Chapter 521: Little Celestial Master

On Penglai Island, Li Qi and the Demonic Prince reached an agreement.

The Demonic Prince's plan was simple: one person per year. This year, he would fight Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong, and next year, he would seek out Sariputra. He would go through a cycle, fighting all the younger generation, establishing his Dao foundation with one victory after another.

He hadn't even considered the possibility of failure because he believed it was impossible for him to fail, supported by his inherent arrogance and self-confidence.

Li Qi always weighed the difficulty and pros and cons repeatedly, and only after confirming he 'could do it' would he cautiously proceed.

For someone like the Demonic Prince, who clearly lacked certainty and knew he was doing something very difficult, yet still believed he could do it, Li Qi saw this as pure foolishness.

If you don't do a good risk assessment, how can you get things done? This is called reckless action, not courage.

But the Demonic Prince went ahead, and Li Qi had nothing much to say. Everyone has their own style; they should go their own ways.

On the Dao path, only a very few 'fellow Daoists' can walk together. Most people walk alone. If one has a close friend and fellow Daoist, that is a great blessing, someone to whom one can entrust their life.

Li Qi and the Demonic Prince could be called friends, but they were far from being fellow Daoists.

After reaching an agreement with Li Qi, the Demonic Prince didn't linger. He stood up, bade farewell to Li Qi, and limped away, leaning on his staff.

He was probably going to prepare for battle.

After Li Qi watched him leave, he and Shen Shuibi went deep into Penglai.

Here, Li Qi mainly followed Shen Shuibi.

She first visited the various immortal mountains of Penglai, where the birds and beasts were pure white, looking like white clouds from afar.

The entire Penglai, with its highest point at twenty thousand li and a width of seventy thousand li, gathered a large number of high-grade Great Powers and their Spiritual Artifacts, palaces, and the like. Therefore, the surrounding natural environment was also affected, and all the birds and beasts turning white was one such manifestation.

When Li Qi walked by rivers and streams, he could see fine stones like gold and jade below, naturally clean and bright.

Some indigenous residents wove bird feathers into clothes, drank dew, and climbed high to fetch water all day. They used steps made of gold, silver, jade rings, crystal, and fire algae. The water included icy water and boiling water, and those who drank it could live for a thousand years, which must be traces left by a certain Great Power.

By the sea, there were large snails called 'Luobu', which carried their shells and moved. When it was cold, they would retreat into their shells. Their eggs, when attached to stone, were soft, but became hard when removed. They floated on the sea. Li Qi didn't eat them, so he didn't know how the snail meat tasted.

By the water, there was red 'Jia' grass that could be woven into mats, soft as felt.

There was a bird called 'Hong' goose, similar in color to a swan, shaped like a bald vulture, with no intestines in its belly, and its feathers attached directly to its bones, without skin or flesh, suspected to be a unique species of the Underworld Sea.

There were also many mandarin ducks here, shaped like geese, lingering in the clouds and nesting on high peaks, their feet never touching the ground. They were born in stone caves. It is said that unlike the outside world, these mandarin ducks would produce offspring once every ten thousand years, and after a thousand years, they would learn to fly by carrying feathers, forming groups of tens of millions. Li Qi learned from others that among these mandarin ducks, there were those who had attained the Dao, and their long feathers allowed them to soar for ten thousand li.

There were also floating bamboo shoots of 'Fujun' bamboo, with green leaves and purple stems, and fruits as large as pearls. Green Phoenixes gathered on them, and when a gentle breeze arrived, the leaves and branches would flutter, sweeping fine sand like clouds and mist. Immortals would come to observe and play. The wind blowing through the bamboo leaves sounded like bells and chimes.

There was sand and gravel everywhere, which, though biological, was as fine as powder, like dust, seemingly related to the Luobu snails, but Li Qi had no time to research them.

He followed Shen Shuibi, visiting various immortal mountains and experiencing Penglai. Li Qi didn't feel much himself, but he could sense that Shen Shuibi seemed to be seeking something.

This search journey in Penglai took six days. Along the way, Shen Shuibi mostly remained silent, while Li Qi conversed with various people, gathered information, and helped Shen Shuibi negotiate entry into some private areas.

Fortunately, these Daoists were quite easy to talk to, and Li Qi didn't have too much trouble.

Such touring and browsing continued for a full six days.

After six days, Shen Shuibi looked at a stretch of immortal mountains, then the surrounding Underworld Sea, and the many mysterious species of Penglai. Then she suddenly sat down, silent, closing her eyes.

Li Qi immediately stood behind her and began setting up a Formation to protect her.

Neither of them spoke; everything was natural, their tacit understanding had reached this level.

Shen Shuibi's contemplation lasted another six days.

During those six days, old Ma, bored, simply lay down and slept, but Li Qi stayed by her side, feeling the constant fluctuations emanating from her.

On the seventh day, Shen Shuibi suddenly opened her eyes, and her aura changed accordingly. Li Qi could clearly feel that her strength had advanced a step.

It wasn't that her total quantity had increased, but rather her organizational efficiency had improved. Clearly, she had gained some insight in Penglai.

After all, the improvement of cultivation is actually an accumulation of time.

If your Dao and techniques are like a car engine, then cultivation is gasoline. More oil isn't necessarily better; it's about being suitable. Continuously accumulating cultivation will only lead to self-destruction if the Dao's capacity to accommodate is insufficient.

But after this event, Shen Shuibi's capacity for accommodation had clearly increased significantly. After a period of diligent cultivation, using cultivation to run the constructed Great Dao within her body, she would be able to completely consolidate it.

This is the most common method of cultivation.

It involves absorbing the external Qi you need into the small celestial world of the human body. Within the small celestial world of the human body, there is a Dao belonging to oneself, and this Qi will operate according to the Dao's guidance.

However, if there is too much Qi, exceeding the Dao's scope of coordination, the Qi's operation will become chaotic, leading to self-destruction.

It's like how Newtonian mechanics can work at low speeds, but when your Qi enters a high-speed state, Newtonian mechanics will fail. If your Dao at that point is still based on Newtonian mechanics, you will lose control.

You must deepen your understanding, comprehend relativity, and thoroughly master it before you can control high-speed Qi.

The more profound and powerful the Dao, the more Qi you can accommodate, the deeper your cultivation naturally becomes, and at the same time, your techniques will become more wondrous.

After all, Newtonian mechanics only deals with motion, but relativity involves space-time, and its power is naturally different.

The truly unfair part about cultivators is here: as long as the theory exists, practice is not difficult. There's no such thing as a lack of certain engineering technology, because their human body's small celestial world is itself such an all-purpose theoretical practice machine.

Advancing the depth of the Dao bit by bit, while filling the thickness of cultivation through diligent practice—this is what most cultivation entails. Therefore, cultivation requires both learning and comprehension, as well as diligent practice and accumulation.

Shen Shuibi had completed this comprehension and now needed a little more time to accumulate and consolidate.

However, there wasn't enough time for her to cultivate diligently now; it was time to do the main business here.

“So this is Penglai. I've figured out some things. Let's go, the Demonic Prince's battle should be starting soon, right?” Shen Shuibi stood up, looked at Li Qi, and said.

“Alright, then we'll go watch that battle first. After they finish fighting, we'll go back,” Li Qi nodded.

Originally, going to Penglai was just to watch the battle.

Now that they had gained something, although he didn't know what Shen Shuibi had gained, it was a good thing overall, a pleasant surprise.

After watching the battle, they would return to Shaman God Mountain. He still had several hundred years to figure out a solution; he had to resolve the matter of Zhu Fengdan arranging rabbits to the front lines.

Li Qi woke up old Ma, who was sleeping soundly. Old Ma grumbled that his name was Ma Ji, then enlarged his body and headed towards the battlefield previously designated in Penglai.

At the battlefield, a sea of people had already gathered. It seemed that the Demonic Prince's entry into the world and challenge to the Daoist Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong, had attracted many curious individuals.

Many Formations could also be seen covering the surrounding area. Those were transmission Formations, likely for live broadcasting. There were also some privileged individuals from the Human Dao, holding terminals and interviewing passersby, probably news reporters or streamers sent by the Human Dao, preparing to live broadcast the entire battle for a certain program within the Human Dao.

Besides that, there were other Dao Orthodoxys. Li Qi could see True Dragons soaring in the air, and also Shamanes like himself, as well as various demons and monsters. Although monks were few, they were not absent.

It was quite lively.

Fortunately, everyone could fly, so there was no need to crowd together below. Instead, they formed a huge, loose spherical circle, with an estimated radius of at least five thousand li, and still gradually expanding.

This outrageous surface area, combined with some scattered and interwoven crowds, meant it wasn't crowded, just looked vast from a distance.

Li Qi found a spot where he could see, spread a blanket on old Ma's back, laid out some food, spirit fruits, pastries, and the like, and then collected some spirit spring water on the spot, which tasted like sweet wine. He chatted with Shen Shuibi, waiting excitedly and leisurely for the battle to begin.

However, as he waited, the battle didn't start. Instead, he saw a遁光 (a beam of light from a遁法, a type of escape or travel spell) rushing towards him.

He subconsciously swept it with his True Knowledge Dao Resonance, detecting no destructive techniques or hostility.

So, he just waited.

The遁光 arrived in front of Li Qi about ten seconds later.

Shen Shuibi still subconsciously hid behind Li Qi, letting Li Qi handle the reception.

“Li Qi… is that right? I didn't get the name wrong, did I?” the person said.

Li Qi looked up, wanting to see what the person looked like.

Oh my, so handsome!

He wore a white Daoist robe with a Yin and Yang fish belt. His demeanor was imposing, and while his appearance was handsome, it wasn't the delicate kind, but rather a very reassuring ruggedness. He looked like the kind of extremely trustworthy Senior Brother, over eight feet tall, with sword-like eyebrows and bright, piercing eyes, a refined and imposing presence, exuding immense pressure.

He was the type who, when he walked out of a crowd, you just knew he was the protagonist.

Li Qi was still sizing up the other person when he saw the person slightly bow and cup his hands in greeting: “Greetings, Senior, and, Li Qi… brother?”

As he spoke, he also looked at Li Qi.

That 'Senior' was probably referring to Shen Shuibi.

Li Qi stood up and replied, “Your Excellency is?”

“I am Zhang Zong,” the handsome man immediately replied.

Zhang Zong?

Holy cow, Little Celestial Master!?

Upon hearing that name, Li Qi immediately recognized who the other person was.

This was the opponent the Demonic Prince was challenging this time, the famous Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong!

“So it's Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong. What an honor to be visited by you today. Please, quickly, have a seat,” Li Qi immediately politely invited the other person to sit beside him.

Zhang Zong politely declined for a moment, but didn't politely decline for too long, and soon sat down.

After sitting down, he didn't waste much time, but politely asked Li Qi, “I heard that Brother Li Qi once fought the Demonic Prince. May I ask what the outcome was?”

Li Qi heard this direct question and immediately understood the other party's intention.

So, at this moment, he uttered a typical Shaman phrase: “Well… I won, but I also lost.”

He didn't know why, but when he said this, Li Qi felt a subtle sense of satisfaction.

As a Shaman, one should be a riddle-maker!

No wonder the Diviner all liked to speak in riddles; it really feels this good. From now on, I'll be a riddle-maker too!

Li Qi thought these things, but his expression unconsciously became mysterious.

It was truly unconscious; he just felt that saying such things required him to become profound and unfathomable.

To Li Qi's satisfaction, Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong's reaction was exactly like something out of a textbook.

He looked at Li Qi and eagerly asked, “How do you mean?”

Li Qi felt a subtle sense of gratification.

But he cleared his throat and still said, “In terms of victory and defeat, I won. The Demonic Prince was a step below me.”

At these words, Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong's expression relaxed a little.

Because he could discern Li Qi's current cultivation.

If Li Qi had still been at the seventh rank, he believed Li Qi wouldn't be stronger than himself.

This was a polite way of speaking.

In reality, if they were both at the seventh rank, Li Qi would absolutely not be his opponent, and no matter the method, Li Qi should not be able to defeat him.

The Supreme is like heaven, the master of heaven. How noble is that? The contemporary Celestial Master is even a top-tier among those of the second rank. To be called Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong, naturally signifies a great deal.

In fact… even if Li Qi was now at the sixth rank, Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong felt that it wouldn't be very difficult for him to defeat a sixth-rank cultivator.

He just hadn't said it directly; there was no need. Besides, combat power didn't explain everything. Li Qi being able to advance to the sixth rank first also showed his excellent qualities. Everyone has their own path, and there's no need to be complacent over a temporary advantage.

If he didn't have this much intelligence and magnanimity, he wouldn't have earned the title of Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong.

However, Li Qi also saw the relaxed expression on Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong's face, and immediately felt displeased.

So, he immediately said, “However, the reason I say I lost is because during the battle, I had a Breakthrough to the sixth rank, which is why I defeated the Demonic Prince.”

Lesser Heavenly Master Zhang Zong suddenly understood and asked, “So it was a Breakthrough during battle. Then, after that Breakthrough, how did Brother Li Qi's cultivation compare to now?”

Li Qi didn't hide anything and honestly said, “I was much stronger back then.”

This wasn't a joke; he really was much stronger.

At that time, he had advanced with a third-rank Human Dao Dao Orthodoxy, and at the same time, he had fallen into the Demonic Dao, merging all Dao Orthodoxys into one, making his strength considerably greater than it was now.

Now, he was using Amitabha's Buddha Qi to suppress the Demonic Dao within his body, and he had also begun to deliberately resist the influence of the Human Dao Dao Orthodoxy, settling his foundation.

Therefore, the current Li Qi was weaker than when he had just had his Breakthrough.

Zhang Zong nodded, then suddenly remembered something: “I see. Oh, I was so focused on asking questions just now that I was impolite. Please bear with me. I specifically brought some tea leaves as a token of my regard. I will brew some for Brother Li Qi now.”