Human World

Shangqing Palace, Golden Summit Hall.

Li Qingshan received Li Jiusheng's carrier pigeon and learned that his senior brother had finished his breakthrough. He immediately set aside what he was doing and hurried to the Scripture Repository Pavilion.

Before he even reached the Scripture Repository Pavilion, he saw Li Jiusheng coming from afar to greet him. Li Qingshan cupped his hands in congratulations. "Congratulations, Senior Brother! At a hundred-foot pole, you have taken another step forward and achieved the rank of Great Grandmaster."

"Just luck," Li Jiusheng said.

"You are too modest, Senior Brother. With such a rapid rate of advancement, one would be hard-pressed to find a second person like you in the entire Cultivation world. It is only because you are older. If you were a young man and went out to make your mark, you would surely amaze the entire Cultivation world. Who knows how many sect Saintesses and daughters of great clans would pine for you and lie awake at night?" Li Qingshan said with a smile.

Li Jiusheng wore a gentle expression and invited Li Qingshan to take a walk along the cliffside.

"You look very relaxed. Has the matter of that ruin already passed?" Li Jiusheng asked curiously. During the past few days, he had been wholly focused on his breakthrough and rebirth, without paying any attention to matters outside.

After the fighting broke out that day, how had it ended? What had become of the ruin? He knew nothing at all.

Li Qingshan walked shoulder to shoulder with Li Jiusheng. Both wore purple Daoist robes, yet their temperaments differed: one was sharp and imposing, while the other was ethereal and unrestrained.

Li Qingshan said, "After that day, the ruin entered a hidden state and never appeared again. No one could find it. Those Venerables surrounded the nearby mountains and searched for three days and nights, but found nothing. They could only leave in regret."

"Hadn't they said an Ancestor was coming?" Li Jiusheng asked.

"It was merely rumor upon rumor. A Venerable did come carrying an Ancestor's magical artifact and used it to imitate an Ancestor's aura, frightening a crowd of people, that was all," Li Qingshan said. If an Ancestor had truly come, the situation that day would not have unfolded as it had.

"Then someone really was scared out of their wits," Li Jiusheng said with a smile. He strongly suspected that Emperor Wu of Zhou had fled in panic to Shangqing Palace in order to evade an Ancestor's search. Left with no alternative, he had targeted Li Jiusheng, only to suffer a regrettable defeat in the end.

"What do you mean by that, Senior Brother?" Li Qingshan looked at Li Jiusheng in confusion.

Li Jiusheng did not answer. Instead, he asked, "Did you find Emperor Wu of Zhou this time?"

Li Qingshan nodded, then said regretfully, "Emperor Wu of Zhou was still too cunning. While everyone else dared not make a move, he slipped into that ruin and stole the Grandmaster Pure Land. Fortunately, I discovered him when he came out and announced it to the world, drawing a group of veteran Venerables to besiege him. Left with no choice, he detonated his physical body. I do not know where that remnant soul escaped to, but this place is nearly a hundred thousand li from the Luochuan Sect. With the strength of his remnant soul, it will be difficult for him to return in a short time."

"He will not be returning," Li Jiusheng said leisurely, his hands clasped behind his back.

Li Qingshan stared at Li Jiusheng in surprise.

Li Jiusheng then told Li Qingshan about how Emperor Wu of Zhou had nearly possessed him.

Li Qingshan was both shocked and delighted after hearing it. He carefully examined Li Jiusheng and only relaxed after confirming that he had not been possessed by Emperor Wu of Zhou. "It is good that you are unharmed, Senior Brother. You make it sound so casual, but it must have been extremely dangerous at the time."

For an Ancestor's remnant soul to possess a Grandmaster should have been a sure thing. How could it not have been dangerous for Li Jiusheng to turn the tables?

But the matter had already passed. Li Jiusheng waved a hand and said casually, "It was nothing much. I called you here today because after Emperor Wu of Zhou's remnant soul died, it left something behind in my Primordial spirit space."

"What is it? Could it be the seed of some Daoist magic, or perhaps a demonic heart-devil puppet? I will summon someone to inspect it at once. It must be destroyed so it cannot affect your future cultivation, Senior Brother." The moment Li Qingshan heard this, he became tense.

Li Jiusheng hurriedly stopped him and shook his head. "It is not what you think. Emperor Wu of Zhou left behind a Grandmaster Pure Land in my Primordial spirit space."

Li Qingshan's eyes widened as he looked at Li Jiusheng, then he said joyfully, "The Grandmaster Pure Land is actually in your Primordial spirit space, Senior Brother? This is a heaven-sent opportunity! Once you break through to the Venerable Realm and cultivate to its peak, with the help of this Grandmaster Pure Land, you will surely be able to break through to the Ancestor Realm with ease. Congratulations, Senior Brother! Congratulations!"

"That is far too distant. Besides, I am not accustomed to using other people's things." Li Jiusheng shook his head calmly, without the slightest excitement. For Li Jiusheng, who needed continual rebirth, borrowing another person's Grandmaster Pure Land to break through would be no different from cutting off his own foundation.

Breaking from the peak of the Venerable Realm into the Ancestor Realm would certainly require enormous energy and long years of accumulation. It was absolutely an excellent opportunity for rebirth. Rashly using the Grandmaster Pure Land would indeed bring about a breakthrough, but the opportunity for rebirth would be gone.

Putting the cart before the horse!

Li Jiusheng would never do such a thing.

He said to Li Qingshan, "I intend to give the Grandmaster Pure Land to you, Junior Brother. Your current realm is perfectly suited to using it. Once you absorb this Grandmaster Pure Land, you will surely reach the Ancestor Realm. Only then will Shangqing Palace truly stand firm."

Li Qingshan was stunned and immediately wanted to decline, but Li Jiusheng stopped him and continued, "Now that Emperor Wu of Zhou's remnant soul has been slain, he must already know of it. He likely hates Shangqing Palace and hates me to the bone. No one knows what may happen next. You must break through to the Ancestor Realm so you can suppress petty threats, protect the several thousand disciples of Shangqing Palace, and allow your senior brother to continue living such a peaceful and stable life."

Li Qingshan was so moved that he could not speak. He no longer refused, but formed a Daoist salute with both hands and bowed solemnly. "I can never repay Senior Brother for granting me a new life."

"Enough, why be so formal? When you first entered the sect, you were still wearing split-crotch pants and had snot running from your nose. All you knew was how to play, and you disliked studying. I raised you. Now that I am leading you into the Ancestor Realm, is that not only natural?" Li Jiusheng said with a smile, exposing some old embarrassing stories that made Li Qingshan blush.

"Junior Brother, if you were Emperor Wu of Zhou, and your Grandmaster Pure Land had been stolen, your Primordial spirit destroyed, and the culprit behind it all was Shangqing Palace, how would you take revenge?" Li Jiusheng suddenly asked.

Li Qingshan pondered for a moment before answering, "Given Emperor Wu of Zhou's character, he would surely seek revenge for even the smallest grievance. But first, his Ancestor foundation was destroyed; then, his Primordial spirit's possession attempt caused his body to explode; afterward, his remnant soul was slain by you, Senior Brother; and he also lost the Grandmaster Pure Land he coveted. His losses were devastating. He certainly will not be able to emerge from seclusion anytime soon."

"If I were Emperor Wu of Zhou, I would certainly form alliances and seek out sects or enemies that held grudges against Shangqing Palace. I would promise them immense benefits and make them join forces against Shangqing Palace. At the same time, I would seek assassin organizations to assassinate members of Shangqing Palace and create chaos. By working from every angle, I would dismantle and destroy Shangqing Palace." Li Qingshan truly placed himself in Emperor Wu of Zhou's position, deducing the plan according to his character and speaking these cold, ruthless words.

"Assassin organizations?" Li Jiusheng frowned. "What kind of assassin organization could deal with a great sect like Shangqing Palace?"

It was not that Li Qingshan was boasting. Although Shangqing Palace had no Ancestor, it possessed several hundred elders and over a thousand disciples. It occupied several spiritual veins and had numerous dependents under its banner. Fertile fields, shops, and merchant caravans were everywhere. Though it could not compare to the foremost great sects or Thousand Year Holy Lands, it was still considered a first-rate Daoist sect. What kind of assassin organization would dare strike at such a force?

"Human World!" Li Qingshan said solemnly.