Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

He slapped his forehead, suddenly realizing:

"I remember that Elder Jiu also said that Yao Ji could brew Kunlun Longevity Wine with her mouth?"

"..."

Even someone as gentle as Yao Ji couldn't help but fall silent at this moment, her calm state of mind somewhat disrupted by him.

"This is also a derivative legend. The Elder of Wine has a great passion for the inheritance of wine and has made many rumors that are difficult to verify."

The stone table where the three sat down to talk was square, with a square tabletop and four stone benches.

At this moment, out of sight of the two women, on the empty stone bench, the System Girl was sitting, waving an old, yellowed scroll in her hand.

“Mingkong, I have the authentic recipe for Kunlun Longevity Wine here, but it doesn’t have the ability to grant immortality. It’s just a wine rich in spiritual energy.”

Of course, only Chu Mingkong could hear it, and he couldn't afford to be distracted by the system, so he could only pretend he didn't hear it.

"Yaoji, now that the Peach Tree is not bearing fruit, what are your plans?"

“I don’t think I need to make any plans. I’ll just let things take their course. Since the ‘fruit’ of the Queen Mother of the West’s cause has not yet been fulfilled, it means that the ‘cause’ still exists. I just need to manage the Taoist sect well, and everything will be in the hands of fate.”

Chu Mingkong was still surprised.

It seems that in situations where the sect leader has to die before one can succeed to the position, the successor would be more than happy for the sect leader to die, so that they could take over everything and ascend to the highest position.

Then the plot within Jianmu became delicate, with celestial demons invading from the outside and Yao Ji eyeing it covetously from within, ultimately leading to the death of the Queen Mother of the West.

However, Yao Ji didn't seem to covet that kind of status.

Chu Mingkong was being bothered by the system girl pinching his face, and his thoughts were momentarily diverted. He forgot what he wanted to ask, but fortunately Yun Nongyu helped him ask it.

"Has Your Highness been lost in thought and forgotten what you wanted to ask?"

"Yes." Chu Mingkong frankly admitted to his youthful dementia.

"You were just about to ask Yao Ji, since the Heavenly Demons offended Jianmu so much, are you not going to punish them? You are also curious why the Taoist sect limits itself to being weaker than the Buddhist sect."

After Yun Nongyu's reminder, Chu Mingkong suddenly realized, "Yes, yes, yes!"

Yao Ji noticed that Nong Yu's precognitive abilities had evolved, but she had specifically used them to read Chu Mingkong's mind.

Her bright eyes, veiled by mist, showed a slight look of surprise before returning to calm, without making any teasing or jokes.

"Punishment? To be honest, the current strength of the Daoist sect is not enough to support us in punishing the Heavenly Demon Clan. Whether it is the Queen Mother of the West or myself in the position of Yao Ji, all we have done is follow the instructions left by our predecessors and guard the Heavenly Gate."

As for limiting the strength within the Daoist sect, that's not the case.

"No?"

Chu Mingkong blurted out the words, then immediately realized that his subconscious words might have sounded unfriendly, as if he were questioning the other party, and quickly explained:

"I was just surprised because the strength of the Taoist sect is significantly weaker than that of the Buddhist sect."

Yao Ji then offered an explanation, roughly meaning that while the Queen Mother of the West did not demand that the elders and disciples of the Daoist sects devote themselves to the pursuit of power, she did not impose any restrictions on them.

If the elders and disciples of the sect feel that they are ready to advance to a new realm, the Queen Mother of the West will also provide assistance in their advancement.

The biggest reason for the huge disparity in strength between Buddhism and Taoism is that Buddhism seeks power through all sorts of strange methods, regardless of the cost.

Situations like the Asura King, who reincarnates with inherent power, are generally considered benign. In reality, most of the extraordinary power within Buddhism in this realm comes from methods like absorbing spiritual energy and demonic energy...

After Peng Bao Dao Ren followed the Buddhist alchemy practitioners, the pills that absorbed demonic energy made him appear neither divine nor ghostly, but his strength did indeed increase.

With the Queen Mother of the West and Yao Ji missing for so long, the gap in strength between the two sides widened even further during this period of leaderlessness.

Overall, the various forces within Buddhism are indeed more "diverse" than those within Taoism. The Bodhisattva of Boundless Intent, who can arbitrarily possess the bodies of Buddhist disciples, is particularly sinister.

"Then why guard the Heavenly Gate? Is there a story or reason behind it?"

Yao Ji shook her head. She only regarded this as a task and the mission of her position, and would not delve into it further.

"Perhaps I will know when I officially become the Queen Mother of the West."

"Ok."

Chu Mingkong was helpless. This door was too passive and natural. If it were him, he would have to dig out the motive and find out why he was guarding it.

"Can the Heavenly Gate still be opened? I'd like to go in and take a look. By the way, Yaoji, could you tell me what kind of person the Queen Mother of the West is? Would that be convenient?"

"can."

Yao Ji got up and walked towards the Heavenly Gate, with Chu Mingkong and Yun Nongyu following behind.

As soon as the three left, the fruits and wine on the stone table instantly returned to their original state.

It's like it's been replenished, yet it's also like it's been restored to its original state.

The Heavenly Gate opened slowly, the crack opening little by little. Yao Ji repeated the action of "Yao Ji half-opening the door" once again, except this time Chu Mingkong was watching Yao Ji do this gesture from behind.

Wearing a flowing white dress, Yao Ji placed her hands on the Heavenly Gate, leaned forward slightly, and revealed her beautiful and graceful half-body to the inside of the gate. Her slender waist and her shapely peach-shaped buttocks appeared particularly pert due to the movement.

The skirt, which didn't normally accentuate her figure, subtly outlined her beautiful, rounded curves because of this pose and movement, much like the plump, juicy peaches on the stone table.

Chu Mingkong was naturally the kind of person who would not look at what was improper, but he did not expect that Yao Ji's action of "half-opening the door" would look like this from behind, as if she were offering him a peach. His eyes couldn't help but look at her a few more times.

Yun Nongyu took his hand, her calm tone carrying a hint of jealousy:

"Your Highness..."

Chapter 192 A Different Jade Pool

Although Yun Nongyu's tone was calm, it was slightly heavier than usual, and this slight change in tone seemed abrupt on her.

Having just finished the opening gesture, Yao Ji looked back at the two of them curiously, wondering what had happened.

"It's nothing, haha..." Chu Mingkong shamelessly tried to cover up his embarrassment, "Can I go in and take a look?"

There were no further ceremonies, and Chu Mingkong and Yun Nongyu entered smoothly.

As promised, Yao Ji introduced Chu Mingkong to the Queen Mother of the West as she remembered her. The Queen Mother of the West was essentially Yao Ji's mentor, someone Yao Ji was to serve. Naturally, Yao Ji wouldn't offer any judgments, but would only briefly mention her temperament:

"The Queen Mother of the West is steady and rarely makes mistakes. She is friendly to her disciples and is pure and flawless. She is the perfect person in the eyes of the Taoist disciples. This is her performance in her official capacity. In private, the Queen Mother of the West is just as friendly and approachable. She often speaks with a smile, which makes people feel like they are bathed in a spring breeze. She will also joke with us occasionally."

"so......"

Chu Mingkong nodded his thanks, and then mentally compared himself to the system girl. The first part was hard to say, because Chu Mingkong often suffered from cold violence, but it seemed that she was quite good at joking.

However, it's hard to say if it really matches, so he gave up for the time being.

Previously, when entering Jianmu from the other side of the Heavenly Domain, the scenery observed was unusual, but it failed to attract much attention from Chu Mingkong.

Because Yao Ji's tug-of-war with the Heavenly Demon Clan had lasted too long, and the Heavenly Demon Clan had set up their own camps and magic arrays there, clearing away a lot of vegetation, leaving the land looking bare.

However, entering Jianmu from the Taoist gate, one feels as if they are in a fairyland where water, sky, and forest blend together, with a profusion of flowers and birds that are too numerous to take in.

Considering that much of the Kunlun Mountains are covered in snow all year round, this scene is even more striking.

Beyond the greenery created by these plants, a floating staircase winds its way up, connecting to a suspended palace, blending seamlessly with the surrounding tall trees.

Chu Mingkong didn't pay much attention to the palace, but stared at a nearby pond.

The pool was very large, located in the middle of a jungle, with spiritual plants and flowers obscuring the view, so the edge of the pool could not be seen.

Yao Ji noticed Chu Mingkong's gaze and said to him:

"That is the Jade Pool. Your Highness seems quite interested in this pool?"

"I need to confirm one thing: can I fly here? I'd like to see this pool from a higher vantage point."

"Please go ahead."

Chu Mingkong flew up and saw the true face of the entire Yaochi, his heart filled with boundless surprise.

Ignoring size, just looking at the overall shape and outline of the pool, this Jade Pool is undoubtedly the same pool where the system girl soaked her feet before!

However, the pool at that time was only four or five meters in diameter, which was too small to be called a bathing pool. This Jade Pool, on the other hand, is so large that it can accommodate hundreds of fairy maidens to bathe without feeling crowded at all.

Chu Mingkong was afraid he had misremembered, so he flew back and forth several times to confirm that the shape of this Jade Pool was exactly the same as the one where the System Girl had soaked her feet, at least in terms of outline!

Nothing in this world is absolute; coincidences will always happen by chance.

However, something of the level of Jianmu Yaochi cannot be explained by mere chance.

"Is there something wrong with this Jade Pool?" Yun Nongyu flew to his side.

Yao Ji also came over, remaining silent and waiting for Chu Mingkong's question.

"Is this the only place with a Jade Pool? Are there any other places?" Chu Mingkong asked eagerly.

"Why would you ask this? Has Your Highness ever seen Yaochi?" Yaoji was slightly surprised.

Chu Mingkong pondered how to explain, his gaze falling on the system girl, who was sitting by the Jade Pool, leisurely soaking her jade feet.

The occasional ripples were slight, like a gentle breeze tugging at a veil on the water's surface.

The system remained silent, but did not stop Chu Mingkong from pressing for answers, nor did it explain why the pool was the same as the Jade Pool.

"I have indeed seen it. This brings us to the method we used to travel to the Heavenly Realm this time, a state similar to that of a soul wandering outside the heavens..."

Chu Mingkong concealed the existence of the system girl, only saying that he had seen her when he was traveling around in the past, but the environment at that time was not Jianmu, and the Yaochi there was much smaller.

Upon seeing this Jade Pool, I immediately felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity.

Yun Nongyu was surprised by Chu Mingkong's statement. She thought of the bottles of Yaochi water that Chu Mingkong had given her in the forbidden area of ​​the Illusionary Palace:

"Your Highness, could it be that the Jade Pool water in your bottle was obtained from the place you mentioned? But wouldn't that mean that the water in those places is also from the Jade Pool?"

Yao Ji clearly wanted to know more. Hearing Chu Mingkong recount such a wondrous event, she spoke of a rumor rarely mentioned:

"Legend has it that in the past, the Queen Mother of the West traveled to famous mountains and rivers in the world and built a heavenly palace in a place she liked to live and rest, also known as 'a separate heaven'. These heavens can be regarded as the private temples of the Queen Mother of the West in different generations."

The locations differ, but what they have in common is that each of these places contains a Jade Pool. Perhaps what Your Highness saw was indeed a Jade Pool, but not the one in the Jianmu tree.”

Yun Nongyu also remembered some things and recited:

“‘Although the Queen Mother of the West used Kunlun as her palace, she also had her own separate palaces and caves, places to travel and rest, and did not live exclusively on one mountain.’ It seems there is a similar legend.”

Alright, does that mean the case is solved?

This system is actually the Queen Mother of the West, Yao Ji's top boss. After Yao Ji passed away, it naturally "parasitized" him.

　 The mysterious woman, her delicate feet soaking in the pool, slightly lifted her foot, causing a splash. The two stunningly beautiful women from the Taoist sect looked at the pool in surprise and confusion, not understanding what had happened.