A Heroine Comes Up the Mountain

Li Ping'an's wooden building;

This newcomer, who had only recently embarked on the path of cultivation, was gasping heavily as he felt the surging Dharma power within him, the spiritual awareness that had skyrocketed from consecutive breakthroughs, and the qi sea and meridians that had been forcibly widened. He savored every sensation from that brush with life and death.

If he had not accumulated enough insights beforehand and consecutively broken through the fourth, fifth, and sixth stages of Qi Refining, the suddenly surging Dharma power might have burst him apart!

What was going on?

Li Ping'an was indeed a little bewildered.

As he understood it, cultivating the Dao was a gradual process: accumulating insights, accumulating Dharma power, building up strength before making a breakthrough. As one's realm rose, so did one's lifespan, while the Dao Body grew stronger. Step by step, one walked the immortal path in search of longevity.

Because his aptitude lacked earth among the five elements, and because he had begun cultivating as an adult, his progress had been extremely slow. Even after cultivating diligently for some time and fortunately gaining initial Dao comprehension, he had only taken a few small steps forward.

Yet now, for some unknown reason, he had suddenly...

Had someone secretly transmitted cultivation to him?

Li Ping'an had a vague feeling that this sudden breakthrough seemed connected to his father.

When his entire body had been wracked with pain and he had suffered terribly, he had seen the Big Dipper and a dazzling great star.

Li Ping'an fished a Jade Thumb Ring out from beneath his pillow.

It seemed he could use this storage treasure now.

A few traces of eagerness arose in Li Ping'an's heart. He immediately prepared to pour Dharma power into it and simply refine the storage ring, but before he could make a move, a familiar shout rang out from beyond the window:

"Ping'an!"

"Dad?"

Li Ping'an wrapped himself in a robe and hurried to the window. Opening it, he saw his father standing on the clouds.

Li Ping'an said with a bitter smile, "Dad, you... You can ride the clouds already?"

"This is a cloud mist refined by Your Ancestor Master. I am still far from riding clouds and mist!"

Li Dazhi chuckled and slipped into Li Ping'an's room.

Though they had not seen each other for some time, Li Dazhi's belly had not shrunk but grown larger. The wrinkles on his face had completely disappeared, and he looked twenty years younger, his face glowing red whenever he smiled.

Li Dazhi Looked At his surroundings, then carefully examined Li Ping'an. After pondering for a few moments, he asked:

"Ping'an, has your cultivation... increased?"

"It has. It suddenly jumped by quite a bit earlier," Li Ping'an said with a frown. "Dad, did you ask an immortal to transmit cultivation to me?"

Li Dazhi immediately beamed.

He looked around his son's dwelling with satisfaction, nodded, and walked toward the desk. Deliberately keeping him in suspense, he swayed his head and said:

"This matter must not be spoken of to outsiders!"

Li Ping'an followed, carrying a pot of cold tea.

"Dad, what exactly Is Happening?"

"It is nothing major."

Li Dazhi slouched sideways In the Chair and said leisurely:

"From now on, you need not worry about cultivation!

"Your Ancestor Master sacrificed a hundred years of cultivation to reshape the bloodline divine ability of the Ancient Human Race for me. The divine ability I obtained is rather interesting. Whenever inspiration strikes me, I can activate it and give you part of my Dharma power.

"I call it Father-Son Heart Link.

"My cultivation is so easy, while yours is so troublesome. Do not put so much pressure on yourself. Just lie back and wait for Dad to carry you to the skies."

The corner of Li Ping'an's mouth twitched slightly. Then he sighed and sat across from his father.

He did not mention that the Dharma power had nearly made his body explode. He merely tactfully reminded his father that there was no need to deliberately transfer Dharma power to him.

"Ping'an, I know you want to rely on yourself in all things. The two of us have the same temperament, both stubborn as mules."

Li Dazhi sighed:

"But think about it. You are my only family in this world. If I do not help you, who should I help? If you had this divine ability, would you not help me?

"Now that we have come to the immortal cultivation world, this Immortal Sect may appear peaceful, but danger lurks everywhere. There Is No way Myriad Cloud Sect has no enemies. Quite a few immortals in the sect are already deeply dissatisfied with me, a mortal merchant who suddenly appeared from nowhere.

"The higher your cultivation, the stronger your ability to protect yourself, and the more freely I can cultivate ahead without worries.

"Besides, Ping'an, you know that even if I have fortune and aptitude, I am not the sort to become an Important Figure even if my cultivation reaches great heights. I can only be a vanguard, not a grand general.

"But you are different, Ping'an. Your mind is quick, and your comprehension is good... What is wrong with me giving you some Dharma power to help your cultivation? Others could not get it even if they wanted it!"

Li Ping'an pondered for a while and could only nod lightly.

"Dad, I will not refuse what you give me, but we must agree on a few things."

Li Dazhi swept out a hand. "What things? Just say it. Everything at home is up to you."

"Every time you want to transmit cultivation to me, you must come here first so that I can make preparations."

Li Ping'an pulled open his robe, revealing the inner garment he had yet to change.

The inner garment was covered in filthy blood;

These were the marks Left Behind when Li Ping'an had previously crossed the Life and Death Barrier.

Cold sweat immediately poured down Li Dazhi's face. He hurriedly said, "My fault," and, "My fault."

"Also, Dad, it is best if only the two of us know about this divine ability. And you can transmit cultivation to me at most once a year. You need not give me too much each time, and it must not affect your own cultivation. Otherwise, we would be putting the cart before the horse.

"I heard you say just now that people in the sect are dissatisfied with you? Tell me about that carefully first. Do not leave any hidden dangers."

Li Dazhi smiled and shook his head. "If I had known, I would not have told you any of this, so you would not worry."

Half an hour later.

Li Dazhi quietly left Flowing Cloud Temple.

Li Ping'an took a bath, changed clothes, and sat Behind the Desk in quiet thought.

The trouble facing his father was neither too great nor too small.

Resources within the sect were allocated in fixed amounts to begin with, especially top-tier resources—such as a disciple slot under Daoist Master Kongming.

This was the primary reason his father had provoked the envy of several Heavenly Immortal Realm experts.

Myriad Cloud Sect had thirty-six Main Peaks, thirty-six Dao lineages large and small, and thus thirty-six factions. The strongest faction was naturally the Sect Master's lineage.

Daoist Master Kongming was an ancestor of the Sect Master's lineage. The other two Golden Immortal Ancestors were also more or less connected to the Sect Master's lineage.

As long as Daoist Master Kongming said a word, the next sect leader would be decided.

This gave rise to a new problem.

Quite a few immortals in the sect claimed that Daoist Master Kongming's newly accepted disciple, due to his great fortune, might be chosen as the next sect leader, using that disciple's great fortune to drive the sect's own fortune.

This was a good thing for the sect;

But for those Heavenly Immortal Realm experts who harbored ambitions for the position of sect leader, it was terrible news.

Thus emerged another force hostile toward his father.

These two forces actually overlapped considerably.

Li Ping'an thought carefully for a Long Time, then picked up his brush and began writing and drawing.

Power struggles existed within this Immortal Sect as well.

Although his father had been in business for many years, he had only run factories in small places. In His Bones, he was honest and dutiful by nature. This was also determined by the era in which his father had grown up.

Li Ping'an feared that his father would suffer losses, so he had to make proper plans for him.

Only by having a plan could one respond to every move.

He kept his head lowered and wrote for half the day. When the sun began setting in the west, Li Ping'an finally remembered the ring his father had Gave Me earlier.

Li Ping'an took out the ring and used a method he had read about in a book to refine it simply. A wisp of spiritual awareness soon entered it.

Oh ho!

Worthy indeed of a Golden Immortal's gift to a disciple!

Li Ping'an saw high-grade spirit stones piled into a three-foot cube, two porcelain bottles of healing pills, and a Brocade Box with the character "Life" written upon it.

He sensed it carefully, and his spiritual awareness caught a rich medicinal fragrance.

This should have been a life-saving spiritual pill bestowed upon his father by a Golden Immortal Ancestor, yet his father had stuffed it into his hands.

Warmth welled up in Li Ping'an's heart, but he also silently cautioned himself.

Whether it was the Dharma power his father gave him or pills and treasures, they were ultimately only external aid. He still needed to cultivate diligently and comprehend the principles of the Great Dao in order to endure alongside it.

Dharma power did not represent one's Dao cultivation realm. Everything depended on one's own comprehension of the Great Dao.

Influenced by his father's newly acquired divine ability, Li Ping'an made minor adjustments to the details of his cultivation plan, but the final conclusion had no changes whatsoever.

—At this stage, his priority was to achieve a Self-Circulating Heavenly Cycle.

This was the key support for increasing his cultivation speed.

Li Ping'an had long known that the first three realms of Dao cultivation were Qi Refining Realm, Gathering Spirit Realm, and Light Condensing Realm, while the next three were Void Refinement Realm, Truth Integration Realm, and Heaven and Earth Bridge.

Generally speaking, only Qi cultivators in the Light Condensation Realm could make the Dharma power in their bodies circulate on its own, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth anytime and anywhere and transforming it into their own Primordial Qi and Dharma power.

Minor cultivators in Qi Refining and Gathering Spirit Realm could only maintain a heavenly cycle while meditating, absorbing spiritual energy more quickly for their own use.

Even after this surge in cultivation, Li Ping'an was still merely a minor cultivator at the seventh stage of Qi Refining Realm. His spiritual awareness was weak, his soul feeble, and he had yet to light One Light on the Spirit Platform...

Achieving a 'Self-Circulating Heavenly Cycle' at this point was indeed quite difficult.

"Where there is a will, there is a way."

Li Ping'an stretched lazily, stood up, pushed open the window, gazed into the distance, and exhaled the foul air in his chest. He emptied his sea of consciousness and relaxed his mind.

The young man next door practiced a set of Foundation Strengthening and Qi Increasing fist techniques in the courtyard;

In the distance, a Girl practiced talisman arts beside a pond. She flung out several yellow paper talismans, two of which transformed into Spirit Sparrows that fluttered around the girl, drawing peals of silvery laughter from her;

The deacon's small house in the Front Courtyard remained enveloped in the glow of an array. From afar, that Guest-Greeting Pine resembled an exquisite potted plant.

Li Ping'an did not Look Much at the scenery. He directly shut the doors and windows, returned to his bed, and continued meditating.

He had to achieve a Self-Circulating Heavenly Cycle!

He focused and guided the Primordial Qi within his body through a heavenly cycle, carefully sensing every Profound and Mysterious aspect of its circulation.

The spiritual energy drifting through the air slowly surged toward his body, entering through his mouth and nose and flowing into every pore. After making a circuit, a small amount remained within him, slowly assimilated by his Primordial Qi, increasing the Dharma power in his body by a little more.

How could he maintain this process on its own?

Li Ping'an was pondering this when he suddenly heard a somewhat childish Female Voice call out:

"May I ask! Is there anyone in charge here!"

The shout came from the Front Courtyard.

Li Ping'an, whose meditation had been disturbed, frowned slightly. He shook his head and continued focusing on meditation.

After Another half hour, the female voice rang out again. She seemed to possess some cultivation, for her soft, delicate voice was exceptionally clear:

"Is there a deacon in the sect? I am a new disciple."

Li Ping'an Opened his eyes and curled his lips with slight impatience, unable to stop himself from grumbling inwardly:

Why could this disciple not wait a little longer? Steward Wei Yanzi was in the Front Courtyard...

Ah, right, Steward Wei Yanzi had entered seclusion;

He was the acting deacon now.

Li Ping'an silently sighed, What a hassle, glanced at the Deacon Token on the table, and could only rise, throw on a robe, and clatter downstairs in his Cloth Shoes.

Before leaving the wooden building, he had already dressed properly, tied his Hair Tie, held the Identity Token in his palm, and hurried toward the Front Courtyard.

Three or five younger disciples had already gathered at the entrance to the rear courtyard, Looked Around toward the front.

When Li Ping'an arrived, these young men and women turned to look at him.

Though everyone had long been familiar with one another, they had never spoken;

Seeing Li Ping'an holding the Deacon Token, the young men and women naturally clasped their hands in greeting.

Li Ping'an returned the salute and said, "All senior brothers and senior sisters, simply cultivate in peace. I will go see what Is Happening in the Front Courtyard."

After saying that, he strode out of the rear courtyard, passed around the Shadow Wall ahead, and looked up toward the center of the Front Courtyard.

A young maiden stood there with a sword in hand.