If You Want to Talk, Come into the Mountain!
"No, I must return to the Lingxu Sect immediately." Kuang Tongyi's heart skipped a beat. This was no small matter. He could no longer stay in Great Zhou. He abandoned all his previous plans and turned to head towards Guixu Island.
He hadn't taken more than a few steps when he felt the Heavenly Sky Burning Tower on his body tremble slightly, then it broke free from his control and flew out into the air.
"This..."
Kuang Tongyi's expression changed, then he suddenly realized something. "Either the Ancestor has returned, or someone from the Upper Realm has come; otherwise, it would be impossible for them to take the Sky Burning Tower from me."
In the Lingxu Hall, Zhang Xuanlin made a hand Spirit Formula. He could sense the Sky Burning Tower flying rapidly towards him, but the Heaven Gate Token and the Hun Tian Rope did not react at all.
He frowned slightly. "Both of these treasures have fallen into enemy hands?"
Just as he was pondering, an elderly man dressed in a Daoist robe, with white hair and beard, strode into the main hall. Daoist Dao Fire ignited on his body as he stared intently at Zhang Xuanlin inside the hall and shouted in a deep voice, "Who are you, and why do you trespass into my Lingxu Sect?"
His name is Qi Qianli. Among the current Dao Fire Realm Cultivator in the Lingxu Sect, he is the oldest, so he is stationed in the Mountain to guard against any accidents.
Zhang Xuanlin naturally wouldn't make things difficult for his disciples, and smiled slightly, "Don't be impatient, I am not an enemy. If Ji Qingyun were here, he would call me Grandmaster."
As the invisible Qi spread out, Qi Qianli immediately sensed the pure spiritual Cultivation Method of the Lingxu Sect Qi from the man before him.
In North Spring Mountain.
Gu Yuan sank into the Mountain Observation, where endless Demonic Qi swirled on one side and a barren, fragile space lay on the other.
Two contrasting feelings formed in Gu Yuanqing's heart, as if his consciousness had been divided into two worlds along with North Spring Mountain.
He tried his best to maintain this state, searching for that elusive Xuanji within it.
By comparing this wisp of Daoist Dao Mechanism with the Spatial Art he gleaned from the Heavenly Fishing, new insights would always arise in his mind.
In this state, Gu Yuanqing felt a strange change in his Divine Sense, becoming increasingly sensitive to space, especially in the Floating World, where this feeling became clearer, and he could vaguely sense the changes in this space after it had been subjected to enormous pressure.
Gu Yuanqing realized that perhaps to unravel the secrets of this space, he would need to rely on the Floating World.
Within the Demon Realm, the space is too stable. Even with the Heavenly Fishing Method, the fluctuations in space are still difficult to perceive. Only in the Floating World can the power of the Divine Platform Realm be used to break through the space.
Gu Yuanqing intended to carefully experience the changes in space when the Floating World was on the verge of collapse.
There is no time limit to spiritual practice, and in the blink of an eye, another ten days or so have passed.
If it weren't for the Red Moon that rises every night, the occasional giant beast flying by outside, and the various scenes of people with bad tempers who start fighting at the drop of a hat, Gu Yuanqing would almost have forgotten that this was the Demon World.
North Spring Mountain has a very weak presence in this area.
Those who are weak cannot even touch North Spring Mountain, and those who are strong are also highly intelligent and will not touch beings whose true nature they do not understand without reason.
Perhaps they witnessed Gu Yuanqing's battle with Lan Tinglie that day and knew he was not to be trifled with. At least in the past few days, the surrounding giant beasts seemed to be intentionally or unintentionally avoiding the location of North Spring Mountain.
Regardless, Gu Yuanqing was happy to have some peace and quiet, which would allow him to focus entirely on his cultivation.
Although his cultivation progress was not as fast as when he first broke through to the Dao Fire Realm, in a short period of time, he had already completed the tempering of his Physical Body and Divine Sense, and entered the Mid-Stage Dao Fire Realm.
On this day, a white cloud drifted in from mid-air, and the chubby Great Gong Venerable stood on the cloud, waking Gu Yuanqing with a loud bang.
"Human Race, our ancestor said we also have to pay rent. Anyone who has condensed Demonic Essence, developed intelligence, and awakened their Divine Soul must pay rent within our territory," it said in a muffled voice.
Gu Yuanqing didn't expect that he would actually ask. No matter how naive he looked, he couldn't get angry. It was just that there was no way to pay the rent, and there was nothing to pay. This clan wanted nothing but bamboo. He pondered for a moment, Asked: "Then have you asked ancestors, how much do I have to pay in a situation like mine? According to the rules of your iron-eating tribe, a hundred miles of land requires a thousand catties of magic bamboo to be paid every year. You see, I don't occupy your land, so how should you calculate it?"
The Great Gong Venerable was taken aback, as he hadn't considered this question. After a moment's thought, he said, "This area hasn't been rented out yet. How about this hundred-mile stretch is yours? Just give me a thousand catties of Demonic Bamboo."
Gu Yuanqing smiled and said, "There are only two of us here. What would we do with a lot of space? I usually stay on my own mountain and don't go out much. Why don't you go back and ask again?"
It hesitated greatly.
Gu Yuanqing chuckled again, "I know your Iron Eater Tribe values rules the most. We can't let the rules get out of control, otherwise, with such a vast area in chaos, how will we collect rent?"
Upon hearing this, the Great Gong Venerable nodded in agreement. "That's true. Our ancestor said that we Iron Eater Tribe are not as cunning as you humans, so we must do everything according to the rules, otherwise we will easily suffer losses."
This was the first time Gu Yuanqing had been called cunning to his face. His lips trembled slightly, and he said as if advising a child, "Why don't you go back and ask again?"
"Alright, then I'll ask again," said the Great Gong Venerable.
After saying that, it rode away on the Cloudmist. Don't let its seemingly unintelligent appearance fool you; its Spell Art to move through the Void and ride the clouds was extremely skillful. Although its exact strength couldn't be determined, judging from the aura it emitted, it was probably even stronger than Lan Tinglie!
Watching it disappear into the distance, Gu Yuanqing couldn't help but laugh out loud. After a while, she muttered to herself, "That's quite interesting."
They've been gone for a good few days without Motion and Stillness; it seems this clan is quite slow-paced.
Gu Yuanqing was happy with this arrangement, as each passing day increased his ability to cope with the changes. However, what he didn't expect was that instead of the Iron Eater Tribe, the Lingxu Sect appeared.
On a Great Mountain in the Guiyun Mountain Range, dozens of miles away from North Spring Mountain.
"Sect Master, North Spring Mountain is there, but it seems to be shrouded in Cloudmist now, and we can't see the scenery Mountain clearly." Kuang Tongyi pointed to the distance. He had rushed back from the Great Zhou and only then learned that the Sect Master of the Upper Realm had personally descended. For a moment, all the people in the Lingxu Sect felt relieved.
Zhang Xuanlin stared intently into the distance, then examined the surrounding terrain, and asked in bewilderment, "That place isn't a place where Earth Vein or earth energy converge, so how could such Spirit Mountain arise there? I observe that there is Spiritual Qi within a radius of several hundred miles, and it should all originate from this North Spring Mountain. I have never heard of such a thing in the many Floating World."
Kuang Tongyi nodded and said, "Ancestor Ji also mentioned this matter back then. The Spiritual Qi of North Spring Mountain is indeed somewhat strange. However, before the reason could be found out, the ancestor suddenly disappeared. We thought he went to the Upper Realm, but now it seems that it's not that simple."
Zhang Xuanlin said, "Although the Lingxu Sect in this realm is only an outer sect, it is still considered a member of the Lingxu Sect. How could the Sect abandon it?"
"It was the younger generation who were overthinking things."
"It's no wonder you're all like this. Ji Qingyun suddenly disappeared, and the Heaven Gate Token vanished without a trace. You've lost your connection to the Upper Realm, and facing such a major event, that's why you're in this predicament."
"This junior thanks the Sect Master for his understanding. We are deeply honored that the Sect Master has personally descended upon the Floating World. With you here, everything is settled." Kuang Tongyi bowed and said. He had learned some news about the Upper Realm Sect from Ji Qingyun, so he naturally knew what Zhang Xuanlin meant.
"Let's go, let's go take a look and see what's so mysterious about this place!"
The two of them floated down and headed straight for North Spring Mountain.
Both of them were at the Dao Fire Realm, making them exceptionally conspicuous among the Ordinary Person around them. Gu Yuanqing had already noticed them when they entered the twenty-mile radius.
He frowned slightly. "What are the people from the Lingxu Sect doing here again? Kuang Tongyi is always half a step behind this man, which means that the middle-aged man in front of him is of much higher status."
"Sect Master, the Spiritual Qi here is much denser than it was two months ago," Kuang Tongyi, somewhat surprised.
"The Spiritual Qi here is almost identical to that of ordinary areas in the Upper Realm. I've only ever heard of Spirit-Gathering Array that seal off the Earth Vein to gather the surrounding Spiritual Qi for cultivation, but I've never heard of a single mountain providing spiritual energy for an area of hundreds of miles around."
At this point, Daoist Friend Zhang Xuanlin suddenly smiled slightly, "Since you have sensed our arrival, why don't you come out for a chat?"
Gu Yuanqing's voice came from afar, his tone icy. "Kuang Tongyi, I told you when I let you leave that if your Lingxu Sect dared to come knocking again, don't blame me for showing no mercy."
Kuang Tongyi looked embarrassed and cupped his hands in the direction of North Spring Mountain, saying, "Daoist Friend, please don't be Life Essence. This is a senior from my Sect. He has come here only to ask about some things from Ancestor Ji Qingyun."
Gu Yuanqing said indifferently, "I don't care who you are, North Spring Mountain doesn't welcome you. If you insist on going any further, don't blame me for being impolite."
Zhang Xuanlin smiled calmly, "Why be so distant, young friend? Some things can only be resolved through discussion."
Gu Yuanqing could sense that this person was somewhat strange. At first glance, he clearly appeared to be at the Dao Fire Realm, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that he was different from someone at the Dao Fire Realm. However, he couldn't quite put his finger on the difference, only that he seemed more dangerous!
He was addressed as a senior member of the Sect by Kuang Tongyi. Could this person be from the Cultivation World, but simply suppressing his cultivation level?
Gu Yuanqing was somewhat wary. According to Ji Qingyun, most people who descended from the Cultivation World would be Split Soul of powerful cultivators at the Heavenly Human Realm, and the person in front of him was very likely such a person.
Gu Yuanqing sneered, "Your Lingxu Sect always tries to talk things out, but it always ends up being a never-ending cycle of beating up the younger generation and then the older ones. You have the numbers, so it doesn't matter. But I don't have the time to play along with your games."
Zhang Xuanlin had also heard Kuang Tongyi talk about his previous entanglement with Gu Yuanqing. From the perspective of the Lingxu Sect, there was nothing seriously wrong with him. His only mistake was that Outmatched and broke his promise, which gave others ammunition to criticize him.
He smiled and said, "Don't worry, young friend, this should be the last time."
Gu Yuanqing scoffed, "The last time? Fine, if you really want to talk, then come to North Spring Mountain to talk. That'll show the grandeur of your Lingxu Sect, a great sect!"
Kuang Tongyi's expression changed slightly, and he was about to speak in a low voice.
Zhang Xuanlin raised his hand to stop him, and replied with a smile, "Alright! I'll go up the mountain to talk to you."
Ilian Blake Black, for the generous donation!
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