White Cicada upon the Ram (two chapters in one)

"Chi Sui, you've killed enough of the Yang Family's people, and vented your anger. This is just a trivial matter. You killed my Pivot Court disciples without even knowing the facts, and now you want to use righteousness to pressure me?"

"You have been spreading the 'Wandering Gold' cultivation Method Formula under the jurisdiction of my Azure Ram Temple, encouraging people to Blood-Consuming Cultivation for cultivation. Not only that, your disciple's Blood Qi is not pure either. Such a person Blood-Consuming Cultivation and cannibalism deserves to die. How can you talk about righteousness?"

"Oh? If that's the case, then I've eaten people too. Are you going to kill me as well?"

"It's not impossible."

Hearing the two voices, one in front and one behind, Li Fuchan's heart nearly jumped out of her throat.

If a fight breaks out, he'll be the first to die.

"Very well, I just hope that in this world you will never Blood-Consuming Cultivation, otherwise, if [Azure Ram] makes a move, you might become the first Purple Mansion to die by your own Immortal Sword."

No need to worry.

The world fell silent.

Li Fuchan still dared not raise his head.

"When you were ruthless and vicious in the battle of wits with Wei Po at Yang Xi Yuan, why don't you dare to raise your head now?"

The voice was much gentler, unlike its previous coldness. Li Fuchan hesitated for a moment, then slowly raised her head.

A figure clad in a tall crown and wide belt, wearing a white robe with wide sleeves, came into view.

He looked like a teenager, maybe sixteen or fifteen? Or seventeen or eighteen?

It doesn't matter anymore.

Those eyes, coated with a layer of white frost, seemed to reflect the moonlight, untouched by any dust, as they looked at Li Fuchan with a gentle smile.

Li Fuchan was taken aback. He never expected that the Purple Mansion Lord behind the Azure Ram Temple would look like this. He performed the ancient ritual of three bows and nine kowtows. "Your Lower Cultivator Li Fuchan pays respects to the True Lord."

The young True Lord nodded slightly and said, "Rise. Such formalities are not observed at Azure Ram Temple."

If I don't follow these formalities, why would I just stand by and watch you kowtow?

Li Fuchan naturally dared not utter these words aloud, and quickly stood up, his hands at his sides.

The young True Lord remained silent for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, he suddenly said, "Yang Houjia is quite a clever man. He has already identified seven disciples who cultivate 'Wandering Gold,' making a total of eight, including the one you killed. The one who is truly hiding hasn't made a move yet; we'll have to wait a while."

Upon hearing this, Li Fuchan was surprised and wondered, "Given this True Lord's ability to cultivate the Fate Divine Ability of Destiny, why doesn't he just go and snag a mere Great True Person like Yang Houjia?" Thinking of this, Li Fuchan suddenly frowned slightly.

He felt that he had been corrupted by Yang Xi Hong.

It's unbelievable that such words could come from his mouth, a mere Great True Person.

However, unlike Yang Xi Hong, he compared the Great True Person to the Purple Mansion Lord.

Compared to the Purple Mansion Lord, the so-called Great True Person are not even worthy of being called slightly larger ants, are they?

As for why this True Lord didn't actively try to seduce Yang Houjia, it's probably because of the True Lord in the Pivot Court.

Just as Li Fuchan was lost in thought, the young True Lord suddenly asked, "Do you know why I chose you?"

Li Fuchan had intended to give an ambiguous answer, or perhaps flatter the True Lord before him. But before he could speak, Chi Zi said, "Three chances. If you answer well, I'll grant you a fortuitous opportunity."

Upon hearing this, Li Fuchan hesitated for a moment before replying, "Lower Cultivator the Lesser Yin and refine Sword Qi, thus I can do my best for you, sir."

Chi Yu shook her head and said, "That's not right."

Li Fuchan licked his dry lips. He had never been so nervous before. Of course, he knew that things couldn't be that simple, so his first answer was "impossible," and then he would reveal his true answer in one fell swoop. This Purple Mansion Lord would surely be favored by him.

"Should I choose the Enchanted Sword or the Magic Robe?" He replied, "This junior is dull-witted, but possesses a cautious heart. I can wield it as a weapon, a sharp instrument. Looking across South of the Yangtze, among the Immortal Sect sects and Aristocratic Clan, apart from the direct Direct Lineage and Outer Scenery disciples of the Purple Mansion, none can surpass me. Please employ me, my lord; I will not fail you."

After saying this, Li Fuchan rolled up his sleeves and bowed respectfully again.

He covered his face with his large sleeves.

Chi Yu True Lord glanced at him with interest.

Unexpectedly, someone like Li Fuchan would make such bold statements, but he still shook his head and said calmly, "That's not right."

Li Fuchan hesitated for a moment, but dared not say anything more, nor did he dare to be presumptuous.

Seeing his silence, True Lord Chi smiled and said, "Won't you guess again? What a great fortuitous opportunity!"

Li Fuchan was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "This junior is useful."

True Lord Chiyu shook his head. "There are many useless people in the world. If I wanted to use them, even the useless could become useful. It's not like I absolutely have to use you."

Three guesses, and all three were wrong.

Li Fuchan didn't even dare to sigh; this fortuitous opportunity was never meant to be his.

"They say serving a ruler is like serving a tiger, and the Purple Mansion Lord is certainly the worst of them all. With a single open mouth, he could devour our very bones and blood. Yet I dared to be so audacious as to seek fortuitous opportunity from the ruler of the Purple Mansion Lord." "Now I have nowhere to retreat. I can't use the Tribulation Qi Tribulation Divination for now, otherwise, if the Tribulation Qi erupts, I'll be utterly destroyed. I don't know why this True Lord isn't using his Fate Divine Ability to lure me in; he probably has a deeper scheme. I must be extremely cautious; it might just be another Three Nothing affair. I am no longer what I once was, and this might not be fortuitous opportunity for me. However, I'm afraid I'll have to plan carefully..."

Li Fuchan was lost in thought and was about to say something when he suddenly felt a weight in his hand. He looked down and saw that a Jade Box and a long sword had appeared in his hand without him noticing.

The young True Lord said to himself, "A hundred years ago, the Immovable Wisdom King visited the Azure Ram Temple. What a shameless person! He was a hundred years older than me, yet he dared to call me 'senior.' I debated with him for three days, and in the end, I killed him with a single sword strike. Before leaving, he left behind a Magic Robe, which is this one."

"His clothes are named [Slender], and his sword is named [Ten-Thousand-Li Subduer]."

Li Fuchan stared blankly at the Magic Robe and Enchanted Sword in his hand.

True Lord Chi Sui glanced at him and laughed, "Of all the people in the world, across the vast expanse of the north and south, those who can catch my eye are few and far between. You are one of them. A person like you should not be lured by Divine Ability. Therefore, I wanted to see your true nature, but you are too well hidden. I have only seen the tip of the iceberg, which is a real pity."

Li Fuchan became increasingly confused; he couldn't understand what True Lord Chi Sui meant.

In his eyes, the world is sick; no one will be kind to others for no reason, let alone offer Magic Robe or Enchanted Sword. If someone does, they must have ulterior motives, or even that event itself is a trap.

And who is he?

He's been a scoundrel, a treacherous opportunist, a bully who preys on the weak and fears the strong—he's done it all. How could such a despicable person possibly catch the eye of the True Lord?

True Lord Chi Sui looked at him and asked, "You seem to rarely engage in quiet cultivation; most of your time is spent traveling the world, fighting and killing with others."

Li Fuchan thought for a moment. His current identity was that of an Overseas cultivator, specifically from the Western Sea. The Western Sea were known for their fierce nature; fighting and killing were commonplace. There was no need to hide it, so he nodded.

True Lord Chi Sui chuckled, "As a cultivator of Lesser Yin, you've traveled the world and experienced near-death situations more than once. The fact that you've never Blood-Consuming Cultivation or eaten people is why I hold you in high regard."

He didn't say anything more.

Li Fuchan stood there, stunned.

It's that simple—that you've never Blood-Consuming Cultivation or eaten people?

He considered the benefits, the gains and losses, and the calculations, but he never thought of such a simple reason, so simple that it seemed absurd.

"Whether you answered my three questions correctly or incorrectly, this thing should be yours."

"The laws of the Thunder Palace are inherently tyrannical, rewarding evil and not good. This world is corrupt, and mortals are reduced to ashes. Yet you cultivate the Lesser Yin, come from Overseas, travel the world, and fight endlessly, but you have never Blood-Consuming Cultivation or eaten people."

He paused, his gaze falling on the person before him as if looking at a lone pine tree growing in a desolate wilderness. His cold voice softened slightly before turning solemn again:

Such perseverance, unseen by the world, is witnessed by me; such virtue, unappreciated by the world, is appreciated by me.

He suddenly stepped forward, and the Jade Box in Li Fuchan's hand opened by itself, revealing Magic Robe inside. True Lord Chi Sui grabbed the hem of the Magic Robe, lifted it up, and with a gentle shake, unfolded it.

Then, True Lord personally draped the robe over Li Fuchan, who was stiff and Immovable.

True Lord Chi Sui said softly, "The world is like a great river flowing, and the masses of people only know how to go with the flow and be at the mercy of others. Among them, there are those who travel alone against the tide, refusing to rot with the crowd. Therefore, we must not teach you to die in the name of goodness."

It must be scheming, definitely scheming.

A great fear rose in Li Fuchan's heart, but this fear was unlike any she had felt before.

He once feared the Great Compassionate Venerable Wisdom King, for when the Wisdom King Attaining the Dao, the entire area within a hundred miles became Buddhist Land, and all were followers of Buddhism. He once feared the Three Nothing, those Divine-Power Evil Spirit and evil spirits who could erase his memories and, with just a few words, force him to become Four Aspects of Slaying Bandits, leaving him in a state where he dared not end his Tribulation Divination.

He was once terrified of Quan Yong, a true ruthless and ambitious man. Even though he knew a great deal of intelligence and had viewed the situation in the Northern Lands from the perspective of a cultivator, he was bound to be impressed by Quan Yong's character once he came into contact with him.

However, when faced with this young True Lord, the fear in his heart had no support whatsoever; it collapsed as soon as it arose.

Li Fuchan was still uneasy, so he glanced at the "Embrace-Lock Crouching Cicada" in his Sea of Qi again, but there was no trace of Divine Ability to fish for life.

True Lord Chi Sui ignored him and said, "Today you killed Yang Xi Yuan and defeated Wei Po, so you are now considered a disciple of my Azure Ram Temple. Come back with me now, or Changyin will not forgive you."

Li Fuchan originally intended to use his Lesser Yin to nominally join the Azure Ram Temple, but he never expected it to be so easy.

He was even favored by a Purple Mansion Lord, simply because he had never Blood-Consuming Cultivation or eaten people. True Lord Chi Sui used his Divine Ability to break through the Unseen and led Li Fuchan into the Unseen.

Since the Unseen was too dark to look directly at, True Lord Chi Sui used his Divine Ability to seal Li Fuchan's eyes.

Li Fuchan suddenly felt darkness before her eyes and could see nothing at all.

In just a few breaths, True Lord Chi Sui's voice rang in my ears. "We've arrived."

He opened his eyes and found himself at the foot of a majestic mountain.

The mountain in front of us is majestic but not precipitous, covered in lush greenery and dense forests. Clouds drift lazily across the mountainside, making the whole mountain appear deep and tranquil.

He followed True Lord Chi Sui up the steps, and after a short while, he saw a palace built against the mountain. The halls and pavilions were scattered and covered a large area, but they were not particularly magnificent or splendid.

With its green tiles and white walls, simple and elegant pillars, and copper bells hanging from the eaves swaying gently in the wind, occasionally emitting a few clear sounds, the place exudes a sense of tranquility and elegance. It doesn't seem like the ancestral home of the Immortal Sect, but rather more like a Daoist Daoist Temple hidden deep in the mountains.

He walked deeper and deeper until he reached the very end, where he saw a Daoist Temple. In the center hung an old plaque with three characters written on it:

Azure Ram Temple.

He was examining the plaque when he turned around, True Lord Chi Sui had vanished without a trace.

A woman appeared beside him, though he didn't know when she had arrived. She had slightly full cheeks, a fair complexion, and a gentle and lovely air about her. She wore a dark blue robe with wide sleeves, the style of which was loose and loose, with a dark blue base and overlapping ochre and pale yellow trim, and a plain white collar underneath, giving her a fairy-like appearance.

The disciples of both Azure Ram Temple and Pivot Court were dressed in a very ancient style, with clothing reminiscent of Ancient Era, giving them an air of otherworldly grace.

She bowed to Li Fuchan and said, "Wei Xinyun greets fellow Daoist."

Li Fuchan glanced at her and could tell that this woman had begun to replenish her "Nature Root," and that her cultivation level was actually higher than his own.

She was only willing to address him as "fellow Daoist" because True Lord Chi Sui had personally brought him here.

He returned the greeting with a bow. "This humble Daoist priest is Li Fuchan."

Wei Xinyun didn't say much, clearly having no intention of chatting with him. She took out a Storage Bag and handed it over. "The True Lord has already given instructions that Junior Brother will be cultivating at Azure Ram Temple from now on. The Spirit Object and Cultivation Resources needed for cultivation are all inside."

When Li Fuchan arrived at a cave abode dwelling in Azure Ram Temple, he opened his Storage Bag and saw that even the Lesser Yin Spirit Object for replenishing his Life Force were prepared. Even now, he still felt a sense of unreality.

"Has my luck finally turned around?"

Li Fuchan desperately wanted to perform a Tribulation Divination, and the current situation surprised him greatly.

Is the True Lord of Azure Ram Temple Azure Ram Temple so virtuous?

It's no wonder Li Fuchan is suspicious. Wasn't Quan Yong viewed the same way by others back then?

He's an honest man and doesn't talk much.

But what happened in the end?

Quan Yong fully demonstrated the good character he had accumulated over the decades. In the strategizing and counter-strategizing Tribulation Divination between him and Three Nothing, Quan Yong gained the upper hand and even managed to bring Qu Chengong and Gu Tong into his camp.

Isn't the current True Lord Chi Sui the same?

Maybe they're planning to build up their credit score with him so they can make a huge cash withdrawal later.

But on second thought, he didn't seem to have anything that True Lord Chi Sui could scheme against.

Unlike before, he now possesses the "Li Thunder" skill, has extraordinary Dao Attainment, and is involved in the major events in the Northern Lands, or has become entangled with the Wisdom King, thus attracting attention at every turn.

Currently, he is cultivating the Lesser Yin, and his cultivation level is low. In the eyes of others, the only thing worth praising is that his temperament is still quite decisive.

There was no need for True Lord Chi Sui to scheme against him, since he had not yet used his Divine Ability to try and ensnare Li Fuchan's Destiny.

Unable to figure it out for the time being, Li Fuchan did not dwell on her suspicions.

He once told Zhang Yuanqing that a cautious person is not necessarily cowardly. If one is constantly immersed in scheming and plotting, always feeling that someone is trying to harm them, how can such a person calmly cultivate themselves?

One can be cautious, but one must clearly understand what to be cautious about and what to be oblivious to.

"Since we're here, let's make the best of it."

Li Fuchan stepped into the cave abode and began his secluded cultivation.