Leaving Little Jade Peak, Master Jiu Wu gazed at the porcelain bottle in his hand with deep admiration.

“I never expected Junior Brother Changshou to be on such good terms with Elder Wan Linyun, known as the most unsociable person in our sect. This is quite a treasure – potent enough to poison even Celestial Immortals. Changshou is truly thoughtful, giving such a precious poison pill for my protection.”

Master Jiu Wu chuckled softly, lifted his sleeve for inspection, and carefully selected a storage pouch that would not be easily confused with others. He then continued floating on his cloud toward Breaking Sky Peak.

Outside the pill-refining chamber, Li Changshou reclined in his chair, still playing with the small silver sword.

The Inner Hall of the Dao Repository…

Ah, the Inner Hall of the Dao Repository!

It contained the Crossing Heaven Gate’s core Dao inheritance – advanced spells, divine abilities, pill refinement techniques, formations, artifact crafting, and other precious texts. Some rare herbs and materials could be exchanged using one’s monthly allowance!

Li Changshou was aware that his current expression probably resembled that of a starving man who had just spotted a pleasure house, and then coincidentally received a fortune from a wealthy merchant father…

He coughed twice and quickly regained his usual composure.

This matter truly delighted him.

After transcending tribulation and ascending, what he lacked most was precisely this kind of foundational knowledge.

However… he couldn’t rush over there immediately.

Better to wait quietly for a while, until the sect’s attention on him diminished, before visiting the Inner Hall. After all, Breaking Sky Peak wasn’t going anywhere – it had no legs to run away with, and there was no foolish mountain-mover to cause trouble.

The poison pill he gave to Master Jiu Wu served as a gesture of gratitude, indeed obtained from Elder Wan Linyun’s hands.

Every pill master had subtle differences in their high-grade immortal pills, and Li Changshou’s pills would have slight “personal markers.” In situations like this where he needed to give away complete pills rather than just their effects, he could only use Elder Wan Linyun’s poison pills…

Junior Aunt Jiu Jiu hadn’t emerged from seclusion, and it would be difficult to explain the origin of the immortal power used to suppress and blend toxins if he suddenly produced his high-grade poison pills in the sect.

Speaking of which, Junior Aunt Jiu Jiu had been in seclusion for so long… Could she be attempting to break through to Celestial Immortal this time?

No, she should still be some way from that realm…

Li Changshou was more concerned about Master Jiu Wu, constantly rushing about the sect’s affairs, inevitably affecting his own cultivation.

This was probably one of the main reasons why Dao sect cultivators were reluctant to cultivate in the Heavenly Court.

Putting away the silver sword, Li Changshou swept his divine sense across the lakeside, finding Ling’e still dutifully transcribing scriptures. He inwardly sighed.

“Good thing your brother has strong psychological resilience, or you might have succeeded in traumatizing me.”

He activated the surrounding formations, used paper figures to disguise his form, transformed into a wisp of green smoke, and floated underground to his secret chamber.

Thinking carefully, he should thank Dragon Palace Second Prince Ao Yi for his unnecessary trouble and long-distance gift-giving…

Although encounters with this Dragon Palace prince always brought trouble, the outcome this time was unexpectedly positive.

From the Dragon Palace’s demon-subduing gathering, he obtained the Three-Flavored True Flame cultivation method.

This time, when the Severing Sect cultivators came to cause trouble, he gained access to the Inner Hall of the Dao Repository…

There was only that one unfortunate encounter where he lost a bunch of sleeping drugs and didn’t dare claim the “mercy gift package” from the Dragon Palace for sparing their lives…

If he were to encounter this Dragon Palace prince again…

Better not to meet at all.

Li Changshou shook his head as he reached the center of the composite formation, stepping toward the rock layer ahead…

Meanwhile, in the Treasure Pool of Golden Tortoise Island.

Ao Yi, who was crouching in a corner at the bottom of the pool practicing the “Earth to Ice Condensation” technique, inexplicably shivered.

This shiver awakened him from his enlightened state.

Recalling his recent visit to the Crossing Heaven Gate where he was twice defeated by disciple Li Changshou, Ao Yi felt no resentment.

There was nothing to resent about being inferior in divine abilities and spells.

“If I cannot let go of winning and losing, cannot acknowledge my defeats, how can I accomplish things that will influence the Dragon race?”

A trace of relief flashed through Ao Yi’s gaze.

He thought of spending the night appreciating paintings and composing poetry with Brother Changshou…

Judging from Brother Changshou’s displayed cultivation, he was truly a gentleman-like figure, a rare refined person among humans.

If there was a chance in the future, he should visit the Crossing Heaven Gate again.

As for the five senior brothers from Golden Tortoise Island also suffering defeat at the Crossing Heaven Gate…

On their return journey, the eight of them had already agreed.

After returning to Golden Tortoise Island, they would not mention this matter.

This was for the stable development of relations between the two sects, not because they felt they had lost face!

“Uncle Ao Yi?”

A gentle call suddenly came from the poolside. The azure dragon raised his head and saw through the clear water the young woman Han Zhi standing by the pool.

The dragon’s head showed a faint smile as he slowly swam up, transforming into human form.

Although his human form had mysteriously stopped growing for some reason, he still maintained a youthful appearance…

Some things wouldn’t be affected.

The young woman by the pool asked, “Were you not cultivating? Did I disturb you, Uncle?”

“I… was just pondering some matters, not cultivating. Would you like to visit the East Sea today?”

“Are there beautiful sights in the East Sea?”

“Yes, there are several nice views there – the Coral Treasure Forest, the Sea Forest Waterfall…”

Soon, the young man and woman rode clouds heading toward the East Sea.

At one end of the great island, that enormous golden tortoise head with its terrifying large eyes opened a small crack.

This time, however, there were some ripples within;

It appeared to be smiling.

…

Walking along the stone pathway, Li Changshou spread his divine sense around Little Jade Peak to prevent anyone from approaching.

Next, Li Changshou would use the large batch of precious materials he had purchased to refine formation cores and update and expand Little Jade Peak’s formation system.

The precious materials Master Jiu Wu delivered, considered sect rewards, could be used to modify the surface confusion formations, openly adding some killing formations within them targeting impolite intruders…

The surface formations would naturally have to wait until Junior Aunt Jiu Jiu emerged from seclusion to be arranged; his master’s limited power made it difficult to suppress the spiritual power surges when laying interconnected formations.

Pushing open that wooden door, the secret chamber was now packed full;

Thirty-two jade frames were arranged neatly at an angle, each frame containing solidified white “tree sap.”

This was the “paper” needed for the paper person’s divine ability;

These tree saps had undergone dozens of processing steps, preserving the living spirit qi while being able to contain magical power and immortal power.

When making paper figures, though Li Changshou appeared to simply cut paper by hand, the “paper” itself was already considered a kind of magical treasure…

Deftly stacking the well-dried papers and pressing them with a beast skin inscribed with special restrictions, Li Changshou finally walked behind the desk.

Making [Paper Dao Figures] truly consumed too much paper, requiring him to make a batch of “paper” every two years;

This had caused those few old spirit trees he had moved here to visibly thin…

“Now we need to start conserving paper;

The Paper Dao Figure method isn’t stable yet, using too much paper would be wasteful.”

Thinking about how he would soon be able to access a collection of advanced formations and magical treasure restrictions to further perfect the Paper Dao Figure outer body method, Li Changshou couldn’t help but chuckle again…

When joy comes, spirits soar; when smiles bloom, fortune follows.

However, Li Changshou quickly suppressed this happiness.

Based on his previous life experience, the more joyful one felt, the more likely some calamity would fall from the sky.

For instance, in his previous life when he graduated from university, he had a steady girlfriend.

At that time, his family gave him some startup capital, and Li Changshou happily began planning for the future, hoping for success in both love and career…

However…

His girlfriend broke up with him half a minute before he could share his plans, formally becoming his ex-girlfriend.

This was the perfect illustration of joy breeding sorrow!

Composing himself, he began managing the precious materials.

For the next half year, Li Changshou busied himself in the secret chamber, focusing on refining formation cores and expanding the formation system within Little Jade Peak.

That “wind chime” made of sensing stone hanging outside the pill-refining chamber hadn’t flickered with light for two months…

The disturbance caused by the Golden Tortoise Island cultivators gradually settled down in the sect.

Li Changshou waited another half year before emerging from the secret chamber, changing into clean robes and flying at an appropriate height toward the Dao Repository Hall behind Breaking Sky Peak.

What is the Dao Repository?

Where the Dao inheritance is stored, that is the Dao Repository.

Only a small portion of the texts here were created by Crossing Heaven Gate immortals, most were from external sources;

When Crossing Heaven Gate’s Celestial and True Immortals throughout the ages obtained some cultivation methods, texts, or miscellaneous items useless to themselves during their travels, they would place them in the Dao Repository Hall;

Some higher-value texts, or copied versions of profound cultivation methods, would be collected in the Inner Hall.

The Dao Repository Hall was quite massive, the outer hall could accommodate over a thousand people, with bookshelves full of texts and spell methods everywhere;

In several corners, there were piles of “miscellaneous items” accumulated over the years, untended.

Don’t underestimate these piles of miscellaneous items.

This was the Crossing Heaven Gate’s foundation!

Li Changshou had previously found incomplete Shamanic race secret texts in these miscellaneous piles that had laid untouched for who knows how many years, and discovered a “blood-stained hemp cloth piece” within a damaged beast skin…

At that time, he hadn’t recklessly come to the outer hall to do these things, but had taken on the task of cleaning this place from the Hundred Ordinary Hall;

He spent several years carefully searching.

This earned him praise from the Hundred Ordinary Hall, giving him a double monthly allowance for those few years…

Now Li Changshou would no longer search through these miscellaneous piles.

There was nothing else – he had searched everywhere and there were no useful items left!

Unfortunately, that carving knife containing traces of merit power he found inside was destroyed during his immortal tribulation…

But the “Scripture to Method” divine ability he comprehended from another beast skin fragment was something the immortal tribulation couldn’t destroy.

In the outer hall of the Dao Repository Hall, there were currently dozens of disciples;

Interestingly, over ten people were gathered around the few bookshelves storing movement techniques, consulting the previously ignored Five Elements Movement Methods and other unconventional movement arts…

Li Changshou didn’t look much, lowering his head and walking to the deepest part of the outer hall, finding those two doors embedded in the rock wall emitting faint light…

Night-luminous magical pearls emitted soft light, and an elder sat cross-legged on a cushion before the doors, resting with closed eyes.

This elder appeared not very tall, with a thin face, gray-white long hair, and no wrinkles, yet gave an inexplicably ancient feeling.

[Elder Qi Ling, a sect expert of unknown cultivation level, long guarding the Dao Repository Hall, rarely leaving, origins unknown.]

Li Changshou had heard of this elder’s title from Junior Aunt Jiu Jiu during that trip to the Northern Continent.

Holding the silver sword with both hands, Li Changshou bowed forward and said, “This disciple wishes to enter and consult the sect’s texts.”

Elder Qi Ling slowly opened his eyes, those gray orbs showing no fluctuation, only staring at the silver sword in Li Changshou’s hands for a while, without looking much at Li Changshou himself.

“Enter.”

“Yes.”

With a faint scraping sound, the doors of the Inner Hall slowly opened a crack, and Li Changshou stepped in, vanishing from sight.

Finally…

He had made it in…

…

Just as Li Changshou entered the Inner Hall, on another side of Breaking Sky Peak, at the residence of the Nine Wine Immortals.

Suddenly there was a thunderous boom, lightning flashing within a pavilion as its surrounding formations instantly scattered, and a slender beautiful figure slowly rose into the air.

Those few service disciples who always had endless chores all raised their heads, each showing admiring gazes.

The female immortal suspended in the air had constantly shining immortal light around her, illuminating her face with spiritual vitality.

Her hair danced in the wind, her hemp short jacket still tight, short skirt hem gently swaying, jade feet bare with toes pointing downward…

Soon, she opened those pure and innocent eyes, the corners of her mouth revealing a confident smile.

True Immortal realm, late great stage!

Surpassing Fifth Senior Brother and Sixth Senior Sister in one go!

Didn’t expect such great progress this time! Was in an enlightened state the whole time, unknowingly so much time passed!

Put hands on hips, feel proud for a while, really been holding it in!

Hehe, where’s Fifth Senior Brother?

Where’s Little Shou Shou?

Is no one coming to welcome me out of seclusion?

Jiu Jiu casually touched her waist, gripping her small gourd.

This time my seclusion had quite a breakthrough, Master must praise me a few times…

“Uh!”

Jiu Jiu looked down at her beloved small wine gourd, gently shaking it, but there wasn’t even a splash of sound inside.

Oh no!

Before entering seclusion she had drunk all the wine to find back the feeling of breakthrough at the bottleneck, then entered the enlightened state!

*Hiss*—

Taking a huge breath, Jiu Jiu didn’t bother maintaining her pose anymore, quickly dropping back to her pavilion, immediately followed by sounds of frantically searching through boxes and cabinets…

Damn it, how could she possibly have any stored away!

With wine, it simply couldn’t be stored!

“Fifth Senior Brother!

Quick, save me!”

Jiu Jiu rushed out of the pavilion, hurriedly running to Jiu Wu’s pavilion, but saw from far away that Jiu Wu’s pavilion had all formations activated, with a wooden sign hanging in front saying ‘Out on Business’.

“Ah ya!

Little Shou Shou! Can I get an advance on wages!”

Jiu Jiu quickly summoned her large gourd, hugging it as she shot into the sky, rushing toward Little Jade Peak;

Her speed through the void was as fast as flowing light and phantom shadows, frightening several passing fellow sect members…

Moments later, at Little Jade Peak.

Ling’e, who was quietly cultivating, suddenly heard the sound of something heavy crashing outside the thatched cottage;

Ling’e immediately became alert, stretching her spiritual sense outward, her delicate hands gripping several porcelain bottles;

However, just as she was about to stand up and check, she discovered the formations outside her thatched cottage had been forcibly broken through!

A gray shadow directly rushed in through the door, feet stumbling, falling flat on the ground, startling Ling’e so much she almost threw the porcelain bottles in her hands…

Wait, this hateful figure, and that amazing bouncy resilience that could make the whole body rebound…

“Junior Aunt?

What’s wrong with you!”

Ling’e hurriedly came forward, calling out somewhat anxiously.

Jiu Jiu lay powerlessly on the ground, slowly turning her head to reveal the face of… someone about to die of thirst in the desert, showing an expression of utter despair…

This again frightened Ling’e, leaving her at a loss for what to do.

“Junior Aunt, don’t scare me! My Senior Brother just went to Breaking Sky Peak!”

“Quick…”

Jiu Jiu’s lips trembled as she stretched out a hopeful small hand toward Ling’e;

As if using her last breath to force out a single word…

“Wine…”