Chapter 261: One Grain of Grain, Two Buds

Li Wei didn't have to worry about the engagement banquet preparations at all. He knew perfectly well that he only needed to make an appearance. So, he returned to his cave abode to cultivate in seclusion and avoid unnecessary trouble.

Inside his cave abode, Li Wei set up a set of formation flags before entering the blood mud space. He had won those flags from an arena competition earlier in the year.

Li Wei sat cross-legged on the blood-soaked ground, meditating. With his mind, he peeled back layers of blood mist, revealing the Tanggu Sea and the Fusang Divine Tree on the other side of the spatial barrier, which shed brilliant light. Next, he took out a Glame-flame Pill and swallowed it.

His body became as bright as a light bulb. Closing his eyes, he activated the Fusang Divine Tree Meditation Technique, simultaneously absorbing the power of the flame from both internal and external pathways to strengthen the earth-fire within his brow's Spiritual Realm.

To advance from the Earth-fire Realm to the Heaven-fire Realm, he only needed to accumulate one-third of the spiritual light's full capacity. However, reaching the Calamity-fire Realm would require filling the entire Spiritual Realm, doubling the difficulty.

Several months had passed since he reached the Grand Mind Master Realm. Li Wei had been busy improving his martial arts, so the spiritual light in his Spiritual Realm was less than one-tenth of its capacity. This was already quite fast; even Grand Mind Masters who solely focused on mental power cultivation didn't accumulate it at such a speed.

Each Glame-flame Pill cost a thousand Spring Coins. Sixty pills amounted to sixty thousand Spring Coins. It was incredibly expensive!

However, Li Wei couldn't afford to cultivate slowly; he had to break through to the Heaven-fire Realm as quickly as possible to go to Tanggu Sea. After reaching the Grand Mind Master level, his speed of absorbing Glame-flame Pills increased severalfold. In just two hours, he had completely digested one, and the spiritual light in his Spiritual Realm visibly increased.

Similar to qi accumulation in martial arts cultivation, this was another long process of accumulation. The news of the engagement immediately caused a sensation throughout the city. The secret that Zuoqiu Ting and Zuoqiu Hong were the same person was naturally revealed to the public.

Everyone understood that this was not just an engagement banquet between two young prodigies, but a marriage alliance between the Zuoqiu family and the Jiuli tribe, carrying extraordinary significance. Under the night sky, lamps lit up one by one in the government office.

"Greetings, Master Zhuang!" "Master Zhuang!" In the corridor, officials from the Attendant Hall stepped aside and bowed respectfully.

Zhuang Yue clutched the invitation card, striding quickly. Her teeth were almost ground to dust, and her gaze was so cold it seemed she might draw a sword and kill at any moment.

Arriving at the top of the tower where Jiang Ning cultivated, she struggled to calm her emotions, unsure how to speak. Just as she was about to turn and leave, a pleasant inquiry came from within: "What's wrong? Is there a result from the transcendent beings' duel?" "Creak!"

The wooden door and the formation simultaneously opened automatically. Zhuang Yue stood at the doorway, unable to bring herself to step inside, tears welling up in her eyes, unsure how to begin.

Jiang Ning had long since changed out of her daytime ruqun and removed her hair ornaments. Dressed plainly in her governor's official robe, she sat cross-legged with her eyes closed, accumulating and tempering qi, cultivating her Seventh Sea, which was not yet complete. In recent days, news of young prodigies breaking through to the Dao Seed Realm had been spreading like wildfire in Qiuzhou City.

She also felt a sense of urgency, unwilling to fall behind others. "Another transcendent being from the imperial court has fallen?" Jiang Ning's tone became much heavier.

Just four days ago, news had returned of another imperial transcendent's demise. If one more were to fall, the impact would be too great.

What she feared more was that a transcendent from the Jiang family might have fallen.

Zhuang Yue shook her head vigorously, then finally mustered her courage, saying with resentment and grievance, "He still turned out to be a heartbreaker... He... he's getting engaged to Zuoqiu Hong..." Jiang Ning opened her eyes: "Let me see!"

She took the invitation card Zhuang Yue handed her. After looking at it for a long time, Jiang Ning closed the card and handed it back, saying, "I won't go. In three days, please prepare a gift on my behalf and send it."

"My Lady! Are you just going to put up with this?" Zhuang Yue asked. Jiang Ning pondered for a moment, then stood up, pushed open the window, and looked out at the city lights, letting the cool night wind blow against her face. She said, "The Zuoqiu family must secure the Hidden Dragon. Only a marriage alliance between the two of them is the safest option."

Zhuang Yue said, "But he shouldn't hurt you like this, should he? During the day, he didn't even inform you in advance. My Lady, to help him, to save him, you met him multiple times at great risk. To help him keep his secret, you endured the Second Palace Master's questioning, which led to a rift between master and disciple. It's impossible for him not to feel your affection!" Only Zhuang Yue knew that Jiang Ning treated Li Wei differently from anyone else.

"If I hear these words again after tonight, I will banish you from Luantai and from the Jiang family," Jiang Ning said in her calmest tone. Zhuang Yue bit her lip tightly and nodded through her tears.

Jiang Ning sighed, "In the past, for the sake of the imperial court, I would definitely have found a way to disrupt this matter and prevent the Zuoqiu family from succeeding. But now, with the demon race aggressively advancing, humanity must unite to resist and cannot afford continued internal strife." "Actually, the Zuoqiu family's active preparation for this marriage alliance is a good thing. It indicates that humanity's transcendent beings have withstood the demon race's attacks, and the magical battle might be coming to an end!" "You can't hide your feelings, so it's better if you don't go to the engagement banquet. I'll arrange for someone else to attend."

Jiang Ning's eyes lifted slightly, gazing at the majestic mountain dotted with specks of starlight in the night sky. "Who knows what he's thinking? How many kindred spirits are there in this world? Regret and imperfection are the norm. It's better for clouds to dissipate when vast and indistinct, so they won't collide and produce thunder and storms."

At noon, Qi Xiao had sent someone to search for Yang Qingxi's whereabouts, and they quickly found a lead, so he immediately rushed to confirm. Just as he was leaving, he encountered a servant from the Zuoqiu family delivering an invitation card to the Qi Residence.

Curious, Qi Xiao naturally stopped the servant. After inquiring, he was both surprised and delighted: "What a joke... This is outrageous... Hurry, let me see! Did my brother Li Wei really cultivate a secret manual on how to be a kept man?" After reading the invitation, Qi Xiao burst into laughter, already thinking about how he would drink the wedding wine three days later.

"Brother Li Wei has truly made a meteoric rise! His future achievement will at least be as the husband of the Zuoqiu family head. It's even possible he could become the husband of the Lord of the Lingxiao Living Realm." Qi Xiao returned the invitation to the servant and decided to handle the matter of Yang Qingxi with even greater caution. He absolutely could not bring any romantic trouble to his brother at this critical juncture.

He didn't take a carriage, instead donning dark attire and moving swiftly with stealth. Arriving at the residence identified by the Qi family's informants, Qi Xiao silently memorized the location and its surroundings. Just then, the back door opened, and Yang Qingxi, dressed in a loose black robe with her hood covering her head, mysteriously boarded a carriage.

The driver was a boy of fifteen or sixteen, dressed in simple, coarse clothes, with nothing particularly remarkable about him. The only unusual thing was that this coachman... was too young!

"Interesting! It's so late, and Young Miss Yang is dressed like this; she seems to be hiding an important secret." Having broken through to the Dao Seed Realm, Qi Xiao was highly skilled and bold, so he naturally didn't view Yang Qingxi as a threat. Thus, he quietly followed her.

To Qi Xiao's surprise, the carriage continued to travel out of the city. Finally, it stopped in a remote town two hundred miles from Qiuzhou City. After traveling all night, dawn had broken.

Given Yang Qingxi's status, Qi Xiao was even more surprised that she would come to such a place. Seeing early risers in the town, he observed his surroundings while following the carriage tracks forward. "One grain, two sprouts, three-leaf seedlings crawl in the wind."

"Four crescent petals sway, five golden grains laugh out loud." Ahead, groups of barefoot children approached, singing a nursery rhyme.

Qi Xiao, still invisible, quickly stepped aside and watched them leave with a smile. He carefully recalled something in his mind.

He realized that almost all the children were twins. "It seems they're a group of Rice People children. I wonder if they're enslaved servants raised by some powerful family, or perhaps young death warriors?"

Qi Xiao suddenly remembered that the Dongzong seemed to be involved in the business of trading Rice People. He speculated that this might be one of their goods transfer points. Soon, he reached the end of the small town.

A Taoist temple, half-hidden among trees with sprawling branches, appeared before him. Outside the temple, numerous carriages were parked, having arrived from various directions. None of the carriages had a driver.

Suddenly, the entire world became exceptionally quiet. The town, which had just moments ago been filled with pedestrians and children's songs, instantly became deathly silent. Qi Xiao sensed that something was wrong, his brow furrowing, and he prepared to retreat.

"Since Young Master Qi has come to the Rice Ancestor Temple, why not come in and sit for a while?" an ethereal voice of an elder emanated from the distant Taoist temple. "Not good!"

Qi Xiao's expression changed abruptly, and he turned to leave. The moment he turned, the sky suddenly darkened.

It was as if the entire world had been transformed, once again turning into night. In the town he had just passed through, lights now shone in every house along the streets, and coffins were placed outside their doorways. Outside each house stood two identical figures.

Some were two elders, sitting on the ground sharpening scythes, occasionally looking at him and letting out eerie cackles. Others were two youths, dressed in coarse clothes, carrying long swords on their backs.

Some were two stunning beauties: one sat on the eaves, dressed provocatively, much of her fair skin exposed, chuckling charmingly; the other sat beneath the eaves, quiet and elegant, plucking a guqin. Qi Xiao then saw Yang Qingxi.

She stood alone in the center of the street, dressed in a black robe, with only half of her face visible. Qi Xiao was horrified beyond words. He looked around, then up at the dark sky, unable to tell if he had ever reached morning or if he had followed her all night. He stammered, "An Impermanence Illusion... Which Senior Saint Mind Master is playing such a trick on this junior?"

"A trick?" The woman sitting on the eaves, her two fair legs dangling and swaying, smiled with boundless charm. "Sixth Divine Maiden, you handle the tail you brought!"

"He's already in the Dao Seed Realm," Yang Qingxi said faintly. "Alright then, I'll deal with him for you. You'll owe me a favor!"

The sensuous woman moved, her delicate body exquisite, her ornaments jingling and radiating dazzling light. Qi Xiao used his movement technique and turned to flee. But behind him was the even more eerie and terrifying Taoist temple, so he tried to circle around to the right. However, a group of barefoot children came walking from the right, blocking his path.

The children's rhyme began again, but to Qi Xiao's ears, it had completely changed its meaning, filling his heart with terror. "One grain, two sprouts, at third watch, rise and slay the master."

"Blood splatters, staining white gauze, at fifth watch, crows fill the sky."

"Six-foot grave, seven-step malevolence."

"Eight lines of curses hang in the sky."

"Nine heads hang from the tassels, I sprout to make ten generations perish."