Chapter 287: Rice Cultivation Sect's Four Halls

Li Weiyi was extremely surprised that Yang Yun not only survived the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival but also appeared at the Rice Cult Central Altar.

He had not only cultivated the Nine Springs but also transformed into a Pure Immortal Body. His cultivation aura had significantly advanced, seemingly reaching the third stage of the Five Seas Realm. The defiant aura about him had grown even stronger.

Li Weiyi had been investigating Qi Xiao's disappearance, and the various strange occurrences that had emerged now had a clearer answer at this very moment.

It seemed that Yang Qingxi and the Yang family of the IIE Sect were indeed connected to the Rice Cult.

Could Yang Yun also have grown out of a rice field?

Li Weiyi, who now appeared slightly chubby-faced, of medium build, and around thirty years old, walked over to Yang Yun and looked at the various items displayed on the stall.

His gaze flickered to the vendor sitting behind the stall.

The vendor had three blood-colored spirit grains on his cuff. His true age was indiscernible, but he was certainly over thirty. It was difficult to determine his cultivation realm, but he definitely hadn't reached the Dao Seed Realm.

The number of blood-colored spirit grains on his cuff was one more than what Li Weiyi had seen on the two inner disciples outside the Southern Purity Palace previously.

His status should be higher.

Li Weiyi diligently gathered information about this unfamiliar world, his gaze falling upon the insect eggs in a clay pot on the stall.

Two insect eggs, the size of rice grains, emitted a jade-white glow and were attached to the leaves of a hundred-year-old precious herb.

"Is Yang Yun rich now? Can he already afford the eggs of a Commander-level wondrous insect?"

After observing for a moment, Li Weiyi reminded him, "These are indeed the eggs of a Commander-level wondrous insect!"

Yang Yun and the core disciple both looked at him.

The core disciple smiled, "Finally, someone who knows their goods has arrived."

Li Weiyi changed his tone, "However, these are the eggs of a turtle-snake snail. They are slow and weak in attack, considered quite mediocre among Commander-level wondrous insects."

The core disciple's smile faded. Realizing the other person truly understood insect control, he said, "Even if it's mediocre, it's still Commander-level. Once mature, its combat power can rival a Dao Seed Realm martial cultivator."

Li Weiyi said, "That's precisely the problem! It takes at least thirty years to hatch it. To feed it to maturity, it takes at least sixty years. Moreover, after reaching maturity, it can only live for another thirty years at most."

Yang Yun's eyes darkened, and he cackled, "No wonder you're selling it! You're asking for two hundred thousand Flowing Spring Coins for this kind of wondrous insect?"

The core disciple ignored Yang Yun completely, fixing his gaze on Li Weiyi. "I am Dao Zhenhui, a registered disciple of Elder Shu. Have I offended you somewhere?"

"I simply came to the aid of someone I saw being wronged," Li Weiyi said with a smile.

Yang Yun cast a grateful look and clasped his fists in greeting.

Dao Zhenhui stood up, mystical energy emanating from his pores, revealing his cultivation realm of the Sixth Sea of the Five Seas Realm. "State your name, and let me see if I can afford to offend you."

"With just you?"

Li Weiyi's lips curled into a smile. He did not use his mystical energy or battle intent, fearing that Yang Yun might sense and recognize him.

A spiritual light glowed between his brows, and his mind power burst forth.

*Thud, thud, thud*. Dao Zhenhui was so startled by the mind power attack that he stumbled back three steps, his expression fluctuating between clear and dark. Finally, he cupped his hands and bowed deeply.

A Spirit Mind Master was not to be offended.

Li Weiyi and Yang Yun walked together out of the market town.

"Thank you, Senior Brother, for your righteous help. Otherwise, Dao Zhenhui truly would have tricked me out of a large sum of money. I'll settle this score with him sooner or later." Yang Yun showed great respect for Li Weiyi.

Li Weiyi said, "My name is Zuo Sheng! Brother Yun, what should I call you?"

"Yun Yang."

Beneath Yang Yun's mask, his eyes were full of sincerity and respect.

The sky in the area where the Rice Cult Central Altar was located was always dim.

A bright formation moon hung in the sky, showering down light like rain.

This moon appeared visually three to four times larger than the full moon visible in the surface world.

As they left the market town, the concentration of mystical energy rapidly decreased.

On both sides of the rice fields were towering, steep mountain peaks. The trees and vegetation on the mountains emitted a purplish-red glow, and the deep, muffled sounds of strange beasts and birds could be heard.

The rice fields were enveloped by a shimmering formation veil. Through it, one could faintly discern plants, tens of meters tall, cultivated within.

The more they talked, the more congenial they found each other.

Li Weiyi said, "Brother Yun, you're like me, not a native Rice Person of the Central Altar, are you?"

"I've only been at the Central Altar for a few months myself."

Yang Yun then asked, "Senior Brother Zuo, you also came from outside?"

Li Weiyi, appearing completely unguarded with him, nodded and said, "I was born in the rice fields of the Zuoqiu Family courtyard and grew up in Qiuzhou. Because of my extraordinary talent, I was specially cultivated and later granted the surname Zuo. I only came to the Central Altar for the first time in recent days, accompanying the Fourth Divine Son."

Yang Yun had no doubts.

Anyone who could come to the Central Altar from the outside must have undergone rigorous inspections.

Yang Yun reminded him, "Since Senior Brother Zuo has an identity outside, it would be better to wear a mask. It's better to be safe than sorry."

Li Weiyi suddenly understood.

So, those masked cultivators he had seen earlier in the market town were all people with identities on the outside.

Li Weiyi smiled, "Thank you for telling me, Brother Yun, but it's fine. I've used a disguise art. Besides, anyone who can come to the Central Altar is absolutely trustworthy."

Yang Yun asked curiously, "Senior Brother Zuo, has a powerful person like you also had a Death Spirit Fire planted in you?"

Li Weiyi's expression turned serious. After walking for a while, he said, "There's nothing to be done about it! Non-native Rice People of the Central Altar are difficult to trust, and the Divine Cult will certainly find ways to control them."

He then continued, "But I understand. The location of the Central Altar is an absolute secret. If it were to be leaked, it would be a catastrophic disaster. The location of the Central Altar's entrance, in particular, is the deepest secret among secrets."

Yang Yun was startled. "Senior Brother Zuo, you know where the entrance is?"

"You actually don't know?" Li Weiyi retorted, feeling a little disappointed.

"My cultivation is low, and..."

Yang Yun found it difficult to say that he wasn't a Rice Person, fearing he might be seen as an outsider:

"When I came in, my five senses were sealed off."

"I see."

Li Weiyi changed his address and said kindly, "Junior Brother Yun, how much do you know about the Central Altar? I've just arrived, and I'm truly amazed at every step. Who would have thought the Central Altar would be so vast and immense, like an independent world?"

The opportunity to help a Spirit Mind Master immediately thrilled Yang Yun, and he laughed heartily. "Actually, I don't know much myself. My sister... I rarely leave my cultivation area. The Central Altar has many dangers. The Spirit Valley Hall's management is very lenient; there are no explicit prohibitions against disputes among disciples. If you're not careful, and you provoke a powerful individual, you might even be in mortal danger."

Li Weiyi said, "Isn't that chaotic?"

Yang Yun said, "It's not that exaggerated! The Central Altar also has the Withered Glory Hall, which wields the power of rewards and punishments. If any disciple truly acts recklessly without restraint, the punishments are quite severe. Whipping and beating are common, but fire torture, insect torture, and the Divine Prison are worse than death."

So, the Divine Prison was connected to the Withered Glory Hall.

Li Weiyi knew that Tuoba Butuo and others had been imprisoned in the Divine Prison.

However, at the moment, whether he could escape with his life was still unknown, so he naturally couldn't concern himself with them.

Li Weiyi nodded again and then asked, "Junior Brother Yun, what exactly kind of place is the Spirit Valley Hall?"

Yang Yun spoke fluently, "The Divine Cult has four halls: the Heavenly Principle Hall, the Spirit Valley Hall, the Withered Glory Hall, and the World Hall."

"The Heavenly Principle Hall ranks first. It is responsible for rituals, compiling scriptures, teaching doctrines, and spreading the faith, primarily focusing on mind power cultivation. Almost all of the Central Altar's formations, deceased spirits, fierce insects, artifact refining, and herb planting are managed by them."

"The Spirit Valley Hall is responsible for cultivating outer disciples (Spirit Children), inner disciples, core disciples, and even some direct disciples, who are also under their management. Simultaneously, they oversee the cultivation of high-quality Benevolent Rice and the rearing of young children."

"Like the World Hall, the Spirit Valley Hall is divided into twenty-eight prefectures, according to the Twenty-Eight States of Lingxiao."

"The difference is that the Spirit Valley Hall's twenty-eight prefectures are for internally cultivating outstanding talents."

"The twenty-eight elders of the World Hall, along with five Venerables, handle external affairs, being responsible for matters in the outside world."

Yang Yun whispered, "I heard that a significant portion of the twenty-eight elders of the Spirit Valley Hall's twenty-eight prefectures and the twenty-eight elders of the World Hall look exactly alike, as they are part of a symbiotic plant."

A single symbiotic plant, two people from the same root.

One on the outside, one on the inside.

Li Weiyi secretly marveled at the terrifying strength of the Twin Rice Cult.

But considering that they had already mastered and developed vast resources from the underground immortal mansion many years ago, and inherited various scriptures and Daoist arts from the ancient Bhargava Cult, they could indeed grow quietly in unknown places.

Li Weiyi asked, "Wouldn't the four Hall Masters be even more powerful than the five Venerables?"

"That's for sure. The five Venerables all belong to the World Hall, and together with the World Hall's three Deputy Hall Masters, they form an eight-person group that is the Divine Cult's main force for exerting influence externally."

At this point, Yang Yun showed a proud expression.

Li Weiyi secretly wondered if the Sui Sect also had members in an eight-person group. Fearing exposure, he did not press further. Instead, he suddenly looked up into the distance and sighed, "I wonder how vast this Central Altar is? One can't see its end!"

Yang Yun smiled and boasted, "The Central Altar, just the area under the Spirit Valley Hall's jurisdiction where we stand, alone has twenty-eight prefectures. Each prefecture has a Heavenly Law Earth Spring and several Benevolent Rice fields. Anyway, it's said that you'd have to walk hundreds of miles in one direction to see the formation's boundary."

The two continued walking and chatting, leaving the rice field area.

At the foot of a dark, massive mountain, they saw the Spirit Valley Hall stone monument, seventy to eighty meters tall.

The Spirit Valley Hall was situated in a valley, where hundreds of meters tall glowing giant trees grew. Palaces, scripture pavilions, and pagodas were half-hidden among their branches and leaves.

Undoubtedly, most of the buildings were left behind by the Bhargava Cult from tens of thousands of years ago.

In front of the valley were numerous training grounds and preaching areas. Young disciples would periodically arrive from various directions, take out their life tokens, and enter the formation's light barrier as if walking through a water curtain.

They arrived outside the formation at the Spirit Valley Hall's mountain gate.

Yang Yun took out his life token and looked at Li Weiyi, "Senior Brother Zuo, where's your life token?"

Li Weiyi replied, "I haven't received mine yet."

Doubt appeared in Yang Yun's eyes. "Life tokens are extremely important. The Central Altar's formations, guardian beasts, patrol guards, and enforcement teams all recognize only them. A life token, a life token — it's tied to one's very life! You should have received it on your first day here!"

Li Weiyi knew he couldn't keep up the pretense any longer. He looked around and, finding no other martial cultivators, used the Spirit Treasure Snatch technique to seize the life token from Yang Yun's hand.

Inside the life token, Yang Yun's unique blood was flowing, which made Li Weiyi frown slightly.

Yang Yun froze, not knowing what this Senior Brother Zuo intended to do, but he already sensed something was amiss.

"Thud!"

Li Weiyi struck him on the back of the head with a palm, his palm infused with powerful mind power.

Yang Yun's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed.

Li Weiyi, carrying the limp Yang Yun, retreated to the rice field area.

In a hidden corner, he quickly stripped off Yang Yun's inner disciple rice robe and put it on himself.