Chapter 262: One Grain Valley, Two Sprouts
The preparations for the engagement banquet didn’t require Li Weiyi to worry at all.
He knew very well that he only needed to go through the motions.
Therefore, upon returning to the cave mansion for closed-door cultivation, he also avoided unnecessary trouble.
Inside the cave mansion, after setting up a set of formation flags, Li Weiyi entered the blood mud space.
That set of formation flags was won from the arena competition earlier in the year.
Li Weiyi sat cross-legged on the blood mud ground, using his mind to peel away layers of blood mist. The Tanggu Sea and Fusang Divine Tree appeared on the other side of the space barrier, scattering brilliant radiance.
Immediately after, he took out a radiant flame pill and swallowed it.
His body then became as bright as a lightbulb.
Closing his eyes, he executed the Fusang Divine Tree meditation method, absorbing the radiant flame power from both internal and external pathways simultaneously, strengthening the earth fire in the spirit realm in the brow.（ Forehead spirit realm starts here, abbreviated as spirit realm.）
To advance from earth fire realm to heavenly fire realm, he only needed to accumulate one-third of the spiritual light.
One-third of a square foot.
But to reach calamity fire realm, he needed to fill the entire spirit realm, with difficulty multiplied many times over.
From reaching great mind master realm until now, several months had passed. Li Weiyi had been busy improving his martial cultivation, and the spiritual light in the spirit realm was less than one-tenth.
That was already very fast; even great mind masters who only cultivated mind power didn’t have such accumulation speed.
One radiant flame pill was worth one thousand spring coins.
Sixty would be sixty thousand spring coins.
Very expensive!
But there was no choice. Li Weiyi couldn’t cultivate slowly; he had to break through to heavenly fire realm as quickly as possible and head to Tanggu Sea.
After reaching great mind master level, the speed of absorbing radiant flame pills increased several times. In merely two hours, it was fully digested. In the spirit realm, the spiritual light visibly increased.
Just like accumulating qi in martial cultivation, it was another long process of accumulation.
……
…………
News of the engagement spread, immediately causing a sensation throughout the city.
The secret that Zuo Qiu Ting and Zuo Qiu Hong were the same person was naturally revealed to everyone.
Everyone knew very well that this was not only the engagement banquet of the two young sons of heaven, but also the marriage alliance between Zuo Qiu Gatehouse and Jiu Li tribe, carrying extraordinary significance.
Under the night curtain, bright lamps lit up one by one in the official residence.
“Greetings, Lady Zhuang!”
“Lady Zhuang!”
In the corridor, the officials from the attendant hall all stepped aside one after another, bowing in salute.
Zhuang Yue held the wedding invitation, striding quickly. Her teeth were nearly grinding to pieces, her eyes cold as if she might draw her sword to kill at any moment.
Arriving at the top of the tower where Jiang Ning was cultivating, she tried to calm her emotions, unsure how to speak. Just as she was about to turn and leave, a pleasant voice came from inside: “What’s wrong? Has the duel between the transcendents concluded?”
“Creak!”
The wooden door and formation opened automatically at the same time.
Zhuang Yue stood at the doorway, her feet unable to step inside, tears swirling in her eyes, unsure how to speak.
Jiang Ning had already changed out of her daytime ruqun and removed her hair ornaments. Wearing the governor’s official robe, simple and unadorned, she sat cross-legged with eyes closed, accumulating qi and quenching qi, cultivating the still incomplete Seventh Sea.
In recent days, news of young generation heavenly prodigies breaking through to dao seed realm had been spreading fervently throughout Qiu Zhou Prefecture City.
She felt a sense of urgency in her heart and did not want to fall behind others.
“Another imperial court transcendent has fallen?” Jiang Ning’s tone grew much heavier.
Four days ago, news had just come back of an imperial court transcendent falling.
If another one fell, the impact would be too great.
She was even more afraid that the one who fell was a transcendent from Jiang Family.
Zhuang Yue shook her head vigorously, finally mustering her courage. With resentment and grievance, she said: “He still became a heartless man… He… he’s getting engaged to Zuo Qiu Hong Ting…”
Jiang Ning opened her eyes: “Let me see it!”
She took the wedding invitation handed over by Zhuang Yue.
After looking at it for a long time, Jiang Ning closed the wedding invitation and handed it back: “I won’t go. Three days from now, prepare a gift on my behalf and send it over.”
“Miss! You’re just going to endure this?” Zhuang Yue said.
Jiang Ning pondered for a moment, stood up, pushed open the window, and looked at the city full of lights outside. Allowing the cool night wind to blow on her face, she said: “Zuo Qiu Gatehouse must obtain the hidden dragon. Only by marrying those two is the most secure.”
Zhuang Yue said: “But they can’t hurt people like this, right? During the day, he didn’t even inform you in advance. Miss, to help him, to save him, you met him several times at great risk. To help him keep the secret, you withstood the second palace master’s questioning, causing a rift between master and disciple. He couldn’t possibly be unaware of your sentiments!”
Only Zhuang Yue knew that Jiang Ning treated Li Weiyi differently from anyone else.
“If I hear these words again after tonight, I will drive you out of Luantai and out of Jiang Family.” Jiang Ning said in the calmest tone.
Zhuang Yue bit her lips tightly and nodded with tears.
Jiang Ning sighed: “In the past, for the imperial court, I would definitely find a way to sabotage this and not let Zuo Qiu Gatehouse succeed. But now, with the demon race coming aggressively, the human race must unite internally to resist; we can’t continue internal strife.”
“Actually, Zuo Qiu Gatehouse so actively preparing the marriage alliance is a good thing. It means the human race transcendents are holding against the demon race’s assault, and the magic battle may be about to end!”
“You can’t hide your thoughts. Don’t go to the engagement banquet; I’ll arrange someone else.”
Jiang Ning’s eyes slightly lifted, gazing at the majestic mountain range dotted with star-like fires in the night curtain: “Who knows what he’s thinking? There aren’t that many cases of mutual affection in the world. Regret and imperfection are the norm. It’s good that the clouds break in the vast and distant haze, so they won’t clash into thunder and storm.”
……
…………
Qi Xiao sent people at noon to search for Yang Qingxi’s whereabouts and soon had leads, so he immediately rushed to confirm.
Just as he stepped out, he encountered a servant from Zuo Qiu Gatehouse delivering a wedding invitation to Qi mansion.
Curiosity stirred in Qi Xiao’s heart, so he naturally intercepted them. After inquiring, he was both shocked and delighted: “What kind of joke is this… so outrageous… quick, let me see. Has my brother Weiyi really cultivated a secret manual for living off a woman?”
After reading the wedding invitation, Qi Xiao burst into laughter, already pondering in his mind how to drink at the celebratory wine three days later.
“Brother Weiyi has ascended to the heavens in a single step. His future achievements will at least make him the man of Zuo Qiu Gatehouse family head. It’s even possible he becomes the man of Lingxiao Life Realm lord.”
Qi Xiao returned the wedding invitation to that servant, deciding to handle the matter with Yang Qingxi even more cautiously, absolutely not causing romantic trouble for brother Weiyi at this critical juncture.
He did not take a carriage, wore night-walking clothes, and moved invisibly at high speed.
Arriving at the mansion located by Qi Family’s informants, Qi Xiao silently memorized the location and surrounding environment. At that moment, the back door opened. Yang Qingxi wore a large black robe with hood covering her head, mysteriously boarding a carriage.
Driving the carriage was a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old young man in coarse short clothes, nothing particularly special.
The only unusual thing was this coachman…
Too young!
“A bit interesting! So late at night, and Young Lady Yang in such attire, it seems she’s hiding an extraordinary secret.”
After breaking through to dao seed realm, Qi Xiao was bold with his high skill and naturally didn’t take Yang Qingxi seriously, so he followed silently.
What Qi Xiao didn’t expect was that the carriage kept going out of the city. Finally, it stopped at a remote town two hundred li outside Qiu Zhou Prefecture City.
After traveling through the night, dawn had broken.
What status did Yang Qingxi have? Why would she come to such a place?
Qi Xiao was even more astonished in his heart. Seeing early-rising pedestrians in the town, he observed while following the carriage tracks forward.
“One grain of rice, two sprouts, three-leaf seedlings crawling in the wind.”
“Four crescent moons swaying, five grains of golden rice laughing haha.”
……
Ahead, barefoot children came in groups, singing nursery rhymes.
Qi Xiao in invisibility hurriedly stepped aside, watching them leave with a smile on his face.
In his mind, he carefully recalled.
He discovered that almost all those children were twins.
“It seems they should be a group of rice person children. Not sure if they’re servants raised by some great family, or perhaps young dead soldiers?”
Qi Xiao suddenly thought that Sui Sect seemed to do business in rice person trade. He guessed that this might be one of their goods transshipment points.
Soon, he arrived at the end of the town.
A Taoist temple half-hidden among lush branches and leaves appeared before him. Outside the temple, many carriages were already parked, coming from various directions.
There was not a single coachman on the carriages.
Suddenly, the entire world became unusually quiet. The town that had pedestrians and nursery rhymes moments ago instantly sank into death qi.
Qi Xiao had already sensed something wrong, his brows furrowing as he prepared to retreat.
“Since Young Master Qi has come to Daozu Temple, why not come in and sit?” A ethereal voice of an old man transmitted from that distant temple.
Bad!
Qi Xiao’s expression changed abruptly, turning to flee.
Just as he turned, the sky suddenly darkened.
As if the entire world had changed day to night, returning to blackness.
The town he had just passed through had lamps lit in every house along the streets, with coffins placed at each doorway. Outside every house were two identical figures.
Some were two old men sitting on the ground sharpening scythes, occasionally looking at him and emitting eerie cackling laughs.
Some were two young men in coarse short clothes, carrying long swords on their backs.
Some were two stunning beauties: one sitting on the eaves, dressed provocatively and exposing large expanses of snowy white skin, giggling sweetly; the other sitting under the eaves, quiet and elegant, plucking a zither with delicate fingers.
Qi Xiao saw Yang Qingxi.
She stood alone in the center of the street, wearing a black robe, only half her face exposed.
Qi Xiao was horrified beyond measure. Looking around at the dark sky, unable to distinguish if he had reached morning or followed through the night, he tremblingly said: “Illusory realm of impermanence… Which saint spirit mind master senior is playing such a joke on this junior?”
“A joke?”
The woman sitting on the eaves, her two snowy white legs dangling and swinging, smiled enchantingly: “Sixth Divine Maiden, deal with the tail you brought yourself!”
“He’s already at dao seed realm.” Yang Qingxi said indifferently.
“Then fine, I’ll handle it for you. You owe me a favor!”
That sexy woman moved, her beautiful body graceful and adorned with jingling ornaments, emanating dazzling radiance.
Qi Xiao executed his movement technique and fled.
But behind him was that even stranger and intimidating temple, so he tried to go around to the right. Yet a group of barefoot children came from the right, blocking his path.
The nursery rhyme sounded again, but in Qi Xiao’s ears, it had completely changed flavor, filling his heart with terror.
“One grain of rice, two sprouts, rising at three to kill the master’s family.”
“Four splashes of blood dyeing white gauze, at five the sky fills with flying crows.”
“Six-foot grave, seven-step kill.”
“Eight lines of incantation hanging in the sky.”
“Nine heads hanging on tassels, ten generations childless as I sprout.”
……
Seek monthly tickets!
