Seeking Refuge in Qingxuan

As night fell, Shen Yi did not sleep. Having reached the Qi Refining stage, he no longer needed daily sleep, as the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was enough to replenish himself.

"The cold energy in my left arm has accumulated too much; I can only refine it bit by bit."

Shen Yi sat in his room, sensing that the spiritual energy in Changfeng Town was very thin at night, faintly converging in a certain direction. With a thought, he got up to find the source and arrived at a dilapidated temple.

Pushing open the door, Shen Yi saw that the surroundings were in ruins. The statue had faded and was severely damaged, appearing to have received no offerings for a long time.

"Strange, the trace of spiritual energy flow disappears here."

Shen Yi searched all around but found nothing. Everything seemed to have vanished into thin air. Circulating his spiritual energy, Shen Yi released a black energy glow and was surprised to find that each time it touched the statue, it mysteriously disappeared, as if falling into an abyss and losing contact.

"A barrier? Or a formation?"

Shen Yi let out a soft "yi," and as he reached out to touch the statue, he felt a powerful suction force that he couldn't resist. In an instant, he vanished from the dilapidated temple.

A giant bronze coffin appeared before Shen Yi, bound by thick, long black chains and suspended in mid-air. Faint, ancient patterns were carved onto the bronze coffin, exuding a sense of weathered antiquity.

Shen Yi carefully traced the patterns on the bronze coffin, greatly shocked.

Inside this giant bronze coffin, there was a living being!

As if sensing the presence of a living person, the chains clanged, and a faint voice emanated from the coffin.

"Spirit stones... give them to me..."

Shen Yi was startled and dared not move rashly. Confirming that the presence had no ill intentions, he took out a few Spirit Stones and placed them on the bronze coffin.

In the blink of an eye, the Spirit Stones were absorbed. The black chains glowed with dark light, spreading throughout the entire town and forming an invisible barrier.

"So, the protection that Feng Liquan spoke of was actually emitted by this giant bronze coffin. It's just that his aura was weak, no wonder it could be damaged by a cultivator at the early Foundation Establishment stage."

With this thought, Shen Yi took out ten more Spirit Stones and placed them on the bronze coffin. They were instantly absorbed, and the barrier strengthened slightly.

"I wonder how many will be enough."

As he pondered this, he took out more than half of the Spirit Stones he had, about ten to twenty thousand, and piled them on the ground.

"Supreme Hall, Sacred Emperor Scripture... Supreme Hall, Sacred Emperor Scripture..."

Shen Yi vaguely heard the murmuring from within the bronze coffin. Before he could ask for details, he was sent out by a surge of chains.

Standing before the statue, Shen Yi felt as if he were in a dream. When he reached out to touch the statue again, he only felt its roughness and a sense of unreality welled up in his heart.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning, Shen Yi decided to leave and seek an opportunity to break through to the Foundation Establishment realm.

Little did he know that the longevity tablet the people of Changfeng Town had set up for him was precisely in the temple from last night. The townsfolk had renovated it, repainted the statue, and enshrined his longevity tablet there. From then on, the temple received continuous offerings, and the barrier emanating from the bronze coffin became even more solidified.

Shen Yi searched everywhere for a chance to break through to the Foundation Establishment realm. A month passed, and he had now reached the peak of Qi Refining, just one step away from Foundation Establishment.

"Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment, what kind of fortuitous encounter does it truly require?"

Shen Yi sat by a waterfall, watching the fish in the pool, and muttered to himself.

"Activate Simulation!"

[Simulation started. Remaining simulations this month: 0]

[Year 1, you joined the Qingxuan Sect and became an outer disciple.]

[Year 2, you successfully established your Foundation and became an inner disciple.]

[Year 3, you were dispatched to the Azure Cloud Sect in Ninghai City. You were recognized by Wang Shangren and tortured to death.]

[Simulation ended. Reward obtained: Disguise Pill. After taking it, your appearance can be altered. The effect can be removed by a Restore Appearance Pill.]

Shen Yi held the Disguise Pill. Thinking that Qingxuan Sect was not too far away, he decided to follow the simulator's instructions. The first step of revenge would begin with Qingxuan Sect!

Flapping his Spirit Wings, Shen Yi flew towards the distant city.

Qingxuan Town.

The foundation of the Qingxuan Sect.

To avoid being discovered, Shen Yi quickly retracted his Spirit Wings and walked the rest of the way to the gates of Qingxuan Town.

There were no royal soldiers guarding the entrance, but rather cultivators. Judging by their attire, they were most likely members of the Qingxuan Sect. Shen Yi keenly sensed the delicate relationship between the Qingxuan Sect and the Later Zhou Royal Family, which he could exploit.

"Fellow cultivator, may I ask if this is the location of the Qingxuan Sect? I heard that the Qingxuan Sect is recruiting disciples and have come to pledge my allegiance."

Shen Yi had taken the Disguise Pill and thought of a name, Kong Ming. Unless Wang Shangren himself appeared, no one would suspect that he had hidden his true appearance.

"Indeed, fellow cultivator, you have arrived at the perfect time. The entrance examination for the Qingxuan Sect will be in three days. Seeing your steady aura, I assume you are confident."

Shen Yi chuckled and casually took out more than a dozen Spirit Stones, handing them to the man. The man became even more enthusiastic and familiar with him.

Through conversation, Shen Yi learned that the man's name was Zhu Siwen, an outer disciple of the Qingxuan Sect responsible for recording the recruitment of disciples.

"Fellow cultivator Kong Ming, please rest in the city. I will visit you later."

Zhu Siwen called out, and a subordinate led Shen Yi into the city.

Qingxuan Town had already gathered many people, all wanting to join the Qingxuan Sect and embark on the Immortal Path. There were also cultivators like Shen Yi, who already had cultivation, looking for a backing.

"On the way here, why didn't I see any royal patrols?"

Shen Yi picked up a candied hawthorn from a roadside stall, tossed over a Spirit Stone, and asked casually.

The stall attendant saw this and, witnessing Shen Yi's generosity, quickly replied, "People of the Later Zhou Royal Family hold no real power in Qingxuan City anymore. If you don't believe me, Immortal, feel free to ask around. Here, there's only the Qingxuan Sect; there's no Later Zhou Royal Family."

The attendant's words confirmed Shen Yi's guess. He slowed his pace slightly and continued walking.

"Since the Qingxuan Sect is so powerful, has the Later Zhou Royal Family made no move?"

Shen Yi asked, tossing a few more Spirit Stones to the attendant, who smiled broadly and bowed repeatedly.

"Ah, Immortal, you may not know, but the Qingxuan Sect is backed by the Azure Cloud Sect. Although our sect only has cultivators at the Golden Core realm, the Azure Cloud Sect has mighty Nascent Soul cultivators supporting them!"

As the attendant spoke, his back straightened unconsciously, and a proud expression appeared on his face.

"The Qingxuan Sect truly has deep foundations. If I join them, I'll have support."

Shen Yi's face showed admiration, and his eyes revealed a longing to join the Qingxuan Sect. The attendant saw all this and was very pleased with Shen Yi. This was exactly the effect he wanted, to make Shen Yi wholeheartedly join the sect so he could receive many rewards and perhaps even become an outer disciple.

"Immortal, the Osmanthus Tower is just ahead. The dishes inside are a specialty of Qingxuan. It's still early, why not try some?"

"Great, lead the way!"