Daily Intelligence: From Water Snake to Jinghe Dragon King

Chapter 225 Liu Qing becomes a disciple of the Jie Sect Immortal, transmitting the Shangqing Technique to Heaven.
Liu Qing still remembered that the calamity stone he had picked up from Qu Yuan, the Water God, contained the remains of Chang Hao, a disciple of the Jie Sect, which he had then devoured and refined.

Is the Golden Hoop Immortal talking to himself like a cricket in front of him?
Seeing Liu Qing's somewhat embarrassed expression, the Golden Hoop Immortal blinked and said, "Junior Brother, do you think you could take Junior Brother Chang Hao's serpent bone without Senior Brother's permission?"

Liu Qing's heart skipped a beat: "So it was you, Senior Brother, who secretly arranged this?"

"It wouldn't be a secret arrangement. The fact that you were able to discover Junior Brother Chang Hao's snake bones inside that calamity stone waste is your skill. I, as your senior brother, simply went with the flow and didn't stop you."

Liu Qing was startled just now, thinking that the Golden Hoop Immortal had sensed his cheat ability, but it turned out that wasn't the case, so he was relieved.

There is another layer of meaning, indicating that Liu Qing's progress in cultivation, various gains, and all actions after obtaining Chang Hao's serpent bone were not secretly guided by the Golden Hoop Immortal.

Otherwise, if things had come to this point and everything was being secretly manipulated by the Golden Hoop Immortal, then even if he was backed by the Jie Sect, Liu Qing would not be willing to associate with him.

Liu Qing didn't want to become a pawn controlled by others.

Fortunately, Liu Qing was just overthinking things.

After letting go of his worries, Liu Qing felt much more relaxed. He chatted with the Golden Hoop Immortal along the way and learned a lot about the past of the Jie Sect from him.

It turns out that after the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation in the Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods, among the disciples of the Intercepting Sect with titles, besides some whose physical bodies perished but whose souls were enshrined as gods and who served as officials in the Heavenly Court, there were actually a few whose paths to immortality were still intact.

The tomb guardian, the Golden Hoop Immortal; the Holy Mother Wudang, who transformed into the Old Mother of Lishan; and the Tathagata Duobao, who went to the Western Buddhist Temple to repay karmic debts; as well as the Green Lion, White Elephant, and Golden-Winged Roc, etc.

However, among these disciples of the Jie Sect, Jin Gu Xian took advantage of the cover of being a fellow disciple who was conferred the title of God by Heaven to become a seventh-rank mountain god and guard the tomb of his fellow disciple, while Wu Dang Shengmu Hua Li Shan Lao Mu stayed in her cave and did not care about worldly affairs.

The others who were deified or captured and brought into Buddhism, except for a few traitors, were all powerless and deprived of their freedom.

Liu Qing guessed that the Tongtian Sect Leader's reappearance this time might be for the sake of these disciples.

It remains to be seen how much commotion he will cause in the Three Realms for the sake of these disciples. Moreover, his emergence at this opportune moment adds the greatest variable. Will the Journey to the West still follow its original trajectory?
Definitely not.

The Great King of Inspiration, one of the eighty-one tribulations in Journey to the West, has already been killed by himself.

Liu Qing secretly sensed the aura of the Golden Hoop Immortal, trying to deduce the other party's cultivation level, but no matter how Liu Qing sensed it, he could not sense the aura leaking out of the Golden Hoop Immortal.

The Golden Hoop Immortal showed no signs of energy leakage, giving Liu Qing the feeling that he was perfectly integrated inside and out, having achieved the ultimate in cultivating both body and spirit.

Liu Qing was shocked. His aura was perfectly balanced, without any leakage. This performance was enough to show that the Golden Hoop Immortal's cultivation level had reached a level that was unfathomable.

Golden Body Realm? Undying Realm? Great Luo Realm?!
Liu Qing dared not speculate any further, lest his Dao heart be severely damaged.

The Golden Hoop Immortal seemed to sense something, gave Liu Qing a kind smile, but said nothing.

When the Golden Hoop Immortal brought Liu Qing to the gambling den in Beizhong Mountain, they saw the Taoist master shouting and betting on stones with others.

The Golden Hoop Immortal looked conflicted.

He opened the gambling den only to conceal his identity and, incidentally, to reassure the powerful figures in the Three Realms who coveted the ancient battlefield treasures of the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation. He would use the gambling stones to open the treasures in the mountains and let those powerful figures see if there were any that they coveted.

The result was nothing; all that was found were bits of flesh and bone, ordinary pills, and fragments of magical artifacts, etc.

They definitely wouldn't be interested in these.

It's estimated that even those that caught the eye were hidden away by the Golden Hoop Immortal beforehand.

"Ahem, teacher, my junior brother hasn't officially started learning yet. Do you think we should let him start learning first?"

"Oh, okay, this is such a hassle. Can't I just kowtow?"

Both the Golden Hoop Immortal and Liu Qing remained silent.

The Taoist priest left the gambling table looking dejected and was led into the backyard by the Golden Hoop Immortal.

The Taoist waved his hand and unleashed a burst of magical power, instantly creating a grotto-heaven. Within the grotto-heaven, the sun, moon, and stars were all present, along with mountains, rivers, trees, flowers, birds, beasts, fish, and insects. It was no longer a grotto-heaven, but clearly a miniature world.

He can create a miniature world with ease; he truly deserves to be called a teacher.

Liu Qing felt fortunate to have such a powerful backer.

"Although the mortal realm is shielded by the aura of impending doom, it is useless against truly powerful beings. Junior brother, let's go in."

Liu Qing followed behind the Golden Hoop Immortal and entered the Lesser Thousand Worlds.

"This time, only a wisp of my soul has been born. My true self is still in Zixiao Palace. Therefore, I am not Tongtian, but merely Yuyu Daoren."

Liu Qing had also guessed this.

As Yu Yu Daoren was speaking, he suddenly thought of something, made a calculation with his fingers, and then looked distressed, as if his calculation had failed.

"I was originally trapped in Zixiao Palace and could not get out, but for some reason, the power of the Heavenly Dao that trapped me suddenly opened a crack, and I was able to split my soul and leave the world."

The Golden Hoop Immortal nodded in agreement: "I also sensed something before. It seems that the Heavenly Dao is missing something and is no longer as omniscient and omnipotent as before. Long before you, Master, were born, I discovered that many of my junior brothers who were bound by the Investiture of the Gods showed signs of breaking free and released a wisp of their souls to the mortal realm."

Liu Qing thought of Shen Gongbao, the strange phenomenon of stars descending to earth when Li Shimin raised his army, and his own cheat-like abilities. Perhaps, the root of everything lay within himself.

Liu Qing glanced at Yu Yu Dao Ren secretly and saw that he still looked conflicted. He thought to himself, "My teacher is a wisp of a divided soul. His methods are much weaker than the original saint's. He can't deduce my secrets."

That put my mind at ease.

The Golden Hoop Immortal then set up an incense table, asking the remaining Taoists to sit sideways on a futon. In the center of the incense table was the character "Tao," which was extremely mysterious.

The Dao represents the Sage Tongtian. The remaining Daoists are seated to the side because they are the divided souls of the original deity. Liu Qing is becoming a disciple of Tongtian.

Liu Qing respectfully performed the apprenticeship ceremony.

He then took out the Monkey Spirit Wine from the Kounang Cave and offered it to Yu Yu Daoist as a gift for his apprenticeship.

Yu Yu Daoist was overjoyed. As a divided soul, it did not have the majesty of a saint like the original body, but instead had more worldly air about it, so it naturally liked this wine that best represented the worldly air.

Yu Yu Dao Ren took a big gulp of wine, exhaled a breath of alcohol, and looked at Liu Qing with a smile: "My good disciple, perhaps you have some doubts in your heart about why your master, a saint, is willing to accept you as a disciple after only receiving your incense offerings a few times?"

Liu Qing also had this question.

"Firstly, you are clever, grateful, and act freely, which suits my temperament very well. Of course, this is not enough for me to accept you as my disciple."

"After I escaped from Zixiao Palace, I made several deductions, but each time I came up with no result. I don't know where the root of this change lies."

"Until I saw you, a little demon with no foundation, yet you have such great fortune. Moreover, many of the changes in the human world are related to you. It can be said that you are at the center of countless causes and effects, and are the root of all causes and effects."

"Although I cannot deduce it, I can guess that you, my disciple, are burdened with karma and are at the center of the change, becoming a variable in this great calamity."

"The reason why I am willing to take you as my disciple is here."

"Perhaps my motives are impure, but I will not hide it from you. This great calamity of the Journey to the West has been complicated by you. I took you as my disciple to see if you, this variable, can ultimately change the predetermined course."

“One tribulation is one cycle. Last time, during the Investiture of the Gods, my Jie Sect suffered a great loss. Countless disciples died and their souls were unable to reincarnate. They were driven around and could not be free. This time, I want to settle the karma from last time. And you, perhaps you can help me.”

Yu Yu Dao Ren spoke very bluntly, which made Jin Gu Xian frown, while Liu Qing breathed a sigh of relief.

It's better to just say it directly than to speculate.

Liu Qing never believed that by shamelessly calling someone "teacher" a few times and lighting some incense, he could gain the sage's favor and be accepted as a disciple.

Now that the sage's soul has been divided, the remaining Taoist priest directly stated his purpose in taking on disciples, thus resolving his doubts.

Although there was a hint of exploitation, Liu Qing was already quite satisfied. Being used by a sage proved his strength, didn't it?
Such a straightforward approach to exploitation is far better than scheming behind the scenes.

Liu Qing was neither resentful nor unwilling. Yu Yu Dao Ren clearly intended to use him to settle the karmic debts left by the Investiture of the Gods during the Journey to the West calamity.

Liu Qing could also use the banner of the Jie Sect to make plans for himself.

It's nothing more than mutual exploitation.

Ultimately, Liu Qing, for the sake of survival and immortality, and Yu Yu Dao Ren, for the sake of settling scores, formed an alliance through mutual exploitation, seeking a win-win situation.

Liu Qing smiled with relief and bowed respectfully: "Disciple Liu Qing greets Master—"

This time, it was much more sincere than before.

Yu Yu Dao Ren nodded.

I act with great influence and openness; even my schemes are meticulously planned and executed.

"In that case, from today onwards, you will be the last disciple of my Jie Sect."

"As the last disciple, you must naturally carry on the legacy of my Jie Sect. Here I have the Shangqing Immortal Technique, the Nine Revolutions Profound Skill, the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiend Technique, and various formations. Which one would you like to learn?"

Liu Qing smiled shyly: "I am willing to learn."

Yu Yu Daoist almost choked on his wine: "You're really not being polite. Can you even keep up with this?"

"This disciple possesses astonishing talent, extraordinary comprehension, and exceptional fortune. He will surely be able to learn it all and carry forward the core traditions of my Jie Sect."

"Of all the disciples I've taken in, you're not good at anything else, but you certainly deserve the title of the thickest skin."

Yu Yu Daoist made a sarcastic remark, then said nothing more. He pointed directly at Liu Qing and passed on all the famous formations of the Jie Sect, including the Shangqing Immortal Technique, the Nine Revolutions Profound Skill, the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiend Technique, the Nine Turns Yellow River Formation, the Ten Absolute Formation, the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation, and the Zhou Tian Star Formation.

As Liu Qing felt the flood of various treasures rushing into his mind, he couldn't help but feel overjoyed. Since his teacher was in front of him, he didn't have time to examine them closely, so he had all his distractions come over to categorize and organize these treasures, memorize them, and study them in detail later.

Although he was being used, he was being used very clearly, and he was actually taught the most core techniques of the Jie Sect.

Liu Qing was willing to be used in this way, the more the better.

(End of this chapter)