Wanfa Daojun, starting from the Little Cloud and Rain Technique

Chapter 512 True Man Zhengyang Returns to His Sect
The next day, Ji An woke up at noon.

He stretched comfortably, sat cross-legged, and focused his mind on his dantian.

[Master: Ji An]

[Tao Yun: Gold 2.5, Water 8.3, Wood 3.2, Fire 13.6, Earth 11.8]

To upgrade the grade of the spiritual vein, each type of Daoist essence cost approximately twelve points.

Ji An felt that keeping these Daoist essences in his hands was useless, so he decided to go all in. Even if it could improve his cultivation, it would be good, and even a small improvement would increase the production of spirit rice by several hundred catties.

"Refine all spiritual energy to upgrade the spiritual vein grade of the gourd world."

The five elements can transform into each other, and the Gathering Yuan Tree possesses this ability, although there will be some loss during the transformation of the five elements.

The stone turtle appeared, swallowed the gourd-shaped stone, and the Bagua pattern on its shell shimmered with spiritual light.

Once the Daoist energy was completely depleted, Ji An did not enter the small world to check the results, but stood up and left the cave.

The quality of the small world won't improve, so there's nothing to see.

He rode a cloud to the edge of the cold pool, took out a bottle of top-quality pine nut wine, and enjoyed drinking it by himself.

After lunch, he sat under the shade of a tree and placed the jade slip containing the cultivation technique on his forehead to begin studying it.

The technique was rather obscure, so he didn't need to rush. After browsing through it a few times, he began to study it word by word, and before he knew it, dusk had fallen.

Lin Lan and Han Shan stepped out of the teleportation array and flew to the cold pool, where they waited beside their master.

Upon noticing the arrival of his disciples, Ji An put away the jade slip and smiled:
"It looks like I won the bet I made a few years ago."

Lin Lan and the other person showed no discomfort whatsoever, and bowed deeply in reverence:

"Congratulations, Master, on your further advancement in cultivation!"

With their master becoming a sect patriarch, their status also rose accordingly, and they would inevitably receive many hidden benefits in the future.

Lin Lan felt that her friends who gave up on becoming her apprentices back then were now kicking themselves.

Although being a spirit farmer has some inconveniences, having a Golden Core master behind you provides a lot of support.

"No need for formalities. It would be inappropriate for me to continue serving as the head of the Department of Agriculture. I hope one of you will take over my position as soon as possible."

There's no way a Golden Core Ancestor would personally handle the sect's trivial matters. Ji An's focus from now on will be on researching cultivation techniques and improving his cultivation level.

The sect has two Golden Core level spells hidden away, but he has no interest in learning them now and plans to prioritize learning planting spells in a few years.

Planting magic is his foundation; both Crimson Flame Peak and the Small World desperately need him to learn higher-level planting magic.

Han Shan said confidently:
“Master, your disciple has reached the realm of constant life light.”

The Qi-Nourishing Pills in the Treasure Pavilion are all gone; otherwise, this disciple would have already begun the process of breaking through to the next level.

He felt that if the Qi-Nourishing Pill were available, he might be able to win the original bet!

To be able to defeat Master even once would be something to brag about for the rest of my life, what a pity.

“Very good,” Ji An nodded slightly, looking at his eldest disciple:
"Lin Lan, how are you doing now?"

"This disciple is still stuck in the stage of constant life light, but I feel that I am not far from breaking through the realm."

"If we can obtain the Qi-Nourishing Pill, we should be able to break through together with my junior brother."

“Very good. Once the merchant ships from Central Continent arrive, the sect will definitely purchase a batch of Qi-Nourishing Pills.”

"Alright then, I'll gift each of you half a jin of second-grade superior Jade Dew Golden Bud Tea. The powerful spiritual energy will greatly aid your breakthrough."

Spring goes and autumn comes, and five years have passed in a flash.

On the massive spirit ship, True Man Zhengyang gazed into the distance and let out a soft breath:

"Finally, I can set foot on the sect's land."

To maintain secrecy, his appearance is not his true appearance.

Having spent nearly thirty years in Central Continent, constantly busy, I can now temporarily put down my burdens.

He could already see the outline of Qingyun Immortal City in the distance, and the flying boat would arrive in a few hours.

Han Yan smiled and said, "Although Zhongzhou is prosperous, it is not our home. Only when we return to Xizhou do we feel at ease."

She witnessed the prosperity of Central Continent, as well as the struggles of smaller factions.

Now she understood why her sect had migrated from the Central Plains. Under the pressure of the various Nascent Soul sects, maintaining the status quo was more than enough; it was difficult to make any further progress.

First, the spiritual veins occupied by smaller factions are of lower grade, which inevitably slows down the cultivation progress of their cultivators.

Secondly, smaller factions find it difficult to recruit disciples with outstanding aptitude; those with Earth-grade or Heaven-grade aptitude are recruited by larger factions early on.

Secondly, smaller factions control scarce resources that larger factions don't even bother with.

Spiritual practice requires Dharma, companions, resources, and location. If a small force has none of these, how can it develop?
In the eyes of cultivators in the Central Continent, the Western Continent is a remote and impoverished place with even scarcer resources, but its sects are able to recruit top-notch disciples and are not subject to interference from stronger forces in their development.

Two hours later, the shadow of the spirit boat obscured the sky above Qingyun Immortal City.

Under the afterglow of the setting sun, Master Zhengyang and his companion discreetly left the spirit boat, arrived at the sect's headquarters, and activated the teleportation array to depart.

The teleportation array flashed, and the figure disappeared and reappeared tens of thousands of miles away.

At Yingri Peak, the two stepped out of the teleportation array, and Zhengyang Zhenren regained his true appearance.

The disciples on duty, having seen the sect leader's appearance, politely invited them out.

Han Yan cupped her hands in greeting:

"Ancestor, this disciple takes his leave."

Having been away from the sect for many years, he will inevitably be busy for a while after returning.

This trip also yielded unexpected gains. With the ancestor giving her detailed instructions and a sufficient supply of elixirs, her cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds, reaching the fifth stage of the Chaoyuan realm.

Master Zhengyang nodded. "You've worked hard all these years. I will inform the Diligent Work Hall to reward you with a small amount of merit. Remember to collect it in a few days."

Eager to return home, Master Zhengyang flew two thousand miles in just half an hour and returned to the Wuji Hall on Chaoyang Peak.

Master Yuxiao stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Senior Brother! You've finally returned."

I was counting down the days, thinking you should be back soon. Please, have a seat.

Master Zhengyang took his seat in the main position, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then asked:

"Is everything alright in the sect these past few years?"

"Senior brother, have you heard any rumors about the sect?"

"What rumors?"

Master Yuxiao carefully observed his senior brother's expression and sighed:

"Everything was fine until something happened a few years ago."

His expression turned serious, and he said in a deep voice:
"After the incident, I had to take out a Golden Elixir to resolve the matter."

Master Zhengyang's heart skipped a beat, and he asked anxiously:

"What happened?"

His tone turned ruthless, "Is there some powerful force coercing us?"

The Golden Core is the foundation of a sect; losing any one of them would have a huge impact.

There was one more thing he couldn't understand: his junior brother was in charge of the sect, and even if some powerful forces wanted to force him, they shouldn't make him hand over his Golden Core.

Master Yuxiao shook his head and sighed:

“Ji An is in trouble, so I used a Golden Core Pill to save him.”

Master Zhengyang's eyes suddenly widened. "Did this happen in the Southern Continent? Does the Earthly Fiend Sect know what he did?"

While forming a Golden Core is important, the life and fortune of a disciple with potential are even more important.

"Well, no, please forgive me for joking earlier."

He lost a Golden Core, but Ji An broke through to the Golden Core stage.

"what?"

Master Zhengyang was dumbfounded. "Say that again?"

He couldn't believe that a cultivator could possibly comprehend the divine meaning of the Five Elements' mutual generation and complete the cultivation of the Five Qi's convergence within just thirty years!
Master Yuxiao laughed heartily, "You heard right, Ji An has broken through to the Golden Core stage!"

"Senior, how was my performance?"

Master Zhengyang glared and bristled, "Not good at all!"

He paused, then couldn't help but ask:
"When did this happen?"

"This happened five years ago," Master Yuxiao said, never one to be outdone, "and he achieved the Immortal Golden Elixir."

After a long silence, Master Zhengyang slammed his hand heavily on the table. "Good!"

Based on the time it took the other party to comprehend the divine meaning of the Five Elements' mutual generation and complete the Five Qi Convergence Realm, achieving the Immortal Golden Core is not so abrupt.

After discussing for a while, Master Yuxiao asked:
"Senior brother, how did your trip to Zhongzhou go?"

"My wish has come true, that's great."

We managed to acquire two Golden Core pills, pill recipes, and some weapon-refining techniques, but we've also spent all our resources and spirit stones.

Master Zhengyang briefly recounted his main experiences, feeling that everything was so wonderful.

Yu Xiaozhen reminded him:

"Now that Ji An has broken through to the Golden Core stage, we must acquire the planting technique."

Having a planting technique at the Golden Core level makes cultivating third-tier spiritual plants relatively easier.

Master Zhengyang originally felt that the planting spell was not needed for the time being, so he did not purchase it at all.

“Junior brother is absolutely right. We will go to Qingyun Immortal City in a few days.”

Master Yuxiao nodded, "I will have Ji An come to Wuji Palace tomorrow."

He began to recount the events of the past thirty years, the changes that had occurred within the sect, the events in the territories of other powers, and the vanished demonic cultivators.

Zhenren Zhengyang asked:

"How are Jiuxiao and Qiubai doing? Have they returned to their sect?"

"Three years ago, the two returned to the sect together. They comprehended the divine meaning of the mutual generation of the five elements and are now diligently practicing the Five Qi Gathering at the Origin."

What's the situation with Li Haoran?

"He went on a journey, and his first stop was also the North."

Senior brother, the sect is showing signs of great prosperity. The Western Continent is finding it increasingly difficult to absorb the magical artifacts and puppets we have crafted. I think it is necessary to form a trading caravan.

You don't need to travel too far; the North and South are both good choices.

"Such caravans need Golden Core cultivators to oversee them, otherwise they will inevitably attract the covetous eyes of unscrupulous individuals."

"I can stay on the spirit boat and go out to trade once every six months."

Han Yan returned to her cave and gave the following instructions:

"Make some tea. Has anything major happened in the sect these past few years?"

"Grandmaster, please wait a moment."

The maid quickly returned with the teapot and said:
"A truly momentous event has occurred in the sect: a grandmaster has successfully broken through and become the sect's patriarch!"

Han Yan was overjoyed. "Which senior brother broke through? Senior Brother Lin Jiuxiao or Senior Brother Lin Qiubai?"

This event was of great significance, not only enhancing the sect's foundation but also boosting the confidence of those who came after.

The maid smiled and said, "Grandmaster, it's not either of them. It's Elder Ji from Crimson Flame Peak."

(End of this chapter)