The Little Daoist Child was having a grand time asking and answering his own questions.

"Shouzhuo, you’re spouting nonsense again."

Just then, a cold voice drifted in from the doorway.

The Little Daoist Child, Shouzhuo, scrambled to his feet. He tossed the Crystal Stone back into the Crystal Pool, then bowed. "Uncle Yu!"

"Hmph. Even though Elder Zhao isn’t here, you can’t afford to be so slack... Has anything been out of the ordinary?"

"Reporting to Uncle Yu, nothing is out of the ordinary..." Shouzhuo finished, then paused in thought for a moment before suddenly adding, "But... I feel like something’s a little different. I just can’t put my finger on it."

Hearing the Little Daoist Child’s words, Yu Zhengnan’s expression grew taut. He was about to ask for more details.

Just then, a sharp CRACK echoed from the mirror-like area above the Crystal Stone Pool, a space that wavered between illusion and reality.

"That’s it! That’s the sound! I thought I was hearing things."

The Little Daoist Child, Shouzhuo, pointed excitedly at the source of the noise, his voice filled with surprised delight.

Yu Zhengnan’s brow furrowed. He strode forward and circled the "mirror," observing it carefully for a long while. Aside from that one odd noise, there was no other activity.

"If you hear anything else, tell me immediately."

Yu Zhengnan sternly reprimanded the Little Daoist Child before leaving the Longevity Cave with a grim expression.

A short while later, Yu Zhengnan found Daoist Yun Hao on a cliff’s edge, bathing in the rosy glow of the sky as he sat cross-legged in meditation.

"Junior Brother, I fear something is about to happen in the Longevity Cave. Should we evacuate some of the disciples first?"

Yu Zhengnan said, his face grave.

"When the Sect Leader was still with us, he said that these Demons would never give up. If the Crystal Stones can get through, who’s to say they won’t find a way to enter through the same means..."

"Something must be limiting them. Unfortunately, my strength is a far cry from the Sect Leader’s at his peak. I fear I won’t be able to protect everyone in the sect."

Daoist Yun Hao spoke with a hint of melancholy.

"I understand. We’ll prepare for the worst. A thousand years of Qingcheng cannot be destroyed in our hands."

"Right. But as for the Court..."

"The Court has its own hands full. If what the Sect Leader predicted comes to pass, I’m afraid they’ll be powerless to help as well..."

The two gazed at the distant, overlapping mountain peaks. Auspicious clouds coiled around them, occasionally shot through with a rosy glow, creating a scene like a celestial paradise.

They couldn’t help but chant, "Boundless Celestial Venerable!"

...

The Jeju City District was as bustling as ever.

With the hit television series from Director Wang Ping on the air, Zhao Rui’s song, "Sword and Dream," began playing on every street corner.

Zhao Rui had even received several offers from directors asking if he would be willing to write lyrics and compose music for this movie or that TV show.

Zhao Rui didn’t turn them down completely.

He wanted to introduce some of this world’s great Martial Arts songs as well.

Galloping on horseback, drawing a bow to shoot eagles, a duet of zither and flute, laughing freely in the Jianghu.

What Martial Arts Student didn’t harbor such dreams?

The potential audience was broader than Zhao Rui could have ever imagined.

"Sword and Dream" alone was adored by countless people.

Many kids who were originally learning unarmed combat had now switched to learning swordsmanship.

It made Zhao Rui feel a bit like he was leading the youth astray.

’If I ever release "Iron Blood, Loyal Heart," are the kids all going to start learning archery?’

While he didn’t refuse, Zhao Rui didn’t agree either, simply saying he’d see.

After all, the quality of the script was what mattered most.

With the end of the second special training class for Martial Arts Students, Zhao Rui put the third session on hold.

For one, there weren’t enough personnel; the number of students who met the criteria was dwindling. He couldn’t even gather twenty people.

For another, he was preparing to return to Qingcheng to see how the disciples were progressing with their training.

So, after staying in Jeju until the end of December, just before New Year’s Day, Zhao Rui boarded a train to Sichuan Province and headed for Qingcheng Mountain.

After earning more Advancement Points during this period, Zhao Rui’s power had clearly improved immensely.

In terms of Inner Strength, he had accumulated an additional twenty years’ worth of True Qi. This allowed him to break through the True Qi liquefaction limits of the First and Second Levels of the True Essence Realm, reaching the Triple Realm directly.

The Three Realms of True Essence was a rather vague classification. It mainly described the process by which a Martial Artist, through years of cultivation and condensation, transformed the surging True Qi within their body into a flowing, liquid state.

It was similar to liquid mercury.

The greater the degree of liquefaction, the closer one was to the peak of the Third Level.

It wasn’t something you could see when someone was using Martial Arts, so it was rather difficult to estimate.

Some people had unique Martial Arts that allowed them to reach a Second or Third Level of liquefaction the moment they became a Grandmaster.

Other Grandmasters, with more common Cultivation Techniques, could only advance through methodical cultivation.

The Grandmaster experts Zhao Rui had encountered recently, like Nie Sheng and Qiao Si Niang, were in this part of the True Essence Realm.

Their Realms were somewhere between the First and Second Level, mostly achieved through sheer hard work and diligent practice.

Consequently, their strength wasn’t anything to write home about.

Since Zhao Rui could defeat a Third Heaven Demon Sect Elder right after he had advanced, dealing with the likes of them was a piece of cake.

As for the Shadowy Figure, he was at the Third Heaven of the True Essence Realm.

Combined with the power of his Demon Skill, he could fight above his level, exhibiting the power of the Divine Void Realm.

That was why he had almost severely injured Zhao Rui.

As for Zhao Rui’s current true strength, he, like the Shadowy Figure, could also exhibit the power of the Divine Void Realm despite being in the True Essence Realm.

But what set Zhao Rui apart, aside from exhibiting even greater power, was his "cheat code": the enhancement Support from his Acupoints.

It was like strapping a rocket engine and an auxiliary fuel tank onto a car; his burst power and endurance could skyrocket in an instant.

It allowed him to unleash the power of the Third Level of the Divine Void Realm while still being in the True Essence Realm.

The more Acupoints he had, the stronger his Support enhancement would naturally be.

At his current level, if he were to face the Phantom Envoy on Qingcheng Mountain alone, he could at least escape with ease, even if he couldn’t win.

Then again, the Phantom Envoy was worlds weaker than the Illusionary Sound Old Demon.

According to Zhao Rui’s estimate, the Old Demon was at least at the High Tier of the Dharma Realm, perhaps even higher.

The Phantom Envoy, on the other hand, was at the initial stage of the Dharma Realm at best, or perhaps the peak of the Divine Void Realm.

’What exactly is the Dharma Realm like?’

’Perhaps Nun Lejing and Elder Ge are at that level of power.’

Zhao Rui sorted through his thoughts on the journey, and before he knew it, the train arrived in Sichuan Province.

As soon as he got off the train and walked out of the station, Zhao Rui saw Yu Zhengnan waiting for him at the entrance with two young Daoists.

He immediately smiled and walked over. "Daoist Yu, haha, long time no see."

"Elder!"

the two Qingcheng Disciples called out respectfully.

That shout immediately drew the gazes of the surrounding travelers.

"Such a young Elder!"

"I wonder which Daoist Temple he’s from. He’s kinda cute!"

Curious passersby whispered amongst themselves.

"Everyone at the temple was so happy to hear you were coming back."

"A few things held me up, or I would’ve been back sooner."

The two of them chatted as they left the station.

「Half a day later.」

On Qingcheng Mountain, Zhao Rui, now changed into a Daoist Robe, leaped onto a high rock and looked down upon the Daoist Temple of the Qingcheng Sword Sect.

’I’m a little reluctant to let this go, even though I’m not a real Daoist here.’

Zhao Rui sighed with a hint of regret.

"If the worst comes to pass, as long as our people survive, Qingcheng can be rebuilt."

Daoist Yu said, his breathing long and even, his exhaled words forming audible puffs of air.

"It can’t be that serious, can it?"

"The old Sect Leader once said the Demon Sect can destroy Qingcheng for a time, but they can’t destroy it for all time. The real fear is losing our heritage."

"From the sound of it, the old Sect Leader must have known something. Honestly, why couldn’t he have just said it plainly?"

Zhao Rui grumbled.

"That was just the old Sect Leader’s guess; he wasn’t certain himself. Zhao Rui, if that day truly comes, if Qingcheng is no more... you must keep the flame of Qingcheng alive."

Daoist Yu said in a low, solemn voice.

"It won’t come to that, it won’t. Don’t be so formal about something so uncertain. Come on, let’s go see how the disciples’ cultivation is coming along."

With that, Zhao Rui leaped off the rock and walked toward the Martial Arts Arena in the distance.

At the Martial Arts Arena, over twenty disciples were diligently practicing their Martial Arts.

Each was practicing a different style of Martial Arts; some focused on unarmed combat, others on blades.

These were all Martial Arts of the Qingcheng Sword Sect, dug out from dusty old archives.

Most of them were incomplete Cultivation Techniques.

But Zhao Rui didn’t mind. Before he left, he had specifically arranged for each of these disciples to specialize in one.

It didn’t matter if the techniques were incomplete; as long as they grasped the basics, it would be enough.