PS: I jolted upright from my sickbed on the brink of death—here's another short and punchy chapter. Please keep reading and consider investing. Mwah!
The fish had taken the bait!
Su Qingqiu had actually followed Xuan Ye all the way here. If not for the limited range of his Spiritual Light, he could have controlled the Devil Pill to trail him even farther.
At that moment, Su Qingqiu wanted to reveal a faint smile, but unfortunately, his Shape-Shifting Illusion technique was not yet well-practiced enough to conjure such a subtle expression.
So he remained icy-faced and expressionless.
What an accomplished master. Just this unruffled, imposing bearing, commanding respect without anger, is enough to awe anyone.
Xuan Ye secretly admired him.
"I am Wang Xuan. It's a pleasure to meet you, fellow Daoist."
"I heard you were asking about the location of Dragon-Raising Temple. Have you come for the True Dragon?"
Xuan Ye gave a false name and pretended to ask again.
The bearing of the cultivator before him truly moved him. Though he had seen all kinds of Attendants in the Imperial Court, he had never met anyone so unmoved by worldly gains or losses, so untroubled by joy or sorrow—an exalted celestial being who seemed free of the Seven Emotions and Six Desires of the mortal world.
Could this be the unity of heaven and humanity spoken of in Daoist legends?
Compared with the cultivators in the Imperial Court, immersed in wealth, power, beauty, and fine food, this man was a true master who had attained the Dao.
He had to invite this man to the Imperial Court.
Xuan Ye's heart burned with eagerness.
A sudden desire to recruit talent stirred within him.
Su Qingqiu's expression remained calm and unreadable as he said, "I have indeed come because of the True Dragon at Dragon-Raising Temple. I recently heard that a True Dragon had appeared here. This matter is crucial to my advancement to third rank and the forging of my Dao Foundation, so I wish to visit Dragon-Raising Temple and confirm it."
"Are you a local cultivator, fellow Daoist? Do you know whether this True Dragon is real?"
At this, Xuan Ye's expression shifted slightly. He hurriedly clasped his hands and said, "So I am in the presence of a fourth-rank grand cultivator. Forgive my poor eyesight for failing to recognize you, senior."
"Guards! Hurry and make preparations. Bring out my finest spiritual tea and invite senior aboard my ship."
After saying this, Xuan Ye glanced discreetly at Eunuch Fu beside him, then turned back to Su Qingqiu and continued, "I... I have always been fond of befriending masters who have attained the Dao. I am overjoyed to meet you, senior. Please forgive my earlier lack of candor."
Listen to him. What beautiful words.
No wonder he had grown up in the royal family.
A fourth-rank grand cultivator?
Offering spiritual tea?
Before Su Qingqiu could say anything, Eunuch Fu suddenly changed his expression and said, "Master, this is precious spiritual-tree tea. It yields barely more than an ounce every hundred years, and you need it to sustain your cultivation. How can you serve it to an outsider?"
"Besides, this man looks no more than sixth rank to me. What fourth-rank grand cultivator? Master, don't let him deceive you. Master, you..."
BOOM!
Before Eunuch Fu could finish, Su Qingqiu casually lifted a hand and blasted him away.
The protective Daoist arts around Eunuch Fu were useless; they shattered layer by layer. A look of shock still on his face, he spat out a mouthful of blood and plunged into the river with a splash.
It took him quite a while to climb out of the water. By then, his armor had been completely shattered.
"Just a eunuch, barking wildly in my presence. You truly don't know when to stop."
"I'll let it go this time. Don't appear before me again."
Su Qingqiu's voice was cold.
What, were these two putting on a double act for me?
I've spoiled you both rotten!
"Th-this... Ah, hurry and get down there, you disgraceful fool!"
"My subordinate was out of line. Please forgive him, senior. Ah..."
Xuan Ye's expression shifted slightly, and he sighed repeatedly. Then, intentionally or otherwise, he let the words "This Prince" slip out again.
"This Prince? What ties do you have to the court of Zhaoyang Country?"
Su Qingqiu raised an eyebrow, following the opening Xuan Ye had given him.
"Th-this..." Xuan Ye hesitated, then gritted his teeth and said, "Please forgive me for hiding the truth just now, senior. I am the Prince of Wu of Zhaoyang Country, younger brother to the current Emperor Xuan Jing, and the head of this generation of the Zhaoyang Imperial Court."
"The Zhaoyang Imperial Court?" Su Qingqiu hurriedly put on a slightly moved expression. "I never expected to be standing before the head of the Zhaoyang Imperial Court. Please forgive my discourtesy."
"I am a fourth-rank cultivator from Xieyue Sanxing Cave on Lingtai Fangcun Mountain, beyond the East Sea. It is a pleasure to meet you, Prince."
No wonder people say Zhaoyang Country is doomed to fall, with Heaven and Earth on the verge of upheaval. Look at this generation of emperor and prince: one is a fool obsessed with eternal life, and the other is a blockhead who thinks himself clever. If the country doesn't fall, then there's no justice in the world.
If Zhaoyang Country weren't so vast and powerful, with many ancient beings still around—like the former heads of the Imperial Court, who are cultivating in seclusion within it—
And there are plenty of powerful Attendants, too. Otherwise, with those brothers' wits, even the Great Immortals couldn't save Zhaoyang Country.
"Beyond the East Sea? A cultivator of Xieyue Sanxing Cave?" Xuan Ye looked bewildered. What sort of place was that?
There was no record of it in Zhaoyang Country.
But beyond the East Sea lay a vast, bountiful land dotted with countless islands. It was only natural that he had never heard of the place.
He clasped his hands, then said, "What a remarkable name: Lingtai Fangcun Mountain, Xieyue Sanxing Cave. I never imagined such an accomplished master as you would reside there."
"As the saying goes: 'The spiritual root gives birth to its source, while cultivation of the mind gives rise to the Great Dao.' Your sect must surely be an ancient and mysterious lineage with a long history. I am truly fortunate to meet you today, senior."
"Guards! Is the spiritual tea ready yet? I can hardly wait to have a long conversation with senior."
A short while later, aboard Xuan Ye's treasure ship, after a brief introduction, Xuan Ye learned that the reason this man, Daoist Qingqiu, sought Dragon-Raising Temple was not merely to pursue the True Dragon. It was also because he had been drawn there by his Spiritual Light as he approached advancement to third rank.
When a fourth-rank cultivator advanced to third rank, the Spiritual Light contained in the Pure Spiritual Qi between Heaven and Earth would produce a resonance.
This resonance of Spiritual Light meant that similar kinds of Spiritual Light would draw close to one another and absorb each other, giving rise to new information about the laws of the Dao.
Similar things drew together; dissimilar ones repelled each other.
The fated opportunity to attain the Dao that emerged from this was what it meant to be drawn by one's Spiritual Light.
"So senior has already reached the limit of fourth rank. That means the thing your Spiritual Light has drawn you to is this True Dragon?"
"If so... this may be a little difficult."
Xuan Ye furrowed his brow, as though facing some troublesome matter.
Su Qingqiu had not actually drunk the tea. He couldn't drink it, after all; he had only pretended to take a light sip.
At this, he said, "Prince, might you enlighten me? This concerns the foundation of my Dao attainment. If I succeed one day, I will surely repay you for your kindness today."
Xuan Ye was delighted. I've been waiting for you to say that.
This was a fourth-rank grand cultivator! There were not many even in the Imperial Court, and not a single one was at his disposal.
More importantly, he was a top-tier fourth-rank cultivator who had already been drawn by his Spiritual Light, understood the opportunity to attain the Dao, and was now searching for his Dao Foundation.
Once he succeeded, he would become a third-rank Earthly Immortal. With such an unparalleled figure's help, Xuan Ye's chances of claiming the throne would increase by far more than a third.
At the very least, that old monster behind Emperor Xuan Jing would no longer be his greatest headache.
With that in mind, Xuan Ye immediately recounted everything that had happened at Dragon-Raising Temple, without leaving out a single detail or adding the slightest embellishment.
Before you continue