Daoist Grandmaster

In a secret chamber within a side hall of Jade Void Palace, the floor of immaculate white jade held a vermillion cushion carved from red jade. A young maiden, fair-skinned, with a clear and delicate face, breathtakingly beautiful, and dressed as a Daoist, sat cross-legged on the cushion. Her hands were clasped before her chest in the standard posture for qi cultivation.

If Zhou Qing were here, he would surely recognize this maiden as Ling Ruoshui, the very person he had rescued from Mitsui Taro and then tricked once more in Las Vegas.

At this moment, swirling mist coiled above Ling Ruoshui's head. The mist was faintly five-colored, shaped like a lotus, sometimes gathering, sometimes dispersing. Every half hour, the five-colored mist would thicken, its colors becoming clearer and brighter. The surrounding spiritual energy was gradually absorbed into Ling Ruoshui's body, transforming into the five-colored mist and drifting above her head. After an unknown amount of time, the five-colored mist finally solidified, ceasing its movement and steadily forming three fist-sized, five-colored lotuses radiating brilliant light. Taking a deep breath, the three lotuses slowly merged into Ling Ruoshui's crown, disappearing from view.

A faint, clear light flickered across Ling Ruoshui's body, her eyes shining even brighter with an almost tangible gaze. Clearly, her cultivation had advanced significantly. With a soft cry, Ling Ruoshui leaped into the air. She waved her hands, and five streams of immortal energy, each over ten feet long and as thick as a teacup, shot out as pillars of cyan light towards the white jade floor.

"Playing around again!" A cyan figure flickered, and an old Daoist suddenly appeared in the secret chamber. He wore a simple blue Daoist robe, had the appearance of an immortal with a youthful face despite his age, and his skin was as smooth as an infant's. The old Daoist rubbed his hands together, and a gentle breeze blew, silently caressing the five aggressive pillars of light. Without a sound, the seemingly steel-hard light pillars dispersed under the touch of the breeze, turning into specks of cyan powder that sprinkled onto the white jade floor before vanishing.

"This Jade Void Palace is a supreme immortal abode opened by our Kunlun ancestor, Primal Celestial Venerable. In commemoration of the ancestor's supreme spiritual power, the use of sorcery is forbidden within this Jade Void Palace. Have you forgotten?" the old Daoist scolded Ling Ruoshui.

"Master! Why are you shouting so loudly? You startled me! I just forgot!" Ling Ruoshui landed and grumbled at the old Daoist. This old Daoist was the current sect leader of Kunlun, his Daoist name being Gan Jizi. His cultivation was truly unfathomable. He was known as one of the five great grandmasters of the realm, alongside the Elder Lingxu of Shu Mountain, Kaiyang Taoist of Mao Mountain, Daoyi Tianshi of Longhu Mountain, and the Living Buddha XZ. It was said that Gan Jizi's cultivation ranked first among them, just one step away from reaching the immortal realm of Spirit Refining and Returning to Emptiness, where the physical body becomes immortal.

Although Gan Jizi's cultivation was profound, he was helpless against his disciple. Shaking his head, Gan Jizi's ordinarily placid eyes suddenly shot out with sharp light. He examined Ling Ruoshui closely, then said with delight, "Excellent! Your aptitude is indeed remarkable. You've comprehended the first scroll of the Supreme Clarity Purple Mansion Immortal Manual so quickly. Although the spiritual energy within this Jade Void Palace is a hundred times denser than outside, it's still an impressive feat." Gan Jizi continuously stroked the half-foot-long beard on his chin, nodding in admiration.

"Master, I don't have a flying sword yet. I want a flying sword, just like my brother. I saw how cool my brother looked when he was flying on his sword!" Seeing the old Daoist Gan Jizi nodding, Ling Ruoshui seized the opportunity to make demands.

"Sword cultivation is a unorthodox path. Although progress is fast and destructive power is great, one can easily harm oneself or others if not careful. Furthermore, the foundation is very unstable, and the chance of going mad in advanced stages is quite high. Back then, for the sake of rapid advancement, I passed down the Flowing Ripple Sword and the path of sword cultivation to your brother. You shouldn't learn it. Those who cultivate the Dao value a peaceful state of mind. Why learn such a path filled with killing intent?" Gan Jizi lectured, but judging by Ling Ruoshui's expression, his words were likely going in one ear and out the other.

"I don't care, I want to fly on a sword!" Ling Ruoshui, seeing her demands unmet, began to act spoiled towards Gan Jizi.

"Flying on a sword, even if you had a flying sword, you couldn't do it! Your current cultivation is only at the mid-to-late stage of Qi Induction, still a bit short. Besides, the Supreme Clarity Purple Mansion Immortal Manual I taught you is a secret Kunlun transmission, something even your brother wasn't taught. It's far more profound than the path of sword cultivation and its techniques are extremely exquisite. It includes miraculous spatial contraction techniques like Phoenix Flight Thousand Miles, Master Hu's Land Contraction. Once you reach a high level of mastery, you can travel a thousand miles in an instant, far surpassing the method of flying on a sword." Gan Jizi had long been immune to Ling Ruoshui's spoiled behavior and remained unmoved.

"Master! It's okay if I don't get a flying sword, but you have to give me a powerful magical artifact for self-defense, right? I was ambushed by that little devil last time, and it was precisely because I didn't have a defensive treasure." Ling Ruoshui's eyes darted around. Seeing that her spoiled act wasn't working, she hatched another plan.

"That's true. But how did you escape afterward? Although that little devil's sorcery is mediocre, there are still powerful individuals. You mentioned that person saved you, but who was it exactly? Why didn't you explain clearly? We should find out which sect or faction they belong to. They must be no ordinary person! I'll go thank them properly tomorrow." Gan Jizi became suspicious upon hearing Ling Ruoshui's words.

The mention of this matter made Ling Ruoshui grit her teeth in hatred for Zhou Qing. Now, hearing Gan Jizi suggest she go thank the person, she almost exploded with anger. However, she couldn't openly show it in front of Gan Jizi, so she said hatefully, "Mm, I'll go 'thank' that person properly after I go down the mountain!"

"Right, Master, do you know of a sect called the Heavenly Dao Sect among our cultivation sects?" Ling Ruoshui suddenly thought of something. When she came up the mountain, she asked her master to teach her immortal techniques precisely to increase her power and seek trouble with Zhou Qing. But now, she realized she still didn't know who Zhou Qing really was. She vaguely recalled Zhou Qing mentioning that he was the sect leader of the Heavenly Dao Sect. She didn't know what kind of sect the Heavenly Dao Sect was or where its mountain gate was, so she asked Gan Jizi.

Little did she know that the Heavenly Dao Sect was a fabrication by Zhou Qing himself and had not yet spread in the cultivation world. Although Gan Jizi was knowledgeable, familiar with many Daoist immortal techniques, Buddhist secret arts, Demonic Dao, and even Western magic, he was also puzzled by this Heavenly Dao Sect.

"I haven't heard of such a sect! There's only the Five Elements Sect, the Pure Yang Sect, the Yin Talisman Sect, and the Dunjia Sect! How could a Heavenly Dao Sect appear in the cultivation world?" the old Daoist muttered to himself, completely disregarding his status as a grandmaster.

Seeing the old Daoist Gan Jizi muttering, Ling Ruoshui suddenly recalled some clues and asked, "Then, Master! Are there any sects that are particularly skilled in formations, like the Five Elements Tracing Formation, or something similar?"

The old Daoist Gan Jizi was taken aback. "Sects skilled in formations? The path of formations relies on the immense power of heaven and earth, and doesn't place much emphasis on personal cultivation. Therefore, sects primarily focused on formations have long since declined. Currently, the sect skilled in formations is the Dunjia Sect. Could it be them who saved you? But your tone suggests a young person. Although the Dunjia Sect is mysterious in the cultivation world, I have dealings with several of their elders and sect leaders, and they are all old men. There are no young people among them! And the Five Elements Tracing Formation isn't a particularly difficult formation; many people in the cultivation world know how to perform it. It's likely a young expert from some Daoist sect."