Chapter 231

After returning to his tent, Fang Qing sat down cross-legged and rapidly sorted through his thoughts.

Now that he understood the trick Spiritual Master Bai Mu was playing, all he needed to do was step forward and expose it. Capturing the man would present no difficulty whatsoever.

After all, in order to escape, Spiritual Master Bai Mu would inevitably suffer severe losses to his vitality.

But that raised a problem.

How exactly had Fang Qing seen through it?

Even if he pushed the entire matter onto Sangji, there would still be a mountain of complications afterward. Things were no longer like the early days of the White Bone Dao, when the mountains were high and the emperor far away.

If the various Dharma Kings of the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain decided to investigate, it would be difficult to conceal the truth without a convincing explanation.

‘Spiritual Master Bai Mu really is unlucky. With the void now sealed off, he can't flee as freely as that Purple Mansion Spiritual Master from the Xuanwu Sect did before. Nor is he like Spiritual Master Hong Yao, whose divine abilities specialized in escape.’

‘His only option is to fake his death and slip away. And even that fake death was seen through by me.’

‘The key point is that in order to fake his death, he sacrificed a divine ability and a Purple Mansion treasure. His losses are truly severe.’

If Fang Qing had not discovered the scheme, all Spiritual Master Bai Mu would have needed was a moment when neither he nor Sangji were present. Escaping would have been effortless.

He might even have followed everyone back to the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain, performed a possession afterward, hidden himself away for several decades, and eventually reappeared under the identity of a newly advanced Purple Mansion Spiritual Master of the Bai Family.

‘Perhaps I should leave him alone for now and treat him as an idle piece on the board?’

‘After all, the effect of Hidden Forest Bank is practically nonexistent against me. I can deal with Spiritual Master Bai Mu however I please.’

The logic was simple.

Spiritual Master Bai Mu had gone to enormous lengths to fake his death and escape because he no longer wished to continue serving as cannon fodder for either the Blissful Union Sect or the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain.

At this point, Fang Qing could simply find him and say:

‘Spiritual Master, surely you don't want the Blissful Union Sect to find out about your little secret?’

Once that happened, Spiritual Master Bai Mu would have no choice but to defect to the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain and obediently become either Dharma King Bai Mu or Duzi Bai Mu.

The problem was that doing so offered Fang Qing very little benefit.

‘No matter what, I should first inform Sangji and ensure that the youth carrying Spiritual Master Baimu's divine ability remains under constant observation.’

‘As long as that boy stays in sight, Spiritual Master Bai Mu won't be able to escape.’

There was no need for Fang Qing to hide anything from one of his converted disciples. He immediately communicated through the Dao-Genesis Pearl and explained the situation.

“If the Venerable One does not wish to personally intervene, this humble monk can do so instead.”

Sangji quickly offered a suggestion.

“I can claim that I uncovered his whereabouts through the White Bone Heart Contemplation technique. Then we can threaten Spiritual Master Bai Mu into hiding himself and serving as a hidden enforcer for the White Bone Dao.”

“In that case, the outside world would simply believe Spiritual Master Bai Mu has perished. There would be no need to explain anything to the Dharma Kings of the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain.”

If Spiritual Master Bai Mu possessed any intelligence at all, he would immediately recognize this as the best possible option.

After all, if he openly joined the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain, he would undoubtedly be dragged straight onto the battlefield as high-grade cannon fodder against the Blissful Union Sect.

But if he secretly served only the White Bone Dao while his survival remained concealed, there was a real possibility of avoiding the war between the two sects altogether.

As for Sangji, even if the matter were exposed later, it would merely count as a bit of personal favoritism. A Dharma King of the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain possessed at least that much freedom.

“Let's wait and see.”

“At the very least, I need to extract the Forest Creek Deer-Sighting Art first. This Hidden Forest Bank divine ability is genuinely impressive.”

After saying that, even Fang Qing could not help sighing.

Among the twenty-eight lineages corresponding to the five elements, yin, and yang, Water Virtue cultivators had always been considered relatively weak.

Since they lacked superiority in battle, they naturally gravitated toward survival-oriented paths such as healing, concealment, and preservation.

Calming himself, Fang Qing began organizing the gains from the conquest of the Eastern Waters Bai Family.

Although there was only a single Purple Mansion cultivation method, there were numerous Dao scriptures and spiritual resources related to the [Ji Water] lineage.

Had Spiritual Master Bai Mu not gone mad and destroyed his own blessed land through Dao transformation, the Eastern Waters region could have continuously produced cultivators whose [Ji Water] Dao Foundations reached perfection, allowing them to repeatedly attempt breakthroughs into the Purple Mansion realm.

The Bai Family had clearly developed an entire system for nurturing [Ji Water] Dao Foundation cultivators.

There had even been dedicated resource producing locations. Well, those resource sites were now ruined.

But the Dao scriptures remained worth studying.

At the very least, they held considerable reference value for Fang Qing, whose Wind-Positioned Dao Foundation had not yet reached complete perfection.

As he contemplated these matters, a gentle breeze drifted into the tent.

Sangji entered carrying several thick volumes of Buddhist scriptures.

“Vajra Strength Duzi.”

“Greetings, Dharma King.”

Fang Qing rose and offered a respectful salute with palms pressed together.

“Now that the Eastern Waters region has fallen, the various Grotto Heavens and Blessed Lands hidden within these territories must be explored.”

Sangji spoke solemnly as he explained their next mission.

“The Bai Family has produced Purple Mansion cultivators for three generations. It is entirely possible they possessed the ability to create a Blessed Land.”

“Furthermore, traces of Grotto Heavens may exist nearby.”

“These Buddhist scriptures contain records of the names and traces of the major Grotto Heavens and Blessed Lands that have existed since ancient times. You may study them at your leisure.”

Naturally, these were exactly the materials Fang Qing had wanted to see and had instructed Sangji to obtain.

“I shall obey the Dharma King's command.”

Fang Qing sat cross-legged once more and opened one of the scripture volumes.

Only Golden Core True Lords possessed the ability to create Grotto Heavens.

Their numbers were relatively limited.

Even so, after accumulating throughout countless ages since antiquity, a considerable number of Grotto Heavens had appeared.

Among them, the largest and most famous numbered more than thirty, collectively known as the Thirty-Six Grotto Heavens.

As for those that had appeared and later been destroyed, their total number likely approached three hundred and sixty.

Fang Qing could not help but feel a sense of wonder.

‘This Qi Ingestion world is simply too vast. There are hundreds of Grotto Heavens alone. Wouldn't that mean there are thousands of Blessed Lands?’

‘And beyond the Great Void... what lies there?’

He first opened the overview of the Thirty-Six Grotto Heavens. The Taihuang Heaven was prominently listed among them.

‘The virtue of earth bears and supports all things, which is why this Grotto Heaven is extraordinarily vast. Similar examples include Imperial Zenith Heaven and Vast Rampart Heaven, both connected to Golden Core True Lords who cultivated Earth Virtue.’

‘Besides those, there is Crimson Bright Heaven. likely created by a Golden Core True Lord of Fire Virtue.’

‘Mystic Essence Heaven, Azure Splendor Heaven, Purple Void Heaven. These appear to have been jointly established by several Golden Core True Lords.’

Although there were many Grotto Heavens, it was exceedingly rare for one to be located within a particular region.

‘The chances of a hidden Grotto Heaven existing in the Eastern Waters region are not high. A Blessed Land, however, is another matter entirely.’

Strictly speaking, there was a good chance that the Eastern Waters Bai Family had secretly established a Blessed Land as a retreat for themselves.

Otherwise, Bai Mu Spiritual Master had been far too decisive when destroying his own treasured domain for the sake of maintaining appearances.

‘The Thirty-Six Grotto Heavens are all hidden deep within the Great Void. Their foundations are mysterious and stable, making them extremely difficult to shake or reveal.’

‘The opening of Taihuang Heaven last time was only possible because heaven, earth, and circumstance all aligned perfectly. On top of that, San Ji, a Spiritual Master of its lineage, actively helped open the gate. Without those factors, it would have been nearly impossible to enter.’

Fang Qing turned to the final page of the Grotto Heaven scroll.

‘All Thirty-Six Grotto Heavens are exceedingly difficult to open. The one ranked first, Primordial Beginning Heaven, exists only as a name passed down from ancient times. It has never appeared.’

‘The Blessed Lands below them are another story. Purple Mansion Spiritual Masters periodically breach and plunder them. Then new Purple Mansion Spiritual Masters create new Blessed Lands. As a result, the records are much more chaotic.’

‘And it seems there really is a Blessed Land that may exist within the Eastern Waters region.’

He opened another dossier.

“Yiling Blessed Land. Established by the Yiling Sect in ancient times. The sect was active during the early recent antiquity era. Later, after its line of Purple Mansion cultivators was severed, the sect naturally perished. Yet the Blessed Land itself has never revealed its whereabouts.”

A force capable of producing Purple Mansion cultivators generation after generation was far from an ordinary Purple Mansion power.

In truth, many Purple Mansion factions rose and fell in a flash.

They relied on exceptionally talented disciples who managed to break through to Purple Mansion through fortune and ability.

Yet that fortune often lasted only one or two generations.

Once the Purple Mansion cultivator reached the five-hundred-year limit and passed away, the faction would collapse.

If they failed to nurture a second Purple Mansion cultivator before then, their neighbors would naturally descend upon them and divide the inheritance among themselves.

‘Perhaps, there are even Golden Core sects secretly encouraging such outcomes?’

‘Just look at how Cloud Grazing Cliff treated Pu Shanjun.’

‘To a Golden Core supreme sect, the cultivators beneath them are all crops in a field. The only difference is that Qi Ingestion and Dao Foundation cultivators are small leeks, while Purple Mansion cultivators have grown somewhat sturdier.’

‘Some Purple Mansion factions may not even realize they are being raised like livestock.’

Fang Qing thought of the curse attached to the divine status above the [Zui Fire] position.

A lineage so loathed by heaven and despised by spirits had nevertheless survived to the present day. Clearly, some greater will stood behind it.

Perhaps those powers needed cultivators of the [Zui Fire] lineage, whether at the Dao Foundation or Purple Mansion stage, to open a particular Blessed Land or Grotto Heaven?

When valuable talent was needed, it was naturally better to draw from outside one's direct lineage.

That way, internal criticism could be avoided.

After all, sacrificing someone else's people was always preferable to sacrificing one's own.

‘Besides that, there is also the Heshui Blessed Land.’

Fang Qing continued reading.

‘It was established by a rogue Purple Mansion cultivator known as Spiritual Master Heshui. To open this Blessed Land, one first requires a sufficient blood sacrifice to shake the void and expose its foundation.’

‘But more importantly, a Child of Destiny who cultivates the Spiritual Master's lineage must be used as the key.’

Everyone knew that Grotto Heavens and Blessed Lands contained every imaginable treasure.

The problem was never what lay inside.

The problem was opening them.

Given the chronic scarcity of spiritual resources throughout the Qi Ingestion world, countless Purple Mansion Spiritual Masters coveted these hidden realms.

Yet successful expeditions were astonishingly rare.

In the end, it was almost always powers like Cloud Grazing Cliff, the Yin Corpse Sect, or the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain that succeeded.

Why?

The answer was simple.

They possessed numerous high-level cultivators skilled in divination and deduction.

Their talent pools were vast.

No matter what lineage they needed, they could always locate a suitable candidate or two.

Those candidates had originally been cultivated within the Golden Core sects' own gardens.

Whenever needed, they could simply harvest them.

Now that Fang Qing was attempting the same thing himself, he found the process considerably more troublesome.

At present, the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain was waging war against the Blissful Union Sect.

Battles stretched across countless fronts.

The dead numbered beyond counting.

Even Purple Mansion cultivators had fallen, producing heavenly phenomena visible for thousands of miles.

The blood qi disturbance was certainly sufficient.

Yet satisfying the remaining conditions remained difficult.

‘Especially since Spiritual Master Heshui has been dead for who knows how many years.’

‘Who knows where his inheritance ended up?’

Fang Qing felt completely lost.

Trying to monopolize all the benefits for oneself was never easy.

After some calculations and several rounds of divination, he still obtained very few clues.

The available information was simply too limited.

‘Those Golden Core sects can so easily open the Blessed Lands within their territories because they possess another advantage.’

‘Their inheritances stretch back countless years.’

‘They likely witnessed the original Purple Mansion Spiritual Masters establishing those Blessed Lands in the first place.’

‘They understand the descendants and inheritances of those Spiritual Masters better than anyone.’

‘In other words, if a Purple Mansion Spiritual Master of the Blissful Union Sect wished to open Yiling Blessed Land or Heshui Blessed Land today, the process would be far easier.’

‘No wonder local Golden Core sects always claim the largest share whenever a Blessed Land or Grotto Heaven opens.’

‘They genuinely possess the necessary conditions.’

Fang Qing gazed in the direction of the Blissful Union Sect and felt a trace of regret.

The eminent monks of the Esoteric Hidden-Treasury Domain generally possessed remarkably flexible principles.

There was only one circumstance in which they became absolutely uncompromising.

That was when a Buddhist decree descended from Great Snow Mountain.

Unfortunately, that was precisely the situation now.

Trying to cooperate with the Blissful Union Sect and secretly divide the treasures of a Blessed Land was simply poor timing.