Cultivation: Fortune by Lots

"The second message is about the Great Void Temple," Mu Yao continued. "Rumor has it that the Great Void Temple has shown signs of renewed activity, seeking to return from the vast sea to the shore. A new Buddhist has emerged within the temple, a prodigy with exceptional talent. After uniting the originally scattered Great Void Temple, he has begun to reorganize their forces."

Lei Jun raised his eyebrows slightly. He'd asked about the Great Void Temple incidentally. However, if Mu Yao's information were true, then the Great Tang would become very lively in the times ahead. It might not have a direct impact on the Celestial Master Mansion. As for the indirect effects, those were hard to predict.

"Although these are still unconfirmed reports, I am willing to trade with you," Lei Jun spoke calmly, offering the incomplete recipe for the Purifying Pill—the original version he had acquired before it was restored by the first layer of the True One Altar. He wasn't in a hurry for the Heavenly Primordial Qingjing Pill. The broken candlestick and the complete recipe for the Purifying Pill were both in his grasp.

This transaction was not like the previous trade of Soul Dispersion Essence for Radiant Sun Crystal, which had involved actual physical items and required a specific location and method of exchange. Lei Jun could directly provide the incomplete Purifying Pill recipe to Mu Yao. After receiving it, Mu Yao bade farewell and departed.

Lei Jun watched the myriad stars fade in the vast starry sky and fell into deep thought. Later, his thoughts withdrew from the Celestial Book.

Originally, he had planned to meet with his master, Yuan Mobai, upon leaving the Supreme Pure Thunder Mansion Cave Heaven. But Yuan Mobai was in the High Merit Pavilion and seemed extraordinarily busy, with no spare time. Seeing this, Lei Jun did not disturb him and instead focused on his own cultivation. He was constantly refining the Great Five Elements Creation Qi within him. In his body, the fourth Tao Palace—the Western Spiritual Officer Palace—had already taken rudimentary form and was steadily solidifying.

「In the water towns of the South.」

Although it was deep winter, it was not as bitterly cold as the North, but there was a touch of chill in the air here. However, the waterside pavilion where Chu Yu lived remained as warm as spring throughout the year, always scenic and pleasant. She was dressed in simple home clothes and quietly read a book in the pavilion. That is until a special guest visited her Moon Chamber.

"Father," Chu Yu invited an elder to take a seat inside her chamber.

The elder possessed an elegant and gentle demeanor, with a refined and handsome face that was striking, inspiring admiration at first glance. He was none other than Chu Zhuoran, Elder Chu, the contemporary patriarch of the Chu Clan from the South, one of the Five Clans and Seven Families. He now sat opposite Chu Yu, and there was no sign of their previous disagreement.

But in fact, the two of them had indeed had a serious discussion before. It was after that very discussion that Chu Yu had left the Chu Family's ancestral lands and taken up residence in her current Moon Chamber. Currently, no one knew that Elder Chu had personally come to the Moon Chamber in secret, rather than summoning his youngest daughter, Chu Yu, back to their ancestral lands to meet.

"His Highness Prince Wu has been scheming for a long time, and things have finally reached this stage," Elder Chu said with a warm smile, looking at his youngest daughter. "When do you plan to set off?"

Chu Yu replied, "Everything is ready. After this visit with you, Father, I will head north to join Her Majesty."

Elder Chu said, "Since the arrow is already nocked, it must be shot. Excellent, excellent." He looked at Chu Yu for a while and sighed softly. "To be honest, I hadn't expected you and the current Empress to be so congenial."

Chu Yu smiled. "I'd love to boast that my insight was good, that I foresaw this day.

"But the truth is... I initially just made two friends with similar interests. I also did not expect that the Great Tang would come to its current situation.

"Especially, I did not foresee that the late emperor would pass away so soon. Otherwise, if the Crown Prince had smoothly ascended the throne, it naturally wouldn't be Her Majesty the current Empress who took the great seat of power."

"Her Majesty the Empress..." Elder Chu's smile faded slightly. "She is truly no ordinary person. Quite extraordinary indeed."

Chu Yu's smile did not falter. "I shall refrain from discussing Her Majesty in your presence, Father. It neither befits the way friends interact, nor does it comply with the proprieties between sovereign and subject."

Far from being annoyed, Elder Chu's face brightened with a smile again, and he nodded gently. "Very well." He looked at his youngest daughter, whom he had always cherished, and said calmly, "Since you have chosen Her Majesty the Empress, naturally everything must prioritize Her Majesty. Let alone others, if one day Her Majesty the Empress decides to move against our Suzhou, you need not show any leniency on my account."

Spreading branches and striking roots. Even if it meant the left hand striking the right, or new trees vying with old ones for sunlight until the old trees withered, Elder Chu would not be concerned. As long as a tree of the Chu Family continued to stand tall.

Times change, and so do rivers and mountains. The Chu Clan of a thousand, or ten thousand years later, might not be the same Chu Clan as today. But as long as the lineage continued, his wish would be fulfilled. Life is full of changes and seldom goes according to one's wishes; the more one prepares, the more opportunities one has.

"Father, please take good care of yourself," Chu Yu bowed to her father.

Elder Chu smiled and nodded.

「Atop Dragon Tiger Mountain, Lei Jun continued his silent cultivation.」

Only after Yuan Mobai returned from the High Merit Pavilion did Lei Jun go to meet his master. First, he brought out the Thunderheart Furnace, newly acquired from the Supreme Pure Thunder Mansion Cave Heaven.

Upon seeing it, Yuan Mobai couldn't help but laugh. "This actually fell into your hands? It can be considered a stroke of karmic destiny."

Lei Jun said, "When I have some leisure later, I intend to ask for Master's guidance regarding it."

Then, he mentioned the information about the Yellow Sky Sect provided by Mu Yao.

After listening quietly, Yuan Mobai asked, "What do you think?"

Lei Jun said, "The clues are scarce, making it difficult to judge. There are many possibilities. However, if Disciple must guess now, two possibilities seem most likely..."

Yuan Mobai said, "The first is that some within the Yellow Sky Sect, seeing the increasingly tense relationship between those surnamed Li and those with other surnames within Our Sect, hope to unite with those of us in the Celestial Master Mansion who are successors from other surnames. Others, however, believe that everyone in the current Celestial Master Mansion—regardless of whether they are surnamed Li or not—is an enemy. These two conflicting judgments are likely causing internal disputes and divisions within their ranks."