Huang Province, true to its name, was desolate and uninhabited.
Fierce winds whipped up sand, stones, and gravel, obscuring the sky and earth, stripping away nearly the last traces of vitality and greenery from the world.
This horrific wind calamity crashed headlong into a majestic spiritual mountain and abruptly vanished.
Evergreen ancient trees stood tall upon the mountain, and streams trickled softly—a blessed spiritual land overflowing with life.
At the foot of the mountain stood a mottled stone stele, inscribed with three ancient characters.
Mount Taixuan.
Beside the stele lay broken yet clean stone steps that stretched all the way to the summit.
At the top of the mountain was a cave abode, the place richest in spiritual energy across all of Mount Taixuan and even the entire Huang Province.
That spiritual stream originated right here.
Deep inside the cave abode, sitting cross-legged atop a jade platform, Li Chengxuan had been in secluded cultivation for three full months.
Suddenly, the winds and clouds atop the mountain churned violently.
A surge of abundant spiritual energy rose from the peak, slowly flowing down the stone steps along the mountain's slope.
Leaves rustled in the woods.
Ripples stirred upon the stream.
Within a few breaths, everything returned to calm.
Li Chengxuan slowly opened his eyes.
Qi Refining.
Success.
...
Halfway up the mountain stood the Ancestral Hall.
The hall doors were half-open.
Daoist Wu, the sect master of Mount Taixuan, sat before the door, holding a yellow gourd and dozing off.
The eldest disciple, Qi Yuntian, was burly with a square jaw, practicing his punches in the open space before the hall.
His fist winds were fierce and filled with murderous intent, a faint golden light glimmering over his body.
The second disciple, Luo Qingqing, had long hair and wore green robes, her features refined and beautiful.
However, her expression was extremely cold, and she remained silent with her eyes closed.
The youngest junior sister, Chu Siyue, was only ten years old. She crouched at the doorway, idly drawing circles with a tree branch out of boredom.
The winds and clouds surged across the mountain.
This sight was highly unusual on Mount Taixuan, which was suppressed by a grand formation.
The few people in front of the Ancestral Hall looked into the distance at the same time.
A figure in teal robes was walking up the steps.
Chu Siyue stood up, her eyes lighting up at the familiar sight. She stumbled forward to greet him, her voice filled with pleasant surprise. "Senior Brother!"
Li Chengxuan smiled faintly, picking up his excited junior sister and spinning her around a few times, drawing a squeal of surprise from the little girl.
Her crisp laughter and loud complaints brought the entire Mount Taixuan back to life.
After playing for a bit, Chu Siyue walked in a circle around Li Chengxuan, her dark eyes rolling as she said with mock seriousness, "Not bad, not bad! You really broke through to the Qi Refining stage!"
Li Chengxuan ignored her, looking at Daoist Wu and saying respectfully, "Master, your disciple has successfully fulfilled the mission!"
Daoist Wu had probably not sobered up yet, looking dazed and vacant. He stared at Li Chengxuan for a long moment before nodding. "Good... not bad."
With that, he turned and walked into the Ancestral Hall.
Li Chengxuan, Qi Yuntian, and Luo Qingqing followed him inside in sequence.
Only the little junior sister remained standing outside the hall, peering inside with curiosity.
Chu Siyue was a direct blood descendant of Daoist Wu, but since she was not entered into Mount Taixuan's sect genealogy, she naturally could not enter the Ancestral Hall.
The Ancestral Hall was exceedingly plain and ordinary, looking far less grand than a mortal ancestral shrine.
Nor were there any ancestral tablets inside the hall.
Mount Taixuan's Dao heritage was ancient, but it had suffered repeated tribulations.
Passed down to the present day, not only were its cultivation techniques incomplete, but even the records of past ancestors had been lost.
Daoist Wu lit a stick of incense and whispered, "Bow to the patriarchs with me."
Li Chengxuan, Qi Yuntian, and Luo Qingqing remained silent, bowing to a blank portrait.
According to the old Daoist, this was a supreme heirloom treasure of the sect—a portrait of an ancestor from some generation of Mount Taixuan whose realm had reached supreme perfection.
Years ago, Qi Yuntian, Luo Qingqing, and Li Chengxuan had sneaked in to examine it carefully.
The canvas was clearly blank; there was no ancestral artwork whatsoever.
Overcome by sudden joy and the rush of alcohol, Daoist Wu rambled endlessly about many past events.
He only stopped when the incense stick was nearly burnt out, turning around to say, "Xuan'er, now that you've broken through to Qi Refining, you inherit the Dao heritage of Mount Taixuan."
"In accordance with our sect rules and the covenant of the various sects, today I pass the position to you."
"From this day forth, Li Chengxuan is the three hundred and sixty-fourth sect master of Mount Taixuan!"
Having said that, he took out a spiritual seal from his person.
Mount Taixuan had been in decline for many years.
That spiritual seal was no grand sect token either; it was merely the control hub for the mountain's grand formation.
Li Chengxuan's face remained calm as he stepped forward to take it, imprinting it with his divine sense.
From then on, the grand formation on the mountain, and even everyone's lives, were entirely in his hands.
Even if Daoist Wu wanted to regret it, it was no longer possible.
Of course, Daoist Wu would never regret it. Having handed over the spiritual seal, he felt as though a great mountain had been lifted from his shoulders, and with a long sigh, he stepped aside.
Li Chengxuan held the spiritual seal, standing before the blank portrait of the patriarch.
Qi Yuntian and Luo Qingqing looked calm, bowing deeply. "Qi Yuntian / Luo Qingqing pays respects to the Sect Master!"
"Good!"
"Eldest Senior Brother, Second Senior Sister, in the end, I won the bet from back then!"
Li Chengxuan chuckled softly, then his face turned solemn, and he said in a deep voice, "Now, in my capacity as the sect master of Mount Taixuan, I expel Qi Yuntian and Luo Qingqing from the sect! From this day on, neither of you is a disciple of Mount Taixuan!"
"I will strike your names from the register and notify all sects."
"It is getting late. Do not linger—head down the mountain immediately!"
Qi Yuntian and Luo Qingqing shuddered simultaneously, their expressions immensely complex. There was no resentment or anger to be found; instead, there was a guilt and sorrow they could barely conceal.
Li Chengxuan paid them no mind, turning back to ask, "Master, what are your plans next?!"
Daoist Wu froze, surprised by the question. He took a deep breath, his eyes turning slightly moist as his tone grew agitated. "Home!"
"I'm going back to the Chu Land in the Central Continent!"
"What I regret most in this life is my youthful arrogance and ignorant fearlessness. A single bad choice caused me to take on a massive karmic cause, leaving me trapped here for eighty-four years, unable to budge! I even caused my entire clan to be destroyed and my descendants to die off."
"Now, at last..."
At this point, Daoist Wu paused, turning his head to avoid Li Chengxuan's gaze. "Xuan'er, do not hate me. I... had no choice!"
Li Chengxuan smiled and shook his head. "Master, there is no need for this."
"If Master had not saved me eighteen years ago, I would have been burned to ashes as a demon possessed by a soul."
"Besides, cultivating immortality has been my lifelong wish."
"Everything today is merely a mutual fulfillment. We should both be happy."
Hearing this, the bitterness on Daoist Wu's face deepened.
The alliance covenant of Nanya Province stated: 【One person bears the Dao, and all others are freed】.
If no one broke through to the Qi Refining stage to inherit the sect's Dao heritage, everyone in the sect would be trapped to death in this blessed spiritual land, losing their freedom forever.
In other words, if Li Chengxuan could not nurture the next Qi Refining cultivator, he would have to guard Mount Taixuan alone for the rest of his life and face punishment from the sects of Nanya.
Daoist Wu had naturally struggled and resisted before.
Unfortunately, the outcome was tragic.
The Wu clan, which once ruled several mortal commanderies, now had only Daoist Wu and Chu Siyue remaining.
Entangled in hatred and guilt, how could Daoist Wu listen to Li Chengxuan's words of comfort? He merely shook his head, staggered up, took the bewildered Chu Siyue by the hand, and walked down the mountain.
With Daoist Wu gone, only the three fellow disciples—Li Chengxuan, Qi Yuntian, and Luo Qingqing—were left in the Ancestral Hall.
Qi Yuntian took a deep breath, his expression grave, and spoke up: "Great gratitude needs no words! However, I have my reasons—I cannot cultivate the Taixuan method, nor can I remain trapped in Nanya Province."
"Once I settle my past affairs, I will certainly return to help Junior Brother break free!"
"May the ancestors bear witness! If I break this oath, let Heaven and Earth destroy me!"
Before Li Chengxuan could speak, Luo Qingqing could not help but chime in.
"Hmph, such grand talk!"
"The sects of Nanya... are they really something you can shake?!"
Luo Qingqing sneered mockingly, "My bloodline is unusual, so I cannot cultivate the ancient Taixuan methods."
"You, however, are a remnant of Cangming and the orthodox heir of the Taixuan Dao lineage. Bearing this karmic burden was rightfully your duty!"
"Yet you would rather forge your body every day than cultivate, staying motionlessly at the great perfection of the Embryonic Breathing stage while watching Li Chengxuan risk his life to break through and shoulder this karma for you."
"Daoist Wu also drank his brain away and was terrified out of his wits by the extinction of his whole clan back then, turning a blind eye and letting you run wild!"
Having his secret exposed, Qi Yuntian felt even more embarrassed.
Unable to refute her, he merely sighed, lowered his head, and went down the mountain.
Li Chengxuan watched his eldest senior brother leave, then smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist Luo, you haven't left yet. Do you have any advice?"
Luo Qingqing glanced at Li Chengxuan and did not correct his form of address, speaking impassively: "I will leave Nanya Province and head for the Ten Thousand Mountains in the southern border of the Central Continent."
"Once I establish a foothold, cultivation resources, disciples, and ancient books will all be sent to you."
"Remember to act decisively when necessary and avoid soft-hearted foolishness. It is best to extricate yourself from this quagmire as soon as possible."
Hearing this, Li Chengxuan shook his head with a sigh. "Do not impose on others what you do not desire for yourself."
"You have finally gained your freedom with great difficulty. Why suffer innocent people to come here and endure hardship?"
Luo Qingqing looked at Li Chengxuan, a touch of warmth surfacing in her monstrous cyan eyes, though her words remained cold and ruthless: "You are my junior brother; I only care whether you suffer."
"As for the life or death of unrelated people, what does that have to do with me?!"
With that, ignoring Li Chengxuan's reaction, she leapt out of the Ancestral Hall and quickly vanished at the end of the stone steps.
...
...
With all affairs settled.
Li Chengxuan glanced at the blank portrait of the patriarch, reached out to brush past the spiritual seal, and shifted his thoughts.
Rumble.
The heavens shook and the earth trembled.
The grand formation of Mount Taixuan was dispelled.
The abundant spiritual energy previously confined to the mountain burst forth, surging out in all directions.
More importantly, with the formation removed, the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth across the several commanderies of Huang Province would no longer be drained by it.
Spiritual energy would gradually revive in Huang Province, restoring its vitality and making it suitable once again for mortal commoners to live in.
Such a massive commotion naturally could not be hidden from anyone.
The Nanya Immortal Alliance might very well send someone over soon.
However, Li Chengxuan no longer cared.
Breaking through to Qi Refining and inheriting the Dao heritage not only granted freedom to his master, eldest senior brother, second senior sister, and youngest junior sister, but it was also truly the long-cherished wish of Li Chengxuan across his two lives.
While in secluded cultivation to break through his realm, the deep obsession in Li Chengxuan's heart was triggered, producing boundless illusions, and in his daze, he had even seemed to return to Earth in his past life.
Even more strangely, Li Chengxuan vaguely felt that after his breakthrough, his sea of consciousness was somewhat unusual.
"Although according to the records in the sect's classic texts, in the cultivation method of the 【Purple Palace Golden Core Dao】, Qi Refining is merely entering the threshold."
"Only at 【Foundation Establishment】 can the subtlety of the technique truly be displayed."
"And only upon cultivating to the 【Purple Palace】 can divine abilities be achieved."
Li Chengxuan took a look at the blank portrait and bowed sincerely. "I pray for the patriarch's protection, that your disciple may find a way to break the deadlock and escape this cage!"
With that, he sat cross-legged in the Ancestral Hall, forming hand seals to carefully sense his internal vision.
Within the vast, misty sea of consciousness, a grey bead floated up and down.
The bead was no larger than a finger's breath.
Upon the bead were faint traces of two holes.
"This is..."
With a shift of Li Chengxuan's mind, he suddenly felt the ground beneath him give way, plunging down toward an unknown place.
Who knew how long passed before Li Chengxuan vaguely felt someone calling out to him.
Then, his five senses gradually returned.
Opening his eyes, Li Chengxuan saw a middle-aged man wearing sun-protective clothing, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, and a fishing rod in hand, looking at him with immense surprise. "Little brother, you're finally awake!"
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