"Master, what are you hesitating over?"
At the summit of Nameless Peak, the straightforward and pure-hearted Luo Bei asked Yuan Tianyi, who stood before him.
By now, Luo Bei had washed away all the filth from his body and changed into brand-new green cloth and hemp garments. Though his complexion was still somewhat pale, the noon sunlight shone upon his face, his bones, and the space between his brows, filling him with an indescribable spiritual charm. Compared to before, although his appearance had not changed much, Rebirth and Metamorphosis was more than enough to describe him.
After awakening, Luo Bei also discovered that although his physical strength had not increased as noticeably as it had after eating Zhanxikezha Grass, his stamina had become enduring. He no longer tired easily, nor did he grow hungry as readily as before. Beyond that, Luo Bei found that the scars all over his body had faded until they were nearly invisible. But most crucially, his senses had become sharper than ever before. He seemed able to clearly sense the flowers and grass by the cliff sprouting and budding, sense the mist rising through the valley. Luo Bei, who had tried hard to forget but had still not completely erased the Mahākāla Secret Method from his mind, could even unconsciously sense specks of True Sun Fire contained within the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy. It seemed that with a casual hand seal of the Mahākāla Secret Method, he could easily draw that spiritual energy containing True Sun Fire into his Sea of Consciousness.
Rebirth and Metamorphosis, Six Senses Sharpened!
Now, any cultivator who saw Luo Bei would certainly think his aptitude was exceptionally high.
And it was precisely because of this that Luo Bei could sense a trace of emotion in Yuan Tianyi, who seemed fused with heaven and earth itself—an emotion he would never usually possess. It was as though he were hesitating over something.
"It's nothing." Yuan Tianyi turned his head, and the trace of hesitation Luo Bei had sensed vanished without a trace. "This Miao Jiang secret medicine truly steals the craftsmanship of heaven and earth. Now, it is also time for you to leave Luofu."
Time to leave Luofu?
That trace of hesitation had actually been because of... parting?
How could Luo Bei have expected Yuan Tianyi to say such words? He stood there blankly for a moment before asking in a startled voice, "Master, why?"
"My Luofu has never acted by following conventions, but this too is a rule of Luofu." Looking at Luo Bei, transformed yet still simple and genuine, Yuan Tianyi sighed faintly in his heart and casually gave a reason. "Once a Luofu disciple completes Foundation Establishment and is formally taught a Luofu Technique, they must undergo Worldly Training. Only after cultivating to a certain level may they return to Luofu to pay respects to their master and continue cultivating."
"Worldly Training?"
"Without entering the world, cultivating the Dao is like building a cart behind closed doors. Only by passing through the Thousand Tribulations of the Mortal World can one's true heart become more steadfast."
Ever since choosing to become a Luofu disciple, Luo Bei had never harbored the slightest doubt toward Yuan Tianyi. He looked at him blankly. "Master, then what should I do?"
"Come with me first."
Yuan Tianyi did not answer Luo Bei's question immediately. Instead, his hands directly traced out a formation. Its subtle intricacy and mystery surpassed even the hand seals of the Six Paths Purgatory Karmic Fire Red Lotus that Yuan Tianyi had used that day to make Luo Bei remember the laws of the Heavenly Dao, while also intimidating the Medicine King Sect into handing over the Shangyang Horn without daring to make any excuses.
Luo Bei first felt an ancient, vast aura tightly enveloping both him and Yuan Tianyi. Then, to his horror, dazzling silver light burst forth beneath their feet, as though the entire mountain had been ignited from bottom to top by silver radiance. Amid the flickering silver glow, Luo Bei felt as if he were standing in the universe itself, while Yuan Tianyi resembled a god gazing upon the boundless stars around them. As though the shackles of time and space had been shattered, in the blink of an eye, Luo Bei discovered that he and Yuan Tianyi were already before the Heavenly Might Waterfall. Then, as a burst of silver light violently bloomed from Yuan Tianyi's hand, it seemed as if heavenly thunder rolled layer upon layer through the ninth heaven. The Heavenly Might Waterfall and the mountain itself split apart down the middle, revealing, deep within the mountain belly hundreds of zhang deep, an enormous hall with a square base. The grand hall was the same color as the mountain rock, its walls carved with ancient patterns and designs. It did not appear magnificent, yet at a single glance, its antiquity, desolation, and vast majesty seemed to darken even the sky.
"What place is this?" Standing before the grand hall, even someone as bold and naturally tenacious as Luo Bei felt his scalp go numb, nearly forgetting to breathe. This grand hall was simply too immense. The arched entrance alone had a diameter of over five zhang! Above the door hung a stone plaque engraved with several ancient characters Luo Bei did not recognize, each character more than a zhang in size. Standing before it, Luo Bei felt an immense pressure bearing down upon him, as if he were a tiny man from a kingdom of little people standing within a land of giants.
"This is where the successive ancestors of Luofu transmitted scriptures and verified the Dao. It took the Third Generation Ancestor of Luofu ten years to build. My Luofu Sect has endured for a thousand years, yet unlike ordinary sects, it does not merely skim the surface." Yuan Tianyi's voice was indescribably solemn and majestic. As silver light flashed, it swept Luo Bei into the hall like a silver rainbow.
Once Luo Bei was swept into the Mountain Belly Grand Hall, he could not help crying out in stunned amazement. Before him stretched thousands of stone steps leading to an even taller hall within. On both sides of the steps lay bottomless abysses, with the faint sound of flowing water echoing from below. Overhead, shaped like the vault of heaven, was a Glazed Light Curtain flickering with flowing radiance.
What made Luo Bei cry out in amazement was no longer the vast and magnificent pressure of the grand hall, but the Glazed Light Curtain overhead, which resembled the firmament itself!
Upon that glazed curtain were vividly displayed streams of moving, multicolored light and shadow.
Within the flowing light, Luo Bei saw many Strange Birds and Exotic Beasts he had never even heard of. Then he seemed to see people of many different eras, dressed in different clothing, expounding scriptures and debating the Dao. He also saw countless people wielding hand seals in battle. The spells released by those Strange Birds and Exotic Beasts and by those battling people seemed earth-shattering and astonishing even when seen only through the flowing light. Along one side of the Glazed Light Curtain, images of Scripture Illustrations similar to the Mahākāla Secret Method continued to flash past as well.
"Do not look too much, and do not remember too much. These are all things seen and heard by the successive ancestors of Luofu. But for every bit more you remember, there will be another measure of danger after you enter the world. When the time is right in the future, you will naturally have another chance to see them."
As Luo Bei unconsciously gazed upward, Yuan Tianyi's voice entered his ears.
Though he did not know the reason, since Yuan Tianyi had said so, Luo Bei truly lowered his head and stopped looking at those images that had filled his heart with shock.
The thousands of steps passed in an instant. The hall at their end, which from afar seemed ready to soar into the sky, had no gorgeous adornments, not even the slightest carved patterns or inscriptions. Yet its presence was even more grand and weighty. Upon entering, Luo Bei found the front and side walls of the grand hall at least dozens of zhang away, while the square roof overhead was likewise dozens of zhang above him.
Standing within it, Luo Bei's heart and mind trembled. He felt as tiny as an ant.
Before the vastness of heaven and earth, anyone was as tiny as an ant.
This grand hall was like heaven, like earth.
What kind of breadth of heart and spirit must the Luofu Ancestor who had created such a grand hall within a mountain possess!
Across the square ceiling, stars were scattered like a chessboard. Enormous luminous pearls were arranged according to the positions of the sun, moon, five elements, casting down faint clear radiance.
The hall was utterly empty, save for lifelike statues standing around its perimeter. Each statue stood ten zhang tall, exquisitely carved without the slightest trace of chisel or blade. Every one was completely different. Some wore strange armor and held peculiar magic treasures. Some had empty hands but rode bizarre monsters. Some had thick brows and furious eyes, their faces fierce and menacing. Others looked kind and compassionate, their expressions peaceful. Luo Bei counted them. There were fifteen in all.
"These fifteen are statues of the successive ancestors of Luofu." Yuan Tianyi stood in the center of the hall and spoke slowly to Luo Bei.
Luo Bei's heart shook violently, and tears filled his eyes. Although Yuan Tianyi had clearly explained when accepting him as a disciple atop the peak that Luofu did not value the cumbersome formalities of the mortal world, Luo Bei still unconsciously knelt down.
"Let the successive ancestors bear witness. Yuan Tianyi, Fifteenth Generation Disciple of Luofu, formally transmits scriptures to Luo Bei here." Yuan Tianyi looked toward the fifteen enormous statues, gently placed his palm upon Luo Bei's head, and said calmly, "I bestow the Eternal Life Sutra of Delusion."
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