Chapter 682: Reinstatement
After Madam Qi left, Qi Xuansu removed the bronze mask from his face but kept wearing the White Fox Mask as he returned to the inner city alone.
It was only today that he learned Sage Cihang’s real name was Su Yuanyi. After all, “Sage Cihang” was a title passed down through generations. If all went as expected, Zhang Yuelu would become the next Sage Cihang, and over time, people would forget her original name. This was even more so for the Grand Master. Since there could only be one at a time, there was no need to include names. Future historical records would refer to them simply as the Grand Master of a certain generation.
Among the six top figures of the Daoist Order, Qi Xuansu already knew the names of the Heavenly Preceptor, the Imperial Preceptor, Sage Donghua, and Sage Cihang. He still did not know the names of the Earthly Preceptor and Sage Qingwei. Sage Qingwei was so mysterious that to Qi Xuansu, his presence felt even fainter than Li Changge or Li Tianzhen.
Sage Qingwei should belong to the You-generation of the Li family. But then again, he might not follow the generational naming pattern at all, which was also a tradition in the Li family. For instance, the Holy Xuan, Donghuang, as well as Li Ruoshui and Li Qingnu, all lacked generational names. It just depended on the personal preference of whoever named them.
Qi Xuansu had not given the end of the era much thought. The reason was simple. If the sky were to fall, there were taller people to hold it up. Even if he wanted to be a pillar supporting the heavens, he simply was not qualified. So it was better to let the Daoist bigwigs like Sage Donghua worry about such matters. All he had to do was follow their orders.
Qi Xuansu returned to the main branch of the Taiping Inn in the Imperial Capital. He tidied himself, removed all disguises, and entered a meditative state in place of sleep.
After becoming a Heavenly Being, one rarely needed to sleep, perhaps once every ten days. Most of the time, meditation, inner cultivation, qi refinement, and introspection replaced rest. This gave Heavenly Beings ample energy and time for political maneuvering and official duties by day and cultivation and training by night without compromising either.
A typical closed-door meditation was usually for studying or practicing a specific technique. For instance, Qi Xuansu trained in the Demonic Blade, which was not tied to cultivation level. Even after mastering it, his realm would not change. Alternatively, he could use fast-track methods such as merging with a Xuan Jade or taking a Blood Pill.
Such cultivation was essential but painfully slow. If Qi Xuansu could not obtain more Xuan Jades and relied solely on effort, he would only reach the Wuliang stage sometime after 35. He might hope to enter the Zaohua stage around 50 and the Pseudo-Immortal stage after 60.
There was no helping it. The Cicada Shedding Realm was just a minor transformation, barely giving him the qualifications of a Banished Immortal. Compared to the true prodigies, the gap remained huge. It was said that Donghuang became a Heavenly Being by 20. At Qi Xuansu’s current age, Donghuang had already reached the Zaohua stage, and he did it without relying on any elixirs or external aids.
Thus, Qi Xuansu believed that if he was to rise above the rest, he would still have to rely on the Xuan Jade.