Lying Low While Cultivating Immortality in Two Worlds

Xituo Commandery.

The void split apart, revealing the figures of Fang Qing and the Moonlight White Dumu.

“This trip has been hard on you, Dumu. I’ll have to trouble you Miaoshan, to return to the temple first. I still have a few places I want to visit.”

Fang Qing spoke with a smile.

The Dumu had an exceptionally gentle temperament. Even after being used by Fang Qing as a free chauffeur, she showed no resentment whatsoever. She merely smiled faintly, pressed her palms together in salute, and departed gracefully.

Fang Qing then activated the [Corpse Contemplation] Dao Foundation, opening a temporary cave dwelling within a mountain before settling down to quietly sort through the gains from this journey.

‘The territory of the Eastern Supreme Unity Mysterious Gate is somewhat dangerous.’

‘Within the Blissful Union Sect, the only Purple Mansion immortal clan cultivating [Ji Water] is the Eastern Water Bai Family. But there are still quite a few Dao Foundation factions.’

‘After visiting them one by one this time, I actually gathered more than ten Dao Foundation cultivation methods. Unfortunately, not a single Purple Mansion fragment among them.’

Not every Purple Mansion cultivation method was like the Precious Earth Returning to Origin Scripture, complete with secret arts capable of enhancing true qi quality.

Thus, Fang Qing could judge matters fairly easily.

‘Four of these cultivate “Long-Awaited Sweet Rain.” They are roughly comparable to the Observing Black Mausoleum Book, though some are even inferior. They are probably downgraded substitutes for Long-Awaited Sweet Rain.’

‘Several others resemble simplified Dao Foundation versions of Perched at the Abyss…’

After all, “Perched at the Abyss” originated from a Purple Mansion cultivation method. Naturally, it possessed unique profundities.

In short, they were all garbage.

‘Still, there are two methods that are somewhat interesting. They consume the fifth-rank true qi “Forest Clear Breath.” One must locate a lush forest inhabited by mystical deer and use secret techniques to gather it among the trees. It takes ten years to complete. The resulting Dao Foundation is called “Forest Deer,” and it possesses rather impressive concealment abilities.’

Thinking of the terrifying breath-concealing technique Bai Mu Spiritual Master had displayed earlier, Fang Qing immediately felt that this Forest Deer was likely a lower variant of the Dao Foundation Hidden Forest Bank.

‘These two Forest Deer cultivation methods came from different Dao Foundation families, but both trace their ancestry back to disciples of the White Deer Sect… unfortunately, the White Deer Sect has already been destroyed.’

‘Overall, it was still inferior to my trip to the Eastern Water Bai Family. At least there I obtained quite a few [Ji Water] spiritual materials.’

He shook his head, finally understanding the hardships of rogue cultivators.

The path of [Ji Water] was not especially prominent, yet there were already more than ten kinds of Dao Foundations associated with it. Rogue cultivators without proper inheritances could only cultivate whatever they happened to obtain. Whether the road ahead ultimately led to a dead end, nobody knew.

Worse still, consuming the wrong true qi by mistake could ruin any hope of reaching Purple Mansion for life.

Even if one somehow managed to advance into Purple Mansion, deciding which divine ability to cultivate afterward would still leave them completely lost.

‘Divine abilities differ between ancient and modern lineages. If one cultivates the wrong kind, Golden attainment becomes impossible.’

‘Well, ordinary Purple Mansion cultivators never even dream of attaining Golden. But without suitable divine abilities, one cannot even become a late-stage Purple Mansion great cultivator.’

‘And if one cultivates incorrectly, they might end up just like Pu Shanjun, completely ruined.’

‘Fortunately, I possess the Dao-Genesis Pearl. That makes everything manageable.’

‘At worst, I can simply test each path one by one through trial and error.’

…

Four Directions Merchant Association.

“Greetings, Young Master…”

As soon as Fang Qing entered the merchant association and displayed his token, he was immediately escorted into a secret chamber.

The first to arrive was Meng Qing. The man bowed respectfully and presented several account books.

“These are the merchant association’s profits over the past years. We purchased eight Dao Foundation cultivation methods and three spiritual objects. Unfortunately, no Purple Mansion fragments were found. President Xu Hei is currently negotiating a business deal at Mount Li.”

Fang Qing accepted the ledger and casually flipped through several pages, clearly unconcerned about auditing the accounts.

After all, aside from Xu Hei, Meng Qing and the other stewards had also once been bandit cultivators converted by him.

Back then, these people had strutted arrogantly through exchange meetings, arranging trading locations everywhere. One after another, Fang Qing had visited them personally afterward and collected several very obedient dogs.

Later, finding them of limited personal use, he simply handed them all over to Xu Hei, forming the backbone of the Four Directions Merchant Association.

With these people in place, the merchant association could never escape his control, nor would anyone dare deceive their superiors while concealing profits below.

“As for the Qingli Fang Family, after suffering heavy losses this time, they have even dismissed many servants and tenant farmers. Once Young Master Fang Shanglin’s injuries improved slightly, he had no choice but to personally work the fields.”

Fang Qing paid little attention to such trivial matters.

After making a brief inspection, he returned to Wusheng Temple.

“Greetings, Venerable One!”

The White Bone Dharma King Sangji pressed his palms together respectfully and bowed deeply.

During this period, he had constantly been attempting to improve the exotic treasure Bronze Ge in Fang Qing’s possession, though it seemed he had made little progress.

After all, forcing someone who cultivated [Nu Earth] to research artifact refinement truly was making things difficult for them.

And for such a precious Purple Mansion dharma treasure embryo, casually handing it over to others for refinement was equally hard to trust.

‘Having a Purple Mansion slave is truly convenient.’

‘If not for the White Bone Dharma King standing at the front for me, how could I possibly live so comfortably now? I can even casually visit Purple Mansion immortal clans and oppress and plunder Dao Foundation factions.’

Fang Qing sighed inwardly before casually asking about the current state of the White Bone Dao.

The White Bone Dao was no longer merely stationed in Xituo Commandery. It had already begun spreading outward into the surrounding regions.

“The situation in Ancient Shu remains fairly stable. Thanks to the old precedents left behind by the Xuantu Sect, things have not become too chaotic. However, several southern factions have all suffered attacks from the Yin Corpse Sect. Meanwhile, Dharma King ‘Jiumoluojie’ of the Temple of All Beings Without Form has already issued a temple decree, ordering this humble monk to head south and investigate news regarding the ‘Buried Earth Blessed Land.’”

Sangji pressed his palms together as he spoke.

Though he was, in truth, Fang Qing’s slave, outwardly he still remained a Dharma King of the Esoteric Domain and oversaw the affairs of the Eastern Buddhists regions.

Thus, he could not simply act however he pleased. He still had to contribute toward the great cause of the Esoteric Domain.

As a Dharma King of the Temple of All Beings Without Form, he was even obligated to continuously deliver benefits back to the temple and complete designated missions.

The Dharma Kings were not fools. If his behavior became too abnormal, suspicion would naturally arise.

“Buried Earth Blessed Land?”

“A legacy left behind by a Purple Mansion Spiritual Master? Those capable of constructing a blessed land are all powerful figures among Purple Mansion cultivators. Or perhaps several Purple Mansion cultivators working together might barely achieve it.”

Fang Qing sighed softly.

“If conflict erupts there, it will become a genuine all-out battle, not some joke like what happened with the Xuantu Sect. After all, both the ‘Charnel Grounds Lord’ and the one backing the Corpse Yin Sect are True Lords seated upon [Nu Earth], yet neither occupies the Primary position. A struggle over the Golden Position is the greatest Dao conflict beneath the heavens.”

Charnel Grounds Lord was likewise merely a title, much like Kitchen God. Simply reciting it would not establish a connection to the True Lord.

As for that being’s true name, it was recorded within the Scripture of Nu Earth as Expounded by Lord of Charnel Grounds as an extremely long string of esoteric script. Naturally, Fang Qing would never casually speak it aloud.

Though given the current state of that existence, even calling the name likely would not be heard.

“When that lord ascended to the Golden Position, the Yin Corpse Sect lost the Great Spiritual Master Kaiyuanzi. These past years they have consistently kept a low profile. This current probe should likely pass without major danger.”

Sangji offered words of reassurance.

In the Recent Antiquity, with True Lords absent from the world, late Purple Mansion Great Spiritual Master stood at the absolute peak of power.

The Yin Corpse Sect had lost one such figure, greatly weakening its strength. Then the Kitchen God issued a decree forbidding blood-food human pills, leaving them in an even more miserable situation.

After all, most of them cultivated Earth virtue, making them directly restricted by the rightful ascension of Earth virtue.

“Is that so?”

Fang Qing still felt a faint sense of unease rising within his heart.

The Plum Blossom Divination formed silently in his mind, yet the result he obtained was merely a “moderately auspicious” hexagram. That only made him feel even more irritated.

‘Golden attainment truly cannot be calculated...’

‘Is this really an ordinary mission? Or merely a test?’

‘Sangji’s fate and fortune suffered heavy losses before. Although reaching Purple Mansion greatly increased his destiny, there must also have been compensating fortune flowing in. Could something have been noticed during the enthronement ritual?’

‘Or perhaps this is a probe or assassination attempt from one of the other Temples of the Origin of All Dharmas?’

‘Or maybe nothing was wrong originally, but the Yin Corpse Sect itself hides danger? Buried Earth Blessed Land...’

Countless thoughts tangled within Fang Qing’s mind before he suddenly spoke:

“Do you know the origins of this Buried Earth Blessed Land?”

“This blessed land is extremely ancient. This little monk does not know its origins,” Sangji said. “I have only heard from the temple that this blessed land is fated with cultivators of the [Nu Earth] lineage. Unfortunately, Grotto Heavens and Blessed Lands are isolated from the great void, making it difficult to send Duzi and Dumu inside. I may have no choice but to make the journey personally.”

Grotto heavens and Blessed Lands existed within self-contained pockets of space, cut off from the outside void.

For Duzi and Dumu, this posed tremendous difficulties. Even their mystical abilities became heavily restricted.

Even Sangji, or the other Esoteric Dharma Kings, did not possess the supreme capabilities of the Dao-Genesis Pearl. They could not observe events remotely in real time, much less descend personally into another’s body and experience everything directly. Thus, if the true body had to move personally, it would appear far too deliberate and suspicious.

“Fated with [Nu Earth] cultivators?”

Fang Qing pondered for a moment. Xu Hei under his command happened to possess a [Nu Earth] Dao Foundation.

However, among his subordinates there was only this single Dao Foundation cultivator. It had not been easy for the man to cultivate successfully on his own. Sending him off to die seemed rather wasteful.

‘Wait… I’ve fallen into the wrong line of thinking.’

‘Other cultivation methods are difficult to spread openly, but the Charnel Grounds’s Scripture of Nu Earth is a genuine Esoteric cultivation art. Sangji used this very technique for empowerment initiation. Naturally, I can also use it to create two Bright One's with [Nu Earth] Dao Foundations.’

‘Moreover, I’m different from Sangji. He cannot instantly perceive everything experienced by his Duzi and Dumu, nor can he personally take control mid-battle. With the isolation of a Grotto Heaven or Blessed Land, once they die, even their true spirits may not escape. But I can.’

‘Therefore, Sangji should remain behind to oversee matters while I first send in two Bright Ones to investigate the situation within the Buried Earth Blessed Land If the danger proves too great, Sangji can simply brush it off. After all, as a Dharma King, he already stands among the upper ranks of the Esoteric Domain. Who would dare force him to throw away his life?’

Once the upper echelon of Wusheng Temple reached a decision, the entirety of Xituo Commandery and several surrounding regions immediately fell into unrest.

A single thought from those above could overturn the heavens and earth for those below.

Qingli Mountain.

Fang Shanglin’s hair had turned white overnight. He appeared to have aged several decades as he sat upon a field ridge, blankly watching his mother, younger sister, grandfather, second uncle, and cousins working the fields.

Ever since his cultivation had been crippled, he could no longer handle the tasks expected of a cultivator. He could only assist with minor chores.

These past days had been filled with hardship.

Yet when he looked toward the spirit fields in the distance that no longer belonged to his family, the pain in his heart grew even sharper.

At that moment, a monk with a broad face, large ears, and a healthy ruddy complexion approached the edge of the spirit fields while carrying a monk’s staff.

“Master Fayuan?”

Fang Yixin wiped the sweat from his forehead, his heart tightening slightly. “What matter could bring you here personally?”

“Naturally, it is something important.”

Monk Fayuan spoke with solemn dignity. “An order has come from the White Bone Dao. There are Buddhist enemies in the southern frontier. Buddhist soldiers must be raised for a punitive expedition!”

“A war mobilization order?”

Even Fang Wujiu seemed momentarily dazed as he looked toward Fang Shanglin beside him.

Back then, when they marched against the Xuantu Sect, this eldest nephew had still been wrapped in swaddling clothes.

And now… another war had come again?

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