Wet viviparity

Chapter 947 The Storm Rises, Emerging from Seclusion
In Ziding Mountain, clouds and mist rise and fall in splendor.

At the Purple Soul Peak, where purple clouds shroud the landscape and icy springs cascade down, Ding Ruyi, dressed in the robes of a palace envoy, arrived from outside the mountain, looking travel-worn.

A gentle mountain breeze brushed against the jade plaque from the Yanshou Palace hanging at his waist, the eight characters on it, "Under the gate of the high official Fuming Chentu," gleaming warmly in the morning light.

The two spirit cranes guarding the mountain spotted Ding Ruyi's figure from afar and immediately straightened their appearance. The older spirit crane whispered to his companion, "Although this Ding Ruyi is only a minor official in the lowest rank of immortals, she is the chief disciple of that little saint."

I heard that the precious branch bestowed by the White Crane Ancestor the other day was delivered directly to his residence. I also heard that he's about to be promoted again.

"They're going to move again, and it hasn't even been that long."

"Bah! You think everyone is like you, standing here at the mountain gate making a hole, just another nobody?"

"You don't do the same."

The two cranes started arguing like mischievous children, but Ding Ruyi seemed oblivious and continued deeper into the peak, stopping before a cloud valley.

"Is Ding Xiaoshi here to see the clouds again?"

A clear female voice rang out from behind, and two fairy maidens carrying jade dew bottles approached gracefully. The bottles contained morning dew drawn from the ice spring of Purple Soul Peak. One of the fairy maidens, dressed in a pale yellow dress, stared at Ding Ruyi, her eyes conveying affection, and said with a smile, "The divine general mentioned this morning that if the envoy has time, he can go to Flowing Stone Cave for tea."

Ding Ruyi turned around and returned the greeting, her attitude very friendly, but inwardly she sighed slightly.

He has a family, but because he is responsible for collecting intelligence from all directions in the heavens at the Three Life Star Lord's Daoist temple, Ziding Mountain, he can only be obsequious to everyone here.

These two celestial maidens were the attendants of Pan Yan, the guardian deity of the mountain. Although this deity was dismissed from the palace for his crimes and punished to guard the mountain and not be allowed to leave, he still had a great influence in the Southern Dipper Palaces and was very well-informed.

Ding Ruyi knew that he was good-looking, easy-going, and didn't compete for anything. With his master and Xiao Shougu's backing, he could easily get into the immortal ranks of Yanshou Palace. Any female Taoist who hadn't yet renounced worldly desires would treat him differently.

The fairy knew Ding Ruyi's purpose in coming here, and with a flick of her sleeves, she had already conveyed the information.

"Nazhenxian secretly met with the Right Judge of the Heavenly Fox Academy." Ding Ruyi glanced at it and didn't speculate further.

In Ziding Mountain, he had countless intelligence reports on Zhao Tan, his immortals and their various gods, ghosts, demons, and monsters. Each report, viewed in isolation, was insufficient to determine its usefulness; only by combining these reports with other intelligence could the key information be gleaned.

This is a mentally taxing job, and it's common for him to find nothing even after digging deep into a single intelligence report.

Upon reaching a cave in the middle of the peak, Ding Ruyi suddenly heard the sound of wind and thunder. She looked closely and saw that two Thunder Gods were passing by on clouds. The leader noticed Ding Ruyi and nodded slightly in greeting.

After the cloud chariot had gone far away, the little mountain demon tidying up the flowers and trees whispered, "Immortal Master, just as you predicted, these Thunder Department soldiers came to Ziding Mountain for an inspection today."

Ding Ruyi watched the two divine generals leave, knowing that this was once again Zhao Tan's doing.

After he first arrived at Ziding Mountain, such scenes would frequently occur. Whenever he returned to the mountain, officers and soldiers from the Thunder Department would come to inspect his cave under the guise of official business. The meaning was clear: to warn his master not to provoke him.

Ding Ruyi flicked her finger without making a sound, and a elixir fell into Xiaoshanxiao's sleeve.

This was a pill that Master Yifeng had refined using the Divine Formula of Stone Fertilizer. It was a valuable commodity for both cultivators and demons. The little mountain demon understood and added, "I heard from my uncle's son's uncle that the Zen Master Caihu has been heading towards the North Sea recently." Hearing the little mountain demon list a string of relatives, I felt that I might be being fooled.

However, it's not unacceptable that the little mandrill could serve at Ziding Mountain, given the somewhat complicated relationships involved.

Back in the cave, after passing through the various Qimen formations set up inside, they arrived at a secret chamber containing a wealth of information. Although no one in Ziding Mountain dared to break the rules and enter another's cave without permission, Ding Ruyi remained cautious and set up formations in the cave in advance, not daring to be careless in the slightest.

First, archive the newly acquired intelligence, and then begin to organize it.

After tidying up, an hour or so had passed outside. Ding Ruyi sat down at the table and entered a meditative state for a while before opening another scroll.

This was sent by the Cabinet, recording all the major and minor affairs since the establishment of the Precious Merit Spirit Court.

It has been decades since my master went into seclusion.

He still remembered when the Divine Palace was built and the Great Council was held. He thought he would follow his master to make great strides in the southern lands. But who could have imagined that in the blink of an eye, he would have entered the Heavenly Court and become the Envoy of the Five Grains in the Longevity Palace, gathering information in the Purple Fixed Mountain and secretly meeting with various gods and immortals in the heavens.

The scrolls and records show that all sects in Tiannan are thriving, with each branch displaying vigorous vitality and producing a great number of talented individuals.

“Master really needs to get some exercise.”

Ding Ruyi looked at the scroll with satisfaction.

These days, rumors are spreading like the wind through the bamboo shoots in Ziding Mountain. It is said that the old star lord of Yanshou Palace, seeing that the Tiannan Baozi Gongde Lingting has been promoting its teachings for decades and that its Taoist teachings and virtues have been flourishing, has already decided to bestow upon him the title of divine general.

According to Ding Ruyi, it was a bit of a waste for her master to be a divine general.

With Master's current level of cultivation and reputation, he is already a recluse, and the people he associates with are all immortals. He would be more than qualified to be a general of thunder.

As he flipped through the scroll, he came across a repulsive word—Tianteng Mountain. For decades, Tianteng Mountain had been constantly shifting its stance, outwardly enjoying the hard-won peace achieved by the Spirit Court, but secretly always singing a dissenting tune.

If it weren't for Master's words that the overall peace in Tiannan for the next two hundred years must not be altered, the cabinet would have already pushed for a battle between Xiaozhu Jinting and Tianteng Mountain.

Just as she was pondering, a phoenix suddenly appeared outside the cave carrying a message. The phoenix landed directly on Ding Ruyi's shoulder, spat out a jade slip, and then went to the alchemy room to find some snacks to eat.

Ding Ruyi respectfully accompanied the phoenix for a meal and drinks. This phoenix was named Dou Shi, a divine messenger of the Goddess of Mount Tai, an old acquaintance of his master. He dared not be negligent in the slightest. After seeing Dou Shi off, he read the jade slip. It turned out that his master was leaving seclusion and would be appointed as a divine general by the Old Star Lord.

This time, the master's emergence from seclusion and receiving the imperial decree was only a small matter for him. The real big event was that Wu Wanfang from the Red Beauty Cave had finally emerged from seclusion.

He understood how much his master valued this matter, but over the decades, his master's dealings with the True Immortal of the Ji family of the True Spirit Sect had also been rumored, and Zhao Tan's cronies must have heard about it, and there was a high chance they would come to ruin his master's plans.

Ding Ruyi pondered for a moment, then summoned the spirit cranes that had been brought from Crane Temple to the cave. She wrote several jade slips and sent them to the cranes.

He watched the cranes depart, muttering to himself, "Master, a storm is brewing."

(End of this chapter)