Chapter 174: Eight Years Old, White Mist Realm?
White Mountain Daoist smoothed his sleeve, his gaze somewhat reminiscent.
Speaking of which.
Over these many years of reincarnation, most of the time was spent in a muddled state. After regaining clarity and consciousness, the vast majority of energy was devoted to comprehending the Martial Way. As for those old friends, he had only heard about them occasionally, and the times they had met face-to-face were few and far between.
He wondered in his heart how many old friends were still alive to this day. He sighed inwardly.
Hearing White Mountain Daoist’s words, the three were all secretly shocked.
Old friends?
Those who could be called old friends by White Mountain Daoist must surely be existences of the same level.
They inwardly drew in cold breaths. Connecting this with what White Mountain Daoist had said earlier about no longer reincarnating, they vaguely realized that something major was about to happen, one that might even change the pattern of the world.
“I have already sent invitation letters to many friendly sects. At that time, people from various Daoist Sects in Dao State will come.” White Leaf True Person hurriedly said.
White Mountain Daoist nodded slowly, then suddenly asked:
“Has True Martial Sect sent an invitation letter?”
“As per your instructions, we invited Dragon Mountain True Person and his Ninth Disciple Ning Qi.”
Curiosity appeared in the eyes of the three. Inviting Dragon Mountain True Person was normal—after all, when Dragon Mountain True Person held his Heavenly Human Ceremony back then, White River True Person had personally attended to show support. But why the insistence on Dragon Mountain True Person’s Ninth Disciple?
Could it be that this person had something special about him, catching the True Monarch’s eye?
White River True Person pondered.
He recalled an old matter from back then.
After Dragon Mountain True Person stepped into the Heavenly Human Realm, he had sent someone to deliver the Daoist Scripture to True Martial Mountain, and White Mountain Daoist had gone along. They stayed there for quite some time. Later, Junior Brother Ye who returned mentioned the stay, including the anecdote of White Mountain Daoist persistently pestering Ning Qi. At that time, he had been amused and exasperated, thinking his senior brother was just fooling around.
But now it seemed there might be more to it?
“Senior Brother, does that little fellow named Ning Qi have something special about him?” White River True Person couldn’t help but ask curiously. He maintained respect, but he was gradually seeing more traces of that former unrestrained senior brother in White Mountain True Person.
He wondered if his True Monarch senior brother really intended to snatch Ning Qi over to be his disciple. After all, he had heard before that his senior brother was quite fond of Dragon Mountain True Person’s disciple, offering many conditions to lure him away.
White Mountain Daoist chuckled:
“This little fellow is no simple one. Three years ago when I went to True Martial Mountain, my past life wisdom had not yet awakened. I just instinctively felt he was extraordinary. But thinking back now, tsk tsk, he truly is a prodigy of the world!”
Unconcealed admiration appeared on his face, making the three True Persons all curious at heart.
“If I haven’t guessed wrong, his bone age was only eight then. Guess what his cultivation was at that time?”
White Elephant True Person ventured:
“Body Tempering Perfection?”
Ordinary children begin Martial Way enlightenment at eight. Even if this child’s bone structure formed early, it would be at most two or three years. To reach Body Tempering Perfection in such a short time would already be extremely prodigious. If not for the True Monarch valuing this youth, he wouldn’t even have guessed that much.
The other two thought similarly, figuring Body Tempering Perfection or at most the early Inner Yuan Realm.
White Mountain Daoist didn’t keep them in suspense, merely saying lightly:
“White Mist Realm.”
The words had just fallen.
The three True Persons all trembled, nearly thinking they had misheard.
“True Monarch, this… is it really true?” White Elephant True Person steadied his breathing.
Eight years old, White Mist Realm?
This seemed no longer just a matter of being a prodigy.
White Mountain Daoist smiled ambiguously:
“Would I deceive you?”
The three exchanged glances, still feeling it somewhat dreamlike. What had they been doing at eight years old… How could such a prodigy exist in the world?
White River True Person couldn’t help asking:
“Senior Brother, could this one also be like you…”
White Mountain Daoist shook his head:
“No, he is not a reincarnated body.”
Then he frowned slightly:
“Though… it’s hard to say. Back then, us old fellows each used our own methods. No one knows which ones took effect. Some perished in the river of time, while others luckily lingered, perhaps undergoing some mutation.”
“So… you want to invite Fellow Daoist Ning Qi over to take a look, to see if he is one of those from back then?” White Leaf True Person said.
White Mountain Daoist waved his hand:
“Whether he is or isn’t doesn’t matter that much. This old Daoist just finds this little fellow interesting. If he isn’t one of those old fellows, then he was truly born in the wrong era.”
Regret laced his words.
The three True Persons all sobered, knowing what White Mountain Daoist referred to.
Martial Saint Realm!
They too yearned for it in their hearts but dared not dwell on it. It was a taboo subject that the True Monarch never explained in detail, treating it with utmost secrecy. The only thing they could infer from clues was that the Martial Saint Realm was almost unattainable.
This filled them with regret and also fear.
At this point.
White Mountain Daoist clearly lost interest.
“Tell little fellow Ning Qi that I personally invite him to attend the ceremony. He must come. At that time, this old Daoist will take him to ransack the scripture halls of other Daoist Sects.” A smile reappeared on his face, making the three True Persons smile bitterly inwardly.
This True Monarch truly acted without any taboos.
However, with the True Monarch’s status, calling him the head of the Daoist Sects would not be excessive. If he revealed his identity, even the world’s top Daoist Sect, Yin Yang Sect, would not dare utter a single refusal.
The three quietly withdrew, beginning to fully prepare for the upcoming Heavenly Human Ceremony.
From the implications in White Mountain Daoist’s earlier words, it was not hard to infer that this Heavenly Human Ceremony could be grander without issue. Since that was the case, the three would not miss the chance to boost True Profound Sect’s prestige.
In the past, every reincarnation of True Profound Daoist Lord had been extremely low-key. But since this was the last time, there was no need to remain low-key.
White Mountain Daoist watched the three leave, gradually withdrawing his gaze.
He looked toward the sky, his thoughts complex.
“Where is the path?”
…
News of White Mountain True Person’s impending Heavenly Human Ceremony spread at an astonishing speed to the surroundings. Coupled with the invitation letters sent months ago to friendly forces, it now drew even more attention. The usually low-key True Profound Sect had rarely become high-profile.
This also gradually enlivened Dao State, with many forces dispatching experts to attend.
True Martial Mountain.
Luo Wentian also received the invitation letter.
“Master, Little Nine, this White Mountain True Person has specially invited you two to his Heavenly Human Ceremony.”
Surprise was in his eyes. This was the second time. That White Mountain True Person seemed particularly fond of Ning Qi.
It was normal for his master, a Heavenly Human Realm expert, to receive a special invitation—after all, a Heavenly Human Ceremony needed other experts to bolster the scene. But repeatedly inviting Ning Qi was odd, especially since on the surface, Ning Qi was just an unknown disciple of Dragon Mountain True Person.
“Master, could he have already discovered Little Nine’s true strength?”
Dragon Mountain True Person frowned slightly:
“Probably not. When that White Mountain Daoist came to the mountain before, he was undoubtedly at Core Elixir Realm. With his strength, he couldn’t have seen through Little Nine’s power. And Little Nine hasn’t interacted with him since. Perhaps he just favors Little Nine.”
As he spoke, he smiled faintly.
Of course, he knew of the amusing incidents three years ago when White Mountain Daoist tried to coax Ning Qi to True Profound Sect. But with his magnanimity, he didn’t mind.
“There’s still one month. Going there poses no problem. Little Nine, what do you think?” Dragon Mountain True Person asked.
Ning Qi pondered, then finally nodded:
“Let’s go.”
His cultivation had now advanced as far as it could. The only thing left was to study the Martial Saint Power in the King Yu Bead, to see if he could find a way to break through. He had originally planned to leave the mountain to travel after Qin Yun woke up. Though Qin Yun hadn’t woken yet, attending the Heavenly Human Ceremony first was no issue.
Mainly, the matter mentioned in White Mountain Daoist’s letter was quite appealing to him.
“Ransacking the Daoist Sects’ scripture halls is naturally a joke, but… it’s not a bad idea. If there’s a chance to view many secret scriptures and Daoist Scriptures, perhaps he could glean some information on the changes in heaven and earth power, even inspiration for a breakthrough method.”
“With White Mountain Daoist leading the way, it’s better than me barging in randomly.”
Ning Qi was not familiar with Dao State’s situation.
This was a good chance to gain some knowledge.
Seeing Ning Qi agree so decisively, Dragon Mountain True Person and Luo Wentian were both astonished. Ning Qi had always preferred not to leave the mountain if possible. His previous two trips down were to deal with enemies. They hadn’t expected him to suddenly feel the itch to move this time.
Ning Qi smiled:
“Just notify me when we set off.”
He went to check on Qin Yun again.
The fluctuations in Qin Yun’s body had grown increasingly steady, with awakening drawing nearer. All the senior brothers eagerly awaited that day.
“Hopefully, when we return from Dao State, Eighth Senior Brother will have safely awakened.” Ning Qi thought silently.
…
Time passed.
Half a month later.
The True Martial Sect delegation set off to attend the ceremony.
Besides Dragon Mountain True Person and Ning Qi, Zhuang Chen and Li Ling were also among them, going along to gain experience. In addition, there were some inner and outer disciples, carrying carefully prepared gifts.
If it were just the two of them, Ning Qi and Dragon Mountain True Person, the speed would naturally be fast. With so many more people now, it was much slower.
But Ning Qi didn’t mind.
He rarely had such an opportunity and could enjoy the scenery along the way.
However, the young Daoist leaning in the carriage, head down reading scriptures, himself became a scenic sight.
Ning Qi was pondering the changes in heaven and earth power:
“From the various information gathered so far, perhaps some impurity is mixed in the heaven and earth power, leading to the Silver Giant Ape’s tragic end. If so, if that impurity could be removed, restoring the heaven and earth power to purity, could it then be safely absorbed into the body, allowing a harmless breakthrough to the Martial Saint Realm?”
“Three Flowers Gathering at the Apex already provides some ‘filtering’ during the absorption of heaven and earth power, but it’s not enough. Can that be strengthened further?”
This was a direction Ning Qi had been considering a lot lately.
Inspiration from the King Yu Bead.
At the start, the Demonic Sect Grand Elder used the bloodline of Great Yu descendants as a catalyst to condense Martial Saint Power. Later, Ning Qi figured it out himself, directly using Three Flowers Gathering at the Apex through the King Yu Bead to condense brand-new Martial Saint Power.
The Martial Saint Power before and after clearly differed.
This immediately let Ning Qi know that heaven and earth power and Martial Saint Power could be mixed with other substances.
Connecting this to the scene deep in the White Ape’s bloodline.
At first, the Silver Giant Ape’s aura was overwhelming, but suddenly it changed. Perhaps impurities appeared in the heaven and earth power.
The more he thought, the more reasonable this guess seemed.
But it was still just a guess, unproven.
“The best way is to verify it, to experiment, using myself as the subject. Results could come quickly, even leading to a solution.”
“Unfortunately, I dare not.”
Ning Qi valued his life highly.
He was far from being at his wits’ end and didn’t want to take such a risky gamble.
He couldn’t determine what consequences absorbing heaven and earth power into the body would have. If it affected his future path, it would be too late for regrets. Thus, until he understood the truth, he wouldn’t incorporate even a tiny bit of heaven and earth power into his body.
“Then… use someone else for the experiment? Though the effect wouldn’t be as good as on one’s own body, it’s safe. But finding a subject isn’t easy—they need to be strong enough, capable of absorbing heaven and earth power into the body.”
“The best choice is naturally an enemy—no burden in using them, and if they die, so be it. But the problem is, finding one. Probably only the previous Demonic Sect Grand Elder qualified.”
Ning Qi thought.
A figure suddenly flashed in his mind.
Blade Demon.
“Using him for the experiment might actually work?” Ning Qi’s eyes lit up.
However.
He was not the type to care only for himself. Since he had promised Blade Demon the Martial Saint Method back then, he wouldn’t go back on his word.
“If Blade Demon is to cooperate with the experiment, I must explain the risks and benefits clearly, without hiding anything. If he’s willing, great; if not, I can’t force him.” Ning Qi thought. After returning to True Martial Mountain this time, perhaps he could discuss it with Blade Demon.
Many thoughts swirled.
Ning Qi let out a long breath.
This was a plan he had come up with, but success wasn’t guaranteed.
Even if Blade Demon agreed to cooperate, he would minimize the risks. Setting aside other things, he greatly admired Blade Demon’s Martial Way Will—this was another pure seeker of the Way.
At this moment.
Zhuang Chen’s chubby face poked over. He first glanced at the Daoist Scripture in Ning Qi’s hand, inwardly marveling, then laughed:
“Ninth Senior Brother, True Profound Mountain is almost here, and you’re still holding your Daoist Scripture, reading it over and over. Along the whole way, I feel like you’re no different from being in the Seeker’s Courtyard. Besides glancing at the scenery, you don’t go out to stroll—such a pity!”
The people nearby all smiled.
Ning Qi shook his head with a smile, looking into the distance. A strange mountain shrouded in clouds and mist faintly appeared.
True Profound Mountain, arrived!
