Second Round of Preaching, Tea Offering to Hongjun

In the blink of an eye, Three Thousand Years passed, and the day Dao Ancestor Hongjun would preach the Primordial Great Dao at Purple Cloud Palace for the second time had arrived.

Originally, Li Cha had no intention of going back to kiss the Heavenly Dao's "stinking feet." The last sermon had disgusted him enough. But whenever he recalled how the Heavenly Dao had tried to bring down a lightning tribulation to obstruct him when he established his Dao, an inexplicable fire rose in his heart, growing fiercer the more he thought about it.

"Hmph! I'll go settle this karma!" Li Cha snorted inwardly and ultimately decided to go. This time, however, he brought no disciples with him. Alone, he once more stepped into the chaos beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens.

Inside Purple Cloud Palace, there were still three thousand prayer mats. Following the seating arrangement established last time, the great powers took their seats one after another. Unlike before, many of those present—the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Fuxi, Zhen Yuanzi, Hong Yun, and others—had visited Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven and listened to Li Cha's Tea Dao. When Li Cha's green-robed figure strolled leisurely through the palace gates, these great powers rose to their feet as one and respectfully cupped their hands in salute. Their manner was humble, even carrying a trace of gratitude.

"Greetings, Senior Yun Hua, Fellow Daoist."

Those cultivators who had never visited Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven and knew nothing of the matter were left dumbfounded, their hearts churning with towering waves. How proud were the Three Pure Ones? And what status did Nuwa, Zhen Yuanzi, and the others possess? Yet they showed such respect to this seemingly ordinary green-robed Daoist whose aura was completely restrained. Just who was this man?

Before long, some well-informed busybodies began quietly spreading the news that Li Cha was Yun Hua the Hermit, the one who had drawn down Great Dao Merit and created the "Great Dao of Tea."

In an instant, the eyes of every great power in Purple Cloud Palace focused squarely on Li Cha! Curiosity, scrutiny, reverence, disbelief... all manner of emotions intertwined. Everyone wanted to find some hint of the extraordinary in this seemingly unremarkable Daoist.

Just Then, an even more shocking scene unfolded. Grand Pure One Laozi, seated first among the six purple prayer mats at the front, slowly rose to his feet, left his seat, and walked over to Li Cha. Before everyone's eyes, he solemnly bowed and said with great respect:

"Senior Yun Hua, there is still some time before Purple Cloud Palace begins its preaching. Might this junior request a cup of pure tea from you, to calm my mind and spirit?"

The entire hall was stunned by Laozi's words! Even Laozi addressed him as "Senior," and was asking him for tea?

Li Cha looked at the sincere Laozi before him, laughed heartily, and said freely, "You certainly know how to pick your moment. You know how to enjoy yourself. Fine—seeing as you seek the Dao with such sincerity, I shall grant you a cup of Enlightenment Tea. May it help you pierce the fog and behold the truth of the Dao sooner."

With that, he made no attempt to avoid the others' eyes. He directly took out the Five Elements Furnace, the Shouyang Pot, and other items, then began skillfully brewing tea right there within Purple Cloud Palace. His movements flowed like drifting clouds and running water, secretly aligning with the ultimate principles of the Three Daos—Heaven, Earth, and Man—as though wherever he stood was his own Dao field.

"Many thanks for Senior's generous gift!" Laozi was overjoyed. He bowed again and stood quietly to one side, waiting.

Fairy Wang Shu had not come to hear the Dao this time. Perhaps she had found the last sermon truly dull, or perhaps Li Cha's Tea Dao had given her some insight, and she was now in secluded cultivation on the Moon Star, contemplating it deeply. Only Chang Xi and Xi He sat at Li Cha's side. Of the Twelve Ancestral Witches, only Ancestral Witch Houtu had come. The other eleven Ancestral Witches seemingly had little interest in the Dao of the Primordial Spirit and had not appeared.

The process of Li Cha making tea was itself an enactment of the Dao. Before they realized it, it had drawn away the minds of more than half the cultivators in the palace. Even the Saint's sermon that was about to begin had been cast to the back of their minds.

A moment later, the tea was ready. Li Cha poured three cups.

The first cup naturally went to Laozi, who had spoken up first. Upon smelling the tea's fragrance and seeing Laozi's expression after tasting it, Yuanshi and Tongtian regretted bitterly that they had not spoken sooner.

He handed the second cup to Xi He and Chang Xi beside him, letting them share it. The two had followed behind Wang Shu and been fortunate enough to taste Enlightenment Tea once before. Yet Li Cha's Tea Dao had not reached completion then. Compared to that past tea, this one had a far more lingering aftertaste and was even more effective at improving comprehension.

But the third cup, to everyone's surprise, was offered to Ancestral Witch Houtu, who sat quietly on a prayer mat toward the back.

Houtu was clearly taken aback. She had no deep relationship with Li Cha and had never expected to receive such a generous gift. She hurriedly stood and solemnly performed a great bow before carefully accepting the Tea Cup. Unlike the other cultivators, who savored the fragrance in detail, she imitated Li Cha's earlier manner and drank it all in one gulp.

The instant the tea entered her stomach, Houtu's body shuddered violently! The Earth Great Dao she cultivated seemed to have found its final destination and ultimate explanation. Countless profound laws and mysteries that had once been obscure instantly became crystal clear, as visible as the lines in her palm! Earth-yellow Dao Rhyme surged uncontrollably around her, forming a deeper resonance with the land of the Primordial Wilderness!

Buzz!

A vast aura belonging to a Primordial Golden Immortal, a Quasi-Saint, erupted thunderously from Houtu! Right there in Purple Cloud Palace, with the aid of this cup of Enlightenment Tea, she had completely grasped the Earth Great Dao and crossed into the Quasi-Saint realm in a single step!

Originally, after the Twelve Ancestral Witches had heard the Dao at Yun Hua Grotto-Heaven, only Zhu Jiuyin, who controlled time, had achieved a breakthrough because he resonated with the principle of "the sedimentation of time" within the Tea Dao. Even Di Jiang, the strongest among them, had failed because his temperament did not suit the Tea Dao's serenity. Now, Houtu's breakthrough unquestionably raised the prestige of the Tea Dao to another peak! Its ability to awaken wisdom and help others break through realms had already revealed that it was qualified to stand on equal footing with the Heavenly Dao's path of cultivation!

Just as everyone was stunned by Houtu's breakthrough and yearned for the miraculous effects of Enlightenment Tea—

"Hmph!"

A cold snort suddenly exploded in the depths of every cultivator's Primordial Spirit, instantly jolting them all awake from the profound rhythm of the Tea Dao!

Dao Ancestor Hongjun had appeared atop the cloud bed at some unknown moment. His expression was indifferent, revealing neither joy nor anger, but his deep eyes seemed to contain a volcano on the verge of eruption. The golden wheel of merit behind him rotated slowly, while countless rays of rosy light set him off as incomparably sacred. Yet because Li Cha had "stolen the show," his entrance seemed to lack some of its proper awe and solemnity.

He cast Li Cha a cold glance, his gaze sharp as blades and carrying the pressure of a Saint along with a trace of barely concealed anger. Just as he was about to speak and begin the second round of preaching, Li Cha, as though entirely unaware, leisurely activated the Five Elements Furnace again and began boiling water!

Moreover, the water he poured into the pot this time was no ordinary immortal spring. It was Three Lights Divine Water, glittering with three-colored radiance from the sun, moon, and stars! When Li Cha established his Dao last time, the Three Lights Divine Water had been nourished by Great Dao Merit and developed a faint spiritual intelligence. The Jade Bottle that held it had even advanced into a postcelestial merit spiritual treasure, gaining the ability to automatically gather the three lights and transform them into divine water. Thus, Li Cha no longer lacked such divine water. It was simply too overbearing in effect for ordinary cultivators to endure, so he usually brewed tea with immortal spring water. Now that he was using divine water, the person to whom he intended to offer this tea was surely no ordinary figure!

Hongjun watched Li Cha's actions and saw the eyes of those below being drawn toward him once again. Though his face remained still as an ancient well, fury was already surging through his heart! This Li Cha had disrupted the order of Purple Cloud Palace again and again. He clearly had no regard for him, a Saint!

He nearly could not restrain himself from striking out in punishment, but in the unseen depths, a vaster and colder will—the Great Dao—hung over his head like the Sword of Damocles, forcing him to suppress that impulse. He could only watch expressionlessly, nursing resentment as he prayed that Li Cha would not pull anything even more outrageous.

Yet he never could have imagined that after Li Cha carefully brewed this tea with Three Lights Divine Water and Primordial Chaos Spirit Tea, then poured it into the Three Talents Cup, the cup would be lifted by an invisible force and slowly float up. It passed over the crowd and flew straight to his cloud bed, where it came to a steady stop.

The lid was not fully closed. As it drifted through the air, strands of an indescribable fragrance escaped, blending Chaos Dao Rhyme with the creative energy of the three lights. Every cultivator in Purple Cloud Palace was invigorated by it, their faces revealing intoxicated longing.

Hongjun looked at the Tea Cup floating before him, and his eyes stirred slightly. After a moment of silence, he finally reached out and lifted the lid.

The water within was clear and luminous, containing phantom images of the sun, moon, and stars rising and sinking inside it. The tea was chaotic in color yet pure, while the leaves of Primordial Chaos Spirit Tea slowly revolved like nebulae. Great Dao divine patterns flowed across them, as if expounding some ultimate truth that had existed since World Creation.

Hongjun raised the cup and drained it in one gulp.

The instant the tea entered his throat, Dao Ancestor Hongjun's expression, unchanged throughout Myriad Ages, finally showed the faintest ripple! He seemed to see the many trajectories of his existence after Unifying with the Dao, the many "shortcomings" and "partialities" beneath the operation of the Heavenly Dao, and even... vaguely touch upon certain... "errors" in his own Dao path?

The moment this thought of doubting his own path arose, Hongjun broke out in a cold sweat! The Saint's Dao placed steadfastness above all else. Once one began doubting oneself, there was a danger that one's Dao foundation might collapse!

With a soft clatter, the Three Talents Cup slipped from his hand and automatically flew back to Li Cha.

Li Cha caught the Tea Cup, cupped his hands toward Hongjun on the cloud bed from afar, and spoke in an even, tranquil voice:

"In gratitude for Dao Ancestor's grace in preaching the Dao, I offer only this cup of pure tea as a modest token of thanks. This debt of gratitude has now been repaid. Since our Daos differ, I shall not linger, lest I disturb Dao Ancestor's tranquility."

With that, without waiting for Hongjun's response or sparing a thought for the astonished gazes throughout the palace, his figure flickered. Like a wisp of green smoke, he drifted out through the Purple Cloud Palace gates before they had fully closed, vanishing into the boundless chaos.

All that remained were the stunned listeners filling the palace, and Dao Ancestor Hongjun upon his cloud bed, who appeared calm even as the fingers hidden in his sleeve curled ever so slightly. In Purple Cloud Palace, one could hear a needle drop. The atmosphere had become strange to the extreme.