At dawn.
At the summit of Peach Blossom Mountain.
Zhou Yi leaned against a peach tree, taking a brief rest. His green daoist robe was damp with dew, yet he felt no chill at all.
More than a dozen volumes of Daoist classics lay scattered nearby. When the breeze blew, their pages rustled as they flipped.
The peach tree behind him was strange. Its upper half was charred black, while its lower half was lush with branches and leaves.
The other peach trees had already passed their flowering season, but this one was still in full bloom.
A mountain sparrow landed on the peach tree and watched the human with curious eyes.
"Who first awoke from the great dream? I alone knew it all my life!"
Zhou Yi stretched, and his entire body crackled like popping beans.
Before the sun rose, Zhou Yi was already awake.
Even if he could not absorb the first wisp of Purple Mist between heaven and earth for cultivation, he could still temper his body beneath it.
Half a month had passed since his return to Blue Star. With the Peach Spirit constantly releasing dense wood spiritual energy, Zhou Yi's progress had been rapid.
Normally, body tempering required Origin to repair hidden injuries before one could quickly reach the realm of a Flawless Physical Body. Wood spiritual energy could not compare to Origin, but repairing the hidden injuries caused by body tempering was effortless for it.
Not only had he achieved success in body refinement, he had also saved up twenty points of Origin—enough to support the expenditure of vital energy and blood needed to condense Internal Force.
Zhou Yi cupped his hands toward the peach tree. "Greetings, Fellow Daoist Fangfei. This humble daoist has troubled you greatly. Please do not take offense."
The Peach Spirit's branches swayed, its mental fluctuations intense: I am offended! I am offended! Would you leave if I were?
Zhou Yi sat cross-legged atop Peach Blossom Mountain, facing the rising sun as he drew in Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy to temper his body.
Half a month ago, his parents had come to see the Peach Spirit. Unfortunately, their Divine Sense was not sensitive enough to understand its mental fluctuations at all.
If the Peach Spirit had not changed day by day, his parents would have thought Zhou Yi was lying.
"This little monster isn't fun at all. It doesn't even move. It'd be better to raise a cat or dog."
Those had been his parents' exact words. Having truly seen a monster, they only felt it was less impressive in person than in reputation.
Afterward, his parents cultivated the Primordial Chaos Stance and bought all manner of high-calorie supplements to sustain the consumption of Stance Training. That was one of Blue Star's advantages. Compared with resource-starved Great Jing, where eating meat while practicing stances was already a luxury for wealthy families, Blue Star could directly provide high-energy food.
After tempering his body for an hour, Zhou Yi finished his practice and began reciting Daoist scriptures left behind by the sages.
"Now, the Dao is born from nothingness, concealing all spirits beyond measure; the spirit condenses within emptiness, transforming through countless wonders without fixed form..."
His voice was crisp and resonant. With his powerful lung capacity, the chanting could be heard even from the mountainside.
When Gu Yu heard the chanting, he had originally planned to leave, but he turned to look toward the summit.
His girlfriend, Jiang Xiaozhai, thoughtfully said, "This small mountain is not a spiritual energy node, but since there is a daoist here, there is no harm in taking a look."
The two moved swiftly, covering several hundred meters of mountain trail in moments without even flushing or losing their breath.
When they reached the summit, they happened to see an exceptionally handsome young man reciting Daoist scriptures.
He had sword-like brows and starry eyes, a face like polished jade, and robes fluttering in the mountain breeze. He truly looked like an immortal.
The instant the young man turned and saw Gu Yu and Jiang Xiaozhai, a sharp glint flashed through his eyes. He took one step and crossed several yards.
His five fingers curled into claws.
Great Strength Eagle Claw Technique!
The tendons, bones, and flesh of his fingers contracted, becoming like steel bars without roots. One claw strike was enough to shatter stone tablets and split rocks.
For an instant, Gu Yu seemed to see a mighty eagle diving from the sky, with himself as its prey.
The handsome young man was Zhou Yi. However, after using the Bone Shifting Disguise Technique, he had grown slightly taller and thinner, and his face had become devastatingly handsome. Even if his parents stood before him, they would not recognize him.
The perfected Bone Shifting Disguise Technique was no less formidable than the three great forbidden arts.
After comprehending sword intent, Zhou Yi's martial arts had reached a realm where intent came before strength. Whenever he attacked, he first used his intent to suppress his opponent, weakening them before the fight even began.
"Courting death!"
Jiang Xiaozhai's willow brows shot up as she shouted. A bolt of lightning suddenly appeared.
"Damn—what a fierce girl!"
Zhou Yi's body seemed weightless as he drifted with the wind, easily evading the lightning while instead drawing another step closer.
One hand formed a palm.
Falling Flowers Palm.
More than a dozen palm shadows flashed out in an instant.
Gu Yu had already regained his senses. With a thought, a ball of blazing fire appeared from thin air and shot toward Zhou Yi, while he grabbed his girlfriend and hurried backward.
Attack as defense!
"Roar—"
Dragon Roar Tiger Howl Lion Roar Technique!
The flames hot enough to melt gold and refine iron were directly extinguished by the roar!
Gu Yu was thoroughly frightened. Shielding Jiang Xiaozhai behind him, he said, "Sir, we had no intention of intruding. If we have offended you, please forgive us."
The eagle claw and falling flower palm shadows were less than an inch from Gu Yu's head, and the force of the palm wind sent his long hair flying.
"Haha, this humble daoist is Chi Xiaozi of the Kunlun Sect. Upon seeing such fine talents, I could not resist the urge to test your skills."
Zhou Yi cupped his hands. "Please come this way. This is a wilderness retreat, so I have only a cup of plain tea to offer."
As he spoke, he turned and walked to the Peach Spirit. There was a tea table made of piled Greenstone, with only a teapot and teacups on it—no tea leaves or stove in sight.
Zhou Yi arranged three teacups and held up the teapot. "Fellow Daoist Fangfei, honored guests have arrived. Please lend me a pot of clear water and three peach leaves."
The Peach Spirit gave a displeased snort through its mental fluctuations, but it did not refuse. Its branches swayed, and three emerald-green peach leaves fell into the teapot.
From the tip of one peach branch, clear water began to flow with a splashing sound. In moments, it filled the entire pot.
Gu Yu and Jiang Xiaozhai exchanged a glance. Though both possessed supernatural abilities, they obediently sat before the tea table in the face of such strangeness and did not dare speak carelessly.
"You need not be afraid. This one happens to possess an innate fire spirit, so he can help boil a pot of water and save this humble daoist the trouble of starting a fire."
Gu Yu nodded. With a rub of his hands, a wrist-thick flame wrapped around the teapot.
Within only a few breaths, the tea began to boil.
Zhou Yi filled the cups for all three of them, and a rich, refreshing fragrance rushed to their noses.
"Excellent tea! Fellow Daoist Fangfei, how about the two of us go into business selling tea leaves? We would surely make a fortune."
The Peach Spirit's mental fluctuations trembled: You sell tea leaves! Your whole family sells tea leaves!
Gu Yu was the first to pick up his teacup and cautiously take a sip.
An extremely dense wood-type spiritual energy flowed into his body, nourishing his five viscera and six bowels.
The damage to his meridians caused by forcibly using his supernatural ability healed in an instant, and he vaguely felt the spiritual power within him grow stronger.
"A single cup of tea has such miraculous effects!"
Jiang Xiaozhai was much more straightforward. She raised her head and drained the cup in one gulp.
Zhou Yi refilled their cups and asked with a smile, "May I ask whether the two of you have masters?"
"No. Xiaozhai and I were originally ordinary college students. We suddenly awakened supernatural abilities and happened to set out together to explore the world."
"Do you know why you awakened supernatural abilities?"
Gu Yu hesitated for a moment. Grateful for the tea, he spoke in a very low voice. "We suspect that Blue Star may have undergone a Spiritual Energy Revival."
He was so cautious, as though afraid others might discover it.
Zhou Yi shook his head. "The Spiritual Energy Revival began three years ago. Why did no one else awaken, while only the two of you did? This humble daoist is merely an ordinary person and has not awakened any supernatural ability."
Jiang Xiaozhai said, "Please enlighten us, Daoist priest."
They had originally just been an ordinary college couple, but both had awakened supernatural abilities. One could use Fire Control, while the other could use Lightning Control.
At first, they had not been able to properly control their abilities and caused a minor incident. Even now, the police were still investigating their whereabouts.
They had long wondered what the true reason behind their awakenings was.
After exploring famous mountains and great rivers, they had guessed the secret of the Spiritual Energy Revival. That had thrilled them both, because they thought they had found the answer.
The person before them was undeniably powerful. If they truly fought to the death, their chances of victory would be less than thirty percent.
Gu Yu and Jiang Xiaozhai had held back just now, but they also knew clearly that the daoist had no intention of killing them.
"Of course I can answer your questions, but this is a secret of my sect. How could I casually reveal it to outsiders?"
Zhou Yi put on a hesitant expression, then said after a moment, "Unless you join the Kunlun Sect. Once you do, the sect's secrets can naturally be told to you."
"The Kunlun Sect?"
Gu Yu and Jiang Xiaozhai exchanged another look. Not long ago, they had explored the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Other than Buddhist sects, they had never heard of the Kunlun Sect.
"This humble daoist is a newly appointed elder of the Kunlun Sect. I received the sect's order to descend the mountain and travel the world. You two are exceptional talents, naturally qualified to enter my Kunlun Sect."
"As long as you join the sect, you may choose any one of the Thirty-Six Absolute Techniques. We guarantee to teach you until you master it!"
Zhou Yi smiled like a fish waiting to hook its prey.
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