"Ascension Talisman?"
"The Upper Realm that immortals of this world traveled to after attaining the Dao actually truly existed."
Lin Xian stroked the golden Ascension Talisman thoughtfully. He could feel a force of guidance pulling at him, intending to take him to a vast and boundless great world.
How could he casually venture into an unknown and unfamiliar world? Who knew what the Upper Realm was like? What if it was even more dangerous than the Shrouding the Heavens Universe? Wouldn't he be doomed?
Lin Xian suppressed his restless urge to court death, put away the Ascension Talisman, and gradually concealed his figure. At the same time, he casually dispersed the heavenly phenomenon overhead bit by bit.
The traces of the Southern Heavenly Gate slowly faded away, yet the fanatical Otherworlders still refused to leave. It was as though remaining there would let them catch a whiff of immortal aura and ascend alongside him.
"Without immortal bones in this body, do not recklessly seek a True Immortal even if you encounter one."
The Old Celestial Master sighed softly and persuaded the fanatical Otherworlders to disperse.
Even the few who had gotten overly excited immediately calmed down when they recalled the Old Celestial Master's peerless bearing as he traded blows with an immortal.
Why was Zhang Zhiwei invincible in the mortal world? In the past, it was because he could fight—because no one beneath heaven could defeat him.
Now, it was because he could withstand several moves from an immortal!
Anyone with eyes could tell that aside from the final Thunder Method summoned by the Celestial Master Dharma Form, Immortal Lin had not fought seriously at all. It could not be considered a true contest; he had merely demonstrated the technique with calm composure.
Yet even so, the Old Celestial Master could still be called the number one person beneath immortals.
Many Otherworlders acquainted with the famous orthodox sects had their thoughts stirred. They quietly sought out the heads of major sects whose ancestors, like those of Tianshi Mansion on Mount Longhu, had produced immortals, probing them in secret.
"Say, Old Yang, does your sect have that... you know, that sort of thing..."
"Old Sun, could it be that your family..."
Several Otherworlders had blazing eyes, yet they asked with utmost caution.
The leaders of several great orthodox sects suddenly exchanged glances. Then, as though of one mind, they all smiled. "Cannot be spoken of. Cannot be spoken of."
Whether our sects have any hidden trump cards, you'll have to guess.
The head of the Shangqing Sect was even more cryptic. Standing with his hands behind his back, he sighed, "Red blossoms, white lotus roots, green lotus leaves—the three teachings were originally one family."
That immediately drew countless scornful looks. You were part of the Dao Sect, so why were you pretending to be underworld folk?
Red blossoms, white lotus roots, and green lotus leaves referred to the Hongmen, White Lotus Sect, and Green Gang—three groups of Otherworlders who roamed the underworld. What did that have to do with Mystic Sect Daoists?
Facing wave after wave of mocking gazes, the Shangqing Sect's leader merely smiled without speaking. At times like this, all he needed to do was smile.
It was like asking certain countries whether they possessed nuclear weapons.
Weapons were instruments of misfortune, used by sages only when they had no choice.
Possessing them without using them was the greatest deterrence.
While everyone was still immersed in the joy of ascension, the superbly acting Old Celestial Master had already noticed several details. He waved a hand and summoned Zhang Chulan over to ask about Lin Xian's whereabouts.
"You're saying Immortal Lin didn't ascend?" Zhang Chulan was stunned at first, then quickly reacted. Thoughtfully, he said, "If Immortal Lin didn't leave, then he must have gone to find Sister Bao'er."
"Feng Baobao." The Old Celestial Master pondered for a moment, then patted Zhang Chulan on the shoulder and smiled faintly. "Good child, go with your Martial Uncle Tian later."
"Got it, Grandmaster!" Zhang Chulan shamelessly seized the chance to cling closer. After this battle, the Old Celestial Master's golden thigh had grown even thicker. His invincibility in the mortal world was no empty boast.
"Just like Huaiyi." Zhang Zhiwei shook his head with a smile. Then he moved, transforming into a streak of lightning that flew toward Mount Longhu's guest courtyard.
All the Otherworlders had gone to the front mountain to watch the battle and ascension. The courtyard was now empty, with only two people seated beneath the shade of a tree.
One was the vacant-looking Feng Baobao. The other was Lin Xian, who was supposedly said to have ascended.
"Celestial Master, you've come." Lin Xian smiled, seeming to have sensed his arrival long ago. A third meditation cushion had been prepared beneath the tree's shade.
"Has your Divine Sense already grown this powerful, Master?" Zhang Zhiwei asked in surprise, finding Lin Xian ever more unfathomable.
Lin Xian simply smiled without answering. Of course not. Mount Longhu stretched for hundreds of miles; his Divine Sense was not that powerful yet. He had only prepared this in advance to show off. If Zhang Zhiwei did not come, then so be it. If he did come, Lin Xian would have successfully impressed him.
"Please, Celestial Master, have a seat." Lin Xian invited Zhang Zhiwei to sit, and the two began discussing Immortal Cultivation.
Zhang Zhiwei was unwilling to let such a rare opportunity slip away. Taking the chance, he introduced the Otherworlders' qi-cultivation system to Lin Xian. It was a similar yet different path of cultivation.
Whether in cultivation methods, realms, or the divine abilities derived from them, it differed from the Shrouding Method.
Cultivators first had to undergo Hundred-Day Foundation Building and Qi Accumulation and Body Tempering, filling the three hundred and sixty-five major apertures of the human body with true qi. Once their qi channels were fully opened and their physical bodies initially tempered, they would turn to cultivating the visceral and aperture points.
After Qi Accumulation reached completion, they would exhale a breath of turbid air and return to the state of a newborn infant. They would then cultivate their Inner Landscape, opening the innate divine apertures. There were nine steps in total.
They were the Nine Apertures: the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, front yin, and rear yin. Once all Nine Apertures were opened and the inner world was complete, the next stage was the convergence of inner and outer, the Outer Landscape stage where one manifested divinity before others.
It could be said that Aperture Opening and the Outer Landscape were entirely different stages.
The early stage was merely unremarkable martial arts and supernatural abilities. Once one entered the Outer Landscape, undergoing a qualitative leap, one could wield the power of heaven and earth. That was true Immortal Cultivation.
"Hundred-Day Foundation Building, innate Nine Apertures, the Outer Landscape realm..." The more Lin Xian listened, the more something felt wrong. His expression became increasingly rigid as he cautiously asked, "After the Outer Landscape comes the Dharma Body?"
"Master, you also know of the Three Dharma-Body Realms?" Zhang Zhiwei was somewhat surprised. Only the heads of major sects knew such secrets. The current Otherworlders were still ignorant and confused. Could Lin Xian have inherited the legacy of some immortal from Ancient Antiquity?
"Hahaha..." Lin Xian laughed loudly to conceal his guilt.
Damn it, The Sage Who Transcended Samsara? You said it was The Outcast, you scammer of a system!
This world was an affiliated universe of the True World from The Sage Who Transcended Samsara, one of the Myriad Realms. It did not exist independently.
System 10086's gloomy voice sounded. "The number one person beneath the Dao Fruit is also, in a sense, beneath one person."
To hell with you! Lin Xian cursed inwardly, then took a deep breath. He increasingly felt that he could not remain in this world.
No matter how dangerous the Ancient Desolate Forbidden Zone was, it was nowhere near as terrifying as The Sage Who Transcended Samsara.
Thus, Lin Xian hastily ended his conversation with the Old Celestial Master. With a long sigh, he said, "The higher-ups are urging me. Celestial Master, my time is short. We'll meet again in the Immortal Realm."
Before his words had even faded, Lin Xian activated the Time-Space Travel Ticket (round-trip ticket). A heavenly pillar immediately appeared above his head, and he ascended along it, transforming into white light and vanishing.
Zhang Zhiwei: ???
No, brother, you're really ascending?!
At the end of the heavenly pillar, as Lin Xian prepared to return to the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, he suddenly felt another force of guidance tugging at him.
Looking down, he saw that it was the golden Ascension Talisman in his arms.
Lin Xian immediately panicked. Looking toward the guiding force of the Shrouding the Heavens Universe, he revealed his Sea of Bitterness and declared righteously, "Big brother, help me out. I'm one of us!"
"Don't be fooled by the fact that I'm a transmigrator. I've long since become a Shrouding the Heavens native—I even registered in the Primordial Ancient Realm."
"Look, this is the Sea of Bitterness the Desolate Heaven Emperor helped me activate. It's top-notch, a Dao Seed unique to our Nine Heavens and Ten Earths."