Chapter 367: The Immortals
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
“I’ve joined the Immortals,” ng Qi announced with a small cough.
He didn’t directly ntion the Buddha’s Palm out of fear that the Myths would spot a problem from his words and target his friends.
“Ah?” Jiang Zhiwei looked startled while Ruan Yushu gasped softly. Qi Zhengyan’s eyes widened, the dead, expressionless expression still stuck on his face.
ng Qi naturally wouldn’t go into detail. “Basically, Bluecloud Progenitor lent Jiuzhen my lamp, helping him kill Primogenitor Devil. She only gained a Bodhi-seed that was about to crumble.”
Sorry, Progenitor! She just had to take the bla for this one!
“Considering this, she invited to join the Immortals.” ng Qi’s expression was extrely sincere.
Jiang Zhiwei noticed sothing was off in ng Qi’s expression. The little monk hadn’t had any desire to join the Immortals before this so it didn’t seem logical that he decided to join them just because Bluecloud Progenitor had asked him again. Compensating him with another treasure would seem more reasonable an explanation!
Unless… Her pupils shrank as understanding dawned on her.
She considered what she knew of ng Qi’s character and linked that with the Buddha’s Lamp, him joining the Immortals, and the Bodhi-seed. The truth began to erge.
But she didn’t continue that train of thought as nothing good would co out of her thinking about it too deeply. It would just simply implicate him for no good reason.
Why didn’t Jiuzhen simply borrow the lamp directly from ng Qi? Could they have been in cahoots with Bluecloud Progenitor? Why did ng Qi’s attitude change so suddenly? Qi Zhengyan shot ng Qi a crestfallen expression, though he quickly gathered himself and put the thought behind him.
Ruan Yushu’s eyes wavered for she knew ng Qi wasn’t a fickle-minded person. If the situation demanded it and it didn’t involve undermining his principles, he would naturally change his mind in an instant. That ant…
She kept quiet as if she understood his predicant but she decided not to think about it as well. She didn’t think about the Buddha’s Palm which was the foundation of mainstream martial arts.
The three of them weren’t all that worried about the Myths discovering their own secrets. Even if ntal arcane was used to call up their mories, there wouldn’t be any noticeable issues. People would find ng Qi’s decision to be genuine if they didn’t have an accumulated understanding of his character. The Immortals wouldn’t deny it either if asked and ng Qi was rely a reserve mber who knew little about them. Seeking intel from him would be useless.
At the end of the day, the difference in strength between the Immortals and their team was so massive that the Myths wouldn’t be able to guess that the forr would slip up. The Immortals rely needed to be uncertain on so details and the bla would naturally fall on them. So the possibilities of them being targeted were minimal, but it was still best to be prepared.
ng Qi continued, “Either way, I certainly won’t leave our little group. I’ll just be expected to help the organization out occasionally, but I don’t know anything beyond that. But I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to speak for the future.”
“I guess that’s that.” Qi Zhengyan sighed.
Jiang Zhiwei gave a bitter laugh. “It can sotis be a bad sign when things go too well, like doing more than is expected of you on a task or leaving too much to fate to decide and only just coming away with your life.”
She looked a little deflated.
“I hope you joining the Immortals will be a turn of good fortune,” Ruan Yushu said softly, losing her usual snipe.
“If I ‘acquire’ any useful new cultivation thods, we can share,” ng Qi added. He had already gotten used to how things would be.
They lingered around for a brief chat before going their separate ways. Jiang Zhiwei stepped into the light pillar and frowned as she said, “Little monk, the way I see it, your fortune with Buddhism is blossoming. You acquiring the Buddhist Commandnt Blade Ananda, small jade joss, and Buddha’s Lamp one after the other might not turn out to be a good thing. You need to be careful.”
“Mmm, Master Lu said sothing similar.” ng Qi nodded in agreent.
He stepped into the light pillar himself, intending to first look for the Immortals before going to the Nine Villages.
…
After returning to the main world, ng Qi jumped over the city walls under the cover of darkness. He found a place to hole up and fished out the talisman that the secretive pelagic ‘immortal’ gave him.
The talisman gradually lit up, giving off small rays of green light. A large green hole gathered in front of him.
The large hole warped before suddenly morphing into a green gate adorned with mystical runes.
There was a creak as the void shifted. The green gate opened slowly to reveal the vista beyond—a world of mountains and waterways, red-crested cranes soaring in the sky, mythical creatures running through the landscape, and mountain peaks enshrouded in thick mist. It had quite the fairytale-like atmosphere.
Standing in the doorway was ng Qi’s acquaintance, Bluecloud Progenitor. She said, “Fortunately it’s near to an exit. Otherwise, I’d have to go up the hill and down the dale to get here.”
“As it turns out, you can’t get into the Immortals from just anywhere…” The corners of ng Qi’s mouth twitched. The opening of the green gate and Bluecloud Progenitor’s arrival had shaken him. He thought he could use the green gate anyti after joining the organization and use it as his escape.
“Life isn’t that easy!” Bluecloud Progenitor laughed. In an instant, her tone turned cold. “Hurry up and co inside. There’s no ti for chit-chat. We mustn’t be seen by anyone!”
He thought to himself, “Progenitor, you can’t drop your act and expose your true character just because I’m about to join the Immortals. Think about your image!”
He stepped into the void of the green gate, where he felt like there was anywhere concrete for him to stand on. A green mist that enveloped him, whisking him away. It was after a short while before he saw the true Blue Immortal Gate.
His Vital Spirit was shaken after experiencing the shocks of the void. His body felt as if cracks were running through his body. It was as if he was at the lit end of a long black tunnel he had just traversed and now, he could properly see the fairytale-like aristocratic family.
Bluecloud Progenitor flew him up to the highest mountain peak and soon landed at a lofty and majestic Taoist temple. The plaque was written in a script that was neither ancient or modern. They carried words of significance that he seemingly understood at a glance:
“The Azure Palace.”
ng Qi ignored the first two words for he had mixed feelings. about them. But then again, it was possible that the descendants playing with posterity. If he founded an organization, he might very well just na it sothing like the Tusita Palace, the Jade Virtual Palace, or even the Azure Palace!
The palace was fairly deserted aside from a few children. Besides Bluecloud Progenitor, ng Qi didn’t see anyone else from the Immortals.
“Most of us rarely co to the palace if there aren’t any events. We’ll go to the Immortal-tracking Alley next door to choose tasks or display items we wish to sell and find things that we need,” Bluecloud Progenitor explained. It was as if she could sense what he was thinking.
ng Qi nodded. “Can you tell more about the Immortals?”
Instead of taking flight inside the palace, she led him on foot in an unhurried manner. She explained as they went, “The Immortals are different from the Myths. Our goal is to detach ourselves from Samsara, avoid the final doom, and achieve genuine immortality.”
“In the beginning, a few of our mbers went on adventures, eting and acquiring cultivation thods from a group of Taoist sages. This led to the creation of the Immortals. With cooperation as its core eidos, our organization doesn’t force the mbers to accept tasks. Rather, rewards are the basis of our organization. For example, if Primogenitor Lingbao wishes to scour a place for ancient artifacts, he may put up a task notice to look for soone who will be interested in joining him. He’ll then offer a handso reward in return. In another example, I might also issue a task with suitable compensation if it’s inconvenient for to take on such and such a person. This way, other mbers or pledges can handle it in my stead.”
“Besides that, the objects you gain from the World of Samsara or the main world can be put up for sale in the alley. Unless you had a prior agreent at the ti of the transaction, they can also be directly exchanged with the Immortals and none of it will interfere with your reputation. In any case, it’s a better rate than what you’d get with the Six Realms.”
“Also, it’s forbidden to impart our cultivation thods and organizational matters can’t be leaked to the outside world. It’s all written in the agreent that you signed, witnessed by the Six Realms. If the agreent is triggered, you’ll be instantly obliterated and you won’t even leave a corpse.”
Realization suddenly hit ng Qi. The corpse obliteration that the Immortals and the Myths practice stemd from Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms. No wonder His Abbotship Kong Wen saw both organizations as equals to the Six Realms.
He pondered Bluecloud Progenitor’s words once again before asking, “Was Primogenitor Lingbao a previous leader of the Immortals?”
“Yes. He was one of the first mbers and is actually our current leader. He’s also known as Sky-reaching Eminentor,” Bluecloud Progenitor replied.
“Sky-reaching Eminentor?” ng Qi was taken aback.
Primogenitor Lingbao was one of the nine Taoist venerables, traditionally held up alongside Heavenly Primogenitor and Morals Primogenitor. However, in the main world, that wasn’t his nickna.
“That’s because, in so Worlds of Samsara, he’s also known as Sky-reaching Eminentor,” she explained.
Did she think he didn’t know what world would have such apotheosis? What was the link with the Taoist Celestial Venerables of the main world? ng Qi’s expression was unchanged as he said out loud, “Progenitor, what else do I need to know?”
“There’s one more thing. Official mbers and pledges must accept at least one task each year. This is to ensure every task is accepted and the organization doesn’t beco too splintered. Of course, this rule is rarely enforced. Everyone’s highly motivated here.” She led ng Qi into a temple. “Official mbers must convene once a year to compare notes. That’s as long as they’re not in hertic training or unable to make it due to a mission.”
Inside, it was clean and tidy. The place lacked the usual images of the ancestors, morals, or Lingbao for making offerings to. There was just a simple and crude character for ‘Tao’ that carried an indescribable charm.
Bluecloud Progenitor told him to wait and went inside the temple alone. She ca out shortly after with brown agreent papers. The paper was simple and crude and the wording obscure. She explained, “This details what I’ve had told you before. You can only beco a pledge at the mont, but since you’ve already passed the Death Task, you can apply for the inauguration assessnt to beco a formal mber after completing three tasks.”
ng Qi looked over the agreent just to be safe. “What exactly is better about being a formal mber over a pledge?”
“The Exterior cultivation thods under a title, one or two types of Dharmakaya movents. Further, only official mbers are allowed to go on certain ancient clandestine missions,” she answered with sparse enthusiasm.
ng Qi finished looking over the agreent and looked upon Bluecloud Progenitor’s covetous eye. Without hesitation, he read the agreent in an odd tone and ford his Energy, Qi, Spirit and Will into a pen. He then signed the agreent.
The agreent ignited and turned into airborne ash. The voice of Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms rang beside his ears.
“The agreent is established. Prior to the mutual dissolution of the agreent, violators will be obliterated.”
Bluecloud Progenitor’s tone changed when she heard this. She ground her teeth and said, “Don’t forget to give us the cultivation thod that you obtained from the Buddha’s Palm. Primogenitor Lingbao has a use for it… Blast! That’s so many cultivation thods and Karma points…”
There was an indescribable lancholy in her voice. She had had a chance at a Buddha’s Palm but had failed to acquire it then…
“Progenitor, do all formal mbers need to open a shop and involve themselves in intel-gathering?” ng Qi quickly changed the topic, avoiding topics that caused her anguish.
She said flatly, “Not necessarily. Not everyone is like the few of us who go without an effective disguise. Humph! So of the guys, for the most part, put on sanctimonious airs and graces with so hoity-toity. Underneath, they’re just intolerable letches!”
ng Qi slowly nodded. She was Qu Jiuniang alright…
She gathered her grievances and looked at him. “I could see potential in you, which was why I gave you the talisman. Who knew you’d discard it so readily? What a waste of my good intentions…”
When it ca to such issues, it was best not to argue with a woman… ng Qi used his breathing to compose himself.
She rambled on for a mont before pausing and saying, “Primogenitor Lingbao isn’t here today, so I’ll be taking you to select a nickna.”
Surprised, ng Qi followed her to the area behind the temple.
There, an earthy veil awaited. The suppressed Sword Qi made him feel like sothing was dangerously wrong as if one false move would cause him to be imdiately sliced and diced by nurous blades.
There were more than a hundred pigeonholes set on the wall, each carrying several jade bamboo scripts. So were dark, whereas others were glowing dimly.
Of the latter were Primogenitor Lingbao, Progenitor Doumu, Primogenitor Nanhua, Primogenitor Guangcheng, and Lord of Purity and Magic. The forr consisted of Heavenly Primogenitor, Lord Taiyi, Primogenitor Guangfa, Immortal Yuding, Immortal Cihang, Purple Virtual Progenitor, and so on.
Those that glowed seed to be the designations of the masters… ng Qi made a little count. There were at least 50 of them, aning that pledges would account for 20 or 30 as not everyone in a preparatory team was a pledge. Only those whose strength has reached a particular realm or were selected could receive the designations, and as such, be put forward as assessnt candidates.
The Immortals weren’t equipped with all Taoist immortal cultivation thods. So of the more notable ones that were missing were Morals Primogenitor, Primogenitor Duobao, and so on.
“You may choose any one of them as long as it doesn’t glow green.” Bluecloud Progenitor pointed at the pigeonholes.
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