Xuanjian Xianzu

Chapter 1299 Opportunity
The East China Sea surges.

On Chunyi Island, white qi swirled, creating a scene resembling a fairyland. Numerous cultivators strolled about, and the island remained serene.

Amidst the heavy snowfall, a white-robed cultivator sat silently atop a broken peak, facing the chessboard before him. On the other side, a man in blue robes watched him quietly.

Since the passing of our ancestor, Master Yuan Shang, who attained enlightenment and perished, breaking the Suohai Peak and leaving behind half of Yutai Mountain, the spiritual energy of this place has changed every year, with the snow becoming heavier and heavier, spreading down the mountain.

The mountaintop was extremely cold. After an unknown amount of time, someone descended from the sky. It was a Taoist priest carrying a small pagoda. He was well-mannered, with a serious and meticulous expression.

Upon seeing him, Chehong quickly stood up:

"Big father!"

This person was none other than Che Hong's great-father, the Pure One Daoist cultivator of the 'Fu Shui' realm, the True Man Guanghou!

Back when the Sun Dao lineage was at its peak, the Pure Dao lineage was facing a generational gap. But when the Sun Dao lineage lost its brilliance, the Pure Dao lineage experienced an unprecedented period of great prosperity in immortal cultivation. Yuan Shang and Fu Xuan were the pioneers, followed by Guang Hou and Che Hong, a grandfather and grandson with exceptional talents!

The reclusive master Guanghou, who had been in seclusion for many years, had appeared in the mountains at some unknown time. The master in green robes quickly stood up, bowed, and smiled, saying:

"Fellow Daoist Guanghou, how have you been?"

Guanghou sat down, but did not look directly at him. Instead, her gaze fell on the chessboard, and she replied:

“Fellow Daoist Si…you should be called Fellow Daoist Sima now, but you are quite different from before.”

He paused slightly:
"Congratulations."

Hearing Che Hong's words, Sima Yuanli smiled and said:

"I cannot compare to Fellow Daoist Guanghou."

Guanghou and Sima Yuanli are only a few decades apart in age, but there is a significant gap between them. The Sima family is small, and Yuanxiu Zhenren has been waiting for a talent worth cultivating, but he has not been able to find one. Sima Yuanli is like the tallest among the short among the short, a helpless move with no other choice... so he was not given important responsibilities until he was quite old.

However, Guanghou was a genius who shocked the patriarch from the time he started practicing Qi cultivation. He was once regarded by Fuxuan as a future pillar and was carefully cared for. He lived up to expectations and achieved the Purple Mansion realm in a very short time. Sima Yuanli was somewhat inferior to him.

Guanghou frowned and said:
"The master is in seclusion. Your message has been sent in and I've read it..."

A hint of coldness flashed in his eyes as he quietly said:

"After all, there are many things about crossing the mountain peak that are best left unsaid."

Sima Yuanli remained silent.

Since the passing of the immortal Xianyao, Guoling Peak was handed over to the Yang Song dynasty by Chengqian. The Song dynasty's forces then began moving in and out of Guoling Peak, first the neighboring Gu family, then the Chen family…

"In previous years things were better, but these days, King Wei has conquered Luoxia and moved the capital to Xiangyang and Huaihe River. The north is disaffected and has no desire to fight or fight for its interests. They are so submissive that they dare not retaliate and only make small-scale attacks."

His gaze was deep and unfathomable as he said:
"Now that Fellow Daoist Sima has arrived, it seems that the emperor's ambition lies in the Pure One."

Even if Lady Yang truly harbored such intentions, Sima Yuanli could not admit it on her behalf. He rose, waved his hand, and replied:
"Fellow Daoist, you misunderstand. It's about the matter of [Dalingchuan]..."

"Oh?"

Guanghou raised her eyebrows to look at him and replied:
"how you said that?"

Sima Yuanli said quietly:

"The Xi family once lived in the Jianghuai region. Since they are both prominent families in Jiangnan, how could the Xi family be left out if there are any changes in Dalingchuan? The Chen family's roots are in Daling Kingdom, with the Kan River and Fu River in the middle. The emperor is benevolent and sent the King of Wei to pacify Luoyang. Isn't this an opportunity for a true person to establish their foundation?"

Guanghou remained silent.

In fact, Sima Yuanli was not wrong. The Dalingchuan River is certainly not lacking in treasures from the Kanshui and Fushui Rivers. It is also rumored to be a place where one can prove the Dao. It is a rare ancient place. Logically speaking, cultivators of the Purple Mansion of these two paths, as long as they have the desire to prove the Dao, would not be able to avoid coming here.

He is quite talented in playing the harp, and what's rare is that he was born at the right time and has a long lifespan. The day when he becomes a true dragon and pine trees to preserve the virtue of water is approaching. At that time, the world will be in turmoil, and it will be the time for dragons and snakes to take advantage of the changes!

Whether it's the treasures or inheritances obtained in this Dalingchuan, or even just a glimpse into some secrets or a cultivator's path to enlightenment, they could all be related to whether Guanghou can achieve perfect supernatural powers in the next two or three hundred years, or even seize the opportunity to attain the Golden Realm!

But the Master of the Water Mansion remained silent, refusing to speak. After a long while, he spoke in a cold voice:
"The foundation for enlightenment is secondary. Guanghou has a question for you adults."

Sima Yuanli's smile remained unchanged, but the hand holding the chess piece suddenly froze. The black chess piece was held between his two fingers, its color dark and eerie. The real person in front of him had already spoken.

"When the old master was seeking the Dao, he was living in resentment. Who was it that questioned him about it?"

The mountains fell silent for a moment, with only the sound of snow and ice falling to the ground.

When Yuan Shangzheng fell from grace, his words were not silenced but echoed throughout heaven and earth. Many people heard of it at the time, but no one dared to ask questions, secretly trembling with fear!
If outsiders feel this way, how much more so should the several Purple Mansion True Persons of Chunyi Dao, who deeply suspect that Yuan Shang has not actually become a demon? Naturally, the grudge in their hearts is hard to erase. Chunyi Dao knows this matter, and so does the Yang family!
Yang Shi re-established the True Qi and intended to gather the former officials of Ningguo. Naturally, she had long planned against Chunyi. However, because of this, Chunyi ignored Yang Shi's hints several times. Yang Shi even had to take over the Lingfeng first and changed several groups of people and Xi Shi to interfere, but no progress was made.

So much so that today, Sima Yuanli has arrived.

Sima Yuanli's smile remained unchanged, as if he hadn't heard him. After a long, long time, he slowly put down the black chess piece and replied:

"Since you are not answering, you must still be considering it. But time is of the essence, and you are afraid of missing the opportunity. Qinghu is at Guoling Peak. Once you have made up your mind, you can come to Guoling Peak to find me."

He stood up, bowed to the two of them, and then transformed into a spring breeze, dissipating like smoke.

Guanghou maintained his posture throughout, his face gloomy, seemingly unsurprised. Beside him, Chehong kept his eyes slightly closed, his teeth clenched, also remaining silent.

Only then did they hear faint footsteps in the wind and snow.

The white-robed swordsman approached from afar, standing amidst the snow, his robes fluttering in the wind. He stood still on Jade Terrace Mountain, gazing in the direction Sima Yuanli had gone.

Guanghou finally stood up, bowed deeply, and said in a low voice:
"Master!"

This person is Fu Xuan.

His expression remained relatively calm, but his aura fluctuated, as if his failure to elevate his supernatural powers not long ago had shaken his foundation.

A look of worry finally appeared in Guanghou's gloomy eyes. He wanted to step forward to help him up, but the master waved his hand to stop him, saying to Fuxuan:
"It's out of the way."

When Master Yuan Shang perished, this sword cultivator stood in the snow for a long time. Whether he was confused or saddened, all these expressions disappeared from his face, leaving only a cold smile.

He said:

"Guanghou, you should go there."

Guanghou stared at him for a moment, then said:
"This junior believes..."

Fu Xuan reached out and stopped him from saying anything more, quietly saying:

"It's not the Yang family that's willing to back down to this extent, it's Yang Ruiyi. They can't tolerate too much refusal... Da Lingchuan, just treat it as an opportunity. I'll let Che Hong handle the rest."

Chehong immediately agreed, but Guanghou's expression changed upon hearing this, and he said:
"It would be inconvenient to let Chang'er get involved."

The swordsman in front of him turned around and said:
"In the Pure One Path, only you have cultivated the Water Manifestation Divine Power, and only you..."

His gaze was calm, and he said coldly:

"Not accustomed to Taiyin."

……

The golden palace shone with colorful light, a sign of the changing seasons.

The flames in the hall were like mist, and a man in a crimson robe sat upright in it, his hands forming a lotus mudra. He sat cross-legged in meditation, and the crimson mist swirled around him with his breath.

After an unknown amount of time, he finally exhaled a white streak, causing the flames in the hall to distort. The young man slowly opened his golden eyes, instantly calming the energy in the hall.

'The Yin Divination Ritual: Separation from the Branch has been completed!'

He regulated his breathing before raising his hand, making a circle with his fingers, and silently nodding:

'Three years…'

Although this Li Huo spiritual item cannot compare to Li Jiangqian's [Li Si Apricot Fruit] from back then, it is still a genuine treasure that was collected by the Luoxia aristocratic family.

'If an ordinary cultivator wanted to fully utilize this [Yin Shi Li Zhi], they would definitely need to find an alchemist to combine it with various auxiliary ingredients to create five or eight pills, one every one or two years, before they could gradually use it up.'

Li Jiangqian immediately swallowed it. Although he missed the step of having his ministers and assistants help him make the pill, and the total amount was much less, which seemed extravagant, he was able to refine it all and complete the path that others had taken nearly ten years to achieve in just two years!

After refining this spiritual object, the first thing that manifested in him was the significant improvement in his supernatural abilities. The 'Shunping Conquest' technique he had just mastered immediately stabilized, shone brightly, and brought him many benefits.

'These three years are equivalent to eight years of hard work for an ordinary cultivator!'

The cultivation techniques in Shanghuan Pavilion are never inferior; any one of them would be a top-tier lineage in this era. This particular technique, "Shunping Zheng," is also difficult to cultivate and is still some distance from perfection. Even so, Li Jiangqian was quite delighted.

After all, with Li Zhouwei's words, Li Jiangqian now values ​​the improvement of his supernatural abilities instead. He takes spiritual objects into his heart and consumes them with the help of talismanic energy, making almost full use of them, which is already quite amazing!
'The benefits beyond life itself are naturally not as great as the [Li Si Apricot Fruit], and the power of the Li Fire has only increased by a little over half a percent compared to back then... This is something that requires accumulation over time...'

He let out a long sigh:

'There's also a [Yin Shi Li Zhi], but duplicates aren't very useful, so I'll keep it for Sui Huan Qiu Zi Fu... I also have a [Yin Ri Hua Ye].'

According to Li Jiangqian's judgment, this [Yin Rihua Leaf] is by no means inferior to the [Li Si Apricot Fruit] of yesteryear. It is also a top-grade Li Fire spiritual item. If he consumes it now and spends some time refining and polishing it, the next supernatural power will be right before his eyes!
'It's just... a bit too precious.'

Even though Li Zhouwei had given prior instructions, Li Jiangqian couldn't take this secret medicine, which was used by others to bypass ginseng and purple poison, repeatedly. He still intended to mention it first:
'Moreover, if I were to take this medicine now and go into seclusion to cultivate, it would inevitably take much longer, possibly five or six years… I might miss the opportunity… Besides, considering the timeframe, there's already some progress on Xuan Tao's matter.'

He walked on the fire, passing through the cave and arriving at the lake island in an instant. He saw the dense forest and the magnificent sight of the mountains covered in fiery red flames, a scene completely different from the fire of yesteryear. He couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, took a few more steps, and walked down to the mountaintop.

Just then, a Taoist master in a white-gold robe was leaning against a tree, holding a jade slip, looking very elegant. On the other side, under a huge alchemy furnace, sat an identical Taoist master, resting his chin on his hand and remaining silent. In front of him, a young Taoist master was gazing thoughtfully at the furnace fire.

Li Jiangqian glanced at it with a smile, stepped down, and said softly:

"Grand Uncle!"

Although the sound was soft, it was quite loud, immediately causing the golden alchemy furnace to shake violently. Li Ximing suddenly opened his eyes. At the same time, the white-robed master sitting in front of the alchemy furnace suddenly exploded and transformed into a deep green stream of light, quickly disappearing back into the master's sleeve!
Li Ximing then appeared in front of the alchemy furnace, extended two fingers, and stabilized the shaking furnace.

Li Jiangqian was slightly surprised and said:
"Grand Uncle, what is this...?"

Alchemists must be constantly focused and expend mental energy when refining pills, and there are indeed rules against disturbing them. However, once one reaches the Purple Mansion level and possesses supernatural powers, although one cannot move in many situations, it is easy to be distracted even for a moment unless refining an extremely profound elixir... Moreover, who is Li Ximing? Back then, on Zhijing Mountain, where people came and went, he was the one who could guard the alchemy furnace for him with just a wisp of flame. Why would he be in this situation?

Li Ximing stabilized the alchemical fire, but instead of being annoyed by the disturbance, he smiled and said:

"Just a small experiment."

Li Jiangqian turned his gaze:
"【Divided Spirit and Different Forms】?"

"You can't fool me!"

Li Ximing shook his head and smiled, saying:
"Over the years, my [Divided Spirit Body] has received considerable nourishment, and as I've improved day by day, I'm no longer content to use it only in the final step of nurturing the elixir. Instead, I'm trying to let the [Divided Spirit Body] refine the elixir entirely..."

He shook his head regretfully:
"If you hadn't come, I wouldn't have been able to hold on any longer... In the end, I was still just one point short."

Li Jiangqian pondered.

Over the years, Grand Uncle Li Ximing's divided spirit has repeatedly performed miraculous feats, sharing many of his injuries. Whenever any damage occurs, he moves to the realm of the sun and moon, where the essence of the moon and the extremely rich spiritual energy are combined, which is not as simple as just receiving a lot of nourishment...

'Throughout history, there have probably been few people who have lived such an extravagant life!'

It was precisely because of this that Li Ximing's divided spirit and other body progressed rapidly. While others' cultivation dragged their other bodies along, he was the one whose other body dragged him along.

Therefore, Li Jiangqian said:

"Uncle, there's no need to worry. The art of fire control has never been difficult for you. Even against an alien, you're not much weaker. This has already solved a major problem."

He paused slightly and said in a low voice:
"Three years have passed in the blink of an eye. How is Luoyang...?"

Li Ximing chuckled:

"Naturally unharmed, and even more than unharmed..."

"General Yang has been guarding Luoyang for years, and the north has not been able to mount any effective counterattacks. Two years ago, he relocated the people, which reduced many potential threats. Finally, the Compassionate Dao sent someone, but it was detected in advance and he was ambushed in Ruzhou. Jiang Tou Shou also neglected to go beyond the pass..."

His expression was strange as he said:
“I think… those people in the north are still living in fear, estimating that your father’s injuries should have healed by now, and are afraid that he is waiting in some corner under the cover of the banished qi. So at the slightest disturbance, they flee in all directions… Yang Ruiyi is already terrifying enough, but with the addition of the Prince of Wei, if he is willing to ambush, how many people in the world can escape?”

"How could the river chief not be afraid? I think... even if he were given the power of a Mahakala warrior, he wouldn't dare to step out of the Zan Gate!"