Thousand-Year Journey, Encounter with Minghe

Since that day when Li Cha went to Spirit Mountain and had a "friendly spar" with Jieyin and Zhunti, the Western Teachings had restrained themselves considerably. Jieyin and Zhunti knew well Li Cha's methods—his actions appeared peaceful but were in truth utterly unrestrained—and dared not provoke him again, fearing they would invite another beating. Though unwilling to accept it, they would send some disciples to stir up minor troubles in the peripheral areas where the Tea Dao spread, spreading rumors and gossip, but these efforts were no longer significant and could not shake the increasingly deep roots of the Tea Dao in the Western Realm.

Li Cha was fully aware of this but could not be bothered to deal with these juniors. This journey westward was not only to spread the Tea Dao but also to temper his disciples' hearts. Over a thousand years of preaching, he intentionally let Shi Qing, Wu Zhiqi, and Forget Worry handle affairs independently, expound the Dao, and even debate with Western disciples. He never demanded that his disciples strictly follow the path of the Tea Dao, especially Shi Qing and Wu Zhiqi. These two disciples cultivated the Great God Pangu's fundamental technique, the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Technique, walking the path of Proving the Dao through Strength, tempering the physical body, and mastering laws—quite different from the Tea Dao's tranquility and harmony of body and mind. Li Cha often admonished them: "The Dao has ten thousand paths, but all lead to the same destination. The Tea Dao is a Dao, and the Great Dao of Strength is also a Dao. You need only guard your original heart, discern right from wrong, and act with a clear conscience toward Heaven and Earth and toward yourselves. There is no need to rigidly adhere to the Dao I have passed down. If you can walk your own path, that will be true achievement."

Wu Zhiqi was lively and fond of fighting, while Shi Qing was steady and resolute. Though their progress in the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Technique differed due to their temperaments, their foundations were both extremely solid. Encouraged by Li Cha, they let loose even more, using the "calming the mind and gathering the spirit" method they had comprehended from the Tea Dao to aid in tempering their will during cultivation of the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Technique. This complemented each other instead, and their cultivation advanced rapidly.

Unbeknownst to them, Li Cha and his group had been preaching the Dao in the Western Realm for a thousand years. The Withering Prosperity Mountain Dao Field had become stable, its aura magnificent. The lush tea garden on the western side, along with the preaching platform and enlightenment rock, had merged into one, becoming a sacred place in the hearts of Western beings. Seeing that the time was ripe, Li Cha entrusted this Dao Field to a nominal disciple he had enlightened in the West—Xuan Tu.

Xuan Tu's original form was a low-grade Innate Spiritual Root, the Xuantian Vine, born at the foot of Withering Prosperity Mountain. Thanks to the residual benefits of Li Cha's regulation of the Earth Veins and the nourishment of the Tea Dao's aura, it had awakened its spiritual wisdom. Its nature was tenacious, and its insight into the Tea Dao was profound. After being guided by Li Cha, its cultivation broke through from Peak Golden Immortal to Early Da Luo, and among the Three Flowers gathered atop its head, the Human Flower, representing the foundation of "essence," bloomed with eight grades. Its foundation was so thick that it far surpassed ordinary Da Luo, enough to govern a region. To help it better manage the Dao Field, Li Cha bestowed two spirit treasures: one was the Soul Scattering Whip, a Postnatal High-Grade Spirit Treasure refined by Li Cha from Western Geng Metal Qi mixed with a thread of Chaos Qi, imitating the God-Beating Whip. It lashed the flesh and wounded the soul, each strike harsher than the last, the pain piercing the true spirit, used to punish troublemakers with full deterrent force. The other was the Calming Cushion, an item of extraordinary origin. It was originally one of the cushions used by the three thousand guests listening to the Dao in the Purple Firmament Palace. When Li Cha left the Purple Firmament Palace, he quietly took one and re-refined it with his own Great Dao Merit and the origin of the Tea Dao, elevating it to a Postnatal Supreme Spirit Treasure. This cushion not only aided cultivation, calming the mind and resisting external demons, but also contained a trace of the Purple Firmament Palace's Dao rhythm and Li Cha's Tea Dao fortune, possessing the miraculous effect of suppressing the fortune of a region. Li Cha bestowed it upon Xuan Tu as the foundational item to suppress the fortune of the Withering Prosperity Dao Field.

After making these arrangements, Li Cha did not linger. Carried by Mo Ran, he led Shi Qing, Wu Zhiqi, and Forget Worry toward the Southern Realm, intending to spread the Tea Dao to the southern lands.

One day, they arrived at a valley at the border between the Western and Southern Realms. Suddenly, a dark red blood water with a strong, nauseating bloody smell surged from underground, filling the entire valley with Blood Fiend Energy. Then the blood water transformed into a Daoist in a blood robe, blocking Mo Ran's path.

From the attire and the dense, almost tangible Blood Fiend Energy, Li Cha knew the visitor was none other than the Innate God-Demon born from Pangu's navel filth, the master of the Netherworld Blood Sea—Old Ancestor Minghe!

Mo Ran stopped, alertly watching ahead. The other disciples also readied their weapons in secret.

Li Cha sat upright on Mo Ran's back, his expression unchanged, and spoke calmly: "Daoist Minghe, why are you not enjoying your blessings in the Netherworld Blood Sea, but instead blocking this poor Daoist's path?"

"Senior Yun Hua, Minghe apologizes for the rudeness!" Minghe solemnly cupped his hands and bowed, his voice hoarse and icy, like waves churning in the Blood Sea: "This junior presumes to block your path, but I have a doubt that has weighed on me for long, like a fishbone stuck in my throat. Looking across the Primordial World, perhaps only you, Senior, can resolve my confusion. I humbly ask for your guidance."

A trace of understanding flickered in Li Cha's eyes, and he nodded slightly: "Daoist, speak freely."

Minghe took a deep breath and asked in a low voice: "When you preached the Dao, you mentioned that in the Primordial World, besides the Heavenly Dao, there are also the hidden 'Earthly Dao' and 'Human Dao.' This junior is dull and has racked my brains but cannot find the way. Today, I boldly beg you... could you enlighten me on where the 'Earthly Dao' lies? How can it be manifested?"

Li Cha did not answer immediately upon hearing this. He first looked up at the sky, his gaze seeming to pierce through the nine heavens, seeing the Heavenly Dao rules that silently monitored Heaven and Earth. Then, he lightly waved his sleeve, and a mysterious, unfathomable aura that confused heavenly secrets spread out, silently shielding the space within a hundred li, cutting off perception inside and out. After confirming that the heavenly secrets were blocked and the sky showed no abnormality, he looked back at Minghe, a hint of complexity in his eyes.

"Daoist Minghe," Li Cha spoke slowly, his voice low but clear, "matters of the Earthly Dao concern the very foundation of the Primordial World. The heavenly secrets have not yet arrived, so they cannot be spoken lightly. The time for its manifestation still awaits; it cannot be forced by human effort." He paused, looking at Minghe's eyes hidden in the Blood Fiend Energy but still full of anticipation, and finally revealed a thread of heavenly secret: "However, this poor Daoist can tell you that your path's ultimate destination indeed lies in this 'Earthly Dao.' Only when the Earthly Dao appears and its rules are completed will you have a chance, relying on the Earthly Dao, to achieve the indestructible Sage fruit. This is your heavenly destiny and an indispensable part of the Earthly Dao."

Minghe's body shook violently, and the Blood Fiend Energy around him churned fiercely! He had painstakingly sought the Sage fruit but could never find the way. Only one Heavenly Dao Saint seat remained, seemingly still a chance, but he had no way to seek it, and Proving the Dao through Strength was even more illusory. Now, hearing Li Cha's personal confirmation that his path lay in the Earthly Dao and that there was a chance to become a Saint, how could he not be excited?

"So it is... so it is!" Minghe muttered to himself, a unprecedented brilliance bursting from his cold eyes. He bowed deeply to Li Cha again, his tone unprecedentedly respectful: "Thank you, Senior, for pointing the way! This kindness, Minghe will remember in his heart!"

With that, he did not linger. His form flickered, merging into the earth like a drop of water, disappearing without a trace. The overwhelming Blood Fiend Energy also dissipated, as if it had never existed. This was Minghe's unique escape technique, using the Earth's veins to directly reach the Netherworld Blood Sea at the bottom of Buzhou Mountain.

The Netherworld Blood Sea was formed from the navel filth of the Great God Pangu after the World Creation, gathering the world's malice, resentment, and filth. It was the most yin, evil, and filthy place in the Primordial World. The Blood Sea was vast and boundless, its rolling waves thick, bloody slurry, emitting a terrifying aura that corroded souls and defiled spirit treasures. Aside from Old Ancestor Minghe, the Innate God-Demon born from the Blood Sea, almost no living being could survive here. (At this time, the Blood-Winged Black Mosquito was still gestating in some hidden place in the Blood Sea, not yet born, and no one was aware of it.)

Minghe's figure slowly condensed from the depths of the Blood Sea. He sat cross-legged on the Twelve-Petal Karma Fire Red Lotus, with the two killing swords Yuan Tu and Abi floating beside him. Recalling the three times he listened to the Dao in the Purple Firmament Palace, the Heavenly Dao Saint seats had almost all been divided, and the last Primordial Violet Qi had been obtained by Hong Yun. He understood that he had no affinity with the Heavenly Dao Saints. As for Proving the Dao through Strength, it required supreme foundation, great fortune, and great perseverance. His Blood Sea origin was inherently burdened with endless Sha Qi and Karma, making it almost a dead end.

He had set his sights on the Earthly Dao and Human Dao that Li Cha had vaguely mentioned. He pondered to himself: The Netherworld Blood Sea lies at the bottom of Buzhou Mountain, the lowest point in the Primordial World, closest to the Nine Nether, and a gathering place for filth. How could it fit with the Human Dao, which symbolizes life, reproduction, and civilization? As for the "Earthly" Dao, it bears virtue and embraces all things, encompassing both vitality and death and stillness. Isn't this Netherworld Blood Sea precisely a necessary part of the "Earthly Dao"? Today, with Li Cha's personal confirmation, the heavy stone in his heart finally fell, and he became even more determined to manage the Blood Sea, waiting for the Earthly Dao to emerge and seize the Saint seat from it.

Li Cha watched Minghe leave, withdrew the heavenly secret shield, and gazed distantly in the direction of Buzhou Mountain, thinking to himself: "The Earthly Dao is about to emerge, and Houtu's transformation into reincarnation is not far off. Minghe... I hope you act wisely and do not stray from the path. Otherwise, even with the chance of a Saint seat, you will not escape calamity." He lightly patted Mo Ran, signaling to continue. The mountains and waters of the South still awaited him to sow the seeds of the Tea Dao.