Chapter 510
Especially when he thought about how poor the Jiu Shan Sect was and how unworldly Zheng Fa was, it struck him that now he was sitting here, subtly standing on equal footing with his elders, while the others were left standing.
He couldn't laugh anymore.
Zheng Fa, however, chuckled inwardly. No wonder those wealthy elites loved to claim they came from humble beginnings...
Wasn't this a form of humblebragging?
The Yaochi Dao Guo smiled genuinely, turning to Zheng Fa, "It's just some wood, after all. Please, do try the Baihua Lingcha."
Zheng Fa, ever accommodating, picked up the tea cup in front of him and took a sip.
In the next moment, a silver light flickered in his eyes, and the Dongxu Lingyan (洞虚灵眼) naturally activated, showing signs of a breakthrough!
"This..."
"Baihua Lingcha is most suitable for the Lingmu technique... Since it's your first time drinking it, the effect will be the best."
She glanced at the Taishang Dao's Li Shangxian and sighed, "But if you drink too much, it won't have much effect."
Zheng Fa felt even more delighted.
To perfect the Tiangang Dishan Bianhua (天罡地煞变化), he needed the Lingmu method, but his Dongxu Lingyan had hit a bottleneck and hadn't progressed in a long time.
He had only taken a sip of the Baihua Lingcha, and already the Dongxu Lingyan showed signs of change.
On the table, a small hand gently pushed another tea cup toward Zheng Fa.
He turned to look at Sister Zhang.
Sister Zhang softly said, "I don't like tea."
...Sister Zhang had also practiced the Dongxu Lingyan and was currently facing a bottleneck.
Moreover, her Yuanling Dao body was most suited for the Tiangang Dishan Bianhua.
This Baihua Lingcha would be extremely beneficial for her.
Their eyes exchanged glances, while the others looked on with a mix of annoyance and amusement.
They had two thoughts:
First, the Jiu Shan Sect was indeed poor, so poor that they couldn't even afford to drink two cups of tea themselves.
Second...
With such poverty, this sister was still willing to share.
Looking at Zheng Fa, they couldn't help but laugh even less...
...
The Yaochi Dao Guo clapped her hands and pointed at Zheng Fa and Sister Zhang, instructing a nearby Yaochi female cultivator, "Bring a pot of Baihua Lingcha for Zheng Fa."
Upon hearing this, Zheng Fa didn't decline but cupped his hands in gratitude, "Thank you, esteemed immortal. I'm ashamed; I don't know how to address you..."
The Yaochi Dao Guo smiled, "My Dao name is Baihua, and this Baihua Lingcha is my creation."
Seeing Zheng Fa respectfully bow to her, she felt pleased and treated him equally.
The Taishang Dao's Li Shangxian introduced himself casually, "We've had dealings among the five sects for a long time, so we're familiar with each other. You just don't know a few of us. My surname is Li, and my Dharma name at Leiyin Temple is Zhixu."
"Do you know the ones from Haorishan and Tianhe Sect?"
Zheng Fa was taken aback; he indeed knew who they were:
The immortal Luo he had met.
And the sect leader Yan, who looked a lot like Yan Wushuang.
He greeted them one by one, and the four Dao Guo cultivators, whether serious or not, returned the courtesy.
At this moment, even Wuzhi, who had lost his prayer beads, found it hard to be angry—
Since the old monk Zhixu had stopped making moves, from the moment Zheng Fa entered this Xiaguang Island, he had been regarded as a true... Dao Guo cultivator.
Was the Baihua Linglu not precious?
Then why hadn’t they seen the Baihua Fairy offer a pot to all these people standing around?
It seemed that giving it to Dao Guo cultivators wasn't that precious; it could even earn some goodwill.
But giving it to them might just be a loss...
...
While sipping tea, the five sects' Dao Guo exchanged pleasantries, as if they hadn't seen each other in ages.
Zheng Fa was quite aware of the situation, listening to them talk about events and people from who knows how many years ago, and he dared not show impatience.
It was Li Shangxian from the Taishang Dao who snorted and said, "Enough with the nonsense."
"Are we so idle in the five sects?"
Zheng Fa immediately felt a surge of respect for him: this person seemed straightforward... and with such a personality, he must be quite strong.
Sure enough, the Baihua Fairy's expression turned a bit awkward, but she quickly smiled again, "The alliance of the five sects was proposed by me, Yaochi..."
Zheng Fa had no knowledge of this.
"You five know... a great calamity is approaching."
Zheng Fa's expression grew serious.
"Once we condense our Dao Guo and achieve the status of scattered immortals, we will face nine scattered immortal tribulations, each one a matter of life and death."
Because they believed Zheng Fa had inherited the Demon Emperor's legacy, the Baihua Fairy began to speak of secrets Zheng Fa had never heard before.
"The Taishang Dao's predecessors once said that cultivators owe debts to heaven and earth, hence the numerous tribulations."
"To spread the Dao to the world is to repay the debts to heaven and earth."
"Our scattered immortal tribulations can only be mitigated, or even easily passed through."
He felt as if he had stumbled upon something extraordinary.
Seeing the other four Dao Guo cultivators remain calm, Zheng Fa began to act as if he were completely unfazed...
But inside, he was genuinely astonished; this seemed different from the assumptions he and Tang Lingwu had made about Dao Guo.
Moreover, he still couldn't grasp the connection between this and the great calamity.
(End of this chapter)
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Chapter 391: A New Test, Since Ancient Times
It seemed that Zheng Fa's previous demeanor had given the Baihua Fairy and the others the impression that he truly possessed the foundation of Dao Guo.
Thus, when discussing matters of Dao Guo, they did not shy away from him.
But at this moment, Zheng Fa was filled with confusion, though he showed none on his face, instead listening intently while putting on an act—his eyes bright, smiling, nodding.
The Baihua Fairy continued, "This is the origin of our five sects and the root of our disputes."
As Zheng Fa listened, the more he thought about it, the more wrong it felt!
If it weren't for the modern research and Tang Lingwu's sudden insight, Zheng Fa might not have been so puzzled.
According to the Baihua Fairy, spreading the Dao and repaying heaven and earth to accumulate merit and lessen tribulations seemed to explain the current state of the Xuanwei Realm.
But there were many questions within this:
The most contradictory point was, if heaven and earth viewed cultivators as thieves, even suppressing the path of cultivation, then why would they favor the act of spreading the Dao?
On the other hand, if spreading the Dao would be rewarded, then the more cultivators there were, the better. So... why were there great calamities and a decline in spiritual energy?
Moreover, Zheng Fa had begun to understand the essence of spiritual energy—this thing, in his view, was not a consumable resource.
Since it wasn't a consumable resource, the Baihua Fairy's claim of repaying heaven and earth fundamentally didn't hold water.
As he reached this conclusion, he found himself unable to maintain his act, even furrowing his brow in confusion.
After a moment of contemplation, he suddenly felt that someone in the hall had been watching him all along. When he looked up, he found the Baihua Fairy and the others gazing at him with deep meaning, their eyes filled with scrutiny.
At this moment, even a high-quality man like Zheng Fa couldn't help but curse inwardly:
Damn!
These people weren't just wary of him; they were outright suspicious!
Due to the death of the Great Freedom Demon Emperor, they naturally had some apprehension about a life-and-death struggle.
But... who said that only through combat could one discern a person's strength?
Suppose you were a slacker attending an international mathematicians' conference; just a few casual conversations could reveal that you were merely a handsome, tall, temporary security guard.
In the system of the Xuanwei Realm, the higher your strength, the more understanding you had of cultivation. Conversely, the stronger you were, the better you could discern truth from falsehood, and your words would cut straight to the essence of cultivation!
You could reveal your capabilities without fighting; just a few words would make it clear to everyone.
Looking at the Baihua Fairy's flawless smile, Zheng Fa no longer found her approachable—this was a trap, inviting him to jump in!
Zheng Fa understood this in his heart, still frowning and remaining silent.
But the Baihua Fairy showed no signs of letting him off the hook: "Zheng Fa, do you have any insights? I am all ears."
As soon as she said this, the atmosphere in the hall became even more peculiar. At this moment, even the dullest person could see—this was yet another blatant test.
Sister Zhang looked at Zheng Fa, one hand gripping her Qingjing bamboo, the other holding Zheng Fa's hand, trembling slightly.
Zheng Fa certainly understood her anxiety.
The situation was now tenfold more perilous than before—earlier, they could still escape relatively easily outside the island.
But now, who knew what dangers lurked within this magnificent palace and the majestic sea of clouds?
The five sects wouldn't simply abandon their suspicions about him...
The Baihua Fairy's actions were akin to digging a pit and inviting him to jump in; if he revealed any weakness in his words, escaping would be difficult!
Wuzhi and the other disciples of Leiyin Temple couldn't help but show expressions of amusement, seemingly eager to hear Zheng Fa's so-called insights.
Xie Qingxue bit her lip, her eyes filled with worry, yet she dared not move, only feeling anxious.
Li Shangxian from the Taishang Dao sat up straight, his squinted eyes slightly opening.
The old monk lowered his gaze, concealing the sharpness in his eyes.
The sect leader was watching closely, wanting to test the truth behind the Demon Emperor's legacy.
Everyone was waiting for Zheng Fa to speak.
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