Chapter 457: Worshipping Taiqing at Taiqing Temple

He changed into his treasured Taoist robe, personally sewn by Ling'e. His long hair was tied up with a Taoist hairband. He looked at his reflection, offered a calm smile, then adjusted his expression back to a serious one. Seriousness was, after all, preferable.

"Senior brother,"

Li Changshou turned his head to see Ling'e floating into the grass hut, carrying an incense burner. She placed it beside him, allowing its fragrance to envelop her senior brother.

Li Changshou nodded with a smile, shedding the disguise on his face and the several aura-like effects that diminished his charm. He put on a carefully chosen jade pendant and tied his hair with a long ribbon that perfectly complemented his green Taoist robe. He tidied his sideburns and habitually stroked his beard, which he could now control to be either long or short. He smoothed his collar, dusted his cloth shoes, and then stopped the activities of his various paper effigies, allowing his consciousness to fully return to his main body.

Li Changshou looked at himself in the mirror and sighed softly. What was this situation? He could clearly have relied on his looks to get by, yet he had chosen a path of cultivation in the primordial world where survival depended on cunning and meticulous planning! Li Changshou hadn't expected that his first serious grooming in this life would not be for meeting a celestial maiden.

While using a paper effigy to visit True Immortal Yuding, he suddenly received a summons from his teacher, Grand Pure One. It was likely for him to visit the Grand Pure Temple. When a Saint summoned him, what else could it be about? It would be one of four things: imparting teachings, giving admonishments, formal discipleship, or relaying important matters. It certainly couldn't be for him to deliver a bronze mirror for some sort of Heavenly Court mirror entertainment. That would be far too un-Grand Pure.

A faint smile appeared on Li Changshou's lips as he considered this. He tried a few more poses: arms crossed looking profound, a smile to appear more youthful, and an arched eyebrow to look stern.

*Poof*—

Suddenly, steam wafted up from the side. Li Changshou turned his head and saw Ling'e slumped crookedly in a chair, her face flushed, with white smoke rising from the top of her head. Her 'senior brother value' was severely overloaded.

"Alright, I'm heading off now."

Li Changshou cleared his throat, summoned the Xuanhuang Pagoda, and sent a message to Bai Ze, instructing him to watch over Little Qiong Peak. Then he turned and walked to the adjacent grass hut. He lit three sticks of incense and bowed to his master's memorial tablet, Qi Yuan, who had died young as an immortal at over a thousand years of age.

"Senior brother!" Ling'e called from behind and hurried over with small steps. She tiptoed and leaned forward, happily gazing at Li Changshou's rarely seen true face. She whispered, "Are you going to see Sister Yunxiao?"

"Of course... not," Li Changshou chuckled. "Teacher has summoned me. He probably has something important to tell me at the Grand Pure Temple."

Ling'e paused, then sighed in relief. "I thought Senior Brother was going to meet that Chang'e with your main body."

"You know about this even though you never leave the house," Li Changshou said.

"It's all over the place," Ling'e pouted. "The most beautiful woman in the Three Realms!"

Li Changshou casually pinched Ling'e's cheek. Ling'e yelped twice, gently pulled and swayed by her senior brother, feeling annoyed but daring not to say anything. Li Changshou teased, "I thought you knew, your senior brother never judges a book by its cover." With that, he transformed into a wisp of spring breeze and, accompanied by the Xuanhuang Pagoda, vanished.

Ling'e tilted her head, feeling as if her senior brother had just 'promised' her something. Then, discerning the teasing in his words, she waved a small fist in the direction Li Changshou had vanished. She herself was also quite... well, to be prudent, quite pleasing to the eye. Ling'e moved to the mirror and carefully examined her increasingly graceful and lovely face reflected within. Although she knew her senior brother was teasing her, she still fell into deep thought.

As for Li Changshou, after leaving the Immortal Du Sect, he asked "Tower Grandpa" how to get to the Grand Pure Temple. Tower Grandpa, however, instructed him to first go to the Heavenly Court and then fly out of the Ninth Heaven. Therefore, Li Changshou used a transformation art, turning into a Heavenly General from the Water God's Residence. Carrying his own token, he thus slipped into the East Heavenly Gate. It was precisely because he was a Heavenly Court Righteous God, with a divine authority artifact accompanying his primordial spirit, that the three treasure swords hanging above the Heavenly Gate had no reaction. Otherwise, even if Zhao Gongming were to come, at least one of those three swords would descend. (After the incident with Immortal Fu Yuan, the Jade Emperor had tried every method to increase the defense of the Heavenly Gates. The three treasure swords were specifically designed to target immortals, demons, and devils, respectively.)

Employing a flight technique, Li Changshou quietly flew to the Eighth Heaven, then continued straight towards the deepest part of the azure sky. The higher he flew, the more he felt a gradually increasing sense of pressure from above, yet his body felt increasingly light and nimble. After flying out of the Ninth Heaven, strong winds began to appear, tearing the drifting mists into spiritual energy. Although Li Changshou would not be affected by such surges of spiritual energy, the Xuanhuang Pagoda diligently emitted Xuanhuang qi, enveloping him.

Tower Grandpa, originally carefree and dismissive of all treasures in the world, now became serious. He repeatedly reminded Li Changshou not to be too restrained or too informal later, emphasizing that the Master disliked elaborate etiquette and that expressing respect appropriately would suffice. Appropriately? How was "appropriately" defined? Bursting into tears, striding forward, lifting the hem of his Taoist robe, and immediately kowtowing to the Saint upon meeting?

He decided to be more cautious. He would bow once outside the Grand Pure Temple, again upon entering, and a third time if he could approach the Saint! This was the three bows of apprenticeship. Whether the Saint acknowledged it or not, he would bow first!

Thus, Li Changshou carefully rehearsed several times in his mind how he should behave upon arriving at the Grand Pure Temple. His body had already flown an unknown distance upwards, piercing into the shallow blue sky. Looking up, Li Changshou could clearly see a thin membrane separating this realm from beyond the heavens; endless stars seemed to be hanging on this membrane. Pangu had created the heavens and earth, his eyes becoming the sun and moon, and his long hair becoming the stars. In ancient times, the Demon Court had gathered the essence of the stars to refine the Great Zhoutian Star Dou Array. Therefore, the star map after the ancient era was no longer the original primordial star chart. Beyond this boundless sea of stars, Li Changshou seemed to glimpse the boundaries of heaven and earth, and the vast void beyond the clear qi. Beyond the void was chaos.

The Xuanhuang Pagoda gave Li Changshou a direction. Li Changshou continued to fly forward, not showing off his flight abilities, but merely propelling himself with immortal power. Before long, a sea of clouds appeared beneath the starry sky. Li Changshou entered it, and his divine sense was immediately suppressed to within ten zhang of his body. A faint and ethereal pressure washed over him; it was naturally the Grand Pure Dao rhyme, which Li Changshou was intimately familiar with.

After flying slowly forward for an unknown period, a small Taoist temple emerged from the mists ahead. For many years, Li Changshou had pondered, yet couldn't imagine what the Grand Pure Temple would look like. Now, seeing it, he couldn't help but smile slightly. It felt as if it should be exactly like this. A small courtyard built with bluestone tiles. The main building was a small temple, only two zhang long and wide, without even external eaves. Surely, it wasn't a small temple that the Saint had casually chosen from a village in the mortal realm and then moved beyond the Ninth Heaven to serve as his Saintly Dao field.

Li Changshou dared not be negligent. Carrying the Xuanhuang Pagoda, he walked to the wooden gate of the small courtyard, about to kowtow and bow. A voice suddenly echoed in his mind: "Enter." It naturally stopped Li Changshou's intended actions. Li Changshou softly acknowledged, pushed open the courtyard gate, took a breath, and stepped inside.

The courtyard was empty, with only a flattened meditation mat and two potted plants. This was likely where his master practiced cultivation. Inside the blue-tiled room to the north of the small courtyard sat the lean Taoist. Apart from the Taoist and a meditation mat, there was only a long table behind him. Li Changshou dared not look too much. He walked with steady steps to the shallow threshold, lifted the hem of his Taoist robe, knelt before the old Taoist, performed a grand salute, and carefully kowtowed.

Source of the Dao;Ancestor of the lineage.

"Your disciple Changshou respectfully greets Teacher."

A faint smile appeared on the old Taoist's somewhat gaunt face. A wisp of transmitted sound entered Li Changshou's mind, saying: "Rise." Transmitting voice directly in front of him—truly a Human School tradition!

"Thank you, Teacher," Li Changshou responded softly. He stood up and held the Xuanhuang Pagoda to his side. The Xuanhuang Pagoda silently vanished.

This old man was the Grand Pure Old Master, Laozi. His face could not be described, as it was born from the Dao Heart, and a Saint's Dao Heart was no longer a worldly thing. In Li Changshou's mind, he couldn't form a complete image of the Grand Pure Old Master. He could only form an outline, remembering the feeling of the moment. It was a feeling of ease, calmness, and composure. Beside him was the true meaning of nature; before him was the manifestation of the Great Dao.

The Grand Pure Saint slowly raised a finger. Immortal light flowed in the courtyard, condensing into a second meditation mat. It appeared beside Master Xuandu's mat, and then flew into the room.

"Sit."

Laozi transmitted another message. Li Changshou lowered his head and agreed, then sat cross-legged on the meditation mat in the most standard posture. Chest out, head up, shoulders relaxed, hips raised, abdomen tucked—the natural way of the Dao.

At this moment, the atmosphere inside the Grand Pure Temple was distinctly... stiff. Li Changshou sat quietly, awaiting his teacher's admonishments. He dared not ponder anything else, relaxing his body and mind while maintaining sufficient vigilance. The Grand Pure Saint merely sat there with his eyes half-closed, the Dao's essence flowing around him.

And then... nothing else happened.

*Is the Master testing my patience?*

Li Changshou could only think this way. So he calmly meditated, not allowing himself to comprehend the Dao or to have too many thoughts. His Dao Heart was pure, constantly waiting for the Saint to speak. He sat like this for three days and three nights... Outside the Grand Pure Temple, stars rotated and mists swirled, yet Li Changshou sat quietly inside. God knows why, he even started singing in his mind— *I should be in the yard, not in the room. Suddenly, it feels so strange.*

Calm down, calm down. A Saint sees ten thousand years in a glance; he just needed to wait patiently.

So another half a month passed... The Grand Pure Old Master finally made a move! This most powerful Saint in heaven and earth casually sliced through the universe with his finger, pulled out a stone tablet from a vortex, and held it in his hand, reading. Li Changshou genuinely didn't intend to peek, but his peripheral vision just happened to catch sight of two Dao characters. The so-called Dao characters were special 'words' created by the innate beings in ancient times, fully known as the 'Writings of the Great Dao'. Dao characters didn't have fixed forms or grammar; instead, they carried information within complex 'patterns,' allowing the reader to comprehend them through their own understanding. Some profound Dao characters could cause dizziness to those with insufficient cultivation just by a glance; some were even injured by the characters themselves. Later, after the era of innate beings ended, Dao characters were gradually replaced by the pictographic script of later-born beings.

The two Dao characters Li Changshou saw were not some abstruse Dao cultivation methods. When he carefully deciphered them in his mind, they turned out to be... "A Few Tips on Communicating with Disciples."

Li Changshou almost covered his face and cried... *Teacher, if you can't find a topic, your disciple can speak up first. There's no need to wait eighteen days and seven hours for a single sentence!*

"Teacher," Li Changshou asked in a gentle voice, "have you summoned your disciple because you have something to instruct me?"

The Grand Pure Old Master slowly nodded. The transmitted message continued to echo in Li Changshou's mind: "The Conferred God discussion at Zixiao Palace, do you know of it?"

"Your disciple knows," Li Changshou quickly replied. "Teacher, are you going to instruct your disciple on this matter?"

"Yes, you will accompany me then."

"Your disciple obeys!"

Li Changshou bowed his head in agreement. Laozi slowly nodded. After that, the Grand Pure Temple once again fell into silence.

What... now?

Li Changshou dared not speak, sitting obediently. If it was just to relay this matter, then he would leave whenever the Saint teacher told him to.

So, another half a month later... The Grand Pure Old Master's voice resonated in Li Changshou's mind: "Are you investigating that taboo?"

"Your disciple has not investigated; Martial Aunt Nuwa has already told your disciple much." Li Changshou produced his pre-prepared answer, whispering, "Your disciple must have been warned by the Heavenly Dao regarding this taboo."

"Indeed, it is your teacher warning you." The Grand Pure Old Master paused, glanced at Li Changshou, and suddenly said something that made Li Changshou's heart sink: "You know too much."

Li Changshou was startled, almost leaping up to kneel. Fortunately, the Saint also realized this sentence was too frightening and added a half-sentence of explanation: "This is not a bad thing." Only then did Li Changshou's Dao Heart relax.

"Teacher, your disciple's Dao is balance; I will not blindly oppose the Heavenly Dao. Your disciple will do his best for the Dao Sect."

"Good." A slight smile appeared on the Grand Pure Saint's lips, and the transmitted message to Li Changshou also became a bit more fluid. "You hold the primary merit in the Heavenly Court's rise. The Dao of balance, you should make good use of it."

"Your disciple will engrave Teacher's instructions in his heart."

"You need not worry about Zhunti's matters. The West still has destiny to follow."

Li Changshou tried hard to understand this sentence. He nodded gravely and then asked: "Teacher, your disciple has always been unsure to what extent the schemes against the West should be carried out. Please instruct your disciple."

The Grand Pure Saint said calmly, "Saints cannot die."

"Your disciple understands," Li Changshou replied, feeling quite emotional inwardly. His own Saint was truly domineering. It was as if he could defeat a Saint who had left the group!

In the Grand Pure Temple, the conversation again fell silent. The Grand Pure Saint seemed to have exhausted his verbal reserves, waiting for them to slowly replenish. Li Changshou dared not say anything more, waiting obediently by the side. Clearly, beside his Saint teacher, Li Changshou could feel a sense of peace and security. Yet, he also felt a sense of powerlessness, as if nothing was truly in his control. Who knew if Grand Pure Teacher's next sentence would be to ask about his relationship with Yunxiao!

Another half a month later... "Yunxiao, is she to your liking?"

He really did ask!

"Yes, she is," Li Changshou quickly replied. "Fairy Yunxiao is noble in character, profound in cultivation, deeply understands righteousness, and possesses great wisdom. Every time your disciple converses with her, he feels enlightened."

"If Wenjing can destroy the Golden Lotus, she can join my Human School. If you can scheme to get the Peacock from the Western Sect, he can also join my Human School."

"Yes, your disciple obeys. I will arrange it for Senior Brother later. It's just that Senior Brother... doesn't seem very interested in these matters." Li Changshou uncertainly whispered, "Teacher, is that what you mean?"

The Grand Pure Saint's smile deepened immediately. His finger swept across the universe, and he took out a jade talisman from a vortex, handing it to Li Changshou. Li Changshou hastily received it with both hands. He looked at the contents of the jade talisman, and it was a... flight technique! What did Teacher mean by this? Learn this flight technique so Senior Brother Xuandu can't catch him, and then let him handle this matter freely?

"Thank you, Teacher, for bestowing this technique. Your disciple will certainly make every contribution he can to the prosperity of the Human School!"

The Grand Pure Saint smiled contentedly, and then entered the next round of... silence.

Three years later, Li Changshou left the Grand Pure Temple. He quietly made his way back to Little Qiong Peak, saw the rocking chair in front of his alchemy room, silently lay down on it, and softly sighed. Finally, he was back...

"Senior brother!" Ling'e called out softly and flew over on a white cloud. She hopped in front of Li Changshou, curtsied gracefully, and joyfully exclaimed: "Senior Brother has been taught by the Saint for so long; he must have gained extraordinary insights!"

"Here," Li Changshou said, taking out a small jade bottle from his sleeve. "If you encounter a strong enemy in the future, hold this bottle towards them. If they dare to speak, they will be sucked inside. The Saint teacher bestowed this upon you and has accepted you as a registered disciple."

Ling'e blinked, took the bottle, not feeling that being a registered disciple of the Grand Pure Saint was a particularly big deal. She pestered her senior brother with questions, full of curiosity. When Ling'e asked, "What did the Saint teacher tell you, Senior Brother?" Li Changshou closed his eyes and sighed. If he said he had merely chatted with Grand Pure Teacher about everyday matters, no one would believe him. But this time, he truly was summoned to chat about everyday matters. And if the Grand Pure Old Master hadn't genuinely run out of topics, he probably wouldn't have been allowed to return!

Li Changshou said weakly: "Three kowtows before the Saint's gate, imparting to me the Grand Pure Dao of Non-Action."

Ling'e blinked, her eyes filled with satisfaction. She inexplicably felt as if 'the child she had painstakingly raised had finally amounted to something'.