Chapter 174: Chapter 146: First Victory Over Ji Fuyao, Will Her Ladyship Marry?

The night had been far too eventful.

From Beyond the Qingming to the eighteenth layer of Fengdu, from Daoist Monarchs and Great Powers to lowly Qi Cultivation Lower Cultivators, everyone had been bustling about.

A searing Divine Sense, like wind fanning a fire, drilled into his fontanelle before returning to his Primordial Gate. The Daoist Robe-clad youth in the ancestral hall opened his eyes and leisurely recited:

"Heaven and Earth are the furnace, Creation is the smith; Yin and Yang are the charcoal, the myriad things are the copper..."

Although he was still at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer, the Wind and Fire Cushion had reopened his meridians and refined his foundation, greatly solidifying his Merit.

It was only fitting to recite a few lines of verse to celebrate!

Just then, the faint morning light on the horizon grew bright, and the sun’s golden radiance shone right into his eyes.

His Primordial Gate stirred slightly. As if struck by a sudden inspiration, he grasped a sliver of that profound mystery out of thin air, drawing in wisps of a rich, purple essence.

Pure, full, and vigorous Spiritual Energy descended like heavenly light, condensing inch by inch and pouring down into his forehead.

A pleasant warmth instantly spread throughout his entire body.

After circulating his energy through several Great Circulations, the Purple Yang Qi transformed into a gurgling Spiritual Liquid and settled into his Inner Mansion.

"Bing Fire Purple Yang Qi..."

Jiang Yi was slightly taken aback, quite surprised. He hadn’t expected a reward so soon after leaving [Fengdu].

According to the Mixed Refining Origin’s Qi Cultivation General Outline, this "Purple Yang Qi" was a top-grade form of Spiritual Energy.

The conditions for gathering and refining it were extremely harsh. One had to wait for the second quarter of the *mao* hour, select a famous mountain or great river with high terrain and abundant spiritual influence, set up an altar to pray to the heavens, and slowly collect it using a Bing Fire Spiritual Object.

A thousand wisps had to be gathered to form a single portion of Spiritual Energy. During this process, not even a speck of Dense Qi or yin qi could be mixed in, or its quality would immediately plummet to a lower grade, rendering it unfit for consumption.

You see, not every day of the year featured a sunrise with purple qi rising from the east. There were always overcast days with bleak winds and cold rain. To gather a thousand wisps would take several years, at the very least.

This portion of Spiritual Energy was truly a rare find!

’My destiny has deepened, my Luck has strengthened, and even the heavens are giving me special treatment.’

Jiang Yi chuckled to himself. His Gao Village, and even the entirety of Goose Mountain which had been uprooted, could hardly be called auspicious places with abundant spiritual influence.

The Spiritual Qi was scarce and thin, not much different from the Qianji Sect’s Red Flame Peak.

Under normal circumstances, it would have been absolutely impossible to gather even half a wisp of Bing Fire Purple Yang Qi.

But now, countless threads of endless Spiritual Energy swarmed toward him, making Jiang Yi feel comfortable and at ease throughout his body.

’Purple Yang Qi belongs to the Bing Fire element and has a "purifying" effect. It dissolves the turbid impurities of the physical body and eliminates the motley blemishes from the bones.’

Jiang Yi closed his eyes and looked inward. He saw thousands of wisps of Purple Yang Qi, like red-hot Elixir Pills, slowly rolling through his entire frame, not missing a single tiny spot.

His organs and flesh, as if they were heavenly Treasure Medicines steamed and sun-dried nine times over, gradually took on a lustrous, jade-white color, becoming as fragrant as a divine Ganoderma mushroom.

The "turbid impurities" accumulated after birth from eating grains and inhaling smog and dust were dissolving bit by bit, being expelled from his body through the opening and closing of his pores and the rhythm of his Breathing.

About four hours passed before the entire portion of Purple Yang Qi was completely circulated and refined.

’I’d say about forty-eight percent.’

Jiang Yi was very satisfied and slowly ceased his cultivation.

Having unexpectedly gathered a full portion of Purple Yang Qi allowed him to thoroughly shed the shackles of his Mortal Body. His mind and body were now bright, harmonious within and without.

Even breathing felt a little lighter.

Even without channeling True Qi or manipulating flames, this Cultivation Furnace of a body was as light as a feather—it would not sink in water nor burn in fire.

It could be considered top-quality!

’The Qi Barrier of the Qi Cultivation Eighth or Ninth Layer will likely pose no difficulty for me anymore.’

Jiang Yi smiled slightly, resting his hands on his knees. The only thing he really needed to worry about in his Cultivation lately was how to reverse the Innate process and condense True Qi at the Qi Cultivation Tenth Layer.

"Meow, meow! Xiao Jiang!"

True Master Xuanmiao scrambled and tumbled into his arms, landing sprawled on its back.

"This True Master stood guard for you all night, I’m exhausted... meow!"

The Cat Master had certainly been useful.

Jiang Yi rubbed True Master Xuanmiao’s cotton-soft belly and said quietly:

"This Disciple has recently devised a health-preserving tonic. It’s made from the finely ground leaves and stems of a treasured plant in its flowering stage. It should be to Cat Master’s liking."

True Master Xuanmiao had been extremely sleepy, but upon hearing this, its spirits soared. It couldn’t help but stick out its little pink tongue and lick its front paw.

’I’ve always had complete faith in Xiao Jiang’s skills!’

The hundreds, even thousands, of attendants in the Daoist Palace couldn’t compare to such a considerate Disciple who knew its every need.

"This True Master knew it! Xiao Jiang knows best how to be filial to his master!"

True Master Xuanmiao rolled over twice in excitement. Its amber eyes suddenly focused, staring intently at Jiang Yi.

"Xiao Jiang, the ’spirit’ hidden in your glabella is a little different from other Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer cultivators."

At the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer, one could manifest a Light of Life Divine Sense, which would appear on the glabella as a flame marking, a water droplet, a floral forehead ornament, or a dot of Vermilion.

The shape and color varied, depending on the degree of condensation of one’s Divine Sense and one’s own Cultivation.

True Master Xuanmiao climbed onto his shoulder to get a closer look. It saw a golden vertical mark on Jiang Yi’s glabella, as thin as a silk thread, which seemed to contain an infinite, brilliant light.

But when the Cat Master tried to examine it more closely, the golden vertical mark faded from view.

"Xiao Jiang, hurry up and tell me! What kind of great fortune did you get inside [Fengdu]?"

True Master Xuanmiao twitched its nose, leaned in, and sniffed Jiang Yi. If not for the fact that his Qi Mechanism and Divine Sense were unchanged, it would have almost suspected that a different person stood before it.

"It wasn’t any particularly special experience."

A smile played on Jiang Yi’s lips as he recounted everything—entering the Kitchen God Temple, twisting incense to refine his fate, the cushion Opening Meridians, and achieving the Ten-Perfection fate. He only omitted the part about "I beg the Celestial Book."

"A Ten-Perfection [Saint King] fate!"

True Master Xuanmiao’s already round eyes instantly widened, as if it were utterly shocked.

"Incredible, Xiao Jiang! Even among the True Inheritance disciples of the Eight Sects, few have this kind of destiny before Foundation Establishment!

Quick, let this True Master have a feel!"

The Cat Master extended its front paw, wanting Jiang Yi to reveal the golden vertical mark hidden in his Primordial Gate and displayed on his glabella.

"Cat Master, don’t mess around."

Jiang Yi lifted True Master Xuanmiao off his shoulder and asked his question:

"Now that my destiny and Luck are flourishing, what specific use does it have? And what’s the difference between [Yin Celestial Emperor], [Great Luminous Lord], and [Saint King]?"

True Master Xuanmiao shook its head like a private tutor in an old-fashioned school, saying with great deliberation:

"Of course it’s of great use! Didn’t you used to say it yourself, Xiao Jiang? ’A meager fate and exhausted luck lead not to the Dao; one becomes but fuel for the world’s Copper Furnace.’

To a True Master, karma is like a thread; they can guide it and pull on it.

To a True Monarch, karma is like a mist; they view it as flowers in a fog, yet they can pluck them with their hands.

As for Daoist Monarchs, karma is like a net—vast and boundless, sparse yet letting nothing escape.

The world these three types of beings see is, in fact, vastly different."

Jiang Yi held the Cat Master, his heart stirring. ’This is probably the reason for the saying, "The insights of an Upper Cultivator pierce the hidden and minute, while the thoughts of a Lower Cultivator are laughable."’

"In the face of a True Master’s or True Monarch’s methods, an ordinary Cultivator is like a shallow pond, seen through in a single glance.

Not to mention a Daoist Monarch. With a flick of their fingers and a turn of their thoughts, they can trace and calculate ten of your lifetimes’ worth of karma.

Of course, a Qi Cultivation Junior Cultivator doesn’t have that much of a past. Only a Foundation Establishment True Master possesses the legacy of five lifetimes."

Jiang Yi gently squeezed True Master Xuanmiao’s cat ears and reminded it:

"Cat Master, you’re getting off topic."

True Master Xuanmiao put on the brakes and returned to the original subject:

"But there is one type of exception. True Masters can’t figure them out, True Monarchs can’t calculate them, and some are so exceptionally outstanding, solitary, and proud that even Daoist Monarchs find it difficult to discern and perceive them clearly."

Jiang Yi raised an eyebrow.

"Fate Shuzi?"

True Master Xuanmiao nodded its cat head.

"Correct. Fate Shuzi come from various origins. Some are reincarnated True Masters or reborn True Monarchs, born with innate knowledge and naturally extraordinary; 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

others have merged with the destiny of a Dharma Lineage and inherited the great luck of a Daoist Lineage;

and then there are the divine and Immortal Spirits, who mold human bodies for themselves to walk through the myriad heavens...

In short, the karma of these beings is dense and chaotic. Some are like a tangled mess, preventing a True Master from finding the ’end of the thread’;

others are like clouds and mist, gathering and dispersing, ever-changing, making it impossible for a True Monarch to track them;

and still others are like roc birds or dragon whales, soaring through the cosmos or lurking in the waves, ascending and hiding at will, concealing their forms and auras."

As Jiang Yi listened to the Cat Master’s explanation, he had a sudden realization. The more noble or substantial one’s destiny and Luck, the more karma they shouldered.

For the Lord Upper Cultivators to see them clearly, they would have to expend great effort and might even make mistakes.

’No wonder Xuan Chanzi is so brazen and reckless, yet always gets away unscathed despite being hunted down repeatedly.’

Jiang Yi mulled this over for a moment, then thought:

"Since I now possess a Ten-Perfection [Saint King] fate, can I also be considered a kind of ’Fate Shuzi’?"

True Master Xuanmiao’s whiskers trembled, seemingly very pleased. It chuckled and said:

"More than just a Fate Shuzi! Xiao Jiang, your current foundation is no worse than that of a born divine being!

To break the nine-nines number... that’s unprecedented in all the Yanfu Vast Land!"

Seeing True Master Xuanmiao’s excited state, practically dancing with joy, Jiang Yi was a bit puzzled.

A Ten-Perfection fate was certainly rare, but it shouldn’t be enough to make the Cat Master, who had seen and weathered great storms, so emotional.

"HAHAHAHA!"

True Master Xuanmiao leaped out of Jiang Yi’s arms, put its paws on its hips, and laughed at the sky:

"That surnamed Ji! From the moment he was born, he had a nine-nines fate, the number of ultimate yang!

Now, Xiao Jiang, you have Ten-Perfection, a [Saint King] fate! You can finally be considered to have surpassed him by a sliver in this aspect!"

Jiang Yi was stunned. So the Cat Master was overjoyed because of this.

’So, surpassing the infant Ji Fuyao in his swaddling clothes also counts as a ’huge, epic win’?’

True Master Xuanmiao saw through Jiang Yi’s thoughts and grumbled:

"That Immortal Dao Emperor who holds the position of [Tai Yang]—his worldly image is defined by two words: ’Truly Invincible’.

He must be able to crush his peers and lead the masses in every single aspect to reign as the supreme sovereign.

On the path of the Dao, no matter the aspect, for every small advantage you win, Xiao Jiang, your chance of shaking the [Tai Yang] increases by a sliver."

True Master Xuanmiao said with great solemnity:

"Ten-Perfection surpassing the nine-nines number! This is one victory! Do not look down on it!"

Jiang Yi nodded. As the new master of the [Yang Qi Taiyin Heaven], his path of the Dao was like a tug-of-war against the [Tai Yang].

He had already lost ninety-nine percent of the battle and was only a hair’s breadth from being pulled over the line.

But being able to pull back even a little was a good thing.

’If one day I can win a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand victories, then perhaps the [Shao Yang] can replace the [Tai Yang].’

...

...

「Eighteen Layers Above, in the Profound City Central Palace.」

Layer upon layer of profound Qi Mechanism, like heavy curtains, filled the seemingly boundless, vast hall.

The boisterous, chubby girl was quiet for once. Her small eyes darted about, as if she were holding back many words but didn’t dare disturb Her Ladyship.

After a long time.

The graceful woman seated on the Jade Platform spoke faintly:

"Gui’er, say what you want to say. Don’t choke on your own words."

The chubby girl, who had been pacing back and forth like a spinning wheel, quickly stood up upon hearing this, wringing her fingers in front of her chest.

"The Kitchen God Temple is gone. That person very likely has a Ten-Perfection [Saint King] fate.

More exceptional than the [Yin Celestial Emperor], more outstanding than the [Great Luminous Lord].

This marital bond of the underworld... will Her Ladyship forge it or not...?"