A max-level player in Jade Dynasty: Awakening the Innate Dao at the start.

Broken porcelain shards were scattered on the white jade bricks, and the emerald green tea soup meandered between the bricks like several dying green snakes.

The Taoist priest Cangsong stared at the scene of devastation, his chest heaving violently, the front of his Taoist robe rising and falling with his breath.

He clenched his fingers so tightly that his nails dug into his palms, leaving several deep white marks.

The sandalwood scent in the hall mingled with the aroma of spilled tea, creating a strange smell—a crisp fragrance mixed with a bitter, fishy odor.

Good physical constitution... doesn't necessarily mean good comprehension.

Cang Song opened his mouth, his voice sounding as if squeezed out from between his teeth, dry and rough like sandpaper.

"The reason I made such rapid progress earlier was because of my talent."

Further cultivation relies on comprehension, opportunity, and the tempering of one's character.

Three floors in three months... Hmph, that might not be a good thing.

As he spoke, he raised his eyes, his gaze fixed on Tian Buyi's face like a nail:

"The path of cultivation is long, and it gets more and more difficult as you go further."

The transition from the third to the fourth level of the Jade Purity Realm is a hurdle, and the transition from the fourth to the fifth level is another hurdle.

Many people are stuck at a bottleneck, unable to move forward for ten or twenty years.

Your apprentice is charging ahead fiercely now, but in the future... he might not be able to keep going like that.

In the end, even he himself felt that his words were a bit far-fetched.

Tian Buyi didn't rush to refute.

He walked around the main hall for a couple of steps with his hands behind his back.

The Crimson Flame Sword was still hanging at his waist, its scabbard slightly warm, radiating warmth through the fabric of his Taoist robe.

He walked to a carved long window, stopped, and looked at the surging sea of ​​clouds outside.

The sea of ​​clouds was dyed golden-red by the setting sun, like molten iron slowly flowing across the horizon.

"Senior Brother Cangsong."

Tian Buyi spoke, his voice calm.

"You started learning the art thirty years earlier than me, and your cultivation has always been superior to mine."

For the past three hundred years, Dazhu Peak has consistently ranked last in every Seven Peaks Martial Arts Tournament.

Your Dragon Head Peak will forever be magnificent.

He turned around and looked at the pine tree:

"I, Tian Buyi, have never fought for anything."

I can't win the argument, and I don't want to.

But this time…

He paused, then slowly a grin spread across his face, revealing an almost ferocious smile:

"This time, my apprentice has lived up to expectations."

The moment he finished speaking, Tian Buyi suddenly looked up and burst into laughter.

Laughter erupted, like muffled thunder rolling across the dome of the Jade Purity Palace.

There was no mockery or contempt in the laughter, only a sense of exhilaration that had been suppressed for three hundred years and was finally bursting forth.

The laughter shook the incense smoke in the burner, causing the dust on the dragon-carved pillar to fall in a flurry.

The shock caused the Taoist Cangsong's face to turn from red to green, and then from green to white.

As he was laughing, the aura around Tian Buyi suddenly rippled.

It wasn't something he deliberately urged on; it was a natural reaction that came from a sudden moment of clarity in his mind.

The dormant magical power within his dantian, which had been dormant for many years, was awakened like a hibernating volcano.

It surged and flowed along the meridians.

Wherever they went, some previously obscure points suddenly became clear with a "click".

His cultivation level improved slightly.

Although it was only a trace, for someone of Tian Buyi's level...

This slight difference might take three to five years of arduous cultivation to regain.

Dao Xuan Zhenren's eyes flickered, but he remained silent.

The Taoist Cangsong's expression turned even uglier.

His lips trembled as he tried to say something, but the words caught in his throat.

"Five years," Cangsong finally managed to squeeze out, his voice hoarse.

"We'll see who's the best at the Seven Sects Martial Arts Tournament five years from now."

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down:

"My eldest disciple, Qi Hao, came in second place in the previous Seven Veins Martial Arts Tournament and is now at the eighth level of the Jade Purity Realm."

Five years from now, he will definitely be able to enter the Shangqing Realm.

And Jingyu… Five years is enough time for him to catch up with or even surpass your disciple.”

Tian Buyi's laughter gradually subsided.

He wiped away the tears of laughter from the corners of his eyes and straightened his back:

"Junior Brother Qi Hao is indeed remarkable."

As for Lin Jingyu…”

He paused for a moment, then said, "Five years from now, it won't be difficult for my apprentice to beat him."

If I'm even luckier, I might even get to... spar with my junior apprentice, Qi Hao.

The words were spoken lightly, but the meaning was quite harsh.

Cangsong's pupils contracted.

Let's exchange blows?

He is at the third level of the Jade Purity Realm. Five years later, he will face off against Qi Hao, who is at the eighth level of the Jade Purity Realm or may even break through to the Upper Purity Realm.

That's incredibly arrogant!

But when he looked at Tian Buyi's face, flushed from laughing, and at the undisguised confidence in his eyes,

The reprimand that was on the tip of his tongue got stuck in his throat.

That's enough.

Dao Xuan Zhenren's voice rang out, not loud, but carrying an undeniable authority.

He walked between the two, the hem of his plain white Taoist robe sweeping across the ground without getting a single tea stain on it.

His gaze swept over Tian Buyi, then over the old pine tree:

"It is a blessing for the Qingyun Sect that its disciples can succeed."

What's the point of arguing like this?

He paused:

"Go down."

Tian Buyi bowed slightly: "Yes."

Cangsong gritted his teeth and bowed as well: "...Yes."

The two walked out of the Jade Purity Palace one after the other.

As I stepped out the door, the setting sun shone directly in my face, its golden-red light so bright it was blinding.

Tian Buyi narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath.

The mountain breeze filled my chest, carrying the moisture from the sea of ​​clouds, and also a certain...sweet feeling of triumph.

The Crimson Flame Sword pierced the night and landed in front of the Shoujing Hall on Dazhu Peak.

Tian Buyi jumped off the sword, and the moment his feet touched the ground, he heard Su Ru's voice from inside the hall: "You're back?"

"You're back!" Tian Buyi responded and strode into the hall.

Su Ru was embroidering under the lamp, the needle and thread shimmering in the candlelight.

Seeing him come in, she put down what she was doing, looked up at him, and asked, "How was it?"

"That's great!" Tian Buyi plopped down opposite her, grabbed the teapot from the table, and

Without using a cup, he took a big gulp straight from the spout.

The tea was cold, but he drank it with great relish.

"You didn't see Cangsong's face... haha, it looked like he'd swallowed three pounds of bitter herbs!"

Su Ru looked at him, a smile playing on her lips: "Tell me slowly."

Tian Buyi put down the teapot, wiped his mouth, and began to speak.

From Cangsong boasting that Lin Jingyu reached the first level in two months, to himself casually tossing out "three levels in three months,"

From the pine tree's outburst that shattered the teacup, to Dao Xuan Zhenren's personal testimony, and finally the five-year agreement...

He spoke with great enthusiasm, his spittle flying everywhere.

Getting carried away with his speech, he slammed his hand on the table:

"Three hundred years! I've been holding back for three hundred years! Today, I've finally gotten my revenge!"

Su Ru listened quietly, and only spoke softly after he finished speaking:

"I remember that three months ago, someone said that this apprentice was 'the one that everyone else had rejected,' and 'a troublesome person with mediocre talent.'"

Tian Buyi's smile froze for a moment.

"Ahem." He cleared his throat, picked up the teapot, and took another sip, trying to hide his embarrassment.

"Back then...back then we hadn't figured out the details yet."

Things are different now, now…”

He put down the teapot and said seriously:

"Now, he is my beloved disciple, Tian Buyi."

Five years from now, at the Seven Peaks Martial Arts Tournament, it will all depend on him to bring honor to Great Bamboo Peak.

Su Ru chuckled, shook her head, and stopped teasing him.

She picked up the handkerchief she was halfway through embroidering and continued threading the needle:

"In that case, how do you plan to teach?"

"Give it your all."

Tian Buyi was resolute.

"Techniques, insights, resources—whatever he needs, whatever I have, I'll give him everything."

Five years... I'll show Cangsong what a true genius is.

Su Ru nodded, the needle moving softly through the fabric.

"That child is calm and quick-witted."

If you teach him more skills, he will definitely be able to absorb them.

However… on the path of cultivation, talent alone is not enough; one also needs careful guidance and timely correction of deviations.

Tian Buyi understood the implication in the words and grinned:

"Don't worry. Starting tomorrow, I will dedicate two hours each day to guiding him."

The candlelight flickered.

The shadows on the wall flickered with the firelight, lengthening and shortening.

Three years later.

Deep in the bamboo forest behind Dazhu Peak.

Zhang Xiaofan sat cross-legged on a smooth, polished blue stone.

His aura was restrained, like a stone sunk to the bottom of a deep pool.

The morning mist hadn't completely dissipated; it was a white, misty haze, slowly flowing through the woods.

The hem of his Taoist robe was soaked, as was the moss on the bluestone beneath him.

He opened his eyes.

Two colors, blue and gold, shimmered in his eyes, lasting for five breaths before slowly fading away.

He exhaled a breath of stale air, which condensed and did not dissipate, forming the shape of a small sword about an inch long in the cool air.

It lasted for three breaths, then dispersed with a "poof".

Jade Purity Realm, eighth level.

Three years.

From the third to the eighth floor, five floors were broken through.

This speed is unparalleled, not only in the Qingyun Sect, but also in the entire history of the cultivation world.

In the original story, Zhang Xiaofan, who lacked an innate Daoist physique and did not practice both Buddhism and Taoism,

After three years of arduous practice, I barely managed to reach the first level. But now…

He stood up.

The bones made soft crackling sounds, like popping beans or bamboo shoots growing taller in the night.

In the morning light, her skin shone with a warm, jade-like luster, and beneath it, one could faintly see bluish-gold veins, like gold threads buried in white jade.

When you clench your fist, you can feel the power hidden within your muscles.

That wasn't brute force; it was a flowing, powerful force, like a mighty river.

With a thought, power surges to the fingertips, to the fist, and to every part of the body that needs to exert force.

He walked up to a thick, black bamboo stalk.

He didn't reach for the machete, but simply extended his right index finger and lightly touched the bamboo skin.

"laugh."

My fingertips sank into the bamboo, like a hot knife cutting butter.

The bamboo skin was not cracked or broken, and there was only a round hole about the thickness of a finger.

The edges are smooth, and the texture of the bamboo flesh can be seen layer by layer on the cave wall.

He withdrew his finger, and the bamboo swayed but did not fall over.

Zhang Xiaofan stepped back two paces and flicked his finger.

A wisp of solid, cyan energy shot out from the fingertip, passed through the finger hole, and struck the inside of the bamboo.

"Crack—Boom!"

The bamboo exploded from the inside, breaking into more than a dozen pieces before crashing to the ground.

The cross-section is uneven, but each piece is as thin as a knife blade, with edges so sharp they can cut through skin.

He withdrew his hand and dusted off non-existent dust from his Taoist robe.

Suddenly, I heard a whooshing sound behind me.

It wasn't the sound of wind, but the shrieking sound of something small and hard tearing through the air.

It was fast and at a tricky angle, aimed straight at the back of his head.

Zhang Xiaofan didn't turn around.

He simply tilted his head slightly.

The thing flew past his ear and hit a bamboo stalk opposite him with a "thud," embedding itself half an inch deep.

It was a pine cone, greenish-brown, still covered in morning dew.

He turned around.

A monkey was perched on the tip of a bamboo tree ten feet away.

It has gray fur and a long tail that is coiled halfway behind it.

It wasn't very big, and looked no different from an ordinary mountain monkey, but its eyes... were very bright.

It's not the murky light of a wild beast, but a clear light, imbued with a certain spirituality.

It was tilting its head to look at Zhang Xiaofan, its paws gripping a pine cone, poised to throw it.

Zhang Xiaofan looked at it but didn't move.

The monkey looked at him, its paw raised in mid-air, but it didn't throw the pine cone.

A man and a monkey gaze at each other through the morning mist.

Three breaths later, the monkey squeaked and jumped down from the bamboo top, landing lightly without making a sound.

It hopped and skipped to the bamboo stalk that had been blown to pieces.

It stretched out its paws and pried at the bamboo strips. After a couple of paws, it looked up at Zhang Xiaofan with curiosity in its eyes, and also... a hint of provocation?

Zhang Xiaofan squatted down and looked at it at eye level.

"The Three-Eyed Monkey," he said softly.

The monkey paused, its paw hovering in mid-air.

"Gray fur, long tail, bright eyes, and moves silently."

Zhang Xiaofan continued.

"When I was a child, I was no different from any other mountain monkey."

He lived to be a thousand years old before opening his third eye, and gained mastery of the five elements' magical arts.

Its eyes can see thousands of miles away and can recognize ghosts and spirits.

It can identify treasures, is mischievous, and likes to play pranks.

He paused:

"Am I right?"

The monkey stared at him without moving.

For the first time, a certain emotion, like confusion, appeared in those bright eyes.

Zhang Xiaofan reached out his hand.

Open your palms up.

The monkey hesitated for a moment, then slowly approached, its nose twitching as it sniffed his palm.

Then, it stretched out its paw and carefully placed the pine cone in his hand.

After releasing it, he immediately jumped three zhang away, squatted on a bamboo stake, and continued to look at him with his head tilted to the side.

Holding the pine cone still glistening with dew, Zhang Xiaofan smiled for the first time, a genuine smile devoid of any impurities.

Little Grey.

He silently repeated the name in his heart.

Then he raised his head and looked east.

There, at the edge of the sea of ​​clouds, the sun struggles to leap over the horizon, dyeing the sky a blood red.

The five-year agreement has two years left.

And on his path of spiritual cultivation, he finally had a companion.