The Limit of Three Flowers and the Limit of Oneself

Nuwa had already accepted Qing Xuan's suggestion in her heart, but her expression refused to concede defeat.

She made a face directly at Qing Xuan and Fu Xi, then pulled Houtu, who was behind Fu Xi, and headed off into the distance.

At this, Qing Xuan and Fu Xi both shook their heads. Only after the two figures had faded into the distance did Qing Xuan speak to Fu Xi with a question.

"Daoist Fu Xi, how is Houtu's nascent soul cultivation progressing? Before the next sermon at Zixiao Palace, will she be able to break through to Zenith Heaven?"

Fu Xi sighed and said, "I'm afraid it will be difficult. After all, during the Dao Ancestor's sermon this time, Daoist Houtu barely listened at all."

"I also tried to re-explain the Dao for her, but unfortunately, the Dao teachings that come from my mouth are completely different from those that come from the Dao Ancestor's mouth."

Qing Xuan nodded after hearing this. He knew Fu Xi was right—when Hong Jun preached, the Dao's essence flowed from his words. But when Fu Xi preached, at most he could only expound on Daoist techniques.

The difference between the two was no small matter. As for Qing Xuan himself preaching the Dao to Houtu, he figured he'd probably be even worse than Fu Xi.

At that moment, Fu Xi spoke up and asked Qing Xuan, "By the way, I can clearly sense that you could break through, so why are you deliberately suppressing your cultivation?"

Qing Xuan smiled and said, "Daoist Fu Xi must have seen how large the Qing Yun above the heads of Nuwa, the Sanqing, and the Two Sages of the West is."

"On the other hand, my Qing Yun probably hasn't even reached half of theirs. Daoist Fu Xi, under these circumstances, what grade do you think my Three Flowers on Head can bloom to?"

If Qing Xuan hadn't mentioned it, Fu Xi truly wouldn't have noticed this point. Now that Qing Xuan brought it up, Fu Xi finally remembered.

Still, Fu Xi didn't understand the special connection between Qing Yun and the Three Flowers on Head, so he directly asked Qing Xuan.

"Little Sister's Qing Yun spans ten thousand mu, and her Three Flowers on Head bloom to the ninth grade. My Qing Yun, though close to ten thousand mu, isn't as large as hers. Yet my Three Flowers on Head also bloom to the ninth grade, don't they?"

Qing Xuan smiled and nodded. "On the surface, there really is no difference. Even those cultivators like me, whose Qing Yun is less than five thousand mu, have also reached the ninth-grade bloom."

"But Daoist Fu Xi has overlooked one crucial point. Nuwa can bloom to the ninth grade because the ninth grade is already the limit."

"As for those with Qing Yun under five thousand mu, though they also bloom to the ninth grade, it's the limit of their own potential."

"The difference between the two, Daoist Fu Xi should understand. If one day Nuwa can break through the Great Desolation Limit, her Three Flowers can continue to bloom further."

"As for those who have reached their own limit, even if their Three Flowers could one day bloom to a hundred grades, they will only ever stay at the ninth grade, because that is already their limit."

After hearing this, Fu Xi felt as if he had awakened from a dream. He finally understood the connection between Qing Yun and the Three Flowers. But then he looked at Qing Xuan with some confusion.

"Daoist Qing Xuan means that the area of Qing Yun can still be increased through cultivation? But when I underwent Form Transformation, my Qing Yun had already reached nine thousand mu, and to this day, I haven't seen it increase by even a fraction?"

Qing Xuan smiled and said, "I didn't know how to increase Qing Yun before either. But this time, listening to the Dao Ancestor's sermon, I found the method."

"That is to infuse Merit and Fortune into the Qing Yun, which allows it to grow. As long as you have enough Merit and Fortune, even growing it to the Dao Ancestor's million mu is not impossible."

"It's precisely because I found the method to grow Qing Yun that I forcibly suppressed my cultivation during the sermon, keeping it at Early Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal."

Qing Xuan's words made Fu Xi nod heavily. "So that's it. No wonder Daoist Qing Xuan listened for three thousand years in Zixiao Palace without any increase in cultivation."

"It's a pity I couldn't perceive such important information from the Dao the Dao Ancestor preached. Otherwise, I wouldn't have broken through to Late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal. I would have followed Daoist Qing Xuan's example."

Qing Xuan shook his head at Fu Xi and said, "Daoist Fu Xi, there's no need for that. After all, everyone's opportunities are different."

"If Daoist Fu Xi forcibly imitates me, it might instead cut off your own fortune. Besides, Daoist Fu Xi's Qing Yun is already considered top-tier in the Great Desolation."

Fu Xi smiled and nodded after hearing this. "It seems This Daoist was too attached to appearances. I forgot the principle that when water is full, it overflows."

Then, Fu Xi and Qing Xuan couldn't help but burst into laughter. The sound of their laughter inevitably drew the attention of Nuwa and Houtu, who were not far away.

Nuwa asked with a face full of curiosity, "What are you laughing about? Is there some good news you're not telling us?"

Qing Xuan smiled and unfurled his folding fan, gently fanning himself as he said, "If there were good news, how could I hide it from you? After all, you're the one with the highest cultivation among us."

Nuwa couldn't help but show a proud expression at this, and her gaze also lingered on the folding fan in Qing Xuan's hand.

"Little Gourd Vine, look quickly! Another fan surface has appeared on your fan. And it seems to be the scene of the Dao Ancestor's sermon at Zixiao Palace."

Qing Xuan rarely opened his folding fan. He had only done so just now to strike a pose and act cool, trying to imitate those elegant gentlemen. When he heard Nuwa say another fan surface had appeared, and that it was the Dao Ancestor's sermon at Zixiao Palace, he hurriedly began to inspect it.

After looking, Qing Xuan was overjoyed. "It really is the Dao Ancestor's sermon. Looks like from now on, I really need to check this fan often to see if it's changed."

Seeing Qing Xuan smiling and talking to himself, Nuwa ran over directly. She grabbed Qing Xuan's arm and shook it vigorously.

"Little Gourd Vine, stop grinning like an idiot. Hurry up and see if you can manifest the scene of the Dao Ancestor's sermon!"

Qing Xuan nodded. He immediately channeled his Magic Power and waved the fan forward. Sure enough, the next moment, the scene of the Dao Ancestor's sermon appeared in mid-air.

It even forcibly pulled Qing Xuan and the other three into the image. For a moment, it was as if they had returned to Zixiao Palace, listening once more to the Dao Ancestor proclaiming the Great Dao.

Unfortunately, the scene only lasted for a thousand years. Then it disappeared. At the same time, the fan surface depicting the Dao Ancestor's sermon became extremely dim.

Qing Xuan knew it needed to be recharged. But for now, he had no idea how to do that, so he could only reluctantly close the folding fan.

Just as Qing Xuan closed the fan, Houtu began to stir. A Qing Yun started to condense above her head, eventually reaching a full ten thousand mu in size.

As the Qing Yun stopped expanding, three golden lotus flowers emerged from it.

Houtu's breakthrough to the Zenith Heaven Realm made Qing Xuan overjoyed. After all, if Houtu hadn't broken through to the Zenith Heaven Realm, then whether she went to the second sermon at Zixiao Palace or not would have made no real difference.

A Primordial Unity Golden Immortal might barely understand the Zenith Heaven's Dao, but they couldn't comprehend the Quasi-Saint's Dao. So going would have been a complete waste of effort.