Day and night tour

Chapter 437 The Nine Provinces Alchemists
Within Zhou Xuan's secret realm, two clear springs appeared, similar in appearance but different in color.

A clear spring flows red, its entire body a dazzling ruby ​​color.

A clear spring flows, its color azure, like the sky after rain.

The spring water was a clear blue, quiet and serene, flowing at a very even pace.

Because the flow rate was so even, Zhou Xuan felt as if the spring water was still in the air, completely undisturbed.

The red spring water, on the other hand, was incredibly turbulent, constantly rushing and crashing wildly through the secret realm, like an untamed wild horse.

Despite the turbulent spring, the people in the secret realm showed no sign of worry. Even the ginseng children like the eldest and third brothers clapped and cheered, chasing after the red spring.

"A fight is about to break out! Come and see what's going on!"

"God of Blackwater, that Red Spring is not convinced, come out and beat it up."

The mastermind of the Buddhist kingdom had a vent on his walnut-sized body—this vent was his "camera".

"It's so beautiful, so artistically valuable. This savage collision, this perfect color, I must capture its most stunning moment when it battles the black water later."

This "little gadget" called the mainframe actually has a lot of artistic merit.
Miss Wall and the engineer also ran and rejoiced along with the spring water.

These two springs brought an unprecedented vitality to the secret realm.

"boom!"

The only thing that bothers the volatile Red Spring is the Black Water in the Secret Realm.

The black water was as dark as ink, with an iron-like color. He didn't particularly like the "temperamental" "youngster in the water" like the Red Spring.

Since Hongquan dared to challenge his authority, he would fight.

Moreover, he was even more irritable than before, and so, lightning and thunder roared within the secret realm.

Streaks of lightning illuminated the sky, signaling the approaching storm.

The torrential rain soon began to fall, and taking advantage of this violent momentum, the black water stirred up thousands of giant waves, rushing towards the red spring.

"Pfft! Boom!"

A massive wave submerged the red spring, while the dolls in the secret realm clapped their hands and laughed heartily.
In Zhou Xuan's heart, he knew very well that the time had come to light incense.

"The sixth incense stick has burned, and we have entered the secret realm."

The incense for Nuo rituals is stolen—to light a stick of incense, you need the nod of the incense master of that incense burner. What if the other party doesn't nod? You beat them until they do.

When he had burned three or four incense sticks, the ancestor of the golden dragon and the black tortoise of the human world entered the secret realm.

The ancestor of the Xuan Turtle deduced Zhou Xuan's future. In his future, he saw many extraordinary scenes and recognized Zhou Xuan's "遁甲" (遁甲) incense burning technique.

As for the golden dragon in the human realm, it was very unruly. Not only was it unconvinced, it also tried to break into the secret realm with its body in an attempt to escape.

Finally, Blackwater and Blood Well joined forces to suppress the Golden Dragon, allowing Zhou Xuan to advance to the "Dragon Seeker" level.

Now, these two streams of clear spring water are the ancestral alchemy of the human world—the Blue and Red Fish.

The red fish is called "Transformation into a Dragon," and the green fish is called "Clouds and Rain." This red fish is clearly not convinced by Zhou Xuan's style and does not allow Zhou Xuan to light incense.

The black water of the Nuo god naturally had to be suppressed.

As for the Azure-Red Fish, it had followed both the Ancient Buddha and the Dao Ancestor, and could be said to have chatted and laughed with two great celestial beings. Naturally, it did not take ordinary secret realms seriously and had a very high opinion of itself.

But the Blackwater was no pushover either; it came from the most powerful deity—the Nuo God—whose fighting spirit was incredibly strong.

The towering waves, one after another, pressed down so hard that the red spring could hardly breathe.

Left with no other choice, the red spring revealed its true form: a giant red fish tens of feet long.

The large fish darted and weaved through the giant waves, seemingly braving the storm.

But the waves whipped up by the black waters of the Nuo god were endless, repeatedly capsizing the red fish.
Everyone watched with great excitement, cheering and shouting enthusiastically for Blackwater. The eldest and third brothers, in particular, were completely mesmerized. When they finally snapped out of their daze, they joined in the shouting.

"Come on, Big Fish! If you don't put in some effort, we won't have any fun to watch."

With the cheers and encouragement of the crowd, the waves of the black water became even more majestic, with the peaks of the waves almost reaching the sky, continuing to suppress the large red fish.

To be honest, the Blackwater battle was quite intense, which also stirred up the Blood Well's enthusiasm.

The crimson moon where the City God Temple was located also began to move, as if wanting to declare to the red fish—that in this unique secret realm of the Well Kingdom, there is a Celestial Venerable and the strongest Celestial God guarding it.
Even if you're a tiger, you have to lie down; even if you're a dragon, you have to coil up.

However, Zhou Xuan waved his hand towards the Blood Well and said, "These two big fish are quite interesting. The human brains, dolls, and Miss Wall in the secret realm are all enjoying them. Don't suppress them so quickly."
Let Shuizi have a good run with that big fish.

After his persuasion, Bloodwell's Scarlet Moon stopped and ceased her attacks.

Zhou Xuan continued watching the show.
Giant waves crashed against the big fish, and the big fish battled the wind and waves.

But the waves were endless, and the giant fish couldn't maintain its momentum forever; nineteen waves crashed down in succession.

The large red fish was exhausted and could no longer move, floating on the surface of the black water like a dead fish.

The surging black waves continued to crash against each other with great enthusiasm, the sound of their collisions seeming to say, "Little fish, I haven't even put in any effort yet, and you've already fallen?"

The big fish knew that the sound of the raging waves was mocking it, but it was helpless; it had no strength left to continue battling the wind and waves.

At this moment, Blackwater revealed its true power. Waves surged continuously on the surface, resembling a series of towering mountains as far as the eye could see.

If another attack is launched this time, it will be an attack on the very essence of this red fish—if it does not yield and Zhou Xuan lights this incense stick, it may not be able to leave this secret realm.

"Uh-huh~"

The big fish finally gave in to fear and surrender, turning its belly up as if in worship towards the giant wave.
With its surrender, Blackwater ceased its offensive.

The red fish transformed into a clear spring once more, twisting together with the blue spring in a braided shape.

Once the spring water had completely twisted into a spiral, the two streams of clear water suddenly transformed into stone pillars tens of feet high.

A thunderbolt struck the stone pillar from the sky.

With a series of cracking sounds, countless cracks appeared on the surface of the stone pillar. Then, the stone pillar collapsed with a crash, and an incense stick painted with "blue and red fish patterns" appeared in the secret realm.

Zhou Xuan was also promoted to the Sixth Incense Stick level because of this incense stick.

"But what is this incense stick called? There are no alchemy halls in this Jing Kingdom."

However, while there are no alchemy halls in the human world, there are alchemists.

"Once we leave the secret realm, let's ask the old white deer."

After six incense sticks had burned, Zhou Xuan seemed to have gained some insight. He didn't rush to leave, but instead sat cross-legged on the ground and began to meditate carefully.

……

Zhou Family Troupe, Under the Ancestral Tree
Zhou Lingyi carefully felt the vibrations of the ancestral tree branches.

There is a link between Zhou Xuan and the Ancestral Tree, and it has a clear understanding of his every move, including the situation within Zhou Xuan's Secret Realm.

However, everything inside the Zhou Xuan Secret Realm was invisible to Zhou Lingyi and Yuan Buyu; they could only learn about the situation inside the secret realm from the vibrations of the ancestral tree branches.

Yuan Buyu, standing to the side, was like an old gambler, eagerly waiting for the dealer to open the pot, hoping to get a good score.

"Master Zhou, how is it? My disciple, the sixth incense stick, what kind of hall has he opened?"

Zhou Lingyi waved her hand, signaling Yuan Buyu to calm down. After listening for a while, she turned back to Yuan Buyu and said, "Elder Yuan, my brother is still not a member of the Human Realm after six incense sticks have burned!"

"Huh? So arrogant?"

Upon hearing that it wasn't a "human brothel," Yuan Buyu grinned from ear to ear.

Mr. Bai Liu, standing nearby, was also beaming with joy and congratulated Zhou Lingyi.

"Master Zhou, congratulations! The hall that the Great Master has been promoted to is no ordinary hall. If he completes all nine halls in the future, then he may... single-handedly restore the majestic atmosphere of cultivation in the Jing Kingdom."

"You storyteller, you've really got a silver tongue, you've stolen all my lines!" Yuan Buyu scolded Mr. Bai Liu, forgetting that he himself was also a storyteller.

Mr. Bai Liu glared at Yuan Buyu: "Old Yuan, do you think you're qualified to lecture me? In the storytelling community, you have to call me senior brother."

"I'm now a god-level storyteller. In the Zhou family troupe, you call me junior brother, and I won't argue with you. But outside, what should you call me?"

"Grandmaster."

Human disciples address "god-level" beings as either "Great Ancestor" or "Grandmaster," except for those with a significant generational gap, such as Yun Ziliang and Li Changxun.

Although Li Changxun is the "ancestor" of dragon vein hunting, Yun Ziliang's seniority is far too high, and his reputation among dragon vein hunters is boundless.
Therefore, Li Changxun could only address him according to the normal seniority, calling him "Grandmaster". Yuan Buyu was secretly pleased to hear Bai Liu call him "Grandmaster", and turned his head to the side, saying, "Your voice was too soft just now, I didn't hear you clearly, speak louder."

"Grandmaster! Grandmaster!"

Mr. Bai Liu called out twice more.

"Ah, it sounds beautiful, really beautiful." Yuan Buyu was completely satisfied.

Mr. Bai Liu scoffed and said, "Pah, Old Yuan, you've only managed to get a good apprentice. Otherwise, you wouldn't be the new Bifang of our storytellers."

"Then why didn't you take on a good apprentice? Taking on an apprentice is a matter of good fortune."

Yuan Buyu beamed with joy, while Mr. Bai Liu initially kept a straight face, but after a long while, he couldn't help but smile with relief.

He smiled because he was happy for Yuan Buyu. Among all the storytellers' disciples, who didn't know that Yuan Buyu was the most talented disciple in the storytelling school, second only to Mr. Feng?

Unfortunately, Yuan Buyu was unlucky in his choice of mentors. First, his master kept secrets from him, and later he took in four more disciples, three of whom turned against him. This directly led to him being without disciples for ten years, leaving him disheartened.

The word "disciple" was probably the word Yuan Buyu least wanted to hear in most of his life.

Now, all that is in the past. Zhou Xuan, his disciple, has become a "starlight" in Yuan Buyu's life, warming his cold heart and illuminating his dim future once again.

Mr. Bai Liu was happy to see Yuan Buyu emerge from the shadows of his early life.

At this moment, Yuan Buyu asked Zhou Lingyi again, "Master Zhou, what exactly is my apprentice's new troupe like?"

“The blue and red fish have entered the secret realm. They are the ancestors of alchemy in the world. My brother’s new incense must be a hall for alchemy. However, I don’t know what to call this hall.”

Zhou Lingyi also believed Zhou Xuan's lies; she was confident in her knowledge of many secrets within the Shintoism of the Jing Kingdom.

She didn't know the name of the temple after burning incense for the "colorful opera master" before, and she still didn't know the name after burning incense again.

"My younger brother is incredibly capable."

Upon hearing "Alchemy Hall," Yuan Buyu was unsure what to call it. Mr. Bai Liu, standing nearby, coughed lightly and said, "The Alchemists of the Nine Provinces."

"The alchemists of Kyushu?"

Yuan Buyu and Zhou Lingyi both looked at him at the same time.

Mr. Bai Liu said, "In ancient times, there were many alchemists. They traveled all over the world, just to find immortal mountains and famous caves, and to follow in the footsteps of their predecessors."

Because of their elusive nature, they preached in all nine prefectures, hence the name "The Nine Provinces' Sorcerers."

"Where did you learn that from?" Yuan Buyu asked, somewhat frightened.

He was also a storyteller, and as someone in his own circle, he knew all too well what was going on in his own school. He knew those storytellers all too well; they were all silver-tongued, relying on their smooth tongues to spout nonsense and make things up.

He was afraid that the name "Master of the Nine Provinces" might have been made up by this Mr. Bai Liu.

“Junior brother, you’ve probably forgotten that we storytellers travel all over the world telling stories and collecting all sorts of strange tales and anecdotes. Our minds are like a general store.”

At this point, Mr. Bai Liu changed the subject, saying, "Oh, right, I just remembered, junior brother, you're not a storyteller anymore, you're a cook. You're surrounded by smoke and fire all day long, so it's understandable that you don't know some obscure and unusual stories."

These words were a veiled criticism of Yuan Buyu, implying he was a naive and unsophisticated cook.
Zhou Lingyi, who was listening in, couldn't help but smile – the storyteller's humor was indeed well-deserved; even a quarrel between the disciples could be quite entertaining.

Yuan Buyu snorted and asked, "Leaving aside the cook, Bai Liu, let me ask you, what did you glean from my apprentice's incense offering?"

"I noticed."

"Then tell me?"

"Can I say?" Mr. Bai Liu may have a habit of teasing Yuan Buyu, but he is actually quite discreet.

He is a very cautious person and knows all too well the saying "trouble comes from the mouth".

“Go ahead and say it. We’re all on the same side. Who’s afraid of reporting you for something?” Yuan Buyu said.

"Then I really said it."

After receiving Yuan Buyu's approval, Mr. Bai Liu said, "These past few days, while visiting the Zhou family troupe, you mentioned that the eldest master was chosen by the Nuo God, and later, unintentionally, gained the favor of the Blood Well Celestial Venerable."

But judging from the current situation, it seems that the Great Master wasn't chosen by the Nuo God or the Blood Well; someone even higher up chose him.

Yuan Buyu nodded and said to Zhou Lingyi, "That's what my junior brother thinks too. If the Nuo God chooses Xuanzi, then the Nuo God will decide which shrine Xuanzi must pass through."
But Nuo Shen is a celestial being on earth; I was already quite surprised that he could help Xuanzi choose the ancient and lost shrine of the Cai Xi Shi (a type of folk opera performer).

This time, they chose the "Nine Provinces Taoist Priests" sect, which is beyond the capabilities of the gods and the Blood Well.

Therefore, Xuanzi's arrival in the Kingdom of Jing was not due to the Nuo God's selection; he merely acted as an assistant to someone of greater importance, bringing Xuanzi to the Kingdom of Jing.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Lingyi said in a long, drawn-out tone, "Who else could be above that? The Dao Ancestor? The Witch God? The Ancient Buddha? Or perhaps those two supreme wills?"

Yuan Buyu did not answer, but instead gazed quietly at the sky and said, "The people above have chosen Xuanzi. They must have a reason. What is that reason?"

"Perhaps they know that the Kingdom of Jing is weak and the Kingdom of Buddhism is strong. If the two countries go to war, the Kingdom of Jing cannot win. So they chose the Great Master to come and turn the tide and save the collapsing edifice?"

Mr. Bai Liu said.

“If that were the case, we wouldn’t have chosen a pill-refining hall for Xuanzi, but rather a hall with extremely high combat power.”

Yuan Buyu said, "Among all the gangs in the world, the most powerful forces, on the surface, are none other than the three gangs of Wuwen Mountain, Divine Arrow, and Storyteller."
However, on the other hand, the Jing Kingdom has a long history of cultivation, and there must be some lost sects whose combat power surpasses that of these three sects.
If it's for fighting, Xuanzi should learn this kind of sect.

"Sigh, I can't guess, I can't guess. It's better not to try to guess what those people up there are thinking. I smell some snacks, I'm going to the kitchen to have some. You guys chat."

Mr. Bai Liu, carrying his long gown, strode quickly toward the Zhou family's kitchen.

"Is it that they can't guess correctly, or that they're afraid to guess further?"

Yuan Buyu shouted at Mr. Bai Liu.

Mr. Bai Liu didn't turn his head, but simply raised his hand and said, "They all exist, they all exist. I can't guess them, and I dare not guess them—I'm not like you, with a good apprentice backing you up. If I get into trouble and am buried alive, no one will plead for me."

After Mr. Bai Liu disappeared, Zhou Lingyi asked Yuan Buyu, "Mr. Yuan, I'd like to ask, what do you mean by 'I dare not guess'?"

“Master Zhou, the Supreme Will has been missing for hundreds of years, and the heavenly supervision is getting weaker and weaker.”

Yuan Buyu pointed to the sky and said, "There must be something going on in the sky, and Xuanzi's elixir can just solve the problem."

"Is it really that mysterious?"

"It's just a wild guess, just a wild guess." Yuan Buyu knew that if things in the heavens got out of control—that would be a huge mess—and if Xuanzi got involved in these matters, he would be in grave danger.

He didn't want Zhou Lingyi to worry.

“However, Master Zhou, judging from Xuanzi’s usual behavior, you don’t really need to worry about him.”

"Then who should I worry about?" Zhou Lingyi asked.

"You should worry about the sky above us. Don't let Xuanzi accidentally poke a hole in it."

As soon as Yuan Buyu finished speaking, Zhou Lingyi couldn't help but smile, but her eyes still held a hint of anxiety.

……

"All beings suffer for the sake of elixir, enduring life to save heaven and earth."

In Zhou Xuan's meditation, he saw a shattered sky and earth, the once azure sky now filled with countless holes.

The cave was empty and hollow, and blood rained down from within its openings. From Zhou Xuan's perspective, there should have been countless eyes in the sky.
For some reason, all of these eyes were gouged out.

A person will go blind if they don't have eyes.

The sky is the same.

So Zhou Xuan saw it.

On this earth, there are countless mortals.

Amidst the rain of blood, a blazing sun appeared.

The scorching sun was like a furnace, baking tens of millions of mortals into wisps of mist.

The mist rose and condensed into countless pills, which were used to repair the eyes that had been gouged out of the sky.

"Between Human Elixir and Qi Elixir, the White Deer Alchemist believes that Qi Elixir is the authentic one, but judging from my meditation, could it be that—the Human Elixir is the authentic elixir in this Fangjing Kingdom?"

Zhou Xuan was racking his brains trying to figure out what he had seen.

The voices of the eldest and third brothers rang out at the same time: "Hey, Boss! Wake up! If you don't wake up soon, someone will steal your blue and red fish!"

(End of this chapter)