The Limits of the Three Flowers and of One's Potential

Nuwa had already accepted Qing Xuan's suggestion, but she refused to admit defeat, at least in her expression.

She stuck her tongue out at Qing Xuan and Fu Xi, then grabbed Houtu, who stood behind Fu Xi, and headed off into the distance.

Qing Xuan and Fu Xi both shook their heads. Only after the two women had gone some distance did Qing Xuan turn to Fu Xi and ask,

"Fellow Daoist Fu Xi, how is Houtu's Nascent Soul cultivation coming along? Will she be able to break through to the Great Luo Realm before the next lecture at Zixiao Palace?"

Fu Xi sighed. "I'm afraid it'll be difficult. After all, Houtu barely listened to Dao Ancestor's sermon this time."

"I've tried teaching her the Dao again myself, but no matter how I explain it, the Dao spoken from my mouth is completely different from the Dao Ancestor's."

Qing Xuan nodded. He knew Fu Xi was right. When Hong Jun preached, every word was infused with the Dao. But when Fu Xi taught, at best he could explain the principles of the Dao.

There was no comparison between the two. And as for Qing Xuan teaching Houtu himself, he was probably even less capable than Fu Xi.

Just then, Fu Xi turned to Qing Xuan and asked, "By the way, I can clearly sense that you could break through. Why insist on suppressing your cultivation?"

Qing Xuan smiled. "Fellow Daoist Fu Xi must have seen how vast the Qing Yun above Nuwa, Sanqing, and the Two Sages of the West were."

"By comparison, my Qing Yun probably isn't even half as large as theirs. In that case, how many grades do you think the Three Flowers on Head could bloom to?"

If Qing Xuan hadn't mentioned it, Fu Xi truly wouldn't have noticed. But now that Qing Xuan had brought it up, Fu Xi finally remembered.

Still, Fu Xi didn't understand what special connection Qing Yun had with the Three Flowers on Head, so he immediately asked Qing Xuan,

"My Little Sister's Qing Yun covers ten thousand mu, and her Three Flowers on Head have bloomed to the ninth grade. My Qing Yun is close to ten thousand mu, but smaller than hers. Yet my Three Flowers on Head also bloomed to the ninth grade, didn't they?"

Qing Xuan nodded with a smile. "On the surface, there's indeed no difference. Even cultivators like me, whose Qing Yun covers less than five thousand mu, have still reached the ninth grade."

"But you've overlooked the most crucial point, Fellow Daoist Fu Xi. Nuwa can bloom to the ninth grade because the ninth grade is already the limit."

"Those whose Qing Yun covers less than five thousand mu may also bloom to the ninth grade, but they've reached their own limits."

"You should understand the difference between the two. If one day Nuwa can break through the Great Desolation Limit, her Three Flowers will be able to bloom further."

"Those who have reached their own limits, even if the Three Flowers could one day bloom to a hundred grades, will still be stuck at the ninth. That's already their limit."

Fu Xi listened as if awakening from a dream. He finally understood the connection between Qing Yun and the Three Flowers, but he still looked at Qing Xuan with some confusion.

"Do you mean the size of one's Qing Yun can be increased through cultivation? But mine reached nine thousand mu when I underwent Form Transformation, and it hasn't grown at all since."

Qing Xuan smiled. "I didn't know how to increase the size of Qing Yun before, either. But after hearing Dao Ancestor's sermon this time, I found a way."

"By infusing Qing Yun with Merit and Fortune, you can make it grow. As long as you have enough Merit and Fortune, it might even reach the million mu of the Dao Ancestor."

"That's also why, during the sermon, I forcibly suppressed my cultivation and kept myself at the Early Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal stage."

Fu Xi nodded emphatically. "I see. No wonder you listened in Zixiao Palace for three thousand years, yet your cultivation didn't improve at all."

"Unfortunately, I didn't glean such important information from the Dao Ancestor's teachings. Otherwise, I wouldn't have broken through to the Late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal stage. I would definitely have followed your example."

Qing Xuan shook his head at Fu Xi. "There's no need for that, Fellow Daoist Fu Xi. Everyone's opportunities are different."

"If you forced yourself to imitate me, you might instead ruin your own opportunity. Besides, your Qing Yun is already among the finest in the Primordial Wilderness."

Fu Xi smiled and nodded. "It seems I was too attached to appearances and had forgotten that a vessel overfilled will spill."

Then Fu Xi and Qing Xuan burst into laughter. Their laughter drew Nuwa and Houtu over from nearby.

Nuwa asked curiously, "What are you laughing about? Is there something good you haven't told us?"

Qing Xuan smiled and opened his Folding Fan. Gently fanning himself, he said, "How could I keep good news from you? After all, you're the strongest among us."

Nuwa looked rather proud, then let her gaze settle on the Folding Fan in Qing Xuan's hand.

"Little Gourd Vine, look! There's another painting on your fan. And it looks like a scene of Dao Ancestor preaching in Zixiao Palace."

Qing Xuan rarely opened his fan. He'd only spread it just now to strike a pose and look cool, imitating those graceful young masters.

Hearing Nuwa say that another panel had appeared—and that it depicted Dao Ancestor preaching in Zixiao Palace—Qing Xuan hurriedly examined it.

After taking a look, he was delighted. "It really is Dao Ancestor's sermon. Looks like I'll have to check the fan for changes whenever I get the chance from now on."

Seeing Qing Xuan smiling and muttering to himself, Nuwa ran over and grabbed his arm, shaking it.

"Little Gourd Vine, stop grinning like an idiot and see if you can manifest the scene of Dao Ancestor preaching!"

Qing Xuan nodded, then channeled his magic power and waved the Folding Fan forward. Sure enough, the next moment, the scene of Dao Ancestor preaching appeared in midair.

It even pulled the four of them into the scene. For a moment, it was as though everyone had returned to Zixiao Palace and was listening to Dao Ancestor expound the Great Dao all over again.

Unfortunately, the scene lasted only a thousand years before disappearing. At the same time, the panel depicting Dao Ancestor's sermon grew extremely dim.

Qing Xuan knew it needed recharging again. But he had no idea how to do that just yet, so he could only close the Folding Fan, still wanting more.

Just as Qing Xuan closed the fan, something stirred on Houtu's side. Qing Yun began gathering above her head, eventually reaching a full ten thousand mu.

As the Qing Yun stopped growing, Three Golden Lotus Flowers emerged from it.

Houtu's breakthrough to the Great Luo Realm filled Qing Xuan with delight. After all, if Houtu didn't reach the Great Luo Realm, then whether she went to the Second Lecture in Zixiao Palace or not would make no difference at all.

A Golden Immortal at the Taiyi level might barely understand Great Luo's Dao, but couldn't understand the Quasi-Saint's Dao. Going would be a complete waste of time.