Chapter 540

Chapter 540: Taishan Qi Refinement

Half a month later, when Li Hui left the Golden Luan Great Thousand Cave and returned to Stone City, he found the place deserted, with only a few Jin Tian Sect cultivators present.

Seeing someone emerge from the gate, these cultivators hurriedly said, “You’re quite lucky, with only two hours left before the cave closes. The exploration of the Yuan Chen Heavenly Mansion caused too much damage, and the masters have decided to wait for the next opening to fully unravel it. Cultivators from other continents have already returned.”

“Oh? Did Yan Lu and her group from the Heavenly Hero Sect return too?” Li Hui asked casually.

“Ah! You’re talking about Yan Lu from the Heavenly Hero Sect. They just set off three days ago, probably to visit friends on other continents,” one Jin Tian Sect cultivator replied, recognizing Li Hui. “Right! You must be Li Yingjun of the Heavenly Talisman Sect. The master left a message saying he sent your disciples to where they needed to go, so you don’t need to worry. He also advised you to quickly go to the sea to settle the cause and effect, stating that the longer you delay, the more dangerous it becomes.”

“Thank you, senior brother, for the information!” Li Hui clasped his fists, transforming into a streak of shadow as he ascended to the sky.

Returning to Taishan from high above was very quick. With each step, he pulled closer to the Other Shore. Along the way, he crushed ten pieces of high-grade Miao Jade to accelerate his speed, reaching the peak of Taishan in just three hours.

With such speed, it would only take about twenty days to weave through Wutu, and even if he accounted for the entire sea area, he could travel a great circle in half a year.

Li Hui did not hurry to cultivate but stood at the mountain’s peak, observing changes in the world’s fate. He murmured to himself, “The summer emperor clings to life, but in three days, he will breathe his last. Wu Zhao and the crown prince have fallen into the hands of the emperor’s twenty-third brother. No, this person is just a puppet; the real mastermind behind the scenes is the Thirteenth Prince.”

Li Hui cleared away layers of fog to discern the heavenly mechanism, sneering, “What a cunning plan, and he stays calm. He is indeed closer to that position than the other princes, first pushing orphans and widows out to test the waters, and once the arrangements are solidified, he’ll naturally ascend to the throne! He might even gain a reputation for being virtuous. Ha! Unfortunately, I have already concealed the heavenly mechanism from Mei Niang, even tying the entire Heavenly Talisman Sect to it. No rush, still a hidden dragon pattern; it will take a year and a half before I get the chance to soar to the heavens. At that time, I might need to engage in a battle to establish the future situation.”

Having inspected the fate of the Great Xia Dynasty and the luck of the Heavenly Talisman Sect, he noted that Yao’er and the others were still at the borders of the Barbarian Nation, likely trying to find ways to deal with that influential barbarian tribe.

Li Hui had already informed Yao’er of the methods to use, knowing dangers were inevitable, but they could not grow without facing tribulations. He felt reassured because he had left multiple layers of backup, including the azure bull and the seal for the Tianyan Sun and Moon Dharma Wheel, not to mention the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Demonic Talisman handed to Ao Chonglin.

With the unity of the demon hearts and the protection of talismans, if they still couldn’t make a name for themselves, they might as well bury themselves deep underground and avoid the world!

The heavenly mechanism began to show signs of chaos, with the world’s fate fluctuating and changing every moment. Li Hui shook his head, knowing that even with his keen vision, he could not see through it, and it was already quite difficult to perceive the fate of the Great Xia Dynasty to that extent.

He withdrew his gaze, sitting cross-legged as he slowly immersed his spirit into his dantian.

The peak of Taishan was desolate; this place was neither a cave heaven nor a rich land and carried a hint of murky qi. To put it bluntly, it was a location for expelling impurities and waste. Below, there were the Wishing Fish and the Demon Lake, which even Great Powers fear approaching, afraid of dying due to entanglements of major causality.

Li Hui had to move forward, burdened by numerous causes and effects; what harm would an additional layer do? He was not one to stir up trouble but was very skilled at escaping danger. If one wished to survive, seizing the opportunity was paramount, regardless of whether it was a good or bad ladder; first, ascend to higher ground!

Before long, Taishan roared with “Booms.” The mountain body grew at a shocking pace, instantly breaking through nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine zhang and reaching ten thousand zhang, becoming uncontrollable.

“Ten thousand two hundred zhang, ten thousand three hundred zhang, ten thousand four hundred zhang…”

Li Hui felt as if his entire being was weightless; his five organs felt like bubbles, and his flesh and blood intertwined with the wind and clouds.

To his surprise, he discovered curse power accumulating in several of his acupoints, having settled for over twenty days. If he had not discovered it and let it keep accumulating, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

“That was close! Curse power really is hard to guard against; the Undying Curse still left behind a backup in that situation, waiting for me to show any abnormalities before making a move.” Li Hui was very cautious, taking out his possessions to examine them carefully.

Indeed, being cautious paid off; within the Cloud-Brush Dragon Claw Technique, he found strange signs. He hurriedly snuffed out any ill omens, cleansing all corrupt and bizarre energies.

After repeated confirmations with no issues, Li Hui finally breathed a sigh of relief, allowing the Qi of Taiqing to become even more complete while comprehending the secrets of the thirty-three layers of clear qi.

Three days later, distant sounds of “dong dong” echoed, heralding the summer emperor’s passing!

Even though the summer emperor used all means available, even having more blood relatives be his shield against calamity, he still could not stop his body from decay, and even his three souls and seven spirits were shattered, leaving him in a daze. The esteemed scholars of the court no longer wished to help him in evil deeds, having to abandon this mediocre emperor who would leave little trace in history.

Mediocre? In truth, every summer emperor was not mediocre; they simply expended most of their energy on power struggles, leaving little strength to expand their territories.

With this summer emperor’s end, the Great Xia dynasty would surely plunge into chaos, with the royal family’s factions engaging in infighting and slaughter. Without needing to see the national fortune, one could already tell the cycle of performers; it would certainly be chaotic for a year or two. It would be unusual for the Yin Moon Dynasty not to exploit this opportunity to stir trouble!

Li Hui glanced upwards, continuing to circulate the Qi of Taiqing within his body. On the fifth day, after completing one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred cycles, he finally stood up.

Profound qi required nine cycles, but the Qi of Taiqing was inherently light, becoming lighter as it compressed, making it extremely quick and efficient during the circulation of the zodiac.

One hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred was exactly the number of the Yuan Meeting, the ultimate count of all things’ evolution.

Li Hui felt that reaching this count in qi refinement was just right; lacking one cycle would be insufficient, while adding one would exceed it. He stood up feeling spirited, as if washing away all worldly burdens, floating like a celestial being.

“Really?” He focused his gaze far off, discovering that Taishan had risen to thirty-three thousand zhang high in the sky, over three times its original height.

This was still the result of Old Li burying the Infinite Calamity Sword to suppress things; if one day he truly probes the Azure Sky, who knows what calamity will occur!

“Raising so much after just one qi refinement; if I practice a few more times, won’t I pierce the heavens?” Li Hui shook his head, “No, I need to find more Dai Character Stele.”

Finding the Dai Character Stele would be a matter for the future, but right now, he needed to make more arrangements on Taishan.

The previously buried Boundless Cliff Thunder Peak Talisman and Infinite Calamity Sword were on the verge of being unable to contain the murky qi. Fortunately, before leaving the Golden Luan Great Thousand Cave, Li Hui exchanged a lot of good items with the bug eggs from the Golden Luan, so setting up several talisman formations to suppress the murky qi wouldn’t be too difficult.

“The real challenge is in restoring the treasure cabinet. Previously, I used Enamel Dragon Crystals as the array’s material and the Jade Heart of the Earth Court as the core. Redoing this requires careful consideration of every aspect.” Li Hui really wanted to use the Dai Character Stele as the core of the treasure cabinet, but that was impossible since it could not be pried loose. After repeated contemplation, he decided to visit Huangting Mountain, which supposedly had a high-level cultivator trading fair. If that didn’t work, he would look for demon cultivators and rob them; that should work!