Despite Lying Flat Unsuccessfully

"Didn't you hear? The Sect Master sent you to the Eastern Sea to participate in the Six Sects' trial…"

Li Dazhi put down his teacup and looked Li Ping'an up and down, who was wearing a disciple's robe.

It had been five years since he entered the mountain to cultivate, yet Li Ping'an still looked the same as when he first arrived from the mortal world, only his complexion had become fairer.

Just like him!

Li Dazhi continued, "I only took a moment to look at a few more ledgers, and I heard you were about to depart. I quickly put down my affairs to come and give you a few words of advice, to see if you've been slacking on your cultivation."

In front of all the Elders, Li Ping'an said with a spirited demeanor, "Father, please rest assured. Your son is currently following his Master's cultivation. The path to immortality is long, and I dare not be the slightest bit negligent."

Li Dazhi nodded with a smile.

Several Outer Sect Elders chimed in, "Ancestor Dazhi is always busy with countless matters, while we are here like idle cranes. We are truly ashamed."

"If there's any task, Uncle Dazhi, please entrust it to us. Let us old bones get some exercise too, otherwise, how can we improve?"

"Uncle, you usually overwork yourself. Our Myriad Cloud Sect is flourishing, and within a hundred years, we are bound to return to the Eight Great Immortal Sects! Hahaha! It's all thanks to your fortune and unparalleled talent, Uncle. We also truly wish to contribute more to the sect and burn our remaining years."

Li Ping'an: …

The atmosphere in the sect!

It's only been two years, does it still look like an Immortal Sect!

My own old man is clearly leading the Outer Sect Immortals astray, doesn't the Sect Master care at all!

Fortunately, the Outer Sect Deacons and Elders only make up a small portion of the sect's Immortals. Otherwise, Li Ping'an would truly feel a slight pang of guilt. — His father's current prestige, he was also a small 'accomplice'.

"You Elders are too kind," Li Dazhi cupped his hands and stood up. "I want to have a father-son heart-to-heart talk with my Ping'an. Please excuse us for a moment."

"Ancestor, no need to rush, no need to rush."

"We'll just step aside."

The Elders held Li Dazhi back and took the initiative to get up and leave. As Steward Wang Xinhui departed, he also added several layers of immortal power barriers to the inner hall.

Li Dazhi winked at Li Ping'an.

"Dad."

Li Ping'an gracefully walked to his father's side and sat down, beginning to speak in their dialect, "Why did you arrange for me to go out? I don't want to go out. Going out might lead to trouble, and I won't gain anything."

"This was arranged by the Sect Master. When I learned of this, the order had already been given."

Li Dazhi chuckled and admonished, "I don't want you wandering around either. Your Ancestor Master said that my fortune drives your fortune, so you're likely to encounter opportunities when you go out, but you'll also encounter various disturbances that come with those opportunities."

"But fortunately, this time it's a trial for disciples from six Immortal Sects. There are quite a few Immortals from each of the six sects. Just keep a low profile."

"Why have you become more cautious these past two years? Back in our hometown, I never saw you so careful."

Li Ping'an said calmly, "In my hometown, murderers die. Here, murderers become powerful."

"That makes a lot of sense when you put it that way," Li Dazhi laughed. "We stand with the Myriad Cloud Sect, and we rise and fall with it. Moreover, your Ancestor Master and the Sect Master have been very good to us. It's not a bad thing for you to go out and strive for some honor for the sect."

Li Ping'an asked, "How has your cultivation progressed recently?"

"I haven't been slacking," Li Dazhi clicked his tongue. "I'm not far from becoming a True Immortal, but breakthroughs are getting slower. Without any fortuitous encounters, it's indeed difficult to reach True Immortal within ten years."

Li Ping'an nodded slowly.

He had actually misunderstood something. He thought his father meant it would take another ten years; Li Dazhi's meaning was actually ten years of cultivation.

"Sigh."

Li Ping'an's eyes became a little distant, "My immortal armor set failed again. I can never get past the crucial step. I've flipped through all sorts of texts in the sect, and I've hit a bottleneck in refining techniques. The artifacts my Master helped me forge are also almost depleted. This path is too difficult."

"I heard that Kuiyuan Sect specializes in artifact refining, and they also have secret puppet techniques, where puppets can move like ordinary people."

Li Dazhi chuckled, "Once we've teamed up with them to establish the Cloud Casting Hall, I'll help you get some of their artifact refining insights."

Upon hearing this, Li Ping'an immediately perked up and said seriously, "I've already seen the secret methods for refining puppet magic treasures of the Kuiyuan Sect in many of our sect's books. I'm genuinely interested in that."

"Alright, alright, I got it!"

Li Dazhi said earnestly, "You said you wanted to focus on cultivation and not let romance and worldly pleasures delay your path to immortality. Yet, I don't see you constantly in closed-door cultivation meditating. Instead, you're tinkering with magic artifacts and pills every day.

"Is that useful?

"If you make a hundred strange and bizarre magic artifacts now, can they even compare to a single strike from a True Immortal? You might as well spend your energy on romance. Is it really that difficult for me to have a grandson..."

"Dad!"

Li Ping'an could only force a smile, grab the tea by his father's hand, and take a gulp. He then stood up and said, "The fellow disciples are waiting. I'll be going now!"

"Hey! Where are you running off to!"

"Let's go, let's go. For the Eastern Sea Six Sects trial, I will strive to bring honor to our sect!"

"Here, take some things! Remember, always prioritize peace and harmony, and don't fight with disciples from other sects!"

Li Dazhi tossed a storage pouch over.

Li Ping'an caught it, opened it, and glanced inside. It contained over twenty storage artifacts of various styles, filled with mountains of spirit stones and treasures.

Li Ping'an waved his hand, and not a single cloud was disturbed.

He was quite accustomed to his father's overwhelming support.

Li Ping'an had intended to find Steward Wang Xinhui to discuss relinquishing his title as the leading disciple;

However, as he rounded the screen, he saw that the fellow disciples from the Myriad Cloud Sect had already boarded a thousand-foot 'cloud ship.' Junior Sister Mu was gently waving to him from the rear deck of the ship.

Li Ping'an had no choice but to hurry over, missing his chance to speak.

This cloud ship's overall design was similar to mortal pleasure boats. Its hull was shrouded in mist, and at the very bottom was a small immortal island. The ship was wide with rounded ends and equipped with multiple formations. It could be propelled by spirit stones or by the magic of Immortals.

For this Eastern Sea trial, the sect had not only assigned over a dozen Immortals for escort but also over twenty ordinary stewards to accompany them.

The cloud ship swayed as it flew out of the mountain protection formation. It was expected to take a full day and night to reach the coast of the Eastern Sea.

The disciples either found a corner to meditate or gathered in groups of three to five, setting up barriers to play chess and chat.

Li Ping'an and Mu Ningning found an inconspicuous corner to themselves. They each took out a meditation cushion, and Mu Ningning deliberately imitated Li Ping'an's movements, sitting down cross-legged in perfect unison.

Li Ping'an rummaged in his sleeve and pulled out a few packets of preserved fruits.

"Thank you, Senior Brother!"

"I never said these were for you."

Li Ping'an teased her, but Mu Ningning wasn't annoyed. Her small hands swiftly snatched two oil-paper packets, a smug curve forming on her lips.

"Hmph, I don't care. If I see it, it's mine."

"That's called extortion."

Li Ping'an took out a jade slip, closed his eyes, and began to read it carefully. He said slowly, "Junior Sister, I'm going to cultivate here for a while. If you get bored, go find some familiar Senior Sisters to play with."

"But, Senior Brother, aren't you the team leader?"

Mu Ningning blinked and transmitted her voice, "Aren't you going to greet the various Senior Brothers and Sisters?

"As far as I know, everyone really wants to get to know you, but because of your father, they're afraid to approach you directly, lest they be accused of currying favor with you or becoming your lackeys.

"Their thoughts are quite delicate."

"Junior Sister, you might be mistaken. Qi cultivators pursue an untroubled Dao heart. In their eyes, I'm just a fellow disciple."

As he spoke, Li Ping'an's spiritual sense swept over the group, and he spotted two familiar faces among the disciples.

One was a physical cultivator disciple with dark skin, resembling a black bear, Yu Yingshu;

The other was a sword cultivator carrying a black sword box, wearing a colorful, multi-layered robe, who was playing chess with a few young cultivators, Gu Qingcheng.

Li Ping'an had met these two during the grand competition two years ago, but they hadn't interacted since.

The reason for this, as Mu Ningning had just mentioned, was that everyone needed to maintain a certain distance, fearing the perception of seeking power and influence.

Just then, Li Ping'an opened his eyes and saw Gu Qingcheng sneak a glance in their direction. Gu Qingcheng then quickly looked up at the sky and exclaimed, "Ah, these white clouds are moving so slowly."

Li Ping'an couldn't help but smile.

He shook his head and continued to read the jade slip in his hand with his eyes closed.

To be honest, Li Ping'an quite admired the personalities of these disciples. They were much more likable than those 'progress enthusiasts'.

Mu Ningning took out a booklet on True Immortal insights, nibbled on snacks, and flipped through the pages, as if returning to their usual comfortable and peaceful interactions.

After two hours passed like this, a certain sword cultivator couldn't help but wander over to Li Ping'an.

A sound transmission entered Li Ping'an's ear:

"Ahem, excuse me, Senior Brother, am I disturbing you?"

Li Ping'an opened his eyes, looked at Gu Qingcheng, then glanced at Junior Sister Mu, who had already entered a state of meditation. He got up and cupped his hands in greeting to Gu Qingcheng.

It was already dusk, and most of the disciples were meditating on the deck of the cloud ship.

More than ten Immortals were distributed around the front and back of the cloud ship, enveloping an area of several hundred miles with their immortal sense.

Li Ping'an took out a treasure bead and hung it above Mu Ningning's head. The bead sprinkled starlight, enveloping Mu Ningning to prevent her from being disturbed while she comprehended the Great Dao.

"Come over here and talk."

Li Ping'an made a gesture and moved a few steps aside with Gu Qingcheng, reaching the edge of the deck.

Outside the immortal light enveloping the large ship, the sea of clouds was dyed a light gold by the setting sun.

Spiritual energy seeped out from the passing clouds, and was quietly absorbed by the formation of this large ship.

Gu Qingcheng felt a little flustered and said with a smile, "Um, there's something I'd like to ask of you, Senior Brother Leader."

Li Ping'an replied, "We can address each other as we did during the grand competition."

"Alright, Brother Li."

Gu Qingcheng crossed his arms and spoke quickly, "I asked some senior brothers and sisters who participated in similar trials last time. Generally, multi-sect trials, while not directly pitting disciples against each other in duels, still encourage them to compete fiercely at their core."

"There are also some unwritten rules for these trial gatherings."

"For example, only disciples who joined the sect no more than thirty years ago can participate, and they must be in the True Unity Realm or Void Refining Realm.

"Looking at the jade slips distributed by the Affairs Hall this time, we've estimated that the main content of this trial will be demon-slaying in the Eastern Sea, and the sect's ranking will be determined by the number of demons killed."

"Brother Li, since we've come all the way to the Eastern Sea, we can't let the sect lose face..."

Li Ping'an chuckled, "Brother Gu, you're absolutely right. Do you have any brilliant strategies for us to achieve a good ranking?"

"No, no," Gu Qingcheng laughed and scolded, "I always feel like your tone is like you're coaxing the immortal children of Flowing Cloud Temple!"

"Haha!"

Li Ping'an chuckled softly and said slowly, "As you know, Brother Gu, I usually just follow my Master in cultivation and have no experience leading a team.

"This position of leader was merely given out of respect for my father by the Elders. I truly don't understand it."

"Just say what you need to say, Brother Gu."

"Alright, I'll be direct then."

Gu Qingcheng smiled, "I wanted to ask... Brother Li, do you have any magic artifacts for the Spirit Detonation Art with you?

"Or, can we ask the Elders for permission to procure a batch of magic artifacts from the East Sea Market Town, so that everyone can have some common magic artifacts on hand?

"If things go south later, we can let them see our Myriad Cloud Sect's new secret technique!"

Li Ping'an's spiritual sense swept out and he noticed many disciples eavesdropping, clearly very concerned about this matter.

Li Ping'an also found it amusing.

If explosions were art, then everyone's artistic talent was quite good.

Li Ping'an took out a jade slip from his sleeve and placed it in Gu Qingcheng's hand, instructing, "This is the improved Spirit Detonation Art I made last year, along with the introductory formation diagram for the Spirit Detonation Art. It can simultaneously activate eighty-one magic artifacts to achieve the effect of fully releasing spiritual energy. Please pass this around for everyone to see."

"More magic artifacts would require more complex formations to coordinate, which would be difficult to master in a short time."

"I'll go find Elder Yan Sheng now and ask if we can procure six thousand magic artifacts. We can distribute one hundred and sixty-two magic artifacts per disciple, how about that?"

Gu Qingcheng's primordial soul faltered. He looked at Li Ping'an with a complicated gaze.

He whispered, "Brother Li, this... this... we're only participating in a trial, and the cost is so high. Will the sect blame us?"

"If we don't use them, they can be returned to the sect."

Li Ping'an smiled, "We are bringing glory to the sect. Oh, and these little things, please help me give them to our fellow disciples."

Li Ping'an took out two bags, which contained hundreds of black beads, each about the size of a little finger.

Gu Qingcheng asked curiously, "What is this? Is it a pill? Why is it stored so casually?"

"It's not a pill, Brother Gu, look."

Li Ping'an formed a bead with his hand and tossed it outside the boat, casually casting a magic incantation.

Poof!

A cloud of mist exploded, quickly transforming into a large expanse of clouds.

The disciples looked over curiously.

Li Ping'an said seriously:

"This is an ancient method I stumbled upon while researching the sect's archives. After some modifications, I've refined this 'Cloud Bursting Pill.' Although it looks like a pill, it's actually a simple magic artifact.

"Its sole function is to create a large area of clouds and mist with just a tiny bit of magic power.

"This mist can briefly obscure the immortal sense of Origin Immortals, causing beings to temporarily lose their sense of direction, but it won't block stronger immortal senses.

"When used in conjunction with our Myriad Cloud Sect's Cloud Riding Technique and Cloud Evasion Method, it can produce unexpected effects in combat.

"These little things are just troublesome to refine; they aren't valuable in themselves. Consider them a small gift to all my senior brothers and sisters."

"This... is amazing!"

Gu Qingcheng exclaimed in wonder, and the other disciples also became interested.

Li Ping'an sighed inwardly and, after handing the Cloud Bursting Pills to Gu Qingcheng, turned to find Elder Yan Sheng.

Although he had thousands of various spirit-blasting magic artifacts on him, these were his trump cards and he couldn't give them away easily.

He would just ask the sect to send some ordinary magic artifacts; he was sure the elders wouldn't refuse.

As Li Ping'an approached the ship cabin where the elders were drinking tea, he muttered to himself.

By the way, wasn't I supposed to be here for sightseeing? Why am I already working?

He glanced at Gu Qingcheng, who was surrounded by the disciples, and raised an eyebrow slightly.

This sword cultivator is quite resourceful.

Following Li Ping'an's suggestion, Gu Qingcheng, having been the first to step into the elders' ship cabin with his right foot, was appointed as the vice-leader for this disciple trial, responsible for all sorts of errands.

A moment later, a jade slip was sent to the market town on the coast of the Eastern Sea. Six thousand magic artifacts would be delivered within half a day.

Meanwhile;

On the coast of the Eastern Sea, at the mountain gate stronghold of the Sea Gazing Sect.

High on the towering cliffs by the sea, rows of pavilions and palaces were connected, appearing like a fairyland when viewed from the sea.

In a corner of the Sea Gazing Sect's main hall, several old Daoists with graying hair and beards sat in high seats, summoning several young disciples before them.