Changxi had originally imagined that a Sage's disciple would be a figure of jade-like grace, robes billowing like an immortal descended to the mortal world.
But the sight before her now left her utterly stunned.
Gu Changqing reeked of alcohol, the smell enough to make anyone furrow their brows.
His eyes drooped, as though even raising them to look at Xihe and Changxi took tremendous effort.
He could barely stand, propping himself up with the Companion Sword in his hand, yet still swaying as if he might topple at any moment.
Even so, Gu Changqing still held a huge wine jar, throwing his head back now and then to gulp down fine wine.
Changxi watched him, completely dumbfounded.
This was a Sage's disciple?
Wasn't he far too different from what she had imagined?
Anyone who did not know better would have thought he was some rotten drunkard who had wandered in, utterly plastered.
In fact... that was exactly what he was.
Xihe also frowned deeply, studying Gu Changqing with doubt in her eyes.
"Fellow Daoist... are you truly a disciple of the Interception Sect's Sage?"
Xihe spoke, asking him this question.
Hearing her, Gu Changqing answered without hesitation, laughing drunkenly:
"Hehe, of course. Genuine through and through!"
"Could it be... hic... that someone dares impersonate me, the Wine Sword Immortal?"
As he spoke, Gu Changqing let out a drunken belch, making Xihe's expression darken further.
Xihe immediately understood something.
Even if Gu Changqing was a Sage's disciple, he had to be one who received little regard.
After all, an elite disciple would have long since been expelled for getting so drunk and making such a spectacle of himself.
Whatever goodwill she had felt vanished, and Xihe's words grew rather blunt.
"Heh... Fellow Daoist Changqing, you have certainly opened our eyes."
"This is the first time we have seen a disciple of a Sage dare to get so drunk. Aren't you afraid of disgracing the dignity of your Sage's lineage?"
This time, Xihe made no effort to conceal the mockery beneath her words.
Yet Gu Changqing seemed not to hear the implication at all.
Instead, pride spread across his face.
"Haha, Fellow Daoist Xihe, you have never tasted fine wine. How could you understand its pleasures?"
"To you, wine is poison that scours the gut, capable only of clouding the mind."
"But to me, it is supremely pure sacred water, cleansing my Dao Heart and granting me a deeper understanding of the Great Dao."
Gu Changqing spoke with utter conviction.
Hearing this, Xihe scoffed.
Cleansing the Dao Heart?
Understanding the Great Dao?
What Great Dao could a drunkard like you possibly understand?
Yet just as those thoughts arose, something happened.
Beside her, Gu Changqing's aura abruptly changed.
With a mouthful of fine wine down his throat, a thunderous sound erupted throughout Gu Changqing's body.
Then his blood and qi surged, sweeping up into the heavens like the deafening toll of an ancient bell.
Boom!
Immediately afterward, Dao resonance as vast and deep as an abyss surged outward, spreading across the entire Taiyin Star.
Divine patterns rippled, obscure and unfathomable!
They were immensely weighty, yet radiated a piercing force.
"This..."
Xihe's expression changed, shock and awe mingling on her face.
Those divine patterns were profoundly mysterious, mystery layered upon mystery, utterly beyond her ability to fathom.
Yet Xihe could clearly sense the terrifying power contained within every single divine pattern.
Comprehending them would bring tremendous benefits to her cultivation.
In truth, this was precisely the Great Dao of Wine that Gu Changqing had merged with.
As his cultivation continued to rise, he could also wield a portion of the Great Dao of Wine's power.
Moreover, the fusion of the Great Daos of Wine and the Sword had imbued it with a murderous force that struck terror into the soul.
Without question, this was the best possible proof.
Xihe could only swallow the words with which she had earlier questioned Gu Changqing's wild claims.
With no time to dwell on it, she realized this was an immense opportunity.
The Great Dao of Wine was different from the Taiyin Dao the two women cultivated.
But as the saying went, all paths sprang from the same source. Comprehending these divine patterns and their Dao resonance could help Xihe and Changxi advance further as well.
"Quickly, comprehend the Dao!"
"Fellow Daoist Wine Sword Immortal is helping us cultivate."
Xihe spoke softly.
Her earlier contempt had vanished without a trace, and she now addressed him as "Fellow Daoist Wine Sword Immortal."
Changxi needed no reminder. She had already begun comprehending the wondrous truths of the Great Dao.
The two women immediately sat cross-legged, their eyes gently closed.
For a time, no one paid Gu Changqing any attention.
He did not mind, however. He glanced at Xihe and Changxi through hazy, drunken eyes, an almost imperceptible gleam flashing in their depths.
These two women will someday become the so-called Demon Empresses of the Demon Court.
Will they also have a hand in slaughtering the human race and forging the Witch-Slaying Sword...?
That thought flashed through his mind.
Then he returned to looking as though drinking fine wine was his sole concern, with nothing else on his mind.
He had come on this journey to obtain Moon Laurel blossoms.
But with Xihe and Changxi immersed in comprehending the Dao, Gu Changqing did not simply reach out and pluck them.
Nor did he disturb Xihe and Changxi's comprehension for that purpose.
Had the members of the Interception Sect witnessed this scene, they would surely have been astonished.
Since when had the "Wine Sword Immortal," so eccentric in his usual behavior, become so mindful of propriety?
Gu Changqing leisurely reclined against a huge boulder.
Then he studied the Moon Laurel Tree in the distance, towering ten thousand zhang high.
"Hehe, a lovely moment, beautiful scenery, and beauties at my side."
"For such a scene... at such a time... I ought to get gloriously drunk!"
As he spoke, Chen Gu took out a jar of fine vintage wine he had previously obtained from the Interception Sect Treasury.
Pouring and drinking by himself, carefree and unrestrained, he looked utterly content.
Within the chaos, great stars wheeled, and there was no sense of time passing.
Who knew how long had gone by?
The Dao resonance filling the sky gradually dissipated.
Xihe and Changxi also finished comprehending the Dao.
Both women wore expressions of delighted astonishment.
"Elder Sister, that Dao resonance was so wondrous."
"I can already faintly sense the barrier to mid-stage Great Luo."
Changxi spoke, her smiling eyes curving into crescents.
Hearing her, Xihe smiled and nodded as well.
"Fellow Daoist Changqing's cultivation is profound. The Dao resonance he releases can actually help others comprehend the Dao."
"Truly extraordinary!"
Clearly, Xihe's gains were much the same as Changxi's.
That session of Dao comprehension left Xihe even more shaken.
The Dao resonance Gu Changqing released was simply inconceivable, even to the two goddesses of Taiyin.
They had comprehended only two or three tenths of it, yet could already faintly sense the next minor realm.
No wonder the two women were so delighted.
After marveling for a while, the two women turned to look at Gu Changqing beside them.
They saw energy surging around Gu Changqing, Dao resonance spreading outward, wondrous beyond compare.
"Fellow Daoist Changqing?!"
Xihe spoke, calling to him softly.
Gu Changqing gave no response, only long, drawn-out snores.
The two women looked closely and discovered that, at some point, Gu Changqing had become thoroughly drunk and fallen fast asleep.
Seeing this, Xihe and Changxi exchanged a glance, each finding helplessness in the other's eyes.
"Over these endless ages, countless powerful cultivators have come to the Taiyin Star."
"Every last one coveted our beauty."
"Yet this Wine Sword Immortal is the first to sleep so soundly here."
Xihe spoke.
She had now developed a genuine, immense interest in Gu Changqing.
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