Chapter 191: Cultivating Immortality is Harder Than Ascending the Azure Sky

After seeing Kunyun off, You Xuexin returned to the Cave Abode. Without another word, she immediately connected to the Void Joy Non-Dual Guardian Consort Talisman and looked toward Wang Ping.

"Master, Xuexin misses you."

"..." Wang Ping was speechless.

Through the talisman, Wang Ping clearly saw You Xuexin sprawled across her Meditation Mat. Her voice dripped with seduction, and she looked as if she couldn't wait to press her very soul against his.

Alas, a protector wisdom consort being too loyal was its own problem.

Extreme loyalty looked an awful lot like treachery!

"Stop fooling around," Wang Ping said, his face stern. "Hurry up and give me the spell. And my Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag—can you find a way to send it in to me?"

Seeing her master bring up real business, You Xuexin didn't dare mention her own 'business' again. She immediately composed her expression, reverting to the aloof fairy outsiders knew, and whispered, "To answer Master: regarding the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag, Xuexin is confident I can send it into the Eight Trigrams Furnace within a few months. It won't be difficult."

"Really?"

Wang Ping was somewhat skeptical. "Try your best not to attract Kunyun's attention. I saw that he already seems suspicious of you. Can you handle that?"

"It won't be a problem."

You Xuexin smiled. "I am my master's disciple. He might kill Xuanhe, but he can't possibly kill me. If he did, my master would become his life tribulation."

"As for your request, please rest assured, Master. The Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag was a dharma treasure I refined to begin with, so sending it back to the Eight Trigrams Furnace is completely reasonable. Furthermore..." You Xuexin paused for a moment before continuing. "Barring any accidents, the next Furnace-Tending Disciple has already been decided."

"Oh?" Wang Ping raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"It's Xuanyin."

You Xuexin said in a low voice, "He mentioned it to me before he left. He said he was going to accomplish something major, and when he returned, he might even become a True Transmission."

A major matter? What could possibly be accomplished in the Eight Trigrams Furnace?

Wang Ping immediately understood. It's Kunyun! Xuanyin came to the Eight Trigrams Furnace on Kunyun's orders. He's probably here to find that junior brother of his.

This was a good thing.

After all, by letting Kunyun clash with the Heaven-Stealing Thief's group, Wang Ping could sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight. Since they were all his enemies, he wouldn't lose anything no matter who was defeated.

"So you plan to find an opportunity to use Xuanyin to send the Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag in?"

"Correct."

You Xuexin nodded. "Rest assured, Master. I have rarely asked him for anything before, so this was my first time making a request. He has already agreed, and he didn't even want any compensation."

It was that easy?

Hearing this, Wang Ping nodded in satisfaction. The Six Desires Heavenly Demon Flag contained everything he had accumulated in the Immortal Gate; it would be a massive help to him now.

"Well done."

Wang Ping nodded slightly. "Alright. Keep an eye on the situation and report any changes to me immediately. Now, hand over the spell you obtained."

You Xuexin nodded, but she didn't immediately split off a strand of her spiritual sense. Instead, she offered a charming smile. "Master, Xuexin recently learned a new trick."

Wang Ping frowned. "What is it?"

"Transmitting it with spiritual sense makes it hard to express clearly. How about this? Master and I can connect through the talisman and engage in dual cultivation of the soul, allowing our minds and hearts to intertwine."

"The information transmitted this way will be the most comprehensive."

Wang Ping sighed. He knew this was his protector wisdom consort acting up again. She wanted to drag him down into the sea of lust; since physical intimacy wasn't possible right now, she wanted to use their souls as an appetizer.

If I keep leaving her unsatisfied, it might cause trouble.

Left with no other choice, he helplessly agreed. His soul drifted out, merging with You Xuexin's through the talisman, and the two pressed tightly together.

"Ah..."

Inside the Immortal Gate's Cave Abode, You Xuexin let out a soft cry. Every sensation in her soul fed back realistically into her physical body, and a striking flush instantly spread across her fair skin.

On the other side, Wang Ping sat perfectly still, his mind as placid as an ancient, unrippled well.

As everyone knew, he wasn't driven by lust. Thus, You Xuexin took the absolute initiative, while his attention remained entirely focused on the surging flood of spell memories.

...

The rain stopped and the clouds cleared.

Looking at the finally satisfied You Xuexin, Wang Ping quickly extinguished any lingering wicked thoughts. He decisively severed his connection with her and returned to the real world.

Having a True Transmission disciple makes things so much easier.

Looking at the dazzling array of spells, Wang Ping nodded slightly. He had infiltrated the Immortal Gate four times in total, barely surviving near-certain death each time, and had only managed to obtain five spells in the end.

They were five completely disjointed spells that couldn't even be pieced together into a Minor Divine Ability. But ever since subduing You Xuexin, everything had changed. Not only had he instantly filled the massive gap in his spell repertoire, but he had even gathered the eight spells required for the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart in no time at all.

This was a convenience only a True Transmission enjoyed.

For an outer or inner sect disciple, gathering these spells would likely require scouring the entire Immortal Gate and expending countless resources and dharma currency just to have a hope of collecting them all.

Not to mention, the biggest hurdle wasn't even the spells themselves.

It was the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart itself.

After all, this was a Major Divine Ability. Without being a true transmission disciple, how could anyone obtain it, and what qualifications would they have to cultivate it? It was a difficult feat even for them.

Take You Xuexin for example. Why was she, a true transmission disciple, even poorer than Xuanhe? Why did she have to haggle with the disciples of the Heaven and Earth Pavilion just to buy a few human resources? She most likely poured all her assets into her own Major Divine Ability, the Taishang Immortal-Slaying God-Sealing Flying Sword. That alone shows how incredibly difficult it is.

Talent, background, and wealth—none could be lacking.

Cultivating immortality was hard—harder than ascending the azure sky!

Wang Ping lamented the fact for a moment, but then he noticed Xuanhe, who had been sitting cross-legged on the ground, suddenly open his eyes. His originally sluggish and weak aura was finally swept away.

"Phew...!"

Xuanhe stood up. Feeling the surging power within his body and the true spiritual root Wang Ping had planted in his lower abdomen's dantian, he decided that everything he had sacrificed was completely worth it.

So what if he had lost his entire fortune? If it could be exchanged for a true spiritual root like this, absolutely no inner sect disciple in the Immortal Gate would have hesitated!

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Xuanhe."

Wang Ping spoke softly. This time, Xuanhe didn't merely twitch his eyelids in acknowledgment; instead, he returned a deep bow with genuine sincerity. "Congratulations to you as well. Many thanks, Fellow Daoist Dousheng."

Seeing this, Wang Ping smiled.

He knew that from today onward, Xuanhe was permanently tied to his ship. It was impossible for him to disembark now.

"By the way, news has come from the Immortal Gate. The Furnace-Tending Disciple succeeding you will be Xuanyin. It is highly probable that he was placed there by Kunyun."

"Xuanyin?"

Wang Ping said it casually. His original intention was simply to share the intelligence, but he hadn't expected Xuanhe to frown and look thoroughly confused.

"Why would it be Xuanyin?"

"It isn't time for the Dao to wane and demonic forces to rise yet. Even if they needed to replace me, they should have sent someone as righteous as I am. How could they let Xuanyin take over?"

Wang Ping shot Xuanhe a very strange look.

Good heavens, do you actually think you're righteous?

Snark aside, Wang Ping quickly grasped the main point. "What do you mean by the Dao waning and demonic forces rising? Does changing the Furnace-Tending Disciple cause such a massive shift?"

"Of course it does."

Xuanhe shook his head and immediately explained the effects that the two distinct spiritual energy environments—Clear Heaven and Bright Earth and Turbid Earth and Darkened Heavens—had on the various types of heaven and earth qi.

Wang Ping's brow furrowed deeply as he listened.

Theoretically speaking, Turbid Earth and Darkened Heavens was actually beneficial to him. After all, the Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi he cultivated was Earthly Yin Water.

But the problem is, the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart originates from Heavenly Yang Earth, so the Clear Heaven and Bright Earth spiritual energy environment is the most suitable. If the environment changes to Turbid Earth and Darkened Heavens, my divine power cultivation will inevitably suffer sudden complications. Even if I manage to cultivate it, its power will be pointlessly weakened.

This was a huge loss!

"This is definitely intentional!" Wang Ping said coldly through gritted teeth. "There's no reason to make this adjustment for nothing. It must be targeting someone."

Who was it targeting?

Combined with his previous guesses, Wang Ping arrived at the answer almost instantly. "It's Kunlun! It's highly likely that Kunyun wants to use this to target his true transmission junior brother."

From this, he could deduce that the Heaven-Stealing Thief's good brother—Kunlun—cultivated a heaven and earth qi of the Yang attribute, one whose status resided in Heaven. Wang Ping just didn't know which specific qi it was... No, wait, it wasn't impossible to guess. If Kunyun had chosen Xuanyin specifically to deal with that True Transmission...

Realizing this, Wang Ping immediately contacted You Xuexin again.

"Fellow Daoist You?"

"..."

Seeing no response, Wang Ping had no choice but to change how he addressed her. "Xuexin, stop fooling around. I have something to ask you, and it's urgent. Hurry up and answer me."

"..."

Completely out of options, Wang Ping sharpened his tone. "Xuexin, answer me!"

Before his words even faded, You Xuexin's excited response rang out from the other end of the talisman. "I'm here, Master! If Master has a question, Xuexin will tell you everything she knows~"

This protector wisdom consort was truly going to be the death of him!

Suppressing the wicked thoughts rising in his heart, Wang Ping asked, "What qi does Xuanyin cultivate?"

"The Hanging River Endlessly Circulating Qi," You Xuexin said without hesitation. "This qi is Heavenly Yang Water; its magical power possesses the ability to circulate endlessly without ever drying up."

Heavenly Yang Water...

Wang Ping quickly reached a conclusion. In the Five Elements, water counters fire, and in the dynamics of Yin-Yang and Heaven-Earth, it targets the same nature. In that case, what this qi suppresses must be Heavenly Yang Fire!

Coincidentally, he had heard Great Cultivator Mingyou mention this specific qi in You Xuexin's memories:

Radiant Universal Illumination Six Harmonies Qi!

"I understand."

Severing his connection with You Xuexin once more, Wang Ping opened his eyes and looked at Xuanhe beside him. "There's an eighty percent chance that the true transmission disciple Kunlun cultivates Heavenly Yang Fire."

"Turbid Earth and Darkened Heavens is specifically meant to target him."

"As for why Xuanyin is the one replacing you, the qi he cultivates directly suppresses Heavenly Yang Fire. He likely holds a sure-kill trump card bestowed by Kunyun, as well."

"This is going to be a magical duel."

In a flash, Wang Ping had figured out all of Kunyun's arrangements targeting the Eight Trigrams Furnace and the Heaven-Stealing Thief. His mind was suddenly entirely clear.

"Let them fight!"

Wang Ping sneered. "Our previous attempt to divert trouble to the east actually worked. Let the Heaven-Stealing Thief and Kunyun fight. This is a good thing for us."

"And my guess is that the Heaven-Stealing Thief won't dare make a move openly. Kunyun is the public True Transmission of the Immortal Gate, and he has a Qi Refining master backing him. Wouldn't the Thief be terrified that the moment he attacks, a giant hand might reach down from beyond the heavens, grab him, and refine him in an instant?"

"Of course he's afraid. He's terrified."

"It makes perfect sense that he's afraid!" Hearing the response from beside him, Wang Ping clapped his hands. "He needs allies. Barring any accidents, he will definitely come looking for us."

"Because only we can help him."

"You are absolutely right."

Hearing this, Wang Ping looked to his side. "How could I be wrong? That old bastard is the most scheming of them all, but this time it's finally my turn to make him take the fall—holy shit!"

His voice came to an abrupt halt.

Because right where he was looking, Xuanhe was already dripping with sweat, and Chenlong looked as if he were facing a mortal enemy. Furthermore, beside them, a third person had appeared at some unknown time.

His face was blurry, yet he inexplicably gave off the feeling that he was smiling. As he clapped his hands, he sighed with emotion. "Good apprentice, you truly understand your master too well."

It was precisely the Heaven-Stealing Thief!