I Killed Gods and Demons in Song Dynasty

Chapter 157 The seventh level of the Nine Revolutions Yuan Gong!
Under the guidance of the Taoist priest, Li Qingyun bypassed the Shangqing Palace and followed a long path to the back mountain of Longhu Mountain.

From here, walk up through layers of ancient roads, and finally arrive at a secluded residence halfway up the mountain.

It is located in a quiet place in the mountains, surrounded by pine and cypress trees, with birds singing and flowers blooming, just like a paradise.

As we approached, we saw a simple courtyard with several old pines standing tall. The strong trunks exuded an ancient atmosphere.
In the middle of the spacious courtyard are rows of wooden houses, all of which are identical in size and shape, and all have green tile roofs. In front of the houses are hung several strings of wind chimes, which sway gently with the mountain breeze, making clear and pleasant sounds.

The Taoist priest led Li Qingyun to a wooden house marked "Bing 22" and pushed the door open and walked in.

The house was simply furnished, with only four wooden beds and a few simple wooden cabinets beside the beds. Apart from that, there was almost no extra decoration, making it look extremely simple.

Li Qingyun looked around and found that there were three Taoist children in the same room. One of them was a little younger, about fifteen or sixteen years old, and the other two were in their early twenties, one tall and one short, both of them had delicate features and were very handsome.

The three people were wearing Taoist robes and were cleaning the room. When they saw someone coming in, they immediately stopped their work and respectfully saluted the Taoist master and Li Qingyun:
"Greetings, two uncles..."

The Taoist priest nodded and said calmly:
"No need to be polite. Let me introduce you. This is Gao Ren'an. Like you, he is also a newly registered Taoist child who has joined Mount Longhu."

As soon as the voice fell, one of the tall Taoist children murmured softly:
"So it's not Master Uncle..."

He had a sullen look on his face, as if he felt wronged for calling the wrong person "Uncle Master". He pouted and looked somewhat dissatisfied.

Although the other two Taoist children did not say much, there was a hint of surprise in their eyes, as if they were wondering in their hearts: This guy is already so old, why is he still a registered Taoist child?

Li Qingyun took in the expressions of several people, but didn't care.

Although Gao Ren'an's body was well maintained, he still looked much older than these Taoist children, which inevitably caused doubts and misunderstandings.

However, he did not come to Longhu Mountain to make friends, and these minor setbacks had no impact on his plans.

The Taoist priest glanced at the Taoist children calmly, then turned to Li Qingyun and said in a calm tone:

"Gao Ren'an, you can settle down here for the time being. If you have any questions, you can look for these brothers. They have been in the mountains for some time and are familiar with this place. They will definitely be able to help you."

Li Qingyun still looked respectful:

"Thank you for the arrangement, Taoist Priest. I will definitely cherish this opportunity."

The Taoist priest nodded and turned away.

Li Qingyun watched his back disappear out the door, then turned around, looked at the three Taoist children gently, and said with a smile:

"I'm new here, so please take care of me, brothers."

The tall Taoist boy made no effort to conceal his contempt. He snorted coldly, turned his head away, and continued to pack his things without saying a word.

The other short Taoist boy just smiled faintly, returned the greeting, and went about his own business.

Only the kid of about twelve or thirteen seemed much friendlier. He came over and took the initiative to introduce himself:
"Junior Brother Gao... hehe... we in Longhu Mountain only distinguish between the senior and the junior based on the year of entry... I'm begging you to call me Junior Brother, you won't mind, I hope.

"My name is Lu Feng, and those two are my senior brothers. The taller one is Li Quan'an, and the shorter one is Ye Qing. We will live together from now on. If you have any questions, feel free to ask us. Don't hesitate."

Li Qingyun smiled and said in a very friendly manner:
"Thank you, Senior Brother Lu. I'm new here and don't understand a lot of things. I hope you can give me some advice!"

Seeing Li Qingyun's humble attitude, Lu Feng relaxed his vigilance. He blinked his eyes, came over curiously and asked:

"I say, Junior Brother Gao, why did you join the mountain sect only now? The last entrance election was half a year ago, it has already passed!"

After hearing this, although Li Quanan and Ye Qing did not stop their actions on the surface, they also pricked up their ears secretly.

So Li Qingyun had no choice but to repeat his prepared speech.

When they heard that he was given martial arts by a senior master and broke through the four major barriers of tendons, bones, skin and flesh before joining Mount Longhu, the three Taoist children could not hide their surprise.

Lu Feng's eyes were full of envy, and he sighed:

"Junior Brother Gao, you have this opportunity. It is a great blessing to receive guidance from a senior master! And since you can already guide the heavenly thunder into your body, you may soon be picked by that senior and become a true disciple of Mount Longhu. Your achievements will be limitless and you will be much better than us."

Although Li Quan'an had a cold personality and looked very arrogant, he couldn't help but look at Li Qingyun a few more times at this moment, with a bit of envy on his face.

As for Ye Qing, although he remained calm throughout, his expression was a little solemn. It was not difficult to see that he was quite surprised by Li Qingyun's experience.

Li Qingyun asked curiously:
"Brother Lu, what does it mean to be picked away?"

Before Lu Feng could speak, Ye Qing said:

"Don't you even know this? All of us are just nominal disciples. Our daily work is to grow vegetables, feed pigs, and do chores. We don't have any cultivation resources. We only have one volume of [Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering Technique], and we have no one to guide us. We have to learn everything on our own.

“If we want to stand out, we must either be chosen by the senior masters in the mountains and become their formal disciples, and be taught the true secrets of our sect; or we must be a true genius in cultivation, who can cultivate to the point of “gathering energy” on his own and reach the threshold of the second realm, and then be taken seriously, and have the seniors help “build the foundation” for us, so that we can truly embark on the path of cultivation.

"These seem to be two different paths, but in fact, the truly gifted disciples have long been picked up by the senior masters, so why would they stay here? The rest of us are just hoping that one day our uncles and ancestors will be kind-hearted, or that there will be a shortage of boys to serve when they are refining pills or copying talismans. "But there are hundreds of registered disciples here, and only a dozen or so can be chosen every year. The rest will have no hope of building a foundation after the age of thirty, so they have to go home to farm, wasting their best years in vain."

Hearing this, Lu Feng also sighed, with a bit of helplessness on his young face:

"Yes, everyone here is selected by our seniors from thousands or even tens of thousands of places. Which one of them is not extremely talented? Even if they don't practice Taoism, they can still gain wealth and fame by doing something else.

"But after arriving at Mount Longhu, I have to compete with other chosen ones. I know that only a few of them can finally become immortals, but I still can't help but take a gamble. If I win, I will have a chance to become an immortal. If I lose, I will have to do hard labor for more than ten years, which is not much different from being in prison."

On the other side, Ye Qing sneered and joked:
"Brother Lu, please stop complaining. At least in Longhu Mountain, there are no restrictions on returning to secular life. People are allowed to leave the mountain and go home after the age of 30. If you went to Shaolin Temple, you might have to be a monk for the rest of your life and not even be able to marry a wife."

As soon as these words came out, several people burst into laughter. Thinking of the freedom their own sect had compared to Shaolin Temple, everyone felt much better. Even Li Quanan, who had been wary of Li Qingyun before, no longer had the contempt on his face. He put down the work in his hands and said with a serious look:

"Junior Brother Gao, I originally thought that you relied on some sneaky means to get into the mountain sect, but I didn't expect that you could rely on half a volume of [Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering Technique] to break through the four major barriers on your own and successfully guide the heavenly thunder. This talent and perseverance are truly admirable. It's a pity that you came too late.

"I am a straightforward person, so I have to say something unpleasant. You are almost thirty years old now. It is not easy for you to cultivate to the great perfection of "Gathering Qi" by relying on the second half of the exercises. Moreover, the senior masters here will never waste precious cultivation resources on a disciple who is nearly thirty years old and has almost lost his way."

As he spoke, he pointed at Lu Feng who was standing beside him, "Look at Junior Brother Lu. Although he has only broken through the tendons, bones, and skin, and his cultivation is not as good as yours, he is only fourteen years old. In comparison, his potential is much greater. If the uncles and forefathers were to choose someone, who do you think would be chosen, him or you?
"Let alone him, even if you compare yourself to me, you are still far behind. I just turned twenty this year, but I can already guide the heavenly thunder into my body. My cultivation is similar to yours, but we are nearly ten years younger. If there is a chance to ascend to heaven in one step, do you think you can compete with me?"

Li Quanan paused, his tone filled with regret and persuasion:
"Well, I guess at your age, you should have already started a family and a career. So I advise you to make other plans as soon as possible and not waste your time here."

Seeing Li Quanan's blunt words, Lu Feng couldn't stand it anymore and quickly jumped out to defend Li Qingyun:

"Brother Li, please don't discourage Junior Brother Gao. He was personally taught martial arts by a senior in the sect. Although he is a little older, once the senior remembers him, he will definitely accept him as a disciple. In my opinion, his chances are much better than ours."

Li Quanan rolled his eyes at Lu Feng, sneered, and said nothing, but secretly complained in his heart:

"What do you know, you silly kid? How could I not know his chance? But if we don't drive Gao away, he will definitely take up an extra spot for a formal disciple. Wouldn't that mean we will lose another hope in cultivation?"

Li Qingyun has lived two lives and has been involved in both the black and white worlds in Bianliang City for a long time. He is much more agile than ordinary people. He has long seen through Li Quanan's little tricks and couldn't help laughing in his heart, but he didn't point it out. Instead, he said to everyone:
"Brother Li is right. I know I am not young anymore. But since we have embarked on this journey, we should do our best. No matter what the result is, at least we should have no regrets and a clear conscience."

Then he changed the topic and began to talk about various strange stories in the world.

Li Qingyun's associates are all the most powerful people in the world, and their knowledge is far broader than that of ordinary cultivators. His stories include legendary tales of heroes in the martial arts world, as well as mysterious legends of Buddhism and Taoism. His stories are also vivid and interesting, which immediately attracted everyone's attention. The originally heavy topic suddenly became much lighter.

……

It was late at night and the only sound in the courtyard was the occasional sound of wind chimes.

Li Qingyun heard the heavy breathing of the other people. After confirming with his divination skills that there was no danger, he stood up and sat cross-legged on the bed with his five hearts facing the sky. He adjusted his breathing quietly, entered a meditative state, and summoned the mysterious palace shadow that only he could see.

[Remaining Qi and blood: two thousand three hundred and ninety-eight souls].

In the battle against Su Yue'e and the evil infant, he gained a large amount of Qi and blood power transformed from the evil god's aura, and prepared to continue practicing the "Nine Revolutions Yuan Gong" with the magical power of "performing the law".

After reaching the seventh level, the Nine Revolutions Yuan Gong will undergo another qualitative change, greatly strengthening the power of the mind and condensing the soul, allowing it to separate from the physical body and roam freely between heaven and earth.

This will not only greatly enhance his strength, but also be of great help in the task of exploring Longhu Mountain. Therefore, Li Qingyun is determined to obtain it.

He slowly circulated the innate true energy in his body, feeling the full and powerful force flowing through his meridians. At the same time, his breathing gradually became long and deep, like the endless flow of the Yangtze River.

Under the accelerated practice of the "Acting" magical power thousands of times, Li Qingyun's consciousness was slowly isolated from the outside world, and he entered a state of being half dreaming and half awake.

The true Qi in his body began to gather towards the "Baihui" point on the top of his head, condensing into a powerful energy, like an invisible tide, carrying a mighty force.

As the innate true qi of the trinity of essence, energy and spirit continued to accumulate, Li Qingyun felt that his consciousness was gradually becoming clearer and his consciousness and body were gradually separating.

His spiritual thoughts seemed to be guided by an invisible force, rising from his dantian, slowly moving up along his meridians, and finally being pulled to the top of his head.

There seemed to be an invisible portal there, waiting for his divine consciousness to break through.

At this moment, Li Qingyun concentrated all his energy, gathered all his innate true energy into one point, and rushed forward suddenly...

Suddenly, a strong tearing sensation came from the top of his head, followed by a light and floating feeling. His spiritual consciousness finally broke through the constraints of the flesh and left his body.

In an instant, Li Qingyun felt an unprecedented freedom.

His spiritual thoughts quickly condensed and took shape, transforming into a "primordial spirit" that looked exactly like him. It quietly floated in the air, overlooking his sitting body. The familiar face seemed quiet and peaceful in the night.

At the same time, the surrounding scenery became extremely clear. The slight sound of the wind, the swaying of the leaves, and even the faint light in the distant mountains all lost their sense of distance, as if they were very close and within reach.

The seventh level of the Nine Revolutions Yuan Gong - the perfection of "Soul Leaving the Body"!
[Remaining Qi and Blood: 1,423 Souls]...

……

(End of this chapter)