“Hey!” Mei Qing suddenly shouted, golden lights radiating from his body. Both hands formed magical seals, assuming a stance as immovable as a mountain. He forcibly stabilized the violently raging true energy within his body, reined in his spiritual consciousness, and recalled his infant soul. Moments later, he opened his eyes, secretly thinking how dangerous that had been.
Mei Qing, now stabilized, carefully maintained the flow of true energy within, wary of another such incident, while cautiously observing his surroundings.
The sudden violent disturbance in his Daoist heart left Mei Qing puzzled. He wondered whether it was due to an opponent’s mind-influencing technique or if there was indeed a deep secret hidden in his heart.
In truth, he had long harbored suspicions about this body. Not only did strange thoughts often appear in his mind, but the numerous oddities during his cultivation were enough to provoke much speculation.
From being a congenital fool to a sudden awakening; from being said to be unable to cultivate to later possessing a pure yang body; from mysteriously entering the Dao and establishing a foundation to his inexplicable rapid progress; from the terrifying purple flame burning his body in his dreams to the recent bizarre incident of an ancient cauldron merging into his body…
If an ordinary person encountered even one of these events in a lifetime, it would be considered a rare tale indeed. Yet all these strange occurrences had befallen him. Could such a coincidence truly explain it?
There must be a great secret hidden within his body, perhaps?
Mei Qing dared not delve too deeply into these thoughts, fearing he might lose himself again. He forcibly redirected his attention to observing his immediate surroundings. In his view, the more he understood about his current situation, the better his chances of survival.
Compared to Liu Liu, Mei Qing’s perspective was vastly superior. Thus, while examining the area, he noticed several distinct differences.
The spiritual energy here was unimaginably dense and pure, far exceeding that of other places. The towering peak beside him was especially saturated with spiritual energy. Mei Qing could even sense droplets of moisture condensing on the rock face, each drop brimming with spiritual energy. Such a droplet, if taken outside, would surely incite fierce competition among cultivators.
What place was this? Could it truly be one of the legendary blessed lands said to rival heaven itself?
As he pondered, Mei Qing shifted his gaze to the inscriptions on the cliff wall. It read:
Thus, armies were raised to punish the unjust and quell rebellion.
Martial might eradicated violence, while culture restored innocence, and the hearts of the multitudes were won.
Mei Qing needed no further inspection. Just a few glances convinced him that this was indeed an authentic Jieshi stele inscription. Unlike the previous moment when the information surfaced unconsciously in his mind, this time he made the judgment consciously, based on his own understanding and knowledge of writing.
Jieshi had long been known as a “sacred mountain,” with deep connections to the Dao of immortality. Emperors of the Qin and Han dynasties had ascended this mountain, expressing their reverence for the Dao of immortality. However, since the Wei and Jin dynasties, its location had become a subject of debate, and this once-famous mountain had become lost to history.
Now, seeing this mountain before him, standing tall like a stone pillar, with inscriptions of ancient and serene calligraphy clearly bearing the style of Qin dynasty writing, Mei Qing was deeply astonished. He couldn’t understand how the Jieshi Mountain had come to be in such a mysterious place.
As he was still pondering, he heard the aged voice speak, “What exactly are you studying? How did you end up being neither Buddhist nor Daoist—your foundation in the Divine Thunder Technique is so unstable. Sigh, I never imagined you’d end up in such a state!”
“Who exactly are you?” Mei Qing called out loudly. “Why do you hide yourself so mysteriously? Are you ashamed to show your face?”
“I’ve already told you—you are me, and I am you. Still not willing to believe, huh?” The aged voice carried a note of emotion. “Time passes, and the world changes. It’s truly disheartening. But I wonder, how exactly have you lived these years?”
“I am me, and you are you. No matter who you are, don’t try to sound mysterious with those words. I won’t be moved by them.” Mei Qing replied calmly. “If you have something to say, please come out and speak plainly. Otherwise, please excuse me for not having the time to keep you company.”
“Hehe, no time to keep me company? Do you even know where you are? Besides, whether you are me or not isn’t for you to decide. Well then, you want to see me, don’t you? Then come up here!” After the aged voice spoke, Mei Qing suddenly found his vision darkened. When he looked again, a doorway had appeared on the cliff wall.
“If you want to know who you truly are, step through this door.” The voice chuckled. “I’m also curious to see what level of cultivation my body has reached.”
Mei Qing looked at the stone door on the cliff wall and coldly laughed, “You don’t need to put on these airs. Whether you’re Zhang San or Li Si, what does it matter to me? Do you really think that after hearing your ramblings, I would rush in eagerly to follow your instructions just to find out who I am? I am Mei Qing—was before, am now, and will be in the future. No matter what tricks you play, I won’t change.”
Upon hearing this, the aged voice was silent for a moment, then chuckled again. However, this time, the laughter carried a warmer tone.
“Rare, rare indeed. It’s truly rare. To still maintain such a composed will upon hearing such news is no easy feat. So, you refuse to enter and take a look?”
“Why not try?” Mei Qing replied indifferently. “When there’s nothing but mountains and seas, and I can’t fly to the heavens or burrow into the earth, with just this one door here, I might as well give it a try.”
With that, he strode forward and entered the door.
The voice seemed momentarily taken aback, then spoke with a slightly weakened tone, “If you’re going to enter anyway, why say all that?”
Mei Qing shook his head repeatedly, saying, “I’m entering this door because I want to see what tricks you have to play, not because I want to find out who you are. We are neither related nor acquainted, and I have no desire to get to know you. Besides, judging from your manner, you probably haven’t fared too well yourself. Getting to know you might not necessarily be a good thing.”
The aged voice, however, sounded somewhat surprised, “How did you guess I had some misfortunes? My cultivation is unparalleled in the entire world. If you received even a little of my guidance, the benefits would be immeasurable. Why then do you say it wouldn’t be a good thing? Moreover, I do have a master who taught me, and I haven’t even finished learning what he taught me. Why should I rush to learn your techniques? Besides, even if you are indeed a senior cultivator, shouldn’t you act more mysterious and profound? Why are you being so verbose?”
Upon hearing Mei Qing’s words, the voice couldn’t help but burst into laughter, “Marvelous, truly marvelous. Never thought I could take such a form. Well then, let’s say you’re right. But fine words alone are useless. Whether you truly have some skill, step inside and show me.”
Mei Qing, hearing this, said no more and strode into the stone door.
Liu Liu, who had been silently standing aside, saw Mei Qing step through the door, hesitated, unsure of what to do, then gritted his teeth and followed Mei Qing into the stone door.
As soon as Liu Liu entered, he was startled. Inside the door was a stone chamber. Though there were no lights, it was as bright as daylight, even brighter than outside. As the two entered, the stone door silently closed behind them.
Startled, Liu Liu looked around nervously, while Mei Qing remained calm, merely glancing around the room.
The chamber was extremely simple, with empty walls and not even a place to sit. Only in the center was a slightly raised stone platform.
“Hehe, you’re quite bold, coming in like this. Aren’t you afraid I might try something?” As they entered the room, the aged voice, still unknown in origin, echoed around them.
“Do you think I wouldn’t come in, and you’d be helpless?” Mei Qing replied impatiently.
From the moment he arrived, he had used all his cultivation to search for the source of the voice. Given the room’s dense spiritual energy and his own considerable cultivation and superior spiritual awareness, he should have been able to locate the source. Yet, after several attempts, he found nothing. Coupled with witnessing the other party’s ability to open a stone door from the cliff wall—though he couldn’t discern the method, he could sense that the other party had forcibly altered the stone wall’s structure using sheer cultivation power.
If the stone door had been hidden within the wall, operated by some mechanism, Mei Qing would naturally have been more cautious. But seeing the other party’s capabilities, he realized that dealing with him would be effortless for the other party. Therefore, Mei Qing relaxed his guard and acted freely.
Moreover, although he kept reminding himself that the other party was mysterious and spoke in riddles, he couldn’t shake a feeling of closeness, as if he were destined to be unharmed by this person.
Since there was no other path, the only option was to follow the other party’s arrangement and see what tricks they had in store.
“Hehe, if that’s the case, why are you secretly preparing that escape technique in your heart?” The aged voice mocked.
Mei Qing was greatly startled, feeling a sense of helplessness and failure.
He had secretly prepared the escape technique as a precaution, just in case he needed a way to retreat. He hadn’t expected the other party to detect even this.
“Strange that I can see you’re secretly preparing an escape technique?” The aged voice spoke leisurely. “I’ve already told you—you are me, and I am you. If I don’t know what I’m thinking, who would?”
Mei Qing was momentarily stunned, then shouted, “I said I don’t believe it. Even if you repeat it ten thousand times, I still won’t believe it. If you have any tricks to show me, just bring them out!”
The aged voice sounded somewhat surprised, “Such firm determination is indeed rare. Whether you believe or not, you’ll know soon enough. Now, let me start with a small test for you. How about that?”
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