Chapter One: The Supreme Immortal

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  The story begins in a dark and desolate mountain, beside a bustling bonfire.

  A magnificent and extraordinary world has opened up...

  At the beginning of spring, the weather is still cold. The night wind in the mountains and forests howled, blowing into the main hall of the Taoist temple with only half a door left, but was stumbled by the lively atmosphere inside.

  In the center of the great hall, a raging fire was burning, surrounded by over ten Han men who were drinking and eating meat, laughing and chatting with each other, every one of them sweating profusely, creating a lively atmosphere.

  Inside, there was a dark-faced man sitting in the first seat below the upper level. He had the loudest voice. After drinking a mouthful of strong liquor, he shouted, fueled by the alcohol:

  "With Brother Xuande around, our business this year is worth ten years. This year's situation is better than last year, and everyone has made a fortune, it's just a matter of time!"

  The whole hall responded with a loud noise, and the atmosphere became even more intense. The dark-faced man laughed loudly, took another swig from his gourd, and turned to see that the "Xuan Qing big brother" in his mouth seemed to have not heard the flattery just now, still posing as usual, wearing a yellow Taoist robe, with eyes closed but not closed, pinching a finger, looking mysterious and profound.

  The dark-faced man cursed in his heart, but still put on a respectful face and asked, "Big brother?"

  He heard the call and opened his eyes. His hair was black, his skin was bright, and his expression was calm and composed, with a sense of elegance. He hummed: "What's up?"

  The dark-faced man wiped his face and said: "Brother, shall we offer sacrifices to Old Lu this year?"

  Xuan Qing glanced at him: "Apart from Lu Guan Shi, who else can speak up in the mansion?"

  The black-faced man shook his head heavily: "If I had to say, Lu's eyes are on the top of his brain, he is not easy to talk to. It would be better to go find Old Man Chang, this person is in charge of the seaweed business here, if you have a good relationship with him, even ordinary goods can get a high price."

  The Taoist cast a sidelong glance and sneered, "Don't you know your place? Chang Rong has been making a fortune every year, and his heart is already set on it. How much do you want to offer him as tribute? Besides, he's already fixed several batches of regular customers, taking a cut from their profits every year, earning quickly and steadily... As for us scattered guests, he can't even be bothered to glance at us..."

  Xuan Qing paused for a moment and then asked: "Have you found a way?"

  "No, no, it's just that watching Big Brother and that Lu fellow bickering is exhausting, can't bear to watch..."

  Saying words that disgusted even himself, the dark-faced man withdrew his head and silently cursed: "Fucking hell, you're still relying on Mr. Lu to give you pointers, damn it, you've even called your adoptive father, why not sell your mother?"

  He resented this leader for snatching away his original position, yet feared him for having a profound cultivation base and being at the pinnacle of mortal cultivation, with extremely exquisite symbol techniques that made killing him as easy as killing a chicken.

  The two of them were engaged in a fierce battle of wits, when suddenly someone burst in from outside, shouting: "A deal has been made!"

  Inside the grand hall, everyone's spirits were lifted. On such a cold day, could it be that this year's profitable market is about to open?

  Xuan Qing remained calm and thought for a moment before narrowing his eyes and asking, "What's going on?"

  Outside, the wind blows straight into his face, and upon hearing this, he immediately bowed his head and said: "Those who run solo, walk a steady road, others can't see clearly."

  Xuan Qing was somewhat dissatisfied, glanced away, saw that the person was still quite respectful, and only then did he nod his head and stroke his beard: "The moon is dark and the wind is strong, yet you're traveling alone - either you're a fool or someone with skills... Hei Zi, give him a blast, let's hear how it sounds."

  "Alright!"

  The black-faced man smiled, looked around, and the people next to him didn't need him to say anything, they all placed their knives and swords in a convenient place, seeing that the situation was not right, they could react in time. Only Xuan Qing, again showed that profound and mysterious attitude, and for a while, the hall became quiet.

  Everyone said it was a Taoist temple, but in fact it was just an isolated house, without distinction between inside and outside, more like a land temple. Before long, the people in the hall heard footsteps coming from outside. The door of the hall was knocked open, and the visitor was very polite, with a low and pleasant voice:

  "Is it convenient inside?"

  The people inside were less polite, a dark-faced man shouted in a loud and rough voice: "Where did you come from!"

  "A traveler gathering herbs at night, looking for a place to rest."

  The black-faced man's face fell, and the others also sighed. From their experience, this was at most a small mudskipper, maybe there would be a day to eat fat, but tonight was destined to have no harvest.

  Xuan Qing saw the lazy appearance of these people, opened his eyes and stared, the dark-faced man gave a loud laugh, and hurriedly laughed: "Picking herbs? It's cutting grass... come in!"

  The man outside spoke again, thanking him, and pushed the door open. The mountain wind followed his figure as he entered, causing the candles inside to flicker, and everyone's eyes were cast in that direction, then they all froze.

  The black-faced man reacted the fastest, drawing out his tone and laughing: "Hmmm, so it's a fellow practitioner... and still a pretty boy!"

  Suddenly a strange remark was made, and the whole hall burst into loud laughter. The atmosphere that had just subsided was stirred up again, with great momentum.

  It's no wonder that the dark-faced man spoke in this way, for the newcomer was indeed a handsome young Taoist priest. He didn't look very old, and his face was as round as a full moon, with red lips and white teeth. But what really caught their attention was his skin, which was even more delicate than that of the women, making these rough and weathered men feel envious. A few of them had lewd thoughts in mind, and some even had ulterior motives.

  This handsome Taoist priest was quite tall, with a long sword slung over his shoulder, but he habitually hunched his back, looking very honest and shy. As soon as he entered the door, seeing the fierce men in the hall, his face looked unnatural, stuck at the door, seeming to want to retreat.

  The black-faced man saw this scene and was even more certain that this was a young child, temporarily without any benefits, and also felt uninteresting. However, since Xuan Qing became the big brother, he had always followed the principle of "having killed wrongly, not letting go". He could only cough once, indicating to his companions to slow down, while he continued to perform according to the familiar routine:

  "As a fellow practitioner, why haven't you come to pay respects to the venerable Xuan Qing? This is a great immortal family with immense magical powers. Even if they were to reveal just a tiny bit of their secrets from the tip of their finger, it would be enough for a minor Daoist like you to enjoy for an entire lifetime!"

  "What's all the commotion about, Zheng Da?"

  After the Daoist Zhenxiu entered, Xuan Qing spoke up for the first time. Although he had his eyes closed, as soon as he opened his mouth, the dozen or so people by the bonfire immediately stopped talking. There was a somewhat intimidating aura about him, and a different atmosphere began to spread.

  Now it's Xuan Qing's turn to shine.

  Seeing over a dozen burly men stunned by Xuán Qīng's single sentence, the handsome Taoist also let out a sigh of relief and his expression became respectful. He stepped forward, bowed and said: "Scattered person Yú Cí, has seen Elder Xuán Qīng."

  Xuan Qing slowly opened his eyes, glanced at Yu Ci's body once more, then lowered his eyelids and spoke in a calm tone:

  "Is the little Taoist going to pick shrimp whisker grass in the Heavenly Rift Valley?"

  Yu Ci nodded in response.

  "Wealth and power can move people's hearts. The White Day Temple may not have any ill intentions, but the Sky Crack Valley is indeed an evil place. You ordinary people should also be mindful of your own strength."

  Yu Ci was taken aback for a moment, then respectfully said: "Please, immortal elder, point the way."

  Xuan Qing Xian Chang was very satisfied with his attitude, and smiled: "The child can be taught. To know how to do things, one must plan carefully before acting. This Tian Lie Gu, have you ever been there before? Do you know what kind of place it is? What taboos are there in picking Xia Xu Cao?"

  "The Tianlu Valley is thousands of miles away from home, and the young child has never been there before."

  Yu Cijian's expression became even more solemn: "I've only heard rumors that the place is treacherous and full of wild beasts. The Xiaxu grass grows on the trunks of large trees at the bottom of the canyon, with a color similar to that of the branches, surrounding them. Only when the strong wind blows can it be distinguished by the naked eye, making it extremely difficult to find... Ah yes, the steward of the White Day Estate also reminded me that this grass cannot be dug up with gold or iron tools, nor can it be stored in wooden containers, so he sent a special stone box for storing Xiaxu grass."

  Xuan Qing stroked his beard and smiled: "You've got some understanding, but you missed the most important point."

  At this point, his expression suddenly turned serious: "Do you know what kind of place is below the Sky Crack Valley?"

  "I don't know."

  "You don't even know the extent of it. Let alone you, how many people in the world know about it? It's just that I, the old Daoist, have some degree of Dao power, and I ventured out to investigate, only to find that beneath the boundless clouds and fog, it was dark and profound, no longer the atmosphere of this realm, but a direct path to the underworld and the Yellow Springs, where countless ghosts, monsters, and demons reside!"

  Yu Cili's eyes widened: This... is a bit too absurd.

  He didn't deliberately conceal his thoughts, and Xuan Qing could naturally see through them. The Taoist smiled slightly, turned over his palm, and took out a spherical object, letting Yu Ci watch.

  At a distance of several zhang, with the bonfire jumping in between, Yu Ci narrowed her eyes and only then could she see clearly what it was. When the object became clear, Yu Ci's eyebrows twitched, because it wasn't some kind of sphere, but a human skull!

  This object was obviously specially treated, only the size of a fist, and its entire body was gray-green in color. Placed on Xu Qing's palm, its surface texture structure was intact and flawless. Because of this, Yu Ci could clearly see that the thing had fangs at the corner of its mouth, an exceptionally high forehead, and deep eye sockets with bright red eyes like blood.

  "This is the old Taoist's deeply entering the underworld, killing the demon after leaving a skull, just as a memento. Don't look at this thing only so little, it is the old Taoist who deliberately used the secret method to refine it. At that time, when the old Taoist killed it, only this skull was as big as a millstone, and its body was like this Taoist temple..."

  Yu Ci's face finally changed. Xuan Qing saw his expression and was very satisfied, so he put away the skull and his tone became softer:

  "Of course, these demons and monsters are difficult to climb up. The reason is that under the Heaven Rift Valley, there is a 'Two Realms Stele' set by the Taishang Daojun himself, suppressing the underworld. On top of that, there are also the immortal forbidden arrays set by generations of immortals, which can withstand billions of demons."

  Yu Cijian let out a breath, and Xu Qing spoke in a serious tone: "It's just that there has never been a foolproof plan under heaven. The divine stele set up by the Daoist master himself, as well as those magical arrays, can indeed suppress those evil spirits and malevolent ghosts, but there will always be one or two fish that slip through the net and escape... How do they come out? Naturally, it's by crawling up from the bottom of the Heavenly Rift Valley! I think you're also a practitioner, but if you encounter those demons and monsters, you'll likely meet with disaster rather than good fortune!"

  Yu Ci could say nothing more, and merely said: "Please, immortal master, point out a clear path."

  Xuan Qing sighed: "The Sky Crack Valley is not a good place, but you can know the difficulty and make progress, which is also remarkable. Well, Lao Dao has been practicing for many years, and he understands the way of heaven and man. He likes to help the younger generation. Now that we meet, it's fate, so I'll give you a spiritual symbol as a protective measure."

  He finished speaking and waved his sleeve, a talisman flew out and landed in front of Yu Ci. When Yu Ci picked it up and hadn't even looked at it carefully, Xuan Qing said:

  "Picking a thousand stalks of shrimp whisker grass isn't as simple as one might imagine, even with spiritual symbols, it's not necessarily possible to protect everything. Unfortunately, I still have mundane tasks and can't split myself... Alright, one person's plan is short-sighted, two people's plan is far-reaching, these younger generations are also going to the Heaven Rift Valley to pick herbs, you should keep in touch with them, that way there will be someone to take care of things."

  Yu Ci heard the words and her gaze swept across the faces of those people beside the bonfire. At this moment, including the black-faced man who had just spoken ill, they all showed a smiling face, but unfortunately, those smiles were quite stiff.

  Yu Ji shook his head and didn't respond immediately, but instead looked at the spiritual symbol in his hand. On the yellow paper, a seal script character "静" was written with cinnabar, which was crooked and not good-looking. However, when his fingers touched it, there was a faint coolness that lingered on his fingertips, and it also had a few unconventional qualities. After thinking for a moment, he said:

  "Clear Mind Mantra?"

  Xuan Qing's expression changed slightly as he heard the words, and he made a subtle gesture to alert his companions. At the same time, he let out a soft "hmm": "Good eyesight..."

  He almost bit his own tongue off. Not just him, but the black-faced man and the others surrounding the bonfire, their eyes wide with shock, their forced smiles crumbling one by one as the dazzling light burst forth from the hall.

  Yu Cai didn't do anything extraordinary, he simply stretched out his left hand, bent his middle finger and thumb, and drew a virtual picture in the air. However, as his fingers moved, a slender pale blue light thread suddenly appeared, turning and twisting, and in an instant it became a written talisman.

  This talisman is also a "quiet" character seal, vaguely similar to the strokes of the Lingfu given by Xuanyi, but more concise. More importantly, after the talisman is completed, it floats in mid-air, sprinkling radiance, with a touch of mystery.

  It was just as the saying goes, "the road winds on and on," under such a wonderful scenery, the hall fell into an even more eerie silence. After a long time, someone finally understood to open his mouth, it was that dark-faced man.

  "Gas forms symbols, spiritual light curves and attaches!"

  Although he had opened his mouth, his voice was more like that of a chicken with its neck being pinched, almost out of tune.

  Yu Cijian glanced at him and also replied with a sentence: "Good eyesight!"

  A sudden burst of noise, and nine out of ten people standing around the bonfire got up, but not to fight, rather they all made way for a patch of space, their eyes fixed on Yu Ci with an air of reverence. The black-faced man who had spoken ill earlier sat stupidly in his original position, then suddenly jumped up, turned around and tried to escape, but his legs went soft and he fell flat on his face, trembling and unable to get back up.

  In this group, only Xuan Qing was still calm, but his buttocks were also pierced by a needle, which was very painful. He coughed and slowly stood up, trying to maintain a calm demeanor: "This... uh, fellow Taoist, I didn't know earlier..."

  As soon as he opened his mouth, his true nature was revealed. He hadn't even finished speaking when the dark-faced man cut him off, and Yu Ci didn't bother with him either, striding straight past the fire pit.

  At this moment, he stood up straight, his originally tall figure seemed to have grown a few inches taller, the corners of his mouth slightly pursed, leaving shallow marks on his face. These subtle changes completely dispelled the humble and timid image from before, and what appeared in front of everyone was a proud and moody immortal elder. The enigmatic smile on his face was like an invisible rope, suffocating them to the point where they couldn't breathe.

  When facing such a person, Xu Qing didn't even dare to fart, immediately moved his seat, and stood stiffly aside. The people around him were even more so, trembling with fear, as if they were walking on thin ice, afraid that one heavy breath would bring disaster.

  Yu Ci sat down at the top, and felt that sitting like this was cumbersome, so he took off the sword on his back and placed it on his knees. His movements were neither fast nor slow, and his expression was calm. Xuan Qing stood behind him, but he didn't even glance at him, his gaze sweeping across the faces of the others, suddenly smiling and saying: "The mountain road is tiring to walk, let's have a joke with everyone, if there's any disrespect, don't blame me."

  At this remark, a murmur of assent rose from the crowd in the hall, followed immediately by a confused hubbub of shouting.

  "It's nothing, it's nothing, you're too kind, immortal one."

  "Yes, where did the immortal say that..."

  "It's because we've offended the superior immortal."

  The whole family begged for mercy one after another, fearing that their attitude was not sincere, and offending the master who could conjure up spirits.

  Yu Ci smiled and listened attentively, showing great patience. As the surrounding voices faded away, he gently tapped his sword hilt with his finger, producing a muffled sound, and slowly said: "Yes, I was joking with you all, but earlier, you all weren't just joking with me, were you?"

  As soon as the words were spoken, everyone fell silent, and a chill suddenly filled the hall, piercing to the bone. The accumulated chill was like a towering ice mountain, pressing down on everyone's heads, ready to collapse at any moment. The last bit of courage that people had left was also worn away bit by bit under this invisible pressure.

  Yu Ci's smile faded from her face, and she no longer looked at anyone. Her gaze was fixed on the bonfire as she spoke in a soft voice: "You call yourself an immortal, but you're just deceiving people. If I weren't here, what would you do to others?"

  Although no one sent a glance over, how could anyone not understand? The so-called "Xuan Qing Shang Xian" couldn't hold back that bit of pride anymore, took a step forward and suddenly bowed down, his movements were too big, the so-called "yao wu tou lu" which had just been put into his sleeve slid out with a rolling sound, and happened to roll to Yu Ci's side.

  Xuan Qing didn't care about this anymore, repeatedly bowing and apologizing, only hoping to save his own life: "Immortal Lord, please understand, Immortal Lord, please understand. Disciple's deception was just to obtain some shrimp whisker grass from those medicinal herb collectors, nothing more, absolutely no intention of harming anyone or seeking wealth..."

  He begged for mercy on this side, but Yu Ci was even more interested in that "demon head". He picked it up and played with it in his hand, treating Xuan Qing's words as nothing but a distant rumor.

  The more it is so, the more Xuan Qing is afraid. Doing things in such a manner, Yu Cijian has indeed become somewhat arrogant. This Yu Cijian, perhaps he is not as easy-going as he was before, could it be that he has already refined his elixir? Looking again at the long sword lying across his knees, although it's wrapped in ordinary leather scabbard and looks unremarkable, how can one know for sure that inside isn't a magic sword capable of killing people from a hundred miles away?

  Just a flash of cold light...

  This thought grew heavier and more real, forcing his heart to pound like thunder, unknowingly his knees softened, and he knelt down. With just this one kneel, the prestige he had built up in the gang over the past two years was all lost. But since it had come to this point, all his rational thinking collapsed, he wanted to reason again, but his voice was already hoarse, and his eyes were about to burst into tears.

  At this sight, Yu's eyebrows furrowed: "You insignificant junior, killing you would still sully my hands."

  Xuan Qing wasn't a fool, and upon hearing this, he felt a surge of joy. He lifted his head up, but before he could clearly see Yu Ci's expression, a single word exploded into his ears: "Scram!"

  There was no way to exert force, but when this sound fell into the ears of the crowd, it was like a muffled thunderclap in their brains, and their skulls were all buzzing. Xuán Qīng was the first to react, and immediately knocked his head heavily, jumped up, pulled out his legs and ran. The rest of the people were stunned at first, and when they came back to their senses, they could only regret that their parents had not given birth to two more legs, and in the midst of nonsense such as "Thank you, Immortal, for sparing our lives", they rushed out of the door like a swarm of bees.

  Yu Ci kept staring at Xuan Qing, this person's movements were excellent, and his speed was very fast. As soon as he left the Taoist temple, he disappeared in a few leaps. As for the remaining people, they crowded and squeezed until they broke through the gate of the Taoist temple, and then they all escaped. After a while, there was no sound anymore.

  After a while, when those people had all escaped far away, Yu Ji's hand relaxed and the skull of the demon fell to the ground. The handsome Taoist wiped his hands on his clothes, then wiped away the thin layer of sweat on his forehead, feeling the dampness in his hands, suddenly bursting into loud laughter, shaking the beams of the house, extremely joyful.

  In the midst of laughter, the Clear Mind Talisman that was suspended in mid-air suddenly shattered and dispersed into several streams of light, vanishing from sight in an instant.