Chapter 260: Carefully Chosen Tribulation Crossing Location (2)

I wonder how Shi Bo's reincarnation is doing.

On Xiaoqiong Peak, by the lakeside thatched cottage, Ling E, now wearing a simple white training robe, opened her eyes from her meditation cushion, looking a little distracted.

It had been over a month since her senior brother and senior uncle set off for the underworld, and there was still no news.

Ling E naturally wasn't worried that her senior brother and senior uncle might suddenly run away together—after all, the one who went out was just her senior brother's paper effigy. His true body was probably hiding somewhere in the alchemy room.

No, wait… that's not right.

If she thought about it from the angle of "If I can think of this, how could senior brother not?" it was possible his true body wasn't in the alchemy room at all!

Everything was just an illusion and a mystery!

"Hmph," Ling E's lips curved slightly upwards, and she felt an inexplicable smugness.

Just then, a voice transmission reached her ear.

"Come to the Dan Fang; I have a few things to tell you."

"Oh, okay," Ling E's momentum immediately deflated, and she whispered, "Senior brother, I'm coming now. I just finished my cultivation... that's it."

"Mm," Li Changshou responded, and that wisp of immortal sense disappeared.

Ling E let out a sigh of relief, stood up from the meditation cushion, and even in her loose training robe, her slender figure couldn't be hidden.

She first went to her dressing table to check her appearance, then used a wooden comb to hold down the pouch containing her senior brother's paper effigy in front of the mirror.

After that, she went behind the screen, changed into one of her favorite everyday long skirts, and rode the clouds to the Dan Fang.

As soon as she saw her senior brother, Ling E felt that something was off about him today...

She quickly asked, "Senior brother, did Jiu Shishu run into trouble?"

Li Changshou smiled and said, "No, don't worry.

"Senior uncle and my effigy are already on their way back and will arrive at the mountain gate in half a shichen.

"Senior uncle is about to break through to the Tian Xian realm, so we delayed outside for a while. Jiang Yushi Shi Bo's reincarnation has also been arranged.

"This breakthrough for senior uncle isn't fully complete yet, so after returning to the mountain, she will go into seclusion to consolidate her realm. For the next period, you can focus on your cultivation."

Ling E blinked and softly asked, "Senior brother... is something wrong?"

Li Changshou looked at the young girl before him, seeing the unease and anxiety in her autumn-like eyes, and said gently,

"There is something I need to take a risk on. The chances of success are over ninety percent, so you don't need to worry about it.

"I'm just telling you this as a precaution, in case it delays my return schedule..."

Ling E bit her lip slightly, her eyes filled with even more worry. "Senior brother, if it's dangerous, couldn't you just not do it?"

Li Changshou laughed and said, "Ling E, do you know that our Ren Jiao has a master expert named Xuan Du Shi?"

Ling E blinked and, although unsure why her senior brother brought this up, quickly answered,

"Of course I know. He is the only disciple of our Ren Jiao's Sheng Ren master and is one of the top experts below the Sheng Ren, also known as the eldest senior brother of Dao Men..."

"This time, it is me acting together with Shi."

Li Changshou said, "Although there is still some danger involved, with Shi by my side, the risk is not too high.

"I called you here to give these instructions just in case. I might be gone for some time this trip, and I probably won't make it back for your tribulation to become an immortal, so don't overthink it."

Ling E let out a light breath, and the worry in her eyes lessened significantly...

What Li Changshou said was naturally not a lie to her.

However, tribulations ultimately had to be faced on one's own—even if Shi was incredibly strong, he couldn't take on the Tian Jie for someone else...

Well, based on common sense, that probably wasn't possible.

Moreover, Li Changshou was worried that after he successfully passed his tribulation, something like an ascension event might occur. If he didn't arrange things at home properly, he would have to be distracted then.

Li Changshou flipped his hand and produced two brocade boxes, saying seriously,

"These two boxes are for your tribulation preparations. Inside each is a treasure pouch, and each pouch contains dozens more pouches, along with detailed instructions for use.

"Once you reach the seventh stage of the Gui Dao realm, if I haven't returned, open these two boxes on your own and get ready for the tribulation."

Dozens of them...

Ling E took the two brocade boxes and couldn't help but want to complain a bit.

Was her senior brother preparing these as if every one of her Tian Jie strikes was going to be Zi Xiao Shen Lei?

Looking at the characters "Ping" and "An" engraved on the boxes with immortal power, Ling E felt both happy and warm in her heart. She hugged the two boxes and whispered,

"Thank you, senior brother."

"Mm," Li Changshou nodded with a smile. "Remember, you must not take this lightly."

Ling E's face showed complete seriousness, and she nodded in agreement several times.

After Ling E returned to the lakeside thatched cottage, Li Changshou called Xiong Lingli and temporarily entrusted her with the spirit beast enclosure, the spirit trees, and the Xian Dou planting base.

When Li Changshou was undergoing his tribulation or comprehending the Dao, he needed to focus completely and couldn't afford any distractions.

Later, when the paper effigy and Jiu Shishu returned to the sect, he escorted Jiu Shishu back to Potian Peak for seclusion, and the paper effigy took the opportunity to visit Jiu Wu Shi Bo...

Upon returning from Potian Peak, Li Changshou put away the paper effigy, had his true body pay respects to their master, and then sat with Master Wan Linjun for a while.

With no more loose ends in his heart,

Li Changshou repeated his old trick: his true body used the transformation technique to hide in the blank space behind a paper effigy, and then had that paper effigy picked up by another and placed in his sleeve...

If he encountered a strong enemy before meeting up with Shi, he had a good chance of escaping.

Then, Li Changshou quietly went underground and left Du Xian Men via the one-way earth vein teleportation array he had set up earlier, heading to the tribulation site he had chosen beforehand.

For his tribulation to become an immortal, Li Changshou had placed the site at the edge of the mortal world.

His main consideration was that if enemies attacked before or after the tribulation, he could hide directly in the Hongchen Suzhi, and the edges of the mortal world had fewer Qi refiners.

But for the Jin Xian Jie now, with Shi helping to guard, external safety was high; plus, the Jin Xian Jie's power was unpredictable, so he couldn't go to the edge of the mortal world again to avoid harming mortals and accumulating Ye Zhang.

So, he found a relatively remote spot in Dongsheng Shenzhou.

This place was about 60,000 li northwest of Du Xian Men, a barren area with no spirit veins, so there were no immortal sects within 10,000 li—just a vast stretch of rugged mountains where some small demons lurked.

A perfect spot for the tribulation.

Ten years ago, Li Changshou had arranged for paper effigies to secretly set up defenses here and scout the local demon clans.

The nearest to his chosen tribulation mountain was a nest of black leopards hundreds of li away, with the strongest one not even able to transform—posing no threat to him at all...

Once his true body arrived, Li Changshou began the final arrangements and preparations for the tribulation.

He first went to the adjacent peak of this barren mountain and, in a dense forest, dug up a large, reinforced version of a mage's birdcage that he had refined with many precious materials.

The oversized version!

He moved this ten-zhang-tall birdcage to the top of that peak and connected it to the earth vein.

If he was about to be overwhelmed during the tribulation, he could probably use this to weaken a lightning strike.

However, the Jin Xian Jie wasn't just about lightning; it involved the evolution of the five elements, so this thing's effectiveness would be limited...

Then, Li Changshou scattered some paper effigies around, keeping them outside the Tian Jie's range, waiting at the edges of the expected tribulation area.

This was one of his key trump cards for this tribulation—the paper effigy as an immortal force charging treasure!

The wise use of immortal force during a tribulation was key to increasing the success rate.

Many Qi refiners failed to survive the Tian Jie because they exhausted too much magical or immortal force in the early stages and couldn't handle the real tests later.

To maintain full immortal force, Qi refiners usually chose to take spirit pills that quickly restore immortal or magical force, constantly "recharging" themselves.

Li Changshou had naturally prepared such pills, in different varieties, to be used in combination during the tribulation to rapidly replenish his consumption.

On top of taking pills, during the gaps between Tian Jie strikes, he could have the paper effigies inject their homologous immortal force into his true body, maximizing the chance that he wouldn't run out of immortal force...

Fully tapping into the potential of his Paper Effigy divine ability.

Li Changshou also set up some paper effigies carrying Xian Dou, burying trigger-based micro-arrays in various places...

Given what happened last time with the tribulation,

Li Changshou had already arranged for paper effigies to set up slightly less elaborate preparations at a second tribulation site 3,000 li away and a third one 6,000 li away.

If he could pass the tribulation safely, he had to thank the selfless contributions of the spirit trees on Xiaoqiong Peak!

Of course, he also had to thank the financial support from the Dragon Palace's old allies...

To deal with his own Jin Xian Jie, Li Changshou had truly gone all out.

What was the point of keeping treasures and wealth if he lost his life?

Next, Li Changshou began removing the various small items he had been wearing on his true body and temporarily erased the Wu Clan secret talismans etched on his skin.

After the Sheng Ren master had helped conceal his origins, these "anti-divination" treasures had lost their purpose.

But Li Changshou didn't become complacent just because of the Sheng Ren's protection; what if that method failed one day? He'd still have a backup...

It was still safer to hold his life in his own hands.

Learning from last time's lesson, it was better to remove these things before the tribulation to avoid another mishap, like last time when the Tian Dao entered energy-saving mode and casually dropped an immortal tribulation that almost made him lose a limb and ascend.

Ugh, better not dwell on it.

After busying himself for half a day, Li Changshou had all the preparations in place.

But when the agreed time came, Shi still hadn't appeared...

Where had Shi gone?

He wouldn't rush to urge him yet; the Jin Xian Jie wasn't imminent, and Li Changshou had left himself some buffer time.

Counting it out, he had already self-severed his Dao realm eight times, and the Severing Dao method had almost completely lost its effect, though not entirely.

If his Tian Jie arrived and Shi still hadn't come, he'd do a ninth severing.

That could delay it by one or two shichen, and his Tian Court effigy could rush to Doushuai Palace for help...

In this way, everything was ready, just waiting online for Shi.

Li Changshou let out a light sigh and took out the Tian Jie thank-you speech he had prepared earlier, reviewing it word by word.

Xuan Du Shi wasn't intentionally late;

Before the time he had agreed with Li Changshou, Shi had already left Doushuai Palace;

But as Shi was leaving Tian Court, he suddenly thought of something and veered off, heading first to the East Sea...

Li Changshou's tribulation was something Xuan Du Shi paid close attention to.

To put it another way, after ancient times, the matter Xuan Du Shi cared about most was Li Changshou's Jin Xian Jie.

This related to whether he could retire early from Doushuai Palace and how often his teacher would send him on tasks in the future...

Moreover, in Shi's view, this junior was very likable, and even without these factors, he was happy to lend a hand.

So, before going to find Li Changshou, Xuan Du Shi drifted to the East Sea, arrived at Sanxian Island, waited for a moment, and then met that Yunxiao Shi Mei again...

A certain eavesdropping duo quickly got to work.

When Yunxiao went out to meet Xuan Du Shi, she sighed lightly in her heart.

Ever since that last time when this Xuan Du Shi Xiong had schemed against her and disturbed her state of mind, she'd had some thoughts arising in her heart over this period.

Yunxiao knew this was because she had cultivated for too long, and her Dao heart had been disturbed, but with a few ten-thousand years of seclusion, she could suppress it.

This time, Xuan Du Shi came, and Yunxiao originally didn't want to see him, but after a moment's thought, she still stepped out of her warm pavilion...

"Xuan Du Shi Xiong, is there another important matter?"

Xuan Du Shi said seriously, "This time, I want to ask you to lend me your Hunyuan Jindou for use."

Yunxiao Xianzi was a bit surprised and smiled lightly. "Xuan Du Shi Xiong has so many treasures from Grand Master to protect him, so why would you need my Hunyuan Jindou?"

Shi said, "If it's for fighting others, I can only borrow part of the power from teacher's few supreme treasures, which is enough to handle various situations.

"But this time, it's to protect someone, and it has to be your Jindou."

Hearing Shi's words, Yunxiao grew even more curious.

"Could Shi Xiong explain in more detail? The Taiji Tu and Xuanhuang Ta are already supreme defensive treasures, far superior to my Jindou."

Xuan Du Shi pondered for a moment and then said,

"To be honest, this time I want you to come with me to help a disciple pass his tribulation.

"The Taiji Tu and Xuanhuang Ta are strong, but if we use their power, it would just mean blocking or dispersing the Tian Jie.

"The Tian Jie is both a trial from the Tian Dao for the one undergoing it and an opportunity for their cultivation. Using such supreme treasures to guard them would also hinder their progress.

"But your Hunyuan Jindou is different.

"When reversed, it can refine creatures trapped inside;

"When turned forward, it can heal and replenish those inside.

"Plus, it isolates heaven and earth and cuts off the five elements, which can delay the descent of the Tian Jie.

"That's why I came to ask for your help and invite you to come with me."

As he spoke, Xuan Du Shi took out two jade bottles and smiled. "Inside are the Laojun's refined Nine-Turn Golden Pills and Nine-Turn Jade Clarity Pills, as thanks for your assistance this time."

Yunxiao pondered for a moment, her gaze not falling on the pills, and said,

"Shi Xiong, it's not that I don't want to help, but it's best not to interfere too much with a cultivator's tribulation.

"Isn't following nature and acting without effort the principle of Tai Qing?"

"Follow nature, not follow destiny;

"The Tai Qing's non-action doesn't mean inaction in all things."

Shi laughed and said, "This disciple is quite important to our Ren Jiao. If teacher didn't approve of me doing this, he would have reminded me before I even reached Sanxian Island."

Yunxiao frowned slightly. Even though Shi's words invoked the Sheng Ren master, she still didn't want to add more karma.

But...

Xuan Du Shi played his trump card: "The one undergoing the tribulation is Hai Shen."

"Then, Shi Xiong, please wait a moment.

"I'll go instruct my two younger sisters on a few things, and then I'll go with you. This can also repay the karma I owe to Hai Shen Dao You."