Longevity Mountain, Five Villages Temple, Zhen Yuanzi

Xiao Teng set out with the Calabash Kids, first flying to the shores of the East Sea.

The shores of the East Sea had originally been Eastern King Duke's territory. He had held court there and ruled over the immortals.

But good times did not last. Di Jun rose to power with overwhelming force, his army pressing across the border and destroying Eastern King Duke. From then on, the shores of the East Sea became a prize in the Demon Race's pocket.

At this moment, it was clear that war had already broken out between the Demon Race and the Witch Clan, and the scale of the fighting was far from small.

As the Demon Race and Witch Clan established themselves one after another, the fortune of both races rapidly gathered, greatly enhancing the speed of their cultivation.

Countless members of the Witch Clan and Demon Race broke through their realms, producing no shortage of powerful experts.

Where the two sides clashed, spiritual energy ran wild and space trembled.

The Demon Race's overall strength was no weaker than that of the Witch Clan, but when it came to top-tier combat power, the Demon Race still fell short.

After all, the Witch Clan had the Twelve Ancestral Witches, while the Demon Race had only four Demon Emperors. Fortunately, Taiyi could rely on the Eastern Sovereign Bell to fight several opponents alone, narrowing the gap.

However, none of this had anything to do with Xiao Teng and his group.

Originally, they had planned to return to Mount Kongtong first for a look. But Mount Kongtong lay on the far side of Mount Buzhou. Crossing Mount Buzhou directly would make it easy for them to be caught up in the war between the two races, while taking a detour would leave them short on time.

Thus, they decided to wander around east of Mount Buzhou for now, then return to Mount Kongtong after visiting Purple Cloud Palace.

Through Er Wa's vision, Xiao Teng saw the situation at Mount Kongtong. Seeing Six-Eared Macaque diligently cultivating alongside Kong Xuan and Roc put his mind at ease.

East of Mount Buzhou was far stronger than the west. Spiritual energy here swirled thickly through the air, making it exceptionally suitable for cultivation. Naturally, there were far more living beings in the east as well.

Still, along the way, there were always some blind fools who attacked them. Their strength was simply too feeble, however, and the Calabash Kids dealt with them easily.

"Daddy, there seems to be a treasure over there!" Er Wa suddenly shouted excitedly.

"Where? Where?"

Hearing there was treasure, the other Calabash Kids instantly became like firecrackers set alight, full of energy and anticipation as they crowded around Er Wa.

"Over there, among the mountains twenty thousand li away, there's an extremely pure spiritual aura emanating from somewhere. It seems to be a congenital spiritual root, and it's no worse than the Five-Needle Pine."

Hearing this, Xiao Teng was immediately intrigued.

Could it be the Immortal Apricot, the congenital spiritual root that had yet to emerge?

If he could obtain another top-grade congenital spiritual root, that would be wonderful.

"Daddy, let's go take a look together," Third Baby suggested.

"Alright, let's go see."

After giving it some thought, Xiao Teng nodded and led the Calabash Kids in the direction indicated by Er Wa.

Before long, a sprawling mountain range, rolling endlessly with majestic grandeur, came into view.

The spiritual energy within the mountains was so dense that it was nearly comparable to Mount Buzhou.

Such an excellent place truly could conceal a congenital spiritual root.

"Wait, this seems to be Longevity Mountain."

Xiao Teng swept his gaze around and unexpectedly realized that this was Longevity Mountain, the site of Five Villages Temple.

"So that's why a top-grade congenital spiritual root appeared out of nowhere. We've arrived at Zhen Yuanzi's territory."

Xiao Teng suddenly understood. The top-grade congenital spiritual root Er Wa had spotted must be the famed Ginseng Fruit Tree.

"So it's Zhen Yuanzi. I know him!" Third Baby said.

Back at Purple Cloud Palace, the Calabash Kids had intercepted Zhen Yuanzi and Red Cloud. They could be considered to have met once before.

"Daddy, should we go pay him a visit?" Da Wa asked hesitantly.

After pondering for a while, Xiao Teng said, "Going there would be good. We can also explain what happened last time."

Zhen Yuanzi had extraordinary origins and held the Earth Book.

If he wished, he might not be unable to gather the living beings of the Primordial World and establish a great force like Eastern King Duke had.

Yet this great immortal had always kept a low profile. Whenever there was nothing to do, he secluded himself deep within Longevity Mountain, cultivating quietly and refusing to concern himself with worldly affairs.

To be honest, the Earth Book was indeed somewhat wasted in Zhen Yuanzi's hands.

"I'll take you all with me. Remember your manners, and don't lose your courtesy," Xiao Teng instructed, looking at each of the Calabash Kids in turn.

"Don't worry, Daddy, we know!" the Calabash Kids declared, thumping their chests.

Xiao Teng did not place much hope in their promises. Still, with him watching them, there should not be any major trouble.

Xiao Teng and the Calabash Kids leisurely flew toward Longevity Mountain without concealing their auras.

Thus, the moment they entered Longevity Mountain's territory, Zhen Yuanzi noticed them.

Dressed in a simple ancient Daoist robe, his face lean and refined, Zhen Yuanzi flew out to meet them.

"So it is Fellow Daoist Xiao Teng and the Calabash fellow Daoists. May I ask what brings you all to Longevity Mountain this time?"

Zhen Yuanzi's tone was not particularly warm. After all, he still remembered what had happened before.

Xiao Teng cupped his hands and said, "We have been traveling through the Primordial World and happened to pass by Longevity Mountain. Seeing how rich the spiritual energy is here, we wished to come and broaden our horizons."

"Fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi, it has been nearly two hundred thousand years since we parted at Purple Cloud Palace. Have you been well?"

"Thank you for your concern, Fellow Daoist. My days have been quite comfortable."

"Would it be possible to trouble Fellow Daoist for a cup of tea at your Daoist abode?" Xiao Teng asked.

Zhen Yuanzi was open-minded and free-spirited, not one to fuss over trifles. Hearing this, he slightly stepped aside and raised a hand in invitation, leading them into Five Villages Temple.

"Daddy, this place is so grand!" The Calabash Kids could not help exclaiming as soon as they reached the temple gates.

From the outside, Longevity Mountain appeared to be no more than a mountain rich in spiritual energy and beautiful scenery, with not the slightest trace of any Daoist temple.

Yet once they stepped inside, Five Villages Temple appeared like an immortal palace suddenly revealed, magnificent beyond measure. Every brick and tile of the temple blended as one with Longevity Mountain, as though it had naturally grown from the mountain itself. Hidden within the landscape, it was extremely difficult to discover unless one came close.

"Oh, I was wondering who it was. So it's you little ones!" A red figure flashed forth like a blazing flame. It was Red Cloud, Zhen Yuanzi's close friend.

Red Cloud wore a crimson robe and had a smile across his face, as though a spring breeze had brushed past.

"Fellow Daoist Red Cloud, it has been a long time," Xiao Teng said with a smile, cupping his hands in greeting.

"It certainly has been quite some time!" Red Cloud cheerfully looked over the Calabash Kids.

"Why haven't you little ones grown any taller yet?"

"You're the one who hasn't grown taller! We're young, understand?" The hot-tempered Si Wa immediately took offense, his little face flushing red as he shouted back.

"You're already several hundred thousand years old, and you still have the nerve to call yourselves young."

"When did you take human form, then?" Si Wa pressed.

Red Cloud thought for a moment before replying, "I don't remember. I only remember that when I took human form, the ferocious beast Shen Ni had only recently fallen."

"By that measure, you transformed earlier than I did, so naturally we're younger than you."

"That's true enough." Red Cloud replied with a smile, not the least bit annoyed. He only found these little ones exceedingly amusing.

"Alright, you all, stop talking."

"The children are mischievous. I hope Fellow Daoist Red Cloud will forgive them," Xiao Teng hurriedly apologized.

"It's nothing. These children are quite interesting and suit my taste well. Come, I'll show you around."

Red Cloud did not mind in the slightest. He led the Calabash Kids away first, and laughter rang out all along the way.