First Meeting Duobao

"Ha ha, Fourth Brother, well done. I'd long found him an eyesore. That fellow is utterly shameless." After Zhunti left in a huff, Tongtian laughed heartily and spoke to Xuan Heng.

"Cough, cough, Third Brother, this Six Pure Roots Bamboo truly is useful to me. My troublesome registered disciple has great need of this treasure."

Xuan Heng gave a dry cough. Tongtian had probably misunderstood him, thinking he had deliberately tried to snatch Zhunti's spiritual treasure. Though he did harbor such thoughts, he had done it more for the sake of his registered disciple.

"Ha ha, I get what you mean. All right, let's keep snatching treasures. There aren't many left." Tongtian gave Xuan Heng a look that said, I understand, then continued seizing treasures.

Xuan Heng felt rather embarrassed, but did not mind it. Tongtian loved joking with him. Soon after, his gaze settled on a small glazed bottle that had just flown out from the depths of Treasure Distribution Cliff.

The bottle was transparent, and within it, a pool of clear water slowly circulated. Its watery radiance was gentle, carrying an aura that nourished spiritual roots and cleansed away impure qi.

Xuan Heng's heart stirred slightly. The spiritual liquid inside would be perfectly suited to nourishing his Innate Gourd Vine.

Without further hesitation, Xuan Heng merely beckoned with his hand, and the Purifying Spirit Bottle fell into his grasp. Immediately afterward, a dark yellow ruler gleaming with treasure-light appeared from the depths of Treasure Distribution Cliff.

Heaven and Earth patterns covered the long ruler. Heaven was engraved at one end, earth at the other, while outlines of mountains and rivers slowly flowed across the center. It was unmistakably the weapon Randeng would use during the Investiture of the Gods Calamity—the Heaven and Earth Ruler.

Fuxi, Zhenyuanzi, and Kunpeng all set their sights on the Heaven and Earth Ruler at once, but Xuan Heng moved first. The instant everyone spotted the ruler, his Profound Pure Immortal Light had already shot forth.

Kunpeng was incredibly swift. In a flash of black light, he too reached for the Heaven and Earth Ruler. The Calamity-Suppressing Gourd at Xuan Heng's waist trembled lightly, and Calamity-Suppressing Clear Light descended around the ruler, briefly subduing the chaotic currents beside it. Then the Heaven and Earth Ruler tilted slightly and landed in Xuan Heng's hand.

Kunpeng's claw grasped at empty air, and his face darkened. But upon seeing the Three Pure Ones standing beside Xuan Heng, he merely snorted coldly without making a move, turning instead to seize other spiritual treasures.

Xuan Heng gripped the Heaven and Earth Ruler and directly tucked it into his sleeve.

Then, a dark-gold whip flew out from beneath Treasure Distribution Cliff. Its body seemed formed from compressed mountain ranges, each segment heavy and solid. As it descended, it stirred the earth qi—the Mountain-Driving Whip.

Xuan Heng raised his hand and caught it. His wrist sank slightly. This treasure could draw upon the force of mountains; it would be useful for opening paths, sealing mountains, and laying formations.

Another gray-white little seal then fell from Treasure Distribution Cliff. Mountain and river patterns were engraved upon it, while the words "Mountain-Suppressing" marked its base.

Xuan Heng swept it up with his Profound Pure Immortal Light.

The Mountain-Driving Whip, Mountain-Suppressing Seal, and Heaven and Earth Ruler possessed similar auras and faintly resonated with one another. In the future, this set of treasures would be just right for altering earth veins, safeguarding migrations, and establishing formation foundations.

Elsewhere, a white jade ring appeared within Treasure Distribution Cliff, and Zhunti reached out to take it.

Seeing that the jade ring possessed a steady aura and could calm the mind, Xuan Heng simply raised his hand as well. To his surprise, the white jade ring spun round and round before dropping directly into his palm.

Zhunti's eyelids twitched violently at the sight, and his expression became bitter and pained.

Tongtian could no longer hold back. He burst into laughter. "Junior Brother Zhunti, your karmic affinities with my Fourth Brother truly are colliding fiercely today."

Zhunti pressed his palms together, his voice bitter. "Fellow Daoist Xuan Heng's fortune is profound. This poor Daoist admires it."

Xuan Heng put away the Pure White Jade Ring, then took several more practical spiritual treasures in succession: the Sky-Illuminating Mirror, which could reveal the terrain of a hundred rivers and detect the hidden qi of demons and evil beings; the Heavenly Origin Formation Diagram, which could carry formation patterns and save much effort when laying formations in the future; the Wind-Storing Bag, which could collect wind currents, suppress wind disasters; and the Water-Repelling Pearl, which allowed one to travel through rivers, lakes, and seas without suffering disturbance from water qi.

After taking these, Xuan Heng struck again. Anything useful, he accepted without exception. The opportunities of Treasure Distribution Cliff lay right before his eyes—if he did not fatten his little treasury now, then when would he?

Zhunti watched from the side with his eyelids twitching, but said nothing more. Fortunately, the two of them did not "collide" in karmic affinity again afterward.

"Fourth Brother, you really aren't being the least bit polite with all you're taking."

Xuan Heng smiled. "Third Brother said it yourself just now—if you're slow, there'll be nothing left."

Tongtian laughed loudly. "Well said. I like hearing that."

The Three Pure Ones gained even more.

Taiqing acquired the Mystic Capital Purple Palace Sword, the Nine-Revolution Pill Furnace, the Tranquility Jade Talisman, the Yin-Yang Treasure Bottle, and other spiritual treasures.

Yuanshi took the Five Fires Seven Birds Fan, the Jade Pure Treasure Pearl, the Bagua Cloudlight Veil, the Purple Sash Immortal Robe, the Spirit-Sealing Treasure Box, and other treasures.

Tongtian continued collecting the Azure Cloud Sword, the White Jade Golden Bridge Fragmentary Map, the Myriad Crows Pot, the Nine Dragons Cauldron, the Soul-Falling Bell, and a prototype of the Blood-Transforming Divine Saber.

Before long, no more treasure-light emerged from Treasure Distribution Cliff. The great powers present had all obtained, to varying degrees, spiritual treasures suited to themselves.

Before leaving Treasure Distribution Cliff, Xuan Heng made a point of reminding Red Cloud once more that, on his journey back, he absolutely had to remain inseparable from Zhenyuanzi.

After leaving Treasure Distribution Cliff, on the road back to Kunlun, Tongtian looked toward Xuan Heng and said quietly, "Fourth Brother, you've offended that Zhunti badly today. You must be more careful around him in the future. Those two brothers likely have no shortage of underhanded tricks. Be on your guard."

Xuan Heng nodded. "Even if I had not taken their spiritual treasures today, they would still scheme against our Kunlun in the future. From these few lectures, Third Brother, you should all have seen that these two are not people to befriend deeply."

Yuanshi glanced at Xuan Heng, his tone carrying a rare hint of approval.

"It is good that you see it clearly. If you yield to such people again and again, they will only think you easy to bully."

Xuan Heng nodded. "Rest assured, Second Brother. I know what I'm doing."

The chaotic currents gradually dispersed, and the aura of the primordial world rushed toward them. Mount Imperfection stood supporting the heavens, while layers upon layers of clouds gathered in the direction of Kunlun Mountain.

Following the Three Pure Ones, Xuan Heng descended into the primordial world, then turned back for one glance at the chaos beyond the heavens.

Hongjun's transmitted words still lingered in his heart.

After the treasures have been distributed, seek an opportunity to come to Purple Cloud Palace and find me. Purple Cloud Palace has now vanished into the chaos.

Yet Xuan Heng knew that sooner or later, he would have to make another journey there. That trip would be the true journey to Purple Cloud Palace that belonged to him alone.

After returning to Kunlun, the Three Pure Ones and Xuan Heng all entered seclusion at once, digesting the contents of the Dao Ancestor's third lecture.

The primordial world did not count its years. In the blink of an eye, thirty thousand years passed.

"Phew! Thirty thousand years at last. I've finally refined the main innate restrictions of these Dharma treasures. At least I can use them provisionally now, and my cultivation has reached the peak of Great Luo as well. It's time to leave seclusion."

Inside his Kunlun Mountain cave dwelling, Xuan Heng opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of turbid air. Thirty thousand years had passed. He wondered how far the events outside had progressed.

With that in mind, Xuan Heng left the cave abode. However, he did not rashly disturb his three elder brothers. Instead, he came to the lotus pond on the front slopes of Kunlun Mountain, where he had been nurtured.

Upon arriving, Xuan Heng went straight to the gourd vine. After examining it, he found that there was nothing seriously wrong. Nurtured by the lotus pond for tens of thousands of years, the gourd vine had finally escaped its near-death state.

Just as Xuan Heng was inspecting the gourd vine, a set of footsteps suddenly sounded beyond the lotus pond.

Xuan Heng turned his head and saw a young Daoist standing not far away.

The Daoist had a somewhat rounded build, with an honest, guileless look on his face, yet his brows and eyes were lively. His gaze swept over the spiritual radiance beside the lotus pond from time to time; clearly, he was exceedingly sensitive to the auras of all kinds of spiritual treasures.

He wore a green Daoist robe, its sleeves bulging, with several small pouches hanging at his waist. As he walked, treasure light faintly shone from within his sleeves.

The young Daoist was also stunned when he saw Xuan Heng.

During all his years at Kunlun, he had never seen this Daoist before. Yet the other stood beside the lotus pond, and his aura was extraordinarily compatible with Kunlun's pure qi. He was certainly no outsider.

After hesitating for a moment, the young Daoist still stepped forward and cupped his hands.

"Greetings, fellow Daoist. I am Duobao, the chief disciple under my master, the Supreme Pure One. May I ask how I should address you?"