Make the Immortal Sect Great Again

Kunyun was feeling a little panicked.

As he looked at the Eight Trigrams Furnace in the distance, and at Wang Ping surrounded by six Qi Refining Yin spirits, a bead of cold sweat as large as a bean slowly rolled down his forehead.

'Too fast, he's really just too fast!'

In his memory, he had just been crossing his life tribulation a short while ago. Back then, Wang Ping had only been at the Tribulation Transcending Second Layer and had just cultivated a divine power—he had been a complete novice in immortal cultivation.

Even so, he had marveled at Wang Ping's cultivation speed at the time. Condensing a divine power in just a few short years would have been unthinkable for anyone else. After all, even for Tribulation Transcending cultivators with the greatest of talents, progress was measured in decades or centuries.

But Wang Ping?

Reaching the Tribulation Transcending Second Layer had taken him only a few short years, and reaching his current state as a Corpse Dissolution Immortal—a level capable of slaying Qi Refining practitioners—had actually taken just a few short years more!

If he kept climbing at this rate, breaking through a realm every single year, wouldn't he become a Supreme True Lord in just over a decade?

Did he not have any bottlenecks?

Even factoring in a True Monarch's schemes and a cultivator rising on the tides of circumstance, this breakthrough speed was absolutely absurd. It completely defied imagination.

What made him even more helpless was that he might have already incurred the grudge of this Biyang's disciple... Back then, following the True Monarch's orders, he had played dumb and sent Wang Ping to the Brahma Nation. Now, Wang Ping was completely unharmed and had even orchestrated a trap that killed six Qi Refining practitioners. If he turned that hostility onto Kunyun...

Mother of mercy, it might impact his Dao path!

Right as Kunyun was agonizing over this, a voice suddenly drifted over from behind him. "What's wrong? Has our Lord Daozi still not come out?"

"...Not yet," Kunyun said.

Kunyun turned around, only to see a hazy figure of light standing behind him. Flecks of spring rain and a thin, misty drizzle surrounded the person, making it feel as if he had been transported back to an early spring morning right after the rain.

"Senior Brother Yunlong, how about you take me there?"

Kunyun looked at him and said helplessly, "To be honest, I'm worried that the moment I walk over, he'll just have those six newly refined Yin spirits gang up on me."

"It's not that I'm afraid."

"I'm mostly just worried about ruining the True Monarch's grand plans."

"Sigh, Kunyun, you've changed." Looking at Kunyun's utterly righteous expression, the Daoist standing in the hazy light couldn't help but sigh.

Kunyun hadn't been like this in the past. When he was first saved, he had been immensely grateful. His personality had been straightforward, frank, and bold. Yet how long had it been? After just a couple of trips out with that water qi Daozi acknowledged by the True Monarch, he had already learned how to act slick and shirk his responsibilities!

One truly takes on the color of their company.

From this, it was clear—

'The True Monarch's judgment is unquestionable as always. That man is truly worthy of being the Daozi of our water qi lineage. He is an absolute hidden gem—a born demon through and through!'

At that thought, the Daoist decisively shook his head.

"You should go, Kunyun."

"Don't worry, I've brought an oral decree from the True Monarch for you. As long as you take it over and recite it to Wang Ping the moment you meet, he definitely won't attack you."

"Really?"

Kunyun was half-doubtful, but after thinking it over carefully, he figured that no matter how bold Wang Ping was, he wouldn't dare strike out in the face of a True Monarch's decree.

With that, he set his mind at ease.

Immediately after, Yunlong opened his mouth. His lips moved slightly, yet no sound came out. Kunyun instantly felt his head grow incredibly heavy as a sharp, intense pain pierced the space between his brows.

"What is...?"

Kunyun's pupils shrank. He was forced to circulate all of his mystical arts to reinforce his Dharma body, barely managing to alleviate the agony. Yet, strangely, he couldn't remember anything at all.

What had Yunlong said?

What were the contents of the True Monarch's decree?

He knew absolutely none of it. However, that inexplicable heaviness and stabbing pain told him that a certain piece of knowledge—one too profound for lower-realm cultivators to grasp—had indeed flowed into his sea of consciousness.

"Take a deep breath. It's normal to feel dizzy," Yunlong said with a smile. "The True Monarch's decree is not meant for a third pair of ears. Though you and I are the messengers, it is impossible for us to remember it, much less hear its contents."

"These words left the True Monarch's mouth, passed through our ears, and will be spoken by our lips, but the only one who can actually hear them is the Daozi designated by the True Monarch. You don't need to know the contents. Once you see the Daozi, just open your mouth with the intention of passing on the True Monarch's decree, and you will naturally speak it."

"I see," Kunyun said.

Even though he had witnessed the profound mysteries of a Supreme True Lord many times before, Kunyun still couldn't help but marvel. This great figure truly enjoyed playing along with his subordinates.

Getting involved in the True Person's schemes regarding the Eight Trigrams Furnace was one thing.

Now, even for trapping and killing a few Qi Refining practitioners, although the True Monarch hadn't set the board himself, he was still willing to go with the flow and put on a show alongside his own Daozi.

And then there was this strictly confidential oral decree.

Who knew what else he would be up to in the future!

"I understand."

Regardless, having the True Monarch's decree calmed Kunyun down considerably. He reined in his thoughts and said in a deep voice, "I'll go to the Eight Trigrams Furnace to see him now."

...

Inside the Eight Trigrams Furnace, within the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode.

Wang Ping floated back. He had already draped himself in that layer of profound visual effects once again. A brilliant halo radiated from behind his head, turning slowly and exuding a distinctive aura.

It was confidence. A murderous, decisive energy.

He had killed six Qi Refining practitioners in a row. Although he had only slain Tianhan by himself, relying solely on his own abilities, he had still heavily assisted in killing the other five.

Putting everything else aside, if he hadn't heavily wounded Tao Shaobo and completely drained Fairy Supo beforehand, the First Seat might not have been able to kill them so easily. At the very least, they could have dragged out the fight for a while. And if they had, the final spoils of battle certainly wouldn't have been as massive as they were now.

Of course, Xianfu had contributed as well.

Especially those eight inner sect Corpse Dissolution Immortals.

Although their capabilities were lacking, they had excellent attitudes. If they hadn't joined forces at the very end to stall Chu Tianqiu, that Qi Refining practitioner really might have escaped.

However, this could be considered them repaying their debt to him.

After all, whether it was Xianfu or those eight Corpse Dissolution Immortals, almost all of them owed him the grace of achieving their Dao. Such a karmic debt couldn't be cleared with just one act of assistance.

'I have to milk this favor at least until I reach Qi Refining!'

Wang Ping calculated inwardly.

Immediately afterward, he began tallying his spoils of war. With a sweep of his large sleeve, three Spiritual Treasures instantly manifested and crashed heavily onto the floor.

The Drum of Purging Vice and Quelling Turmoil.

Guanghan Palace.

The Yaoming Pot.

Among them, the most precious Spiritual Treasure was undoubtedly the Drum of Purging Vice and Quelling Turmoil. Only after it was truly in his hands did Wang Ping realize exactly what kind of Spiritual Treasure it was.

'It's connected to the Gen Trigram!'

Just like the Xuanyi Calamity-Crossing Ring and Crown-Stroking Mountain, the Drum of Purging Vice and Quelling Turmoil was also empowered by a trigram, making it a supreme item among Spiritual Treasures!

In fact, it went even beyond that.

Wang Ping circulated his divine sense and began communicating with the artifact spirit inside. Soon enough, a resolute young general in heavy armor and wielding a sharp weapon appeared on the surface of the drum.

This was the artifact spirit of the Drum of Purging Vice and Quelling Turmoil. Unlike the Dragon Elephant and the World-Begging Alms Bowl that he had blown up, this Spiritual Treasure was incredibly well behaved. It proactively accepted Wang Ping's refinement—though, of course, that might have been because it had personally watched Wang Ping blow up the other two Spiritual Treasures.

Spiritual Treasures wanted to live, too.

After all, working for one master was the same as working for another. They didn't collect a salary anyway. The only thing maintaining the relationship between them and their masters was the deep bond forged through spending every waking moment together.

Oh, right. The Immortal Gate had no bonds of affection.

So what was there to hesitate about?

"Greetings, Master!"

With a heavy thud, the young general fell to one knee. He then dissolved into a streak of light and flew back into the Drum of Purging Vice and Quelling Turmoil, opening up all of its hidden secrets to Wang Ping.

"This Spiritual Treasure isn't just augmented by the Gen Trigram. It was a genuine attempt by Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang to reach the ultimate cosmic positions! It was personally forged by the True Person, and aside from the Gen Trigram, it actually carries some of the phenomena exclusive to the Xun Trigram!"

Wang Ping's face was full of disbelief.

Because as far as he knew, ever since the Great Rebellion eradicated the six qi, a lack of worldly qi meant that many Spiritual Treasures could no longer form their corresponding trigrams.

The only exceptions were the Kan Trigram, the Gen Trigram, and the Qian Trigram.

The conditions were incredibly strict.

How on earth had Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang managed to refine a Xun Trigram clone while simultaneously imbuing a Spiritual Treasure with the phenomena of the Xun Trigram?

Very quickly, Wang Ping found his answer.

'It's the exact same method Mingyou used when Kunyun was crossing his life tribulation—arranging the trigram using my earth-yin water magic power, my Human Yang Earth divine power, and Kunyun's heaven-yang wood destiny form!'

In short, it ignored the connection between the Xun Trigram and the Five Elements' wood. Instead, it used the pure yin-yang arrangement of the Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity to synthesize the trigram.

"A single drumhead, symbolizing Humanity of the Three Powers, sits in the center."

"Two drumsticks, symbolizing Heaven and Earth, strike the drum from both sides."

"The drumhead is made of human-yang wood, while the two drumsticks are made of heaven-yang earth and earth-yin earth. The two yangs of Heaven and Humanity, with Earth residing as the single yin—perfectly forming the Xun Trigram."

Of course, this patchwork Xun Trigram could hardly unleash the true might of a genuine Xun Trigram. It was a forced imitation, barely passable. That was why, despite Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang putting a massive amount of effort into this Spiritual Treasure, it had ultimately fallen short of success.

Yet Wang Ping was still shocked by it.

He even felt a sliver of admiration. After all, according to Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang's original design, this Spiritual Treasure had the potential to be upgraded into a True Treasure.

And not just an ordinary True Treasure, either.

'It's a True Treasure capable of resonating with the ultimate cosmic position of Mountain Wind Gu! He was using this Spiritual Treasure to probe the Mountain Wind Gu position!'

After all, if a Spiritual Treasure gathered both the Gen Trigram and the Xun Trigram simultaneously, with the Xun Trigram being weaker and thus positioned beneath the Gen Trigram... wasn't that the exact imagery of Mountain Wind Gu—"Wind blowing beneath the mountain, thus producing Gu"? Although it had failed in the end, the concept was truly breathtaking.

Of course—this was all told to Wang Ping by the artifact spirit.

He himself knew nothing about Mountain Wind Gu. Even though he had gained some flashes of insight after hearing the artifact spirit's detailed explanation, he merely knew the 'what' without understanding the 'why.'

After all, it was an ultimate cosmic position. It was still far too early for him.

However, with his experience of the Eight Trigrams Furnace, combined with this vague, half-understood knowledge of Mountain Wind Gu, a sudden doubt sprang up in Wang Ping's mind.

'Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang...'

Where was he right now?

Thinking about it carefully, if the doctrinal lineages of water and fire qi truly intended to set a trap to kill the Master of Secret Traces, this True Person might be more than happy to pitch in.