Four Halls of the Rice Cult

Yang Yun's survival at the Qianlong Lantern Festival and his appearance at the Rice Cult's headquarters surprised Li Weiyi greatly.

He not only cultivated the Nine Springs, but also transformed into a Pure Immortal Body. Now his cultivation aura has greatly improved, as if he has reached the third stage of the Five Seas Realm, and his unruly temperament has become even stronger.

The various strange events that occurred during Li Weiyi's investigation into Qi Xiao's disappearance now have a more definitive answer.

It seems that Yang Qingxi and the Yang Family Sui Sect are indeed connected with the Rice Cult.

Could Yang Yun have also grown out of the field?

Li Weiyi, now with a slightly chubby face and medium build, around thirty years old, walked to Yang Yun's side and looked at the various items displayed on the stall.

His gaze swept toward the stall owner sitting behind the stall.

The stall owner had three blood-red spirit grains on his sleeve, making it impossible to tell his true age, but he was definitely over thirty. It was difficult to judge his cultivation level, but he certainly hadn't reached the Dao Seed Realm.

The number of crimson spirit grains on the cuffs was one more than the two inner disciples encountered outside the Southern Clear Palace.

Their status should be higher.

Li Weiyi tried hard to gather information about this unfamiliar world, his gaze falling on the insect eggs in the clay pot on the stall.

Two insect eggs, the size of rice grains, radiating a jade-white glow, were attached to the leaves of a Hundred-Year Precious Medicine.

"Has Yang Yun struck it rich? Can he afford the eggs of Commander-class Mysterious Insect?"

After observing for a moment, Li Weiyi pointed out, "These are indeed the eggs of Commander-class Mysterious Insect!"

Yang Yun and the core disciple both looked at him.

The core disciple smiled and said, "Finally, someone who knows their stuff has arrived."

Li Weiyi changed the subject. "However, these are the eggs of a tortoise-snake-snail. They are slow and weak in attack, and are considered quite mediocre among the Commander-class Mysterious Insect."

The core disciple's smile faded, realizing the other party truly understood insect control. "Even if it's mediocre, it's still at the Commander Level. Once it reaches adulthood, its combat power can rival that of Dao Seed Realm Martial Cultivator."

Li Weiyi said, "That's the problem! It will take at least thirty years to hatch it. It will take at least sixty years to raise it to adulthood. And even after it reaches adulthood, it can only live for another thirty years at most."

Yang Yun's eyes turned cold, and he sneered, "No wonder you're selling this. You actually want to sell this strange insect for 200,000 Spring Coin?"

The core disciple didn't even look at Yang Yun, his gaze fixed on Li Weiyi: "I am Dao Zhenhui, a disciple of Elder Shu. Have I offended you in any way?"

"I simply helped someone in need," Li Weiyi said with a smile.

Yang Yun gave him a grateful look and clasped his hands in a fist salute.

Dao Zhenhui stood up, his pores radiating magical energy, revealing his cultivation level as the Sixth Sea of the Five Seas Realm: "Leave your name, let me see if I can afford to offend you."

"You?"

Li Weiyi's lips curled up, but he didn't use his magical energy or Battle Intent, fearing that Yang Yun would sense and see through his disguise.

A light shone from his brow, and his mental power erupted.

With a series of thuds, Dao Zhenhui was so shocked by the Psychic Attack that he took three steps back, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty. Finally, he cupped his hands and bowed deeply.

Mind Master are not to be trifled with.

Li Weiyi and Yang Yun walked together towards the edge of the town.

"Thank you for your righteous help, Senior Brother. Otherwise, I would have been swindled out of a lot of money by that Dao Zhenhui. I will settle this score with him sooner or later." Yang Yun was very respectful to Li Weiyi.

Li Weiyi said, "My name is Zuo Sheng! Brother Yun, what's your name?"

"Yunyang."

Beneath Yang Yun's mask, his eyes were filled with sincerity and respect.

The sky above the site of the Rice Religion Headquarters is always dark.

A bright, arrayed moon hung in the sky, showering down its radiant light like rain.

This moon appears to be three to four times larger than the full moon visible from Earth.

As you leave the town, the concentration of sulfur dioxide drops rapidly.

On both sides of the rice paddies are steep mountain peaks, the trees and vegetation on the mountains radiating a purplish-red glow, and the deep, resonant sounds of strange beasts and birds can be heard.

The rice paddies were shrouded in Light Veil, through which one could vaguely see plants growing at heights of over ten meters.

The two found themselves getting along very well as they talked.

Li Weiyi said, "Brother Yun, you're not a native of Daoren, just like me, are you?"

"I've only been at the headquarters for a few months."

Yang Yun then asked, "Did Senior Brother Zuo also come in from outside?"

Li Weiyi, seemingly completely unguarded, nodded and said, "I was born in the rice paddies of Zuoqiu Courtyard and grew up in Qiuzhou. Because of my exceptional talent, I received special training and was later given the surname Zuo. I only recently came to the main altar with the Fourth Divine Son... This is my first time here..."

Yang Yun had no doubts.

Those who are able to come to the main altar from the outside have definitely undergone rigorous screening.

Yang Yun advised, "Since Senior Brother Zuo has a reputation outside, it's better to wear a mask. Better safe than sorry."

Li Weiyi suddenly realized.

It turns out that the masked cultivators I saw in the market town were people with status outside.

Li Weiyi smiled and said, "Thank you for informing me, Brother Yun, but it's alright. I used Disguise Art. Besides, anyone who comes to the main altar is absolutely trustworthy."

Yang Yun asked curiously, "Senior Brother Zuo, even a powerful expert like you has been imbued with the Death Spirit Fire?"

Li Weiyi's expression turned serious. After walking a short distance away, he said, "There's nothing we can do about it! People who aren't native to the main altar are hard to trust, and the cult will definitely find a way to control them."

He then added, "But I understand that the location of the main altar is top secret; if it were to be leaked, it would be a catastrophe. Especially the location of the main altar's entrance, which is an absolute secret."

Yang Yun was startled. "Senior Brother Zuo knows where the entrance is?"

"You didn't know?" Li Weiyi asked rhetorically, a hint of disappointment in his voice.

"My cultivation level is low, and..."

Yang Yun hesitated to speak, as he wasn't a rice man and feared being seen as an outsider. "When I came in, my five senses were sealed."

"I see."

Li Weiyi changed his form of address and said affectionately, "Junior Brother Yun, how much do you know about the main altar? I just arrived and I am truly shocked by what I see. I never imagined that the main altar would be so vast and open, practically an independent world."

Being able to offer assistance to Mind Master filled Yang Yun with excitement. He laughed heartily, "Actually, I don't know much either. My sister... I rarely leave the cultivation grounds. The main altar is fraught with danger. The Spirit Grain Hall is quite lenient in its management, and there are no explicit prohibitions against fighting among disciples. If you're not careful, you might offend a powerful figure, and your life could be in danger."

Li Weiyi said, "Won't this create chaos?"

Yang Yun said, "It's not that exaggerated! The main altar also has the Ku Rong Hall, which holds the power of rewards and punishments. If a disciple really acts recklessly, the punishment is quite severe. Whipping and caning are commonplace; burning, insect torture, and the Divine Prison are what make life worse than death."

It turns out that the Divine Prison and the Ku Rong Hall are related.

Li Weiyi knew that Tuoba Butuo and others had been imprisoned in the Divine Prison.

But right now, whether he can escape alive is still unknown, so naturally he can't worry about them.

Li Weiyi nodded again, then asked, "Junior Brother Yun, what kind of place is the Spirit Grain Hall?"

Yang Yun spoke eloquently, "The Divine Cult has four halls: the Heavenly Principle Hall, the Spirit Grain Hall, the Ku Rong Hall, and the Heavenly World Hall."

"The Heavenly Principle Hall ranks first, responsible for sacrifices, compiling scriptures, imparting and spreading doctrines, and focusing on mental cultivation. They manage almost all the formations, spirits, ferocious insects, weapon crafting, and herb cultivation at the main altar."

"The Spirit Grain Hall is responsible for cultivating outer sect spirit children, inner sect disciples, core disciples, and even some True Disciple, who are also under their management. They are also responsible for cultivating high-quality benevolent Benevolent Rice and raising young children."

"Like the Spirit Grain Hall Heavenly World Hall is divided into Twenty-Eight Mansions of Twenty-Eight Prefectures of Lingxiao."

"The difference is that the Twenty-Eight Mansions of the Spirit Grain Hall are for cultivating outstanding talents internally."

"The twenty-eight elders of the Heavenly World Hall, plus the five Venerables, are responsible for external affairs and matters concerning the outside world."

Yang Yun whispered, "I heard that a large portion of the twenty-eight elders of the Twenty-Eight Mansions of the Spirit Grain Hall and the twenty-eight elders of the Heavenly World Hall look exactly alike; they are symbiotic."

One plant, two people, sharing the same root.

One is outside, the other is inside.

Li Weiyi was secretly amazed by the terrifying strength of the Twin Rice Cult.

But considering that they had already mastered and developed the vast resources of the Underground Immortal Mansion many years ago, and inherited various codes and Daoist arts of the ancient Bhakara Sect, they were indeed able to grow stronger in obscurity.

Li Weiyi asked, "Aren't the four Palace Masters even more powerful than the five Venerable Ones?"

"That's for sure. The five Venerables all belong to the Heavenly World Hall, and together with the three Deputy Hall Masters of the Heavenly World Hall, they form an eight-person group that is the main force for the Divine Sect to exert influence outside."

At this point, Yang Yun revealed an arrogant expression.

Li Weiyi secretly guessed that the Sui Sect might also have an eight-person group, but fearing exposure, he didn't ask further. Suddenly, he looked up into the distance and sighed, "I wonder how big this headquarters is? I can't see the end of it!"

Yang Yun smiled and boasted, "At the main altar, just the area under the jurisdiction of the Spirit Grain Hall, which is right beneath our feet, comprises Twenty-Eight Mansions. Each prefecture has a Heaven Law Earth Spring and several fields of Benevolent Rice. In any case, it is said that you have to travel hundreds of miles in one direction to see the boundary of the formation."

The two walked and talked as they left the rice paddy area.

Beneath a dark, towering mountain, one can see the Spirit Grain Hall stele, which is seventy or eighty meters high.

Spirit Grain Hall is located in a valley where giant, luminous trees hundreds of meters tall grow, with the temple, scripture hall, and pagoda partially hidden among the branches and leaves.

Without a doubt, the vast majority of these buildings are remnants of the Bhakara Sect from tens of thousands of years ago.

There are many martial arts training grounds and lecture halls built in front of the valley. Young disciples come from all directions from time to time, take out their life tokens, and enter the array light curtain as if walking into a layer of water curtain.

We arrived outside the array formation at the gate of the Spirit Grain Hall.

Yang Yun took out his life tablet and looked at Li Weiyi: "Senior Brother Zuo, where is your life tablet?"

Li Weiyi said, "I haven't received mine yet."

A look of doubt appeared in Yang Yun's eyes. "The life token is extremely important. The main altar's formations, guardian beasts, Patrol Guard, and law enforcement teams all only recognize it. The life token, the life token, it's something you should have received on your very first day here!"

Knowing he could no longer hide it, Li Weiyi looked around but found no other martial arts practitioners. So, using the method of Spirit Treasure Seizing, he took the life tablet from Yang Yun's hand.

Inside the life tablet, Yang Yun's blood flowed, causing Li Weiyi to frown slightly.

Yang Yun was stunned, unsure of what this Senior Brother Zuo was up to, but he already sensed something was wrong.

"Bang!"

Li Weiyi slapped him on the back of the head with a palm, his palm containing powerful mental energy.

Yang Yun rolled her eyes and collapsed.

Li Weiyi carried the limp Yang Yun back to the rice paddy area.

In a secluded corner, he quickly took off Yang Yun's inner disciple's Rice Robe and put it on himself.