Thinking of the surging tourists and the flourishing incense and fire prayer power they would bring in the coming days, Huang Huai made up his mind that, come what may, he had to persuade Great Daoist Master to move the Yellow Turban Warrior idol into the main hall.
Lifting the Golden Boy idol, Huang Huai carried it all the way back to the storehouse, placed it inside, prayed to it once more, and only then left the storehouse, locked the door, and returned to his small courtyard.
Inside the room, because he had sipped the Spilled Jade Spirit Nourishing Tea at Great Daoist Master's place not long ago, Huang Huai still did not feel tired even after such a long time.
Lying on the bed, Huang Huai played with that jade ruyi in one hand, while his other hand fiddled with the dark Azure Treasure Bead obtained when the Yellow Turban Warrior had executed the evil spirit.
Knowing full well that a cultivation method capable of letting him step onto the path of cultivation was hidden within that jade ruyi yet unable to find a way in, Huang Huai would take the jade ruyi out to fondle it whenever he had some leisure time, trying to figure out its unlocking method.
After rubbing it for a long time without any discoveries as usual, drowsiness gradually welled up, and Huang Huai casually shoved the jade ruyi and that precious bead under his pillow, rolling over to fall asleep.
Not long after Huang Huai drifted off to dreamland, the jade ruyi and the bead that Huang Huai had casually stuffed beneath his pillow inadvertently collided with each other.
The very instant the bead and the jade ruyi crashed together, the originally dark Azure Treasure Bead instantly transformed into a stream of light that merged into the jade ruyi. Following that, a faint glow emanated from the jade ruyi, a subtle and virtually imperceptible divine light that happened to envelop Huang Huai within it.
In his sleep, as Huang Huai was having a wonderful dream, his spirit abruptly surged. He felt a violent jolt, and his entire being instantly regained clarity. He instinctively looked around to find that the surroundings were a boundless void enveloped in clouds and mist, with neither top nor bottom nor any borders. Under the shrouding clouds and mist, at a first glance one would think they were in some sort of wonderland.
Yet Huang Huai, whose mind was exceptionally clear at the moment, could affirm that this definitely was not a dream; the effects of the Spilled Jade Spirit Nourishing Tea were quite remarkable for Huang Huai, who was merely an ordinary person.
At least Huang Huai was full of vigor and showed no signs of fatigue. Just as he was feeling puzzled, he saw a divine figure with an imposing bearing, bearing boundless rosy light above his head, reigning high above the nine heavens, while all around him various figures appeared out of thin air in the four directions of the void.
This scene appeared bizarre and sudden. The first thought in Huang Huai's mind upon seeing this was what on earth was going on with this bizarre thing, and why he had inexplicably ended up here while he was clearly sleeping.
With doubt lingering in his heart, he looked again at the towering figure that had suddenly appeared above the nine heavens. All around this illusory divine shadow, those figures were entirely ethereal, as if separated by a layer of mist. No matter how divine, towering, and yearning-inspiring this scene looked, it was difficult for Huang Huai to feel any sense of awe toward it.
At that moment, the various figures in all directions simultaneously bowed toward the towering divine deity located above the nine heavens, crying out: "We pay respects to Emperor Lord Xuan Yuan! May the Emperor Lord be forever peaceful!"
A majestic voice carrying supreme dignity came from above the nine heavens: "Fellow daoists, dispense with the formalities!"
Huang Huai struggled to look at that towering divine shadow, secretly guessing what on earth was happening to himself and what these divine shadows intended to do.
"Today I expound the Xuan Yuan Casting God Method. Xuan refers to the spirit, yuan refers to the human essence... Cultivating this marvelous method can open the sea of consciousness, cast the divine court, clear the dantian, and establish the divine palace..."
A continuous stream of profound and marvelous doctrines flowed gracefully from the lips of that towering deity. Originally, Huang Huai's heart had been guarded, but upon hearing that the deity was actually lecturing on the very "Xuan Yuan Casting God Method" that he had sought in vain upon the jade ruyi, Huang Huai's eyes instantly lit up as he concentrated to listen.
Every single word and phrase seemed to contain ultimate truths. Even though Huang Huai was completely ignorant of many of the terms involved in this marvelous method, the Emperor Lord's lecture seemed to contain a profound force. As Huang Huai listened, enlightenment welled up in the bottom of his heart, as if a vast amount of knowledge was naturally and spontaneously emerging from the depths of his mind, impossible to forget even if he wanted to.
The grand heavenly music made Huang Huai involuntarily immerse himself in it. A profound and arcane cultivation method emerged above the nine heavens. Composed of three thousand characters in total, every single character flashed with divine light and contained boundless profundity. At this moment, Huang Huai looked with a joyful expression at the Xuan Yuan Casting God Method manifesting in the air.
At this moment, the cultivation method he had sought for so long was finally in his hands, and great joy could not help but well up in his heart.
Yet right at that moment, the illusory divine shadow above the nine heavens suddenly shouted: "Having received my method, entered my sect, and subjected yourself to my command, are you willing or not?!"
Huang Huai, who had just obtained the Xuan Yuan Casting God Method, could not help but knit his brows when he heard the divine shadow speak. What did this so-called Emperor Lord Xuan Yuan mean? Although he had obtained the other party's transmission of the method, it was merely in pursuit of extraordinary might; he had never thought of submitting to anyone's command. If he could not have freedom, then he would rather not cultivate this method at all!
"Are you willing or not?!"
The slightly rigid voice echoed through the void once more. Huang Huai's expression turned utterly solemn at this moment as he gazed up at the illusory Emperor Lord Xuan Yuan high above the nine heavens and said, "What if I am unwilling?"
"Such audacity! Since you are unwilling to submit to my command, of what use is keeping you?!"
Simultaneously, the various illusory divine shadows in the surrounding void that had been listening to Emperor Lord Xuan Yuan's sermon all distorted, collectively glaring and rebuking Huang Huai: "Audacious!"
"Those who defy the Emperor Lord deserve death!"
"Deserve death!"
"Deserve death!"
One angry rebuke after another was directed in unison at Huang Huai, an imposing posture that made Huang Huai experience for the first time what it meant to be pointed at by a thousand people and spurned by the masses.
Wave after wave of angry rebukes impacted him, seemingly intent on shaking Huang Huai's mind and forcing him to submit. Yet Huang Huai's resolve remained steadfast as he stood tall in the void, straightening his spine and staring straight at the multitude of divine shadows above the nine heavens.
"The method you passed down is indeed marvelous, but the deity is certainly no benevolent god!"
Huang Huai's words carried sarcasm. Expecting him to be subjugated by others just for the sake of a cultivation method was sheer fantasy.
By this time, Huang Huai had already reacted. The scene before him was likely caused by the jade ruyi he had acquired. The incantation of the Xuan Yuan Casting God Method was indeed genuine, because by this moment Huang Huai had already fully comprehended this method from start to finish, and he therefore knew clearly that this doctrine belonged to a magnificent and orthodox path.
It was just that the person who left behind the inheritance of the jade ruyi, while transmitting a grand and orthodox method, had nevertheless left hidden tricks within that inheritance.
Huang Huai figured that since those sect forces guarded cultivation methods so tightly and strictly refused to leak them easily, even if cultivation methods were scattered about the mortal world like this jade ruyi carrying the Xuan Yuan Casting God Method, there would naturally be restrictions as well, and ordinary people who obtained them would have to pay a price if they wanted to practice them.
Needless to say, this Emperor Lord Xuan Yuan's inheritance was not so easily obtained either. Once he made a promise in this illusion to submit to Emperor Lord Xuan Yuan's command, he would likely carry an invisible, additional shackle and hidden danger from then on, one that no one knew when it might be detonated.
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