Starting from the Tiger Demon Yaksha, the demon immortality

Chapter 257, Section 266: Dragon Tendons, Weapon Forging, People from Longxi
The ninth day of the ninth lunar month is a day and month that both fall on the number nine, which is called "two nines in a row", hence the name "Double Ninth".

At the same time, it is two yang numbers combined, hence the name "double yang".

Since the founding of the Qin Dynasty, the Double Ninth Festival has been designated by Emperor Taizong as one of the three major festivals, a time for officials to take a break and for the people to celebrate.

Wearing dogwood, eating wild rice cakes, climbing to high places and drinking chrysanthemum wine—every activity was lively and extraordinary.

Even though wars are still frequent in various places, the powerful and wealthy in Gyeonggi Province and Hwaeum County have not given up their opportunities to enjoy themselves.

Thanks to them, ordinary people can also take the opportunity to set up stalls and earn some money to supplement their household income during this period of soaring prices.

Louguan Dao also attaches great importance to the Double Ninth Festival. Every year, they set the sect's assessment on this day and invite guests to come and witness the ceremony.

It's only the third day of the ninth lunar month, but the entire area is already enveloped in the festive atmosphere and the tense atmosphere of the upcoming assessment.

However, none of this had anything to do with Li Cunxiao.

His position as a true successor was appointed by Yan Daotong, and his contribution to improving the calming pill was also significant; no one could replace him.

As for Li Mucha, although he is an inner disciple, in terms of seniority, he can sit at the same table as the true disciples. Who would be so blind as to cause trouble?
Call ~
suck~
The breathing was slow and long, with long intervals that made one wonder if the owner of the sound was about to suffocate.

A turquoise dragon coiled on the right, its mouth emitting faint red flames that enveloped a round pill in black, white, blue, and red.

As it burned, fiery red spiritual energy surged into its true form, making its hair, scales, and teeth even more detailed and realistic.

On the left side of his body, a huge Bodhi tree rose from the ground, and within its lush canopy, nine ferocious black dragons fought and pounced, but were firmly bound by crimson gold chains.

On the Bodhi tree, there was also a round pill in four colors—black, white, blue, and red—hanging like a fruit at the highest point of the canopy, swaying precariously as it was struck by the nine-headed black dragon.

Whenever the two come into contact, a black, icy substance is transferred from the pill into the black dragon's body, making the latter's golden eyes shine even brighter.

The auras of the two original bodies visibly intensified, while the two Four Divine Pills visibly shrank.

As the Bodhi seed on the dragon gradually changed from its black, ice-like color to a light turquoise, the ball of light in the dragon's mouth also changed from fiery red to platinum.

This scene did not last long; the essence within the Four Divine Elixir dissipated and gradually vanished without a trace.

At the same time, Li Cunxiao felt a jolt, and two points of light lit up one after the other on his spine, in the middle of his coccyx and shoulder blade.

suck~
With a forceful slurp, the two true forms entered his body, and Li Cunxiao's body immediately made a popping sound like popping beans. The surge of power made him unable to help but let out a comfortable groan.

The Heavenly Ladder Realm's twenty-four vertebrae are divided into three parts: seven cervical vertebrae, twelve thoracic vertebrae, and five lumbar vertebrae.

From bottom to top, there are three important passes: the coccyx, the spine, and the occipital bone, corresponding to minor achievement, major achievement, and perfection.

Previously, the Buddha's principal form was perfected, breaking through the heavenly ladder, reaching the minor accomplishment from the entry level, corresponding to the period from the winter solstice to the rain water in the twenty-four solar terms, from winter to spring.

Therefore, the light of the Four Divine Elixir transforms from the black of Xuan Water to the green of Yi Wood.
The original Daoist master had already achieved minor success in the Heavenly Ladder. With the blessing of the Four Divine Elixir, he broke through the coccyx and opened the spine, progressing from the Awakening of Insects to the End of Heat, from spring to summer, and then to the White Dew of autumn.

The red of Bing fire transforms into the white of Geng metal.

"This is the feeling of being blessed by the two Heavenly Ladders themselves. It was worth the two Four Divine Pills. Compared to four months ago, it's incomparable."

Abundant vital energy surges through the meridians, eventually accumulating in the dantian like rivers flowing into the sea.

The jade-like Azure Dragon True Essence shone with a crimson hue. Upon closer inspection, one would discover that it contained countless Flaming Pearls, resembling nested double-layered pearls, an incomparably magnificent sight.

Although Li Cunxiao hadn't won a single fight against Wen Zhongzi after being beaten for several months, the latter was not stingy and gave him a lot of guidance on cultivating his own body.

For example, the method Li Cunxiao is using to integrate true essence was given to him by the other party.

Originally, the Azure Dragon Mercury Bead and the Flame Magic Bead belonged to two different martial arts schools, and they kept to themselves.

Now they can be integrated into one, with fire hidden within the wood.

Li Cunxiao can choose to use wood to enhance the fire's intensity, or he can use fire to transform the pure yang of the Red Emperor's flowing mercury, which in turn nourishes the Jia and Yi wood, thus increasing his endurance and burst damage to a new level.

"Moreover, the Taoist main body has now achieved great success, and the Buddhist main body has also achieved minor success. With the two combined, they should be able to fight to a draw with Senior Wen Zhongzi's clone."

Thinking of this, Li Cunxiao had an idea and in the blink of an eye, he went from the cultivation room to the Qianyang Palace.

The red dragon still imprisoned Yang Ying's stone egg. Not far away, above a spiritual pool, drops of pure spiritual liquid dripped from the ceiling caisson.

The milky white spiritual liquid dissolved in the clear water, and the ripples spread out in circles, but it did not make the spiritual pool any darker.

In four months, the two main bodies each crossed a minor realm and a major realm respectively. Such a cultivation speed, of course, comes at a price.

Not only were the two Four Divine Pills completely consumed, but the spiritual pool he had accumulated over the past four months also had no reserves left, all of which were converted into nutrients and entered his body.

"However, this speed has already far surpassed that of the geniuses in the sect."

According to Li Siqi, he became a true disciple fifteen years ago. It took him six years to break through to the Heavenly Ladder after the initial stage of his true form was established, and another nine years to go from the entry level to the mastery of the Heavenly Ladder.

"Guo Zhao and Qin Sixing were even faster, and it took them nearly ten years to break through the three gates of the coccyx and reach the Jade Pillow stage."

"I have plenty of pills and a spiritual treasure to condense the spiritual pool. It's only been half a year. That's already very fast."

"That's right, we're running out of pills and spiritual liquids."

Li Cunxiao frowned as he looked at the clear, still pool, then sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.

Soon, an identical clone emerged from Qianyang Palace and saw Wen Zhongzi sitting cross-legged on the edge of the square.

Without uttering a single wasted word, eight arms sprouted from Li Cunxiao's shoulders, opening and closing.

Eight claps merged into a thunderous sonic boom, from which a thirty-meter-long crimson dragon shot out.

This crimson dragon has a robust body, not slender at all, and upon closer inspection, it bears some resemblance to the artifact spirit in the Qianyang Palace.

The difference is that the dragon's tail of the artifact spirit is just a dragon's tail, while the red dragon's tail that Li Cunxiao strikes with his palm has an eight-spoked golden wheel.

"This move again?"

After more than four months of fighting, Wen Zhongzi had figured out the young man's moves pretty well. Seeing this, he shook his head slightly, and a stream of true essence behind him instantly split into a clone with lifeless and bloodthirsty eyes.

The moment this clone appeared, the fire dragon soaring in the air froze, as if bound by something invisible.

Then, with a flick of Wen Zhongzi's clone's sword finger, countless cracks instantly covered the Crimson Dragon's body, and these cracks even seemed to spread from the Crimson Dragon's body to the surrounding void.

But Li Cunxiao remained calm upon seeing this, and muttered to himself:
"Scattered"

The fire dragon suddenly split into a sky full of crimson clouds, which then converged and condensed into a nine-headed fire dragon in the blink of an eye.

The nine fire dragons roared in unison, and the eight-spoked golden wheel on their tails spun wildly. Golden light spread from their tails to their horns, and in an instant, the nine fire dragons transformed into nine crimson flame ropes.

"Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover, descend!"

The ropes intertwined into a net, descending from the sky, compressing the air and causing it to ripple slightly, as if several mountains were falling simultaneously, shaking the invisible space and squeezing out visible folds.

Under such a blockade, Wen Zhongzi's clone movements visibly slowed down.

He seemed to sense that something was wrong, and his hands moved rapidly, the invisible attacks like sword energy and blade marks cutting into the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover.

However, the nine fire ropes intertwined, forming a large net covering an area of ​​ten meters in radius. Even if a gap appeared briefly due to the opponent's attack, it would quickly be filled and repaired by the surrounding flames.

"You've actually improved your martial arts in such a short time?" Wen Zhongzi's face showed surprise, and Li Cunxiao felt a sense of satisfaction upon seeing this.

The Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover at its perfect state possesses defensive and binding capabilities that are completely incomparable to what they were before.

It was worth it; most of the malevolent energy he had gathered from the Azure Dragon Pavilion over the past four months was poured into this place, and he even temporarily put aside the Lion Fist Seal.

And the results were indeed satisfactory, even better than expected.

Under the confinement of the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover, a semi-transparent cover faintly appeared in the originally invisible space.

This protective barrier hovered three feet above the head of Wen Zhongzi's clone, resisting the invasion of the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Barrier.

Whenever its clone makes a move, the invisible shield will ripple like water, extinguishing the blazing flames outside.

"This is the dojo? It can only be considered a low-end version of the dojo."

After four months, Li Cunxiao finally saw the other party's true face, and couldn't help but think of what Taiyi had said.

The sacred grounds of terrestrial immortals are manifestations of their spiritual principles.

Grandmasters reside in their own dojos, just as immortals and gods reside in their caves, just as the Four Heavenly Kings rule the Four Heavenly Kings Heaven, and just as the Ten Kings of Hell sit in the underworld, seeing through everything and controlling everything.

Wen Zhongzi's avatar, representing the Heavenly Ladder Realm, merely released his true essence through his superior control, spreading it throughout the ten-meter radius space, invisible and colorless.

Such sophisticated methods make it easy for someone who doesn't know your background to fall for them on the first meeting.

Li Cunxiao only gradually discovered the pattern after dying hundreds of times. It was only today, with the help of the two main bodies breaking through to minor realms, that he finally forced the opponent to reveal his true strength.

"Young friend, your cultivation has improved again. It seems that there will be no winner today."

Wen Zhongzi sighed and voluntarily withdrew his clone.

"So it's a draw today?"

Li Cunxiao's avatar dissipated, and his true form emerged from the Qianyang Palace. Although he tried his best to conceal it, his face still showed a hint of undisguised excitement.

Heaven have mercy, for the past hundred days or so, every fight has been torture for him.

No matter who it is, if they repeatedly engage in a battle with no tangible victory, they will likely feel numb and dejected, and giving up is quite normal.

To be honest, Li Cunxiao did consider giving up during this process, but whether it was for the future control of the Lingbao Dragon Boat or for Wen Zhongzi's method of unifying the three religions, this battle was unavoidable.

He gritted his teeth and endured the exhaustion and powerlessness after mental overexertion time and time again, holding the Jade Cave Divine Sand in his mouth and repeatedly reviewing every detail of the battle in his mind.

"Yes, it's only been less than half a year, and you're already able to fight me to a draw."

Wen Zhongzi looked sentimental, and couldn't help but feel regret.

He had already taken a liking to such a talented person the very first time they met.

Unfortunately, if it were hundreds of years ago, he would have taken him as a disciple without hesitation.

But now, he is barely clinging to life. If he doesn't die, he will only become a monster that brings endless harm.

If he were to accept the other party as a disciple after he had already resolved to die, it would only bring Li Cunxiao the infamy of killing his master, which was not something he, a man well-versed in Confucianism, would want to see.

'Whether it's like this now, leaving behind a legacy and passing away sooner, it's a good thing for everyone.'

Wen Zhongzi sighed silently and casually took out a few pill bottles from his sleeve.

"This is the Lesser Dragon Elephant Pill, which I collected from those palaces. It was used by that tyrant to train the Imperial Guards, and it is quite beneficial to the warriors of the Heavenly Ladder."

"Although its efficacy is not as good as the seventh-order divine pill that you took, young friend, the Yang family has a close relationship with Buddhism. The best thing about this pill is that it is mild and can be used no matter which part of the twenty-four vertebrae you have cultivated."

"I need to focus on controlling the demon within my body, so this clone can only be maintained at the lowest level of the Heavenly Ladder Perfection realm."

"Judging from the current situation, once you have mastered the two Heavenly Ladders of the True Body, you will probably be able to get rid of this clone."

Li Cunxiao nodded upon hearing this. He had seen the Lesser Dragon Elephant Pill in his collection before. It was considered a rare sixth-grade pill, but it was definitely not as good as the seventh-grade Four Gods Great Pill.

He took the pill and examined it briefly. Judging from its color and appearance, it had been sealed for hundreds of years, and its medicinal power had diminished considerably. The medicinal power of a single Small Dragon Elephant Pill was only about two-thirds that of a Twenty-Four Qi Pill.

These two bottles contain twenty pills, which should be enough for the Buddha to refine two vertebrae.

“Cultivating two main bodies simultaneously doubles the energy consumption. Cheng Ruoshui and I have already used up our quotas, so we'll have to wait a while for the next distribution of the Four Divine Pills.”

Li Cunxiao frowned. His current speed was all built up by divine pills and spiritual liquids.

In addition, the Azure Phoenix Armor has completely recorded his cultivation route over these four months. Now, the Daoist main body can automatically cultivate while refining true essence.

Even with these assistance, it is estimated that it will take at least half a year for both main bodies to reach the Heavenly Ladder Perfection.

Not to mention the current shortage of elixirs; relying solely on Twenty-Four Qi Elixirs and Little Dragon Elephant Elixirs would likely take at least a year or two.

"Speaking of which, after the Chongyang assessment, when I officially become a true disciple, I will have the opportunity to enter the Three Primal Ultimate True Cave Heaven for cultivation. I wonder if I will be able to."

Li Cunxiao was lost in thought when he returned to his cultivation room from the secret realm and pushed open the door.

He couldn't help but think about it. Even the long-abandoned Dragon Boat Secret Realm had three nails, let alone the Three Yuan Extreme True Cave Heaven that Louguan Dao had nurtured for a thousand years.
He summoned a handyman disciple and briefly inquired about what had happened during his seclusion, learning that his younger brother was practicing martial arts.

Although he had a senior brother who was a true disciple to support him, and no one would be so foolish as to cause trouble during the Double Ninth Festival assessment, Li Mucha still worked extremely hard during this period, unwilling to embarrass his brother.

Li Cunxiao, understanding his younger brother's intentions, did not disturb him and prepared to inspect the Azure Dragon Pavilion as usual, harvesting a wave of malevolent energy.

Thanks to the income from the Azure Dragon Pavilion, in addition to upgrading the "Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover", he also had a surplus that he could use to upgrade the "Nine Revolutions Flowing Pearl".

"Now all that's missing are the necessary materials to forge the Dragon-Binding Rope. How are the bounties being offered going?"

Upon hearing this, the handyman disciple immediately stepped forward respectfully and replied:
"We're missing a pair of sixth-tier fire-elemental dragon tendons; everything else is complete."

"Fire-type dragon tendons. They're rare even in the Hundred Herbs Garden."

Li Cunxiao also felt a headache upon hearing this.

Dragons are associated with water, and fire-elemental dragons are quite rare. Although the Hundred Herbs Garden of the Immortal Taiyi contains a wide variety of things, this kind of creature is still extremely scarce.

Moreover, dragon tendons are a key ingredient in many divine elixirs, and demand far exceeds supply. Even if the old Taoist priest were willing to help, they wouldn't always be available, not to mention that the Grand Master Taiyi was deliberately testing him.

Li Cunxiao provided everything himself for forging the Dragon-Binding Rope, and even took a lot of materials from the Dragon Boat Secret Realm, all in an effort to forge a top-grade magical treasure in one go.

"However, Senior Brother Li Siqi sent you an invitation today, inviting you to a small gathering."

"They said it was an elder from the clan who came to visit, and they hoped to meet him."

The Li family of Longxi?

Li Cunxiao wasn't surprised to hear this, as the other party had mentioned it many times before.

Having more friends means having more options. There's no harm in meeting them; you never know, you might even need to borrow a pair of dragon tendons from them to compensate for what you lack.

When is the date set?

(End of this chapter)