After the Great Dao died

Chapter 64 Refining the Grotto-Heaven, Forging the Golden Palace

Chen Ling was still wearing a ghost mask on her face, so her true face was never revealed.

But Lin Su Ri clearly called out his name, his tone not one of guessing, but of certainty.

The sound came down from the roof and reached Chen Lingxi's ears.

Chen Lingxi was still sitting amidst the ruins, his right hand resting on the hilt of his sword.

Lin Su Ri's black brocade robe fluttered slightly in the night breeze as he gazed at Chen Ling Xi.

Chen Lingxi did not answer.

The demon mask covered his face, and the patterns of his blue face and fangs gleamed coldly in the moonlight. The shadows of the fangs were cast on his jaw, making the lower half of his face appear even more hard and unyielding.

Lin Su Ri did not speak again.

The two men stood facing each other like that.

A figure stands on the roof ridge, hands behind his back, robes fluttering in the wind.

A man sat in front of a dilapidated house, pressing his knife without moving, his back straight.

Only the sound of the wind remained in Liujie Lane.

The nine-zhang-tall willow tree stood not far away, its thousands of branches swaying gently in the night breeze.

After a few breaths, Lin Suri suddenly narrowed his eyes and finally spoke.

"I can see through your mask, but I can't see through your cultivation level."

Lin Su Ri paused, a faint light flashing in his eyes.

"I thought you were at least a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi cultivation."

"But I followed behind you without you noticing, even when I deliberately revealed some flaws."

Chen Lingxi's pupils contracted slightly.

He truly did not notice.

Throughout his journey, he concealed his true intentions and proceeded cautiously, unaware that someone was always following him.

"Until you made a deal with Dingzun," Lin Suri's voice came again, his eyes gradually sharpening: "Only after Dingzun revealed your cultivation level did I realize that you were only at the third level of the Qi Circulation stage."

Upon hearing this, the air in the alley suddenly turned several degrees colder.

Chen Lingxi remained silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke: "Why didn't Young Master Lin make his move when I was trading with Ding Zun? If he had, he could have preserved this Time Candle."

Lin Suri listened to this, but his face remained expressionless; he simply shook his head slightly.

"If one does not control the power of the cauldron and merely relies on the power of its fragments, one will eventually face calamity."

As he spoke, moonlight peeked through the clouds, falling on him and giving his dark brocade robe a pale silver sheen. From afar, he looked like a jade-carved deity standing on the rooftop, his robes fluttering, ethereal and otherworldly.

"I keep the Candle of Time, which constantly tempts me, disturbs my Dao heart, and makes me want to make a deal with it, willing to sacrifice my lifespan to save the master of the Candle of Time in the Great World."

"Your transaction with Dingzun has consumed the last remaining power of the Time Candle, which is for the best."

From this day forward, the Lord of Time Candle will no longer be able to obtain lifespan from me.

As he said this, his gaze toward Chen Lingxi became more inquisitive.

"Chen Lingxi, a mere servant of the Baosu Marquis's mansion, is skilled in concealing his true strength and abilities. He can even hide his cultivation level of the third level of Qi Circulation from me, and he seems to know many of my secrets..."

At this point, his deep eyes seemed to shine with divine light, falling directly on Chen Lingxi, as if he wanted to see through him from head to toe.

"Chen Lingxi".

Lin Suri then said Chen Lingxi's name again.

Then, he asked softly, "Are you from the Southern Heavenly Domain, from the Two Saints Palace, or from the Land of Nothingness?"

Chen Lingxi did not answer immediately.

The ghost mask covered his face, so his expression was not visible.

A few breaths later, he slowly stood up and looked up at Lin Suri on the roof.

His movements were extremely composed.

Two bright mirrors hung high in the sky, their golden and silver light reflecting off each other.

A smile suddenly appeared on Chen Lingxi's face.

The smile peeked out from the bottom edge of the ghost mask; only the slightly upturned corners of his mouth were visible, yet it was enough to convey his composure at that moment.

"Wu Mohe once told me that all living beings in this world will eventually die."

"Brother Lin, is that truly the case?"

Chen Lingxi not only did not answer, but also asked this question.

Lin Suri's brows twitched slightly.

He clearly hadn't expected that this official slave, whose whereabouts he had just exposed and whose cultivation was only at the third level of Qi cultivation, would not only show no panic at this moment, but would suddenly throw out such a question.

He paused for a moment, then nodded slightly.

"Yes."

There is only one word.

Chen Lingxi then asked, "Fellow Daoist, do you know how the beings born in this cave die?"

Lin Suri frowned.

A hint of confusion flashed in his eyes.

He stood with his hands behind his back on the roof ridge, without answering.

Chen Lingxi chuckled and said, "If you are willing to enlighten me, I will tell you about my origins."

Lin Suri, bathed in moonlight, exuded an intimidating aura, his robes fluttering even without wind. He remained silent for two or three breaths before asking, "Which minor sect or clan do you come from? Have you never discovered a grotto-heaven or a secret realm within your sect?"

"There are countless grotto-heavens and secret realms between heaven and earth." He said calmly, "When sects and families discover new grotto-heavens and secret realms, they must make the most of them."

Chen Lingxi asked, "Then—how should we make the best use of this grotto-heaven now?"

Lin Su Ri spoke indifferently, as if he were talking about something that had nothing to do with him: "This grotto-heaven now belongs to the [Que Xing Xi family]."

"The head of the Xi family is a True Lord, who commands the [Ten Stars of Que] and wields the cauldron [Transformation Furnace]."

He paused, then continued, "This grotto-heaven will be refined into a furnace by the True Lord of the Xi family, and the complete grotto-heaven karmic fire will be used to forge the Great Xuanjin Palace for the most outstanding disciple of the clan, Xi Hengsu."

Cast the Great Xuanjin Palace.

These words came out of Lin Suri's mouth without any inflection.

But when they landed in Chen Lingxi's ears, it was as if someone had struck a thousand-pound bronze bell in his head, leaving a lingering, resonant sound that lingered for a long time.

He couldn't help but take a deep breath.

The chilly night wind of early winter traveled down his trachea to his chest, finally calming the buzzing in his head a little.

He couldn't help but silently recite in his heart—

True Lord.

It was poured into the furnace.

They built the Great Xuanjin Palace.

These words are unfamiliar.

Yet they are so real!

Is the True Lord's power truly so formidable?

A grotto-heaven, its vastness unknown.

This land contains the Great Li, the Great Zhou, and dozens of smaller kingdoms; rivers, lakes, seas, mountains, and deserts; thousands of cities and countless villages; and countless living beings that thrive and multiply here, working at sunrise and resting at sunset.

But in the eyes of this True Lord of the Xi family—

This is nothing more than a grotto-heaven that can be forged into a furnace!

This is merely cultivation material used to forge the Golden Palace for the clan's disciples!

Approximately one billion living beings, hundreds of millions of lives, were like a handful of firewood in a furnace. Once burned, they were burned, transformed into karmic fire, forged into a golden palace, and made possible a genius named Xi Hengsu.

Chen Lingxi lowered her head, her eyes filled with a hint of gloom.

Lin Suri frowned.

He stared at Chen Lingxi, waiting for her to speak.

Chen Lingxi remained silent for a long time before slowly raising her head.

He met Lin Suri's gaze.

"Fellow Daoist, can you guess whether I come from the Southern Heaven Domain, the Two Saints Palace, the Land of Nothingness, or perhaps some small sect or clan..."

But that's not the case.

The night wind blew in from the alley entrance, making the hem of Chen Lingxi's black robe flutter and causing the copper buckle on the scabbard of his precious sword at his waist to gently clink and make a very faint tinkling sound.

"This grotto will be forged into a furnace."

"The original creatures in the cave were insignificant, merely grains of dust that would become resources for cultivation."

His gaze shifted from Lin Suri to the dilapidated mud-brick houses under the willow tree.

That was his world before he was five years old.

Later he left, and later still, everyone in the alley died.

Now, everyone in the entire cave is going to die.

He withdrew his gaze and turned it back to Lin Suri.

"But I must tell you, fellow Daoist..."

"I did not come from heaven and earth."

"Not someone like you, a high and mighty cultivator of the Great Heaven and Earth."

"I am but a speck of dust in this grotto-heaven, who, by chance, embarked on the path of Qi cultivation."

Chen Lingxi's words were like a soft murmur, as if she were answering Lin Suri, or as if she were talking to herself.

Lin Suri's usually calm face finally showed surprise.

He looked Chen Lingxi up and down for several breaths.

"The beings of the Qiless Realm..." he began slowly, his tone carrying a hint of disbelief, yet also a faint sense of realization: "have already begun to circulate Qi."

"It seems you possess both opportunity and mystery."

Chen Lingxi stood with his sword at his side, his body as straight as a pine tree: "Just as I said before, whether it is the great world or the small world, there are countless opportunities and fortunes."

"These opportunities and fortuitous encounters are not exclusive to cultivators of the Great Heaven and Earth. What good is it if I obtain one or two?"

Lin Suri nodded slightly, then pondered for a moment, a hint of confusion flashing in his eyes: "If that's the case, how could you know so many of my secrets? Are you under the command of Consort Chun? Did she use the Mirror of Hearing to assist you?"

As soon as the question was asked, Lin Suri shook his head to himself.

"The power of the fragments of the cauldron is limited, and each use reduces its quantity. Moreover, there is the cauldron disaster that follows. How could Consort Chun possibly use the Mirror Listening Technique on me? I have no connection with her."

He raised his eyes and looked at Chen Lingxi again.

"However... even beings born in the Qiless Cave are able to embark on the path of cultivation..."

As he said this, he suddenly clasped his hands in a fist and bowed to Chen Lingxi, saying, "You deserve to be called a fellow Daoist."

Chen Lingxi was slightly surprised.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Suri straightened up.

Just as he straightened up, a fierce light suddenly flashed in his eyes!

The radiance that burst forth from the depths of his pupils began as a faint glimmer, but in an instant it spread like wildfire, turning his entire eyes into a dazzling golden hue.

His aura suddenly erupted at that moment.

An unimaginable aura emanated from him, like a god statue that had been sleeping for ten thousand years suddenly opening its eyes, dazzling and unbearable to look at.

At that moment, he was like a blazing sun, shining brightly and exuding an awe-inspiring presence.

"Just a fellow Daoist!"

His voice remained calm, yet it contained an undeniable resolve.

"You know many of my secrets, so I have no choice but to take action against you."

Before he finished speaking, a powerful suction force suddenly emanated from his body.

The suction force was invisible and intangible, yet so powerful that it was suffocating.

It was as if an invisible giant hand descended from the sky, its five fingers spread wide, descending upon Chen Lingxi from above.

The air in Liujie Lane was stirred by this force, emitting a low, mournful sound.

Dust, rubble, and broken pottery shards from the corner of the wall rose up and were drawn by the suction force, flying towards Lin Suri's direction.

That power was too overwhelming, arriving in an instant.

Chen Lingxi's black robe was sucked up and rolled backward, and the edge of the ghost mask left deep marks on his cheek.

The precious sword at his waist hummed and vibrated in its scabbard, as if it might be drawn at any moment.

But he still stood there.

His feet were firmly planted on the bluestone ground, remaining completely still.

His right hand rested on the hilt of the knife, his back ramrod straight, like an old tree that had taken root, unmoved by any storm.

Lin Suri frowned slightly.

He clearly hadn't expected that this cultivator, whose cultivation was only at the third level of the Qi Circulation stage, would be able to withstand his oppressive aura.

What surprised him even more was Chen Lingxi's gaze.

The eyes that peeked out from the eye hole of the demon mask were now completely calm.

It's like someone who had long anticipated this situation finally waiting for this expected moment.

"This person..." Lin Su Ri's thoughts stirred slightly.

His thoughts hadn't even settled yet.

But then Chen Lingxi suddenly opened his mouth.

A beam of purple light shot out from his mouth.

"Purple True Treasure Qi?" Lin Su Ri exclaimed in astonishment!

The purple light, as fine as cow's hair, burst forth from between Chen Lingxi's lips and teeth.

then……

To Lin Suri's surprise, the purple aura did not shoot towards him.

Instead, it changed direction and pierced straight into Chen Lingxi's forehead.

laugh.

A very soft and faint sound came from behind!

Lin Su Ri's pupils suddenly contracted.

The suction force emanating from that aura vanished instantly, and the withered grass, dust, and rubble that had been flying everywhere fell to the ground.

He stood on the roof ridge, staring at the black-robed, masked figure below, his face filled with astonishment.

-

Before Chen Lingxi's eyes, as the purple light pierced his brow, everything in the world shattered instantly.

His perspective shifted, and he looked down upon the shrine!

Within the sacred chamber, a wealth of information flowed freely.

"Stealing the spiritual essence of heaven and earth, and drawing inspiration from the past and present."

A line of words slowly swirled in the void, shimmering with golden light, turning the surrounding mist into a pale gold.

Then, the phantom images of the three items appeared one after another.

One Qi-gathering pill.

The immortal willow leaf.

The immortal willow branch.

"Of the three items obtained from the shrine, take only one."

Chen Lingxi did not hesitate at all.

His consciousness fell upon that immortal willow branch.

The willow branch trembled slightly, as if it were a living thing.

The next instant, the phantom images of the other two items dissipated like bubbles, vanishing into the mist and disappearing without a trace.

The void twisted once more.

Light and shadow reverse, heaven and earth are turned upside down.

When Chen Lingxi opened her eyes again—

The two bright mirrors in the sky are no longer there.

The original darkness has turned into daylight without anyone noticing.

Chen Ling took a deep breath.

The morning air was crisp and cold, filling his lungs and completely pulling him back from the lingering effects of his deep sleep.

But Lin Su Ri's words were still echoing in his mind.

"This grotto-heaven now belongs to the Quexing Xi family."

"The head of the Xi family is a True Lord, who commands the Ten Stars of Que and wields the power to transform the world into a furnace."

"This grotto-heaven will be refined into a furnace by the True Lord of the Xi family, and the complete grotto-heaven karmic fire will be used to forge a golden palace for Xi Hengsu, the most outstanding disciple of the clan."

He closed his eyes and went over those words in his mind several times.

"The True Lord's power is such that he can even refine a grotto-heaven."

He muttered to himself.

Turn one billion living beings into a fire.

To build a golden palace for a disciple...

Chen Lingxi frowned, feeling that the thought of that True Monarch was like a natural disaster.

In the face of natural disasters, not only will living beings perish, but even the heavens and earth themselves will cease to exist.

Human strength has its limits. When floods come from the sky and mountains fall from above, what can a person do?

There's nothing we can do.

He closed his eyes and pondered for a long time.

Finally, Chen Lingxi let out a long breath.

"Since it is a natural disaster, it is beyond my control."

He opened his eyes, and his gaze became clear again.

"Only by improving one's cultivation level can one find an opportunity to break through the tribulation."

"In any case, Chejue gained a lot this time."

His consciousness sank into the chamber of the gods.

In the void, the immortal willow branch hangs amidst the mist, its verdant greenness vibrant, warm to the touch, and supple as silk.

Sensing the presence of this willow branch, he closed his eyes and recalled the method of circulating qi and blood in the last three of the Seven Forms of Ceasefire.

With the completion of the Seven Forms of Stopping War—Severing Jade, Harmonizing Qi, and Ceasefire—one can directly reach the Ninefold Perfection!

Chen Ling finally managed a slight smile.

He pushed open the door and went out of the house again to Willow Street to eat at the Immortal Willow Restaurant.

The willow tree, nine zhang tall, has a gnarled trunk like a dragon. The bark on the two-foot-thick trunk is cracked, like the patterns on a tortoise shell, deep and shallow, layer upon layer.

Thousands of branches droop down, swaying gently in the morning breeze.

Chen Ling washed his hands on the Immortal Willow.

A willow leaf, seemingly immortal, fell into his hand.

Another willow twig, another willow branch drooped down.

Chen Lingxi did not hesitate.

He reached out and grasped the bare willow branch.

The willow branches felt dry and rough to the touch, like holding a piece of dead wood that had been dead for a long time, completely lacking the warm, supple feel of willow twigs.

But just as he grasped the willow branch, a piece of information suddenly flooded his mind.

"The Immortal Willow Branch is placed into the mouth of the dead and refined into an Immortal Willow Puppet."

The Immortal Willow Puppet?

Chen Ling's smile deepened as she washed her face and put the Immortal Willow Branch into her Qiankun Bag.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the tree canopy, falling on his face. He turned his head slightly, looking towards the direction of Cuojin Mountain.

"Go and retrieve the Qi Pill again in three days."

"Take the elixir, circulate your qi, and ascend the tower."