Dao Lord: Starting from a Top-grade Golden Core

Above the flowing clouds, an inconspicuous streak of light shot silently across the border, heading straight toward the Celestial Waterfall of Yunlan Province.

Once the Immortal Mountain was visible in the distance, the streak of light dared not proceed. It certainly didn’t dare to circle aimlessly in the sky, so it quickly found a place to land. This revealed a horse-faced cultivator: Jiang Shicheng of the Moyun Sect.

As he flew, he couldn’t help but notice that Yunlan Province was no longer desolate. Greenery was sprouting in the fields, and the sorrow on the faces of the common people had diminished significantly. It was a clear sign of a revival.

’This is strange. Where did the True Form Temple find so many disciples capable of managing the weather for an entire province?’ A frown creased Jiang Shicheng’s brow. ’I’ll have to ask about this later,’ he resolved.

Jiang Shicheng glanced at the Celestial Time, took a beast pouch from his sleeve, and with a gentle shake, released a celestial crane. He picked up a yellow talisman between two fingers and stuffed it into the crane’s beak. Then, he formed a hand seal and directed the crane to fly toward Celestial Waterfall Immortal Mountain.

Many spirit birds resided on the Immortal Mountain, so the celestial crane did not look out of place as it flew through the sky. It circled for a moment, letting out a few short and long cries before flying back.

After returning the celestial crane to the beast pouch, Jiang Shicheng found a place to wait. He waited for a full four hours, until the sun was high in the sky, but no one arrived.

Jiang Shicheng’s expression faltered. He hesitated for a few moments, not daring to stay any longer, and turned to leave. But after just two steps, he paused, a look of doubt crossing his face again. After a moment’s thought, he formed a Magic Formula. His aura vanished instantly, and he slowly sank into the earth.

A moment later, Dao Soldiers and Warriors silently closed in from all directions. Finding the area empty, they exchanged confused glances. Their leader, who looked like a general, took out a horn and sounded it. A streak of light descended from the sky, revealing the figure of Zeng Quanfeng.

Zeng Quanfeng scanned the surroundings and sneered, "He’s fast, I’ll give him that. Forget it. Withdraw the troops."

The Dao Soldier commander bowed, gathered the Dao Soldiers, and they quickly retreated. Zeng Quanfeng flicked his sleeve and rode a streak of light into the clouds. But then, he had a sudden thought, formed a hand seal to hide his aura, and began to wait in the sky.

He waited for three days and three nights, but there was no movement at all. Zeng Quanfeng frowned, a flicker of disappointment in his heart. ’Looks like he’s really gone.’ Only then did he truly ride his streak of light back toward the True Form Temple.

Another twelve days passed. Then, Jiang Shicheng slowly emerged from the ground.

He had been entrusted with this mission precisely because of his meticulous nature and his expertise in Escape Techniques and Hiding Skills.

When Fan Valley failed to arrive on time that day and sent no message, Jiang Shicheng suspected something was wrong. His first instinct was to flee, but he feared falling into the hands of the True Form Temple. Instead, he hid deep underground, completely cutting himself off from the outside world. This was how he had avoided detection by Zeng Quanfeng, but it also meant he had no idea what had transpired above after he went into hiding.

After emerging from the ground, Jiang Shicheng searched the area, and his expression darkened. There were no marks left by Fan Valley. ’It seems he’s really done for.’ He never imagined the True Form Temple would actually suspect one of the Moyun Sect’s own most promising young leaders.

Jiang Shicheng felt no pity for the greedy man. What he did regret was that they had likely lost their only way of finding out the True Form Temple’s secrets.

’Forget it. I should hurry back and report to the Senior Brother Sect Leader.’ Jiang Shicheng didn’t dare to linger. He summoned his escape light, but he hadn’t gotten far when his expression changed. A powerful aura was heading straight for him. He quickly used a technique to conceal himself again.

Before long, the clouds began to churn. A single-horned flood dragon, covered in green scales and possessing four three-toed claws, soared through the sky. Flanking it were two young Daoists in the robes of the True Form Temple, holding Magical Swords as they followed close behind on their own Magical Artifacts. All of them were heading toward the True Form Temple.

After the flood dragon and the True Form Temple disciples had flown far into the distance, Jiang Shicheng finally revealed himself, a look of astonishment in his eyes. ’A flood dragon! No wonder the True Form Temple suddenly has the resources to manage the weather for an entire province...’

The light in Jiang Shicheng’s eyes shifted as an idea suddenly struck him. He spurred his escape light and sped away. This time, there were no mishaps. After flying for several hours without a moment’s rest, he finally returned to the gates of the Moyun Sect.

Jiang Shicheng sent a disciple to announce his arrival, then returned to his residence to rest briefly before making his way to the main hall. The Sect Leader, Fangmian Taoist, was already waiting for him. Seeing Jiang Shicheng enter, he gently flicked his duster and said, "Junior Brother Jiang, you have returned. You were gone for more than half a month. Did you run into some trouble?"

Jiang Shicheng replied in a low voice, "Senior Brother Sect Leader, I’m afraid Fan Valley has fallen. The True Form Temple is already impenetrable; I fear it will be difficult to pry any information from them in the future."

Fangmian Taoist frowned slightly. "Explain the situation."

Jiang Shicheng cupped his hands and recounted his journey to Yunlan Province. After listening, Fangmian Taoist pondered for a long while before saying, "So be it. This is not your fault, Junior Brother. It’s enough that you returned safely. We may not have gathered any intelligence, but we’ll just have to be more vigilant and take precautions in the future."

Jiang Shicheng smiled. "Thank you for your understanding, Senior Brother. However, this journey was not entirely fruitless."

"Oh?" Fangmian Taoist asked. "What did you find?"

Jiang Shicheng said, "Senior Brother, can you guess what I saw on my way back?"

Fangmian Taoist’s brow furrowed, and he chided, "Stop keeping me in suspense!"

Jiang Shicheng didn’t seem to mind, chuckling as he said, "On my way back, I saw a flood dragon making rain for the True Form Temple!"

"What?" Fangmian Taoist said in astonishment. "Where did the True Form Temple find a flood dragon? And how did they get it to willingly make rain for them?"