Immortal Mystery Sequence: I Establish a Divine Duty for Heaven and Earth

Lingjiang North, Qingshan Lake.

The lake's surface ripples with the ebb and flow of the tides, its scenery unchanged through the ages.

This once desolate and forbidden land has transformed into a completely different scene. Houses are scattered along both sides of the lake, with wisps of smoke rising from their chimneys. Paddy fields and dry fields stretch out from the foot of the mountain to the distance, almost without end. A quick count reveals a total of 80,000 mu (approximately 5,333 hectares).

The medicinal herb field is lush and green with various herbs, dewdrops fall, and the fragrance of herbs is delightful.

The crops in the high-quality fields are completely different from ordinary crops, with various shapes and sizes, yet they create a unique sense of harmony when put together.

The Qin family now has 547 agricultural cultivators. In the entire Jiangzhou, apart from Dajiang New County and Lingjiang Temple, this is the place with the highest concentration of agricultural cultivators. But strangely, no one has broken through to the third realm.

Qin Xian is still the only cultivator at the third realm in public, while Xiao Tu Yun is the only one in private.

As of now, the total number of publicly known cultivators in the agricultural path has approached 2,500, but no third-realm farmer has yet emerged. Some people are beginning to worry about the future development of the agricultural path, fearing that the third realm may not even exist!

Qin Xian is stuck at the eighth rank limit. He has to work with his daughter every day to avoid being exposed. The mother and daughter are inseparable and always feel like they are walking on thin ice.

Seeing this situation, Xiao Tuyun was also anxious and uneasy. In order to cover up the lie as soon as possible, he spent every day going around his mother and four older siblings, sharing all his insights on the seventh grade without holding back.

The aura that emerged the moment he broke through the underwater realm, the myriad wills of the earth's spirit that gathered around him when his realm stabilized, and the profound truths of the earth that he had come to understand at the seventh level of enlightenment, the mutual generation and restraint of all things, and so on, were explained again and again.

Now, Qin Xian and the other four have all reached the limit of the eighth rank, but they remain unmoved and as stable as Mount Tai every time they try to break through to the seventh rank.

Xiao Tu Yun gradually began to suspect that the way he broke through his cultivation level was not a universal path, and that he must have been missing some important steps!

So she started trying all sorts of strange and unusual methods.

They force-fed Qin Xian pills made using the pinching pill technique, tried to break through the gate using the spiritual energy of the earth, and even used methods such as sudden fright, extreme opportunity, life-or-death situation, and long-term sedimentation... They used every method they could think of, but none of them worked!

The more she tried, the more convinced she became that entering the seventh rank required not only accumulation but also certain prerequisites!

And so, time flies by, and years never cease.

In the autumn of the forty-third year of the Jingtai reign.

Tu Yun's fourteenth birthday.

She didn't hold a big party; she and her daughter were always low-key people. The six of them gathered in a lakeside courtyard for a simple home-cooked meal.

In Qingshan Lake, the Qin family has already begun to subtly distinguish between inner and outer factions.

The inner family consisted of the original six people who settled in Qingshan Lake, while the outer family consisted of all the agricultural cultivators who were later sent by Wang Congyun. Although the two sides seemed to live closely together and share both honor and disgrace, there was still a clear gap between them.

This is not only because they met at different times and their relationship was not close enough, but also because the outer family has long held the six members of the inner family in awe and respect, regarding them as the true pillars of the agricultural path and the guardians of the Qin family. Therefore, even if Qin Xian took the initiative to get closer to them, the outer family always maintained a distance.

Even Qin Tiehan, who was closest to the inner family, never thought of becoming a true member of the inner family.

There is a clear distinction between inside and outside, with a pitifully thick barrier.

Therefore, the courtyard was filled with gifts for Xiao Tuyun's birthday, but only the family of six sat down to eat together.

The table was set with simple dishes: fish soup, stir-fried vegetables, and steamed eggs. The siblings offered their blessings, and the meal came to an end.

After the meal, Xiao Tuyun picked up a small bamboo stick, her little face turned serious and earnest.

"Come on, everyone, sit down and continue your cultivation!"

Qin Xian and his four siblings, Qin Yi and Qin Xian, sat down on the futons by the lake and closed their eyes to begin their attempt to break through to the seventh rank.

As always, Xiao Tuyun explained the key points of breaking through realms again and again.

The energy here is turbulent and full of Daoist charm, but there is no sign of anyone breaking through to a higher realm.

From day to the deep darkness of night.

Qin Yi and the others opened their eyes one after another, their faces weary, shaking their heads and sighing.

The gate to the seventh rank remained silent and still; there was not even the slightest crack, let alone any opportunity to loosen it!

Flawless!

Third Brother Qin Feng sighed and shook his head, saying, "Little Sister... perhaps we truly lack the talent to break through to the third realm! That insightful realization you had when you broke through is something we might never be able to grasp even in our entire lives!"

"Sometimes, people have to recognize their own limitations and accept their own mediocrity."

Second Brother Qin Lan echoed, "Have you forgotten? When our little sister broke through to the next realm, she almost couldn't stabilize her realm. Only with the spiritual energy of the four directions' land spirits, and by uniting all her thoughts into one, was she able to consolidate her realm and stand as a third-level Herbalist! If even a genius like her had such a difficult time, how could we possibly break through easily?"

Qin Xian remained silent, continuing his attempts to break through the barrier.

"No! That's not right, you're wrong!" Qin Tuyun shook his head and emphasized, "I have a feeling that this third realm is far from the limit of the agricultural path, and may even just be the beginning of the Great Dao, not fundamentally different from the second realm of the field hermit! It shouldn't be this difficult!"

"There must be a way to allow everyone to break through their cultivation level as naturally and effortlessly as they did when they awakened their innate wisdom!"

The four siblings didn't respond; they sat silently, looking at each other.

The night wind blew, and their hearts felt icy cold.

Qin Yi stood up, patted Xiao Tu Yun on the shoulder, and comforted her, "Alright, little sister, don't rush. Take it slow. We're still young and have a chance!"

Xiao Tuyun nodded helplessly, but the anxiety in her heart still lingered.

She was more worried about her mother. Her mother was pretending to be a third-realm cultivator while only being at the second realm, and it was inevitable that there would be some oversights over time. Recently, some people had already vaguely noticed that something was wrong...

The outsiders may not be without doubts, especially since many newcomers have not yet truly accepted the family head. If things continue like this, she will have no choice but to reveal her own talents to stabilize people's hearts and secure her position as family head.

The four siblings were about to get up and leave when they saw Qin Xian still trying to break through the barrier. They couldn't leave first, so they silently sat back down and waited for her.

A whole night passed.

As dawn broke, Qin Xian slowly opened his eyes, his face pale and exhausted. He shook his head slowly as he met the eager and expectant gazes of the crowd.

"No... the Gate to the Three Realms remains unbreakable, showing no sign of weakening! Child, how exactly did you open it in the first place?"

Even though Qin Tuyun had become increasingly calm and composed in recent years, he was getting impatient and irritable. He said angrily, "How else can we break through?! We just need to seize that moment of enlightenment and give it a hard push, and the door will open! Don't you understand?!"

All five people present tilted their heads, their expressions identical.

I don't understand at all! I'm completely baffled!

Are you sure that what you're saying... is something carbon-based life forms can understand?

Isn't this really not Versailles?

Qin Xian smiled wryly, trying to comfort his daughter, but Xiao Tu Yun slumped down and said to herself with some bitterness.

"If I could, I would really like to push open that seventh-rank gate for you!"

She could no longer hold back and suddenly raised her hand to give Qin Xian a light push from behind. In a daze, it felt as if the energy of the Farmer's Way flowed past!

"Just like that! Push it aside forcefully, what's so difficult about that—?!"

She lightly placed one of her delicate hands on Qin Xian's back without applying any force, but in that instant, a profound Daoist aura surged and flowed, instantly penetrating his limbs and bones, and the seemingly illusory yet real seventh-grade gate reverberated!

Crack! Boom boom boom!

A slight sound, as if breaking free of some kind of shackles!

Within Qin Xian's body, Daoist principles surged and energy flowed, like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea!

She was struck as if by lightning, her whole body trembled, and then her eyes widened in shock. She felt that the gate to the seventh rank, which she had been trying to break through for four years without success, had suddenly opened wide at this moment!

A powerful and profound aura of agricultural philosophy rose from within him, like a spring tide sweeping over him, making his thoughts flow smoothly and without any stagnation!

boom!

The lush greenery ripples and shimmers! A vibrant scene unfolds across the land! The surrounding vegetation instantly bursts forth with new life!

Qin Xian instinctively raised his hand, pinched his fingertips, and the roadside flowers and grass quickly turned into liquid and solidified, and a pale green pill floated into his palm.

The method of pinching the elixir!

Seventh rank achieved!

Qin Xian stared blankly at the pill for a long time before looking up at Xiao Tu Yun: "This... child! Mother has... reached the third realm?"

Xiao Tu Yun: "?"

Qin Yi and his sister: "???"

What the hell is going on?!

What happened? How did I break through to the next level?!

The seventh rank, which had been a hindrance to Tu Yun for six years and to the Qin family of five for four years, was broken through so smoothly?!

How is that possible!

Everyone looked at Qin Xian. His breakthrough was completely smooth and successful!

It was far more difficult than the breakthrough that Tu Yun had faced when he first broke through to the next realm!

Little Tu Yun was stunned, staring blankly at her little hands.

She gave it a casual push, but the Daoist aura spontaneously flowed out. Why was that?

Is it really that simple?!

Could it be that what's lacking for someone who has broken through to the seventh rank is a herbalist who has already reached the third rank, to serve as a small initiation ceremony to guide the newcomer?

She suddenly turned her head and looked at Qin Yi and his sister.

"Quick! Come here quickly—! Gather all your energy and spirit and push yourselves to the gate of the Three Realms. I will open the gate for you!"

The four siblings looked at each other, bewildered and terrified, and quickly sat down on the prayer mats.

No one could have imagined such a stunning reversal tonight!

Then.

Swish!

Swish swish!

A vibrant array of life and the spirit of agriculture soared into the sky.

In just one night, the aura of five seventh-grade cultivators swept across the sky, rising and vibrating with the sunrise in the east. Green light soared into the sky over Qingshan Lake, and the Daoist charm spread far and wide.

The lake surface rippled and surged, the water seemed to be stirred and churned, spreading out in layers of ripples!

The earth spirits from all around the shore emerged and responded, gathering towards the lakeshore.

Everything is renewed!

The entire Qin family of Qingshan Lake was thrown into turmoil, and the Three Realms Path was suddenly opened!

"This...this is done?!"

At this moment, Xiao Tuyun watched as five consecutive seventh-grade auras soared into the sky, his emotions hard to describe.

It's even a little heartbreaking!

It turns out that the third realm is the most difficult for the first person to break through!

Those who come after her will naturally succeed as long as she, as the pioneer, performs the opening ceremony to help them! However... those who come after her will not have experienced the myriad spiritual energies that converged within her at the moment she stabilized her realm, and their cultivation ability may be much inferior to hers.

Will the future follow the same path?

Even those at the sixth or fifth rank need the one who breaks through first to open the door for those who follow?

No, it shouldn't be that simple. Each rank should have a different ritual, and they won't all be the same. Breaking through a rank before finding a fixed ritual is as difficult as climbing to heaven, but once you find it, it will be a natural process.

So... the world where only she was injured was achieved?

Immediately afterwards, she thought of another possibility: if she could open the door for Qin Xian and the other four with the power of a single herb, could she achieve the same effect by gathering the power of Tian Jun into one person?

For a moment, she stood by the lake, her heart surging with emotion, speechless for a long time.

Behind.

The commotion had already spread to the Qin family's maternal and paternal quarters. People were awakened from their sleep and were suddenly startled to hear the aura of the Five Paths and Three Realms soaring into the sky, green light enveloping the lake shore and the surrounding fields, and the earth spirits emerging one after another. They rushed out of their houses, looking disheveled but excited, and looked at each other in astonishment and shock.

"The Third Realm! Overnight, all six members of the Inner Force have broken through to the Third Realm! This is simply a miracle!"

"As expected of the patriarch! As expected of the inner family! This is truly the guardian deity of our agricultural path!"

"Ten thousand miles of fertile land—agricultural development is booming!! A realm that no one outside has broken through to, yet my Qin family has produced a full six!!"

The sounds of revelry shook the surrounding area, vast and deafening, lingering for a long time.

From then on, the opening ceremony began on the shores of Qingshan Lake, and the number of people seeking to break through the limitations of traditional Chinese medicine gradually increased.