A Mortal's Journey to Immortality

"Where is your Five Mysterious Token? Show it to me."

Upon hearing the Five Mysteries Token, Gong Yiyi immediately became interested and spoke first.

"You brat, how can you be so disrespectful! Didn't you hear that's the Azure Lotus Token? Not our Tai Su's Platinum Token! Get out of here!"

Seeing Gong Yiyi's disrespectful behavior, Gong Yunting scolded her angrily.

Seeing this, Gong Yiyi realized she had gotten a little carried away. Her little face fell, and she muttered with a hint of grievance,

"Uncle Yuan, Yiyi didn't mean it, she was just too curious when she saw the Five Mysterious Tokens."

"Junior Brother Gong, what are you doing? How could that token fly away right under our noses? What's so unacceptable about it?"

Yuan Zhengze was a little embarrassed by the uncle and nephew, and quickly comforted the little girl a few more times.

"Sigh! It's all because of his aunt's strict discipline! He's always been disrespectful to his elders since he was little, I'm sorry to have embarrassed you two senior brothers."

Gong Yunting sighed helplessly and said softly.

Xia Qianchuan and Yuan Zhengze both stiffened upon hearing Gong Yunting's words.

The aunt Gong Yiyi mentioned was a remarkable and outstanding person.

Not only in the Tai Su Xuan Sect, but also throughout the entire cultivation world of Liang Kingdom, there are many legends about him.

This person is from the same generation as them, but has now far surpassed them, and more than ten years ago he successfully advanced to the Core Formation stage.

He quickly became a highly sought-after figure in the cultivation world of Liang Kingdom, and even became the youngest sect elder of Tai Su Xuan Sect.

Zhou Ping saw that Gong Yiyi looked pitiful, but her misty eyes were still staring at him curiously, as if she had no intention of giving up her previous idea.

So he had no choice but to bite the bullet and speak.

"Seniors, because the Five Profound Tokens are too precious, I dare not carry them with me. Instead, I have kept them in the quiet room of Guiyuan Pavilion. I absolutely cannot take them out now."

Upon hearing Zhou Ping's explanation, the three showed a hint of approval, seemingly agreeing with his approach.

Only Gong Yiyi's face immediately showed disappointment.

"Now that this person has been brought to justice, how about we return to Yuan Pavilion? It would be a good opportunity for Junior Brother Yuan to handle his family affairs."

With a wave of his hand, Xia Qianchuan's folding fan rapidly enlarged in the eyes of the group, transforming into the same shape they had used when they arrived.

After listening, Gong Yunting and Yuan Zhengze had no objections, so they decided to board the folding fan magic artifact.

Zhou Ping stood behind the group, seemingly having made a decision, and then resolutely said,

"Seniors, I am currently unable to return to Guiyuan Pavilion with you. Please forgive me!"

"You bastard, you're not trying to fool me, are you?! Do you even have the Five Mystic Tokens?!"

Gong Yiyi pouted and pointed her finger at Zhou Ping's nose, questioning him.

"Zhou Xiaoyou did it for the safety of his family, right?"

Gong Yunting recalled the Taoist priest's dying curse and said with a sense of realization.

"Seniors, you are wise! The Zhou Ping family is still in dire straits, and I must return as soon as possible. I hope you will not take offense!"

Zhou Ping bowed gratefully to Gong Yunting and said in a low voice.

Xia Qianchuan and Yuan Zhengze originally thought it was just a curse or threat from the Taoist priest before his death, but they never expected that it would actually happen.

"Are you sure you want to go back? With your level of magical power, going back would probably be extremely dangerous, wouldn't it?"

As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Yuan Zhengze, combined with all the previous events, naturally saw through Zhou Ping's predicament at a glance, and asked meaningfully.

"The seniors are highly skilled and have saved my life. I have no way to repay them. However, my family has given me life and raised me. Even if I die, I will go back to fulfill my filial duties. I hope the seniors will not blame me."

Looking at the resolute expression on Zhou Ping's face, Yuan Zhengze and the others fell silent, seemingly unsurprised by his reaction.

The first hurdle one must overcome on the path of cultivation is love.

After embarking on the path of cultivation, as one's realm and lifespan increase, one's family and friends will grow old one by one in one's eyes. Even as a high-ranking cultivator, one cannot change this outcome.

In particular, all three of them were Foundation Establishment cultivators with lifespans exceeding two hundred years, which gave them a lot to think about.

After a moment of silence, a slight smile appeared on Yuan Zhengze's cold face for the first time. He shifted his gaze from Zhou Ping's face, turned to look at Xia Qianchuan and Gong Yunting, and said helplessly,

"It seems that I cannot return to Tianyan Town with my two fellow disciples. I will accompany this young friend on his own. I can also visit the Jin Clan he mentioned and check on the situation of the descendants of my former fellow disciples."

"That's fine then. This matter concerns Junior Brother Yuan's sect affairs, so we shouldn't interfere too much. Let's do as Junior Brother says."

Xia Qianchuan and Gong Yunting exchanged a glance and then nodded.

The two then tossed Bond onto the folding fan artifact and steadily stepped onto it.

"Yiyi? Come on up!"

Gong Yunting stood on the magical artifact, turned his head to look at his motionless little niece, and called out softly.

"Third Uncle, Yiyi doesn't want to go back to Tianyan Town, it's too boring. Can I come with her...?"

"No way! I've told you so many times, that's your Uncle Yuan's family matter, you can't be unreasonable!"

Before Gong Yiyi could finish speaking, Gong Yunting immediately interrupted her.

The little girl immediately pouted, looking unwilling, and kept muttering something.

"When we get back to Mount Taixuan, I'm going to tell my aunt about you. You're meddling way too much..."

Seeing Gong Yunting's face darken, Yuan Zhengze couldn't help but find it amusing, and thus made a suggestion.

"Junior Brother Gong, why don't you go back to Yuan Pavilion with Senior Brother Xia to prepare for the handover? If you trust me, let Yiyi come along for a trip, just to relax."

After listening, Gong Yunting thought for a moment before responding apologetically.

"With Senior Brother Yuan's protection, how could I not trust him? But in that case, I'm afraid this girl will be troubling Senior Brother."

"It's alright, then it's settled. I'll head to Qingyang Town now. Please take care."

After speaking, Yuan Zhengze summoned a green leaf magic artifact from his storage bag. As soon as it landed, it suddenly grew larger, and within a few breaths it became a flat, long, green boat, which was the unique green leaf lotus boat flying magic artifact of the Qinglian Xuanzong sect.

A moment later, two streaks of light, one blue and one white, streaked across the sky, heading towards Qingyang Town and Tianyan Town respectively.

........

In Zhou's blacksmith shop in Qingyang Town.

Zhou Ping's father, Zhou the blacksmith, along with his two older brothers and one older sister, all gathered here with their families.

In addition, several magnificent carriages were quietly parked at the entrance.

These carriages appear magnificent, but in reality, all the decorations have been removed, leaving no distinguishing features except for the ornate frames.

Chen Dafu was also standing in the Zhou family's blacksmith shop. Although he was anxious, he did not urge the others.

As soon as he received the letter secretly delivered by Zhou Ping, he immediately began preparations.

In order to keep a low profile and avoid attracting attention, all the unique logos and decorations representing the Chen family on the Chen family's carriages were removed, just so that no one would notice anything amiss.

"Young Master Chen, is my Ping'er really gone?"

Zhou the blacksmith's slightly aged voice rang out from the blacksmith's shop, his tone filled with sadness and helplessness.