Chapter 57: The Wonderful Gourd of Innate One Qi

Xuanxu Zhenren stood expressionless to the side, seemingly unconcerned with Li Yun and the others. Eyes closed, he appeared asleep and disinterested.

Without hesitation, the Enforcement Venerable stepped forward, raised his palm in a single slap, and infused spiritual energy into the upper dantian acupoints of Li Yun, Fang Wen, and Ji Han. Three magical weapons shot out from above their heads with a clang. The Enforcement Venerable's round disk released seven auspicious clouds, instantly absorbing the three weapons completely.

This disk was a formidable treasure. It refined the three king-level divine weapons into spiritual essence absorbed within, enveloped by auspicious clouds. Li Yun and the others' cultivation, painstakingly refined over years, vanished into nothingness.

The Enforcement Venerable struck without mercy. The trio, like lambs to the slaughter, offered no resistance.

After decades of refinement, the weapons were gone. The disciples hadn't even time to grieve when three brilliant stars emerged from the Enforcement Venerable's disk, flying into their brow acupoints to extinguish their cultivation.

His face stern, the Enforcement Venerable showed no leniency. Li Yun and companions trembled in agony, yet knelt submissively on the ground.

Yang Nan's heart clenched, realizing the severity of Kunlun's rules. Any resistance would mean soul destruction.

The Kunlun Sect bestows and takes away all!

Buxu whispered to the tense Yang Nan, "This is the Moonfall Star River Disk, which holds ten billion eight hundred million heavenly rivers. It can absorb souls, steal wisdom, condense into a river to encircle the skies with infinite might, and has always been the Enforcement Venerable's personal treasure, ideal for punishing disciples."

The Enforcement Venerable, whose cultivation surpassed his peers and who wielded an innate spirit treasure, showed no mercy to offenders.

Starlight entered their brows. Li Yun and the three appeared gravely ill, their spiritual essence dissipating. They regressed from masters to mortals in an instant, minds clouded. The disciples recoiled in fear.

Decades of cultivation reduced to nothing overnight.

Outer sect disciples like Li Guo fared worse, drained to mere breathing by the disk, eyes blazing with hatred toward Yang Nan.

If not for Yang Nan, where would they be?

Yang Nan felt solemn. In the presence of so many venerables, masters were mere ants.

Xuanxu Zhenren spoke with divine authority: "Sect competition is Kunlun tradition. Heaven's way favors the strong above all. Strive, but never surpass; scheme, but never harm. Li Yun colluded with outsiders to harm fellow disciples—this is taboo! Violators shall be killed without pardon. Be vigilant!"

All bowed: "We heed the Sect Leader's command!"

Xuanxu asked Changxu: "Any objection to today's ruling?"

Changxu replied calmly, "As the rules demand, so shall it be. Sect Leader's justice is impeccable. Changxu has no quarrel."

Yang Nan's heart chilled. Changxu despised the Li family utterly. Future missteps would be far worse.

Li Yun and others were dragged away like dead dogs, glaring hatred at Yang Nan.

Yang Nan knew today's matter was not yet over! The Li family would surely seek bitter revenge.

But would he fear them? They had already withdrawn from Kunlun. Even with more methods, he would face whatever came.

Xuanxu smiled faintly: "The disciples of the various peaks and halls, after this, will suppress evil energy and return to the correct path, truly comprehending the true meaning of 'fellow disciple.' Without fellow disciples, there is no Kunlun. The ancestor's instructions must not be taken lightly!"

Only thanks to Changxu did Li Yun and the others live. The Sect Leader was already magnanimous!

Only then did Yang Nan understand Kunlun's survival for three thousand years rested not on dao power or treasures, but on the heart of camaraderie. Heaven's way honored the strong and shamed the weak; competition was normal. In fellow competition, two taboos forbade killing or allying with outsiders. Violate either, and even immortals could not save you.

The Kunlun Sect survived by the two words "camaraderie." Anyone on Kunlun Mountain would be a pillar—record-name disciples, outer sect, inner sect, and venerables all remembered the name. When Buxu spared Dao disciples outside the Hot Spring Pass for the same reason, it was no different. Yang Nan had been oppressed by Li Yun without a word to the Sect Leader, but when Li Yun allied with Yang Lan and nearly caused his death, bridges were burned.

The rules were ironclad to this extent...

Xuanxu turned warmly to Yang Nan: "Little ape, think me unfeeling for not greeting you sooner? Or blame me for permitting humiliation?"

Yang Nan protested: "No, master. Entering Kunlun places me in the sect. How could this disciple harbor resentment? The dao cultivates both path and heart; without setbacks, one cannot enter the dao."

It was impossible to have no resentment at all, but Yang Nan knew the fault lay not with Xuanxu Zhenren or Buxu, but with the Li family going too far! Grievances have their debtor, debts their creditor. Blame could only fall on the Li family!

Xuanxu stroked his beard and smiled: "Mm, you are warm outside and domineering inside, possessing a dao bone, it seems you were born to be a disciple of Kunlun. No wonder Buxu favored you after hundreds of years without choosing anyone."

Buxu snorted in displeasure: "Senior brother, what are you saying?"

Xuanxu clarified: "Did I say something wrong? For this little ape you sword-pressed Changxu, caused a ruckus in the Ancestral Hall, nearly destroyed my rare spiritual pill and almost tore down the hall. If you had not treated him as your own disciple, why teach him the Immortality Yin Yang Wheel? Is not this little ape your cherished disciple?"

"Sword-pressed Changxu, caused commotion in Ancestral Hall..."

Yang Nan's heart fluttered. He turned to his master, beautiful like a mortal yet cold as ice, a warm current surging in his heart! In this world, besides his grandfather, the master he met by chance at Hunjiang was best to him. She had done nothing visible yet forced the Sect Leader, pressed the sword on the Li family, defeated seven grand masters to save him. If he did not understand the master's grace now, he was truly blind!

The Sect Leader praised him, yet Buxu acted as if she had not heard, still unmoved. Yang Nan's sweaty palms suddenly felt his master's cold face hot and cold alternately, bizarrely so.

Xuanxu stroked his beard and smiled: "In front of so many senior brothers and uncles, I speak plainly. Buxu accepting a disciple does not violate Kunlun tradition. Yang Nan still studies the inner sect's top technique. But if within thirty years he finds Ancestor Clear Cliff's soul or attains Venerable rank, the master-disciple title today is true! If not, he is not Buxu's disciple, nor orthodox transmission. Longevity is endless; we shall see. This matter is settled, no need to speak again! All withdraw!"

Disciples and venerables withdrew one by one. Only then did Buxu instruct Yang Nan: "Take out the small copper coin on your chest for the Sect Leader to see."

Yang Nan's heart jolted. Only then did he realize his background had been seen clearly by Buxu. He dared not speak more, took out the coin and handed it to Sect Leader Xuanxu.

"Limitless Heavenly Venerable, all laws as one—open!"

Xuanxu held the jade, flicked his finger. Streams of pure spiritual energy poured in. The small copper coin blazed with light, symbols floating in the colorful divine glow, lively as swimming fish, yet profound symbols and characters no one could understand.

Yang Nan saw the coin glow in the Sect Leader's hands, his heart filled with shock. Xuanxu smiled: "Do not sink your consciousness into it to inspect what lies within the innate treasure that saved your life today?"

Yang Nan nodded. Sinking his consciousness revealed the coin no longer shrank but held a colorful world, countless lights enveloping moving symbols. His consciousness wandered freely until sweeping an object, it trembled!

In the endless colorful light slept a small child with closed eyes! This child seemed neither awake nor asleep, countless colors moving around gently supporting his small frame, drifting in the air!

The artifact indeed possessed spirit!

After long, Yang Nan withdrew his consciousness, face filled with amazement. Though he knew the coin extraordinary, the bizarre world and child confirmed its existence.

The small copper coin was truly an innate spirit treasure! A wonder from the immortal realm!

Buxu saw Yang Nan's shock, as if he had known, and said faintly: "Have you seen it?" The Sect Leader opening the coin produced such wonders. Buxu's consciousness scan knew the treasure was now no different from before.

Yang Nan silently nodded. A real innate spirit treasure, once powers restored, how powerful? Without Xuanxu's god-like power opening it today, he would not know the coin's wonder until when!

Xuanxu removed the dripping emerald gourd from his waist, smiling to Yang Nan: "Little ape, today you received a bargain. Opening your innate spirit treasure cannot waste these drops of primordial spirit water. If you do not seek heavenly spirit roots to return to me, I will not let you off!"

Holding the gourd, his face pained as if losing a mountain of gold.

In a daze, Buxu explained: "This is the Sect Leader's primordial qi wonderful gourd, containing a drop of primordial chaos time, remnant primordial qi from ancient heaven creating the earth. This qi does not exist even in the immortal realm! This treasure can collect thousands of demons, self-creating a world, truly powerful!"

Buxu's words caused Yang Nan's heart to chill. Primordial spirit water? A rare treasure indeed...

Xuanxu muttered the spell, the gourd emitting several clear crystalline droplets. The droplets, upon appearing, refreshed the soul, containing vast pure spiritual power, non-trivial!

Droplets fell on the small copper coin. The colorful divine light intensified, symbols under pressure forming a child in colorful clothes, jade-carved and powder-like. The child emerged like awakening from a dream, leaping in the air to stand before Yang Nan, hugging him with joy and calling: "Yong'er pays respects to the master!"

Yang Nan saw this and was unsurprised. The child was clearly the spirit of the small copper coin! Having encountered it in the Xuan Yan Sword, seeing it again was not strange. This coin had experienced two lifetimes and recognized him as master without surprise! Usually it acted like an arm, responding to a thought, but he had not expected the Sect Leader to open this treasure!