Chapter 617 - 306: Xu Qinglai Breaks Through and Gathers Herbs—The Authorities Suddenly Feel Capable!

Mountain and Sea Mountain Range, Daoist School.

It is now dinner time, and the Zhengyi and Quanzhen sects, as usual, are seated on opposite sides.

Although the seating arrangements aren’t far apart, the intense air of rivalry is still perceptible.

After a period of adjustment, the vast majority have grown accustomed to this lifestyle.

Every day begins with meditation from sunrise and ends at sunset, repeating tirelessly in pursuit of the Dao.

As for the essential items for cultivation, the Daoist School has fully opened access, placing no limits.

As long as you can handle it, eat as much as you desire.

The intent is clear from above; it’s an encouragement for the strong to remain dominant, for the strong to consume everything.

Regarding the Daoists who can’t keep up with the cultivation pace of the majority, there is no apology offered to them.

The Daoist School is the nation’s future treasure, possibly even a war machine, allowing no room for purported equality, where the strong lead the weak.

Inside the canteen at this time, despite the shadows mingling and nearly all seats being occupied, there is virtually no sound of conversation.

Looking up, people are quietly consuming the food on their plates, yet the expressions on their faces are peculiarly subtle.

The birth of the Daoist School itself was to deal with uncontrollable scenarios, and its information channels naturally connect directly with the authorities.

They are acutely aware of all significant non-natural events affecting Dragon Country.

This naturally includes the fellow Daoist at Cishan, and even when the mystical phenomena occurred, news spread throughout the entire Daoist School swiftly.

Thunder upon the skies!

Bloody thunder penalty!

Spiritual clarity!

Such celestial phenomena seized the minds of all present.

Scenes like these can only be glimpsed in snippets among the old papers of various sects and religions, the rest lies in the dust of history.

However, they intuitively understand, this fellow Daoist likely borrowed the ancestral talisman or magical artifact, rather than achieving it through personal cultivation level.

After all, such celestial phenomena, not to mention the current cultivation realm, even the ancestral masters recorded in the old papers likely experienced such before their ascension.

Zhang Yuanyi swallowed the last bite of Spirit Rice on his plate, then nodded subtly.

Upon standing, he headed towards the doorway, suddenly someone rushed in from outside, in a frantic panic, with a flush on their face.

A quick glance revealed it to be a junior from the Quanzhen Ancient Sect.

"Rushing in panic, such improper demeanor."

Zhang Yuanyi snorted lightly.

"Big, big news..."

This junior, contrary to usual etiquette, disregarded respect for elders, and instead shouted towards the Quanzhen Sect’s direction, "Xu, Master Xu said he felt inspired today and has secluded himself to break the realm!"

Swoosh!

Upon hearing this, the entire canteen was first silent, then erupted into boundless commotion.

With a quick glance, everyone disregarded their meals and hurried towards Xu Qinglai’s courtyard to see what was happening.

By the time everyone arrived in haste, the courtyard had already been surrounded by heavily armed soldiers, with the scent of battle pervading Chang’an!

The leading officer stepped forward, coldly stating: "All Daoist Masters, please halt!"

"What’s going on?" Daoist Tian Dian turned and asked the previous junior from the Ancient Sect.

"Replying to Master Uncle, the disciple was preparing to have a meal in the canteen, coincidentally passing by Master Xu’s place, catching a glimpse with peripheral vision, and saw Master Xu standing inside the courtyard, his aura was profound."

"I thought it was a cultivation anomaly of Master Xu, intending to invite fellow uncles and masters to come over, but then I heard Master Xu laugh heartily before striding into the meditation room."

"Before Master Xu secluded himself, he probably saw me and asked me to notify all the uncles and masters that he is about to seclude in realm breaking, may not come out shortly, and urges everyone not to worry."

The junior from the Ancient Sect had composed himself by now, speaking with envy.

Upon hearing this, the reactions among those present were distinctly divided.

The Quanzhen Sect naturally displayed joyful delight, while the Zhengyi Sect had faces as dark as coal.

At this moment, time seemed bizarrely stretched, and the atmosphere began to become sinister.

"Master Xu is indeed the leading figure in the Daoist Sect, his cultivation speed truly leaves others in the dust."

"Hmph, saying that seems a bit premature, who knows if he’ll succeed in realm breaking, better praise him after he succeeds."

"Whether it is success or not, we’ll know once he emerges, we wait."

And just as everyone was discussing fervently, a commotion sounded not far away.

With the sound of scattered footsteps, another group arrived here.

The two elderly at the head was the military heads of the Daoist School.

He passed through the crowd, looking at the tightly sealed courtyard, his excited expression was similarly hard to hide.

Suppressing his inner emotions, he turned and asked: "How is he now?"

Tian Dian responded: "Brother Xu is in the process of realm breaking, we cannot discern the specifics."

"About how long might the realm breaking take?"

"Unknown, we can only wait."

"..."

At this moment, Xu Qinglai had entered the deepest level of Daoist meditation, with his surrounding aura reduced to the minimum.

From an outsider’s perspective, Xu Qinglai’s breathing had stopped, life seemed completely ceased.

For Xu Qinglai, however, the world he saw was entirely different, as if he entered a peculiar world, dead silent.

This realm, or this space, its end can be seen at a glance.

In his line of sight, there were no traces of life, like a lifeless wasteland, lonely and desolate.

For this suddenly appearing world, Xu Qinglai did not panic, instead, he calmly cultivated his own cultivation technique like an outsider.

If it were usually, Xu Qinglai might find certain aspects of the cultivation technique somewhat obscure, but his mind was extraordinarily clear, gradually gaining insights.