But he had still chosen to play it safe, slipping inside first before slowly finding a way to steal their teachings.
His main concern had been drawing the attention of those old monsters and having them notice something amiss. Yet he had ended up catching their eye anyway.
The other Yin-Yang Sect elders and disciples present could not help exchanging strange looks.
Their gazes were full of pity as they looked at Taiyi.
Still, he could only steel himself and pretend to be overjoyed.
He hurriedly agreed.
"This is where I cultivate. From now on, you will cultivate here too!"
The Yin-Yang Divine City.
It was magnificent beyond measure and vast beyond sight.
Though called an ancient city, it was wreathed in auspicious radiance, with extraordinarily dense spiritual energy drifting through it like mist. It far surpassed those grotto-heavens and blessed lands; they were not even on the same level.
Beyond the sprawling palace complexes, countless extraordinary peaks rose amid mountains, rivers, lakes, and marshes, forming a truly breathtaking sight.
Taiyi had wanted to keep a low profile, only to catch the eye of a female Yin-Yang Sect elder in the dragon transformation secret realm.
Helplessly, he could only follow the beautiful middle-aged woman named Lu Yan to a towering mountain peak shrouded in clouds and mist.
Green bamboo, ancient pines, and blooming peach blossoms graced the beautiful landscape, where an enormous palace also stood.
But the way the Yin-Yang Sect elders and disciples had avoided the beautiful woman as though she were a snake or scorpion gave him an ominous feeling.
Fortunately, she was ultimately only a cultivator in the dragon transformation secret realm.
With the trump cards Danyangzi had left him to rely on,
he was not particularly worried.
Chapter 40: Dual Cultivation? The Yin-Yang Union Scripture?
"The Yin-Yang Union Scripture..."
Only when she passed down the cultivation method
did Taiyi's eyelid twitch as he stared in utter bewilderment.
Indeed, what he had received was not the Ancient Yin-Yang Scripture.
Nor was it a cultivation method available to ordinary inner disciples. Instead, it was a Sage Ancient Scripture, albeit a rather unusual one.
It was called the Yin-Yang Union Scripture, and it expounded on the path of dual cultivation through the union of yin and yang. It could also be used to harvest yin to replenish yang directly.
As a scripture created by a Saint, its teachings on dual cultivation were genuinely profound.
Water and fire blended, yin and yang united, each supporting and completing the other. It was not simply a matter of one side harvesting the other, sacrificing someone else to benefit oneself.
But he felt that this Yin-Yang Sect elder he had taken as his master was clearly no upright cultivator. She was not following the proper path of dual cultivation described within.
Instead, she had chosen the crooked path of harvesting yang to replenish yin, stopping at nothing to achieve a swift breakthrough.
"Your bitter sea has already opened. That saves quite a bit of trouble..."
Seductive and alluring, with a voluptuous figure and beauty that lingered despite her age, Lu Yan smiled.
Her red lips parted as she leaned down beside Taiyi's ear and blew a gentle breath. "You must cultivate diligently from now on. Besides the cultivation resources ordinary inner disciples receive, I will send you a virgin at the same cultivation level as you every half month, so you can harvest yin to replenish yang and increase your strength as quickly as possible!"
"Within two years, you must break through to the four extremes secret realm..."
"Jin Yang, don't disappoint your master!"
His innate aptitude was not particularly outstanding.
But the pure yang aura he naturally exuded utterly captivated her.
It would take some time, but once his cultivation was on track, she could capture some female cultivators for him to harvest, helping him reach the four extremes secret realm in the shortest possible time.
Perhaps he would give her a pleasant surprise then.
And allow her to rise to greater heights.
"Huh?"
Taiyi froze.
She would have a virgin sent to him every half month?
For him to harvest yin and replenish yang? Could such a wonderful arrangement really exist?
Pah, pah! I am a descendant of the mighty Sacred Emperor. Would I need such shameless means to increase my strength?
"Yes, Master. I will work hard!"
Taiyi was certain.
She harbored ill intentions.
In all likelihood, she intended to use him as a Cauldron Furnace.
Breaking through to the four extremes secret realm within two years sounded truly alarming.
Such a shortcut could indeed allow someone to advance by leaps and bounds in a short time.
But their cultivation would be hollow. Being able to exert even half their supposed combat strength would already be impressive, and taking this path would inevitably limit their future achievements.
Moreover, breaking through too quickly left their foundations unstable, making cultivation deviation extremely likely. Otherwise, so few people in the Yin-Yang Sect would not have practiced this scripture.
She actually wants to use me as a Cauldron Furnace. She truly has no idea how to court death!
At that thought,
he sneered inwardly, without feeling particularly nervous.
Unless this elder named Lu Yan had already discovered his special physique,
an ordinary physique with insufficient cultivation and weak strength would clearly be of limited use as a Cauldron Furnace to someone in the dragon transformation secret realm.
She would surely try every means to help him reach the dao palace secret realm, or even the four extremes secret realm, as quickly as possible before slowly "harvesting" him.
She would not lay a hand on him anytime soon.
For the next ten days or so, Taiyi buried himself in cultivation.
His so-called "master" only instructed him during the first few days.
Once she saw that he had successfully begun cultivating the Yin-Yang Union Scripture, she went into seclusion and paid him no further attention.
Meanwhile, Taiyi quietly gathered information about the Yin-Yang Sect.
Using his status as both an inner disciple and an elder's disciple, he wandered around the Yin-Yang Ancient City.
He wanted to see whether he could find an opportunity to get his hands on the Yin-Yang Sect's ancient scripture.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Taiyi stopped in his tracks.
He had come upon a desolate mountain overgrown with weeds.
He climbed it. Compared with the other majestic mountains blessed with nature's spiritual beauty, this one was utterly unremarkable, with nothing special about it.
An ancient stele several zhang tall stood there alone.
It was covered in moss, its inscription already blurred beyond recognition. Somewhat surprised, he approached to examine it carefully.
Vaguely, he could make out the two characters for "Mysterious Sun."
"Senior brother, forgive the intrusion, but may I ask... what mountain is this?"
Stopping a passing Yin-Yang Sect disciple, Taiyi asked humbly.
"You're a new disciple, aren't you?" The cultivator at the other shore stage gave him a strange look, but did not ignore him. His tone was merely rather cold. "This mountain is called Mysterious Sun Mountain. Supposedly, an extraordinarily gifted predecessor once lived here, but cultivating the yin-yang dao caused him to suffer cultivation deviation. He nearly committed a terrible mistake and brought enormous losses upon the Yin-Yang Sect. Still, that was tens of thousands of years ago..."
"I heard this mountain used to be incredibly magnificent, a grand and imposing divine mountain that pierced the clouds. But it was destroyed during that calamity and ended up like this!"
"There are also rumors that before that sage dissolved into the Dao, he infused all the insights he had gained throughout his life into this mountain. In the past, countless Yin-Yang Sect disciples came here to cultivate and seek enlightenment. But through all those long years, no one ever comprehended anything. Even successive sect masters, holy sons, and holy maidens gained nothing..."
"Over time, everyone decided it was nothing more than an elusive rumor, and this place was abandoned completely!"
Having finished speaking, the Yin-Yang Sect disciple
did not linger, but hurried away.
"So that's how it is!"
Understanding dawned on Taiyi.
He developed considerable interest in Mysterious Sun Mountain.
Strictly speaking, Mysterious Sun Mountain was not small. An ordinary person would need nearly half a day just to walk around it.
It was simply worlds apart from the other beautiful, magnificent peaks that towered with divine grandeur.
Unfortunately, after exploring it inside and out, he found nothing. There was not even a trace of any treasures or magical artifacts.
For three consecutive days, Taiyi sat cross-legged before the ancient stele, cultivating quietly with his eyes closed.
He attracted quite a bit of attention.
Some Yin-Yang Sect disciples mocked him with snide remarks before swaggering away.
But Taiyi ignored them and continued doing as he pleased.
At noon, the blazing sun shone overhead.
As usual, Taiyi emptied his mind.
Circulating the Yin-Yang Union Scripture, he gradually merged his consciousness with the mountain.
An aura of utmost yang and fierce intensity quietly flowed through the entire mountain, enveloping Taiyi completely.
His whole body glowed, shining brilliantly.
A wondrous resonance of the Dao gradually surfaced in his mind.
It became a diagram of yang, imprinted upon his heart.
And before he knew it,
evening had arrived, with moonlight washing over everything.
That wondrous resonance of the Dao changed once more.
Before you continue