Little Heavenly Master

On Penglai Island, Li Qi and the Demon Prince made a pact.

The Demon Prince's plan was simple: one per year. This year he would fight the Little Heavenly Master, and next year he would go to find Shariputra. He would go around in this way, fighting all the younger generation, and laying the foundation for his path with victory after victory.

He never even considered the possibility of failure, because he felt that he could never fail; his inner pride and self-confidence sustained him.

Li Qi always weighs the difficulties and pros and cons carefully before doing anything, and only proceeds cautiously after confirming that he is "capable".

In Li Qi's view, someone like the Demon Prince, who clearly lacks confidence and knows that what he is doing is very difficult, yet still believes that he can do it, is simply unwise.

How can you do anything without conducting a proper risk assessment? That's called reckless action, not courage.

But the Demon Prince went anyway, and Li Qi couldn't say anything. Everyone has their own style, so let's go our separate ways.

On the Dao Path, only a very few 'fellow travelers' can accompany you. Most people walk alone. If you have a close friend who shares your path, that is a great blessing, someone you can entrust your life to.

Li Qi and the Demon Prince could be considered friends, but they were far from being like-minded.

After reaching an agreement with Li Qi, the Demon Prince didn't linger. He stood up, bid farewell to Li Qi, and, leaning on his cane, limped away.

They must be preparing for the battle.

After watching the other person leave, Li Qi also went to the depths of Penglai with Shen Shuibi.

Here, Li Qi mainly followed Shen Shuibi.

She first visited the various Immortal Mountain of Penglai, where the birds and beasts were pure white, appearing like white clouds from afar.

The entire Penglai, with its highest point spanning 20,000 li and its breadth reaching 70,000 li, is home to a large number of high-level powerful beings and their Law Treasure and palaces. As a result, the surrounding natural environment has also been affected, with all the birds and beasts turning white as one example.

When Li Qi walked to the riverbank, he could see fine stones below that looked like gold and jade, naturally smooth and clean.

Some indigenous people adorned themselves with bird feathers for clothing, drank dew, and spent their days climbing to high places to fetch water. They also used gold, silver, crystal rings, water crystals, and fire algae as steps. The water included both ice water and boiling water. Those who drank it could live for a thousand years. This must be a trace left by some powerful being.

There was a large snail on the beach called the naked snail, which carried itself on its shell and would retreat back into it when it got cold. Its eggs were soft on rocks, but hard when picked up. Floating on the sea, Li Qi didn't eat any and didn't know what the snail meat tasted like.

There are reeds by the water, red in color, which can be woven into mats, as soft as wool.

There is a bird called the Hong Goose, which is similar in color to a swan and in shape to a bald swan. It has no intestines, its feathers grow on its bones, and it has no skin or flesh. It is suspected to be a unique species of the Underworld Sea.

There are also many mandarin ducks here, resembling geese, hovering among the clouds, dwelling on high peaks, their feet never touching the ground, born in stone caves. It is said that they are different from the outside world. Here, mandarin ducks mate once every ten thousand years and then hatch their young. They learn to fly by carrying feathers at a thousand years old, forming flocks of tens of millions. Li Qi learned from others that there are enlightened mandarin ducks among them, whose feathers are so long that they can soar ten thousand miles high.

There are also bamboo groves with floating leaves, green leaves and purple stems, and seeds as large as pearls. Blue phoenixes gather on them. When a gentle breeze comes, the leaves and branches flutter, brushing the fine sand like clouds and mist. Immortals come to watch and play, and the wind blowing through the bamboo leaves makes a sound like bells and chimes.

There were sand grains everywhere. Although they were living organisms, they were as fine as powder, like dust. They seemed to be related to Luobu Snail, but Li Qi didn't have time to study them.

He followed Shen Shuibi to visit various Immortal Mountain and see Penglai. Li Qi didn't feel anything special, but he could sense that Shen Shuibi seemed to be searching for something.

This search trip in Penglai took six days. Shen Shuibi barely spoke during the journey, while Li Qi talked with various people to gather information and helped Shen Shuibi negotiate access to private places.

Fortunately, these Daoist priests were all quite easy to talk to, and Li Qi didn't have to go through too much trouble.

This visit and tour lasted for a full six days.

Six days later, Shen Shuibi gazed at an Immortal Mountain, the surrounding Nether Sea, and the many mysterious creatures of Penglai. Then she suddenly sat down, said nothing, and closed her eyes.

Li Qi then stood behind her and began to set up an array to protect her.

Neither of them spoke; everything happened naturally, their understanding of each other had reached this level.

Shen Shuibi pondered for another six days.

For six days, Old Ma was bored and simply lay down to sleep, but Li Qi stayed by her side, feeling the constant fluctuations emanating from her body.

On the seventh day, Shen Shuibi suddenly opened her eyes, and her aura changed accordingly. Li Qi could clearly feel that her strength had taken a leap forward.

It wasn't that the total amount increased, but rather that organizational effectiveness improved. Clearly, she gained some inspiration from Penglai.

After all, improving one's cultivation level is actually the result of accumulating time.

If your Dao and Technique Method are the car engine, then your cultivation is the gasoline. More gasoline is not necessarily better; it's about finding the right amount. Constantly accumulating cultivation will only lead to your self-destruction because the Dao's capacity is insufficient.

However, after this incident, Shen Shuibi's capacity for tolerance has obviously improved a lot. After a period of arduous cultivation, she can use her cultivation to run the Great Dao constructed in her body and completely consolidate it.

This is the most common method of spiritual practice.

You absorb the energy from the outside world that you need into your inner world. Within your inner world, there is its own Dao, and this energy will operate according to the guidance of the Dao.

However, if there is too much Qi, exceeding the scope of the Dao's overall control, the flow of Qi will become disordered, and then it will self-destruct.

Just like how Newtonian mechanics works at low speeds, but fails when your Qi enters a high-speed state, and if your Dao still follows Newtonian mechanics at this time, it will get out of control.

You must delve deeply into yourself, comprehend relativity, and thoroughly master it before you can control the air at high speeds.

The deeper and more powerful the Dao, the more Qi you can contain, and the more profound your cultivation will be. At the same time, your Technique Method will become more wondrous.

After all, Newtonian mechanics only deals with motion, but relativity involves spacetime, and the resulting power is naturally different.

The real trick of practitioners lies here: as long as the theory exists, practice is not difficult, and there is no need for any backward engineering technology, because their own microcosm is itself an all-powerful machine for practicing theory.

Gradually advancing the depth of the Tao, while simultaneously enriching one's cultivation through arduous practice—this is what most practitioners do. Therefore, cultivation requires not only learning and comprehension but also arduous practice and accumulation.

Shen Shuibi has completed this comprehension, but she still needs some time to accumulate and consolidate it.

However, there isn't enough time for her to engage in arduous training now; we need to get down to business here.

"This is Penglai. I've figured some things out. Let's go. The battle with the Demon Prince should be about to begin, right?" Shen Shuibi stood up, looked at Li Qi, and said this.

"Okay, let's go watch that battle first, and then we'll go back after they're done," Li Qi nodded.

Originally, the trip to Penglai was only for watching the battle.

Now that there has been a harvest, although it is unknown what Shen Shuibi has gained, it is still a good thing and an unexpected joy.

After observing the battle, he returned to Wushen Mountain. He had several hundred years to figure out a solution; he had to deal with Zhu Fengdan's arrangement of sending rabbits to the front lines.

Li Qi woke up the sleeping Old Ma, Old Ma mumbled that his name was Ma Ji, and his body enlarged as he headed towards the battlefield that Penglai had previously designated.

The battlefield was already packed with people. It seemed that the Demon Prince's arrival in the mortal world and his challenge to the Daoist Little Heavenly Master had attracted many busybodies.

Many arrays could be seen surrounding the area; these were transmission arrays, likely used for live streaming. There were also some authorized personnel from the Human Path Organization interviewing passersby with terminals. They were probably Human Path or live streamers sent by Humanitarian Organization to broadcast the entire battle live to a program within Human Path.

Besides these, there are other Dao Lineage. Li Qi can see real dragons soaring into the sky, as well as Shaman like himself, and all sorts of demons. Although there are few monks, they are not nonexistent.

It's quite lively.

Fortunately, everyone could fly, so they didn't need to crowd together below. Instead, they each formed a huge, loose sphere, with a radius estimated to be at least five thousand miles, and it was still gradually expanding.

With its absurdly large surface area, plus the scattered crowds, it doesn't feel crowded at all; it just looks big from a distance.

Li Qi found a place where he could see and sat down. He spread a blanket on the Old Ma and placed some food, spiritual fruits, and snacks on it. He also collected some Spirit Spring on the spot, which tasted like sweet wine. He chatted with Shen Shuibi and waited for the battle to begin in a relaxed and leisurely manner.

However, as he waited and waited, before the battle even began, he saw a streak of light rushing towards him.

Subconsciously, I scanned the area with my True Knowledge Dao Charm and detected no lethal Technique Method or hostility.

Then we'll just have to wait.

The light arrived in front of Li Qi a dozen seconds later.

Shen Shuibi still instinctively hid behind Li Qi, letting Li Qi handle the interpersonal interactions for her.

"Li Qi ...right? That should be the name, I didn't mispronounce it, did I?" the man said.

Li Qi looked up, wanting to see what the person looked like.

Wow, so handsome!

He wore a white Daoist Robe and a yin-yang fish belt. He had a dignified demeanor and handsome appearance. Although his appearance was handsome, it was not the kind of handsome that was striking. Instead, it was a kind of ruggedness that gave people a sense of Anxin. He looked like an extremely trustworthy senior brother. He was over eight feet tall, with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes. His gaze was piercing and his temperament was elegant and imposing, which was extremely intimidating.

He's the type of person you can tell is the main character just by looking at him in a crowd.

Li Qi was still sizing up the other person when he saw the other person bow slightly and cup his hands in greeting. "Greetings, senior. And, Brother Li Qi...?"

As he spoke, he also looked at Li Qi.

That "senior" should be a term of address for Shen Shuibi.

Li Qi stood up and replied, "And who are you, sir?"

"My name is Zhang Zong," the handsome man replied immediately.

Zhang Zong?

Hey, Little Heavenly Master!?

Upon hearing the name, Li Qi immediately recognized who it was.

This is the Demon Prince's opponent this time, the renowned Little Heavenly Master!

"So it's the Little Heavenly Master. What an honor to be visited by the Little Heavenly Master today. Please, have a seat." Li Qi immediately invited the other party to his side with great politeness.

Zhang Zong was polite for a moment, but not for long, and soon sat down.

After sitting down, he didn't linger. Instead, he politely asked Li Qi, "I've heard that Brother Li Qi once fought against the Demon Prince. I wonder what the outcome was?"

Upon hearing this straightforward question, Li Qi immediately understood the other party's purpose.

So at this point, he uttered a typical Shaman phrase. "Well... I won, but I also lost."

For some reason, Li Qi felt a secret sense of satisfaction when he said those words.

As Shaman, one should be a riddle teller.

No wonder people like to leave things unsaid; it's so satisfying! I want to be a riddle teller myself someday!

As Li Qi pondered these thoughts, his expression unconsciously became mysterious.

It really comes unconsciously; I always feel that saying these kinds of things makes me seem profound and mysterious.

To Li Qi's great satisfaction, the Little Heavenly Master Zhang Zong's reaction was exactly like something out of a textbook.

He looked at Li Qi and asked eagerly, "What do you mean?"

Li Qi felt a subtle sense of satisfaction.

But he coughed and said, "In terms of victory or defeat, I won. The Demon Prince lost to me."

Upon hearing this, the Little Heavenly Master Zhang Zong's expression relaxed somewhat.

Because he could tell Li Qi's current cultivation level.

If Li Qi were still a seventh-rank official, he believed that Li Qi would not be stronger than him.

This is a euphemism.

In reality, if they were both of the seventh rank, Li Qi would absolutely not be his match, and no matter what method he used, Li Qi would not be able to defeat him.

The supreme being is Heaven, the teacher of Heaven, how noble he is! The contemporary Celestial Master is the best among the second-rank masters, and being called Little Heavenly Master naturally speaks volumes.

In fact... even though Li Qi is now a sixth-rank official, the Little Heavenly Master feels that it wouldn't be too difficult for him to reverse the situation and defeat a sixth-rank official.

He just didn't say it directly; there was no need for it. Besides, combat strength doesn't explain everything. Li Qi's ability to advance to the sixth rank first also demonstrates his excellence. Everyone has their own path, and there's no need to be complacent because of a temporary advantage.

If he didn't have this much brains and magnanimity, he wouldn't have been able to earn the title of Little Heavenly Master.

However, Li Qi also noticed that the Little Heavenly Master's expression had relaxed, and he was immediately displeased.

Therefore, he immediately said, "However, the reason I lost is because I broke through to the sixth rank during the battle, which is why I won against the Demon Prince."

The Little Heavenly Master suddenly realized and asked, "So it was a breakthrough in battle. After that breakthrough, how did Brother Li Qi's cultivation level compare to now?"

Li Qi didn't hide anything and honestly said, "Back then, I was much stronger."

This is no joke; it really is much stronger.

At that time, he advanced with a third- Human Path humanistic lineage, but at the same time fell into the demonic path, merging all the Dao Lineage into one, making him much stronger than he is now.

Now, he has suppressed the demonic forces within his body with the Buddhist energy of Amitabha Buddha, and he has also begun to deliberately resist the influence of the Human Path and consolidate his foundation.

Therefore, Li Qi is weaker now than when he first broke through.

Zhang Zong nodded, then suddenly remembered something. "I see. Oh, I was so busy asking questions that I was not very polite. Please forgive me. I brought some tea as a token of my appreciation. I'll brew some for Brother Li Qi now."