Daoist Competition

She stared blankly for a long time and felt somewhat bored. Her gaze shifted as she saw her elder sister engrossed in the book in her hands, occasionally fiddling with the bamboo divination sticks. Pouting slightly, she pushed her elder sister and struck up a conversation out of nowhere, saying, "Elder sister, why does Master want us to study these ghost talisman texts?"

Wang Caiwei was deeply focused, immersed in deduction, but she was interrupted by her younger sister. Mildly annoyed, she shot her a glance and frowned, saying, "Fourth Sister, all you need to do is follow what Master says. Why do you ask so many questions?"

She knew her younger sister was even more intelligent than herself, learning the Erosion Texts swiftly. However, her mind was too fickle, never able to settle down. Still, they were born of the same mother, so she couldn’t entirely ignore her.

Putting down the book, she turned to her younger sister and spoke seriously, "Fourth Sister, within the Nine Cities, there are millions of people, yet only the two of us sisters are fortunate enough to enter Master’s tutelage. How rare is this chance? You should tread as if on thin ice, cherish it carefully, and not be so fickle and distracted like this!"

Wang Caiting saw her elder sister’s stern demeanor and quickly grabbed her hand, shaking it playfully while smiling, "Don’t say that, Sister. I know I was wrong."

Seeing her younger sister acting this way, Wang Caiwei knew she hadn’t taken her words to heart. Helplessly, she raised her finger and tapped her sister on the forehead with force, saying, "You! Senior Sister tests us monthly. If you make even the slightest mistake, you’ll be punished to copy ’One Qi Cleansing Scripture’ a thousand times. This time, I won’t help you copy it. Let’s see what you’ll do!"

Upon hearing the words "punished to copy," Wang Caiting jumped with fright.

Over the past year, Liu Yan Yi would often come to guide the two sisters. Despite her gentle nature, she was unyielding in discipline. If one failed to decipher the Erosion Texts, she wouldn’t yell or strike them but would order them to copy the Daoist Scripture a thousand times instead. If she sensed they were negligent, she would always uncover faults, causing Wang Caiting endless suffering.

Nowadays, Wang Caiting feared this senior sister the most. She muttered two sentences unwillingly and had no choice but to obediently pick up the bamboo divination sticks again, wearing a bitter expression as she reluctantly resumed her deductions with the Erosion Texts.

Zhang Yan observed this scene with a slight smile. Leaving these two sisters under Liu Yan Yi’s tutelage was evidently sufficient for the time being. Right now, he didn’t have the leisure to monitor them too closely. With a wave of his sleeve, he shut off the mirror light and asked, "Mirror Spirit, during my seclusion these past days, has anything happened in the mansion?"

The black-clothed scholar heard Zhang Yan’s call and immediately emerged from the mirror. Bowing courteously, he said, "Master, all matters in the mansion are as usual. However, during the three months of your seclusion, Zhao Houzhou and She Yutang came by once. Seeing that you were still in seclusion, they dared not disturb you and left quite a few Daoist Books behind before departing. They mentioned that, should you have time, you are welcome to visit Hai Zhen Temple, where they are prepared and awaiting your arrival."

"Oh? These two fellow Daoists returned from that Immortal Mansion so quickly?"

Surprised, Zhang Yan pondered for a moment. He mused that their venture had likely been smooth. After thinking briefly, he said, "Bring those Daoist Books for me to take a look."

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The black-clothed scholar replied, "Yes," and retrieved several jade discs from his sleeve. Stepping forward, he respectfully handed them over.

With a faint touch of his finger, Zhang Yan caused the jade discs to hover in the air. He cast several spells into them, and beams of spirit light shot forth, displaying line after line of Erosion Text scrolls from within the light.

He glanced at them, noting their profound and intricate content, which couldn’t be solved quickly. Just as he was about to retract the spirit light to review them during his leisure later, his gaze fell on one particular jade disc with Erosion Texts that were startlingly simple. With just a glance, he grasped its meaning.

He let out a low "Hmm" and muttered to himself, "So it’s this technique?"

It was neither a cultivation technique nor divine passage skill but rather a Blood Vessel Seeking Skill.

The so-called Blood Vessel Seeking Skill allows a cultivator to use a drop of essence blood and, through specific spellcasting, locate those who share close bloodline ties, regardless of distance.

Though uncommon, this method was indeed familiar to many. Some cultivators, fortunate enough to find opportunities and reach certain levels of cultivation, would use this technique to track their descendants, imparting cultivation techniques and Daoist skills to them. In the event of rebirth, they could shelter themselves under these descendants and rejoin the Xuanmen. Many of the smaller clans among the noble families rose to prominence through methods like this.

Zhang Yan reached out and brought the jade disc closer for inspection. He carefully reviewed the spell and found it neither overly complicated nor difficult. A brief perusal was enough to grasp its mechanics.

Activated by this thought, he followed the technique’s steps and extracted a drop of his essence blood. As soon as he employed the spell, he felt his divine soul sway and, in a momentary blur, sensed dozens of bloodline-affiliated auras in the void.

Among them, one aura was obscure and intermittent, ethereal like a Cloud Immortal—vague and elusive. Suspecting it belonged to a fellow cultivator, he refrained from further probing. With a shift of divine intent, he concealed himself before being detected, then turned his attention to the most distinct aura among the rest.

This particular aura was bright and comforting, remarkably clear. There were seven or eight more entangled with it, evidently its descendants. However, upon sweeping his divine intent over, Zhang Yan realized the source of this aura was on the verge of demise, its vitality drained and nearly extinguished from the mortal world.

Frowning slightly, Zhang Yan contemplated briefly. His eyes glinted, and with a sharp cry, he transformed into a cloud of mist and exited the Cave Mansion. In an instant, his whereabouts became unknown.

At the same time, within Baoyang Great Transformation Cave Heaven at Hai Zhen Temple, one of the Ten Sects of Xuanmen, a young maiden, clad in a yellow blouse and white skirt, with bright eyes and graceful features, suddenly shuddered lightly. Her delicate brows involuntarily furrowed.

A stern female voice echoed from the great hall, "Zhen’er, what disrupts your thoughts? Quickly steady your heart and spirit, and follow me in circulating the cultivation technique."

Bowing her head slightly, the young maiden replied softly, "Yes, Master."

She hurried to cast away the strange sensation that had inexplicably arisen moments ago, gathered her thoughts, and resumed channeling her sect’s marvelous techniques.

...

...(To be continued. If you enjoy this novel, visit qidian.com to cast your recommendation votes or monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)