Daojun, start from Penglai foundation building

The Immortal Banquet at the Hall of Fragrant Breeze.

That was the largest celestial banquet in the myriad realms in nearly ten thousand years, attended by the Daoist Lords of the Xuanmen, the Buddhas of Buddhism, the gods of the divine path, and the great saints of the demon race, among others.

In the chaotic universe, there are many banquets of immortals and gods, and banquets of the pure Yang level are not uncommon. However, in the past, due to the fact that the myriad realms of the heavens and the worlds belonged to the thirty-six great thousand, each had its own closeness and distance and many conflicts, so-called pure Yang banquets were often just small gatherings of two or three pure Yang beings, at most with a group of subordinate immortals and gods of the upper three realms.

For example, the Qingqiu Dharma Banquet at the Qingqiu Holy Land in Jurong Realm is mainly attended by celestial demons from the three realms above, with very few from the side sects, let alone immortals, gods, and Buddhas.

If it weren't for the Nine-Tailed Great Sage of Qingqiu insisting on getting involved in the Xuanmen Tribulation, the Eastern Heaven Daoist Clan wouldn't have bothered to attend that kind of childish Dharma banquet between a few demon clans.

The Qingqiu Dharma Banquet was flawed from the start. It appeared to be a grand invitation to heroes from all over the world, inviting geniuses from all directions. However, apart from the holy sons and daughters of other holy lands in Jurong Realm, only a few holy lands and royal courts of the demon race occasionally participated, and they didn't attend every time.

Its innate foundation was insufficient, and coupled with the petty nature of Qingqiu itself, even the Nine-Tailed Great Sage could not support a grand banquet of sufficient scale to be engraved in the heavens.

Apart from the Qingqiu Dharma Banquet, other Pure Yang Dharma Banquets in the myriad realms are mostly small-scale gatherings like this. Even when the Mountain and River Realm still existed, the banquets between Penglai, Qinghua, and Tianhe would not invite the Demon Emperor Palace, Jinchan Temple, or Tianlong Temple. This is the reason why immortals, gods, demons, and Buddhas are all different.

However, as the three realms of mountains and rivers, Panfeng, and Hengsha merged and the Three Realms were established, immortals, gods, demons, and Buddhas gathered in one realm. The fortunes of all the heavens and myriad realms surged and karma became intertwined. Gradually, the Dharma banquet held in the Three Realms was no longer confined to one race or one region.

Even so, looking back over the past 40,000 years before the Yuan Dynasty and the past 2,000 years in the Three Realms, there has never been a grand event like the Immortal Banquet at the Fragrant Pavilion.

His Majesty's banquet in the Hall of Fragrant Incense invited immortals, gods, emperors, and Buddhas from the Three Realms, as well as Taoists from the Eastern Heaven, Buddhists from the Western Heaven, and all the holy beings and patriarchs of unorthodox sects.
Immortals, gods, demons, Buddhas, and even those from unorthodox sects were invited. Prodigies from all walks of life were also present. It was a grand feast that brought together dozens of Pure Yang masters. The gathering of so many Pure Yang masters was something that even the previous Xuanmen Calamity could not compare to.

After all, no one from the Xuanmen clan suffered a fate during the Great Calamity. The demon race and the Buddhist sects were not heavily involved, and among the gods, only Yanxing was blinded by the calamity energy and lost his life. However, at the Immortal Banquet in the Pixiang Palace a hundred years later, the Golden Awakening Buddha of the Western Paradise has already agreed to attend, along with a host of Arhats and Bodhisattvas from the Western Paradise. The three Heavenly Venerables of the Eastern Paradise will also be attending, as will the Dao Lords of the three sects, the Crimson Cloud Dao Lord, the Golden Mother Yuanjun, and so on. As for the Emperors, Star Lords, Immortal Lords, True Lords, Demon Lords, Demon Lords, Venerable Heavenly Kings of the Upper Three Realms, there are countless others.

Such a grand and magnificent celestial banquet and Dharma assembly—one can only imagine how many immortals would discuss the Dao and how many gods and Buddhas would perform the Dharma. How could Jiang Sheng not look forward to such a grand event?
Before attending such a grand feast, Jiang Sheng needed to transform all his gains from the Xuanmen Tribulation into his own power, so that he would have more confidence to attend. Jiang Sheng could already foresee that the Divine Path and the Buddhist Path would inevitably clash with the Eastern Heavenly Daoist School. Jiang Sheng was now rumored by many to be the number one Xuanmen School of the present era, the undisputed leader of the Eastern Heavenly Daoist School, and the number one in the previous battle between immortals, gods, and Buddhas. In addition to his performance in the Xuanmen Tribulation, Jiang Sheng could foresee how many people would be eager to step on him and become famous throughout the world at this grand feast of all realms.

Therefore, Jiang Sheng needs to make proper preparations.

If you want to rise to fame by stepping on him, first check if you're up to the task!
Inside the Xuanqing Palace, Jiang Sheng casually made hand seals to summon the magic. The twenty-four golden and purple immortal talismans swirled around Jiang Sheng, evolving with endless mysteries. These immortal talismans, formed from merit and fortune, each had infinite uses, whether for refining magic, tempering the soul, or even forging the physical body.

If one's physical body and soul are tempered by fortune and merit, then one can initially achieve immunity from disasters and calamities. Even if someone manipulates the laws of fate and karma to damage one's fortune and shorten one's lifespan, they will still need to weigh the fortune and merit integrated into one's body.

In addition to this, luck and merit can also be used to refine true treasures. In the myriad realms, there are many people who use luck and merit to refine true treasures. After being nurtured, the true treasure can become a true treasure of acquired luck or a true treasure of acquired merit.

The acquired treasure of destiny comes with its own fortune, and is not afraid of bad luck or misfortune. However, it can disregard the favor of the chosen ones and those destined by fate to a certain extent.

The true treasure of merit is even more capable of being untouched by cause and effect, unafraid of deduction, indifferent to calamities and disasters, and killing without being tainted in the slightest.

Jiang Sheng's initial plan was to use twelve of the twenty-four golden-purple immortal talismans, formed from the condensation of fortune and merit, to refine his physical body and soul. Jiang Sheng's physical body was originally nurtured by the world fruit of a small world, and it inherently possessed some innate destiny. If he continued to refine and nurture it with fortune and merit, this physical body might be able to achieve the initial state of being indestructible through countless eons and untouched by karma even before entering the Pure Yang realm.

As for the remaining Golden Purple Immortal Talisman, Jiang Sheng decided to use it to refine and nurture his natal treasure, the Qingping Sword, transforming it into a postnatal treasure imbued with the power of fortune and merit. When he unleashed the Intercepting Sword Technique with the Qingping Sword, even a Great Ascension Immortal Lord would have to consider whether he could withstand that transformative sword strike.

Therefore, Jiang Sheng's main goal for the past century has been to nurture the Qingping Sword with Qi and merit. Only after that can he consider using Xuanhuang Qi to refine magic treasures such as the Four Swords of Slaughter and Traps, and the Azure Lotus Formation Diagram. As for his own robes, jade belt, and Daoist crown, if there is any Xuanhuang Qi left, he will use it to nurture and refine them. If there is none left, then there is nothing to regret.

After all, if the Four Swords of Slaughter and Deception could truly devour all of his Xuanhuang Qi, wouldn't that be a great fortune?

Having made up his mind, Jiang Sheng's heart stirred, and with a loud sword cry, the Qingping Sword flew out from Jiang Sheng's sleeve. The three-foot-six-and-a-half-inch black immortal sword was like a blue rainbow piercing the sky and shattering the void, leaving behind a graceful sword shadow and rosy light.

Magical artifacts possess spirits. The Qingping Sword is Jiang Sheng's natal magical artifact. It has accompanied Jiang Sheng in battles since he began his foundation building. For more than 1,900 years, it has helped Jiang Sheng kill countless enemies, whether they were Taoist disciples, demons, Buddhist disciples, heretical lords, spirits, demons, or other strange beings. All of them have met their end under the Qingping Sword.

With a slight thought, the Qingping Sword tore through the void and returned to the Qingping Sword, trembling majestically before Jiang Sheng.

Jiang Sheng raised his hand and gently stroked the Qingping Sword, feeling its smooth blade and sensing its sharpness. The black blade, covered with seven blue lotuses, had a flowing blue light that rippled like water, reflecting Jiang Sheng's face.

"This time, my cultivation and practice cannot be accomplished by my own efforts alone; I will need your assistance."

To Jiang Sheng's left and right, two figures appeared at some unknown time. The person on the left wore a golden sun crown and a robe with yang patterns and flames, with a proud and heroic posture and a mysterious and bright aura, with the aura of scorching fire essence. The person on the right wore a moon jade crown and a white moon palace robe, with a cold and noble demeanor and a mysterious and clear aura, with the breath of a cold toad.

Jiang Sheng was a manifestation of the essence of the sun and the radiance of the moon, created by the complete Yin and Yang creation. Jin Yi Zhenjun and Yue Hui Zhenjun nodded solemnly, and each of them raised a cloud-shaped bed to the left and right of Jiang Sheng. They sat down cross-legged, and in an instant, the power of the sun and the moon emanated, and the power of the essence of the sun and the radiance of the moon shone with golden and silver brilliance, reflecting in the Xuanqing Palace as if golden crows were soaring in the sky and moon rabbits were running around.

The sun and moon appear together, their dance revealing the mysteries of Yin and Yang.

Gold and purple intertwine, flowing and transforming fortune and merit.

Jin Yi Zhenjun and Yue Hui Zhenjun used the power of the sun and moon to create yin and yang. The vast essence of the sun and moon in the Xuanqing Palace gathered and condensed, combining the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to form a furnace of yin and yang creation.

Jiang Sheng and Qingping Sword were now in the Yin-Yang Creation Furnace, surrounded by twenty-four golden-purple immortal talismans formed from the condensation of fortune and merit, resembling the twenty-four heavens, displaying boundless strange phenomena and mysterious light.

Under the scorching power of the sun and moon, the first golden-purple immortal talisman entered Jiang Sheng's brow and appeared in his sea of ​​consciousness. Originally, the sea of ​​consciousness was filled with swaying blue and black lotuses, surrounded by wind, thunder, water, and fire. As fortune and merit emerged, the golden-purple immortal talisman slowly dissolved, transforming into wisps of golden-purple fortune and merit that began to nourish Jiang Sheng's sea of ​​consciousness and strengthen his soul.

As wisps of fortune and merit entered his sea of ​​consciousness and soul, Jiang Sheng could clearly sense that his divine sense was constantly growing stronger, his soul was becoming more and more resilient, and even his entire sea of ​​consciousness was expanding.

If Jiang Sheng's spiritual sea had already reached the level of a Fifth Tribulation True Monarch, then the fortune and merit contained in this Golden Purple Immortal Talisman are now propelling Jiang Sheng's spiritual sea toward the perfection of a Fifth Tribulation True Monarch.

Sensing the growth of his divine soul and sea of ​​consciousness, Jiang Sheng had a slight thought, and another golden-purple immortal talisman entered Jiang Sheng's dantian, starting to nourish Jiang Sheng's physical body and internal organs from the dantian.

Upon internal observation, Jiang Sheng could see wisps of golden-purple energy emerging from his dantian, seeping into his flesh and bones, and merging into his meridians. Unbeknownst to him, the hidden dangers left over from Jiang Sheng's numerous battles and fierce fights in the past were eliminated by his luck and merit. It seemed as if some gray-black energy was forced out of Jiang Sheng's body and then disappeared without a trace.

A feeling of ease and joy, as if he had been freed from shackles, welled up in Jiang Sheng's heart, giving him a deeper understanding of how to utilize the power of fortune and merit.

Hidden risks exist.

Before his ascension, Jiang Sheng had suffered hidden injuries from several battles, injuries that could not be healed by a few elixirs.

Elixir and precious medicine can heal wounds, nourish the soul, restore magical power, and help break through realms. Injuries hidden in the flesh and muscles can be treated, but hidden dangers deep in the bone marrow and meridians are difficult to detect.

When Jiang Sheng ascended to immortality, he used the methods of immortals and gods to strengthen his foundation and enhance his origin in order to achieve the true Dao fruit.

Under the blessing of the Immortal God Refining Void Tribulation, Jiang Sheng encountered the legendary Forty-Nine Heavenly Thunder Tribulation, which shattered his physical body. He had to use the World Fruit to reshape his physical body to accommodate his divine soul.

At the time, Jiang Sheng didn't think much of it, only assuming that the Heavenly Tribulation of the Forty-Nine Heavens was inherently so powerful. But now, recalling it, if there hadn't been a hidden danger in his physical body at the time, why would his original physical body have been shattered and abandoned?

This is not to say that the current physical body is bad. In fact, if it weren't for this physical body nurtured by the Fruit of the World, Jiang Sheng would not have been able to withstand many of his tribulations. But if Jiang Sheng had been able to calm down and sort out the hidden dangers in his physical body back then, would he have been able to integrate the Fruit of the World into his original physical body and start at a higher level in the Upper Three Realms?
The past cannot be changed, and Jiang Sheng is not the type to wallow in self-pity.

Once you take a step forward, there's no going back. Now that Jiang Sheng has realized the hidden dangers within himself, he naturally wants to eliminate them.

As wisps of merit and fortune seeped into Jiang Sheng's flesh, bones, and meridians, the hidden dangers were gradually eliminated. Jiang Sheng also learned the origins of those hidden dangers: some were due to the contamination of others' laws after his arm was broken and rebuilt; some were due to internal organ damage resulting in some hidden injuries; some were due to the hidden dangers from his fierce battles; and some were due to the traces of erosion by the Taiyin and Taiyang stars.
As Jiang Sheng recalled each and every incident, he realized that even though he had the ability to regenerate severed limbs, even though he had taken elixirs and his injuries appeared to have healed without any damage to his skin and flesh, and even though his physical body was nurtured by the fruit of a small world, his immortal body was not an indestructible pure yang true body. In the end, he would still get hurt and leave marks, and the hidden dangers of those injuries would always exist.

Although Jiang Sheng's new physical body after breaking through to the Void Refinement Realm had no hidden dangers, the battles he fought after reaching the Void Refinement Realm far surpassed those of the six mortal realms, and their intensity was incomparable to that of ordinary immortals and gods.

Those seemingly healed injuries simply continued to exist in Jiang Sheng's body in a different form. They were hidden in his bones and meridians, and in his dantian acupoints. They were not visible on ordinary days and did not affect Jiang Sheng's combat skills and profound understanding. Even breaking through realms and advancing in rank seemed to be no problem. However, once he encountered a situation like the ascension from the sixth realm of the mortal world to the Void Refinement realm, which required the ultimate sublimation of his essence, energy, and spirit, and the merging of his life with the true essence, it would inevitably inflict a severe blow on Jiang Sheng.

Previously, when Jiang Sheng broke through to the Void Refinement Realm, he still had the Fruit of the World to reshape his physical body and the fortune and merit to wear away his tribulations. However, if Jiang Sheng were to reach the Three Flowers Gathering at the Top and the Five Qi Converging at the Origin, preparing to ascend to the Pure Yang Realm, his own hidden dangers would inevitably erupt, and Jiang Sheng would surely fail at the last moment.

"No wonder all the immortals, gods, demons, and Buddhas in the myriad realms pursue fortune and merit."

"Luck represents continuous fortune, and merit represents lasting blessings. If there is no luck to suppress calamities and merit to eliminate karma, the heavenly tribulations and man-made disasters during each breakthrough and advancement would be enough to kill ninety percent of the upper three realms in the myriad worlds."

"If one does not have enough luck and merit to offset the calamity and cause and effect and make up for one's own deficiencies, then every single one of those who have reached the Pure Yang realm will perish."

As he spoke, Jiang Sheng once again drew another golden-purple talisman into his body. This golden-purple talisman entered Jiang Sheng's central palace and began to slowly release its fortune and merit, dissolving the hidden dangers in Jiang Sheng's meridians and acupoints.

The three immortal talismans dissolved within Jiang Sheng's three palaces of Heaven, Earth, and Man, namely the Sea of ​​Consciousness, Dantian, and Purple Mansion, integrating merit and fortune into Jiang Sheng's divine soul, sea of ​​consciousness, flesh, bones, and Xuanqing Palace. Within the Xuanqing Palace, Jiang Sheng's physical body could be seen faintly radiating golden-purple light. The flesh, muscles, bones, meridians, internal organs, and acupoints were illuminated by this golden-purple light, becoming transparent and clear. As the golden-purple power flowed within the three palaces, this power of fortune and merit began to permeate Jiang Sheng's three palaces, giving rise to the wondrous transformation of the Three Powers.

At the same time, Jiang Sheng also introduced a celestial talisman into the Qingping Sword. While he was being cleansed by the Qi and merit, he also began to refine and nurture the Qingping Sword.

The Qingping Sword is Jiang Sheng's natal magic weapon, and it is closely related to Jiang Sheng's life. Only by tempering himself and refining the Qingping Sword can he nurture his natal magic weapon to the greatest extent, making the connection between the Qingping Sword and Jiang Sheng closer and closer, until their spiritual thoughts are the same and they are perfectly integrated.

The years are not counted in the practice of cultivating techniques and mystical arts.

Before we knew it, thirty years had passed.

The doors of the Xuanqing Palace in Xiaopenglai remained tightly closed. Inside, the brilliance of the sun and moon shone brightly, as if the sun and moon were resonating together. In the Yin-Yang Creation Furnace, Jiang Sheng faced the sky with his five hearts turned upwards. The Qingping Sword hung in front of Jiang Sheng, its spiritual energy flowing around it, seemingly moving in rhythm with Jiang Sheng's breathing.

Of the twenty-four golden and purple immortal talismans surrounding Jiang Sheng, more than half had already been used.

In addition to Jiang Sheng integrating three golden purple immortal talismans into his three palaces of Heaven, Earth, and Man—his Sea of ​​Consciousness, Purple Mansion, and Dantian—three golden purple immortal talismans were also embedded in the Qingping Sword by Jiang Sheng, and refined with his fortune and merit.

Each time Jiang Sheng tempered his physical body and soul, he also simultaneously refined the Qingping Sword. At this moment, with the infusion of three golden and purple immortal talismans and the nurturing of fortune and merit, the aura of the Qingping Sword became increasingly mysterious, faintly possessing a spirituality that was untouched by cause and effect and unaffected by fate.

Jiang Sheng had a premonition that the Qingping Sword had reached its limit. The fortune and merit of the three Golden Purple Immortal Talismans were enough to support the changes in the Qingping Sword; any more would be useless. (End of this chapter)