Simulation becomes reality, have I ever looked down upon the eternity?

Chapter 510 The Dragon Court is complete with all five elements; the white snake is pregnant!
[You probably didn't expect this, this chubby disciple whom you see almost every day in the library.]

[It was actually Senior Brother Qi Yunfeng!]

After thinking for a moment, you said, "Since I entered Little Green Peak, the spirit peaches on the back mountain have ripened twice, so I've had my fill twice."

[Jian Susu, the woman from Xiaoqing Peak, smiled and said, "Senior Brother Zhou, you're really joking. You're not some monkey in the mountains, always thinking about those peaches."]

Yang Chen smiled and said, "Junior Brother Zhou, you're referring to the Mind Monkey, who spent two years in the mountains cultivating an unstable Dao Heart. Stabilizing the Mind Monkey is like becoming Wukong; restraining the Will Horse is like transforming into a dragon."

Jian Susu, however, disagreed, after all, Zhou Jing was just an ordinary senior brother from Xiao Qingfeng.

Qi Ling, however, found this explanation quite ingenious.

Yang Chen asked with a puzzled look, "To be honest, I've always been puzzled. Junior Brother Zhou goes to the library every day, but he only takes down the Daoist scriptures and puts them back. You've touched almost all the jade slips on those three walls, but you never read them carefully. Why is that?"

This question had been weighing on his mind for over two years.

[You're momentarily speechless; you can't very well claim that you could understand its mysteries simply by scanning with your spiritual essence.]

[At that moment, suddenly!]

Qi Yunfeng's jade cloud boat crashed through the Fangcun Mountain formation, the spiritual winds whipping up from its bow tearing a rift in the sea of ​​clouds, the fierce gale causing everyone's robes to flutter wildly.

Once the wind subsided and the clouds settled, the cloud boat was already hovering over an ordinary mountain field.

Looking out, all one sees are layers upon layers of mountains shrouded in mist, with the occasional woodcutter's song drifting from the valley—where is there even a trace of ethereal beauty?

"This is outside Fangcun Mountain?" asked Xiao Qingfeng, his voice filled with surprise.

Seeing that you didn't answer, Yang Chen explained, "When you all ascended Fangcun Mountain, you were likely directly transported to the blessed land by the guiding array. This time, you are truly witnessing the boundary between the mountain gate and the mortal world."

"Fangcun Mountain is located on the south side of Yuzhou in the Central Plains. The blessed land it occupies is called Xieyue Sanxing Cave Blessed Land, a place where the spiritual veins of heaven and earth converge. The concentration of spiritual energy far exceeds that of the outside world, and it can nurture top-grade spiritual objects, spiritual springs, and divine beasts."

"However, the location of blessed lands is different; they are not situated in the original geographical area, hence the saying 'the sun and moon in a pot.' One of these blessed lands, the Cicada's Shell Cave, is located inside a golden cicada."

Yang Chen smiled and said, "Blessed lands and immortal mountains are rarely seen even by mortals who enter them. For ordinary people, spending a lifetime searching for these mountains and seeking the Dao is ultimately futile."

Everyone naturally understood that without someone to guide them, they might not even be able to find their way back to Fangcun Mountain.

After hearing this, looking at the mortal realm beneath the fierce winds, you felt a surge of emotion for some reason: "The days and months are long in a pot, the universe is vast in a sleeve; within the measure of the mortal world, has anyone ever opened their heavenly eye to glimpse the world? Who has looked down upon the endless ages?"

After hearing this, Yang Chen took another look at his junior brother Zhou Jing.

The crowd had been watching the clouds for a long time. Although the sea of ​​clouds was vast and ever-changing, with its surging waves sometimes resembling a stampede of horses and sometimes like a cascading avalanche, it initially seemed magnificent, but after half a day, it became nothing more than monotonous.

Seeing that everyone's interest was waning, Yang Chen smiled and said, "Fellow junior brothers and sisters, the trial grounds for this time are in the capital of the Chen Kingdom."

"At the current speed, it should take about three days to arrive."

Tu Xing, whose eyes held a shrewd glint, spoke up from Xiao Qingfeng, "Could it be the Chen Kingdom downstream of the Yanghua River, known as the Kingdom of a Thousand Kilns, also called the Porcelain Capital?"

Fangcun Mountain is home to three kingdoms and more than ten smaller states. The State of Chen is located in a remote area and is not well-known, rarely mentioned.

Yang Chen looked slightly surprised and glanced at Tu Xing a few more times: "Junior Brother Tu Xing actually knows about this place? You are quite knowledgeable."

The short and wiry Tu Xing chuckled, "I am also skilled in earth-based arts. This place has a rich earth element, making it a rare treasure for earth-based cultivation. Eight or nine out of ten cultivators in the Chen Kingdom possess earth-elemental roots."

Jian Susu then asked, "Senior Brother Yang, what exactly are we going to be tested in Chen Kingdom this time?"

Yang Chen said in a deep voice, “The Xu family of Xuyang County in Chen State are descendants of my Fangcun Mountain disciples. Three days ago, they sought help with a bloodline talisman, saying that there seemed to be evil spirits causing trouble in the county.”

He paused, then added, "The State of Chen is but a tiny place, and even the ruler of a prefecture is only at the Dao Embryo Realm."

[Having heard this, you understand now. The situation in Xuyang County is similar to that in Qinghe County; the highest realm of the three major families is the Perfected Spirit Realm.]

[If it weren't for your help, Grandfather still wouldn't have been able to break through to the Dao Embryo realm.]

Jian Susu frowned, somewhat nervously, and asked, "An evil spirit?"

Yang Chen smiled, "Junior brothers and sisters, you don't need to worry."

"The so-called evil spirits are actually only at a cultivation level no higher than the Dao Embryo realm."

"If it truly is some formidable demon," a cold glint flashed in his eyes, and the jade pendant at his waist suddenly glowed with a blue light, "those Qi Refining Realm cultivators of the Xu family probably won't even have a chance to send out a distress talisman."

Jian Susu looked at Yang Chen, her eyes sparkling, and chuckled softly, covering her mouth, "These kinds of evil spirits, if they encounter Senior Brother Yang, wouldn't they be easily destroyed with a wave of his hand?"

Yang Chen said, "The cloud boat will travel for three days; you may take this opportunity to improve your cultivation."

The group then boarded the quiet room on the cloud boat to cultivate.

[You also entered the quiet room on the first floor of the cloud boat, where the spiritual energy was abundant.]

[After sitting down again, I instantly entered a meditative state, feeling as if my mind was detached from worldly affairs.]

This seems to be your talent, something you've had since childhood.

[After two years of cultivation at Fangcun Mountain, you have not only improved your cultivation level, but have also reached the early stage of the Dragon Court Realm.]

[You have cultivated according to the "Primordial Chaos Fire House Suppression Diagram," and your cultivation has been sealed for the fourth time, which means you have completed the fourth tribulation.]

[If you hadn't deliberately suppressed your cultivation speed, you would have already advanced to the mid-stage of the Dragon Court realm in just two years.]

The Dragon Court Realm is achieved by gathering the Three Flowers and condensing one's own inner world; this is the pinnacle of the Dragon Court Realm.

The more perfectly refined one's inner world becomes, the easier it becomes to reach the Golden Core stage of the Great Dao.

The path of spiritual cultivation is like climbing an insurmountable chasm; every step requires painstaking effort.

Those with exceptionally high talent in earth-attribute cultivation, such as Tu Ying, and even those with innate Dao bodies like the "Sunflower Water Body" or "Fire Body," will thrive in the early stages of cultivation. As their spiritual roots and Dao bodies become increasingly singular, and they purify their cultivation of impurities, their progress will accelerate.

[This has a unique advantage in the early stages of cultivation, and even up to the Heavenly Gate realm.]

However, once one reaches the threshold of the Dragon Court realm, all advantages vanish, and the so-called advantage instantly becomes a predicament.

[Heaven's way is impartial and selfless. Since it has bestowed upon you blessings in the early stages, it will take back this Dragon Court realm in double measure later.]

Just as the Daoist canon says: The way of Heaven is to take from the excess and give to the deficiency. When one reaches the Dragon Court realm, what was once a help will become a hindrance.

[Cultivators at the Dragon Court Realm must construct an inner world within their bodies; this is the foundation of the Great Dao, and it requires all five elements to be complete to ensure its stability.]

Those cultivators who possess a single spiritual body—whether it's a basic five-elemental spiritual body or a mutated "wind spiritual body" or "thunder spiritual body"—the more refined their innate attribute, the less sensitive they become to other Daos.

It's as if the heavens, while bestowing talent, also secretly set up invisible shackles.

This is why eight or nine out of ten spiritual cultivators in the cultivation world are trapped at the Heavenly Gate Realm throughout their entire lives.

Even for those of extraordinary talent, breaking through to the Heavenly Gate is already a stroke of luck. However, Fangcun Mountain still regards these spiritual beings as treasures. After all, for the masses, let alone the Heavenly Gate realm, even achieving the Dao Embryo stage is enough to ensure a family's prosperity for a hundred years.

On the path of cultivation, many don't even have the right to look up to the Dragon Court.

Otherwise, your grandfather wouldn't have been stuck at the Solid God Realm until his two-hundredth birthday was approaching.

[Do you not know that a cultivator at the Solidified Spirit Realm can already be revered as an ancestor in a county with a population of tens of thousands?]

However, even the most impartial Heaven can show favoritism.

[For example, the "Mysterious and Universe Dao Body" is a masterpiece of Heaven—it is said that the eldest sister of Qiyun Peak possessed the ability to shape her body upon birth, and her cultivation was as smooth as sailing with the current, without any hindrance.]

[If such a body can attain immortality and does not perish prematurely, it will surely achieve the Golden Elixir Great Dao.]

You slowly calmed your mind, and suddenly remembered the ancient jade slip in the library. It was recorded that at that time, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was like a surging tide, and blessed lands and grotto-heavens were everywhere; cultivators who came and went all addressed each other as "fellow Daoist."

The spiritual energy of cultivators in that era was hundreds or even thousands of times more concentrated, permeating the entire world.

It is a blessed land, and everyone cultivates themselves with "faith and harmony." "What you have, I have, we all have; no one envies anyone else!"

The cultivators sat and discussed the Dao, freely using rare and precious herbs as if they were wild grass.

[Unlike now, where a single spiritual vein can unleash a reign of terror, and the struggle between good and evil has dragged on for millennia.]

[It's ironic that in ancient times, those with all five elements in their spiritual root were considered geniuses, while those with only one element or a mutated element were almost always regarded as useless on the path to enlightenment.]

Today, however, the opposite is true.

If a spiritual root aptitude is detected, a spiritual root possessing all five elements is considered a useless spiritual root, making it very difficult to hope for achieving the Great Dao.

You couldn't help but shake your head and chuckle, recalling the moment you first obtained the Five Elements Escape Technique on Little Green Peak. Back then, you thought it was just an ordinary introductory technique, but now, having entered the Dragon Court Realm, you've finally grasped its true meaning—

This sword technique, seemingly moderate and peaceful, actually aligns with the principle of balance in the universe. Each sword move subtly incorporates the five elements' interactions, paving the way for the construction of an inner world.

[Such a lofty vision can only be fully grasped upon reaching the Dragon Court Realm.]

[You once inquired of the elderly who created this skill, and the answer was an old acquaintance—the Patriarch of the Imperial Capital.]

[Continue your cultivation. After half a day, leave the meditation room and go out to see the scenery on the cloud boat.]

Sometimes, you might run into Qi Ling collecting inspiration alone. This woman is rather unfathomable; she concealed her cultivation level by joining Little Green Peak, and her current cultivation realm is far beyond the Dao Embryo realm.

You remained undisturbed, not wanting to get involved or entangled in the complex web of cause and effect; it's better to avoid trouble.

Sometimes, Senior Brother Yang from Qiyun Peak would also come and greet us.

You only exchanged a few brief words with this senior brother, and although you had a good impression of him, you always maintained a just-right distance.

Interestingly, the more aloof you became, the more intrigued Yang Chen's eyes grew. He often used the pretext of pointing out the wonders of the sea of ​​clouds to subtly share his cultivation insights, as if testing your depth of understanding.

In contrast, Jian Susu greeted Yang Chen warmly, so you tactfully found an excuse to take your leave.

[Three days later!]

As the cloud boat passed through the last barrier of rosy clouds, the territory of the Chen Kingdom unfolded beneath its feet.

Although several cultivators' divine senses swept across the area along the way, upon sensing the jade token from Fangcun Mountain, they all retreated swiftly like a tide, daring not to obstruct in the slightest. Many even bowed in respect from a distance.

The cloud boat slowly landed in front of a large mansion in Xuyang County, Chen State, where people were already waiting.

[Yang Chen and Shen Ziming are leading the team. Xiao Qingfeng, you and your group of five have landed.]

Yang Chen was seen forming a magic seal with his hands and chanting incantations.

The enormous cloud boat shrank gradually with the incantation, finally transforming into a small jade boat the size of a palm, which he easily pocketed with a flick of his wide sleeve.

Tu Ying stared at this scene, her eyes filled with envy.

The heroes had been itching to disembark for a long time, having been cooped up on the cloud boat for three days.

[In front of the Xu family mansion with its blue bricks and gray tiles.]

The three people who had been waiting finally arrived; two men and one woman.

[Leading the group was an elderly man with white hair and a youthful face, followed by a middle-aged man with a resolute face and a woman with her hair styled in a bun.]

The three men strode forward, with the old man leading the way: "I am Xu He, and I respectfully welcome my two junior disciples and all fellow disciples."

[Though the voice was aged, it was full of energy, faintly carrying the upright and honest spirit unique to Fangcun Mountain.]

The two people behind the elderly man also acted with great respect.

The two people behind him followed closely and bowed.

[You sense something amiss here; this old man's cultivation is at the same level as your grandfather's, reaching the Perfected Spirit Realm, and he is nearly two hundred years old.]

The middle-aged man behind them was at the mid-stage of the Divine Realm, and the beautiful woman was the same; judging from their clothing, they were likely a couple.

Upon closer inspection, both the middle-aged man and the woman had deep, unyielding sorrow etched on their brows, and even their smiles when bowing seemed forced.

Judging from the old man's demeanor, he should be a lay disciple of Qi Yunfeng who descended the mountain in his early years.

Yang Chen, however, was amiable. "Senior Brother Xu, there's no need for such formalities."

Tao Ziming, however, maintained a cold and indifferent expression.

Jian Susu felt a surge of pride upon seeing the three of them. Given her progress in cultivation, she believed she could remain on Little Green Peak to continue her training and wouldn't need to become a lay disciple.

The old man stepped aside to lead the way, saying, "My humble abode is simple and unpretentious; I hope you will forgive me."

The elderly man greeted you as you entered the Xu family home; there were no large groups of people to welcome you, and you were led into the inner courtyard.

The group entered the house, and as soon as they sat down, the old man got straight to the point, explaining their need for help.

He sighed, "This disturbance to the immortal sects and the trouble caused to everyone is truly a last resort. The evil spirits that have appeared in Xuyang County this time are related to... my grandson."

When the topic of evil spirits came up, Xiao Qingfeng and the others all tensed up.

The old man, Xu He, continued, "Xuyang County is located on the banks of the Yanghua River. There is a White Snake Temple that has been enshrined for eight hundred years. It has always been a place of great religious activity, with sacrifices offered throughout the four seasons. But a year ago..."

"A year ago, the white jade statue of the White Snake Goddess, crafted in a kiln, began to swell up like a pregnant woman, resembling the appearance of a woman in her tenth month of pregnancy, and scale-like patterns began to appear on the surface of the stone."

(End of this chapter)