Yellow Court Daoist

Celestials from the heavens ride clouds, plummeting towards the Primordial Gorge on billowing Qingyun.

Centuries, three or four hundred years, have passed.

The Primordial Gorge remains unchanged.

The roar of the waves persists, and the immortal energy lingers elusive.

Lu Qingfeng, with Lu Changsheng in tow, lands at Yellow Bull Mountain—Lu Qingfeng's cultivation site within the Primordial Gorge. Having visited a few times with his parents in previous years, Lu Changsheng is no stranger here.

"Master."

"Little Changsheng."

As they touch down, nine silhouettes, both old and young, emerge one after another from the cave abode. Indeed, it is the Nine Little ones of yesteryear.

After Lu Qingfeng shattered the twenty-seven layers of Array Mountain at the Heavenly Star Sect, the Nine Little ones were but greying elders at Foundation Establishment Peak.

Lu Qingfeng offered his guidance and enlightenment repeatedly, bestowing upon them Spirit Pills and miraculous elixirs; thus, their cultivation made leaps and bounds.

Now, they have all reached Core Formation.

They are no longer as they once were.

Cultivating within the Heavenly Star Sect under Lu Qingfeng's aegis, they now occupy positions that rival even the True Inheritors, equating to the sect's core elders. Anyone who meets them must show respect.

Lu Changsheng, frequenting Yellow Bull Mountain, has met the Nine Little ones numerous times and knows of the deep bond his father, uncle, and aunt shared with them from their humble beginnings.

He holds them in high esteem, hastening forward to pay his respects, "Nephew Changsheng greets all nine uncles and aunts."

"Little Changsheng has grown taller again."

"Little Changsheng, why didn't your sister Little Jing'er come with you?"

The Nine Little ones chatter away cheerfully, crowding around Lu Changsheng unchanged in nature.

"Little Nine."

"You lead Changsheng to his cave abode to settle down, and then show him around the Primordial Gorge."

Lu Qingfeng spoke to the most lively and youngest-looking of the Nine Little ones, Little Nine. Changsheng, being new and unfamiliar with the place, was naturally tense. Little Nine's bubbly nature would surely lessen his anxiety.

"Yes, Master."

Little Nine responds crisply.

Lu Changsheng hurries to thank her, "I'm grateful for your trouble, Aunt Nine."

"No trouble at all."

Waving her hand cheerfully, Little Nine grabs Lu Changsheng's arm and leads him down the mountain.

...

In the following period,

Lu Qingfeng cultivates while also guiding Lu Changsheng's practice.

His own cultivation follows a structured path.

Through business dealings with Han Ling'er, Lu Qingfeng amassed countless wealth from three industries. Disregarding Dutian City, the Immortal Crystals in his possession alone surpassed the formidable count of three hundred.

Years spent cultivating with the aid of Immortal Crystals saw his power surge immensely.

In just a few centuries,

he progressed from the Nourishing God Realm, to the Divinity Transformation Realm, and now to the late stages of the Soul Emergence Realm. It wouldn't be long before he stepped up to the Unification Realm, henceforth assaulting the realm of the Mahayana True Immortal.

With the accumulation from the "Primordial", what usually proves most difficult for ordinary cultivators to advance—the Dao ability—presented no challenges for Lu Qingfeng. Instead, growth in mana, tempering of the physical body, forging of the Divine Soul, and evolution of Divine Thought and the Primordial Spirit became obstacles to his progress.

Moreover, with his cultivation of the "Twelve Heavenly Demon God Skill", the mana needed for advancement far exceeded that of peers, making it notoriously arduous.

Yet, with the aid of Immortal Crystals, progress came with Divine Speed.

Cultivating the Divine Soul and evolving the Primordial Spirit, however, cannot be rushed; they require steady grinding and tempering to lay a solid foundation for the future—a task achieved through patient and subtle efforts that scarcely demands much Heart Power.

His personal cultivation does not consume too much of his attention.

Thus, Lu Qingfeng finds the time and energy to guide the practice of both Lu Changsheng and the Nine Little ones. Even within the Heavenly Star Sect, after extensive screening and trials, he took on two direct disciples, passionately devoting himself to teaching and resolving their doubts.

With eighteen lifetimes of cultivation in the "Primordial" and having ventured into the Longevity Mist, his Dao ability, cultivation level, and broad horizons and knowledge make him an exceptional teacher, even without employing the Great Method of Enlightenment.

Lu Changsheng was already at the Spirit Void Peak of cultivation, ready to break through to the Jiedan Realm at any moment.

After arriving at the Primordial Gorge and receiving Lu Qingfeng's guidance,

In just two years, he successfully transitions into the Core Formation Stage, henceforth known as a Jiedan True Man, and entitled to a lifespan of three thousand years.

Not long after Lu Changsheng's breakthrough,

at the border between the Spiritual Mountain Shell Field and Yunmeng Swamp, a tumultuous commotion erupts at the Black Cloud Islands.

...

"What is—"

"An Ascension phenomenon?"

Within the Primordial Gorge, Wu Jiu soars into the sky, gazing north. To the north, the Immortal Mechanism seethes, anomalies reveal themselves, and the view is dominated by a boundless sea of fire as vast as the ocean.

Despite the distance of thousands of miles, the heat can be felt pressing against the face.

Wu Jiu, being at the Primordial Spirit Realm, senses the scorching heat.

Yet mortals, ordinary folks, and both large and small sect cultivators cannot detect it, as they are not at the Primordial Spirit Realm. Even though, from Wu Jiu's perspective, the sea of fire blankets and obscures the heavens, pushing away the clouds, no stir arises.

It is indeed a True Immortal's Ascension phenomenon!

"In that direction."

Wu Jiu's expression shifts, at times furrowed with weighty concern, at times relaxed, markedly complex.

"Elder brother."

As Wu Jiu continues to gaze deeply into the distance, a voice suddenly reaches him. Turning his head, he sees Lu Qingfeng stepping out of a white cloud and settling beside him, also looking northward.

"Younger brother."

Wu Jiu isn't surprised to see him.

Both at the Primordial Spirit Realm, what Wu Jiu could sense, so too could Lu Qingfeng.

"The phenomenon originates from the Black Cloud Islands to the north. It seems that person has achieved immortality," Wu Jiu says, glancing at Lu Qingfeng before shifting his gaze back north, sighing deeply.

"Dutian Daoist is unrivaled in the world, yet has long delayed Ascension. It appears he's set on achieving immortality in the Lower Realm."

Lu Qingfeng speaks definitively.

He is well aware that the 'Dutian Daoist', having spent these years amongst the Three Mountains and Nine Waters and especially since obliterating Green Wood Valley, has grown infamous. Dominating the mortal world for a thousand years, even without further annihilating any Immortal Sects, his mere presence alone, including on cultivators like Wu Jiu and other Primordial Spirit True Ones, rests like a mountain heavy on their minds; it is a constant, uneasy burden.