Who Let Him Cultivate Immortality

Meng Jingzhou proudly said, “Since I was young, royal relatives, powerful ministers, and people from reputable sects have come to my house to propose marriage, treating their daughters as if they were not their own, to become my fiancée. It’s just that my parents and the clan elders have always been extremely firm in their refusal; otherwise, I would be…”

Lu Yang cut in, “Otherwise, you’d be suffering from kidney deficiency?”

Meng Jingzhou angrily said, “I would be a charming young master!”

The two wrestled, using the Tiger Fist technique, causing howls to echo from the clouds. Yun Zhi concentrated on flying, ignoring them.

Lu Yang transformed into a tiger demon, pinning Meng Jingzhou down with one claw, making Meng Jingzhou beg for mercy.

Ultimately, Meng Jingzhou’s Tiger Fist was no match for Lu Yang’s true tiger form.

After the fight, Lu Yang still couldn’t understand, had the excellent qualities he displayed in Yanjiang County really reached the level where people would come to propose marriage?

And “proposing marriage”, “the woman’s side changing their mind”, “having a powerful soul inside”, why did these elements feel so familiar? (TL Note: Common trope seen in chinese cultivation novels such as Battle Through the Heavens or Against the Gods)

…

In the Great Xia Dynasty, the imperial city, the palace.

Above the hall, a dignified man dressed in black with golden patterns sat in a high position, serious and without smiles. The ministers below shouted long live, creating an atmosphere of solemnity and gravity.

“Let my dear ministers rise.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor Xia scanned the ministers and took out a newly received memorial: “I have just received a memorial from the governor of Qingzhou, saying that a place called Commoner Town in Qingzhou has seen the revival of five ancient Unity Stage beings, forming domains. The master of the Dao Seeking Sect happened to pass by and took his two disciples to kill three of the Unity Stage beings.”

As these words were spoken, the ministers sighed in relief. The revival of five Unity Stage beings was no small matter; fortunately, Daoist Non-Speaker encountered them. If it were another Unity Stage being, they would have directly fallen at Commoner Town.

Although Daoist Non-Speaker’s reputation was not very good, having tricked many when they were young, his strength was undoubtedly top-notch among Unity Stage beings.

“But there are still two Unity Stage beings who have escaped, and both are at the peak of Unity Stage,” Emperor Xia reminded the ministers, pinpointing the crux of the matter.

Emperor Xia did not expect them to abide by the rules. The ancient cultivation methods were very crude, treating human lives as worthless. This group of revived beings came for the great opportunities of the era, stopping at nothing. The Great Xia Dynasty had already learned from such experiences.

The ministers whispered among themselves. If the two Unity Stage beings showed themselves, there was nothing to fear, as there were plenty of people in the court capable of dealing with them. The concern was if those two hid away, plotting something in the dark. It would be even more troublesome if they colluded with the demonic sects.

“These ancient Unity Stage beings!” Emperor Xia was quite troubled. The spiritual essence of heaven and earth was becoming more active, with more and more ancient cultivators awakening.

This group of Unity Stage beings was a huge problem. If left unchecked, they could cause immense disasters, resulting in countless casualties among the populace.

The good news was that, so far, no Tribulation Crossing Stage cultivators had awakened.

Based on the intelligence collected so far, those who awakened earlier were at the initial stages of Unity. The later the awakening, the higher their cultivation level. The ones who awoke in Commoner Town were four at the peak of Unity Stage and one at the late stage of Unity Stage.

It could be anticipated that soon, Tribulation Crossing Stage cultivators would awaken. By then, the troubles from the eastern ocean, the Western Golden Buddhist Kingdom, the southern demon realm, the far north, and the four major demonic sects would erupt simultaneously. The reign of the Great Xia Dynasty would inevitably be on the brink of collapse, and the rumors that each dynasty only lasts for a hundred thousand years might become a reality.

“It’s all for the sake of becoming immortals!” Emperor Xia’s eyes turned cold, knowing many secrets. All the chaos was orchestrated by someone in the shadows, wanting more immortals, or “ariya-phala,” to emerge.

Emperor Xia suspected it was the doing of an ancient nameless figure, one of the ancient five immortals.

“Is becoming an immortal that important!” Emperor Xia was furious inside but did not show it.

If the person behind the scenes really thought the Great Xia Dynasty was just a pawn to be manipulated, they were gravely mistaken.

Emperor Xia stopped thinking about the ancient nameless figure and turned his attention back to the two escaped Unity Stage beings.

At this moment, the chief eunuch received a memorial and hurriedly presented it to Emperor Xia.

After reading it, Emperor Xia’s face lit up with joy: “Good, very good!”

The ministers were puzzled, not knowing what was written in the memorial that made the emperor so happy.

“We don’t need to worry about those two Unity Stage beings anymore! Yun Zhi of the Dao Seeking Sect has already captured them!”

“Yun Zhi?” Some less informed ministers were puzzled, not knowing who Yun Zhi was. Among the eight elders of the Dao Seeking Sect, there seemed to be none named Yun Zhi.

The more informed old ministers knew of Yun Zhi’s identity and terrifying capabilities, understanding that capturing two Unity Stage beings was not a difficult task for her.

“The Demon Realm has sent an envoy…” Emperor Xia and the ministers began discussing other matters.

After the court session, Emperor Xia returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to review new memorials.

“Your Majesty, Duke Jingyan of Qin has something to report,” the chief eunuch whispered.

Emperor Xia did not look up: “Let him in.”

After Duke Jingyan of Qin entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation, he saw Emperor Xia busy reviewing memorials and remained silent, standing respectfully until the emperor finished with the most important ones before he spoke up.

“What does Duke Jingyan of Qin wish to discuss?” Emperor Xia’s expression was solemn as he looked at the duke, who dared not meet his eyes directly.

“Your Majesty, I believe we cannot be too cautious with the Dao Seeking Sect. Yun Zhi of the Dao Seeking Sect, once a disciple, defeated the masters of the Five Great Immortal Sects, creating an unprecedented record. Since then, she has been rarely seen in action, but every time she makes a move, it shocks everyone. In these hundreds of years, her cultivation must have reached a terrifying level.”

“I’m concerned that her presence could shake the foundation of the dynasty. After all, the Dao Seeking Sect was established during the Da Yu era, having experienced ‘the division of the realm’ and ‘the founding of the Great Xia’. It’s possible they harbor ambitions to replace us.”

“This is not just my personal opinion. On my way to court, I even heard a servant singing ‘With the Dao thriving, the world is at peace.’”

Emperor Xia frowned. Seeing this, Duke Jingyan of Qin knew the emperor had begun to doubt the Dao Seeking Sect and did not say more, taking his leave.

Emperor Xia called the chief eunuch: “Check who Duke Jingyan of Qin has met recently, especially his dealings with the Demon Realm.”

“Yes.”

Emperor Xia sneered inwardly, seeing that not everyone in the court stood with the Great Xia.

“Creating a rift between me and the Dao Seeking Sect, what a clever idea.”

After his accession to the throne, Emperor Xia visited each of the Five Great Immortal Sects. During his visit to the Dao Seeking Sect, he met Yun Zhi and was astonished by her, feeling she was unfathomable. Despite his efforts to investigate, he could not discern Yun Zhi’s background and directly went to the imperial forbidden area to ask his ancestors if they knew of a female cultivator named Yun Zhi in the Dao Seeking Sect.

The ancestor was silent for a long time before replying with only one sentence: “The strongest of the Five Great Immortal Sects.”

Not satisfied, Emperor Xia persisted, “How does she compare to you, ancestor?”

“Don’t ask anymore.”

Emperor Xia was kicked out by the ancestor, feeling a mix of annoyance and embarrassment.