Dharma King

The next day, at the hour of the dragon.

Xu Yan was resting with his eyes closed when the clamor outside the window jolted him awake from his half-dreaming state.

His brows furrowed slightly. He rubbed his eyes and rose from the meditation cushion.

Xu Yan pushed open the window and looked outside. His pupils instantly contracted, and he snapped fully awake.

On the main road, a crowd had gathered around a mangled corpse. Blood had stained half the street red. The corpse's head and limbs had all been severed. Xu Yan recognized the man—the owner of the stall from before.

"Could this... have been done by the Immortal Jade Sect?"

Xu Yan's eyes widened, his gaze flickering with alarm and uncertainty as he immediately shut the window.

Judging by its name, the Immortal Jade Sect clearly styled itself a righteous and prestigious sect. Even if they had come seeking vengeance, how could they act in such a manner?

Dismembering a man and brazenly displaying him in the street was more like a declaration of force.

The discussions outside continued for a while. Before long, people from the Langya Immortal Inn came to clear the scene.

The Daoists of the Langya Immortal Inn had mostly once been registered disciples of Dao Academies. Limited by their aptitude and talent, they had failed to break through for many years and were expelled from the mountains by their academies. They later gathered around the outskirts of Dragon Spine Mountain. Many of the Immortal Inns here had gradually formed in just this way.

Daoists from all corners of the world had converged here, and these past few days had grown increasingly unsettled.

Dragon Ridge Hundred Academies had dispatched many Dao Academy disciples to maintain order in the various Immortal Inns.

Xu Yan, meanwhile, did not step beyond the inn's gates and remained inside.

Seven days passed. Every day at the hour of the dragon, without fail, he cultivated his breathing method. With the aid of Spirit Essence Pills, his Qi Exhalation realm steadily approached perfection, and the dharma power within his lower dantian surged without end like a raging flood.

For the rest of his time, Xu Yan either practiced divine abilities at the Dao Field or studied the Pulse Observation Method in his room.

A pulse manifestation was formed innately. If a Daoist possessed a fire-element spirit vein, it was not impossible for them to forcibly cultivate water-element Dao arts. Once they cultivated the Water-Element Pulse Opening Method, their pulse manifestation would also change accordingly, but its power would be greatly diminished.

Xu Yan drew his consciousness inward and examined his own murky spirit vein. It changed endlessly and bore a faint bloody hue. At times, wind and rain raged within it; at others, thunder and fire spread through it.

"What kind of pulse manifestation is this?"

Xu Yan frowned deeply. The more complex the pulse manifestation, the harder it was to determine which Pulse Opening Method to choose, and the easier it was to take the wrong path.

"It can evolve wind, rain, thunder, and lightning. Could it be a Five Elements Meridians?"

Xu Yan pondered this, only to overturn the thought soon after. Ancient records stated that yin and yang gave birth to the five elements. Anyone with a five-elements pulse manifestation would surely possess the momentum of yin and yang emerging. Yet Xu Yan could not sense the slightest trace of yin-yang momentum. Instead, he sensed an exceptionally dense momentum of blood and vitality, leaving him at a loss.

Roar—

An ancient roar came from deep within Dragon Spine Mountain. It was already the hour of the rooster, and Xu Yan had long grown accustomed to it.

By his count, the disturbance in the depths had lasted eleven days already. He wondered when exactly the Dragon Ridge Immortal Treasury would open. Just as he was thinking this, another howl rang out. Then the roars became unceasing, rolling in like monstrous waves that shook the soul.

"Hmm?"

Xu Yan could no longer sit still and immediately rose.

Outside, this sudden change had already thrown everything into uproar. Countless Daoists burst from the Immortal Inns like ants on a hot pan, soaring into the air on Mystic Qi to gaze into the distance, cries of shock and discussion rising one after another.

Someone pointed at the sky and exclaimed, "Look! What is that?!"

"Why panic? That is the auspicious aura of a true dragon."

"It is said that in ancient primordial times, a true dragon was buried here, its bones deeply interred tens of thousands of zhang beneath the earth veins."

The roars were accompanied by streams of gilded aura erupting from the earth veins into the sky, wave after wave, like heaven-shaking billows that tore apart the mist blanketing the heavens!

It was the hour of the rooster. Evening clouds, like shattered gold, spilled through gaps in the clouds and drove away the darkness.

On the eleventh day after the New Year, the sky finally saw daylight again.

Within the hazy glow of the sunset, the phantom of a towering palace emerged, suspended amid the clouds and mist. Halls rose layer upon layer, with soaring eaves and intricate brackets, magnificent in gold and jade, ethereal as an immortal palace, stirring longing in every heart.

"That is the direction of Dragon Whisker Ravine!"

Someone cried out, "It seems this year's Immortal Treasury gate will open there!"

Before the words had faded, countless Daoists swept toward that direction like a plague of locusts, a dark mass filling the sky.

Xu Yan held the Green Pattern Dharma Sword and rose into the air on Mystic Qi. Hovering above the inn, he looked out. From every direction, streaks of light in every color crossed the heavens like shooting stars. Some flew on swords, some rode the wind, and some traveled aboard flying shuttle artifacts. They were so densely packed that they blotted out the sky.

Thoughts turned in his mind.

"This Immortal Treasury is said to open once every three years. Once I have opened my pulses and further improved my cultivation and divine abilities, it will not be too late to venture inside."

That was what Xu Yan thought. In times like these, independent cultivators struggled at every step. Naturally, he intended to join a Dao Academy and perhaps cultivate in the Taiyuan Divine Sect someday.

Just as he was about to turn back, a strange shout came from behind him.

"Brother Xu!"

Yan Qihu laughed heartily. His flying speed was several times faster than before, and in almost the blink of an eye, he arrived beside Xu Yan.

The gale stung Xu Yan's face, showing just how profound Yan Qihu's dharma power was.

"Brother Yan, you opened your pulses?"

"Thanks to the old temple master's guidance, I went into seclusion for ten days and finally broke through the bottleneck!"

Xu Yan released his consciousness and casually examined him with the Pulse Observation Method. Within Yan Qihu's spirit vein, winds swept away the clouds, and spiritual light overflowed in all directions. It was at least an above-average pulse manifestation. Xu Yan had not expected him to achieve this.

"With Brother Xu's Mystic Gate methods, you will surely reap great rewards in the Dragon Ridge Immortal Treasury!" Yan Qihu said with narrowed eyes.

Xu Yan waved his hand and smiled. "My cultivation is still too shallow. If I enter the Immortal Treasury, I fear I may not come back out."

Yan Qihu looked at Xu Yan. He had known him for half a year now—why had his temperament suddenly become so much more steady? Without thinking too much about it, he continued, "Brother Xu, why not come with me to Dragon Whisker Ravine and broaden our horizons? I hear a True Person from the Divine Sect will arrive there today!"

"I was thinking the same."

He had heard from an inn attendant that an expert of the Divine Sect would come to preside over the grand formation. It would be good to go and see.

As he spoke, Yan Qihu directly grabbed Xu Yan by the arm. Gale-force Mystic Qi rose beneath his feet once more, whipping up a cloud of dust as they shot away!

Dragon Whisker Ravine lay in the front stretch of the Dragon Spine Mountain Range. It had earned its name because two waterfalls hung down like dragon whiskers.

Dragged along by Yan Qihu, Xu Yan reached its vicinity in no more than the time it took an incense stick to burn.

From afar, they saw two thousand-zhang cliffs standing like heavenly chasms across the earth, piercing into the clouds in towering majesty. A waterfall poured down from each cliff top, its tremendous force like rolling thunder that deafened the ears!

Between the cliffs lay a vast lake spanning more than ten li, its depths unfathomable. The lake water was bluish-gold. The waterfalls cascaded into it with a crashing roar, splashing up countless waves.

Xu Yan and Yan Qihu flew over and landed on a slab of green stone. Looking around, they saw nothing but densely packed figures, and the clamor was endless!

Groups of three or five stood together. Some were disciples of great clans in splendid robes, surrounded by attendants. Others were lone independent cultivators, holding swords as they leaned against rocks. Xu Yan also saw quite a few Demon Cultivators whose transformations were incomplete.

Before ancient primordial times, the Patriarch of the Taiyuan Divine Sect had received guidance from a great power of the Demon Race. Thus, after founding his sect, he had accepted several true disciples from the Demon Race. The Demon Cultivators who could appear here were clearly their descendants. Their standing within the Divine Sect was extraordinary, and no one dared provoke them.

Yet no matter how powerful their identity or background, the rules established by the Patriarch could not be crossed. To become a true disciple of the Divine Sect, one had to pass through the Dragon Ridge Immortal Treasury!

"So many people?" Xu Yan sighed casually. A rough count put their number at no fewer than ten thousand, and Daoists continued arriving from behind.

Yan Qihu said gravely, "This is only the beginning. Whenever the Immortal Treasury opened in previous years, twenty or thirty thousand people gathered within the first three days. Yet only a few thousand ultimately emerged from the Immortal Treasury. As great waves sift the sand, not one in ten remains."

Xu Yan fell silent.

As they spoke, a disturbance suddenly broke out at the front of the crowd.

"Look, seniors from the Hundred Academies!"

Xu Yan looked in the direction of the cry. On an ancient stone Dao Field a hundred zhang wide on the eastern side of the great lake, dozens of streaks of light descended in succession.

The newcomers were all middle-aged men wearing green crowns and white robes, their auras calm and steady.

"They are Daoists from the Upper Three Academies."

"The leader should be Daoist Master Qingmu, the seal-holder of Chongxu Academy."

"Seniors from Wanxiang Academy have come as well!"

Immediately afterward, several dozen more streaks of light arrived and descended upon the Ancient Dao Field on the western side of the lake. They wore black crowns and red robes—the Daoist Masters of Wanxiang Academy.

Upon the two Dao Fields, the Daoist Masters took their seats. Some spoke quietly, their gazes occasionally sweeping toward the gate between the thousand-zhang cliffs, as though awaiting something.

Before long, a rumbling sound of wind and thunder came from the horizon.

The heavy clouds began to part silently, like the sea receding at low tide!

The sound was extremely distant at first, faint and barely discernible, but in an instant it was already close at hand.

Everyone present was startled and raised their heads in unison. In the distant sky, clouds billowed like waves as a colossal palace pavilion suddenly burst through them!

"What is that?!"

Someone exclaimed.

The palace pavilion was carved with dragons and painted with phoenixes, its ancient aura extraordinary as it glimmered with faint golden radiance in the afterglow of the setting sun.

The pavilion had four tiers, with soaring eaves and intricate brackets. A golden bell hung beneath every eave corner, swaying gently in the wind. Purple aura rose in curling clouds around the structure, and within the mist, shooting stars could faintly be seen streaking past, as though an entire night sky had been engraved upon it!

The palace pavilion did not hang alone among the clouds. Four smaller pavilions stood in the four directions, guarding the main pavilion like stars surrounding the moon.

The five remaining palace pavilions formed an array as they approached slowly. Wherever they passed, heavy clouds automatically rippled apart to either side, as though heaven and earth themselves were making way!

"This is... the Divine Sect's ceremonial conveyance!"

A disciple of a great clan cried out in shock from the crowd.

Before his words finished, the five palace pavilions had arrived at Dragon Whisker Ravine. Bearing rolling clouds in their wake, they hovered above the thousand-zhang cliffs.

Before the terrace of the main pavilion stood a graceful woman, proud and aloof. Her features could not be seen clearly.

Her purple robes snapped in the wind. Her raven-black hair was piled high like a waterfall, and beneath the contrast of her black Daoist crown, her neck was white as congealed cream. Her figure was exquisite, her legs long and slender, like a treasure sculpted by heaven and earth.

A map of the stars of the heavens was engraved upon her purple robes. It flickered faintly with every breath, brightening and dimming as though echoing the stars beyond the sky.

One of the five great Dharma Kings of the Taiyuan Divine Sect—the Zhou Tian Ziwei Dharma King.

"Greetings, Dharma King!"

On the Dao Fields beside the great lake, the Daoist Masters of both academies rose together and bowed with clasped hands, not daring the slightest negligence.

Xu Yan and the other ten thousand cultivators also lowered their heads slightly. Though this True Person of the Divine Sect did not deliberately exert pressure, at her level of cultivation, every breath could stir wind and thunder. Xu Yan and the others were merely at the Qi Exhalation and Pulse Opening realms—how could they be mentioned in the same breath as her? They did not even dare breathe loudly.

For a time, the vast Dragon Whisker Ravine fell utterly silent, leaving only the unceasing roar of the thousand-zhang waterfalls.