Day and night tour

Chapter 487 Heavenly Jade Capital

"These seven nebulae are so obvious, how could you not see them?"

Zhou Xuan was somewhat surprised, as Sister Cui happened to be by his side. Today, they were going to refine pills, and the construction of the pill furnace would rely on Sister Cui's "Earth Law".

Sister Cui peered out for a while and then said to Zhou Xuan, "Brother Zhou, it's no wonder Lao Bai said he couldn't see them. I didn't see those seven nebulae either."

"You can't see it either? Am I the only one who can see it?"

The sounds of Zhou Xuan and his companions discussing drew the attention of their old friends who were not far away.

Everyone strained their eyes, and after observing for a while, they could hardly see any "nebulae" on the starry sky scroll.
Only the Taoist priest and the butcher saw it.

“I’m starting to understand.” The incense-burning Taoist priest reached out and grabbed at the top of Xiejia’ao.

When he finished grabbing them and opened his palm, there were only a few strands of pink silk threads still wriggling in his palm.

"When a celestial being is slain, their immense cultivation will dissipate. The old dream's avatar was severed for a short time, and the Xie family should be able to easily capture the Dao energy of many dream celestials."

But now, when I grab it, there are only a few strands left.

The Taoist priest looked at the starry scroll and said, "Therefore, there is only one possibility: the Dao energy of the old dream was absorbed by the starry scroll."

"Those seven pink nebulae were also formed from the Dao energy of the Dream God."

The incense-burning Taoist priest spoke with a puzzled expression, saying, "Zhou Housheng, your Starry Sky Scroll is truly a wonderful magical artifact. It's like a gluttonous beast, consuming everything, even the Dao energy of the gods. With its help, I wonder what kind of precious pills you'll refine tonight."

Zhou Xuan didn't have time to think about the results of alchemy. He only wanted to know one thing—since seven more nebulae had been added, did the alchemy furnace need to be redesigned?
“The nebula represents the Fire Eye. With the number of Fire Eyes increased, the alchemy furnace naturally needs to be redesigned. But the problem is, I don’t know what the nebula looks like.”

The White Deer Alchemist was in a dilemma.
But having learned from his previous experience, Zhou Xuan summoned his cerebellum without a second thought.

Cerebellum reluctantly left the secret realm and asked Zhou Xuan, "Master, you have to promise me."

"What did I promise you?" Zhou Xuan was completely baffled by this seemingly random question.

Cerebellum said somewhat aggrievedly, "You brought so much food to the secret realm, everyone was lining up waiting to eat, and I... was also waiting... but you called me out..."

"I know, you're afraid that if you go out on business, the other people will eat all the food, and you won't even get a sip of soup, right?"

Zhou Xuan asked.

"That's right, that's exactly what I mean."

"Then don't worry, it won't make a difference if you don't like it. Just focus on getting things done."

With Zhou Xuan's assurance, Xiao Nao mustered his energy, rubbed his hands together, and asked, "Then there's nothing more to say, boss, just tell me what you need me to do?"

“Project a starry sky scroll.” Zhou Xuan pointed to the starry sky scroll and said, “The projection must be one-to-one, without any mistakes. Cerebellum, remember what I said before, 100% precision. Sometimes, it is also an art, and a very explosive art at that.”

Zhou Xuan wasn't really sure if the one-to-one projection, the original replica, was an art of explosion, but he knew that if it wasn't one-to-one, then the alchemy would explode—the furnace would blow up!

If a giant alchemy furnace, bigger than a mountain, were to explode, wouldn't it create a mushroom cloud?
Let's hope that the newly built Yeming River won't be leveled in a flash.

"Don't worry, Boss. Trust Cerebellum, trust the power of belief."

The cerebellum, the size of a walnut, possesses immense energy. Relying on light, it continuously weaves a three-dimensional projection in front of Zhou Xuan.

In no time at all,
The projection was then completed, a one-to-one replica of the starry sky scroll, exquisitely crafted.

Zhou Xuan then meticulously reproduced the pink nebulae from the starry sky scroll onto the 3D projection, drawing them one by one.

After the drawing was completed, Zhou Xuan carefully compared it one by one to ensure that everything was perfect before saying to Bai Lu, the alchemist, "Old Bai, this is what the extra nebula looks like. You design the alchemy furnace."

"Easy to say, easy to say."

The White Deer Alchemist's eyes were practically glued to the projection, looking left and right until he saw it clearly. Only then did he sit down in the grand master's chair in the central recess of Xiejia'ao, lean over the storyteller's table, ask for some paper, and redraw the blueprints for the alchemy furnace.

With the new blueprints from Bailu Fangshi, the subsequent preparations went much more smoothly.

The cerebellum projected a 3D image of the Great Alchemy Furnace based on the new blueprints.
Then there's Sister Cui, the "only" furnace craftsman, who, relying on the 3D diagrams, has a clear understanding of the internal and external structure of the alchemy furnace.

"Brother Zhou, I understand now."

Sister Cui's implication was that work could begin.

Zhou Xuan was still a little worried and reminded her, "Sister Cui, the time for refining pills won't make a difference of two hours. You should check it carefully a couple more times before you do it."

Last time, Sister Cui helped Zhou Xuan build a furnace to refine medicinal dust, but how big was that furnace?
As the saying goes, a small boat is easy to turn around. Today's stove is definitely a big boat, a very big boat. If something goes wrong halfway through, it will be very difficult to make up for it.

"Don't worry, Brother Zhou. I've memorized every detail of that furnace. As long as the drawing is correct, I won't make a mistake."

For a moment, Sister Cui was transported back to the days when she ran the shop—she could grab the exact amount of any seasoning or spice, throw it into the pot, and every single bowl of noodles tasted just as good, without ever making a mistake.

"Okay then..."

Zhou Xuan took out his pocket watch, checked the time, and it was already 2:56 a.m.

"Wait four more minutes, to make it a round number."

Zhou Xuan didn't really believe in auspicious times, but as someone with mild obsessive-compulsive disorder, he needed to start work on time for important matters.

Time ticked by, second by second.

Four minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
When the pointer reached the hour, Zhou Xuan raised his palm and summoned the "Book of Will".

Today, after the reconstruction of Mingjiang Prefecture, all the remaining human aspirations are stored in this heavenly book.

Within the Heavenly Book, the stronger the power of the vow, the whiter its color becomes.

At this moment, the Heavenly Book resembled a mass of white, smooth cream, so white and lustrous that it seemed almost to flow.

Zhou Xuan winked at Sister Cui.

Sister Cui stood in the mountain hollow, raised her arms, and her body transformed into a giant four-tailed fox, with countless golden scriptures appearing on her snow-white fur.

After being gilded, those scriptures resembled golden fireflies about to take flight.

Meanwhile, in Xiejia'ao, sand and stones began to fly, the mountains began to crack, and irregular gullies appeared on the earth.
A pill furnace, even more magnificent than a mountain, rose from the ground under the earth's laws of the four realms of Cui Jie.

Such a magnificent spectacle made the cerebellum forget about the "food" in the secret realm. It kept exclaiming, "Beautiful, so beautiful! It would be a pity not to describe such a breathtaking scene."

It kept navigating through the sand and gravel, just to capture the most magnificent scene.

Yun Ziliang watched from afar, his mouth agape in an "oh" shape, unable to close it for a long time.

He was a master of dragon-seeking, borrowing the terrain and the terrain day and night, but no matter how skillfully he borrowed, it was still just "borrowing".

Sister Cui's laws of the earth are commands—commanding the mountains and the earth to obey her orders.

He couldn't help but let his imagination run wild. If the laws of the earth can command thousands of mountains, then why can't the Dragon Seeker command them, and instead have to borrow mountains and rivers?
"Why can't I give orders! I should give orders. I can command the dragon's power in the world, and the mountains, rivers and the earth all obey my orders."

Yun Ziliang's Dragon-Seeking Sensing School cultivates a domineering nature that comes from the very core of his being.

Just as he was having this sudden realization, Li Changxun placed one hand on Yun Ziliang's crown and the other on his chin, then forcefully twisted his hands together, effectively silencing Yun.

"Ouch, my old tooth!" Yun Ziliang cried out in pain, glaring angrily at Li Changxun: "What are you doing?"

“Grandmaster, it’s windy here, and there’s sand and stones flying everywhere. I’m afraid you’ll open your mouth too wide and drink the dirt.”

"..." Yun Ziliang.

Zhou Xuan couldn't help but laugh out loud, and said to Li Changxun, "Li Shanzu, although your actions were rough, you did show some filial piety. But your kowtow almost ruined Lao Yun's chance for promotion."

"..." Yun Ziliang was speechless for the second time.

His two silences were two different reactions.

Yun Ziliang was speechless at Li Changxun's behavior. He always felt that this grand-disciple acted without thinking. He was filial, but his filial piety was a bit... a bit... ridiculous.

Yun Ziliang was speechless at Zhou Xuan's lack of comprehension. He was always surprised by Zhou Xuan's intelligence and felt that Zhou Xuan's clear eyes were always wandering around, observing every move in this world.
Even if a needle fell from the sky, this master of Mingjiang Prefecture could see it clearly and distinctly.

"Xuanzi, do you know that I've had a slight understanding of what Sister Cui has been doing, given how she stirs up flying sand and stones?"

Yun Ziliang asked.

"I not only know, I also know what you are comprehending."

Zhou Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, looking as relaxed as a retired cadre strolling in a park.

Yun Ziliang hurriedly asked, "Then tell me, what am I trying to understand?"

“Old Yun, you must be thinking, why can’t the Dragon Seeker only borrow mountains and rivers, and why can’t he command thousands of mountains and rivers like Sister Cui?”

Zhou Xuan's words hit the nail on the head, and Yun Ziliang felt a chill run down his spine. He was stunned for a moment and said, "Xuanzi, are you a monster? How can you know what I'm thinking?"

"Old Yun, don't forget, I'm also a member of the Dragon Seeking Sensing School. I've also completed nine levels of this sect's methods."

Zhou Xuan said, "I had the same thought as you just now, but I felt it was somewhat misguided, so I forcibly interrupted my thought." "I don't understand. How can commanding thousands of mountains and rivers be considered misguided for us Dragon-Seeking Celestial Masters?"

Yun Ziliang immediately asked.

Li Changxun chimed in, joining in the charade, saying, "That's right, that's right! Only the laws are allowed to command, but the Dragon-Seeking Celestial Masters aren't? What kind of logic is that?"

The questions raised by Yun and Li were not so much questions as a discussion, but rather a way of asking them all the questions they didn't understand and waiting for Zhou Xuan's answers.

Zhou Xuan turned to look at Yun Ziliang: "Old Yun, if I'm not mistaken, you want to use your domineering aura to command thousands of mountains and rivers."

"Yes."

Yun Ziliang said, "We disciples of the Dragon Seeking and Sensing School are born with a domineering nature. We use this domineering nature to suppress the dragon's power and to forcefully borrow the power of mountains, land, and water."

"The problem lies in this domineering attitude. In my opinion, this lineage of domineering behavior has gone astray."

Zhou Xuan said, "I didn't know before, but after listening to Bai Lu and the engineer's explanation, I realized that the mountains and rivers of this Jing Kingdom are quite spiritual. They are not dead mountains and rivers, but are no different from people with spirituality in the human world. Old Yun... you... hey, why are you all gathered around?"

Zhou Xuan and Yun Ziliang discussed the Dao, and at the same time, he also had the relaxed feeling of telling old stories and chatting with old friends. However, old friends such as the painter, musician, coffin maker, Peng Sheng and others slowly gathered around.

The painter chuckled and said, "Master, your understanding of spiritual practice far surpasses ours. We'd also like to come and listen to your lectures."

“Master, we also want to improve,” the musician said with a smile.

Don't be fooled by Zhou Xuancai's current age of seven incense sticks.

However, he also received the true teachings of the Dao Ancestor and the sword spirit of Wuwen Mountain. With the condensation of the Heavenly Book, he could rebuild Mingjiang Prefecture; with the performance of the colorful play, he could play the role of the supreme will.

Such individuals possess a level of understanding and attainment in spiritual practice that cannot be measured by the "level of incense offerings."

When he began to expound on the Dao, the others naturally came over to listen carefully.

Zhou Xuan nodded to everyone and continued, "So-called tyranny is nothing more than the strong bullying the weak... A tyrannical person suppresses those who are not tyrannical enough."
Take you, Lao Yun, for example. Why do you only hide the Great Dragon and not the Ancestral Dragon in your Hidden Dragon collection?

Yun Ziliang thought for a moment and admitted helplessly, "My domineering aura cannot suppress the Ancestral Dragon."

"That's what I wanted to say," Zhou Xuan said. "Human strength has its limits, but so does the domineering nature. No matter how powerful your talent, no matter how naturally domineering you are, there will always be mountains, rivers, lands, and dragons in this world that you cannot suppress."

If you forcibly suppress it, it's fine when your cultivation level is low, but if your cultivation level is high, sooner or later you will suffer a backlash.

"If we're not going to take the domineering route, then what should we take?" Yun Ziliang asked again.

"It's not that you shouldn't be domineering, but that dominance needs to be tempered with gentleness. Dominance without gentleness is nothing but brute force."

A ruler who possesses both power and virtue is like fluid water, flowing freely and without constraint, penetrating every gap in the world and controlling everything within it.

With this blend of pacifying and domineering power, the world will truly submit to his will and he will be guided towards benevolence.

A large part of Zhou Xuan's enlightenment came from the domineering nature of the "Supreme Will".

His supreme will can control heaven and earth and stars, but every time he manipulates something, it is backed by the magnanimity of the lords of the world.

The other half of the understanding came from the "seventeenth path of power" of the State of Jing - the power of universal benevolence.

"By pacifying the central region and cultivating benevolence, the world will submit to righteousness."

As Yun Ziliang muttered to himself, he couldn't help but cheer, clapping his hands lightly and saying, "Xuanzi, wonderful, wonderful!"

The others also entered into deep meditation, carefully comprehending the principles Zhou Xuan had spoken, along with the divine power of the "All Under Heaven Returns to Benevolence" sword that they had witnessed from the audience.

On a more distant mountain, a Taoist priest and a butcher stood side by side.

They went up the mountain after they started practicing alchemy.

From their elevated position, the two could more easily assist Zhou Xuan in refining pills and protecting him. Meanwhile, the butcher was scratching his cheek and throat, trying his best to listen to what Zhou Xuan was saying.

Even the Taoist priest standing nearby couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Little butcher, if you really want to listen, then go ahead and listen openly. There's a saying in the world, 'It's not shameful to ask those who are less knowledgeable.' You can ask Zhou Housheng about his cultivation methods; it's not shameful."

"I won't ask, I just want to hear."

After finally listening to Zhou Xuan's insights, the butcher smiled broadly and said, "Old friend, our new disciple from Wuwen Mountain is no ordinary person. After unleashing the seventeen stances, he gained an understanding of the concept of 'returning to benevolence under heaven.'"
Knowing not only what happened, but also why it happened, Zhou Xuan was a great talent.

Tell me something I don't know.

The Taoist priest didn't give him a friendly look. In his opinion, the butcher was giving Zhou Xuan a high opinion of him just because of such a trivial matter, which was actually an underestimation of Zhou Xuan.

"A little bit of incense offerings and a few insights into cultivation are nothing but a drop in the ocean compared to Zhou Xuan's ambitions, and are not worth mentioning at all."

"You seem to know something else?" the butcher asked, frowning.

"of course I know."

"Then tell me," the butcher said, ready to listen attentively.

The incense-offering Taoist priest laughed and said, "Besides your unparalleled swordsmanship, the most powerful method of your Wuwen Mountain is to use the offering of incense spirits and fire worms to strip away the opponent's incense level."

"Hmph, that's nothing but a minor skill in my eyes. I'm only passionate about unparalleled sword techniques."

"What you think is not important, but this power to strip away the incense offering level is indeed the reason why the Skyfire Clan can be so high and mighty."

The incense-burning Taoist priest said, "Zhou Xuan has made up his mind. He will use alchemy to find a new source of power for the thousands of disciples in the Jing Kingdom."

"what?!"

"When the disciples of our Jing Kingdom no longer rely on the power of incense offerings—then the 'Insect Path' of the Heavenly Fire Clan will no longer pose a threat to the Jing Kingdom. The Jing Kingdom will then truly usher in a new era."

"Zhou Xuan actually has such ambitions?" The butcher was astonished and surprised.

"You're surprised, aren't you? The last time I heard Zhou Housheng speak his mind so frankly, you reacted the same way."

The Taoist priest stroked his beard and said, "I await that day."

"If that day comes... the Kingdom of Well will be at the level of a Heavenly God..."

"If humanity no longer fears the Heavenly Fire Clan, then the Heavenly Gods have no need to remain asleep... All Heavenly Gods will awaken. So what if it's the Heavenly Fire Clan? Let them come to the mortal realm for a battle. I fear that they will be the ones who are afraid to fight."

"Keep your voice down, keep your voice down, people from Baiyujing are here."

The butcher reminded him.

Zhou Xuan's idea of ​​refining elixirs to replace the source of incense offerings and break free from the shackles of the Heavenly Fire Clan is an extremely grand vision, a guiding star in the dark age of the Well Kingdom.
But this morning star must be protected well; right now, the Skyfire Clan is still powerful.

"The Morning Star can awaken the darkness, so it must not be extinguished."

The butcher's reminder silenced the Taoist priest, who looked up and saw a palace in the clouds to the west of the bright moon.

The palace was snow-white, like jade, with twelve floors, and a palace lantern was lit on the eaves of each floor.

The palace lanterns glow with five colors, which is the heavenly fire from the sky.

The Heavenly Fire Clan is said to have been born beside the Heavenly Fire.

"They really are from Bai Yujing."

The incense-burning Taoist priest said, "These people from Baiyujing are even less productive and lazier than the other lower-ranking Tianhuo clansmen, but tonight, they have all come to watch Zhou Housheng refine pills."

"The elixirs from heaven are becoming less and less effective. A truly talented alchemist is a talent that even Baiyujing is eager to find."

The butcher stared at Bai Yujing, his eyes practically blazing with fury—the calamity at Wuwen Mountain was inextricably linked to Bai Yujing.

"I can't forget that night either, when Bai Yujing appeared, the Dunjia Sect, the night, and blood stained Wuwen Mountain."

The butcher was trying hard to suppress his hatred. He had to be patient now. Wuwen Mountain's current strength was no match for Bai Yujing or the Jingcheng Prefecture.

The capital city was originally a magical artifact of the Jing Kingdom. Since the Earth was in the capital city, the butcher couldn't do anything about it.

……

"The officials of Baiyujing are also watching this alchemy session. Zhou Xuan's entourage today is probably a bit too grand."

The Heavenly Crippled Monk saw Bai Yujing appear and spoke to the Eternal Life Sect Leader.

"Old Can, how come I can't teach you?"

The leader of the Eternal Life Cult said, "I hope that from now on I will never hear the name 'Zhou Xuan' again. You should start addressing him as 'Lord Zhou'."

"..." The Heavenly Crippled Monk looked at the Longevity Cult Leader. He never expected that this cult leader would be so realistic.

The crippled monk also reminded him, "Master, Zhou Xuan hasn't refined the pill yet."

"Ninety-nine percent, we must refine a good pill," said the Longevity Cult Master.

"What makes you so certain?" the crippled monk asked, puzzled.

(End of this chapter)