Chapter 158: The Sea God, Why Is He Here?

“You have some good karma with Grandmaster Xuandu; at least, he knows your name. Perhaps this will be your opportunity in the future.” Daoist Wuyou said softly, a hint of longing in his eyes.

Hearing the Sect Master’s words, Li Changshou secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He realized the Sect Master was referring to the marriage clay figurines and that Six-Revolutions Aphrodisiac Spirit Pill. Li Changshou remained impassive, merely nodding in affirmation.

In reality, Grandmaster Xuandu not only knew Li Changshou’s name but also burdened him with a major task, and then... there was no more news.

Daoist Wuyou sighed repeatedly, “Changshou, the Grandmaster is truly an unmatched mighty figure. Although I am the Sect Master of the Immortal Du Sect, possessing the Dao Fruit of Immortality and cultivation strong enough to withstand minor calamities, I am hundreds, if not thousands, of times inferior to such a powerful being. The Golden Immortal realm is nothing more than this, *cough*, *cough*!”

Li Changshou asked with concern, “Sect Master, have your injuries not healed completely?”

“It’s nothing, just minor injuries. They’ll recover on their own in a few more centuries,” Daoist Wuyou waved his hand. “You cultivate here; I’ll go take a look around. *Sigh*, I don’t know what’s going on. For so many years, within the Human School’s Dao lineages, the trend of Daoist partners just won’t stop.”

Li Changshou: ...So, you never suspected the strangeness of this matter?

Watching the Sect Master’s retreating back, Li Changshou pondered for a moment. If the Saint Lord truly intended for him to find a way to prevent conflicts between the other two Schools, then his own Sect Master would be a good voice to use! Jiuwu and Jiu Jiu were also on this treasure ship, but the deacons and accompanying True Immortals were on guard and observing in various parts of the ship and did not come to meet Li Changshou. Besides Uncle-Master Jiuwu, there was also Deacon Liu Feixian of Pill Cauldron Peak.

If the Sect Master’s intervention was truly needed later, Li Changshou would inform Uncle-Master Jiuwu, have him handle Liu Feixian, and then have Liu Feixian advise the Sect Master. This kind of layered approach, as long as each step was secure, would make Li Changshou, the root instigator, safer with more layers. If he didn't do this, was he supposed to stand up himself and try to convince people with reason? In a conference of this scale, even ordinary Heavenly Immortals had no chance to speak. If a conflict arose between the two Schools, for an unknown young disciple to forcibly step forward and engage in a verbal battle with groups of Tri-School grand figures who had been muddling through the Three Realms since ancient times, that would be an absurd act, only possible if one had eaten the hearts of several bears and the guts of a protagonist! Most likely, before he could finish a full sentence, a short-tempered Tri-School grand figure would slap him down, kill him, and then grumble, ‘Whose young disciple is this, so undisciplined!’

Therefore, a direct appearance was absolutely impossible; actively stepping into the eye of the storm was even more out of the question. Li Changshou could only promise that if the experts of the two Schools truly started fighting, he would remind the Human School lineage before making his escape, and loudly shout that man’s name in his heart.

After entering the Central Divine Continent, the treasure ship deliberately flew a bit higher, displaying the Immortal Du Sect’s emblem at its bow, and the Sect Master also released his Golden Immortal realm aura. Even so, upon encountering mountains or lakes clearly covered by grand formations, the Immortal Du Sect’s treasure ship would bypass them in advance. The Immortal Du Sect had some reputation in the Eastern Divine Continent, but in the Central Divine Continent, a land of crouching tigers and hidden dragons, it was merely a moderately influential immortal sect, ranking among the lower-middle... of the lower-middle among the Tri-School immortal sects. This was due to its slightly strong backing, bearing the shadow of the Human School’s Senior Disciple.

The treasure ship continued its journey without pause, drifting westward along the cloud path. For Li Changshou, visiting the Central Divine Continent for the first time was quite an eye-opener.

Through clouds and past the horizon, accompanied by stars and moonlit nights.Vast marshes poured forth mist, and rivers surged by a thousand banks.

It’s worth mentioning that the Sect Master voluntarily gave up his suite that day for two young disciples to handle urgent matters. This became a widely circulated anecdote among the Immortal Du Sect entourage. Fortunately, there were no other jokes that day, and the treasure ship didn’t experience any noticeable shaking. After Wang Qi recovered from the effects of the medicine, he and Liu Yan’er found a corner to hide, too embarrassed to face anyone.

After twenty-one days of flying, the Immortal Du Sect’s treasure ship finally entered the vicinity of Golden Palace Gate, thirty thousand li away. The high-altitude cloud paths gradually became bustling with strange and peculiar things. Giant flying beasts with wings spanning a thousand zhang slowly glided across the sky; some even uprooted entire mountains to use as treasure ships, with the mountain bodies enveloped in streams of immortal light, constantly shattering white clouds. When Li Changshou saw this scene, he secretly observed it for a while. This thing was the initial stage completed product of his Little Qiong Peak nomadic plan!

When they were still eight thousand li from the 'venue' of the Tri-School Lineage Conference, many figures could already be seen on the cloud paths above, below, and on all sides. Although the conference was still half a year away, many immortal sects chose to arrive half a year in advance to show their respect for the Tri-School Lineage Conference. When the Immortal Du Sect’s treasure ship was only a thousand li from the venue, as expected... the cloud paths were blocked again.

Li Changshou’s immortal sense scanned the conference venue. It was a regular circular basin, seemingly formed by a powerful divine ability. At the bottom of the basin was a lake filled with spiritual light, and golden lotus platforms floated on the water’s surface. Around the lake were distributed individual futons, and looking across, the overall layout of these futons resembled a blooming lotus flower.

This conference limited the number of attendees from each immortal sect to no more than one hundred; thus, the Immortal Du Sect contingent totaled ninety-nine people. This Tri-School Lineage Conference was jointly organized by five Dao lineages: two from the Jie School, two from the Chan School, and one from the Human School. Although the Human School only had six immortal sects in total, the seating area allocated to the six Human School sects occupied one-sixth of the entire venue. Therefore, even the less powerful Immortal Du Sect had a good viewing spot, very close to the spiritual lake.

When the Immortal Du Sect’s treasure ship was still several hundred li from the venue, more than a dozen figures rode clouds forward to greet them. Those who came to greet them were naturally from a Human School lineage, also one of the five host immortal sects for this conference, named 'Carefree'. This sect name was casual, free-spirited, and common, but this Dao lineage was indeed not simple. Just those responsible for welcoming guests here included two Golden Immortals, eight Heavenly Immortals, and six young disciples who had not yet become immortals but possessed exceptional talent. This made the Immortal Du Sect contingent feel a slight pressure.

However, Li Changshou soon discovered that this Carefree Immortal Sect, in some aspects, was quite similar to their Immortal Du Sect... perhaps even more severe. Four of the six disciples present had already lost their innate Yin-Yang aura. Li Changshou couldn't discern the origins of the Heavenly Immortals, but judging by the pairing of eight Heavenly Immortals (four men and four women) and their intimacy while riding clouds, there were at least two pairs of divine partners. True Human School characteristic! From this, it was also evident how hard the Grandmaster worked for the Human School’s development... making the Human School disciples exhaust themselves.

As the Carefree Immortal Sect group approached, the first two Golden Immortals, dressed in Daoist robes with middle-aged faces, began laughing heartily, their voices echoing for hundreds of li, as if afraid others wouldn't hear. The other four immortal sects jointly hosting the conference had already received countless waves of fellow sect members; whereas their Carefree Immortal Sect would only have five opportunities to appear in total. According to the old rules of the Primordial World, the longer one laughed, the more intimate and non-hostile they appeared.

“Hahahaha!”

“Hahahaha, *cough*, ah hahahaha!”

“Junior Brother Wuyou, it’s been six thousand years, how have you been? Hahahaha!”

“Thanks to Senior Brother’s blessings, everything is fine, hahahaha...”

The elders also went forward, and most of them, except for True Immortal Forgetting Love, were smiling and striking up conversations. The six disciples from the Carefree Immortal Sect also warmly came forward to interact with the Immortal Du Sect disciples. Whether this conference could make the Three Schools a united family was still unknown; but they were all Human School Dao lineages, and if they could cultivate to Golden Immortal status in the future, they would address each other as senior and junior brothers and sisters, and should not appear too unfamiliar with each other.

As the true leader, Youqin Xuanya lightly frowned, walking to the front of the disciples with her greatsword on her back, instantly adding a touch of radiance to the sky. As the 'filler' leader, Li Changshou smiled and hid among the disciples, watching his group of disciples actively approach and converse with the six young disciples from the Carefree Immortal Sect. He was happy to remain unnoticed.

Before long, the Immortal Du Sect elders put away their treasure ship. The ninety-nine people, led by the welcoming immortals of the Carefree Immortal Sect, rode clouds into the basin venue. As expected, they were arranged in a forward position, occupying a small area by the lake. Unlike the Dragon Palace conference, this time, Golden Immortals, Heavenly Immortals, True Immortals, and those who had not yet become immortals were all seated together; all immortal sects were the same in this regard; no one could be treated specially. The golden lotus thrones floating on the lake were clearly reserved for immortals from Kunlun Mountain's Jade Void Palace and the overseas Jie School immortal islands. Li Changshou roughly calculated the number of golden lotus thrones; he estimated that the arrival of just a few Jie School Daoist temples' immortals later would be enough to overcrowd the lake surface.

Just as the Immortal Du Sect contingent took their seats, the Immortal Du Sect Master and a few Golden Immortal Daoist friends went to the clouds to chat. The elders also did not restrain their disciples too much, striving to reflect the apparent characteristic of the Human School's 'tranquility and non-action'.

However, Youqin Xuanya was indeed quite eye-catching. Before long, a young immortal seedling with a refined appearance, dressed in white robes, strolled over from the adjacent Carefree Immortal Sect's area with fluid, graceful steps. This person, upon reaching Youqin Xuanya, displayed a gentle smile, exuding remarkable masculine charm.

“Junior Sister, I am Cao Zhi, from the Sect Master’s lineage of the Carefree Immortal Sect...”

Youqin Xuanya’s greatsword suddenly unsheathed from her back. With a flick of her slender hand, the greatsword gracefully spun half a circle and plunged straight into the ground before the man! The blade was only half an inch from his toes!

“My apologies, I’ll take my leave now, Junior Sister. Please don’t be offended.” This person, knowing when to retreat, said so and hurried away, drawing continuous laughter from several Carefree Immortal Sect disciples. Youqin Xuanya acted as if nothing had happened, sitting quietly in meditation with closed eyes.

The outermost corner seat of the Immortal Du Sect’s group was naturally reserved for Li Changshou. Next to him was the short Daoist Jiuwu’s spot, but Jiuwu had gone on an errand and hadn’t returned yet. Upon entering this basin, Li Changshou had already used his immortal sense to scout the exits and formulate an escape route. A Reverse Five Elements Grand Formation existed underground, making Five Elements Escape Arts unusable.

He relaxed his mind and began to cast his Wind Whisper Spell to monitor the surroundings; but this time, just as the Wind Whisper Spell was activated, Li Changshou heard a buzzing in his ears, and his primordial spirit felt slightly dizzy. There were even anti-eavesdropping restrictions like this? The Primordial World was vast indeed; one must not underestimate the various masters. This was the first time the Wind Whisper Spell had failed since his tribulation and ascension. Li Changshou frowned internally, closed his eyes, and meditated, instantly dispelling the abnormal state of his primordial spirit.

Did they really think he only had one method of passive monitoring, the Wind Whisper Spell? Correct! He really did only have this one passive monitoring method. While active detection methods were varied, passively monitoring everywhere was not an easy task.

As Li Changshou pondered a solution, his immortal sense spread throughout the basin, discovering a group of people passing by not far behind him, seemingly from the Carefree Immortal Sect. Among them, one burly man was the most eye-catching, his physique very robust, likely cultivating a physical body. This aura, why did it feel somewhat familiar?

Just then, that ‘man’ also stopped behind Li Changshou, his robust body leaning towards Li Changshou, his adorable face full of confusion, staring intently at Li Changshou’s profile for a while. This aura, this tower-like figure, and this adorable face... Li Changshou’s Dao heart trembled, and he suddenly shivered, having recognized who this was!

Almost simultaneously, this tower-like girl’s eyes lit up. She put her pot-sized fist before her widely opened cherry mouth, her large eyes full of bright light, and shrieked in surprise: “Ah!”

“Lingli!” Li Changshou suddenly uttered a low shout, directly cutting off her exclamation! In an instant, his left hand shot forward, pressing down on the tower-like girl’s neck with lightning speed, directly pinning her face-down onto the grass in front of him!