Stop it, Taoist, Your Fight almost Ruins the DAO!

Chapter 205 News of the Human Demon, Turbulence Resurfaces, Nan Shui River, The Mysterious Pleasure Boat

Take a seat.

Tea is served.

Before Yi Chen could speak, Lin Zhenbei went straight to the point.

"Taoist priest, I won't beat around the bush with you since we have our history. These past few days, at the request of the security bureau of the prefectural city, my son and I made a special trip."

"Are you aware of the purple meteorites that scattered across the world during the last celestial anomaly? The purpose of summoning us this time was concerning this matter."

"Heh heh, you would never have guessed the troubles stirred up by the second celestial anomaly, Taoist priest. As soon as I received the news, I rushed here to Hidden Dragon Temple without stopping."

Yi Chen took a sip of the hot tea, "Let me guess, I assume the Purple Token can affect one's mind, and offering a sacrifice after completing certain tasks will greatly increase the cultivation of the host who is fused with the Purple Token."

"Hmm, the hidden abilities are indeed strong, and the body might undergo mutations, such as hands turning into purple crystalline claws of the sort."

"That's right, and when these people reveal their abilities, their faces will be covered with purple patterns."

Hearing Yi Chen's words, Lin Zhenbei and his son exchanged glances, their expressions turning odd, "Have you seen a Purple Token Demon?"

Yi Chen stood up with a smile and took out tiger bone liquor brewed by the Mountain Lord of Black Wind from his storage ring, personally pouring a cup for the two of them. He recounted in full detail the disappearance of Prefect Li's son.

"Without expecting such an array of events to occur in such a short time while we were in the prefectural city, it is fortunate that the Taoist Priest had keen eyes. Otherwise, letting that demon wreak havoc would have inevitably led to a disaster.

"Considering the Jiangnan Circuit, where the largest number of purple meteorites fell back then, only two or three cases have been exposed so far. Who knows how much trouble it will cause in the future?" Lin Zhenbei lamented.

"This is some intelligence distributed by our security bureau, Taoist priest, for you to refer to. Since you have already encountered a demon, I won't elaborate further. Please inform the True Technique Temple, Moon Wheel Temple, and Water Moon Nunnery on our behalf," said Lin Zhenbei.

Lin Zhenbei clearly understood the ways of the world very well; he managed to give the impression of asking for a favor even though it was a favor he was granting to Hidden Dragon Temple, making the interaction feel as pleasant as a spring breeze.

"This matter is easy for me. I see Brother Lin's valiant son is both spiritually and physically talented, sharing the same natural awakening of the wind element with Lord Feng Linsu. When his cultivation reaches new heights in the future, if he wishes to go to the city in the northern state, I am willing to write a letter of recommendation for him. Lord Feng is likely to give me this little face," replied Yi Chen seriously.

"Whether Lord Feng will take a liking to him, I cannot offer help there," Yi Chen responded earnestly.

Yi Chen was always generous towards those who were amicable towards him, repaying a peach with a precious jade.

As expected, Lin Zhenbei's face lit up with joy upon hearing this, and he stayed for a while longer before leaving with good sense.

After watching the disappearing figures of Lin Zhenbei and his son, Yi Chen picked up the gold invitation sent from Dragon Tiger Mountain once again.

Indeed, the wealthy house is different; while others have gold-leaf invitations, theirs are made of solid gold.

Inside the cover page was an invitation.

The gist of it was that Zhang Daoyi, the Dao Sect believer from Dragon Tiger Mountain, will hold a debate on the teachings with the Buddhist Shen Hui on Qingyun Mountain in the Jiangnan Circuit around the middle of the following month. They invited Yi Chen to witness the event, to boost the momentum of the Dao Sect, and to also discuss the formation of the Dao Alliance.

"Brother, are you going?" Qing Yunzi frowned upon seeing the content within the gold invitation.

He knew about his senior brother's past issues with Zhang Longyi of Dragon Tiger Mountain and was worried about the potential dangers of this trip.

Yi Chen also found himself deep in thought.

Before, while the Buddhist believer at Jinyue City was giving a sermon, he'd criticized Dragon Tiger Mountain as cowardly for not letting Zhang Daoyi take action. And now, unexpectedly, they were openly challenging the Buddhist Shen Hui with a lot of fanfare.

They were even brandishing the banner of wanting to establish a Dao Alliance.

Such a grand move by Dragon Tiger Mountain, it was uncertain whether they were determined to win or if it was a desperate all-in counter-attack.

"Could it be that this believer traveled the world and acquired some mysterious blue pills, puffing themselves up?" Yi Chen couldn't help but mock internally.

The world was already in disarray due to the celestial anomalies, and now with the revival of the Buddhist-Daoist rivalry, involving countless sects, who knows what storms it would stir up.

Lu Xun once said an aphorism, to go or not to go, that is the question.

Yi Chen was now caught in a profound dilemma.

To not go would offend Dragon Tiger Mountain, and how would his Hidden Dragon Temple continue to mingle in the Dao Sect system? If his sights were only set on one prefecture, he could easily disregard this affair.

But if he wished to elevate Hidden Dragon Temple into the ranks of the world's top sects, he could not ignore the issue of reputation.

Furthermore, he harbored even greater ambitions in his heart.

To go or not to go, it was a matter of picking sides.

Dragon Tiger Mountain and Mount Daguangming seemed like two powerful nations. When great powers clash, lesser countries must pick a side, not attempt to sit on the fence.

Loyalty that's not absolute is absolutely not loyalty.

In the end, one would likely end up good with neither side.

"Big Brother, maybe I should go," Qing Yunzi hesitantly suggested, clearly recognizing the difficulty of the situation and offering a compromise.

"That's even less appropriate. Junior brother, you're not of sufficient stature. Your going would be no different from not going at all."

"So what do we do?" Qing Yunzi was a bit anxious at this point.

"We go!" Yi Chen, embodying Guo Ziyi, made a decisive call.

"Ah? What do you mean by that?"

"I definitely have to go to the Jiangnan Circuit, but I will not show up prematurely. I'll cautiously gather information first and decide based on the situation," Yi Chen replied.

"Don't worry, junior brother. If there's danger, your senior brother will not make an appearance."

As he spoke, Yi Chen magically transformed, adopting Qing Yunzi's exact appearance and stature, even perfectly mimicking his mana aura, which left Qing Yunzi with eyes wide open in astonishment.

"Senior brother, since when did you learn such profound magic?"

"Senior brother, since when did you learn such profound magic?"

"Don't mess around, Senior brother."

"Don't mess around, Senior brother."

At the top of the great hall, Yi Chen replicated Qing Yunzi's movements, turning into a parroting machine.

Suddenly, the door creaked open.

Two little ones scampered in—they too had their eyes wide open in disbelief.

Qing Feng and Ming Yue simultaneously rubbed their eyes, feeling as if they had woken up to a peculiarity; they saw two secondary senior brothers before them.

"He's the fake one; he's the transformation of our senior brother."

"He's fake, he's transformed by our eldest senior brother,"

After a long while.

In the Qing Yunzi impersonation competition, Qing Yunzi courageously won second place.

Yi Chen released his mimicry ability, smiling from ear to ear.

"Junior brother, you can relax now. As long as the senior brother doesn't take action, with my current abilities, even if True Monarchs face me, they wouldn't be able to detect senior brother's true nature without a careful examination,"

"You stay here and look after things, senior brother is going to gauge the depth of these muddy waters."

In the stunned gazes of Qing Feng and Ming Yue, Qing Yunzi finally nodded in reassurance.

"Alright, the matter of the Purple Token demon is of great importance. You must stay alert to all abnormal and evil presences in Ping'an County. I'll go and send information to Abbess Shuiyue at Shuiyue Convent, and you should visit both the Hidden Dragon Temple and the Moon Wheel Temple."

Yi Chen gave Qing Yunzi a pat on the shoulder and after reading the information about the Purple Token demon handed it over to his junior brother.

"Senior brother, it seems that Abbess Shuiyue from the Shuiyue Convent has renounced her vows and left, and the one replacing her is Extinction Friar, a high-level practitioner in the mid-phase of the Qi Refinement Realm. She just celebrated her eightieth birthday not long ago,"

Qing Yunzi briefed Yi Chen about some of the changes around Fengyun County during the months of his absence.

"Is that so, I suddenly remember having urgent matters this afternoon, so you go deliver these to the three major sects yourself."

Yi Chen curled his lip and waved his hands as he walked out of the Daoist temple.

There's no use in staying since the old friend has left.

Thinking of the beautiful and noble mien and daily habits of the abbess he remembered, Yi Chen wasn't particularly surprised by Abbess Shuiyue's departure.

The next day, at dawn, when the sky turned pale blue and wasn't fully bright yet.

Yi Chen, accompanied by Little Miao and waved off by his junior brothers, ascended once again into the sky, embarking on his journey toward the Jiangnan Circuit.

Even without the golden invitation from Dragon Tiger Mountain, he'd been planning to leave soon anyway.

The invitation just expedited the inevitable.

Since he was marked with the blood-colored symbol by Yin Manor a year ago, over seven months had already passed. While confident in his abilities, given the current anomalies in the world, Yin Manor might not be as simple to deal with as before, so he had to be cautious and prepare for the worst.

If he truly fell into the Absolute Hell of Yin Manor, as long as others were uncertain about his death, that would extend Hidden Dragon Temple's peace for a little longer. Coupled with the promises from the Red Flame Commander and Feng Linsu, he believed that with his junior brother's talent, they should be able to avoid trouble for some time.

Beyond that, the lack of activity from the Yan Family also made him uneasy. Your next journey awaits at empire

Since he subdued the Infernal Fire Sect, there had been no movement from them at all. If the mysterious jade dagger was truly Yan Family's scheme, what would be their fallback plan?

Unable to guess, Yi Chen thus decided to leave.

A great man once said, "You fight yours, I fight mine."

Yi Chen thought this principle was absolutely golden.

Whether it was the Yan Family or his feud with Zhang Longyi, most of the hatred was focused on him alone. Staying at Hidden Dragon Temple would be like the biggest ticking time-bomb.

His absence from Hidden Dragon Temple would make others think twice before targeting it due to the reluctance to destroy something valuable by mistake.

Traveling and exploring the world was the greatest protection he could offer to Hidden Dragon Temple.

Lin Zhenbei from Jiangnan Circuit said according to the Stability Office's observation, there were more purple meteor falls in the region. Therefore, Yi Chen decided to start his travel there. If he could find three Purple Token demons within two months and get a feel of them, wouldn't he be able to reach the thirteenth level of the True Technique?

If he could have an early contest with the Buddha's Son and win the treasured "King's Great Prajna Paramita Technique," it would be worthwhile for him.

The Qingyun Mountain range spans eighty thousand li, standing solitary from the world.

It is also the largest sect in the Jiangnan Circuit, the Daoist grounds of the Qingyun Sect, the foremost of the twelve sects of Da Yue.

Its disciples are known for their profound mana.

If he could "join" the Qingyun Sect and obtain the original techniques of the Transformative Heavenly Qi borne from the "Void Creation Celestial Scripture," it would be a lethal move.

...

...

Fifteen days passed in the blink of an eye.

Jiangnan Circuit, deep in the Nan Mountains.

A winding ribbon of emerald-green, stretching from one end of the Nan Mountains and flowing out gently in the deep woods of its middle.

At noon, the sun was scorching.

Yi Chen stood at the bow of the boat, quietly watching the scenery on both banks recede into the distance.

He was now dressed in a blue robe, had changed his appearance, and assumed the guise of a scholar.

Miao Zi had shrunk to the size of a teacup, and Yi Chen concealed him inside his travel sack.

To hide his tracks, after changing his route several times, Yi Chen decided to go incognito as a scholar named Zhang San and blend in on this pleasure boat.

Apart from him, the boat also carried a group of young masters and mistresses, a small number of merchants, and their guards.

"Master Zhang, you appear distinguished. Why do you always stand at the bow, not joining us for the feast?"

A thoroughly drunken young master, holding a wine jug, came over insisting that Yi Chen join their drinking party.

This young master, who looked extremely handsome, claimed to be the owner of the boat and went by the name Ye Rusuang.

He had previously seen Yi Chen struggling along the shore, hence he graciously invited him aboard.

However, Yi Chen knew that this person was actually a girl in disguise, a young lady.

She was followed by two dark-faced guards who were built like towers. Although they were well-concealed, in Yi Chen's eyes they stood out like candles in the wind, extremely conspicuous.

Both of these individuals were practitioners in the later stages of the Qi Refinement Realm.

It seemed like some noble lady was traveling incognito in a white dragon fish's clothing.

The other passengers on the pleasure boat also had varied identities, and Yi Chen noticed at least some of them had shifty eyes and must certainly have ulterior motives.

The guards that came with them included martial arts experts as well as some practitioners with mana, indicating the not-so-ordinary backgrounds of this group of people.

Yi Chen became intrigued by such an unusual pleasure boat, and thus accepted the invitation to come aboard.