Refining the Yin-Yang Scissors

"Phew..."

Li Qingxu opened his eyes and exhaled the stale air in his chest. His breath surged out like a dragon, rumbling through the entire Main hall.

"So this is the Grand Unity Golden Immortal Realm?"

"It's a complete leap in the level of life. I'm more than ten thousand times stronger than I was as a Golden Immortal."

Feeling the endless vitality and boundless divine power within him, Li Qingxu sighed from the bottom of his heart.

Fortunately, with the help of the Eternal Evergreen Dao Incense, he had gained ten thousand years of cultivation time. Only then had he finally broken through to the Grand Unity Golden Immortal Realm.

Otherwise, with such a gap between their realms, even his top-tier Innate Root wouldn't have been enough for him to defeat Guangchengzi and the others.

As the Eternal Evergreen Dao Incense burned out completely, the flow of time in Qingxu Hall gradually returned to normal.

There were still four hundred years until the Xuanmen Dao Discussion Conference, but after thinking it over for a moment, Li Qingxu decided not to continue cultivating.

With a wave of his hand, two golden and silver Flood Dragon bones, each over a thousand zhang long, appeared in the hall.

These two Yin-Yang Flood Dragon bones were exceptionally precious materials for refining treasures, and contained innate Yin-Yang energy.

If he could refine them into an Innate Spiritual Treasure, it would greatly increase his strength.

"Though I don't have a good refining furnace right now, I should still be able to succeed using True Sun Fire."

Li Qingxu considered this.

With a point of his finger, Blazing True Sun Fire surged up inside Qingxu Hall.

Then he clasped his hands and formed a seal. The scattered True Sun Fire gradually gathered, taking the shape of a pill furnace and enveloping the two Flood Dragon bones.

True Sun Fire burned at an extremely high temperature, powerful enough to scorch the heavens and boil the seas. Its might far exceeded that of Samadhi True Fire, Six Ding Divine Fire, and Golden Crow Divine Fire.

Under the relentless scorching of the True Sun Fire, the Flood Dragon bones slowly shrank. Impurities were gradually purged from them, leaving only their purest essence.

The refining process lasted for over a hundred years.

Since this was Li Qingxu's first time refining a Spirit Treasure, he remained completely focused from start to finish, not daring to slacken for even a moment.

The heat radiating from the True Sun Fire nearly melted the Qingxu Hall he had built.

Fortunately, at the critical moment, a streak of azure light flew over from Jade Void Palace and enveloped Qingxu Hall, shielding it from the heat of the True Sun Fire. This saved Li Qingxu's Dao Field.

After a hundred years of nonstop burning and tempering by the True Sun Fire, every impurity in the Flood Dragon bones had been refined away, leaving them incomparably sturdy.

Through the True Sun Fire, faint golden and silver divine lights could be seen swirling around the bones, accompanied by bursts of dragon roars.

Seeing that the time had come, Li Qingxu focused his mind, changed his hand seals, and cried, "Yin and Yang unite; the Divine Form takes shape—condense!"

The golden divine light of pure Yang and the silver radiance of pure Yin converged toward a single point, like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea.

"Clang—!"

A clear, resonant chime, like the clash of gold and jade, rang through the hall, drowning out all the dragon roars that had come before.

The divine light, now gathered to its utmost, suddenly erupted, illuminating all of Qingxu Hall in dazzling brilliance. Even Li Qingxu couldn't keep his eyes open.

A three-inch-long pair of scissors with an archaic design hung motionless in midair.

One side of the blades was pure gold, like the essence of the sun congealed. It blazed brilliantly, radiating pure Yang energy that could annihilate all evil.

The other side was a dusky silver, like the condensed moonlight of ten thousand ages. It shone with a quiet, silvery radiance, suffused with Taiyin energy that nourished heaven and earth.

Gold and silver stood in distinct contrast, yet formed a seamless whole.

At the junction of the two blades, a tiny Yin-Yang fish diagram slowly revolved, its black and white halves turning as Daoist rhythm arose of its own accord.

"It's finally done!"

Looking at the Yin-Yang Scissors floating in midair, Li Qingxu let out a long breath. The tension that had wound him tight for over a hundred years finally eased.

The Golden Flood Dragon Scissors before him were a mid-grade Houtian Spiritual Treasure, but thanks to the Yin-Yang power they contained, their might was nearly equal to that of other high-grade Houtian Spiritual Treasures.

"If I hadn't happened to enter that marsh before Zhao Gongming and Sanxiao..."

"These Yin-Yang Scissors would have become the Golden Flood Dragon Scissors."

Li Qingxu murmured to himself.

Among the treasures in his memories of Sanxiao from his previous life was a high-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure called the Golden Flood Dragon Scissors, refined from Flood Dragon bones.

But since he had entered that marsh first and slain the two Evil Flood Dragons, the opportunity had naturally fallen to him instead.

After a moment of reflection, Li Qingxu gave a slight thought and took out the Auspicious Cloud Gold Lamp that Primordial Heavenly Venerate had bestowed upon him earlier. He let it float beside the Yin-Yang Scissors.

Every Innate Spiritual Treasure contained Innate Restrictions. The higher its grade, the more restrictions it had. Only by refining them all could one fully unleash its power.

Li Qingxu closed his eyes and began devoting himself to refining the Innate Restrictions within the treasure.

In the Primordial World, time passed without notice.

Four hundred years slipped by.

A voice as deep and resonant as a great bell rang out from the summit of Kirin Cliff, echoing across Kunlun Mountain without end.

"Disciples of the Three Religions, come to Kirin Cliff at once!"

Inside Qingxu Hall.

Li Qingxu slowly opened his eyes. The Auspicious Cloud Gold Lamp floating before him gave a soft hum. Six of the twelve Innate Restrictions within it had been refined.

He still couldn't wield it as easily as his own arm, but he could at least activate it without difficulty.

He rose to his feet. The two Spirit Treasures turned into streaks of light and entered the Sea of Consciousness between his brows to be nurtured. Then he stepped forward, instantly appearing outside Qingxu Hall.

Streaks of light in every color crossed the sky as disciples of the Three Religions flew toward Kirin Cliff, some riding clouds and others using escape arts.

"Junior Brother Qingxu."

True Person Huang Long flew over to him on a white cloud, smiling warmly.

From the aura True Person Huang Long gave off, Li Qingxu could sense that his cultivation hadn't advanced much in the past five hundred years. He was still at the early Golden Immortal stage.

That was only to be expected. Golden Immortals were already considered powerful beings in the Primordial World.

Without a Sage's lectures or some other fortuitous opportunity, it took a long time of accumulated effort to break through by cultivating on one's own.

"Uh..."

Before Li Qingxu could reply, True Person Huang Long sensed the Grand Unity Golden Immortal aura radiating from him. The smile on his face instantly froze.

He had known that Li Qingxu was extraordinarily perceptive and thought he might make some progress after five hundred years in seclusion. He hadn't expected such a tremendous breakthrough—from the middle Golden Immortal stage all the way to the Grand Unity Golden Immortal Realm.

"Looks like I'll have to call you Senior Brother Qingxu from now on."

True Person Huang Long recovered and smiled. His words held a hint of self-mockery and deep envy.

"We all became disciples of the Sages at the same time. The matter of seniority is for our master to decide."

Li Qingxu smiled faintly, then flew toward Kirin Cliff with True Person Huang Long.

Before long, a towering cliff shaped like a Qilin howling at the sky came into view.

It rose high and imposing, its entire surface bearing the ancient, desolate hue of something that had endured for countless ages. Natural patterns on the cliff face seemed to trace the outlines of Qilin scales, and an aura of ancient majesty swept over them.

"This Kirin Cliff is truly magnificent."

Li Qingxu looked up and exclaimed.

"They say that near the end of the Dragon-Phoenix Measure Tribulation, the First Qilin knew the Heavenly Dao would inevitably bring him to account. So he came to Kunlun Mountain and begged our master to protect the Qilin Clan, allowing them to endure in the Primordial World."

"After our master agreed, he transformed into this cliff."

True Person Huang Long gazed at Kirin Cliff, which towered hundreds of millions of zhang high, his expression complicated.

"I see."

Li Qingxu nodded. The two soared into the sky and soon reached the summit of Kirin Cliff.

The summit was perfectly level, as though sliced by a divine sword. Various Dao Patterns were carved into its surface, forming a Martial Arts Arena that would endure countless tribulations without decay.

Taiqing Laozi, Primordial Heavenly Venerate, and Tongtian Cult Master stood side by side in the air above Kirin Cliff. Disciples of the Three Religions continued arriving from every direction.

The Sages had summoned them, so none of the disciples dared to delay. In less than half a quarter of an hour, they had all arrived.

Looking at the packed ranks of Interception Sect disciples, Li Qingxu felt a little speechless.

Over the past five hundred years, Tongtian Cult Master had taken on quite a few more disciples.

The total number of Interception Sect disciples now seemed to be nearly one hundred thousand.

Li Qingxu guessed that Tongtian Cult Master believed his disciples wouldn't suffer tribulations because he was a Heavenly Dao Saint and a personal disciple of the Dao Ancestor. Perhaps he had taken on so many in hopes of gaining more fortune and destiny.

Just then, Li Qingxu suddenly felt a hostile gaze fall upon him.

He followed the sensation and met Winged Immortal's eyes across the air.

Winged Immortal looked eager for a fight. Clearly, he still resented what had happened last time and wanted to use the Xuanmen Dao Discussion Conference to settle a personal score.

But when he sensed the aura radiating from Li Qingxu, his eagerness instantly turned to shock, then disbelief.

Even Winged Immortal, a Golden-Winged Great Peng, had cultivated with all his might over the past five hundred years and advanced only from the middle to the late Golden Immortal stage.

Li Qingxu, who had been at the same middle Golden Immortal stage as him before, had now reached the Taiyi Realm. He was already far beyond Winged Immortal's reach.

Li Qingxu merely glanced at Winged Immortal, whose cultivation was far below his own, and paid him no heed. Instead, he turned his gaze to Duobao Daoist, Grand Master Xuandu, and the others.

The higher one's realm, the harder it was to advance. The three had cultivated diligently for five hundred years, but their cultivation had not improved much, and none had broken through.

"It seems I have a good chance of becoming Head of Xuanmen Third Generation with my strength now."

Li Qingxu murmured to himself, a blazing fire kindling in his heart.

With the title of Head of Xuanmen Third Generation, he would, to a certain extent, represent the dignity of the Six Sages. It would also give him much greater protection as he traveled through the Primordial World.

Even great figures of the Primordial World like Zhen Yuanzi, Ancestor Minghe, and Di Jun would have to treat him with respect if they met him.

Duobao Daoist, Grand Master Xuandu, and Guangchengzi were also shaken when they sensed that Li Qingxu had advanced to the Grand Unity Golden Immortal Realm.

Even Duobao Daoist, who had already regarded the position of Head of Xuanmen Third Generation as his for the taking, felt a faint sense of threat.

Everyone had their own thoughts, but none revealed them. In unison, they bowed to the Three Pure Ones and said:

"Disciples pay their respects to our masters, uncles, and elders!"

Primordial Heavenly Venerate's gaze swept over the disciples below. He nodded slightly, and his voice rang out clearly in every disciple's ears, like the clash of gold and jade:

"The five hundred years are up. The Xuanmen Dao Discussion Conference begins now!"

Just as the disciples grew eager, rubbing their hands in anticipation, a Gate of Space suddenly opened in the sky above Kirin Cliff.

Then a majestic and solemn Twelfth-Grade Golden Lotus slowly emerged from the portal, radiating immeasurable Buddha Light as brilliant as the sun. Vast waves of Buddhist chants resounded across heaven and earth, while visions of flowers raining from the sky and Golden Lotuses Springing from the Earth swept over everything.

Within the golden light, several figures could be seen sitting upon Lotus Platforms, their bearing solemn and dignified, their auras unfathomably deep.