Chapter 330: Already the Following Winter

The path to leave the main altar leads through the Hall of All Under Heaven.

The Hall of All Under Heaven is responsible for worldly affairs. Its Master, three Deputy Masters, five Revered Elders, and twenty-eight Elders are almost entirely deployed across the twenty-eight prefectures of Lingxiao, not residing at the main altar.

The Hall of All Under Heaven’s architectural complex is located south of the Mortal Layer.

Almost all cultivators entering the hall wear masks, as they hold special identities outside.

Li Weiyi, Tuoba Butuo, and Qi Xiao traveled together to Nanyan Pass. They also wore masks to conceal their appearances and altered their figures before entering the hall. The three presented their life tokens and, one after another, had the Death Spirit Fire planted within them.

Only then did the elder responsible for registration ask them where they intended to go.

Li Weiyi, being a Divine Son and already having the Death Spirit Fire planted in him by Yao Qingxuan, did not need to have it done again. He adopted an arrogant posture and said displeasedly, “A Divine Son’s travels always involve important missions. How can I easily disclose my destination to you? If this information leaks, can you bear the responsibility?”

The elder quickly apologized, saying, “It is like this: to conceal the Divine Cult’s Main Altar and its entrance, everyone below the rank of Revered Elder must use spatial teleportation arrays to be transported to several Rice Ancestor Temples outside, from where they can then silently disperse and gather.”

“It’s perfectly normal that the Fourth Divine Son, never having traveled outside, wouldn’t know this.”

“For example, if His Highness, the Divine Son, were to go on a mission to the Western Territory but was teleported to the Eastern Territory instead, wouldn’t that result in a lot of wasted travel?”

Qi Xiao recalled the small town of Qingyi outside Qiuzhou’s provincial city. There, a Rice Ancestor Temple, guarded by a Saint Spirit Mind Master, likely contained a teleportation array, serving as one of the Rice Cult’s distribution points.

Under Li Weiyi’s mask, the chill in his eyes diminished. “To the Eastern Territory,” he stated.

Nanyan Pass, located in the far north of Fuzhou, belongs to the Southern Territory.

He intentionally named the Eastern Territory because the registration information at the Hall of All Under Heaven was too easily leaked. It was possible that the moment he left, the information would fall into certain hands.

Entering and exiting the main altar required inspection by the Swastika Device Buddha Statue.

Neither people nor items could be hidden within storage bags, Wind Palaces, Ancestral Fields, or even internal organs and bones.

Li Weiyi knew this, and had already taken the risk of pulling Tang Wanzhou into the Blood Mud Space. The Dao Ancestor’s Tai Chi Fish was not something a mere Buddha statue could see through.

Led by a young inner disciple, the three walked deep into the cave behind the main hall. An ancient spatial teleportation array appeared before their eyes.

It had a diameter of three zhang, with ancient immortal beast blood flowing in its array pattern grooves, inlaid with high-grade blood crystals, much like the one in Nanqing Palace.

The cave was vast, with stone stairs carved along its walls, winding upwards. A faint light could be seen coming from above.

It was natural light.

Cool, crisp air drifted down.

Li Weiyi and the other two looked up, gazing for a long time. They knew that above was certainly the exit, leading directly to the surface. Spatial teleportation arrays could not penetrate the barriers of the underground immortal mansion; they would be transported out from the exit.

Having been trapped underground for over a year, a surge of excitement swelled in each of them, as if they were about to walk out of a cage and return to the mortal world.

The stone steps were sealed, preventing passage.

The three of them, along with sixteen other masked Rice Cult cultivators, stepped into the spatial teleportation array.

“Whoosh!”

The entire array was enveloped in a bloody light, obscuring the outside view. All they could feel was intense weightlessness, making them nauseous.

Their bodies felt as if they were being kneaded, then rapidly pulled up and down.

Fortunately, their profound cultivation allowed them to remain calm and composed.

When the bloody light dissipated, they found themselves in a dark, damp cave. Li Weiyi and the other two followed their companions towards the surface, emerging into the inner hall of a Daoist temple.

Upon exiting the Rice Ancestor Temple, the other sixteen quickly departed, scattering in various directions.

Li Weiyi and the other two stood outside the Daoist temple in the vast, white snow. They spread their arms, closed their eyes, and breathed deeply, instantly shedding all gloomy emotions. They felt the exhilaration of a dragon emerging from the sea, with the sky vast and the ocean boundless.

Qi Xiao roared, “Finally, we’re out of that damned place! It’s so much better outside. I’m going to the Heavenly Pavilion and order the most expensive dishes, drink the finest wine, and have the most beautiful girls play music and dance. I must make up for my Dao Seed Banquet!”

“Haha, I have the same idea!” Tuoba Butuo said. “But going to the Immortal Forest would be more fitting for our current status. We’re no ordinary Dao Seed realm cultivators now; we can certainly invite immortal officials to accompany us.”

Li Weiyi chuckled softly, “If you’re going to the Immortal Forest, I won’t be joining you, because I can’t get in.”

When they entered the underground immortal mansion, the autumn air was crisp and refreshing.

Upon exiting again, it was already winter of the following year.

Soon, the three were pulled back to reality. Though they had left the underground immortal mansion, the Death Spirit Fire planted in their bodies still felt like a rope tying them down.

Outside the Rice Ancestor Temple was an ordinary town with thousands of residents, serving as a cover.

“Old Qi,” Li Weiyi said, “go inquire about getting a carriage.”

Qi Xiao asked doubtfully, “Won’t this leave a trace and allow us to be tracked? I saw those masked cultivators earlier, how they guarded against each other, taking different routes to leave, not even daring to leave footprints.”

Tuoba Butuo said, “The fewer people who know, the less risk of exposure.”

Li Weiyi’s eyes narrowed slightly. “If others want to track and find us, they’ll certainly have plenty of ways. My point is, since it’s unavoidable, why not see who comes after me first? If no one does, then we don’t have to be constantly on edge.”

“Understood!”

Qi Xiao’s eyes darted, and he instantly understood, immediately heading into town to inquire and make purchases.

The town’s residents were not simple people; they had intricate ties with the Twin Rice Cult.

A short while later, Qi Xiao drove a worn and simple carriage up to Li Weiyi and Tuoba Butuo. After they boarded, he drove straight out of town at full speed.

As the wheels churned up the snow on the road, they braved the cold wind, officially embarking on a journey of uncertain fortune.

As Qi Xiao cracked his whip and urged the horse on, he said, “This town is called Chengu Town. It’s located in Jin County, which is part of Taicang Prefecture, one of Liangzhou’s eight prefectures. It’s only six hundred li from Qu County in Fuzhou, but still over two thousand li from Nanyan Pass, our destination.”

Tuoba Butuo remarked, “The Twin Rice Cult is truly formidable. They control spatial teleportation arrays, so even ordinary cult members who visit the main altar don’t know its exact location. My Tuoba Clan is a northern great clan with a Transcendent Ancestor, yet this is the first time I’ve ever seen such a legendary array.”

Qi Xiao, visibly moved, nodded slightly. “The Twin Rice Cult can be called a billion-tier force. What the world knows about it is just the tip of the iceberg.”

The criteria for a ten-million-tier force are: First, a heritage of at least a thousand years. Second, possessing at least ten thousand martial cultivators of superior aptitude. Third, having ten million people whom they can directly influence.

All three conditions must be met.

Naturally, there are also some implicit conditions.

For example, it must have a Transcendent overseeing it, a top-tier dharma code, an impregnable mountain gate, and at least close to ten Immortal Life realm experts and Saint Spirit Mind Master-level experts who are completely obedient. If these implicit conditions are not met, it is difficult for them to be recognized by the world.

The Jiuli Tribe, for instance, became a laughingstock among ten-million-tier forces because it lacked a Transcendent.

After more than a decade of conquests across the land, forces with Transcendent beings almost all rapidly expanded, gaining significant benefits, and their territories and populations met the standards of a ten-million-tier force.

However, taking the Tuoba Clan as an example, although they had ten million people, they simply did not have enough completely obedient Immortal Life realm magnates and martial cultivators of superior aptitude under their command. Their foundation and heritage could not compare to true ten-million-tier sects, relying entirely on the power of their Ancestor.

Should their Ancestor unexpectedly perish, the clan would face a crisis of annihilation.

Furthermore, the Tuoba Clan, being in the Northern Territory, had to obey the Snow Sword Tang Court, thus lacking the presence of a ten-million-tier sect.

The number of martial cultivators with superior aptitude was closely related to the number of Five Seas Realm experts, influencing the strength of the armies they could form.

Billion-tier forces were generally considered to be more than ten times the size of ten-million-tier sects, a feat only the imperial court could achieve.

“Spatial teleportation arrays were left behind by the ancient Boghara Cult,” Li Weiyi analyzed. “The Rice Cult must have powerful Mind Masters who learned the art of array formation. However, they aren’t proficient enough, as they could only teleport us to the periphery of Fuzhou.”

Tuoba Butuo said, “Exactly! If their array formation abilities were strong, they would certainly try their best to teleport us to a location far from Fuzhou, avoiding the risk of the main altar being discovered.”

Li Weiyi had also studied spatial teleportation arrays, hoping to combine them with the Buddha Sarira. However, he failed, as his spiritual power wasn’t strong enough to draw a complete array diagram.

Ten li out of town, the three silently disembarked, concealed their auras, and hid in the snow on the right side of the road.

“Rumble!”

The carriage continued to race, its wheels and hooves making a great racket.

It disappeared across the snowfield.

Half an hour later, a team of martial cultivators with formidable auras, using movement techniques that left no trace in the snow, pursued the carriage tracks.

After the piercing whooshing sound faded, Li Weiyi transmitted a message to the two in the snow: “There are five of them in total: four Dao Seed realm cultivators and one Spirit Mind Master, all from the Patrol Guard. What a grand display; it seems they are determined to succeed. One of them is Yizhou Xue!”

“Could it be that they just happen to be on a mission?” Qi Xiao asked.

Tuoba Butuo replied, “No! Yizhou Xue is a figure who can enter the Jiazi Record. His rapid movement just now, using his movement technique, has already exposed his aura and will be detected by the Jiazi Record. While the imperial court’s oversight of the world is indeed far less stringent than before, it remains a risk. Yizhou Xue must be pursuing us, which is why he risked exposing himself to the Jiazi Record.”

Li Weiyi chuckled, “Tuoba and I both have the potential to enter the Jiazi Record. To maintain as low a profile as possible, Old Qi, many things from now on will depend on you!”

“Haha, I never thought there’d be a day when my lack of strength would be put to such great use,” Qi Xiao chuckled.

“Let’s go!”

The three burst out of the snow, no longer waiting.

After the five experts from the Patrol Guard caught up to the empty carriage, they would realize they had been tricked and surely turn back.

Qi Xiao enveloped Li Weiyi and Tuoba Butuo in his spiritual energy, then, stepping on a cloud of spiritual energy, traveled swiftly eastward without his feet touching the ground.

“Why aren’t we going west or south?” Tuoba Butuo asked curiously, wondering what Li Weiyi was concerned about. “Geographically, Nanyan Pass is southwest of us.”

Li Weiyi explained, “Fuzhou is currently a dangerous place. Who knows how many experts have gathered on the surface. A slight misstep could lead to us being targeted, so it’s better to avoid it. Before completing our mission, I don’t want to engage anyone in combat. The Jiazi Record and the Luan Terrace are troublesome enough. The Human Overlord Register, Zuoqiu Sect, and Due’e Temple are even more of a headache, as they can track all Dao Seed realm martial cultivators.”

Dao Seed realm cultivators are considered human overlords.

Tuoba Butuo suddenly understood. “Then we’ll have to take a detour to Nanyan Pass,” he said.

Qi Xiao said, “I know a route where we can take a boat north on the Qu River, disembark at Leiling City, and then follow the Xushan Celestial Vein to Nanyan Pass. This way, those tracking us won’t know our true destination. Oh no, it’s an Azure-Feathered Crow! That Patrol Guard team has a tracking expert!”

A blue raven-like bird circled high in the sky, sometimes in the clouds, sometimes visible, as if guiding the people below.

Qi Xiao, highly vigilant, spotted it.

“Can you shoot it down?” Li Weiyi asked.

“It’s too high... I’ll give it a try.”

Qi Xiao took the bow and arrow from Tuoba Butuo. As he drew the bowstring, hundreds of scriptures revolved around his body.