Cultivation: Fortune by Lots

From Lei Jun's personal perspective, he thought that Chen Yi was not a spy planted in the Celestial Master Mansion by the Blood River Sect.

Back then, he had witnessed Chen Yi using the Bloody River Sword Qi to help fight off several disciples of the Yellow Sky Sect.

Judging from the other's behavior and expression, it looked more like Chen Yi regarded the Blood River Secret Skill as his own secret trump card, used to boost his power and as a hidden weapon in battle to take the enemy by surprise.

*That was why Chen Yi had kept it secret.*

On the other hand, all sects in this world placed great importance on exclusive movement techniques, and the Blood River Sect had always had a terrible reputation. For Chen Yi, the fewer people knew he had mastered the Blood River Secret Skill, the better.

It was exactly because of this that, when Lei Jun first saw the other train in the Blood River Secret Skill, he didn't bother to report him.

By comparison, he was more curious about how Chen Yi managed to master the Blood River Secret Skill.

After all, this world's exclusivity of movement techniques wasn't just sectarian prejudice but stemmed from the fact that if a cultivator's foundational heritage and learned magics didn't match, at best their cultivation would be hindered and they wouldn't be able to unleash a spell's full power, at worst they might go mad and die, losing their very Tao.

Apparently Chen Yi did have some unique skills.

*But man, he sure was unlucky.*

As the direct disciple of High Merit Elder Yao Yuan, second only to Lei Jun among the batch of true inheritors, Chen Yi was now regarded by many elders of the Celestial Master Mansion as a seeded contender for greatness.

If this happened at another time, Chen Yi being caught having secretly learned the Blood River Secret Skill wouldn't have led to harsh consequences.

At least, he wouldn't have been instantly struck down; more likely he would've been locked up first, given a chance to explain and be investigated, and the final decision would wait until his legitimate master, Elder Yao, returned to the mountain.

But as luck would have it, not long ago, the Blood River Sect had stirred up major trouble near Dragon Tiger Mountain.

Now, Chen Yi was in deep shit with no way to talk his way out.

Originally, his caution had allowed him to keep it hidden.

But when the Young Celestial Master Li Zhengxuan left Dragon Tiger Mountain with the Celestial Master's Sword, the external enemies regathered their strength and infiltrated to launch attacks on the mountain.

Although the Celestial Master Mansion could still keep the situation under control, things got unpredictable on a personal level.

At such a critical, dangerous moment, even with fellow disciples around as witnesses, Chen Yi was forced, for safety's sake, to use his trump card to confront the enemy.

And just like that, the secret was exposed.

"Wouldn't have guessed that this Junior Brother Chen… All right, Chen Yi—even he was hiding a secret like this," Wang Guiyuan clicked his tongue in amazement.

The other brother disciples standing nearby looked equally stumped, "I've heard he's pretty strong, already at Foundation Establishment Perfection, and even those in a similar realm couldn't beat him. He's injured and killed many brothers, and made his escape down the Golden Palace Creek waterway. Even if he trained Bloody River skills, shouldn't be that damned powerful, right?"

Logically, if someone's heritage and fighting arts didn't line up, it should hinder a cultivator's strength.

Stealing the Blood River Secret Skill was just Chen Yi's little secret; there had to be something bigger going on with him… Lei Jun pondered.

Chen Yi being able to hide his Blood River Secret Skill so well must've been thanks to certain other factors helping him cover it up.

*The only question is, did his master Yao Yuan and the others buy it too?*

Lei Jun had roughly figured out what that "perfectly neutral lot" fortune at Golden Palace Creek meant in detail.

If he had gone to the Golden Palace Creek ferry, just happened to witness Chen Yi's Bloody River Secret Skill being revealed, or was sent over by the elders to hunt Chen Yi down, he might've ended up clashing directly with Chen Yi.

By common sense, even if Chen Yi had more than just the Bloody River Secret Skill up his sleeve, he was still just a Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Second Heaven Layer.

Lei Jun, with his higher realm, would absolutely be able to crush him.

But according to the lot, he might have ended up revealing treasures like the Breathing Soil Banner.

If he were being rational, it was either Chen Yi would have been helped by some other master, or the "big secret" on Chen Yi was way more formidable—something not just some random magic artifact.

As for the Sixth-Rank Opportunity mentioned by the perfectly neutral lot, according to the description, Lei Jun would only get it if he really showed his skills, otherwise he'd come up empty-handed.

So most likely, that Sixth-Rank Opportunity wasn't some wild chance.

It was more probable that after going all out, Lei Jun would have knocked something of value out of Chen Yi.

Judging by the rank, it probably wasn't Chen Yi's biggest secret.

Whatever the case, Lei Jun chose the moderately good lot and came to the Rear Mountain Ancestral Tomb.

And so, the two missed each other completely.

Of course, the Celestial Master Mansion was sure to issue a warrant for Chen Yi soon, treating him as a traitor no different than the Yellow Sky Sect.

But as for whether Lei Jun would ever encounter him again, that was another matter.

"So, Chen Yi… is he a spy for the Blood River Sect? Or is he gonna just defect to the Yellow Sky Sect?" someone asked.

The crowd exchanged uncertain glances; nobody knew the answer.

The Golden Palace Creek incident, which had led to the injury and death of several true inheritors of the Celestial Master Mansion, caused a big stir.

But in the grand scheme of things, the commotion was barely a blip.

First, because major betrayals had already occurred thanks to the Yellow Sky Sect, and people had kind of gotten used to it.

Second, with the constant battles and heavy casualties, everyone's attention was on bigger events.

The Celestial Master Seal might reappear.

This news gradually spread, reaching the younger disciples as well.

The Celestial Master Seal—one of the three great treasures—was, without a doubt, on everyone's mind.

The latest reports said that practically all the peaks near Qingtian Mountain had been flattened.

Rumor had it that the Young Celestial Master Li Zhengxuan and Elder Ziyang had already begun to gain the upper hand against Vajra Temple's High Elder, Master Longjia.

Some even said the Young Celestial Master had a real shot at reclaiming the Celestial Master Seal.

But the mansion's own Supreme Elder Li Song and the Yellow Sky Sect's Supreme Elder Yu Qingling were fighting while also heading toward Qingtian Peak.

The two veteran Taoist Talisman Sect elders were about evenly matched, but Yu Qingling was aggressive while Li Song was trying to block her; one pushing, one forced to react—Li Song was inevitably at a slight disadvantage.

As a result of Yu Qingling's interference, the Young Celestial Master just barely missed getting the Celestial Master Seal—a duck that was basically in hand suddenly flew off.

The crowd, the chaos—everything was bedlam.

Over at Qingtian Peak, it was already a no-man's-land.

Rumors, as they trickled down, all but died out here.

Those still at Dragon Tiger Mountain, disciples of the Celestial Master Mansion, were all uptight and worried.

Lei Jun and his brother disciples were some of the few exceptions.

"Sigh, war's unpredictable death at every turn. Who knows who'll fall because of this battle?"

Lei Jun remained calm, while Wang Guiyuan was even more so, with only a hint of melancholy, "Cultivation's hard enough as it is, but fighting for dominance? Just makes everything even more dangerous."

Lei Jun said, "The Celestial Master Seal is a huge deal, no surprise the senior brothers care so much."

Wang Guiyuan nodded first, then shook his head, "That's true, but so many times, the reasons we fight have got nothing to do with something as important as the Celestial Master Seal. Still, folks insist on fighting to the death—what's the point?"

Lei Jun, "…Yeah, you're right, senior brother."

No matter how fierce the struggle outside, it didn't disturb the peaceful times at the Rear Mountain Ancestral Tomb.

Ironically, it was Elder Xin, the guardian of this place, who broke Lei Jun and Wang Guiyuan's tranquility.

"It's complicated. Since we're guarding the ancestral ground, we all need to be extra cautious, just in case."

Elder Xin ordered, "I'll set up a Ritual Altar, adding another layer of protection to the rear mountain's prohibited ground. You eight, spread out at the eight gates, burn incense and light the lanterns."

The disciples all obeyed, gathering the necessary magic artifacts and, according to Du, Jing, Death, Shock, Open, Rest, Life, Wound, each took up position at one of the eight directions.

Lei Jun arrived at the Du Gate and, under Elder Xin's guidance, arranged the magical sword, dharma lamp, incense burner, talisman decree, and other magic artifacts.

After he finished, his eyes shone as he gazed toward Qingtian Peak.

The moderately good lot the fortune referenced: wait for the right moment.

Now, with the chance to be alone, *was the moment approaching…?* Lei Jun wondered.

He turned for another look, and saw sprays of flowing light flicker in the distant valley at the rear mountain.

As the points of light twined, it was as if stars had come out in the daytime, dazzling like the night sky, layered and intricate, wondrous beyond compare.

Amid the "Star River," an old Taoist in dark red robes soared through the void, his every stride accompanied by shifting star-lights, all stirred by his mana.

This was precisely the true inheritance of the Celestial Master Mansion at Dragon Tiger Mountain, named the Star-stepping Spell.

Just as the cultivators of the Lower Three Heavens in the mansion chose their life-bound talisman skills—popular options being the Golden Barrier Talisman, Thunderclap Talisman, Wind Riding Talisman, Evil-Repelling Talisman, and various spirit talismans—

For Middle Three Heavens cultivators, the hottest choice for life-bound magic was precisely this Star-stepping Spell.

Now Elder Xin stood, head crowned and body ringed by "Star River," while spirit talismans fluttered around his feet, weaving into a three-tiered dharma altar.

More spirit talismans spread outward, gradually forming a complete ritual altar temple.

Unlike the internal, imaginary daoist grounds built up by Lei Jun and the rest, Elder Xin's was actually constructed in the physical world by a host of shining spirit talismans.

This wasn't some duel-of-magic technique, but rather the supernatural skill possessed by Talisman Sect cultivators who reached the Fifth Heaven Layer Tao Palace Realm.

It was called the Talisman Array Daoist Ground.

No need to set it up beforehand; wherever a person stood, the spot became a daoist ground, filled with manifold wonders.

Elder Xin's instructions to have Lei Jun, Wang Guiyuan, and the others set up magic artifacts all around was just another layer of precaution to further enhance the spiritual nature of the altar.

Once everything was set, Elder Xin sat cross-legged on the top of the three-tiered altar formed by intersecting spirit talismans, quietly centering himself and regulating his breath.

Lei Jun and the others did the same.

But after sitting for a short time, Lei Jun suddenly noticed that the marks of his twin Celestial Master Seals were stirring.

He checked Elder Xin first.

The elder seemed completely oblivious.

Lei Jun watched for a while longer and saw that Elder Xin and everyone else remained entirely unaware.

*Suddenly inspired, Lei Jun glanced around the Rear Mountain Ancestral Tomb, guessing the environment here actually helped shield him from prying eyes.*

With that, Lei Jun carefully gave it another try.

The twin Celestial Master Seal marks opened up the "passage" leading to the True One Altar Cave Heaven.

And still, Elder Xin and the rest didn't notice a thing.

Lei Jun relaxed, let his spiritual soul leave his body, and entered the True One Altar Cave Heaven.

But as soon as he entered, something felt off.

Someone else was trying, once again, to open another "passage" here.

This time, the other was about to succeed!

Lei Jun looked up and saw, at the top of the cave heaven, a sudden burst of light.

Within that glow, something like a sheet of white paper appeared.

In the center of the paper, there was a seal mark.

A Celestial Master Seal mark as well.

That white paper with its square seal imprint was like a portal flashing open, finally connecting the True One Altar Cave Heaven with the outer world—a gate soon ready to be pushed wide.

*There was a touch of the Confucian artistic conception to it. So, could it be the Chu Clan, Chu Yu and his people?*

Lei Jun's mind raced—should he pull his soul out of the cave heaven first or try to block that portal?

But before he could do anything, the white paper with the Celestial Master Seal mark suddenly trembled in midair.

Then, the light faded from the paper, and it drifted down like a powerless feather.

The paper was no longer a gate.

The "passage" they tried to open with the paper vanished as well.

The True One Altar Cave Heaven was once again empty, Lei Jun the only one inside.

*What the hell was that all about?*

Lei Jun was taken aback for the moment, watching as the paper floated down, coming to rest right in front of him.