Chapter 884: Gray Rabbit

The Mortal World

Suddenly, Daoist Huayang's expression shifted as he looked toward a sixty-year-old man: Zhao Songqiao.

Deep wrinkles were etched around Zhao Songqiao's eyes, yet his face was firm with resolve. With his eyes tightly shut, his head began to turn, constantly aligning with a wisp of Yin-Yang energy swirling around him.

Seeing this, Daoist Huayang quickly retrieved the jade slip containing records of new disciples, found Zhao Songqiao's profile, and let out a sigh.

"He's too old. While there might be some hope for him to cultivate other methods, if he diverts his focus to refine the Yin-Yang Armor, reaching Foundation Establishment will be impossible."

The Daoist slowly shook his head, then shifted his gaze to the others.

***

Meanwhile, the avatar was flying through the illusion.

Here, time and space were illusory. After flying for an unknown distance, a grey streak of light suddenly flashed deep within the white mist. The avatar's heart stirred, and it was about to give chase, but upon discerning the gray light's true form, it halted.

It was a massive, peculiar bird, a full *zhang* long, composed entirely of grey qi. The avatar recognized that the strange bird was indeed made of Yin-Yang qi.

As the avatar noticed the strange bird, the creature seemed to sense its presence too. Without a sound, it vigorously flapped its wings, its speed exploding, and vanished into the depths of the white mist in the blink of an eye.

The strange bird's speed was extremely fast, and it possessed peculiar shifting patterns. In the space shrouded by white mist, unless one was highly attuned to Yin-Yang qi, even if they miraculously detected its presence, capturing it would be impossible.

The avatar watched the strange bird fly away, giving up the chase after a brief pursuit. It was clear that capturing the strange bird would undoubtedly pass the test and earn the special favor of Daoist Huayang. However, the strange bird's size was too great; only individuals with exceptionally keen perception could grasp such a large amount of Yin-Yang qi. The avatar itself lacked this innate talent, and engaging in opportunistic actions, it didn't dare to draw too much attention.

Thinking of this, the avatar changed direction and continued tracking. It finally spotted a grey rabbit hopping about in the void, and its face lit up. It immediately gave chase.

The grey rabbit's hind legs pushed off, leaping dozens of *zhang* in a single bound. However, creatures composed of grey qi were only skilled in speed. Under the avatar's persistent pursuit, it was finally caught, grabbed by the scruff of its neck without any resistance.

Poof!

The moment the avatar grabbed the grey rabbit, the white mist suddenly dispersed.

The avatar's vision blurred, then cleared. Looking down, the grey rabbit in its hand had vanished, leaving only a thumb-thick wisp of grey qi struggling in its palm. When he looked up, Daoist Huayang stood before him, though he hadn't noticed him approach, and everyone in the hall was staring at him with complex expressions. The spirit formation and Yin-Yang Plate had also been removed, he realized.

"I hadn't expected to truly find such a talented disciple today—one capable of grasping a thumb-thick wisp of Yin-Yang qi; that's truly excellent. Although his spiritual roots are somewhat inferior, his breakthrough to the ninth level of Qi Refinement at such a young age indicates that the assessment of his disposition in the jade slip must be accurate. With proper guidance, he too can become a core strength…" Daoist Huayang mused inwardly.

In the past, a disciple with four spiritual roots would indeed require careful deliberation, but now, being short-handed, they would simply accept him. He looked at the avatar with a kindly expression. "Are you Zhang Yue?"

"Disciple Zhang Yue greets Senior." The avatar scrambled to his feet and respectfully bowed.

The Daoist nodded in satisfaction. "Are you willing to become a disciple of my Landou Sect?"

The avatar feigned a moment of stunned silence and looked at the others. The new disciples were filled with envy. They had expected to mock Zhang Yue, but unexpectedly, circumstances took a turn, and he was accepted as a disciple by Landou Sect, leaving them with a mix of emotions. The man in green and others also had somewhat complex expressions.

"What, you're unwilling?" Daoist Huayang's expression soured.

The avatar shivered, then bowed deeply. "Disciple is willing!"

Zhao Songqiao also held a wisp of grey qi in his hand, but seeing Daoist Huayang ignore him, he couldn't help but feel profound disappointment.

The young Daoist gestured for the avatar to stand behind him.

Daoist Huayang flicked his whisk and bowed. "Fellow Daoist Qi, I have imposed upon you greatly today. This disciple, this old Daoist will take him away…"

"Please do, Fellow Daoist."

The avatar and the young Daoist stood together, following Daoist Huayang as he led them flying out of Yanmiao Pavilion, through the outer mist illusion formation, and then quickly out of the formation itself. The escaping light suddenly flared, shooting swiftly toward Landou Sect.

***

Meanwhile, Qin Sang's true body, concealed outside the marsh, sensed the fluctuation. He quickly emerged, only to see the streak of light vanish into the depths of the mountains. Qin Sang's face showed deep surprise, because he sensed that his external avatar was actually within the escaping light at this moment.

"What's going on?"

Even with Qin Sang's keen intellect, unaware of the full circumstances, he couldn't have guessed that so much would transpire in Yanmiao Pavilion's ancestral hall, leading, by a bizarre twist of fate, to his external avatar directly joining Landou Sect. A flicker of dragon shadow appeared on him as he discreetly pursued. Fortunately, his external avatar seemed to be in good condition and not under any restriction, so it was unlikely to be a negative development.

With these thoughts, Qin Sang followed from a distance, observing the escaping light make a direct path toward Landou Sect. He wondered how many towering mountains and ridges they had crossed.

Daoist Huayang suddenly brought the escaping light to a halt, landing on a mountaintop. He instructed the young Daoist, "First, take my token and bring Zhang Yue back to the sect. Register him in the jade record, then impart to him the method for refining the Yin-Yang Armor, and guide his cultivation. I will go visit other sects and call on some old acquaintances…"

"This disciple obeys!"

The young Daoist took the token, Daoist Huayang nodded slightly, and then departed on the wind.

Seeing the escaping light leave, Qin Sang's true body immediately moved closer. However, being right outside Landou Sect's mountain gate, he remained cautious. He finally sensed the avatar's thoughts, learning the full story, and his heart filled with immense surprise, secretly acknowledging his good fortune.

His thoughts shifted, and he slowly withdrew, watching them depart.

"Disciple Zhang Yue. May I ask Senior's name?" After Daoist Huayang left, the avatar followed behind the young Daoist, proactively seeking to build rapport.

Despite his youth, the young Daoist not only possessed Foundation Establishment cultivation but had also been accepted as a true disciple by Daoist Huayang, indicating he was highly valued within the Yin-Yang lineage.

"I just recently reached Foundation Establishment, and my master has not yet bestowed a Daoist name upon me. From now on, you can just call me Senior Uncle Yang…" The young Daoist's attitude toward the avatar was good. He looked him up and down and said, "Your talent is truly good. When I went through the Yin-Yang Plate test, the Yin-Yang qi I managed to grasp was also smaller than yours. Once you are able to cultivate the 'Yin-Yang Heavenly Combat Secret Art,' your progress might even surpass mine."

"This disciple would not dare to compare himself to Senior Uncle!" The avatar gave a wry smile. "This disciple possesses four spiritual roots; simply being able to join Landou Sect is already beyond imagination. This disciple only wishes to cultivate with all his might, so as not to betray the kindness of Grandmaster and Senior Uncle. I dare not aspire to anything more."

He, however, muttered to himself. True legacies were indeed not so easily acquired. This was not the Minor Han Domain; it was impossible for all cultivation methods to be displayed like on Baota Peak in Shaohua Mountain. Qin Sang now understood that his unimpeded access within Shaohua Mountain was partly due to Earl Dongyang's 'patronage'.

He wondered about the connection between refining the Yin-Yang Armor and the "Yin-Yang Heavenly Combat Secret Art." If given the opportunity to glimpse Landou Sect's true legacy, he certainly wouldn't want to miss it.