Feng Na offered a slight smile. “I am Li Yundong’s friend…” She then looked back and gestured toward Chris and John. “My friend and I urgently need to find him.”
The two men exchanged a look, and one of them sneered, “Why are you looking for Li Yundong?”
John, overhearing them, stepped forward. “I’m looking for my master. I’m his disciple!”
Both men’s expressions changed drastically. “You are Li Yundong’s disciple?!”
John, who dared to shamelessly claim discipleship in front of Li Yundong himself, certainly wouldn't hesitate in front of two strangers. He nodded firmly. “Yes, I am his disciple!”
A mixture of shock and anger flashed across their faces as they glanced at each other, thinking: This Li Yundong actually dares to break the rules of the cultivation world by taking a foreigner as a disciple? This—this is far too audacious!
One of them suppressed his anger and said, “He might have gone to Dongwu City to attend the Lotus Gathering. You should go look for him yourselves!”
Upon hearing this, John was overjoyed. “That’s great, that’s great! I’ll go find Master right away!” He prepared to leave.
Chris, always meticulous, quickly interjected, “Excuse me, where exactly in Dongwu City is the Lotus Gathering being held?”
Seeing Chris—her golden hair, bright blue eyes, and exquisitely petite figure, her skin as pale as cheese—the two men were instantly startled. One of them instinctively asked, “Are you his disciple too?”
Before Chris could answer, John jumped in. “Yes, yes, she is too!”
The two men gasped in unison, feeling both envious and furious: This scoundrel actually took on such a beautiful foreign woman as a disciple too! This is completely lawless! Damn it, why doesn’t good fortune like this ever fall upon us?
One of them sneered, “The Lotus Gathering will be held on the oil tanker in the moat of Dongwu City in two days. When you get to the Xinshiqiao Wharf, you’ll figure out the rest!” With that, he snorted in anger and swept away.
The other man followed him, whispering, “Senior Brother, why did you tell them about the Lotus Gathering?”
The first man growled, “Didn’t you see they are all Li Yundong’s disciples? Since they are cultivators too, what is there to hide? Besides, that bastard Li Yundong is a philanderer who has broken the rules of the cultivation world by taking foreigners as disciples! How can we let him get away without a lesson?”
The other man wondered, “What does letting them go to the Lotus Gathering have to do with teaching Li Yundong a lesson?”
The first man sneered, “When Senior Brother Wang Lingfei finishes refining his Dharma treasure, he will surely give Li Yundong a good look! Heh, what could be more humiliating than having your master embarrassed in front of his own disciples? Hmph hmph, Li Yundong should take a good look at himself! He doesn't even deserve to break the rules of the cultivation world! If anyone is going to break them, it should be our Zhengyi Sect setting the precedent, not him!”
The other man chuckled darkly. “Exactly. That guy isn't afraid of being too popular, keeping a fox spirit at home, and now bringing in a foreign beauty. I wonder if he can even handle them all?”
“It doesn’t matter. If he can’t handle them, once Senior Brother Wang defeats him, his disciples will surely scatter. By then, we can help him share the burden!”
With that, both men burst into laughter.
Feng Na and the others were completely unaware of the wicked schemes brewing in the minds of these two refined degenerates from the Zhengyi Sect. They assumed the men had kindly directed them toward Dongwu City. Feng Na glanced at Chris with a trace of helplessness. “Li Yundong must be in Dongwu City for this Lotus Gathering. Otherwise, there’s no reason for him to neglect the teahouse.”
Chris asked, “Feng Na, aren’t you coming with us?”
Feng Na shook her head, giving a wry, helpless smile. “I can’t. Dongwu City is quite far, and we have other matters to attend to. I won’t be able to make it. You should go yourselves; I have no choice. If all else fails, let’s keep in touch by phone.”
Chris considered it. “Alright, give me your mobile number.”
After exchanging numbers, the two parties parted ways.
Olga, having endured the journey so far, was dismayed that not only could she not rest at an inn, but now she had to travel to another city. She couldn't help but drag her luggage and sigh mournfully, mentally cursing Li Yundong a thousand times.
Chris ignored her, pulling John aside to speak quietly. “John, how could you claim we are Li Yundong’s disciples in front of those people?”
John beamed proudly. “Chris, Chinese people value ‘face’ highly. If I say it like that, everyone will know that I, John Scherter, am his disciple! He won’t be able to refuse to take me then! Heh heh, you’re the same; you should thank me!”
Chris rubbed her temples, giving a bitter smile and speaking in Chinese. “You brute, strong in limbs but simple in mind, you’re definitely going to cause trouble! Don’t you know how serious the matter of taking a master is for Chinese people? What you did was acting first and reporting later—it’s extremely impolite and foolish! Li Yundong will definitely be angry! Be careful you don’t outsmart yourself!”
John was startled and said fearfully, “Really? Then why didn’t you stop me just now?”
Chris glared at him. “Could I have stopped you? You spoke too fast!”
John looked crestfallen. “Then what do we do? What if Master gets truly angry and won’t accept me? Should we still go to Dongwu City?”
Chris rolled her eyes at him. “We ran all the way from America; are we really going to skip Dongwu City? Don't you know the saying: When things come to a head, one must muster courage?”
As the two whispered amongst themselves, Olga, trailing behind, could not understand a word of their Chinese conversation. She finally burst out loudly, “Hey, what are you two talking about? Can you stop speaking Chinese? Can you use a language I can understand? Hey, I’m talking to you! Hey, what are you saying? What is this ‘when things come to a head one must muster courage’ thing? I don’t understand!”
The three foreigners headed toward Dongwu City. Meanwhile, far away on Mount Wuhua, Zheng Yuan, the sect master of the Yin-Yang School, was carefully guarding a stove, staring intently at the fire within.
Standing next to him was Ding Nan, holding a golden-threaded banana leaf fan.
The stove in front of Zheng Yuan was about two meters tall, supported by three legs at the base, with a gourd-shaped main body forged from dark, iron-like material. A fierce flame burned beneath the wide belly of the gourd. There was a vent opening on the side of the body, and above the main section was a narrower neck where the Dharma treasure to be refined was suspended.
The stove was engraved with exquisite patterns around its base. In the center of the main body was a viewing window made of transparent colored glass, allowing one to observe the interior conditions.
Zheng Yuan watched the situation inside the stove without blinking. He saw the jade ruyi surrounded by fierce flames and wisps of black energy. Under the scorching heat, this black energy constantly writhed, occasionally morphing into hideous faces, and at other times clinging to the ruyi, twisting into thin, strange black markings branded onto the jade.
However, most of the black energy remained floating around the periphery of the ruyi, unwilling to cling to it, struggling and attempting to escape like vengeful spirits freed from hell.
After watching for a moment, Zheng Yuan barked without turning his head, “Wind!”
Hearing this, Ding Nan immediately swung the golden-threaded banana leaf fan, blowing vigorously toward the air intake vent.
Ding Nan had cultivated under Zheng Yuan for some time. Her natural aptitude was excellent, and with the aid of various spiritual elixirs, her Profound Yin Vital Energy was already quite strong—just one step shy of the Foundation Establishment stage. When she fanned, a mighty gale roared through the room, manifesting as a matrix vortex. This vortex churned the air in the room into a frantic spin, condensing into a wind eye only the size of a fist, which drilled into the air intake.
As this gust entered, the flame within immediately erupted, forcefully driving the black mist trying to escape back inside. The furnace roared with intense heat, engulfing both the jade ruyi and the black mist. Zheng Yuan’s vision was filled with dazzling, fiery red flames, forcing him to instinctively raise a hand to shield his eyes.
When he lowered his hand, he saw that all the black mist surrounding the jade ruyi had vanished. The ruyi still floated in the stove, crystal clear.
Ding Nan leaned in curiously. “Why has it stopped, Master? Should I fan again?”
Zheng Yuan waved his hand urgently toward Ding Nan. “Don’t fan yet. Let me observe for a moment.”
Zheng Yuan opened the furnace door and used his True Essence to retrieve the jade ruyi. He looked closely and saw that the entire piece of jade was glowing faintly red from the heat, but there were no traces of the strange black markings that had been branded on it before.
He immediately ordered Ding Nan, “Quick, fetch the Nine Underworlds Profound Yin Water, and pour it on!”
Ding Nan instantly grabbed the wooden bucket nearby and poured the water over the ruyi without hesitation. As the water made contact, the jade emitted an extremely piercing shriek, instantly releasing countless black, ghostly souls. Each soul’s face was twisted and hideous, their mouths wide open in frantic roars.
Ding Nan was so terrified she staggered three steps back, nearly losing her soul.
But the emergence of these souls lasted only a moment. They quickly flew back into the jade on their own. When Ding Nan looked again, the jade ruyi had returned to its original appearance, except that a dense, intricate layer of strange black patterns now intermittently shimmered across its surface.
Zheng Yuan took the ruyi in his hand and burst into triumphant laughter. “It’s done! It’s finally refined! I refined it for forty-nine days with Nine Yang Fire, assisted by the Yin souls of eighty-one virgin boys and girls, and tempered it with Nine Underworlds Profound Yin Water. The Dharma treasure is finally refined!”
Ding Nan stared wide-eyed at the treasure in Zheng Yuan’s hands. She knew Zheng Yuan had brutally murdered many young children to refine their Yin spirits into this artifact. She couldn't help but ask, “Master, what kind of miraculous power does this Dharma treasure possess?”
Zheng Yuan carefully tucked the jade ruyi close to his body, smiling proudly. “Heh heh, the Lotus Gathering is in two days. You’ll know then!”
Ding Nan probed cautiously, “Is it very powerful?”
Zheng Yuan laughed heartily, “Of course, it’s powerful!”
Ding Nan asked again, “How powerful? Is it... is it more powerful than Li Yundong?”
Zheng Yuan scoffed contemptuously. “Li Yundong? Hmph, with this treasure of mine, even if the Heavenly Master Zhang of the Zhengyi Sect himself came, he could only flee in terror, not daring to confront me! Li Yundong, that little brat who has only cultivated for a few days, what does he amount to? Wait until the Lotus Gathering, and I’ll show you how I’ll deal with him and avenge you!”
Ding Nan felt a flicker of worry in her heart, but she dared not show any expression on her face. She pasted on a cheerful smile and said, “Master, naturally, a mere Li Yundong is no match for you. But there will certainly be experts from various sects at the Lotus Gathering. Can you handle them all?”
Zheng Yuan grinned darkly. “My treasure isn't invincible, I must admit. If we only talk about Dharma treasures, there are many that surpass mine—the Three Sovereigns Sword of the Qingcheng Sect, the Seven Star Precious Sword of the Zhengyi Sect, the Eight Desolations Six Harmonies Sword of the Linggong Sect, the lost Xuanyuan Sword, the Demon Dispelling Divine Sword of the Buddhist sects, and so on. These treasures can certainly overpower mine.”
Zheng Yuan’s tone shifted to one of arrogance. “However, a Dharma tool—the Dharma comes first, the tool second. We fight with methods, not just implements! No matter how powerful a Dharma tool is, it depends on who wields it! Hmph, my dear disciple, when the Lotus Gathering arrives, I will show you what true divine power is, and what true combat between methods looks like!”
Ding Nan forced a look of delight onto her face and flatteringly said, “I hope Master displays great might and overwhelms all rivals!”
Zheng Yuan laughed loudly. He stroked his beard and spoke with feigned modesty. “Of course, the various sects have quite a few experts. For instance, Yue Sheng of the Quanzhen Dragon Gate Sect, rumored to be the top talent of the younger generation; then there are Zhang Tianhe and Wang Lingfei of the Zhengyi Sect; and Zhang Cunyi, the future sect master of Qingcheng who declared his intention to take first place recently. Most of them possess powerful Dharma treasures and cannot be taken lightly!”
Ding Nan smiled. “Though they are formidable, they are ultimately no match for Master’s peerless treasure and vast divine abilities, right?”
This flattery invigorated Zheng Yuan. He laughed proudly, “Good disciple, let’s leave now. I can hardly wait for this Lotus Gathering!”