Taiqing Palace

Laoshan had many palaces and temples.

For thousands of years, Qi Practitioners had dined on rosy clouds and drunk dew there, founding sects and establishing schools.

Among the Daoist sects of Great Jing, aside from Qingcheng, Laoshan stood supreme.

The highest rank was a palace, followed by a temple, then shrines and convents.

White Crane Temple, where the Innate Grandmaster Xuan Qingzi resided, belonged to the Upper Clarity Palace lineage. One could imagine that Upper Clarity Palace had at least one Innate True Person, perhaps more than one.

Zhou Yi had not come seeking revenge or causing trouble. After using evasion techniques all the way there, he revealed himself before the gates of Upper Clarity Palace.

"Chixiao of the Kunlun Sect has long admired the name of Upper Clarity Palace and has come to pay a visit."

Zhou Yi's voice carried for miles as he released the aura of an Innate Grandmaster, drawing out the true Daoist cultivators within the palace.

Upper Clarity Palace was not merely a sacred cultivation ground; it also welcomed pilgrims and believers from all directions to burn incense and pray for blessings. However, those who received ordinary visitors were not True Persons of cultivation.

A moment later, a Daoist descended from the sky.

He looked to be in his twenties or thirties, with his hair casually tied in a bun, a washed-faded Daoist robe, a fly-whisk tucked in his arms, and hemp sandals on his feet. No matter how one looked at him, he was not dressed to welcome guests.

Yet this Daoist's bearing was no weaker than Zhou Yi's. He was clearly already an Innate True Person.

At Zhou Yi's level of cultivation and status, he no longer cared about mundane expectations. Throwing open the gates with drums and fanfare would have been far too noisy and vulgar.

How many people in the world could be received personally by an Innate Grandmaster? It also showed Upper Clarity Palace's attitude. At the very least, they were not hostile.

"This humble Daoist is Xuan Lingzi. The Grand Tutor's name is like thunder in my ears. By coincidence, several fellow cultivators are discussing the mysteries of the Dao atop the mountain. Please follow me."

After speaking, Xuan Lingzi flew away through the air. He was incredibly fast and supremely graceful. It was Upper Clarity Palace's secret Qi Manipulation Method, and there was clearly some intent to test him.

Xuan Qing Zi was Xuan Lingzi's junior brother. Though competing for the position of Grand Tutor in the capital had been Xuan Qing Zi's own choice, it had also represented Upper Clarity Palace's honor.

"This humble Daoist shall respectfully accept."

Zhou Yi's figure flickered as he used the Earth Evasion Technique.

The Five Elements Evasion Techniques complemented one another. The Earth Evasion Technique alone was no weaker than Xuan Lingzi's, and with the power of the Five Elements' mutual generation added to it, its speed had gained a trace of supernatural profundity.

Unfortunately, the Five Elements Evasion Techniques were an innate gift of the spirit corpses and could not be recorded in the Gateway to Myriad Wonders. Otherwise, no matter how much Origin Zhou Yi had to spend, he would have raised them to perfection and roamed freely beneath the heavens.

Taiqing Peak.

Five people sat cross-legged atop the mountain.

Yan Chixia and Xuan Qing Zi were among them.

The Daoist seated at the head had silver hair and striking features. He sat cross-legged atop a jade Eight Trigrams disc.

There was also an old woman holding a dragon-headed staff, with one green and one yellow small gourd hanging from it.

The last was dressed as a scholar, yet a Thick-backed Broadsword hung at his waist as he sat casually upon a Greenstone.

The Silver-haired Elder smiled. "Fellow Daoists, instead of discussing the Dao, why not guess which of the two will arrive first?"

Chi Xiazi had a fiery temperament and never admitted defeat. He immediately gave his verdict. "My junior brother entered the Dao through martial arts. His lightness skill is unmatched in the world, and he has comprehended the Swift Sword Intent Realm. He will certainly arrive first."

At the level of Qi Induction into Body, the Qi Manipulation Method held no advantage over lightness skills in terms of speed alone.

The amount of True Essence in one's body and the sparse Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy both limited the Qi Manipulation Method.

After using spiritual energy to temper their bodies, many cultivators would also train in one or two top-tier lightness skills. They often traveled on foot as well.

Cultivators who entered the Dao through martial arts possessed a great advantage in both combat and speed.

Xuan Qing Zi snorted coldly. His face was pale at the moment. When fleeing for his life last year, he had consumed his blood essence to use Lightning Escape, and he had yet to recover his vitality.

"My senior brother is most skilled in the Upper Clarity Six Imperial Methods. His Qi Manipulation Method is unrestricted by terrain. He will definitely reach the summit first."

The silver-haired old woman nodded, agreeing with Xuan Qing Zi's judgment.

The other four all turned to look at the scholar swordsman. He too had entered the Dao through martial arts; one had attained the pinnacle of swordsmanship, the other unmatched saber skill.

"He is already here!"

"Who?"

"Fellow Daoist Chixiao."

The Thick-backed Broadsword at the scholar swordsman's waist hummed, then flew from its sheath and landed in its master's hand.

Fast!

Incredibly fast!

Even though everyone present was an Innate True Person, they saw only a flash of white light.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang...

After a series of saber and sword collisions, two figures could be seen: one in a dark blue Daoist robe, the other in a scholar's long gown.

"Excellent swordsmanship!"

The scholar swordsman abruptly withdrew and landed back on the Greenstone. The Thick-backed Broadsword at his waist was already sheathed.

"Fellow Daoist, your saber skill is exquisite. This humble Daoist is inferior."

The True Essence sword in Zhou Yi's hand burst apart. It had been unable to match the sturdiness of the Thick-backed Broadsword.

The Thick-backed Broadsword looked like an ordinary saber, but it was forged from some unknown material. Zhou Yi's True Essence sword, capable of cutting iron like mud, could not leave even the slightest mark on it.

Zhou Yi had suffered from the disadvantage of his weapon. If the two truly fought to the death, they could battle for days and nights without determining a victor.

"May I ask where Fellow Daoist is from? I have not ventured into the martial world for decades and know little of its heroes."

"The Lingnan Song Family. Song Xiaoyi."

Zhou Yi suddenly understood. The Lingnan Song Family was the only family in Jiangnan that could stand alongside the Immortal Wine House. It was hardly strange for them to have an Innate saber master.

Yan Chixia wore a smug expression and burst into laughter. "See? I was right, wasn't I? Junior brother, come over quickly. I sought you out several times, but you were always in seclusion. A person only lives for a hundred and fifty years. Wouldn't it be a waste to spend it all in seclusion?"

Suddenly.

The Silver-haired Elder frowned and looked toward an open patch of ground not far away.

"What demon dares spy upon Upper Clarity Palace!"

As he spoke, a gigantic True Essence palm several zhang wide, like a small mountain, slammed toward the ground.

"Senior, stop!"

Zhou Yi's expression changed. That was where the Five Elements Spirit Corpses were hiding. If they were slapped to death, would all his previous efforts not be wasted?

He moved to block the True Essence palm while controlling the Five Elements Spirit Corpses to flee far away.

Boom!

Zhou Yi felt as though he had been struck by a small mountain. He flew back dozens of zhang and could not stop himself from coughing up blood.

Damn—this was the foundation of a Daoist sect? He must be an old monster who has cultivated for at least a hundred years!

With such abundant True Essence, why would he even need to cultivate techniques? There would be no need for Magical Artifacts either. He could simply condense his True Essence and crush everything in his path!

Zhou Yi hurriedly calmed the chaotic True Essence within him and repaired his damaged meridians.

"Old Daoist Zhengyang, what are you trying to do?"

Yan Chixia shot into the air, his voice stern as the Xuanyuan Sword bloomed with boundless radiance.

"Senior brother, I believe the Daoist has misunderstood."

As Zhou Yi spoke, he beckoned, and five gaunt figures emerged from the ground.

Their builds were no different from ordinary people's, but their faces were strange.

One had an earthy yellow complexion and honest features, holding a yellow command flag.

One had an ink-black complexion and a cold expression, holding a black compass.

One had a pale golden complexion and stern features, holding a white fly-whisk.

One had an indigo-blue complexion and venomous eyes, holding a green ruyi scepter.

The final one was the strangest. His head bore Buddhist precept scars, his face was fiery red, anger lingered on his face, and he held red prayer beads.

"They are actually Five Elements Spirit Corpses. Fellow Daoist, your fortune is truly remarkable!"

Zhengyangzi was widely experienced and immediately recognized the identities of the five corpses. A strange gleam appeared in his eyes.

Finding one or two Five Elements Spirit Corpses could be attributed to good fortune, but the Fire Spirit Corpse had reversed yin and yang. Rare was not enough to describe it; it was a wondrous treasure of heaven and earth.

"This old Daoist was rash. Let this bottle of Pills for Cultivating Origin be a gift to Fellow Daoist."

Zhou Yi accepted the spiritual pills. Once he learned their properties, he could not help but marvel at Old Daoist Zhengyang's generosity.

None of the three Pill Recipes Zhou Yi had obtained from the imperial family could compare to the Pill for Cultivating Origin.

A first-rank spiritual pill, the Pill for Cultivating Origin, came ten to a bottle, and a single bottle was worth as much as a Spirit Stone.

What lavish generosity!