The Mountain Peak Dojo.

In the center of the dense Spirit Wood Garden, a game board rested on a tea table. Wang Ping sat upright in the northernmost seat, a game piece in one hand, the other tapping lightly on the table, his face a mask of serious contemplation.

Yu Lian was coiled lazily by the edge of a chair, craning her head to observe the game on the board while simultaneously reading the thoughts in Wang Ping’s Spirit Sea.

Wang Ping’s opponent was Fire Box, dressed in a long linen robe. He had returned to his previous cheerful demeanor, holding a jet-black pipe in his left hand, which he would occasionally bring to his lips for a puff. His right hand also tapped a rhythm on the tea table, as if trying to disrupt Wang Ping’s train of thought.

On the grass in the distance, the emaciated Batu’s exposed skin was in a state of festering, covered in a repulsive, grease-like film that made his tattoos look strangely eerie. His expression had reverted to the cold indifference he’d shown at the start, his spiritual consciousness deathly silent.

When the game reached its midway point, Wang Ping picked up the teapot to refill their cups and asked, "With you two in Zhongzhou this time, hasn’t the True Yang Sect given you any trouble?"

"Cultivation doesn’t always have to be about fighting," Fire Box explained with a chuckle. "As long as I don’t cross their bottom line, no one cares what we’re doing here in Zhongzhou. After all, people are most concerned with their own affairs."

Yu Lian’s gaze fell on Fire Box, and she communicated with Wang Ping through his Spirit Sea, ’His smile is so fake. I want to smack him in the face with my tail.’

Wang Ping felt the same way. After their previous battle, it was clear Fire Box’s control over his emotions was not as good as Batu’s. His smile was only skin-deep; there was no light in his eyes.

CLACK.

Wang Ping placed a piece on the board. "After this game, you should head down the mountain," he said. "Send someone over after the Spring Festival each year, and I’ll give you a quota of five hundred thousand Power Pills."

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist, for making this happen."

After cupping his fists, Fire Box took out the cyan bamboo slip he had produced earlier and placed it respectfully on the tea table. "About your previous plans," he reminded him, "it was Wulang who had someone inform me. We later had a brief meeting outside the Shang’an Prefecture City. From what I saw of him, he has a particularly flighty air about him, and his mind doesn’t seem to be on cultivation. I felt he couldn’t be trusted."

"But you, Fellow Daoist, are different. Your spirit is stable, your Dao Rhyme is in harmony with the heavens and the earth, and you used the Taiyan Talisman to ascend to the Second Realm in just a short century. You must be a person of great character—far more reliable than Wulang."

As soon as Fire Box finished speaking, Yu Lian chimed in through the Spirit Sea, ’He’s just flattering you.’

In truth, Fire Box’s words had been quite pleasant to hear. The unconscious smile that spread across Wang Ping’s face was the best proof of that, even though he knew it was just flattery.

"Actually, after I heard the news, I had originally intended to contact you immediately. Perhaps we could have dealt with the madman from the first day. But Fellow Daoist Wulang seemed to see through my intentions. For a long time afterward, his people secretly tailed us, only pulling back recently."

Fire Box contemplated as he spoke, then quickly placed a piece, adding, "I suspect they have a fixed channel of communication with that madman. If you intend to make a move, my junior brother and I would be happy to be of service."

"That won’t be necessary for now."

"What a shame. My junior brother and I will be returning to the Eastern Continent soon. It might be difficult for us to meet again in the future."

Wang Ping nodded in response.

The game ended two hours later. Fire Box and Batu descended the mountain before nightfall. They left quietly, with only a few Inner Sect Disciples seeing them to the mountain gate.

Wang Ping returned to his small courtyard and carefully inspected the cyan bamboo slip Fire Box had left behind with his Wood Spirit Qi. Only after confirming there were no issues did he pick it up and examine it with his spiritual consciousness.

A stream of knowledge was instantly transmitted from the slip to his mind and was quickly digested by Wang Ping. Soon after, a screen-like panel popped up:

[Void Clarity Technique: The emotions of a Spirit Body are always unstable. The most convenient way to stabilize them is to clear out its spiritual senses. This is a method for cleansing the spiritual senses of a Fire Spirit, using Water Spirit as the main energy source to construct a void clarity array to isolate them. It is extremely painful for a Fire Spirit Cultivator to use, but it’s better than going mad.]

[1. Find a location with dense Water Spirit Qi, and prepare six Water Spirit Spiritual Objects and one Water Spirit-aligned Celestial and Earthly Treasure.]

[2. Inscribe the fixed Void Clarity Water Spirit Array in the prepared location, and place the Spiritual Objects and Celestial and Earthly Treasure in the key positions.]

[3. When the spiritual senses within your body become frenzied, enter the core of the array and follow the fixed circulation route to integrate with it. This will form a vacuum zone where water and fire counteract each other, shielding you from the Fire Spirit’s corrosion.]

[4. You can also refine a mobile version of this array in the manner of a mobile Spirit Gathering Array, but this requires replacing all Spiritual Objects with Celestial and Earthly Treasures.]

[Note 1: The diagram for the Water Spirit Formation is as follows...]

[Note 2: The diagram for the circulation route to integrate with the array is as follows...]

[Note 3: The density of Water Spirit Qi must not be lower than (40/100). Current density: No reference object.]

[Note 4: This technique is fixed and only targets a specific Fire Spirit. Do not make any alterations or other attempts.]

Wang Ping diligently read through the series of knowledge he had acquired, then finished reviewing the guide on the screen-like panel. If it weren’t for the final warning, he really would have been tempted to try constructing the array with other elemental forms of Spiritual Qi.

After digesting this technique, Wang Ping took out a small, specially made bamboo slip. He explained the situation on it using the gathering’s code, then sent it to Sanhe Temple. A secret channel there would deliver it to Wen Yang. The next step would be for Wen Yang to help Lv Wen and his wife find a new Dao Field.

As for Wang Ping, he had to consider his trip to Hu Mountain Country, as the Holy Heart Grass was about to mature.

However, he first needed to make a choice: use the Blood Pill to upgrade the Purgatory Banner, or wait for a future opportunity to use it for refining a puppet.

Seeing Wang Ping walk into the woodworking room with a conflicted expression, Tongyu Taoist knew immediately what he was thinking. He materialized and said, "Before you advance to the Third Realm, refining puppets will be very troublesome. A single puppet could take you more than ten years. Besides, your Soldier Talisman Puppet doesn’t need to be that powerful. It inherently contains the Wood Spirit Rules. The Spirit Wood you obtained back on Ningzhou Road is enough to refine several hundred Golden Armored Soldier Puppets."

After careful consideration, Wang Ping realized he was right. "How do I upgrade the Purgatory Banner?" he asked.

Tongyu Taoist explained in a cheerful tone, "It’s very simple. Take out the Blood Pill and refine it with your True Essence. Then, place it together with the Purgatory Banner, and the banner will absorb it on its own. The absorption process will release a very strong smell of blood, so you’ll need to seal off your Dao Field first. Otherwise, people might think you’re practicing some kind of dark art."

"Why are Taiyin Techniques always so unsettling?" Yu Lian asked softly.

"In some people’s eyes, your techniques are unsettling too. For example, do you find Earth Spirits particularly friendly?"

"No. I hate the Earth Spirits of the Earth Veins," Yu Lian replied with certainty.