VHSTS CH8

That Second Elder of the Yitian Sect claimed he had brought thirty Qi Refining disciples and twelve Foundation Establishment disciples. On the surface, their numbers looked considerably larger than Taihua Mountain’s side, yet in reality, if a real fight were to break out, all twelve of those Foundation Establishment disciples combined probably wouldn’t be able to defeat Taihua Mountain’s four Foundation Establishment disciples.

Among Taihua Mountain’s four Foundation Establishment disciples, the oldest had cultivated for barely over fifty years, while the youngest wasn’t even thirty yet. Over on the Yitian Sect’s side, however, the youngest Foundation Establishment disciple was already past sixty, and most of them had forcibly broken through to Foundation Establishment by relying on medicinal pills, leaving their foundations terribly hollow.

Out of the Yitian Sect’s twelve Foundation Establishment disciples, only one was at the mid-stage; all the rest were at the early stage.

Meanwhile, on Taihua Mountain’s side, there was only one at the early stage and one at the mid-stage—the other two were both at the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

The heritage and depth of a premier sect were beyond what ordinary sects dared to fathom. That was why yesterday, upon hearing that Luo Jianqing was actually leading the team, Elder Liu had hurriedly reported back to his sect, prompting the Yitian Sect to dispatch Cao Haining—an early Golden Core cultivator—to personally guide Luo Jianqing.

Now that both parties had converged, the first order of business was to organize and unite the group in preparation for entering the ruins.

When the Yitian Sect disciples laid eyes on Luo Jianqing’s group, they couldn’t help widening their eyes, sizing up every single person carefully. Many of the young maidens couldn’t resist casting their gazes toward Luo Jianqing. Beneath the clear sun and verdant mountains, the eldest shixiong in blue-green robes stood tall and poised, a tiny, vivid crimson cinnabar dot adorning the sword mark between his brows—truly possessing a handsome, spirited bearing and the ethereal grace of an immortal.

“That must be the shixiong from Taihua Mountain, right? He’s definitely a Foundation Establishment shixiong!”

“I think he’s surely at the late stage of Foundation Establishment—this is Taihua Mountain we’re talking about.”

“Yes, definitely late-stage Foundation Establishment! So impressive.”

Although most of these remarks were sent via private voice transmissions that Luo Jianqing and his group couldn’t hear, seeing the expressions in those girls’ eyes and the way they pointed toward their eldest shixiong, the four Foundation Establishment disciples smiled knowingly and chuckled softly to one another.

Once both teams were assembled and ready, Elder Zhao of the Yitian Sect took the lead to guide everyone inside.

Amidst a towering, overlapping mountain range, the peaks wound and twisted like streams converging into the sea, finally gathering at a single summit soaring into the clouds before coming to an abrupt halt. Luo Jianqing activated his flying magic treasure and brought all the disciples soaring into the azure sky, where everyone gathered on the deck to look down at the rugged peaks below.

Aboard the treasure ship, Elder Zhao of the Yitian Sect suddenly leaped into mid-air and took out a smooth, round white jade pearl.

Seeing this, the Taihua Mountain disciples looked over curiously a few extra times, whereas Luo Jianqing merely swept a calm glance across it before shifting his gaze away.

Elder Zhao tossed the white pearl into the air, his fingers moving in rapid succession until they formed afterimages. The white pearl emitted a blinding radiance; a dazzling beam of light pierced through the clouds, shooting straight onto the summit of that towering peak. A moment later, a rumbling roar echoed between heaven and earth, and a layer of white light barrier abruptly appeared before everyone’s eyes.

Elder Zhao cupped his hands and said, “Luo-daoyou, directly ahead lie the ruins of the Nascent Soul Zhenjun¹Zhenjun (真君): Literally “True Lord” or “Perfected Lord.” A prestigious Daoist honorific title bestowed upon high-realm cultivators (typically Nascent Soul and above) who have achieved deep mastery over the Dao. we discovered this time. This humble one can still guide everyone a bit further ahead—please!”

Luo Jianqing nodded. “Please!”

Before long, the flying treasure ship passed through the light barrier and entered the realm within. Everyone immediately felt heaven and earth shift around them. Luo Jianqing stored the treasure ship back into his storage ring and raised his head to survey this extraordinary place.

A massive Profound Iron gate standing thirty-three zhang tall towered before them, radiating layers of heavy spiritual pressure. Though called a gate, it had no door panels whatsoever, standing wide open for anyone to enter. Standing before this colossal gate, the crowd felt as insignificant as a single drop in a vast ocean.

Suddenly confronted with such a gate, the disciples couldn’t help looking left and right, growing somewhat bewildered.

Elder Zhao spoke loudly, “Beidou Zhenjun was most proficient in the Big Dipper Seven-Star Array. This gate is the first trial of the ruins, named Yaoguang²Beidou Zhenjun & Yaoguang (北斗真君 / 搖光): Beidou refers to the Big Dipper (Northern Dipper) constellation. Yaoguang (Alkaid / Eta Ursae Majoris) is the seventh star at the tip of the Big Dipper’s handle, traditionally associated in Daoist lore with breaking through formations and martial prowess.. Beside the gate are numerous small inscriptions clearly stating the requirements to pass through: anyone entering this gate must not exceed one hundred years of age, and their cultivation must be below the Nascent Soul realm. Earlier, our Yitian Sect sent in cultivators who didn’t meet the criteria, and all of them were bounced back out by the gate, suffering severe injuries.”

As his voice fell, Luo Jianqing nodded calmly and turned his head toward one of Taihua Mountain’s new disciples.

That disciple was the prominent clan scion who had placed first in the recent Inter-Peak Grand Competition. Understanding the cue, he nodded and stepped straight through the gate. Meeting not the slightest obstruction, he entered smoothly, then turned around and called out, “Eldest Shixiong, there is no problem at all.”

The instant the words “Eldest Shixiong” rang out, the Yitian Sect disciples looked as though they had been struck by lightning, freezing stiffly on the spot.

“E-Eldest Shixiong? The Eldest Shixiong of Taihua Mountain?!”

Everyone stared in disbelief at the composed, unhurried youth standing at the very front of the crowd. Luo Jianqing, however, acted as if he noticed nothing at all. He arranged for every disciple of Taihua Mountain to enter first, and only when he alone remained outside did he say, “Elder Zhao, please.”

Zhao Yufeng had initially felt rather awkward; after all, these were ruins discovered by their Yitian Sect, yet they were obliged to let Taihua Mountain’s disciples enter first. Seeing Luo Jianqing remain where he was instead of rushing in ahead, Elder Zhao looked at Luo Jianqing with gratitude, cupped his hands in a respectful bow, and only then instructed his own disciples to enter.

Once the very last Yitian Sect disciple had stepped inside, only the several elders of the Yitian Sect and Luo Jianqing remained outside the gate.

Luo Jianqing cast a calm glance at the Yitian Sect elders, then tapped the tip of his toe against the ground; his figure transformed into a streak of blue-green light and darted swiftly through the gate.

From this point onward, whatever transpired inside the gate no longer concerned those outside, and the Yitian Sect’s escort mission came to an end.

After entering Beidou Zhenjun’s ruins, the oldest Foundation Establishment disciple from the Yitian Sect walked over timidly to confer with Luo Jianqing. Luo Jianqing said in a gentle voice, “Walk together with the Taihua Mountain disciples. There is no need to worry.”

The man immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Beyond the Profound Iron gate lay a narrow, secluded path devoid of any light. A Taihua Mountain disciple swept his sleeve to retrieve a moonstone, shedding a soft, dim glow across their surroundings; though not as bright as daylight, it was more than enough to illuminate the way.

The group walked like this for half a shichen. The path grew progressively wider, and the further they walked, the louder the rushing roar of water became. When they finally emerged from the path, even Luo Jianqing couldn’t help freezing in astonishment.

“What a huge river!”

“A mighty jiang³Jiang (江) vs. He (河): In Chinese, He generally refers to standard rivers (like the Yellow River), whereas jiang refers to immense, vast rivers (like the Yangtze), emphasizing the sheer scale of the waterway inside the pocket dimension.! That’s a vast river, not some ordinary stream!”

Before them, a surging, turbulent expanse of muddy water rushed in from the distance, crashing mightily between towering cliff walls. The river water was a murky yellow, yet its waves were ferocious. Even with Luo Jianqing’s eyesight, he couldn’t tell where this river ended—he could only discern that its span was definitely well over a hundred li!

A span of over a hundred li meant an independent pocket dimension had been carved out!

Carving out spatial dimensions was a feat achievable only by Body Integration powerhouses. Clearly, this was not Beidou Zhenjun’s own handiwork; he must have obtained some extraordinary treasure to create such a heaven-defying Nascent Soul ruin for himself!

Luo Jianqing narrowed his eyes to gaze across the water and quickly spotted a blue-green stone stele standing right in the middle of the river.

That stele stood at least a li away from the shore, so only those at Foundation Establishment or above could read the words inscribed upon it.

A Taihua Mountain disciple read aloud in a ringing voice, “‘Vast and surging river waters—what shall serve as a boat?'”

Soon, a Qi Refining disciple shouted, “There are boats here! There are lots of boats here!”

The Foundation Establishment disciple continued reading: “‘Seventh-grade may carry one person and cross one li; sixth-grade may carry two and cross two li; fifth-grade may carry four and cross four li; fourth-grade may carry eight and cross eight li; third-grade may carry sixteen and cross sixteen li; second-grade may carry thirty-two and cross thirty-two li; first-grade may carry sixty-four and cross sixty-four li. Heavenly Dao Transcendent-grade may carry one hundred and twenty-eight people and cross one hundred and twenty-eight li!'”

As soon as his voice fell, every disciple fell completely silent. Only Luo Jianqing furrowed his brows slightly, while Li Xiuchen let out a lecherous, smug grin.

The rules written on the stone stele were straightforward enough. All cultivators under heaven were categorized into nine tiers of spiritual roots: first, those with no spiritual roots at all like Li Xiuchen; second, lower-grade spiritual roots from fourth to seventh grade; third, middle-grade spiritual roots of second and third grade; fourth, superior first-grade spiritual roots; and finally, the Transcendent-grade spiritual roots not seen even once in ten million people!

The rarity of Transcendent-grade spiritual roots practically defied the heavens.

Only one in hundreds of millions of mortals was suited for cultivation, and among tens of millions of cultivators, only a single one would possess Transcendent-grade spiritual roots.

Even across all of Taihua Mountain, there were currently only two people with Transcendent-grade spiritual roots: one was Xuanlingzi Zunzhe, and the other was Luo Jianqing.

Still sporting a dirty, dark shoe print on his face, Li Xiuchen’s eyes gleamed brightly as he looked toward the blue-green-clad Eldest Shixiong standing by the riverbank.

Although he hadn’t gotten confirmation yet, Li Xiuchen was convinced that this Luo Jianqing had definitely transmigrated here just like him. Otherwise, according to the original novel, it would have been impossible for all of them to cross the river together right now—originally, little shimei (his very first harem member) had ferried sixty-four people across, while two other disciples with first-grade spiritual roots ferried five more, everyone exhausting immense effort and numerous magic treasures before barely making it across.

Yet things were different now.

Little shimei Mu Tianxin had first-grade spiritual roots—the absolute pinnacle of first-grade, true, yet still not Transcendent-grade.

Luo Jianqing, on the other hand, possessed Transcendent-grade spiritual roots!

That made clearing this first stage an absolute breeze. Having Luo Jianqing steer a boat to carry all of them across was simply a piece of cake!

At this thought, seeing the hesitant, troubled expressions on the Yitian Sect disciples’ faces, Li Xiuchen laughed heartily and announced, “No need to worry! Everyone under heaven knows that our Taihua Mountain’s Eldest Shixiong possesses Transcendent-grade spiritual roots—carrying all seventy of us across is more than effortless!”

Li Xiuchen’s voice carried straight into the ears of everyone present. The Yitian Sect disciples froze in unison, while the Taihua Mountain disciples looked at him with utterly bizarre expressions.

Initially, some of the Yitian Sect disciples hadn’t quite known what the deal was with this guy wearing a shoe print on his face, yet after hearing his words, quite a few couldn’t help muttering under their breath, “We all know Taihua Mountain’s Eldest Shixiong has Transcendent-grade spiritual roots, sure, but why on earth would he carry us across…”

“Exactly. He doesn’t even have Transcendent-grade spiritual roots himself—what’s he acting so proud about?”

“What grade of spiritual roots does this Taihua disciple have anyway? Could he be first-grade?”

Their voices were very quiet; being merely at the second tier of Qi Refining, Li Xiuchen couldn’t hear a word. However, several fourth-tier Qi Refining disciples from Taihua Mountain heard every bit of it and lowered their heads in embarrassment and irritation, while the four Foundation Establishment disciples’ mouths twitched. The one from Haoming Peak promptly slapped Li Xiuchen hard across the back of his head, making him stagger and nearly fall flat on his face.

“Run your mouth again! Just keep running your mouth! You’re the only one who knows that? You’re the only one?! You’ve thrown away every shred of face our Haoming Peak had left!”

Clutching his head, Li Xiuchen glared furiously at that Haoming Peak shixiong, completely failing to understand what he had said wrong.

Since someone had already pointed out the obvious, Luo Jianqing naturally saw no point in hiding it. He waved a hand to summon the largest boat and said indifferently, “Everyone board the boat. This river spans over a hundred li; I do not know how far I can take everyone, so we will take it one step at a time.”

Every single Yitian Sect disciple looked at Luo Jianqing with deep gratitude.

Only after everyone else had boarded did Li Xiuchen stomp up onto the boat with a resentful scowl. Barely had he stepped onto the deck when Luo Jianqing spoke in a calm tone: “Nineteenth Shidi, gag this person’s mouth for me.”

Nineteenth Shidi of Haoming Peak cupped his hands cheerfully: “Yes, Eldest Shixiong!”

Li Xiuchen widened his eyes in shock. Before he could even react, an entire wad of coarse hemp cloth was stuffed straight into his mouth. Heaven knew where that cloth had been torn from—it even carried a faint foul odor. Li Xiuchen was just reaching up to pull the cloth out when Luo Jianqing cast a downward glance at him; the moment he tried to lift his hands, his entire body went rigid, completely immobilized from head to toe.

Li Xiuchen: “Mmmph-mmmph… mmm!”

Luo Jianqing turned around and said, “Just handling a minor internal sect matter—sorry for making a spectacle in front of you.”

The Yitian Sect disciples hurriedly shook their heads, pretending not to see Li Xiuchen at all. “No trouble at all, no trouble at all! Please proceed, Luo-daoyou!”

Even though they were grateful to Li Xiuchen for opening his big mouth and getting them a ride on the boat, if they were Taihua Mountain disciples, they would definitely have been driven to an early grave by this complete idiot.

Once everyone was aboard, Luo Jianqing walked to the bow of the boat and looked at the massive treasure pearl mounted there. Narrowing his eyes, he placed a hand over it and channeled his spiritual power inward. In an instant, brilliant white light flared; the entire vessel paused for a fraction of a second before surging forward with a thunderous roar, cleaving through the wind and riding the waves at an unstoppable speed!

Across the entire span of one hundred and twenty-eight li, Luo Jianqing maintained a serene, tranquil expression, without so much as furrowing his brow.

Upon reaching the opposite shore, he tapped his toes lightly and stepped off the boat first, his blue-green robes tracing a graceful arc through the air. Forget the Taihua Mountain disciples—even the Yitian Sect disciples felt admiration well up in their chests, their eyes brimming with reverence.

Only after the group had walked several hundred meters ahead did someone suddenly remember: “Huh? That Taihua Mountain disciple from earlier seemed to have his body immobilized—he didn’t follow us!”

Luo Jianqing curved his lips into a faint smile and murmured softly, “I actually forgot.”

Everyone: “…” Did you really forget?!

With a casual sweep of Luo Jianqing’s sleeve, a streak of flowing light shot back toward the riverbank. Several ke later, everyone watched as Li Xiuchen—still sporting that shoe print on his face—hurried over in a pitiful state. Without daring to lift his head, he took his place at the very back of the line without uttering a single word, acting as though he had truly learned his lesson.

Luo Jianqing merely spared him a single glance before withdrawing his gaze and leading the group onward.

Just because Li Xiuchen stayed quiet, did he think Luo Jianqing wouldn’t figure things out?

When the boat had docked, Luo Jianqing had been the very first to leap off—something entirely out of character for him. He had only done so because the exact instant the small boat touched shore, a streak of white jade light had flown out, and Luo Jianqing had darted forward to catch it, securing his reward for clearing this first stage.

Even to someone like Luo Jianqing, this reward was a genuine treasure.

It was a White Jade Token. According to Seeking Immortality, the first-grade White Jade Token little shimei had obtained could teleport its user sixty-four li away when crushed, making it a lifesaving escape treasure. Yet the one Luo Jianqing had just obtained was a Transcendent-grade White Jade Token, capable of instantaneous teleportation across one hundred and twenty-eight li!

In his past life, that first-grade White Jade Token had ultimately ended up in Li Xiuchen’s hands. The reason was simple: little shimei had kept none of the gains she earned in these ruins, handing everything she obtained over to Li Xiuchen in hopes that he would keep his word and never speak a word about what happened that night.

Yet now… Luo Jianqing curved his eyes into a faint smile as he continued walking forward.

In this life, Li Xiuchen wouldn’t even dream of getting his hands on a single thing!

—

Footnotes:

• 1
  Zhenjun (真君): Literally “True Lord” or “Perfected Lord.” A prestigious Daoist honorific title bestowed upon high-realm cultivators (typically Nascent Soul and above) who have achieved deep mastery over the Dao. ↩︎
• 2
  Beidou Zhenjun & Yaoguang (北斗真君 / 搖光): Beidou refers to the Big Dipper (Northern Dipper) constellation. Yaoguang (Alkaid / Eta Ursae Majoris) is the seventh star at the tip of the Big Dipper’s handle, traditionally associated in Daoist lore with breaking through formations and martial prowess. ↩︎
• 3
  Jiang (江) vs. He (河): In Chinese, He generally refers to standard rivers (like the Yellow River), whereas jiang refers to immense, vast rivers (like the Yangtze), emphasizing the sheer scale of the waterway inside the pocket dimension. ↩︎