Chapter 22

He already had many enemies. If he lost his advantage in cultivation, and on top of that, possessed the Primordial Violet Qi, then all the great powers in the Primordial Era would likely want a piece of him.

"It seems I must travel through the Primordial Era. If I continue to cultivate in seclusion, it will be difficult to break through."

After speaking, Li Peng summoned an auspicious cloud and flew directly away from Three Immortal Island.

Before he could even fly out of the East Sea, he heard bursts of thunderous roars.

"Is someone fighting? Or undergoing tribulation?" Li Peng wondered.

He then released his divine sense and perceived that on a nearby island, countless lightning bolts were converging into a sea of thunder.

Within that sea of lightning, lightning dragons thousands of feet long writhed and roared with astonishing power.

In an instant, a lightning dragon leaped out of the sea of lightning and charged directly at three auspicious clouds below.

These three auspicious clouds were now dim and their mist was thin, clearly having suffered heavy damage.

Just as the lightning was about to strike the auspicious clouds, a youth covered in wounds struggled to climb out of a deep pit on the ground, fearlessly charging towards the lightning dragon.

At this moment, the three auspicious clouds simultaneously let out urgent female voices:

"Big Brother, hurry and leave! Don't worry about us!"

"Big Brother has reached his limit; continuing will surely lead to his demise!"

"We can't survive this lightning tribulation today; don't sacrifice yourself in vain!"

The youth gazed tenderly at the auspicious clouds and said with a smile, "As long as Big Brother has a breath left, I will protect my sisters."

With that, he resolutely charged towards the lightning dragon.

Li Peng watched this scene, his heart shaken, and a clarity dawned upon his spiritual platform.

"So, goodness is giving everything for one's loved ones?" Li Peng murmured to himself.

As his words fell, an Auspicious Cloud appeared above his head, and three second-grade Human Flowers trembled within the cloud.

Without hesitation, Li Peng summoned the Twelve-Grade Merit Golden Lotus and cast it into the Auspicious Cloud.

Upon entering the cloud, the Golden Lotus merged with the Human Flowers, and in an instant, a kind-faced youth in golden robes leaped out from the Auspicious Cloud.

The moment the golden-robed youth appeared, Li Peng's aura surged.

The golden-robed youth looked at the wounded youth about to be struck by the lightning dragon and sighed, "Since I have appeared early due to your karma, I shall repay this debt."

With that, he stepped forward and vanished, reappearing instantly before the heavily wounded youth.

The heavily wounded youth was stunned by the sudden appearance of the golden-robed cultivator.

The lightning dragon had already lunged before the golden-robed youth. He merely flicked his sleeve, and the ferocious lightning dragon dissipated into specks of starlight in the air.

The heavily wounded youth and the three auspicious clouds were all shocked into silence.

The lightning tribulation they had fought to the death against was no match for this golden-robed youth.

In an instant, they realized they had encountered a powerful being.

Before they could think further, another lightning dragon split the sky and descended.

The golden-robed youth showed no fear and waved his sleeve again to meet the attack.

In an instant, another lightning dragon was shattered, dissipating into countless streaks of lightning.

However, this time, after defeating the lightning dragon, the golden-robed youth's attack did not stop. Instead, he charged directly towards the vast sea of lightning.

"Boom!"

With a deafening roar, the once imposing sea of lightning instantly vanished.

The scarred youth watched in stunned silence, clearly shocked by the golden-robed youth's methods.

After the sea of lightning dissipated, the three auspicious clouds shifted and finally transformed into three beautiful women.

As soon as the three women took form, they immediately bowed to the golden-robed youth:

"Yunxiao, Bixiao, and Qiongxiao thank our benefactor for saving our lives."

The scarred youth beside them also stepped forward and said, "I am Zhao Gongming, thank you, benefactor, for saving my life."

The golden-robed youth was slightly surprised to learn that the four people before him were the Three Xiaos and Zhao Gongming.

He shook his head, no longer dwelling on it, and said to the Three Xiaos, "It was merely a small gesture."

"It may have been a small gesture for you, but for us, it was a life-saving grace," Yunxiao said gratefully.

The golden-robed youth smiled faintly, thinking that Yunxiao was indeed steady and spoke with great discretion.

Suddenly, Qiongxiao's eyes twinkled, and she said, "We implore our benefactor to take us as disciples and allow us to follow you, to repay this life-saving grace."

The golden-robed youth couldn't help but chuckle at this.

Becoming disciples to repay a life-saving grace? This logic was a first for him.

Yunxiao, Bixiao, and Zhao Gongming also stepped forward and said in unison, "Please accept us as disciples, benefactor!"

The golden-robed youth said helplessly, "I am merely a Good Corpse and cannot make decisions. Please ask my true self when he arrives."

The three sisters, Yunxiao, Bixiao, and Qiongxiao, along with Zhao Gongming, were all astonished. They never imagined that the golden-robed youth before them, whose strength was unfathomable, was merely a good corpse incarnation.

What realm was his true form in?

At this thought, the four individuals' resolve to follow a powerful being grew even stronger.

Yunxiao bowed and asked, "May I inquire the honored name of our benefactor?"

The golden-robed youth was momentarily speechless. He had only recently descended into the world, and his true form had not yet bestowed a name upon him.

After a brief moment of thought, he declared loudly, "This humble Daoist is called Daoist Jinlian."

This name had its origins: his self-corpse originated from the Twelve-Grade Pure World White Lotus, hence the name "White Lotus"; his evil-corpse came from the Twelve-Grade World-Destroying Black Lotus, hence the name "Black Lotus"; since he was transformed from the Twelve-Grade Merit Golden Lotus, it was only natural for him to be called "Jinlian."

Just as he was basking in his own cleverness, Li Peng's true form drifted over.

Seeing the four individuals beside his good corpse, he inquired about their origins.

After hearing the entire story, Li Peng pondered for a moment.

Accepting disciples was related to the destiny of his sect. If his disciples committed evil deeds, it would even implicate himself. However, considering their role in helping him sever his good corpse, he finally nodded in agreement.

The three sisters and Zhao Gongming were overjoyed and about to prostrate themselves when they were gently held back by a soft magical force.

Li Peng said solemnly, "If you wish to enter my sect, you must abide by three rules. The first is—"

His gaze, sharp as lightning, swept over the four of them. "You shall never betray our sect. Those who violate this will have their forms and souls annihilated."

"The second is to prohibit infighting among fellow disciples. Should anyone violate this, I will personally intervene and ensure their souls are extinguished."

"The third is that you must possess integrity and not harm the sect's reputation for the sake of survival. Should you violate this, I will reclaim your magical power and expel you from the sect."

Upon hearing Li Peng's three sect rules, the three sisters and Zhao Gongming finally felt at ease.

Although the consequences for violating these rules were severe, they were not difficult to abide by. They were all confident that they would not break the rules.

After speaking, Li Peng looked at the three sisters and Zhao Gongming earnestly and asked, "Can you uphold these three points?"

Receiving an affirmative reply, Li Peng nodded with satisfaction. "Good, from this day forward, you are my disciples."

The three sisters and Zhao Gongming quickly knelt and bowed, "Master, we pay our respects!"

Li Peng frowned. "My disciples should all call me 'Shifu'."

The three were startled. They murmured, "'Shifu'... like a father?"

Understanding the meaning of "Shifu," they kowtowed again, "Master, we pay our respects!"

Li Peng finally nodded in satisfaction. "You may all rise."

As soon as he finished speaking, a patch of profound yellow light suddenly gathered in the sky and descended towards Li Peng's head.

He looked up and realized it was the legendary Golden Light of Merit.

"Could it be that accepting disciples also yields merit? No, there are many powerful beings in the Primordial Era who accept disciples. If accepting disciples granted merit, wouldn't everyone take in countless disciples? If it's not for accepting disciples, then what is attracting the Heavenly Dao's merit?" Li Peng pondered silently, unable to figure out the reason.

As he was lost in thought, the three sisters and Zhao Gongming anxiously shouted:

"Master! The profound yellow light in the sky is attacking us!"

Only then did Li Peng realize that the Golden Light of Merit was descending upon him and his disciples.

He couldn't help but feel helpless. The three sisters and Zhao Gongming had mistaken the descent of merit for an attack. If such ignorant words were heard by other powerful beings, they would likely become a laughingstock.

However, Li Peng did not blame them. After all, merit was extremely rare in the Primordial Era, and it was normal for cultivators with low cultivation to have never seen it. As Li Peng's disciples, they naturally could not remain so ignorant. Li Peng decided to first impart some basic knowledge of the Primordial Era to the three sisters and Zhao Gongming.

At this moment, he suddenly had a thought—

The Golden Light of Merit was coming towards him, the three sisters, and Zhao Gongming.

So, what matter was related to him and his disciples?

He suspected it was the very act of them calling him "Shifu."

"So, I created the term 'Shifu,' completing the Heavenly Dao's definition of the master-disciple relationship. That's why the Heavenly Dao bestowed merit. And since the three sisters and Zhao Gongming were also involved, they received a portion of the merit as well," Li Peng understood.

As his thoughts raced, the Golden Light of Merit had already fallen upon them.

Li Peng collected all the merit that landed on him.

After the three sisters received the merit, their cultivation immediately soared.

until he reached the peak of the Late Golden Immortal stage, did it gradually stabilize.

The injuries on Zhao Gongming's body rapidly recovered under the effect of merit. In less than a breath, he was completely healed.

Not only that, but after his injuries recovered, his cultivation also began to climb steadily.

Peak Late Golden Immortal, peak Golden Immortal...

However, just as he was about to break through to Grand Unity Golden Immortal, the Golden Light of Merit seemed to run out of steam, getting stuck at the threshold.

Seeing this, Li Peng waved his hand, and a surge of powerful Magic Power gushed from his palm, injecting it into Zhao Gongming's body.

With the boost of Li Peng's Magic Power, the previously sluggish Magic Power within Zhao Gongming's body began to surge again.

He seized the opportunity, circulated his entire body's Magic Power, and charged towards the bottleneck of Grand Unity Golden Immortal.

"Crack—Boom!"

The barrier within his body shattered in response, and Zhao Gongming finally stepped into the early stage of Grand Unity Golden Immortal.

As soon as the breakthrough was complete, Zhao Gongming immediately bowed to Li Peng to express his gratitude, "Thank you, Master!"

Li Peng waved his hand and said, "You all broke through relying on merit. Your foundations are not yet stable, and you need to properly consolidate your cultivation."

Thus, Li Peng had to first explain the basic common sense of the Primordial Era to Sanxiao and Zhao Gongming.

After explaining, he remembered that he had not yet taught them any **.

Li Peng then began to search through his collection.

Ancestral Phoenix Art?

Nine Revolutions Profound Technique?

This ** is suitable for Zhao Gongming to cultivate, but it's not very suitable for Sanxiao.

After all, Sanxiao's true form is auspicious clouds, and their physical aptitude is ultimately limited.

Therefore, if they were to cultivate the Nine Revolutions Profound Technique, their progress would definitely be very slow.

Yin-Yang Rotation Technique?

This can only be cultivated by those who comprehend the Yin-Yang Law, so it's ruled out.

Chaos Yin-Yang Art?

Even Li Peng is not qualified to cultivate this ** , let alone the current Sanxiao and Zhao Gongming.

After sorting through them, he found that he didn't have a single ** in his hand that could allow ** to cultivate with peace of mind.

But since he had taken them as disciples, he couldn't teach them nothing.

Suddenly, Li Peng had a flash of inspiration and remembered the Classic of Virtue created by Laozi after he became a Saint.

This scripture is like a universal remedy; regardless of race or realm, one can gain insights from it.

Moreover, Li Peng had once displayed its brilliance with this scripture, so there was no harm in explaining it again.

What's more, Laozi had not yet comprehended the Classic of Virtue at this time, so this scripture belonged to Li Peng.

With this thought, Li Peng said calmly, "Your Master will lecture the Dao for you for a thousand years. You must comprehend it with your hearts!"

When Sanxiao and Zhao Gongming heard that their Master was going to lecture the Dao, their eyes immediately flashed with fervent light.

Li Peng said no more and directly began to explain, "The Dao that can be spoken is not the eternal Dao; the name that can be named is not the eternal name. The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth; the named is the mother of all things.

Thus, always without desire, one sees the mystery; always with desire, one sees the manifestations. These two emerge together but differ in name; together they are called the profound. Profound and more profound, the gate to all wonders..."

As he spoke, a mysterious aura emanated from him, drawing people into the rhyme of the Dao.

Li Peng had expected that this lecture would also be accompanied by heavenly flower rain and golden lotuses emerging from the ground, but no unusual phenomena reappeared.

The first unusual phenomenon was merely the Heavenly Dao celebrating the birth of the Classic of Virtue.

Time flowed, and a thousand years passed in the blink of an eye.

Li Peng's lecture concluded.

He quietly waited for Sanxiao and Zhao Gongming, who were still immersed in their comprehension, to awaken.

Ten days later, the four finally woke up.

Sanxiao and Zhao Gongming immediately bowed respectfully, "Thank you, Master, for your teachings!"

Li Peng waved his hand and said, "After this lecture, you will first go into seclusion for a period of time to properly consolidate your cultivation and digest the Dao I have imparted."

Sanxiao and Zhao Gongming both nodded in agreement.

Li Peng then said, "Since you are my disciples, I will not treat you poorly. Here are a few Spiritual Treasures for you to defend yourselves."