Very Good
On Golden Ao Mountain, in the Embracing Rosy Clouds Hall.
Su Yao sat at the head of the table, Yang Xiu sat at the upper left, and Zilin sat at the upper right.
Beside the three, the aroma of Qixia Mountain's spiritual tea filled the air.
In the center of the three people, a long table was placed, on which were three wooden boxes arranged in a triangular shape, emitting a faint white light. Within the white light, the same poem was displayed:
"The golden Golden Ao, the pear Pear Garden is shrouded in mist, and the secret edict of the Jade Void is secretly transmitted."
And gather the jade branches from beyond the clouds, and carefully cultivate the jade tree to reach the sky.
The Ziwei Star shines faintly, the Southern Dipper gathers its stars, and the thick earth conceals the mysterious.
When dragons and snakes rise from the land, and winds and thunder surge, the Proclaiming Earth turn and a new chapter will begin.
Do not ask when we will return; look to the southwest, where the flames of war have already been lit.
Old friends from Golden Court, a new pact in the Pear Garden, let us face these difficult times together.
The sword in its sheath is cold, the talisman in my sleeve is warm; I await my natural lifespan.
At that time, we will restore order to the world and soar to the highest peaks, ninety thousand miles above the clouds.
Upon seeing this, all three felt a sense of dread. They had discussed the matter earlier and even devised several plans regarding Proclaiming Earth. Just as they were about to take action, Su Yao suddenly sensed something amiss with the wooden box left in the cave abode. Before he could speak, Zilin and the other two also changed their expressions and took out the wooden box.
Su Yao then realized that it wasn't just him who had it; all three of them had it. When Su Yao retrieved the wooden box, the words appeared on it!
But that wasn't the most alarming thing. What made Su Yao most uneasy was that he had been unable to find out what was inside the wooden box using the Prism.
Once the three boxes were gathered, a thought struck him. He used the Prism to examine the box again and found that he could see through the surface of the wooden box. Now, with the help of the Prism, he could see that inside the wooden box, the three lights of heaven, earth, and man were rotating, completely obscuring an object.
At first, he thought the box was just for sending messages, but now it seems there is something terrifying inside.
After a long silence, seeing that Yang Xiu and Zilin remained silent, he finally asked:
What do you two fellow Daoists think of this word?
Zilin remained silent upon hearing this and lowered her head.
Yang Xiu began to ponder, and Su Yao, seeing this, was delighted and was about to ask when he heard Yang Xiu chuckle:
"This poem uses the 'Shui Long Yin' poetic form, and the allusions are excellent; it's a fine poem!"
Upon hearing this, Su Yao gritted his teeth, while Zilin covered her mouth and chuckled softly.
Su Yao cursed inwardly, but still asked:
"Brother Dao, my question is not whether the words are good or bad, but rather what the words mean?"
After speaking, Su Yao's gaze sharpened as he looked at Yang Xiu Yang Xiu, who then lightly raised his right hand, made a few calculations, and said:
"This... I wouldn't know..."
Su Yao remained silent upon hearing this, and the next moment, Autumn Steed appeared in his hand.
Seeing this, Zilin quickly stepped forward and pulled Su Yao back, saying:
"Brother, please wait. Sanlang's cultivation of the Golden Court Secret Method has led to this temperament."
Upon hearing this, Su Yao finally understood. The Golden Court lineage had cultivated Profound Qi for generations. This Qi was the Qi of calamity for cultivators. This calamity not only affected the external world but also the cultivators themselves. Therefore, before reaching the Purple Mansion, they needed to cultivate many strange Secret Method, sometimes being normal and sometimes going mad. If they did not cultivate the Secret Method well, it would not affect their attainment of Dao. However, once they attained Dao, they would have to bury their lineage.
So he put the sword away.
Yang Xiu had already changed his sitting posture, and his playful appearance from before was completely gone. His brows had regained the deep and composed demeanor he had when he first entered the mountain gate.
He tapped the table lightly with his knuckles and spoke slowly:
"' The Ziwei Palace's light is dim.' The Ziwei Palace is the domain of the Emperor Star. 'Dim light' does not mean ordinary darkness, but rather the flickering light at the moment of impending demise. This omen should occur within a few months, or at most three to five years. An emperor will surely perish, and the star will sink from the heavens. Moreover, this emperor will not be an ordinary ruler of a small country, but someone who holds great power over a region and has a pivotal influence on the world's situation. We only need to observe the celestial phenomena quietly, and when the brightest star in the Purple Tenuity Enclosure suddenly goes out, the opportune moment will arrive."
He paused briefly, stood up, went to the wooden box, and pointed to the two lines in the poem. "Let us gather the jade branches beyond the clouds and carefully cultivate the jade trees that reach the sky."
"These two lines encapsulate the task at hand for the three of us. 'Jade branches beyond the clouds' metaphorically refers to the fine talents scattered in various places; 'Cultivating jade trees with care' means that we must carefully nurture and patiently teach them. Brother Su's opening of the Pear Garden Branch Temple and taking in disciples to cultivate talent perfectly embodies these two lines. However, we must not accept just anyone as a disciple; we must select those with excellent Root Bone, temperament, and comprehension, so as not to fail the name 'jade trees.'"
He turned to Su Yao, his expression serious. "Brother Dao, your Pear Garden only needs three to five people, seven or eight at most. Quality is more important than quantity."
Then he pointed to the last sentence. "'Old friends in the Golden Court, new covenants in the Pear Garden,' which means that Fellow Zilin and I should stay here, together with Brother Su, to guard the Pear Garden and nurture talents. As for 'waiting for our natural lifespan'... 'Natural lifespan' refers to the opportune time. Before the emperor's death, we will only do one thing: cultivate ourselves in seclusion, take on disciples, and wait for the right opportunity. We must not act rashly, we must not be reckless, and we must not show our talents in front of others."
After saying this, he picked up his teacup, took a sip to moisten his throat, and then slowly added the last sentence:
"The fact that the wooden box appeared in the hands of the three of us at the same time means that the headmaster of the Jade Void Palace has designated the Pear Garden as the key to Proclaiming Earth's southward journey. The three of us are the ones who make the moves here. With the pieces placed, we should wait patiently for the game to begin."
After he finished speaking, his face broke into a wide grin.
Upon hearing this, Zilin looked at Su Yao:
"The emperor's death was not that of an ordinary ruler of a small country?"
She paused for a moment, then said uncertainly:
"But the king is True Lord..."
Su Yao sneered:
"Ultimately, the world will change. If Fellow Daoist Yang's prediction is correct..."
He paused, as if considering his words, and after a long while said:
"The disagreement between that father and son has been brewing for a long time, and now it seems it's truly escalating to the point of estrangement, or even armed conflict. The disappearance of the Ziwei Star's light likely indicates not an external enemy, but rather an internal conflict. This father-son feud will undoubtedly affect countless people..."
Zilin was terrified upon hearing this, thinking to herself, "This Fellow Daoist Su is exceptionally bold." Just as she was about to dissuade him, she heard Su Yao say:
"Brother Zilin, this Proclaiming Earth is not a matter for just a few families. Why are you and Brother Yang Xiu the only ones here?"
Zilin looked over upon hearing this and saw Su Yao continue speaking:
"Leaving aside the Jade Casket and the Heavenly Origin meridians for now, and also ignoring Azure Jade, why haven't the Comet Light, Jade Spring, and Jieshi arrived? After all, although my Rainbow Clouds Dao is untainted by all things, its destructive power is ultimately lacking. Fellow Daoist's Purple Qi Purple Mansion is not as good as my Rainbow Clouds."
Then Su Yao glanced at Yang Xiu's grinning face a few times, and said with a headache:
"Although Fellow Daoist Yang's cultivation of the Profound Qi is strong, after the Jia-Geng Incident, this is what cultivators of the Profound Qi looked like. If they hadn't fully mastered the Secret Method, they could only barely be considered half-human. As for these three schools, the Heavenly Chaos Path ranks among the top in offensive power among the Twelve Qi, the Mystic Body Path can break through all laws with its power, and the Wu Earth Path is flawless and controls Master of Fate and calamity. Their offensive power is far superior to the Rainbow Clouds Purple Qi that you and I cultivate."
Zilin sighed upon hearing this:
"I don't know either. I only know that before coming here, I heard the Danqiu Exalted Perfected, that several disciples should have already left the mountain. Logically speaking, they should be much faster than Fellow Daoist Yang and I. But..."