The Tea Dao Appears

This trip to Purple Heavens Palace to hear the Dao had yielded Li Cha a great harvest. Of course, this harvest had nothing to do with the Dao Hongjun had preached. Rather, it lay in his successful acquisition of the crucial Nine Heavens Breathing Soil and his clear understanding of the fundamental difference between his own path and that of the Heavenly Dao.

Upon returning to Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven, Li Cha immediately summoned Mo Ran, Shi Qing, and the seven newly accepted Nominal Disciples. With a solemn expression, he instructed them, "I am entering seclusion at once to refine something vital. During this seclusion, I must not be disturbed in the slightest. Even if the sky collapses, you are not to alarm me. Guard the grotto-heaven well, and each attend to your own duties."

"We obey Master's (Master's) decree!" everyone answered in unison. Sensing the gravity in Li Cha's words, none dared to be negligent.

Li Cha went straight into the grotto-heaven's only building—Pure Silence Studio. Its furnishings were simple: a table, a chair, a furnace, and a pot. The atmosphere was tranquil and serene.

He did not immediately begin. Instead, he first boiled water with the Five Elements Furnace and brewed himself a pot of Pure Spirit Tea with the Shouyang Pot. The tea fragrance curled through the air, refreshing the heart and clearing the mind. He drank it slowly, using it to smooth away the dullness of Three Thousand Years in Purple Heavens Palace and the minor ripples of his journey home, restoring his mind to the stillness of an ancient well.

Only after adjusting himself to peak condition, with his spiritual platform utterly clear and lucid, did Li Cha carefully take out the fist-sized piece of Nine Heavens Breathing Soil. The divine soil floated above his palm, emanating a gentle yet vast aura of innate earth spirit energy and the Dao Rhyme of Creation, as though it contained a miniature Primordial Wilderness within.

He drew upon the pure Spiritual Spring within the grotto-heaven, carefully blending it with his supreme mana as he began to shape, with his will, the tea cup form he had conceived countless times in his mind.

This tea cup was no ordinary vessel. It bore the foundation of his Tea Dao and contained his own understanding of heaven, earth, and the cosmos. He intended to refine three cups, corresponding secretly to the number of the Three Talents.

Each tea cup was divided into three parts: a lid, a body, and a saucer, respectively symbolizing the Dao of Heaven, Humanity, and Earth.

The lid represented Heaven, lofty above all, enveloping everything. Using his divine sense as a carving blade, Li Cha meticulously inscribed upon its inner wall the paths by which the Heavenly Dao operated. The patterns were profound and mysterious, carrying the cold solemnity of "Heaven's majesty blazes; it treats all things as straw dogs."

The cup body represented Humanity, standing between heaven and earth, receiving from above and carrying onward below. Through his insights into the Human Dao, civilization, and wisdom, he outlined the myriad states of living beings and the undying flame of civilization, containing the spiritual core of "Self-Improvement, the torch passed from generation to generation."

The saucer represented Earth, weighty in its bearing, nourishing all things. Its patterns manifested mountains and rivers, lands and geography, and the growth of all creation, embodying the vastness and selfless giving of "Earth's terrain is receptive; Earth gives birth to all things without contention."

This was an exceedingly delicate process that consumed immense mental effort. He had to perfectly integrate his own Dao Rhyme and his understanding of the Three Talents into this space no larger than an inch. Li Cha shut out all distractions and immersed himself completely. Time quietly slipped away amid the flow of his fingertips and Dao Rhyme.

Nine hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.

When the final Dao pattern was flawlessly completed upon the saucers, the three tea cup embryos finally took shape—ancient and elegant in design, each bearing the colors of clear heaven, mortal dust, and fertile earth! They floated silently in the air. Though they had yet to undergo their final tempering, spirit light already flowed faintly across them, and the auras of the Three Talents resonated with one another.

Next came the most crucial step—fire-refining to fix their form!

Li Cha's expression turned solemn as he carefully placed the three tea cup embryos into the Five Elements Furnace. Within it, the Five Elements True Fire had long been prepared. At Li Cha's mental command, the flames began to rise in temperature, slowly and steadily.

The blazing flames licked at the tea cup embryos. The countless fine Dao patterns inscribed upon them began to soften and flow in the searing heat, as if they had come alive, drawing close, intertwining, and merging. This was a natural process—the self-perfection and unification of Dao Rhyme within the flames.

Li Cha controlled the heat with total concentration, not daring to let his attention waver in the slightest. This refinement lasted another eighty-one years.

As the furnace fire gradually died down, a clear, ringing hum suddenly rang out from within the Five Elements Furnace! The lid opened on its own, and three streams of dazzling treasure light shot skyward!

Clear heaven, mortal dust, fertile earth—the three colored radiances intertwined, forming a thick pillar of light that blasted into the skies, so mighty it seemed ready to punch through Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven itself! Within the pillar, the Dao Rhyme of the Three Talents circulated and answered one another, forming a stable, harmonious cycle.

The phenomenon instantly alarmed every living being within the grotto-heaven! Mo Ran, Shi Qing, Dragon Eel, and the seven little ones, including Qing Xuan and Lianyi, were all drawn by the treasure light soaring into the sky and the wondrous Dao Rhyme. As though by prior agreement, they gathered outside Pure Silence Studio, staring at the pillar of light in shock and delight.

The radiance gradually receded, and three treasure cups slowly flew out of the furnace and landed in Li Cha's hands. Their light was contained within their bodies, their Dao patterns naturally formed. The aura of the Three Talents was perfectly harmonious and flawless, while an ineffable connection existed among them.

Postnatal Supreme Spirit Treasure—Three Talents Cup, complete!

At this point, the final cornerstone Li Cha required for his Tea Dao had been laid!

He forcefully suppressed the excitement in his heart and steadied his mind. At last, he could brew the most perfect Primordial Chaos Spirit Tea.

The Sacred Spirit Table stood at the center of the studio, the Five Elements Furnace placed atop it, and the Shouyang Pot resting on the furnace, filled with the precious Three Lights Divine Water. Then, he took out a whole Primordial Chaos Spirit Tea leaf and placed it into the newly refined Three Talents Cup.

His movements flowed like drifting clouds and running water, secretly aligning with Dao Rhyme.

Boiling water poured into the cup, stirring up the Chaos Dao Rhyme and the Power of Creation within the Three Lights Divine Water. Li Cha gently set the lid in place. In an instant, the Dao Rhymes of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity closed together, forming a perfect inner cycle that nurtured the supreme Immortal Tea within the cup.

After waiting a moment, once the contents had reached their most perfect state, Li Cha raised a finger and cracked the lid open ever so slightly.

"Hum—"

A tea fragrance beyond all words, like the first breath rising from the primordial chaos at the dawn of creation after Myriad Ages of silence, suddenly spilled from that narrow gap! This fragrance was richer and mellower than any before it, and the divine essence contained within had undergone a qualitative leap, as though it could let one directly commune with the source of the Great Dao!

The fragrance instantly enveloped all of Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven. Every living being who smelled it, regardless of cultivation, felt their spiritual platform become clearer than ever before. The doubts that had plagued their past cultivation suddenly opened before them, and their Dao realms faintly rose!

Even more shocking, this fragrance containing the Dao Rhyme of the Tea Dao could not be entirely blocked even by the Qiankun Seal and Sever Formation! Strands of exotic fragrance seeped beyond the formation, drifting around Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven.

Nuwa and Fuxi, who lived nearby, were drawn by this indescribable tea fragrance. Without realizing it, they followed the scent to the outside of Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven.

Deep within Buzhou Mountain, although the Twelve Ancestral Witches did not cultivate Primordial Spirits, they too felt their restless blood and qi soothed by a wisp of fragrance. Their spiritual platforms—or rather, their battle instincts—became extraordinarily clear and sharp. Following their instincts, they were led here by the tea fragrance.

Great Immortal Yang Mei, far beyond endless space, felt a stir in his heart, as though some great Good Thing connected to him was about to happen. As if guided by unseen forces, he took a single step and appeared directly at the entrance to Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven.

At that very moment, Fairy Wang Shu also arrived with Xi He and Chang Xi, having come as agreed to pay a visit and ask for a cup of the new tea.

Thus, a strange sight appeared outside Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven: Nuwa and Fuxi, the Twelve Ancestral Witches, Yang Mei, Wang Shu and her disciples—these supreme powers of the Primordial Wilderness, figures rarely seen in ordinary times, had all gathered here because of a wisp of tea fragrance. Most of them were unfamiliar with one another, having met only once at most, yet no one spoke. All were immersed in the wondrous tea fragrance drifting from the grotto-heaven, quietly savoring it, each gaining their own insight.

Inside the grotto-heaven, Li Cha within Pure Silence Studio knew nothing of the scene outside. His expression was incomparably devout as both hands steadily lifted the Three Talents Cup, as though he were holding up his own Great Dao.

He gently lifted the lid and lowered his head for a small sip.

The instant the tea entered his mouth, it was as though a clear breath from World Creation descended from above, running through his past, present, and future! His life, every understanding, insight, and creation he had gained regarding the Tea Dao, slowly unfurled within his mind like a painted scroll.

The Great Dao of Tea revealed itself completely within his Dao Heart at that very moment!

Blessing came to his heart, and all fell into place as naturally as water flowing into a channel!

The Half-step Quasi-Saint barrier that had trapped him for so long melted away under the impact of the complete Great Dao, like ice and snow beneath the sun. His cultivation began to surge wildly—Early Primordial Golden Immortal... mid-stage... He did not even notice how he had broken through. The entire process was as natural as breathing!

Yet the breakthrough did not stop! The vast power of the Great Dao continued to race through his body!

Li Cha closed his eyes, carefully savoring the ultimate flavor of the tea in his cup while feeling the earth-shaking changes within himself. After a long while, he drained the tea in one gulp and exhaled a long breath of turbid air. Even that breath contained dense Dao Rhyme.

He opened his eyes, and within them was a clarity that seemed to see through heaven and earth. Looking up into the void, he seemed to pierce through layer after layer of obstruction and behold that supreme existence hidden in the unseen.

"Great Dao above! I am Li Cha, known as Yun Hua the Hermit! Today, I perceive that the Great Dao lies hidden, that the Dao does not reveal itself, that living beings are ignorant—fond of slaughter and forgetting benevolence and righteousness, drowned in selfish desires and lacking true feeling, their spiritual platforms veiled in dust, the road ahead vast and boundless! I have devoted myself to comprehending the Dao for countless eons and created the Dao of 'tea'—using tea to illuminate the heart, tea to perceive one's nature, tea to carry the Dao, tea to harmonize all things! Today, I am willing to spread this Dao throughout the Primordial Wilderness, awaken the wisdom of living beings, wash away the world's turbidity, harmonize Yin Yang, and together contemplate its wondrous principles! May the Great Dao bear witness!"

"Tea Dao—stand!"

The grand vow had scarcely been spoken when the words became law!

The entire Primordial World shook violently! Above the Ninth Heaven, dark clouds instantly gathered and came rolling in! These were no ordinary Tribulation Clouds; they were purple-black, filled with countless thunder dragons coalescing and weaving through them, exuding a terrifying aura capable of destroying all things as they locked firmly onto Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven, onto Li Cha! This was the Heavenly Dao's test of a newborn Dao, of one challenging the old order—and also the Heavenly Dao's obstruction!

The thunderclouds gathered ever more densely, and the roars of the thunder dragons grew louder and louder, yet they did not dare to truly descend. It was as though they feared something.

Just as the standoff continued, boundless Mysterious Yellow Golden Light abruptly surged above the purple-black Tribulation Clouds! A vast, limitless Great Dao Auspicious Cloud, purer even than when Hongjun attained sainthood, spread across the Firmament, squeezing the purple-black tribulation clouds into a corner!

From within the auspicious cloud came a single word, indifferent and ancient, yet containing supreme majesty. Like a decree of the Great Dao, it resounded in the depths of every living being's soul:

"Scram."

With that one word, the purple-black thunder dragons, originally so fierce and mighty enough to destroy all things, crumbled and scattered in an instant like terrified rabbits, vanishing without a trace! The Dao-Obstructing Tribulation sent down by the Heavenly Dao had actually been driven away with a single rebuke!

Immediately afterward, endless Mysterious Yellow Merit poured down from the Great Dao Auspicious Cloud like a celestial river overturning, surging precisely into Li Cha's body, as well as the Sacred Spirit Table, Five Elements Furnace, Shouyang Pot, Three Talents Cup beside him, and even the remaining Three Lights Divine Water and Primordial Chaos Spirit Tea!

Bolstered by that vast merit, Li Cha's cultivation began soaring once more! Late Primordial Golden Immortal... Peak Primordial Golden Immortal! Only when he reached the realm of Peak Primordial Golden Immortal did that immense power gradually settle. Li Cha even had the distinct feeling that, had he not only just broken through and still needed to stabilize his realm, the Great Dao Merit might have directly pushed him into the supreme realm of Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin!

"Thank you, Great Dao, for your blessing!" Li Cha bowed respectfully, his heart filled with gratitude.

He turned to inspect the spirit treasures that had accompanied him on his path to Dao attainment, only to see that they had already changed beyond recognition! Their entire forms were shimmering and radiant, their Dao rhythms naturally perfected. Their grades had risen from Postnatal Supreme Spirit Treasures to Postnatal Great Dao Merit Supreme Treasures! Within each, a complete set of forty-nine layers of Postnatal Restrictions had formed! More precious still, the vast Great Dao Merit contained within ensured that these supreme treasures incurred no karma through slaughter and remained untouched through ten thousand tribulations!

From this day onward, Li Cha possessed the formidable capital to contend with any great power in the Primordial World! Even if the Heavenly Dao wished to scheme against him as it had before, he would dare to flip the table outright and show it no respect!

Recalling how the Heavenly Dao had just attempted to send down a lightning tribulation to stop him from attaining the Dao, a glint of coldness flashed through Li Cha's eyes.

I'll remember this grudge.