Picking People Up and Exposing Their Shortcomings

"Mount Tai holds a great fortuitous opportunity. If everything goes smoothly, my cousin and I may both attain enlightenment there in the future!"

Rong Tianding waited at the Jade Emperor Peak for six days.

This period of time was at least as long as Shi Wudao had estimated.

He believed that Zhang Xuezhou would not die in the geomagnetic light, but at most be trapped by some factor. Zhang Xuezhou was not afraid of hunger and thirst, which made Rong Tianding feel more at ease.

During his patient search, he finally spotted Zhang Xuezhou and the others emerging from the cave.

After a private conversation, Rong Tianding couldn't help but marvel, feeling that the wonders of the Heaven and Earth were covered by the past, and that without considerable skill, one simply couldn't uncover them.

So, does this mean my cousin will need to help Liu Xuan in the future?

"We must make Liu Xuan see the true strength of the Great Han Dynasty and make him a witness from the outside. Apart from the Red Empyrean Sword, we must have the real ability to make the Great Qin Dynasty suffer losses that outweigh the gains, in order to extinguish the Emperor Qin's ambitions. Only in this way can I safely leave the place where he is!"

Zhang Xuezhou whispered.

It seems that as long as you get close to the Emperor Qin, you can obtain the array artifact from the Yin-Yang Secret Realm. But getting it is one thing, and being able to safely retrieve it is another.

The Emperor Qin agreed to give the Yin-Yang School the array artifact, but did not promise that he could leave safely after receiving it.

Zhang Xuezhou was a seasoned pro at this kind of thing, and he felt there was nothing wrong with him being a little more cautious.

"What would Liu Xuan ask for?" Rong Tianding asked.

"He seeks connections and resources from us, and also strives for advancement in his spiritual practice. As for what he plans to do once he has sufficient strength, that remains to be seen," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"It's truly hard to imagine that the former crown prince of Qin has become like this," Rong Tianding sighed. "I can't see a single trace of the crown prince's aura in him!"

"It's very difficult for a great cultivator to get back up after a fall. The fact that he can still maintain his composure is already extremely remarkable; we can't ask for anything more!"

Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding briefly discussed Liu Xuan, knowing that they couldn't satisfy the Emperor Qin's demands to control him in the short term; everything would have to wait for a suitable opportunity.

However, creating an opportunity is extremely difficult, and even though Rong Tianding trusts Zhang Xuezhou, he still feels a headache.

The two whispered among themselves until Shi Wudao shouted "Unfair!" from afar, at which point they stopped talking.

"The Reincarnation Stones should be quite effective at entrusting life and death," Zhang Xuezhou said. "I felt there were seventy-two Reincarnation Stones at the time. After you comprehend life and death, you can try it too, but remember you must have a method to awaken your mind, otherwise you might easily fall into true death during the imprinting process!"

"Cousin, did you successfully get the branding done?"

"I don't know if the branding was successful, but I dare not try it right now!"

Who would dare to try something like that!

Rong Tianding shook his head.

Although they haven't yet merged life and death, Rong Tianding felt that Zhang Xuezhou had a relatively high chance of success; however, it was indeed inconvenient to demonstrate the core techniques of the Shijiao School.

"I wonder if Li Shaojun is up to the task," Rong Tianding said.

He definitely has the need, but whether he can learn it is hard to say!

Zhang Xuezhou nodded, indicating that he understood Rong Tianding's meaning.

They didn't intend to harm Li Shaojun by forcing him to learn the technique and die again. Rather, Li Shaojun had the clearest perception in this regard and would inevitably make relatively accurate judgments.

"How is it unfair?"

Having calculated the time needed to delay his return, Zhang Xuezhou approached Shi Wudao, who was studying the Reincarnation Stone, and watched as Shi Wudao excitedly gesticulated and patted the Reincarnation Stone.

"That's unfair!" Shi Wudao exclaimed, rubbing his hands in frustration.

"Explain yourself more clearly," Rong Tianding said.

"My life-or-death token is so small, and this... this place is so big," Shi Wudao said dejectedly.

"You're quite old, Shijiao School has been passed down for hundreds of years. Don't tell me that no one in your school has ever seen the Reincarnation Stone," Zhang Xuezhou asked curiously.

"We've always been peaceful and unassuming," Shi Wudao said dejectedly. "We've seen things like this before, but never studied them so closely!"

"The corpses commanded by the Shijiao School are too low-level to be effective. The powerful corpses they command might be the ancestors of certain schools, making them constantly viewed with suspicion, and even universally hated due to past grudges," Emperor Jing said disdainfully. "However, the Shijiao School's fighting techniques are weak, making it difficult to be as vengeful and increasingly powerful as the Confucian School. It's normal that they haven't researched the Reincarnation Stone in their hundreds of years of existence!"

"A foolish ruler shouldn't expose someone's shortcomings when receiving them!"

Shi Wudao cursed, clearly feeling like he'd been hit where it hurt again.

Whenever a school of thought prioritizes survival, the difficulty of competing becomes very high. Rong Tianding also obtained the Corpse Jiao Canon, but the style he developed was very similar to Zhang Xuezhou's, with most of his Technique Method being used for support and few for direct combat.

If it weren't for the lack of enmity, Rong Tianding, lacking sufficient skills, would have had to go into hiding.

It is difficult for this school of thought to openly occupy a place and conduct research in a legitimate and aboveboard manner.

Despite its seemingly centuries-old tradition, the Shijiao School has never actually studied the Reincarnation Stone.

Only when this secret place was deserted did Shi Wudao begin to study it carefully.

"What, is the Reincarnation Stone the same as your Life and Death Decree?" Zhang Xuezhou asked curiously.

"They're different, but they share some similarities and origins," Shi Wudao said dejectedly. "This Reincarnation Stone is constantly emitting Spiritual Qi; its effects after being imbued with life and death should be much better than the Life and Death Token!"

"With such a good product right here, you should try it quickly," Zhang Xuezhou urged.

Hahaha~

Shi Wudao let out a long, dry laugh, and a variety of complex emotions appeared on Fei Jiang's face.

Although Zhang Xuezhou had invited him, Shi Wudao showed no sign of making a move.

"Once you entrust your life to a treasure, it's hard to change that entrustment," Emperor Jing finally spoke up. "Such an entrustment is difficult to transfer; each attempt is tantamount to death. He's not confident he can succeed!"

I really envy you guys!

Shi Wudao, dejected, continued speaking.

"You are all adept at discovery, daring, and geniuses in cultivation. Perhaps I really am getting old!"

Despite having reached the True Self Realm and possessing the ability to resurrect from the dead, Shi Wudao felt a sense of desolation, realizing that their era was gradually fading away.

Like the Yangtze River, the new generation surpasses the old. He was the master of the Shijiao School's Technique Method, but Zhang Xuezhou, who only had a slight connection to the school, easily surpassed him.

His proud skills were replicated and even strengthened in a short time, making his more than 100 years of cultivation seem ridiculous. Shi Wudao didn't even know what the point of his efforts was.

Everything seemed to have lost its appeal, and Shi Wudao's low spirits even alerted Emperor Jing, who repeatedly tried to persuade him.

"Try to look at me more positively. Look how miserable I am. My mother doesn't like me, my younger brother is just waiting for me to die so he can take the throne, the woman I once loved most was a fairy from the Immortal Court, and she cast a spell on me in the palace to make me die sooner, my most trusted teacher accepted the imperial pardon and became an official in the Immortal Court, seemingly loyal but always plotting to overthrow the court, which also triggered the biggest civil war in the history of the Great Han Dynasty, the crown prince I raised for many years is not my own son, I didn't have many good days in life, and I won't have peace even in death, and now I've become this strange-looking person!"

Shi Wudao felt his life was miserable.

But after Emperor Jing recounted his own life, he discovered that others were not happy either.

If everyone else is also having a miserable time, his mindset will definitely be better when compared to them.

If life feels boring, watching other people's unfortunate lives doesn't seem so bad.

As for lucky ones like Zhang Xuezhou, forget about it; Shi Wudao wouldn't stoop to comparing himself to such fortunate people.

But when Zhang Xuezhou casually mentioned his childhood experiences, Shi Wudao felt a warm glow in his heart, and the piercing pain disappeared.