Purple Mansion Realm Changes

Purple Mansion Realm, nourishing the Divine Soul.

Lu Qing opened his eyes, and the Divine Soul figure opened its eyes as well. Yet compared to Lu Qing's physical eyes, the eyes of his Divine Soul were no longer merely a pair of eyes. They resembled profound patterns of heaven and earth engraved within, mysterious as an abyss.

Lu Qing's thoughts stirred.

The originally boundless white void within the Purple Mansion Realm immediately began to change.

The white haze dispersed, and the scene before him abruptly shifted. Silver waterfalls splashed down mountain cliffs, while the sun hung high overhead, bathing all beneath it in a vast, brilliant golden radiance.

At that moment, the Divine Soul figure sat cross-legged atop the waterfall cliff, endless purple aura and spiritual light drifting around him.

It turned out that with a shift of thought, Lu Qing had fashioned the Purple Mansion Realm into a space not much different from where he currently cultivated.

Only, there was now an extra waterfall. Its waters rushed with a constant roar, yet they could not disturb the stillness of his Divine Soul.

Between stillness and motion, it seemed as though some law of the Dao was resounding.

Lu Qing had made this arrangement instinctively, and a hazy flash of inspiration once again passed through his mind.

It was simply too swift. He failed to grasp it.

But it didn't matter.

His mind returned to reality.

Some dust remained on his body from where the lightning had struck. With a hand seal, the Cleansing Art immediately wiped away the few wisps of dust clinging to him.

He sensed the changes within his Dantian. It had expanded dozens of times over, and the lake had become an ocean of Spiritual Power.

Even his pupils had changed. Though he had not specifically cultivated any Pupil Technique, once he had truly stepped into the Purple Mansion Realm, the space between heaven and earth looked different in his eyes.

Before, he saw mountains as mountains and water as water. Now, Lu Qing had reached the point where mountains were no longer mountains, and water was no longer water.

Within the natural world, within every stream and every tree, lay the principles governing heaven and earth. Lu Qing had caught his first glimpse of them in the scene he had seen when his Divine Soul left his body.

His Divine Consciousness spread out, and everything in Spirit Terrace County fell into his gaze.

Those hushed whispers also drifted into his ears on the wind.

"Entering the Purple Mansion Realm in a year—not bad." Lu Qing was in high spirits. More strength meant greater ability to protect himself. He only hoped to crush his opponents utterly, not find himself defeating the strong while weak.

"It's time to plant that tea tree of mine."

Clear tea refreshed the heart and mind. Leaving it in an empty courtyard would only add the melancholy of having no one to drink tea with.

Lu Qing had first been busy with the Golden Light Formation, then entered seclusion to cultivate. He had actually forgotten that he had brought that tea tree with him.

Fortunately, a month wasn't long.

Lu Qing walked out of the cultivation chamber.

Green Bamboo Courtyard was a two-section residence. Beside the bluestone path in the front courtyard, a rockery and flowing water lay to the right. On the other side was an empty patch of spiritual soil, perfectly situated in a corner by the entrance.

Lu Qing flicked his sleeve, and the tea tree was planted precisely in place. Its green leaves remained full and lustrous, though they still could not compare to the moist, glossy sheen they had possessed while growing on the mountain.

With a thought from Lu Qing, rather than forming the hand seals for the Minor Cloud Rain Technique, he drew roughly three scoops of water from the stream flowing past the neighboring courtyard. Clear water descended from above, and because it appeared within the range of the Spirit-Gathering Formation, the surging spiritual energy from his recent breakthrough also flowed into the tea tree.

The soil immediately became moist, and the tea leaves unfurled, fresh, tender, and supple, releasing wisps of delicate fragrance.

There was also a jade table and jade stools in the front courtyard specifically for receiving guests and drinking tea.

The aura of Lu Qing's freshly advanced cultivation level gradually withdrew amid these gentle, trickling movements.

Meanwhile, within Spirit Terrace County.

Almost everyone saw the Lightning Tribulation disperse and a rainbow appear in the sky.

"He made it through."

"Th-this... how long has it even been..."

"Doesn't that mean our garrison cultivator is a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator now?!"

It had to be said that this Lightning Tribulation had opened the eyes of many Rogue Cultivators.

Spirit Prefecture itself was remote, and Spirit Terrace County was remote even among remote places.

Nestled against mountains and rivers, it could be considered a flourishing place within a hundred-mile radius. Yet few had ever truly encountered a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator. Only by going to New Peace Prefecture City might one perhaps meet one.

But New Peace Prefecture was extremely far from Spirit Terrace County. Many people might spend their entire lives never venturing farther than their own little patch of land.

There was even less need to speak of other prefectures.

"The Purple Mansion Realm..."

The gazes of some lineage cultivators were exceedingly complicated.

They were no longer young, but after seeing Lu Qing, everyone had to admit that this garrison Immortal master from Profound Heaven Dao Academy was truly young.

He wasn't some ancient monster.

They had spent three years with the previous garrison cultivator, Chen Sheng, but even so, he had not been a teenager. On the contrary, without cultivation, among mortals he would have been old enough to be someone's great-grandfather.

"A favored child of heaven—nothing could surpass this."

"Someone, prepare a gift and send people to visit the Immortal master."

"Quick, quick, quick! Open the treasury and bring out that thing I stored away last year!"

"Master, that's..."

"I told you to go, so hurry up."

For a time, those who came to their senses no longer remained immersed in shock.

Instead, they hastily prepared gifts and sent them to Immortal Master Lu, the Purple Mansion Realm cultivator who had just broken through.

The Bai Clan, Zhao Clan, Li Clan, and Chen Clan all did the same.

Why could they stand firm in Spirit Terrace County? One reason was that their clans had always maintained good relations with the garrison cultivators. Garrison cultivators would eventually leave, and their assessments were crucial to whether a clan had the ability to become the foremost power of a county.

Lu Qing's Divine Sense stirred, and news of activity at the Cloud Mist Formation reached him.

These people did not dare touch the formation, nor did they shout and clamor. They simply prepared their clan congratulatory gifts and stated their purpose at the foot of the mountain.

They believed Lu Qing would hear them.

"Immortal Master, these are the congratulatory gifts we have presented. Since you have served as the garrison cultivator of Spirit Terrace County, the county has remained safe and peaceful this past month. To express our gratitude, we have prepared a humble gift, and we hereby congratulate you, Immortal Master, on longevity upon the Immortal Path!"

Bai Shoucai arrived with his eldest son.

"Come up."

After breaking through the threshold, Lu Qing had become somewhat more free and easy.

Once the group came up, they felt the spiritual energy along the way was incomparably dense—denser even than at the foot of the mountain.

Such mastery of formations is far greater than that of many so-called formation masters in the county.

The Bai Clan's eldest young master followed his father up the mountain, feeling the spiritual energy around him and thinking enviously.

Even his family's Spirit-Gathering Formation could not compare to this place.

Lu Qing emerged, the mountain wind blowing past him without stirring his robes.

The Bai Clan's eldest young master finally saw this Immortal master up close.

A young man stepped forth, youthful in appearance, his aura ethereal and natural. Had he not seen him with his own eyes, he would not even have known from his senses that the other had already arrived before him.

"Congratulations, Immortal Master, on entering the Purple Mansion Realm. May your longevity flourish and prosper."

Hearing this, the young garrison cultivator smiled. He appeared casual and mild, without the oppressive bearing of a great cultivator.

Yet there was an invisible majesty about him that made others dare not offend him.