of its extraordinary stature.
The group entered the monastery and soon arrived at the Great Hero Hall.
The head of the Ei Sect, Zen Master Puyuan, received them.
This was the first ti Zhao Rui had t a mber of the Ei Sect’s top leadership. Based on looks alone, the man was just an ordinary, decrepit old monk.
But he knew this old monk had already reached the Formless Realm, a state of Returning to the True.
He was likely the person with the highest Cultivation Zhao Rui had ever t.
If he hadn’t learned the Spring Rain Secret Technique and comprehended the Domain Realm by a stroke of luck here in Gui Xu, he would have likely remained completely oblivious to the monk’s true level.
The terrifying depth of the Ei Sect’s power was evident.
Just as Zhao Rui was astonished by Zen Master Puyuan’s profound power, the Zen Master was equally astonished that he couldn’t see through Zhao Rui.
Clearly, the earlier assessnt of Zhao Rui from Zhi Sheng and Zhi Shan was already outdated.
’This boy’s progress is terrifying!’
A sharp glint of light flashed for an instant in Zen Master Puyuan’s dim, aged eyes.
"Amitabha Buddha. As for your request to use the passage, Donor Zhao, our humble temple naturally has no objection. And there is no need to ntion the matter of providing Divine Treasures for its activation..."
"In that case, thank you, Zen Master."
Zhao Rui and the others hadn’t expected Zen Master Puyuan to be so generous. They were talking about Divine Treasures, after all.
Although Zhao Rui didn’t know exactly what they were, he could tell from the quantity required that they were not easy to obtain.
"However..."
’Here it cos,’ Zhao Rui’s heart sank. He knew it. These old monks from Ei were a cunning lot.
’There’s no such thing as a free lunch. When it cos to being shaless, they take the prize.’
"Please, Zen Master, speak your mind."
Since he was the one asking for a favor, Zhao Rui naturally wasn’t going to put on any airs.
"It is not a difficult matter. In fact, you could say it’s a great opportunity..."
"At the peak of this Snow Mountain, there is a secret realm called the Celestial One Void Abyss. According to our Ancient Texts, many Exotic Treasures still remain within... However, these treasures are often guarded by powerful Exotic Beasts... If you, Zhenren, can assist the disciples of our temple in entering this place, we will permit you to take five of the treasures found inside as a gift."
"..."
Zhao Rui hadn’t expected this kind of request. They were actually asking him to go treasure hunting.
’Would the Ei Sect really be so generous?’
’But the arrow is already on the string; it would be awkward to refuse. I doubt the Ei Sect would try any dirty tricks.’
At his level of power, no one would want to make a mortal enemy of him unless it was absolutely necessary.
If they failed to eliminate him, it would bring disaster upon their entire Sect.
By all normal logic, Zhao Rui had no choice.
But unfortunately for them, Zhao Rui was no ordinary person.
And when it ca to being shaless, he could give anyone a run for their money.
"Zen Master, this matter of the secret realm is ultimately an internal affair for the Ei Sect. How about this? After I return to the Central Plains, I will report to my Sect Leader. If the opportunity arises, I will certainly return to take a look."
Zhao Rui’s words were earnest, his tone utterly sincere.
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