Free Web NovelChapter 257: Chapter 203: Going to Fulong Ravine, Alleviating a Junior Brother’s Worries
"The Daoist’s mastery of this fire technique is so exquisite. If the Qi Cultivation disciples from Li Feng were fortunate enough to witness it, I’m afraid every last one of them would be overwhelmed with shame!"
Jiang Yi laughed heartily. With a flick of his wide sleeves, the golden and red flames suddenly collided. Like two streams of water pouring into a single flask, they merged into a dazzling ray of brilliant light over three feet long.
’Is this the Six Ding Fire? The one that’s best at destroying Life Essence...’
A tremor ran through Feng Yuan’s brow. The Samadhi Fire he nurtured within his body grew faintly restless. He was a cultivator at the Second Layer of Foundation Establishment; logically, there was no way he should fear a Daoist Skill from the Qi Cultivation Realm.
But the Six Ding True Fire that Jiang Yi had forged by combining the golden and red flames was specifically designed to suppress Upper Cultivators, and its power to ruin one’s Life Essence was immense.
Forget Foundation Establishment True Masters; even a True Monarch would have to treat it with extreme caution.
And yet, relying on his Innate Fire Virtue Body, Jiang Yi could actually hold such a tyrannical True Fire in his palm, wielding it with perfect, effortless control. It was truly incredible!
"Brother Feng, what do you think of my ’Six Ding Fire’?" Jiang Yi asked.
Feng Yuan stared at the brilliant ray of light for a moment before replying in a low voice:
"It has broken free from the fetters of a mere Spell. It can be called a true protective Daoist Technique!"
A so-called Daoist Technique involved polishing one’s Magical Power to perfection, delving deep into its study, and nurturing a sliver of technique-intent. It was like a world-penetrating Profound Light that could persist for a sixty-year cycle, existing between heaven and earth, unworn by the passage of time.
Cultivators in the Qi Cultivation Realm could often only use Daoist Skills as their methods. Lacking sufficient accumulation and foundation, they found it difficult to support a technique-intent, like water without a source or a tree without roots.
For Feng Yuan to call Jiang Yi’s Six Ding Fire a "protective Daoist Technique" was nothing less than the highest praise.
"You flatter me, Brother Feng."
Jiang Yi brought two fingers together and touched them to the point between his eyebrows, slowly drawing the beam of Six Ding Fire back into his Primordial Gate. freewebnoveℓ.com
"The Daoist’s attainments in fire techniques are truly admirable. I greatly look forward to you reaching the Flying Foundation Establishment Realm, so you can let those fellows from the Eight Sceneries Palace have a taste of the Six Ding Fire."
Feng Yuan clasped his fists and said seriously:
"When the Daoist has some free time in the future, you should come for a visit to Li Feng. I will be sure to give you the warmest of welcomes."
Jiang Yi nodded with a smile and replied in a clear voice:
"I’ll take you at your word, Brother Feng."
...
...
After the interlude of demonstrating the fire technique with a demon form, the two returned to the main hall of the Changming Celestial Pond.
Feng Yuan exchanged a few simple pleasantries, took his leave once more, and then transformed into a streak of fiery light that soared across the sky and vanished.
Not long after, the war chariot outside the mountain gate dipped slightly as a tall figure clad in crimson armor suddenly appeared upon it.
"I heard a commotion from within the Changming Celestial Pond just now. Was that Daoist being disrespectful to you, Senior Brother?"
The charioteer asked hesitantly.
Feng Yuan paid him no mind. He simply lowered his head and murmured a seemingly nonsensical sentence:
"The Ancestral Master is worthy of his title, and the Daoist is worthy of his."
...
...
’According to the Celestial Book, that True Inheritance Disciple from Li Feng, Feng Yuan, is a decisive and ruthless character—a standard Dao Material for the Demon Dao.’
Jiang Yi stood on the plaza before the main hall, gazing out at the Changming Celestial Pond where Spiritual Energy converged.
’I took the initiative to demonstrate my technique and reveal the Six Ding Fire,’ he mused. ’That should have built some rapport.’
’Li Feng, Kan Feng, and Dui Feng don’t see me as a thorn in their side. They can be won over.’
’But as for Zhen Feng and Gen Feng, not to mention Qian Feng whose attitude is ambiguous, it’s hard to say.’
The Celestial Radiance sank toward the west. Dressed in his water-blue Daoist Robe, Jiang Yi thought to himself that as an Innate Daoist, he wouldn’t lack for resources or external materials.
The only thing he lacked now was time for Cultivation!
’If I can condense top-grade True Qi, break straight through to the Eleventh and Twelfth Layers of Qi Cultivation, and then get the assistance of a grotto-heaven, my Cultivation will gradually be able to catch up.’
’[Shao Yang]’s attention will only last for a sixty-year cycle. Time waits for no one!’
Jiang Yi shook his head. If he followed the conventional path to become a Foundation Establishment True Master, it would take at least three to five years of careful polishing.
Following the progression of an Ancestral Sect’s Daoist—waiting for the Flying Foundation Establishment Realm, then nurturing the ’grace of five lifetimes’—would be another two or three hundred years of painstaking effort.
’Even without mentioning Ji Fuyao of the Dongsheng Continent, the other Daoists of the Eight Sects are all far ahead of me. Each one is perfectly prepared, at the Great Perfection of the Fifth Layer of Foundation Establishment, just waiting for that sliver of an opportunity for ascension.’
Jiang Yi pushed the sense of imminent crisis back down into the depths of his heart.
’Patience leads to perfection; blind haste is detrimental.’
’Looking back now, it was no accident that Ancestral Master Mingxuan refined that Foundation Establishment Pill for me. Without the One Element Spiritual Energy in hand, gathering the Six Harmonies Great Medicine to condense top-grade True Qi would have been completely out of the question.’
’Only by following the will of the Upper Cultivators can a Lower Cultivator’s path be smooth.’
’In ancient times, Cultivation emphasized following the heavens and accepting one’s fate. But which ’heaven’ were they following, and whose ’fate’ were they accepting?’
Jiang Yi gazed into the vast sky, his eyes seeming to pierce straight through to the Qingming.
’In five more days, I have to go to Fulong Ravine... I hope I can obtain the full measure of this last ingredient, the ’Water Below Kan’.’
...
...
The Lotus Mountain Palace on Gen Feng was a private residence exclusive to a True Inheritance Disciple.
It was surrounded by layer upon layer of Restriction Arrays. The connected mountain peaks formed a ring, gathering a dense concentration of Spiritual Energy.
A rosy-cheeked, thick-eyebrowed Daoist of about thirty years descended in an Escape Light. With a twist of the Token in his hand, he opened the gateway and calmly stepped inside.
"Ah! Uncle-Master Huang is here!"
The attendant boy saw him and exclaimed with delight:
"The Master just ended his secluded meditation! He’s in the palace studying a True Skill..."
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist took a small Jade Bottle from his sleeve and tossed it to the boy.
"You little glutton, all you ever think about are my ’Purple Bud Pills.’"
The boy hastily caught it with both hands and chuckled.
"Everyone on Gen Feng knows that you, Uncle-Master, are the most considerate toward us juniors!"
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist smiled and made a couple of playful pointing gestures with his hand before striding toward the depths of Lotus Mountain Palace.
Before long, he appeared brazenly in the main hall of the private residence.
Gu Changling, who was sitting by the window reading a scroll, looked up with the faintest hint of a smile on his face.
"Senior Brother, what brings you to my humble abode today?"
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist teased,
"Lotus Mountain Palace is a cultivation paradise personally bestowed by a True Monarch. If this counts as a ’humble abode,’ then isn’t my place worse than a dog kennel?"
Gu Changling wore his hair in a high Daoist topknot. He had a dignified appearance and a bearing far more composed than the Thick Eyebrow Daoist.
He shook his head and said,
"If you like it, Senior Brother, feel free to stay here long-term. I spend most of my years in a grotto-heaven in secluded meditation, comprehending Divine Techniques. Lotus Mountain Palace is usually cold and deserted; it’s a shame to let it sit empty and gather dust."
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist laughed heartily.
"I don’t have the means to support all the Pill Masters, artifact refiners, servants, and attendants in this palace."
Gu Changling said indifferently,
"Then dismiss them. Cultivation is about one’s own self; what need is there for a large crowd of people to attend to you?"
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist suddenly fell silent. After a long moment, he spoke:
"There’s such a desolate tone in your words, Junior Brother! Don’t tell me True Monarch Luo is forcing you to contend with the Daoist?"
Gu Changling put down the scroll and remained silent.
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist stepped forward, his gaze burning.
"Junior Brother, you’re unwilling to be the one to lead the charge?"
Gu Changling sighed softly.
"I am a Foundation Establishment True Master. Am I supposed to storm the Changming Celestial Pond and take the Daoist’s life? I’m afraid that before the Ancestral Master even needs to act, the Sect Leader would crush me to death."
"The True Monarch wants to use me to probe Qian Feng’s intentions. The descendants of the Eight Monarchs have suffered repeated setbacks and are being suppressed by the master-disciple lineage to the point they can’t even raise their heads. They’ve lost two blessed lands, ’Kang Jin’ and ’Wei Huo,’ and now it looks like they can barely hold on to ’Kui Mu.’"
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist narrowed his eyes. It seemed he had a thousand things to say, but in the end, he held his tongue and only asked:
"Is it that you don’t want to bully the weak, Junior Brother?"
Gu Changling shook his head again.
"People of the Demon Dao don’t care about such things. I only managed to cultivate to Foundation Establishment thanks to the True Monarch’s favor. Besides, without the support of the Luo clan, how could I have condensed Second Grade True Qi... It’s not that I, Changling, am shrinking back at the critical moment."
The Gen Feng True Inheritance Disciple paused for a moment.
"The only thing I, Changling, have been proud of in this life is my resolute heart for the Dao. If I were to die in Magical Combat against a Dao Material from the Dongsheng Continent, or if I were to be defeated, captured, and executed while on a mission to conquer extraterrestrial territories, it could all be considered ’dying for the Dao, as is right and proper.’"
"But to obey the True Monarch’s command, to act as a pawn and go kill a mere Qi Cultivation Junior Cultivator... I would feel that I had failed this body of mine!"
Gu Changling and the Thick Eyebrow Daoist were originally fellow disciples from the Lower Courtyard and had an excellent relationship.
Later, when their benevolent master’s lifespan ended and he passed away, Gu Changling was brought under True Monarch Luo of Gen Feng, while the Thick Eyebrow Daoist remained in the Lower Courtyard, wasting his years away.
"Junior Brother, we have no choice but to listen to the True Monarch’s words!"
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist persuaded,
"You’re already at the Fourth Layer of Foundation Establishment and have a high chance of ascension! Getting rid of the Daoist is also a good thing for you... What a precious place the Changming Celestial Pond is! If a Qi Cultivation practitioner can occupy it, why can’t you?"
Gu Changling’s brows furrowed. As if he had thought of something, his gaze suddenly focused, and a piercing, cold light shot out from his eyes.
In that instant, the Thick Eyebrow Daoist felt the crushing weight of a thousand mountains pressing down on his shoulders.
"Senior Brother! Who from Gen Feng sent you to be a lobbyist? The Luo clan? Let me think, it must have been Luo Qingya?!"
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist’s voice grew heavy.
"Don’t be angry, Junior Brother. You have a great Dao path ahead of you and really shouldn’t get involved in this conflict. But when the True Monarch gives an order, who can disobey? Who dares to disobey!
"Right now, you are the True Inheritance of Gen Feng, at the Fourth Layer of Foundation Establishment, with limitless prospects. But if the True Monarch decides not to use you, can you still live in this Lotus Mountain Palace? That Chronos Grotto-heaven, where ten days outside is one day inside, will you ever be able to enter it again?"
Gu Changling was struck speechless.
No matter how firm his Dao heart was, he didn’t dare claim he could ascend to become a True Monarch relying solely on his own power!
In the ten thousand years of the Yanfu Vast Land, only one person had ever accomplished such a feat.
"What exactly are you trying to say, Senior Brother?"
Gu Changling asked, his expression solemn.
The Thick Eyebrow Daoist took a deep breath and answered through gritted teeth:
"I’ve come to resolve your troubles, Junior Brother. I will kill the Daoist!"
