Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

"That concludes my teachings for today. After you return, you must diligently cultivate and always revere the Dragon God, without the slightest slackening..."

Inside a brightly lit hall, a jade statue of a dragon, about ten feet tall, was enshrined.

Three thick incense sticks, each about the thickness of a finger, were inserted into the bronze incense burner on the offering table. Wisps of smoke rose, filling the entire hall with a delicate fragrance.

In front of the offering table, a middle-aged cultivator sat on a futon, his eyes sweeping over the cultivator in front of him, his deep voice revealing a hint of sternness.

This person appeared to be around fifty years old, dressed in a deep blue robe embroidered with a lifelike dragon. He had high brow bones, narrow eyes, and a deep gaze, giving him an air of unfathomable mystery.

Opposite him, a dozen or so cultivators sat upright on futons in a semi-circle, arranged in two rows.

There were only four cultivators in the front row, and their faces were older than those in the back row. One of them had gray hair, resembling a seventy-year-old man, with cloudy eyes and a slightly hunched body, showing his advanced age.

The cultivators in the back row were generally much younger, mostly in their twenties or thirties, and their expressions were extremely reserved, even revealing a hint of fear.

After the middle-aged cultivator finished speaking, the two rows of cultivators stood up from their prayer mats, clasped their hands in a bow, and said respectfully, "Thank you, Master (Grandmaster), for imparting the Dao. We will certainly venerate the Dragon God, cultivate diligently, and never tarnish Master's (Grandmaster's) reputation!"

The middle-aged cultivator nodded slightly and then instructed, "You all step back, Yi Chuan stays."

"Disciple obeys..."

The crowd respectfully responded, bowed deeply to the jade dragon statue behind the middle-aged cultivator, their expressions extremely respectful, and then turned and walked out of the main hall.

The temple is filled with dragon statues.

Inside the main hall stands a ten-zhang-tall jade dragon statue, identical to the three-hundred-zhang-tall statue in front of the temple, only much smaller. Legend has it that it was also erected by that dragon demon general.

In the hall of each Nascent Soul Elder, there is also a dragon statue, ranging from one to three zhang in size depending on the level of cultivation. Incense is offered continuously, and people worship it at all times.

Only the seventy-year-old man remained. After everyone else had left, he stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, saying, "What are your instructions, Master?"

The middle-aged cultivator slowly rose and walked out of the main hall. The seventy-year-old man bowed slightly and followed, lagging behind by half a step.

The middle-aged cultivator said calmly, "I am ordered by the sect leader to leave Dragon God City tomorrow and travel to Frostbite City. It will take about a year before I can return."

"During this period, if any of my friends visit, please receive them on my behalf and keep your fellow disciples and nephews in check so that they do not cause any trouble."

The seventy-year-old man was taken aback, then lowered his head and respectfully replied, "Disciple will follow Master's teachings."

The two had already left the main hall when the middle-aged cultivator paused. He nodded and said, "Go."

The septuagenarian clasped his hands in a bow, stepped back two paces, and then turned and left.

Each Nascent Soul elder in the temple is allocated a piece of land where palaces and courtyards are built, and their disciples and descendants also live there.

The seventy-year-old man was the eldest disciple of the middle-aged cultivator. Although his cultivation level was only at the mid-stage of Core Formation, his residence was quite large, surpassing that of his three junior brothers, and it was not far from the main hall.

He turned down several wide roads, passed two slightly smaller palaces, and arrived at a four-courtyard residence.

According to the rules of the Divine Religion, cultivators in the late stage of Core Formation should live in a three-courtyard residence.

However, these rules only apply to ordinary cultivators. As the eldest disciple of a Nascent Soul Elder, the seventy-year-old man's residence was larger, and no one dared to say anything.

He flicked his sleeve, dispelling the formation, and walked into the courtyard. He went to the cultivation room in the backyard, sat down to meditate and regulate his breathing until late at night, when he suddenly opened his eyes.

He quietly left his residence, avoiding the passing cultivators, and arrived at the gate of a three-courtyard house. He took out a sound transmission talisman, placed it to his lips, silently said a few words, and then released it. The talisman transformed into a dim stream of light in the night, flying into the array that enveloped the house.

A moment later, the door opened silently, and Ling Shuoye strode out, stepped forward, and bowed to the seventy-year-old man with clasped hands: "Fellow Daoist Wu..."

The seventy-year-old man raised his hand to stop them and said in a low voice, "Let's go inside and talk."

Ling Shuoye immediately stopped speaking and gestured with his hand: "Fellow Daoist, please come in."

The seventy-year-old man strode hurriedly through the gate. Ling Shuoye spread his divine sense to briefly survey the surroundings before immediately withdrawing it and closing the gate.

Nearly ten Nascent Soul elders and more than thirty late-stage Core Formation cultivators reside in the temple year-round, so it is not advisable to easily disperse one's divine sense.

Otherwise, accidentally glancing at a cultivator with a higher level of cultivation would be an extremely serious offense.

The two arrived at the main hall and took their seats as host and guest. The anxious expression on the seventy-year-old man's face finally eased.

Ling Shuoye served the prepared spiritual tea and said with a smile, "Fellow Daoist Wu, what brings you here so late at night?"

The seventy-year-old man picked up his teacup and drank it all in one gulp: "The matter that Fellow Daoist Ling asked me to inquire about has yielded results. My master will be leaving Dragon God City tomorrow."

Ling Shuoye's eyes lit up: "May I ask where Elder Dugu is headed?"

The seventy-year-old man put down his teacup, looked up at Ling Shuoye, and slowly said, "Head towards Frostbite City."

Ling Shuoye frowned: "Something happened at the Bear God Sect?"

The septuagenarian shook his head: "My master did not say so, and I do not know either."

Ling Shuoye nodded thoughtfully, then suddenly flicked his sleeve, and a wooden box appeared out of thin air on the table, with a spirit-sealing talisman affixed to it.

"Fellow Daoist, you have gone to great lengths. Please accept this piece of floating wood."

The septuagenarian picked up the wooden box, removed the sealing talisman, and opened the lid to reveal a piece of dark red wood root inside. It was only the size of a fist, with a pitted and ugly surface.

But when the seventy-year-old man saw this object, a look of joy flashed in his eyes. He raised his hand, made a hand seal, and released a beam of spiritual light to examine it carefully.

After a while, he finally stopped and put the wooden box into his mustard seed ring with satisfaction.

He stood up, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, saying, "I, Wu, take my leave."

Ling Shuoye got up to see him off, but just as the seventy-year-old man stepped out of the main hall, he suddenly stopped.

He turned around and said, word by word, "If it weren't for the fact that my son's natal spirit weapon needs to be upgraded to a magic weapon and he is only missing a piece of floating wood, and my master has always taken good care of you, I would never have told you about my master's whereabouts."

"Fellow Daoist, please do not reveal this matter. My lifespan is coming to an end. I have no fear of my master's punishment, but you will not have an easy time."

Ling Shuoye laughed and said, "Fellow Daoist, rest assured. I was entrusted by someone to see Elder Dugu. I only took this tactic because I was worried that Elder Dugu would avoid me."

"Moreover, I, Ling, have been repeatedly promoted by Elder Dugu, which is why I have achieved my current level of cultivation. How could I do anything that would be detrimental to Elder Dugu?"

The seventy-year-old man's expression softened slightly, and he gave Ling Shuoye a deep look: "That's for the best. Fellow Daoist, please stay. There's no need to see me off."

With that, he turned and left, his figure disappearing into the deep night. (End of Chapter)