"Oh, is that so? Then I'll just go back and get another good sleep!" Li Xiaoya said, secretly gloating to himself. Too late! That Five-Element Rainbow Ganoderma you want ran off ages ago! He also felt rather lucky. Good thing that old Daoist Daoling didn't notice Guagua was no longer on me. Heh heh.
With these thoughts, Li Xiaoya returned to the secret chamber and lay down on the bed. Suddenly, it occurred to him that if they discovered Guagua was missing, there was no telling what they might do to him. The thought made him uneasy again. The more he considered it, the more something seemed wrong, and he tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
While Li Xiaoya lay tossing and turning in distress, a streak of golden light a hundred miles from Divine Path Mountain shot toward it like lightning.
At that moment, in a cave dwelling somewhere, a layer of white mist shrouded a graceful figure. A young woman as beautiful as a celestial maiden sat cross-legged on an ice bed that gave off waves of cold air, cultivating with her eyes closed. Suddenly, she opened her eyes and murmured, "He's finally back!" As soon as she spoke, she formed a hand seal, slowly concluded her cultivation, and stood up. Astonishingly, she wore nothing but a gauzy garment as thin as a cicada's wing, revealing her graceful, voluptuous figure, her delicate skin as white as snow and translucent as crystal, her willow-slender waist that could fit within a hand's span, and her full, long, jade-like legs...
Had a man been present, he would surely have gone mad with desire, utterly bewitched...
The young woman lightly stepped down from the ice bed with her jade-like feet. The instant her toes touched the ground, white light flashed around her, and a White Palace Dress appeared on her body, concealing those exquisite curves that could drive men mad. She was none other than Fairy Qingxia, who had returned to her cave dwelling.
Fairy Qingxia left her cave dwelling and flew toward Heavenly Venerable Daoling's, blue light radiating from her body. Just as she reached the cliff face, an opening appeared in the cave dwelling, and Heavenly Venerable Daoling's voice came from within. "Come in, Junior Sister Qingxia! I've already received Senior Brother Buddha's voice transmission. He'll be here shortly."
Fairy Qingxia dispensed with ceremony and immediately entered. Heavenly Venerable Daoling sat at the round table in the middle of the hall. A purple jade flask stood on the table, sending out waves of fragrance that refreshed the heart and lungs. At the sight, Fairy Qingxia smiled faintly and said, "I never imagined I'd get to drink Azure Jade Dew brewed by your own hands, Senior Brother Daoling. It seems I'm basking in Senior Brother Buddha's reflected glory."
"Haha! Please sit, Junior Sister. Senior Brother Buddha has been traveling for over thirty years without returning to the sect. He loves this Azure Jade Dew of mine, so naturally, as his junior brother, I ought to treat him properly!" Heavenly Venerable Daoling said with a chuckle.
Fairy Qingxia smiled faintly and sat on a stone stool. No sooner had she sat down than a burst of laughter came from outside the cave dwelling. "Hahaha! Azure Jade Dew!" Yellow light flashed, and a tall figure appeared at the entrance. He wore a red kasaya, with a string of enormous Buddhist prayer beads around his neck. His head was completely bald, his features kindly, and his complexion pink and tender as a baby's. His ears drooped like those of the Tathagata Buddha. At first glance, his attire clearly marked him as a monk, but a closer look revealed that his red kasaya was covered in strange Daoist talismans, with an enormous taiji symbol embroidered on the back. Even the incense scars on his head differed from those of ordinary monks. Rather than being arranged in a square formation, they formed a circle, with a taiji symbol plainly visible in the center. This man, neither wholly Daoist nor wholly Buddhist, was the Buddha of the Mystic Gate, the most accomplished cultivator among the Three Immortals of the Heavenly Dao. He had originally been a Buddhist disciple in the mortal world, mastering profound Buddhist divine abilities at a very young age. Through a chance encounter, however, he learned Daoist immortal arts, and after a series of further coincidences and unexpected turns, he joined the Heavenly Dao Sect. From then on, he cultivated both Buddhist and Daoist paths, becoming one of the foremost great cultivators in the Liang Kingdom.
As soon as the Buddha of the Mystic Gate entered Heavenly Venerable Daoling's cave dwelling, the entrance closed automatically. Heavenly Venerable Daoling and Fairy Qingxia hurriedly stood and cupped their hands in greeting. "Haha! You've finally returned, Senior Brother Buddha!"
The Buddha of the Mystic Gate merely laughed and beckoned with one hand. The purple flask on the table rose into the air and shot toward him.
"Hey! Senior Brother Buddha! I wanted to taste some of that Azure Jade Dew too. How can you try to swallow it all yourself?" Fairy Qingxia chided coquettishly. As she spoke, she lightly pointed a jade-like finger, and the purple flask containing the Azure Jade Dew changed direction and flew toward her.
"Don't be impatient, Junior Sister! Azure Jade Dew is best enjoyed using my Purple Light Cups!" Heavenly Venerable Daoling patted his waist, and three purple cups shot out, floating level onto the stone table. He then beckoned at the purple flask in midair, drawing it toward himself. "Let me pour everyone a cup!"
"Hey! One of you is a woman, and the other's an old Daoist who brews wine. Neither of you needs to drink it. Just offer it all to this old man!" The Buddha of the Mystic Gate laughed and beckoned at the purple flask again, sending it flying toward him.
"Senior Brother Buddha, aren't you being a little too overbearing? At least spare some for your junior sister!" Fairy Qingxia giggled at the sight and beckoned at the purple flask again, drawing it back toward her.
"Stop fighting, you two. Let me pour each of you a cup!" Heavenly Venerable Daoling beckoned, and the purple flask flew toward him once more.
"I haven't had this Azure Jade Dew in decades. Can't you give your senior brother a little leeway?" the Buddha of the Mystic Gate said with a woeful expression, beckoning at the purple flask again.
"Senior Brother Daoling has always been too reluctant to bring it out. I haven't had any Azure Jade Dew in ages either, so spare me a little!" Fairy Qingxia said sweetly, yet her hand beckoned at the purple flask once again.
"It isn't that I'm reluctant. This Azure Jade Dew is simply very difficult to brew. Let me pour it for you both. Stop fighting!" Heavenly Venerable Daoling urged with a broad smile, though he too beckoned at the purple flask.
As the three traded remarks and summoned the purple flask back and forth, it soon came to a motionless halt in the air between them. Under the pretext of drinking, they had actually begun a contest of magical power. None of them unleashed the radiant treasures they had used to kill the black-clad spy the day before; instead, their contest resembled martial artists competing in internal strength. In truth, only the three of them knew that they were preventing their magical power from leaking outward, using exquisite control over their Divine Sense and magical power to resist the others' interference, claim the fine wine, and secure victory. Moreover, whoever wished to win had to withstand interference from both of the others.
The three remained locked in this stalemate for more than a quarter of an hour, but the purple flask gradually began drifting toward the Buddha, inch by inch.
"Hehe! Your magical power is still the deepest, Senior Brother Buddha. You can have this Azure Jade Dew! Consider it an offering from your junior sister!" Fairy Qingxia giggled and stopped casting, as though she were giving up quite casually. Only Heavenly Venerable Daoling beside her noticed the fine beads of sweat on her forehead. He smiled and said, "You really are too impatient, Senior Brother Buddha. Very well, it was prepared for you in the first place. You can have it!" With that, he too abandoned the contest.
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