Dao Lord: Starting from a Top-grade Golden Core

He then spoke to Xuzhuang alone. "Xu the Kid, if you have nowhere to go in Weiyun Immortal City, just head over to Han Yuan Cave."

Not long after Zhong Shenxiu shattered the Inverted Heaven and Earth and the Immoral Taoist escaped from the powerful robber with his Wine Immortal Gourd, Sima Zongfa, Chang Su’Er, and Zhong Shenxiu had all departed for their own reasons, using their Escape Techniques. Thus, only Xuzhuang, Cen Fenghong, and Mi Yuan Dao remained.

Cen Fenghong was a secular nephew of the Jide Taoist. Mi Yuan Dao was currently cultivating in the Guangyuan Realm and also served as the Chief Steward at the Spirit Treasure Sect’s Treasure Pavilion in Weiyun Immortal City. Neither of them needed the Immoral Taoist to make arrangements for them. Xuzhuang, on the other hand, hadn’t left alone, and the Immoral Taoist wondered what his reasons were for lingering.

Xuzhuang simply gave a slight bow with his hands cupped and replied, "Please don’t worry, Zhenren. I have a place to go."

The Immoral Taoist nodded, then hesitated for a moment before pulling a scorched-black Five Qi Heroic Spirit Pouch from his sleeve. He sighed. "I promised this would protect you three times. That brute’s attack mostly destroyed it, leaving only a few minor functions. I might as well just give it to you, kid."

He handed over the Five Qi Heroic Spirit Pouch. "If you just leave this lying around, it will naturally gather the five qi. If there’s enough spiritual energy, it can condense a strand of Five Elements Spirit Essence in as little as eighty-one days. I expect it should be somewhat useful for your cultivation."

This function was originally part of the Five Qi Heroic Spirit Pouch’s internal formations, which automatically absorbed the five qi to replenish its power. But Saint Fan of Calamity’s attack destroyed most of those formations, leaving only the ability to condense Spiritual Essence.

Xuzhuang accepted the Five Qi Heroic Spirit Pouch without hesitation. The Immoral Taoist added, "I won’t be able to go to the Profound Yellow Realm anytime soon. I’m sure you have your own way back, kid, but I still feel I owe you."

He mulled it over for a moment, then said, "When the Divination Pavilion opens in the future, you can come find me, kid. No matter how taboo the subject, I’ll give you a free reading."

"Then I thank you, Zhenren." Xuzhuang smiled faintly, tucked the Five Qi Heroic Spirit Pouch into his sleeve, and said, "In that case, I shall take my leave."

The Immoral Taoist waved his hand dismissively. Once Xuzhuang and the other two had departed, he turned around and spat, "The Innate Demon Sect! Those damn scoundrels! I’ll remember this score."

The Jide Taoist nodded. "The calamity arts he cultivates are rare even within the Innate Demon Sect. It shouldn’t be hard to find out who he is."

The Immoral Taoist snorted coldly and fell silent. The two of them didn’t leave right away, instead waiting for a short while. A bamboo basket suddenly flew out from the Celestial River Moon Cave, revealing Da Ji Zhenren, Great Evil Zhenren, and the rest of their party. Aside from Pang Ban, everyone was accounted for.

The moment he saw them, Jide Taoist’s face fell. "Da Ji, Great Evil," he asked, "did you run into trouble?"

Great Evil Zhenren was about to speak when Da Ji Zhenren held him back. His brows furrowed slightly as he asked, "You wouldn’t be referring to that master from the Innate Demon Sect, would you?"

The Immoral Taoist exclaimed, "So you ran into him trying to rob people, too?"

"Robbery?" Da Ji Zhenren said. "He did force me to trade him for a Cyan Tribulation Pearl Fruit, but I wouldn’t exactly call it robbery."

"What? The damn thief!" The Immoral Taoist suddenly understood and cursed, "He must have known this Purple Tribulation Pearl Fruit of mine was far too useful, and that I’d never hand it over, so he just attacked me directly..."

A Purple Tribulation Pearl Fruit can ward off calamities and disasters for a full three thousand six hundred years. Not only is that two thousand four hundred years longer than a Cyan Tribulation Pearl Fruit, but once you’ve consumed a Cyan one, you can never use a Purple one.

In reality, this meant the value of a Purple Tribulation Pearl Fruit was far greater than three times that of a Cyan one.

"He attacked you directly and tried to steal it?" Great Evil Zhenren’s expression flickered. Only now did he understand why the Immoral Taoist had sent such an urgent message for them to meet up.

Before the Immoral Taoist could answer, the Jide Taoist asked in a low voice, "And what about the boy with the Yuan Gu Mingkong Saber technique?"

The Yuan Gu Mingkong Saber was a vicious weapon from the Innate Demon Sect’s past, a powerful Dharma treasure that had been refined to its true form. For Pang Ban to practice its techniques and claim to have no connection to the Innate Demon Sect was something no one would believe.

He was asking about Pang Ban. Da Ji Zhenren shook his head. "I know what you’re implying. Young Pang Ban’s background is clean. He is definitely not a pawn of the Innate Demon Sect..."

Great Evil Zhenren cut in, "But that expert from the Innate Demon Sect saw through his background and abducted him without a word of explanation."

"I see." Jide Taoist frowned. After a brief discussion with the Immoral Taoist, the latter tossed over a porcelain vial. "We can’t be short on guests for the Divination Pavilion’s grand opening. Since that expert forced you to trade away a Cyan Tribulation Pearl Fruit, take this one to make up for it."

Great Evil Zhenren snatched the porcelain vial and grinned. "Well now, Immoral. You’re finally acting with the grace of a Temple Master."

The Immoral Taoist snorted and changed the subject. "When that man forced you to trade the Cyan Tribulation Pearl Fruit, did he give you a name?"

Da Ji Zhenren frowned. "Immoral, you brat, that man’s cultivation is already past the second calamity. He cultivates calamity arts, and his Divine Techniques are terrifying. Don’t tell me you’re still thinking of revenge."

Great Evil Zhenren chimed in, "The Yi Daoist lineage is just you two brothers, and you haven’t even passed down your teachings yet. Don’t be in such a rush to get yourself killed."

𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

The Immoral Taoist flew into a rage. "You’re the one in a hurry to die! I get slapped in the face for no reason, and I can’t even ask who did it?"

Da Ji Zhenren shook his head and didn’t argue further. "The man called himself Saint Fan of Calamity."

The Immoral Taoist’s brow furrowed deeply. "Saint Fan of Calamity? That name sounds so familiar... Have you heard it before?"

Da Ji and Great Evil Zhenren thought for a moment before shaking their heads. A look of suspicion crossed the Immoral Taoist’s face as he muttered, "It couldn’t be the one I’m thinking of, could it?"

As if prompted by the Immoral Taoist’s words, the Jide Taoist suddenly jolted and cried out, "Saint Fan of Calamity!"

Da Ji Zhenren called out, "Jide, you have a lead?"

The Jide Taoist’s brow twitched violently. "Eighteen hundred years ago, having just formed a Top-grade Golden Core, Saint Fan of Calamity first rose to prominence in the Cyan Sky Realm as a Loose Cultivator."

Inside Da Ji Zhenren’s bamboo basket, Li Chengzhen frowned slightly.

Jide Taoist continued, "In the three hundred years that followed, Saint Fan of Calamity carved a bloody path for himself. On his way from the Golden Core realm to the peak of the Nascent Soul realm, he killed nearly half of the era’s True Disciples from every major sect in the Cyan Sky Realm."

"He especially drew their ire when he defeated the top prodigy of the Spirit Treasure Sect’s generation, crippling his cultivation and provoking the wrath of the sect’s Zhenren."

"After that, Saint Fan of Calamity vanished without a trace from the Cyan Sky Realm. At the time, everyone said that a Zhenren from the Spirit Treasure Sect had ignored the rules and killed him..."

"What?" Great Evil Zhenren cried out. "Are you saying that in the fifteen hundred years, at most, since he reached the Primordial Spirit realm, he’s already passed two calamities?!"

"Damn it, it really is him. A monster who cultivates calamity arts..." The Immoral Taoist’s face was grim. Great Evil Zhenren turned to him. "Immoral, you can’t afford to provoke this man. The ’Yang-True’ trial isn’t so easy to pass. You should just wait for him to die under the Three Calamities."

The Immoral Taoist raged, "Cut the crap! I have my own plans!"

Great Evil Zhenren felt that his well-intentioned advice had earned him a harsh rebuke from the old coot, and anger flared within him. Both were cultivators of great seniority, but they acted like children, bickering nonstop once they started. Seeing this, Da Ji Zhenren shook his head and turned to Jide Taoist.

"In the last ten thousand years, the Innate Demon Sect has rarely bared its fangs, but its fearsome reputation lingers. Now that they have produced such a monstrous figure, I truly believe it’s best not to provoke them."

Jide Taoist nodded. "Rest assured, I know what I’m doing."

Da Ji Zhenren’s expression relaxed a little. Among the four of them, none truly considered any other to be their superior in the divinatory arts. But if they were to be honest, the Immoral Taoist possessed a unique gift for prognostication: he could always see incredibly far into the future. That was why his position as Temple Master wasn’t entirely without merit.

However, when it came to reliability, the Jide Taoist was by far the most mature and level-headed. Hearing his words, Da Ji Zhenren felt a bit more relieved.

——

Meanwhile, back in Weiyun Immortal City, Xuzhuang had declined Mi Yuan Dao’s invitation. After parting ways with him and Cen Fenghong for the time being, he arrived alone before a grand and solemn eight-story treasure tower.

Tai Su Pavilion!