Riding with an Immortal
The sun was shining brightly on a late afternoon at the end of the year.
The city of Qiuzhou was already bustling with activity, with a constant stream of carriages and horses, and endless noise. Most residents were oblivious to the tense atmosphere of the Qianlong Lantern Festival; only the participants knew that the real challenge would begin when night fell.
The hermits in the Zhuo Garden were still contemplating the skeletons of the Silver Skeleton Celestial Clan, their demeanor deathly still, showing no sign of the festival.
Humans, who should cherish and love life, have become silent monsters who only know how to cultivate themselves.
How can this be allowed?
Li Weiyi walked around the courtyard where the Silver Coffin was placed, but couldn't bear to look any longer. So, he took Hidden Eleven with him and drove to a large restaurant in the South City, where they bought a whole cartload of delicious food, cooked dishes, raw vegetables, and several jars of century-old wine.
Back at Zhuo Garden.
Li Weiyi closed the Silver Coffin lid.
All the hermits who were observing and cultivating were expelled from the courtyard.
"That's all for today's cultivation. I've bought all the tea, wine, and dishes. Even if I continue cultivating, I'll still have time for the New Year's Eve dinner."
"Hidden Twenty-Five, go and set up a table, a big one, by the lake."
"Twenty-four, go cook some hot dishes, Yao Yin, please help."
"Hidden Fifteen, go and build a fire; it might snow again tonight."
"Hidden Sixteen, go and buy more fireworks and firecrackers..."
After Li Weiyi made arrangements, the hermits, who were initially resistant and displeased, gradually got busy with their own tasks.
Once everything was ready, everyone sat together at the long wooden table, looking at the dishes and wine, and their mood became quite enthusiastic.
The recluses clinked glasses and recounted the strange and wonderful things they had encountered in recent years, filling the air with laughter and joy.
What made Li Weiyi frown was that the dishes stir-fried by Hidden Twenty-Four were really hard to swallow.
She seems rather inept; she entrusted her services to the wrong person.
It was already getting dark.
Dressed in Nightwalker's Robe, Hidden Nine and Yin Shi entered Zhuo Garden, revealing themselves from their concealment. Hearing laughter coming from the distant lakeside, the two were extremely surprised, thinking they had come to the wrong place.
The two arrived at the lakeside and gazed at the bonfire and joyful gathering on the other side of the lake, both feeling a sense of unreality and disorientation.
Since joining the Hidden Gate, everyone has been in a hurry, either discussing important matters or going into seclusion to cultivate and carry out missions. At most, they gather in twos and threes to discuss cultivation. They have rarely had this warm and joyful feeling of returning home.
Hidden Eleven stood upright, rolled up his sleeves, and began to speak eloquently, spittle flying as he recounted his perilous battle with the Ember Spirit on the Soldier Ancestor Marsh.
Hidden Lord appeared silently behind Hidden Nine and Yin Shi, and said with a smile, "Go on, you are also Yin people, young people will surely have common ground to talk about."
Li Weiyi spotted the three people on the other side of the lake and immediately waved and shouted to them.
The other hermits also turned their gazes in that direction.
"Stop dawdling. I'll go call the three of them."
Drunk and intoxicated, Hidden Twenty-Three ran across the water and dragged the three people on the other side of the lake to the banquet, pressing them down into their seats, including Hidden Lord.
They drank three more rounds.
Hidden Twenty-Three directly put his hand on Hidden Lord's shoulder, hugged his neck and cried, saying that he was neither Pure Immortal Body nor could he obtain the God of Jiu Li's Combat Intent, and that he was under great pressure, and so on.
The other hermits were dumbfounded and looked at each other in disbelief.
Who had ever dared to be so presumptuous in front of the Hidden Lord before?
Fortunately, the Hidden Lord not only did not blame the Hidden Twenty-Three, but also comforted him gently for a while, treating him like a brother and a father.
After the New Year's Eve dinner, Hidden Nine, Yin Shi, Hidden Eleven, Hidden Fifteen, and Hidden Sixteen entered the main hall of the three-courtyard house to discuss various matters related to the Qianlong Lantern Festival.
The Hidden Lord listened in.
Li Weiyi did not participate, seemingly having given up on the Qianlong Lantern Festival. Instead, he joined the young hermits by the lake to set off fireworks and firecrackers, preparing to welcome his first New Year in this world.
Firecrackers crackled, and fireworks burst forth.
Seeing that Hidden Twenty-Four, though smiling, was preoccupied and his brows were furrowed with worry, Li Weiyi walked over with his hands behind his back and said, "Yan Ershisi, let me teach you a finger technique. Do you want to learn?"
Hidden Twenty-Four was taken aback, then laughed and said, "Could it be that Compassionate Sail Opening Finger Technique that has already spread throughout the entire Qiuzhou Prefecture?"
"Why not? That's exactly the move."
Li Weiyi added, "If you can cultivate to the same level as me, you might be able to communicate with the divine and condense a special kind of divine will."
"Do you think everyone can communicate with gods so easily like you?" Hidden Twenty-Four knew that this guy had not only cultivated a divine will, but had also trampled them, who were Pure Immortal Body from the Nine Springs, into the dust.
Li Weiyi walked up to her. "Are you going to learn or not?"
"Study!"
Hidden Twenty-Four was certainly willing to learn.
To be precise, there were very few young martial artists in the entire Qiuzhou city who didn't want to learn this technique. They all felt that this martial art was incredibly powerful, must be profound and have an extraordinary origin.
Amidst a sky full of fireworks, Yao Yin glanced at the two people teaching and learning in the distance, and a captivating smile appeared on her delicate and beautiful fair face.
Although the two were always bickering and arguing, there was a Zhen Xin concern between them.
After the five most powerful hidden figures finished their discussion, Hidden Ten left first.
Her identity remains that of Qin Li Maiden of the Immortal Forest.
Hidden Nine and Hidden Eleven headed to Peach Plum Mountain, with less than two hours remaining before the announcement of the last batch of invitations and the rules for the Qianlong Lantern Festival.
Many young martial arts practitioners had already gathered at the foot of the Xuantian Stone Wall by morning.
Those who are as unhurried as them are actually in the minority.
The Hidden Lord approached Li Weiyi: "There are still two hours until the New Year's bell tolls at five quarters past midnight. It's not too late to regret it now. Once the bell rings, I won't be able to protect you when you leave the city."
Li Weiyi smiled and said, "I didn't participate in their discussion because I know they represent the Jiu Li Hidden Gate and the Jiu Li Tribe. They bear a heavy responsibility; they must fight for the Jiu Li Tribe, which inevitably puts them in a difficult and dangerous situation."
"But I'm different. I'm just going to join in the fun. I won't get involved in the battle for the hidden dragons, so it shouldn't be that dangerous."
Hidden Lord shook his head and sighed, "You... you'd better tell the truth. It's good for you to go and gain some experience. Your generation of young martial artists can be called the Golden Generation of the past thousand years. Those who can make it into the top ten would definitely be among the best in other eras."
"Ten years of chaos forged countless young dragons."
"Just consider it a trip to broaden your horizons and see what kind of amazing young masters are in the world today. In as little as five years, or at most ten years, many of these people will defy the odds and become Longevity Realm Giants, transforming from nascent dragons into true dragons."
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself, and don't do anything risky. Hidden Nine and Hidden Eleven said they will help you obtain the Dragon Seed and the Longevity Pill, and repay the God of Jiu Li's Battle Intent will, so your cultivation speed will not lag behind theirs."
Without the Longevity Pill, achieving immortality through sixty years is an extremely difficult task.
In the past sixty years, only Zuoqiu Ling achieved this.
However, with the help of the Dragon Seed and the Longevity Pill, the most outstanding Outstanding Person have the opportunity to achieve immortality over several years.
What a temptation!
It was precisely because the Hidden Lord was worried that Li Weiyi would not be able to control himself and would dabble in things that were inappropriate for someone at his current level of cultivation that he gave this advice.
Someone risked their life for him.
"You yourself said, 'Contentment brings no disgrace, and knowing when to stop brings no danger,'" the Hidden Lord repeatedly admonished.
Under the cover of night.
Li Weiyi, dressed in black Nightwalker's Robe, walked out of Zhuo Garden and headed towards the Xuantian Stone Wall at the foot of Peach Plum Mountain in the center of the city, along the Qiankun Avenue, which was wide enough for ten horses to ride side by side.
Go get the invitation!
The inner city of Qiuzhou was divided into areas in the shape of a Bagua (Eight Trigrams), and the streets were also named after the Bagua.
The upper trigram is Qian (乾), and the lower trigram is Kun (坤), and this street runs north-south.
Night had fallen, and the streets were gradually emptying out. Only from the foot of the majestic and mysterious ancient Ancestral Mountain in the city center came a cacophony of noise, faintly audible even from more than ten miles away.
Young talents from the Twenty-Eight Prefectures had already gathered there.
"Da da!"
Behind me, the sound of hooves echoed on the empty, wide street, accompanied by the clatter of turning metal wheels.
Li Weiyi didn't notice at first that there were more martial arts practitioners driving to the Xuantian Stone Wall tonight, but the sound of hooves grew closer and closer, coming to the right side of the street and pressing towards him.
Li Weiyi stopped and immediately mobilized his magical power, becoming vigilant.
The cart was pulled by a Silver Horned Deer, a large beast with a shimmering silver head, a common sight in the Lingxiao Shengjing.
The car frame was parked next to him.
A familiar and pleasant female voice came from inside the car. "Get in."
Li Weiyi was greatly surprised. After hesitating for a moment, he got into the car.
Immediately, an intoxicating fragrance wafted in. The spacious and luxuriously decorated interior of the carriage contrasted sharply with the simplicity seen from the outside.
A Magic Tool Bone Lantern, an artifact, was embedded in the right-hand wall of the room, emitting a faint blue light.
Jiang Ning, wearing a white veil, sat gracefully at the back of the carriage, her delicate hands hidden in her sleeves.
The blindfold has been removed.
Her exquisitely beautiful eyes seemed even brighter and more radiant than the Magic Tool Bone Lantern.
Anyone who looks into those breathtakingly beautiful eyes will find it hard to look away, wanting only to immerse themselves in them forever, to explore the secrets of the person who holds those eyes, and to find her most essential emotions and thoughts.
Li Weiyi was a person who knew how to control herself and did not want to fall into the emotional abyss hidden in her eyes. Therefore, she quickly looked away and looked at Zhuang Yue sitting on her right, and smiled, "What a pair of enchanting scarlet eyes, even more beautiful than your previous ones, but they don't match your temperament."
Zhuang Yue, who had been sitting upright, suddenly became uneasy after being praised like that, and a blush rose on her face.
The Old Man driver, dressed in Black Robe, gently cracked his whip.
The Exotic Beast Carriage continued forward at a very slow pace.
Li Weiyi sat down opposite Zhuang Yue: "If I remember correctly, Fairy Yu once said that Luantai Angel cannot be in the same room with men? Are we considered to be in the same room now?"
Zhuang Yue corrected, "It means we can't be alone together in a room."
"You didn't say that when we first met. I didn't even have the right to see the angel in person," Li Weiyi said.
Jiang Ning looked at him with a somber expression. "Our current way of meeting is actually not in accordance with regulations. If someone were to report us, it would be a considerable troublesome matter. But after careful consideration, I still feel that I should see you before the Qianlong Lantern Festival. Li Weiyi, what exactly do you want for me to give up participating in the Qianlong Lantern Festival? I hope you will leave Qiuzhou City immediately."
Li Weiyi met her ethereal eyes, which were so close to his own, and could clearly see each long, curled eyelash and the complex emotions in her gaze.
Li Weiyi felt a slight tremor in her heart and shifted her gaze to the bone lamp on the wall of the room.
Jiang Ning and Hidden Lord's repeated admonitions undoubtedly indicate that the dangers of this Qianlong Lantern Festival far exceed expectations. Everyone sensed the bloodshed and felt a sense of powerlessness in the face of the situation, feeling they could only go with the flow.
Li Weiyi said, "Fairy Yu, you need to understand one thing: I am your creditor. You owe me a lot of money and a favor. Even if it's an order to do something, it should be me giving the order, not you..."
Jiang Ning said, "I didn't order you to do anything. I just wanted to know an answer, and then do my best to help you get out of this danger and repay your favor. Li Weiyi, why are you so stubborn?"