Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

More than a thousand miles south of Yunrui County, there is a low mountain range less than fifty miles high. The main peak is only more than three hundred feet high, which can barely be called beautiful.

But at the foot of the mountain, there is a vast city, which is the seat of Weichuan Prefecture of Jiyang County, to which Yunrui County belongs.

The city is crowded with people, the streets are prosperous, and the streets are full of young Confucian scholars, who are humble and polite.

There are more than ten academies scattered around the city. The sound of reading can be heard, lingering over the city for a long time.

The reason why Weichuan Prefecture flourished in literary style was because of this inconspicuous low mountain range.

This mountain range is called Weiming Mountain Range. The main peak, which is over 300 feet high, is called Yulu Peak. There is a academy built from the foot of the mountain to the top.

There are many pavilions and towers, but there is no trace of luxury or vulgarity. They are all made of pink walls, black tiles, blue bricks and white walls, simple and elegant. On the archway at the foot of the mountain are written four big characters "Bailu Academy".

On several nearby mountain peaks, there are quaint courtyards scattered among the bamboo forests and pine trees. The sound of reading can be heard everywhere, which mixes with the singing of birds in the mountains, adding a bit of tranquility.

This is the mountain gate of Bailu Academy. According to legend, more than 1,200 years ago, a Jindan cultivator was stuck in a bottleneck in the late stage. He traveled around the world looking for an opportunity to break through. On the main peak of Weiming Mountain Range, he met a white deer that could speak human language.

The Jindan cultivator was greatly surprised. The man and the deer sat and discussed the Dao for seven days and seven nights before the white deer left.

Inspired by the white deer, the Jindan cultivator gained some insights into the Confucian and Taoist classics. He practiced in seclusion on this mountain and broke through the bottleneck of the late stage in just one year.

From then on, the Jindan cultivator stayed in the Weiming Mountains, founded the Bailu Academy, renamed the main peak as Yulu Peak, recruited many disciples, and taught Confucianism and Taoism.

This Jindan cultivator also opened a branch at the foot of the mountain to recruit mortal disciples. Confucian and Taoist monks from the Bailu Academy often came to preach and teach, attracting many scholars from Weichuan Prefecture to come and study.

Over time, the small town at the foot of the Weiming Mountains gradually developed into a prosperous city. In the end, even the capital of Weichuan Prefecture was moved here, and the literary style flourished.

The Bailu Academy also grew slowly, with many cultivators forming the Jindan stage, but no one succeeded in forming the Infant stage, so it remained a small sect.

But two months ago, the headmaster of Bailu Academy, Shi Pingshan, successfully conceived a baby and returned from Chongde Mountains, causing a sensation in Bailu Academy.

Everyone in the academy was smiling. The dean became a Nascent Soul cultivator. From then on, Bailu Academy became a medium-sized sect. It could expand its sphere of influence, occupy more spiritual mines and veins, and obtain more resources for cultivation.

Even the Confucian and Taoist monks who recite the classics of the ancients all day long cannot resist the temptation of elixirs and spiritual stones.

In this atmosphere, the air around Lian Yulu Peak was much more cheerful than usual, and every disciple in the academy was smiling.

But in the evening of that day, two beams of light flew into the Weiming Mountains, arrived in front of Yulu Peak, and stopped outside the sect protection formation, revealing two gloomy and resentful faces.

The one with a gloomy face is Cheng Zaiming, and the one with a sad face is Feng Yongyan.

After handing the storage bag to Li Qingshan, the two hurriedly left Qingshan Village and rushed back to the Weiming Mountains as quickly as possible.

The two of them flew non-stop along the way. Cheng Zaiming was deceived by Feng Yongyan and almost died at the hands of the late Jindan cultivator. He hated him deeply, but was concerned about Feng Tiande and could not get angry. He did not utter a word throughout the whole process, and his face was terribly gloomy.

Feng Yongyan didn't take Cheng Zaiming seriously at all. What he was thinking about was how to get Feng Tiande's forgiveness.

What he lost was not just a storage bag, but also an extremely precious treasure.

He had never thought about revenge. Although he was a playboy, he was self-aware and knew that he depended on his father for everything. No matter how spoiled his father was, he would not offend a late Jindan cultivator for him.

The two of them took out their identity jade cards, passed through the sect protection formation, and then parted ways.

Cheng Zaiming glared at Feng Yongyan fiercely and flew towards a mountain next to Yulu Peak.

He is a lecturer at the Bailu Academy. His master is also a Jindan cultivator, but his cultivation is one level lower than Feng Tiande's. It is not easy for him to attack Feng Yongyan directly. He must report the matter to his master first and then make any arrangements.

He is not a playboy like Feng Yongyan. All the things in the storage bag were accumulated with great difficulty. When he handed them to Li Qingshan, he felt heartbroken and he had to get them back!
Feng Yongyan didn't care about Cheng Zaiming's hatred. He was a playboy to begin with, and relying on Feng Tiande's power, he robbed countless resources from his fellow disciples. Many people hated him.

He flew to another two-hundred-foot-high mountain and fell into the distance.

A section of the top of the mountain was cut off, making it flat and wide, and an exquisite three-courtyard house was built there, which was the location of Feng Tiande's cave.

Confucian and Taoist monks value being involved in the world, and their caves are built like houses on earth instead of being opened directly in the mountains.

Feng Yongyan knocked on the door knocker gently, and after a while, the two doors made of century-old spiritual wood slowly opened.

He took a deep breath, walked in, came to the main hall, and stood with his hands hanging down.

The main hall was empty. Feng Yongyan waited for about a quarter of an hour before a monk came in and sat in the main seat.

This is a middle-aged man with a mustache and a plump figure. He is Feng Yongyan's father, Feng Tiande, the abbot of Bailu Academy.

Feng Yongyan bowed deeply: "Father, I'm back."

He looked Feng Yongyan up and down, smiling and gentle, and suddenly his eyes stopped at Feng Yongyan's waist, frowning: "Where is your storage bag?"

Feng Yongyan's face was very embarrassed: "Father, I...my storage bag was taken away by someone."

Feng Tiande's expression changed: "What? Who did it? How dare you!"

Feng Yongyan immediately told him about the conflict between him and Li Qingshan, and what Chen Yuan had done about his storage bag being left behind. He even did not dare to hide the fact that he had been forced to buy the demon pill.

After hearing this, Feng Tiande's face darkened and he scolded, "You evil creature! It's just a level three demon pill, why did you force me to buy it?" Feng Yongyan didn't argue, tears streaming down his face, he whispered, "Father, it's my fault, I was greedy for a moment and shouldn't have done this, I beg you to punish me!"

As he said this, he bowed deeply again and looked at Feng Tiande with red eyes and a face full of self-blame.

Feng Tiande looked at Feng Yongyan and said in a disappointed tone, "How come you just can't grow up, kid? You are a foundation-building cultivator, not a mortal. The world of immortal cultivation is full of hidden talents, and even as a father, you have to act with caution. How can you be like that dandy young man in the mortal world and cause trouble at will?"

Feng Yongyan's tears flowed even more happily, and he bowed deeply: "Father, I was wrong, please punish me!"

But the more he did so, the more Feng Tiande couldn't bear to punish him.

One hundred and twenty years ago, his beloved wife gave birth to Feng Yongyan, and died unexpectedly the following year. He raised Feng Yongyan alone.

At that time, he was facing a bottleneck in his Dan-Jie process, so he went out to travel and look for spiritual objects for Dan-Jie. He sent Feng Yongyan to a county town and handed him over to the care of a distant mortal relative of the same clan.

But Feng Yongyan is the son of a cultivator. How could that distant mortal relative dare to discipline him strictly?
Feng Tiande naturally would not let his only son suffer. This distant mortal relative was a wealthy businessman with a very rich family. Under his indulgence, Feng Yongyan became lawless. At a young age, he caused trouble everywhere and only knew how to spend money on wine and women and seek pleasure.

Sixteen years later, Feng Tiande formed the golden elixir and found Feng Yongyan again. He was seventeen years old and had become a playboy.

However, because Feng Tiande missed his wife, he doted on Feng Yongyan very much and would fulfill his every request, which made Feng Yongyan act more and more unscrupulously.

Feng Tiande was a Confucian and Taoist monk, well-read in poetry and literature, and he knew that drowning a child was the same as killing him, so he intended to discipline his son strictly.

But every time Feng Yongyan made a mistake, he would take the initiative to admit it with a sincere attitude.

That pleading look always reminded Feng Tiande of his wife's instructions before she passed away, asking him to take good care of Feng Yongyan. He could not bear to punish him, but instead indulged Feng Yongyan's actions even more.

Today, when he heard that Feng Yongyan had provoked a late Jindan cultivator, he naturally became furious. However, when he saw Feng Yongyan admitting his mistake and even crying, he softened his heart and couldn't bear to punish him.

"Alas..." Feng Tiande sighed and waved his hand, "Forget it, it's good that you admit your mistake. A storage bag is nothing. Your father will give you another one."

Feng Yongyan raised his hand and silently wiped away his tears, whispering: "Father, that storage bag contains the Huanzhen Pill that you gave me..."

Feng Tiande's eyes flashed with a trace of regret: "It's a pity that the Huanzhen Pill was lost, but you and Cheng Zaiming killed that young sword cultivator, which was very cruel."

"But that fellow Taoist only took away your two storage bags. This is a minor punishment and a major warning, but it's for the sake of the headmaster's consideration."

"I can't ask for more. If there is a chance in the future, I will find you another one."

Huanzhen Pill can increase the chance of forming a pill by 30% and is known as the "holy object for forming a pill". The main ingredient for refining this pill is Suzhen Flower, whose value is comparable to that of a thousand-year-old spiritual herb.

He also took great pains to get one pill, and gave it to Feng Yongyan in advance to encourage him to practice diligently, break through the bottleneck of the late stage as soon as possible, and strive to form a pill.

Feng Tiande felt very sad about the loss of the elixir this time, but it was impossible for him to ask the late Jindan cultivator for it. Instead, he had to think about how to resolve the hatred between them.

Feng Tiande knew very well that the late Jindan cultivator spared Feng Yongyan's life out of consideration for Shipingshan, but that did not mean the matter was over.

Sword cultivators are so rare. That late Jindan cultivator accepted a sword cultivator as his disciple, but he almost died at the hands of Feng Yongyan. How could he let it go so easily?
Feng Tiande's mind turned, and he suddenly raised his hand. A jade slip appeared out of thin air in his palm and flew towards Feng Yongyan.

He said, "Where did you meet the young swordsman and his master? Mark it on the map."

Feng Yongyan took the jade slip, probed his spiritual sense into it, and closed his eyes slightly.

After a while, he withdrew his consciousness, presented the jade slip with both hands, and said respectfully: "Father, I have marked it."

Feng Tiande raised his hand and took the jade slip into his hand. He took a look inside with his spiritual sense and muttered, "Qingfeng County, Yunrui County..."

Suddenly, his expression changed slightly, and he remembered something from the past, and said, "Do you still remember Liao Yanlun?"

Feng Yongyan was startled, then replied: "I remember, he is the headmaster of Zhouyang Academy, and he comes to visit my father every year."

Feng Tiande put away the jade slip and said in a deep voice: "When Liao Yanlun came to visit my father seventeen years ago, he mentioned something."

"He was a Qi Refining Level 7 disciple who had been away from home for too long and had not returned to Zhouyang Academy. Liao Yanlun went to investigate personally, only to discover that the person who killed his disciple was actually a cultivator in the middle stage of the Core Formation Stage."

"Fortunately, Liao Yanlun saw that the situation was not good and took the initiative to beg for mercy. The cultivator in the middle stage of Jindan did not harm his life. And the hometown of his disciple is Yunrui County!"

Feng Yongyan was surprised and said, "Father, are you saying that the late Jindan cultivator I met is the same person as the middle Jindan cultivator who killed Liao Yanlun's disciple?"

Feng Tiande nodded: "It's almost certain. It's impossible for a small Yunrui County to have two Jindan cultivators."

"This person was in the middle stage of Jindan seventeen years ago, and he broke through the bottleneck of the late stage in less than twelve years. His cultivation progress is so fast, it is really amazing. He also accepted a sword-cultivating disciple, whose origin is mysterious and must not be offended."

"Well, tomorrow you will take my father's visiting card and go back to Yunrui County. Invite that Taoist friend to attend the mountain chief's baby-birth celebration banquet, and tell him that your father wants to apologize to him. Remember, be respectful and don't anger that Taoist friend!"

Feng Yongyan was stunned when he heard this. The late Jindan cultivator had snatched his storage bag, but Feng Tiande actually wanted to apologize to him. It was really unbelievable.

He really wanted to say, the headmaster has just formed his Nascent Soul, what is there to be afraid of?

But Feng Yongyan was smart and never disobeyed Feng Tiande in person. Even though he was very dissatisfied, he immediately agreed: "Yes, I will send the visiting card tomorrow!" (End of this chapter)