The Celestial Phenomena churned, emerald hues drifting and vermilion flowing.
After paying their respects, the two left the front hall, crossed the covered walkway, and entered the rear courtyard.
At a glance, the layout was remarkably intricate. The square courtyard contained a refectory, guest rooms, a kitchen, and an Elixir Chamber. In its most prominent position stood a Scripture Repository.
This ancient temple was a sparrow that, small though it was, had all five vital organs.
From its layout, Jiang Yang could glimpse something of the Ancient Cultivators' daily lives. It seemed their lives had held more than cultivation alone, with a touch of hearth smoke and everyday warmth.
Meditation cushions were arranged in orderly rows in the refectory. The two stepped inside, looking around curiously.
Morning exercises, cultivation, listening to the Dao, refining Pills, expounding the teachings—though not a single figure remained, they caught a glimpse of the contented ease that had once filled this place.
Time was pressing, and neither could stay to ponder things at leisure. They had no choice but to take a pragmatic approach, viewing the flowers from horseback. Finding nothing of value, they soon withdrew.
The guest rooms that followed offered little of interest either. A stale air permeated everything, and the two quickly passed them by.
The Elixir Chamber.
This was a place of real importance, one Jiang Yang and Tai Pei'er would never miss.
Once inside, they found a quiet chamber within the temple, hardly magnificent, yet possessed of its own order and tranquil solitude.
Two rows of Medicine Cabinets stood on the left. On the right was a basin roughly a foot wide, while an Alchemy Platform built entirely of blue jade occupied the center.
In a corner stood a resting couch and a meditation cushion, presumably where an alchemist had