Chapter 23: News from the World of Cultivation

A realm is akin to a vessel, while cultivation is like the water within that vessel. If the vessel is not expanded, the water will overflow once it is full. By the same token, if the realm is not elevated, cultivation will stagnate once it reaches capacity. However, elevating one's realm requires insight into the 'Dao'. Whatever the degree of insight into the 'Dao', the realm will elevate by a corresponding measure, and the resulting cultivation will rise accordingly like a boat carried by the tide. Therefore, Lei Yan was currently inside the Fifth Earth Pavilion, comprehending the Heavenly Dao. Of course, it was not that he was unwilling to go to the Fifth Heaven Pavilion, but rather that the 'Dao' within the Fifth Heaven Pavilion was beyond the comprehension of his current realm.

Generally speaking, any profound formation constitutes an isolated space. Perhaps this space is independent of the external world, or perhaps it is located in a specific region of the continent; in any case, events occurring within this space do not affect the territory where the formation is situated.

Inside the Fire Element Formation of the Fifth Earth Pavilion.

At this moment, Lei Yan sat cross-legged on a boulder about a zhang wide, surrounded by a desolate landscape of charred, smoking black earth. Directly in front of him was an active volcano, from which streams of fiery red magma bubbled up and gushed outward. The molten streams flowed down the mountain's surface, carrying with them a temperature that caused the surrounding air to distort.

A month had passed. Lei Yan had stayed within this Fire Element Formation for a full month, watching this repetitive scene day and night while resisting the attacks brought by the flames. This month had deepened Lei Yan's understanding of the 'Dao' of fire, particularly regarding bursting force and scorching heat. In addition, he discovered that a certain area within the scenery of the Fire Element Formation remained extremely blurry. Whenever the fiery current flowed across a series of rocks, this blurring phenomenon invariably occurred, frustratingly resembling a pixelated image. (PS: The accursed pixelation, concealing the truth from so many.)

Faced with that pixelated imagery, Lei Yan did not give up. He desperately concentrated his mind, hoping to discern a trace of a pattern from the blurred picture.

The molten stream flowed past the rocks once more. "Ssh~" A very faint sound drifted over from across the way. Lei Yan's heart stirred, and he looked once again at the 'pixelated' scene. "This is... scorching. No, it's fire adhering after being scorched. It should be something like flame-attachment." Just as this thought crossed Lei Yan's mind, the pixelated image abruptly vanished, and he saw a blaze envelop the rocks.

"So that's how it is." With a thought guiding his intent, centered upon Lei Yan, a surge of fire elemental spiritual energy poured into his body like a vortex. While others cultivated through step-by-step accumulation, Lei Yan was different. As long as his realm reached the requirement, he could employ a special cultivation technique that used his body as a dantian to forcibly plunder the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, drawing it into his body to attain a level of cultivation matching his realm. In a mere instant, the true essence within Lei Yan's body underwent earth-shaking changes. A vast amount of true essence stimulated the Nascent Soul located in the region of his heart. Suddenly, the Nascent Soul opened its eyes, crouching at his heart like a miniature version of Lei Yan.

Previously, this technique of Lei Yan's could absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth without limit until one burst from excess. However, ever since the formation of his five dantians, the heavenly and earthly spiritual energy he absorbed had acquired a limit. At this moment, as true essence was continuously absorbed, he found that the Nascent Soul in his heart could no longer bear any more true essence.

"The Soul Division Stage. At last, I can execute the Divine Dragon's Abyssal Hide from the *Dragon-Taming Art*." Lei Yan slowly stood up. A stream of true essence flowed to the soles of his feet, his footsteps shifted with illusory lightness, and his figure instantly vanished from the spot, reappearing four or five miles away.

"This..." Shock filled Lei Yan's heart. This Divine Dragon's Abyssal Hide was an advanced technique building upon the Dragon's Roaming, where footsteps followed intent and intent followed thought. With Lei Yan's current strength, anywhere within four or five miles could be reached instantly through teleportation wherever his mind reached. This surpassed even the art of sword flight by far.

Stepping from the Fire Element Formation into the Earth Element Formation.

Over the course of five months, Lei Yan successively passed through the Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and finally Wood Element Formations. During these five months, Lei Yan simultaneously brought his Five Elements cultivation to the Soul Division Stage. However, the longest time was spent in the Metal and Wood Element Formations, totaling three months.

Inside the Wood Element Formation, Lei Yan comprehended the vine-control technique, and after a flash of light across his skin, he was transported out of the Fifth Earth Pavilion. Emerging from the Fifth Earth Pavilion, doubt arose in Lei Yan's heart. Reason dictated that the Dao could not be expressed in words, yet he felt there were traces to be followed.

Regarding the 'Dao' of fire, the initial perception was of fire elemental spiritual energy, followed by the bursting force within the 'Dao' of fire, then scorching heat, and finally flame-attachment. What would come next? If someone were to provide a hint, wouldn't comprehension be much easier? He secretly concluded that the cultivators of this world did not articulate their understanding of the 'Dao' mostly out of a desire to keep their treasures to themselves.

In truth, this was doing those cultivators an injustice. The 'Dao' could indeed be articulated through language; however, if one were to do so, what later generations learned would not be the true Heavenly Dao, but rather the 'Dao' understood by the expounder. In such a case, there might be no harm in the short term, but as time passed, it would put the cart before the horse and thereby ruin the lineage of cultivation. It was precisely for this reason that the saying "The Dao that can be told of is not the eternal Dao" existed.

On the outskirts of the Fifth Earth Pavilion, the White Tiger lay on the ground snoring loudly. Lei Yan stepped forward and kicked him twice. "White Tiger, what level has your cultivation reached?"

The White Tiger opened his half-closed eyes, glanced sideways at Lei Yan, and said disdainfully, "You think everyone is like you? Reaching just the Soul Division Stage and acting all high and mighty. This lord is a divine beast; I have already reached the Integration Stage." This was not idle boasting on his part. The White Tiger had consumed a massive amount of golden cores and several Nascent Souls, refining them to elevate his strength to the Integration Stage. Moreover, as a divine beast, upon reaching a certain realm, the 'Dao' of the next realm automatically surfaced in his mind, so he had no need to worry about comprehension at all.

"Who did you learn that from?" Lei Yan laughed. Having not seen him for only five months, the White Tiger's vocabulary had clearly expanded significantly since leaving the mountain.

"Haha... Every once in a while these past few months, this lord went down the mountain to find something to eat. I learned these words from those coolies. How about that, impressive, right?" the White Tiger said with a smug expression.

"Fine. You fellow are looking more and more like a human. I won't chat with you anymore, I'm heading into the Fifth Heaven Pavilion..." Lei Yan said as he turned and walked toward the Fifth Heaven Pavilion.

"Wait." The White Tiger rolled over and said, "That fellow called Wu Ta down the mountain asked me to bring you a message, saying the task you assigned him has been completed."

"Completed?" Lei Yan's footsteps paused. On second thought, it had been five months, and it was indeed time to go back and check. Turning his body around, he said, "Let's go. We're heading down the mountain." With that, his body flickered slightly and vanished from beside the White Tiger.

The White Tiger was momentarily stunned; he actually hadn't been able to clearly trace Lei Yan's movement just now. Pushing off with his hind legs, he rushed to catch up with Lei Yan. However, what left the White Tiger depressed was that no matter how he employed his movement techniques, he could not keep up with Lei Yan's speed. Refusing to admit defeat, he stamped his foot, and small clouds materialized beneath his soles, stepping upon them as he bolted straight to Lei Yan's side.

******

Night. A crescent moon hid back and forth among the clouds and mist.

Inside a guest room of the White Tiger Hall in Xianglu Town, Wu Ta climbed down from the bed. These past few days, he had been preoccupied with heavy thoughts—not because of the task Lei Yan had assigned him, but rather because of a piece of news, news originating from the cultivation world. Coming to the round table in the middle of the guest room, Wu Ta poured himself a cup of tea, took a light sip, and let out a long sigh.

"What is troubling you so much?" A voice came from directly in front of Wu Ta.

Ever since Wu Ta took over the White Tiger Hall, its guards had been deployed strictly with sentries every three paces and posts every five steps. With such a vast number of guards, someone had actually managed to break in. His heart skipped a beat, and he instantly drew a dagger from his sleeve while shifting his gaze to the opposite side. Upon looking, he realized the person sitting across from him was Lei Yan. He immediately dropped to one knee and said, "Wu Ta pays respects to the Young Master."

"Rise and speak," Lei Yan said with a wave of his hand.

Wu Ta slowly stood up, walked to Lei Yan's side to pour him a cup of tea, and spoke. "Young Master, the task you entrusted to me has already been completed. Aside from that, there is also news from the cultivation world."

"Oh? You've actually learned of the cultivation world. That rather exceeds my expectations. Let's hear it," Lei Yan said with a smile.

"A few days ago, a group of people practicing sword flight arrived in Xianglu Town. They claimed to be cultivators, and they had all come to the town to recruit disciples. The conditions for discipleship were also quite lenient; as long as one reached the Xiantian martial artist level, they could enter the outer gates of these sects," Wu Ta recounted.

"So you were tempted?" Lei Yan looked at Wu Ta.

"Your subordinate wouldn't dare. Your subordinate was merely curious, so I immediately sent men to investigate other villages and towns. According to the reports sent back by my men, cultivators have gone to recruit disciples in all the surrounding villages and towns. Yet prior to this, your subordinate wasn't even aware of the existence of cultivators, and now they have suddenly popped out of nowhere. This matter is truly rather peculiar," Wu Ta explained.

Lei Yan nodded. Cultivators recruiting disciples was nothing out of the ordinary; what was unusual was the secret hidden behind such widespread recruitment. A trace of curiosity also arose within Lei Yan's heart.

"Wu Ta, report the intelligence on the various prominent families in Xianglu Town," Lei Yan suppressed the curiosity in his heart and spoke.

Wu Ta slowly began to narrate. "There are four prominent families in Xianglu Town: the Zhao family, the Qian family, the Sun family, and the Lei family..."

Lei Yan might not have been very clear about the other families, but he knew the Lei family quite well. Judging from Wu Ta's narrative, his intelligence was indeed accurate. Lei Yan nodded with satisfaction and said, "Wu Ta, you have done well. I never expected that you would investigate the intelligence of every prominent family in Xianglu Town so clearly. It seems you truly haven't been slacking off these past five months. Pack your things and hand over your current duties to the people beneath you. Before dawn, I want you to leave this place."

Wu Ta did not ask further; he nodded in acknowledgment. The moment he raised his head, Lei Yan had already left the guest room.

"Is this the strength of a cultivator?" A trace of yearning could not help welling up on Wu Ta's face. He turned and walked out of the guest room; he needed to properly arrange the matters here.

At the break of dawn, Bafang Town enjoyed a brief moment of tranquility. A few scattered pedestrians walked along the dim streets, and steam rose from the doorways of early-rising snack shops.

At the south gate of the town, Lei Yan descended from the sky riding his flying sword, carrying Wu Ta, with the White Tiger close behind. No sooner had they landed than Wu Ta began to retch violently. His first time flying through the air had made him utterly unaccustomed to it. Lei Yan paid no attention to the vomiting Wu Ta on the side; the moment his feet touched the ground, his supernatural awareness instantly swept across the entirety of Bafang Town.

"Seven cultivators." Intending originally to look for Old Man Leng and the others, he had instead discovered seven cultivators. The cultivation levels of these seven varied; the lowest was merely at the Foundation Establishment Stage, and the highest was only at the Nascent Soul Stage. This discovery brought a glimmer of pleasant surprise to Lei Yan's heart. He had previously been worrying about where to inquire about matters concerning the cultivation world, but with these seven individuals, everything would be entirely unproblematic.

"Wu Ta, there is an inn at the corner ahead. Go wait for me there," Lei Yan instructed.

"Yes... ugh..." No sooner had Wu Ta answered Lei Yan than another wave of sour fluid surged up in his stomach, rushing straight to his throat.

Lei Yan shook his head and said to the White Tiger, "We're going over there." With that, his body flickered and vanished from the spot.

Youjia Inn was a four-story building situated on the right side of Bafang Town's main street. At this moment, the inn's doors were already wide open, and three errand boys bustled back and forth. Reason would suggest why it should be so busy at daybreak; this was the specialty of the inn. Youjia Inn operated a one-stop business for food and lodging, and its morning snacks were particularly abundant, featuring all sorts of pastries and vegetable soups.

"Two esteemed patrons, please come inside." Catching sight of Lei Yan and the White Tiger entering, a waiter immediately stepped forward with a smile.

"Is there a private room?" Lei Yan asked.

"On the second floor. Esteemed patrons, please follow me," the waiter led Lei Yan as they walked up the stairs.

Inside the private room on the south side of the second floor, the White Tiger clamored, "Bring a portion of everything you have that's delicious."

"A portion of everything?" the waiter confirmed. The inn offered over two hundred kinds of snacks, and various pastries were too numerous to count. Given the White Tiger's order, he had no choice but to verify it.

"Just bring them as ordered, why so much nonsense?" the White Tiger rebuked angrily.

"Yes, yes..." the waiter said, bowing and scraping, before backing out of the room with a bow.

"White Tiger, I'm stepping out for a moment," Lei Yan said, turning to walk out of the private room. His primary purpose here was the three cultivators on the upper floor. With a flash, he vanished from beside the stairway corridor, and when he reappeared, having concealed his aura, he stood outside a guest room door on the third floor.

No sooner had Lei Yan reached the third floor than an elderly man inside the guest room had already detected him, though the old man was utterly unable to probe Lei Yan's strength. Having himself reached the Nascent Soul Stage, he remained incapable of perceiving Lei Yan's power, which indicated that Lei Yan's strength was at least above the Nascent Soul Stage. The old man gently waved his sleeve, and with a "creak~," the door was blown open by a wisp of breeze. Simultaneously, an aged voice drifted from within. "Which senior has paid us a visit?"

Following that, an old man with entirely white hair and beard walked out. With a rosy complexion, steady footsteps, and even breathing, he looked at Lei Yan with a smile, cupped his fists, and said, "This junior is Liao Yuntong of the Baiye Residence. I do not know for what purpose the Senior has come here."

"Senior?" Lei Yan smiled. "Liao Yuntong, did you also come here this time to recruit disciples for the Baiye Residence?"

"Could it be that you, Senior, are also..." Liao Yuntong asked with some puzzlement. Why would a sect send someone above the Nascent Soul Stage out to recruit disciples? Could the other party's sect possess immense strength?

"Another one here to recruit disciples. What on earth has happened in the cultivation world?" Lei Yan thought to himself. He could not understand why cultivators were recruiting disciples everywhere. Shifting his gaze to Liao Yuntong, he muttered, "It seems I can only find out this question myself." As his voice fell, Lei Yan's right hand already darted out, transforming his palm into a claw, and seized Liao Yuntong's head with thunderous speed.

Liao Yuntong's expression shifted drastically. Lei Yan's movement was too fast and too sudden, leaving him completely unable to react in time. By the time he did react, his entire body was rendered motionless. Not only that, but he also felt a stream of true essence rushing into his body from the Baihui acupoint, firmly binding the Nascent Soul within him.

Having sealed Liao Yuntong's Nascent Soul, Lei Yan withdrew his hand with a smile. "There are some things I wish to know, but I'm certain you wouldn't truthfully confess them to me. Therefore, I have no choice but to borrow your memories and take a look."

"You... what did you say? Could you possibly be a practitioner of the demonic path?" Deprived of his Nascent Soul's power, Liao Yuntong collapsed limply to the ground, saying in terror.

"A demonic path practitioner? This is getting more and more interesting." Lei Yan smiled, activating the blue light within his mind and releasing it with a spinning momentum to probe toward Liao Yuntong's head while murmuring a phrase: "Soul-Searching Art."

"Ah~" A piercing, miserable scream escaped Liao Yuntong's lips. This was an impact directly upon the soul; how could Liao Yuntong have ever endured such agony? Trembling all over, he collapsed onto the floor.

Lei Yan withdrew his soul power, a trace of a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. "It seems this woman named Feng Yu is no simple character." Through this soul-searching, he discovered that Feng Yu, who had escaped from Qingxia Mountain, had actually spread a rumor among the major sects—a rumor that the demonic path was invading. Furthermore, she had somehow managed to make the four great sects of the righteous path believe this matter. A piece of news jointly disseminated by the four great sects spread overnight to every sect, and this news naturally included the incident at Qingxia Mountain.

"What a bother," Lei Yan frowned. Under his supernatural perception, he detected two golden-core-stage cultivators rushing toward this direction.

"Heisha, eliminate the two cultivators rushing over here. Remember to bring back their golden cores." Lei Yan issued his command. A wisp of black Qi drifted out from within Lei Yan's body and shot straight into the distance.

Just as Lei Yan extracted Liao Yuntong's Nascent Soul, Heisha returned to Lei Yan's side, enshrouding two golden cores. Retrieving a jade bottle from his magical artifact, Lei Yan stuffed the golden cores and the Nascent Soul into it, affixed a seal, and headed back downstairs.

Inside the second-floor private room, the White Tiger was continuously stuffing various pastries into his mouth. Judging from the bliss radiating from his eyes, these pastries were evidently exceedingly delicious. Casually picking up a pastry from the table, Lei Yan shoved it into his mouth. The pastry was not only flaky and crisp, but its fragrance lingered on the teeth; it was indeed exceptionally tasty.

"Well? What did you find out?" the White Tiger mumbled indistinctly with his mouth full of pastry.

"The cultivation world is in chaos." Lei Yan popped another pastry into his mouth. Without realizing it, he too had joined the ranks of food-sweeping.

The White Tiger grunted an acknowledgment and no longer had time to speak, finding that Lei Yan's eating speed exceeded even his own. Watching as the pastries on the table were all crammed into Lei Yan's stomach, he grew anxious, picked up the entire plate, and dumped it straight into his mouth.

Lei Yan's stomach was actually already full long ago, yet he was unwilling to stop. Only by eating his fill could he feel a sense of living; only by constantly doing things and constantly thinking could he stop himself from yearning for Qingling.

In the blink of an eye, the table full of pastries was swept clean.