Chapter 124: Xuandaozi Takes Li Jing as His Disciple

Li Lu, the Commandant of Chentang Pass, was beside himself with worry today. His wife was in labor inside the house, and the sound of her agonized cries had him sweating profusely.

“Master, master! A Daoist outside says he has come by chance and wishes to stay the night. What shall we do?” a servant cried as he hurried over to Li Lu.

“A Daoist? Quickly, invite him in!” Li Lu immediately straightened and ordered the servant.

Three days earlier, Chentang Pass, being so close to the sea, had been battered by particularly violent winds and waves.

Yet three days ago, the turbulent sea had suddenly and miraculously become calm. Not only that, but three thousand streams of purple qi had drifted across the eastern sky.

Li Lu, who knew a little of the mystic arts, had been utterly astonished. Could a Saint be about to descend? Here, “Saint” referred to a supreme expert of the Primordial World.

And now, three days later, his wife had gone into labor, while a Daoist had appeared at his door seeking lodging. Li Lu was the commandant of Chentang Pass, and there were inns and guesthouses within the pass. Why, then, had the Daoist come specifically to his residence?

A Saint must be descending!

Li Lu hurriedly straightened his robes and led the servants out to receive the guest.

“Daoist, you have come from afar, yet I failed to welcome you personally. I beg your forgiveness for my discourtesy.” Seeing that the Daoist possessed the bearing of an enlightened master, Li Lu quickly bowed to him.

“Even while burdened with the affairs of the pass, Commandant Li has still found time to welcome this poor Daoist. I am deeply honored.” The Daoist held a verdant staff in his hand and smiled warmly at Li Lu.

“Oh, this is hardly a suitable place for conversation. Daoist, please come inside.” Li Lu made a gesture of invitation, and the Daoist readily invited him to proceed together.

“Daoist, you did not come merely to seek lodging, did you?” Li Lu took a sip of tea and asked with a smile.

“Indeed, I have come for another matter. I hope, my lord, that you will grant my request.” The Daoist suddenly grew solemn.

“May I ask what you wish of me?” Li Lu asked in confusion.

“I wish to take your child as my disciple,” the Daoist said seriously.

“Then may I ask the Daoist’s honored name?” Li Lu ventured awkwardly.

If he wanted his child to rise above the common crowd, he would need an excellent teacher. It was hardly unreasonable for Li Lu to ask.

What parent did not hope that his son would become a dragon and his daughter a phoenix? A child’s teacher was therefore of the utmost importance.

“Can you recognize this staff, my lord?” Instead of answering Li Lu directly, the Daoist held out the staff for him to examine.

“What is it?” Li Lu narrowed his eyes. The staff was entirely emerald green, and from within it came a faint, intermittent radiance.

“Could it be the Gourd Staff of the Human Father?” Li Lu ventured.

“You have guessed correctly. This is indeed the Gourd Staff,” the Daoist replied with a smile.

“Li Lu, Commandant of Chentang Pass under the Great Shang, pays his respects to the Human Father!”

Li Lu immediately fell to his knees.

At last, he had confirmed the man’s identity. This was none other than the Human Father of the human race!

“Rise, quickly. I am but a wandering man of the mountains and wilderness. How could I allow you, my lord, to bow before me?” The Daoist was none other than Xuandaozi.

Xuandaozi hurriedly helped Li Lu to his feet and asked, “Do you have any objection, my lord?”

“N-No, none at all.” Upon learning that the man truly was the Human Father, Li Lu could barely get his tongue to work.

“Very well. Today, I shall accept this child as my disciple!” Xuandaozi lifted his tea and toasted Li Lu.

“Without this old Daoist’s consent, the child cannot become your disciple!”

A Daoist descended from the sky, holding a lantern in his hand as he addressed the two men.

“And who are you to make such a presumptuous declaration?” Li Lu rebuked him.

“If you wish to know my identity, then listen carefully as I recite my verse:

One day, auspicious splendor sways and gleams;
Five-colored clouds fly on without end.
A deer cries through the empty heavens, while nine celestial sounds resound;
Purple mushrooms bloom, their layered leaves exquisitely bright.
A True Immortal appears before the central gate,
His strange features born unlike those of ordinary men.
His divine dance pierces the Milky Way with rainbow light;
At his waist hangs a precious register, beyond birth and death.
Beneath Vulture Peak I am known as Burning Lamp;
I often attend the Peach Banquet, adding years to the realm of longevity.”

This man was none other than Burning Lamp Daoist, the Vice-Leader of the Chan Sect.

Ever since the three Yang siblings had been taken away by the Spirit Sect, Jade Cauldron Daoist had felt as though he had lost some great opportunity. He had immediately reported the matter to the Primordial Heavenly Venerable.

After investigating, the Primordial Heavenly Venerable learned that Tongtian had been behind it all. The Yang family had originally possessed an affinity with the Chan Sect, yet under Tongtian’s instructions, his disciples had gone to accept them as their own, thereby seizing the destiny that should have belonged to the Primordial Heavenly Venerable’s faction of the Chan Sect.

This had enraged the Primordial Heavenly Venerable. Even the corners of his foundation were being pried away from him. It was utterly detestable!

Thus, after painstakingly gleaning a trace of information from the River of Time and Space, the Primordial Heavenly Venerable discovered that Chentang Pass held a destined opportunity for his Chan Sect—and a considerable one at that.

He immediately sent Burning Lamp Daoist to accept the child as a disciple. Not only that, he also dispatched several experts to assist Burning Lamp, in case anything unexpected occurred.

“What an arrogant tone!”

Xuandaozi turned and glanced at Burning Lamp Daoist. That single look made Burning Lamp shudder.

“Fellow Daoist... What are you doing here as well?” Burning Lamp asked haltingly.

Burning Lamp had originally assumed that the Spirit Sect’s representative would be no more than a second-generation disciple. He and several fellow disciples should have been able to drive the man away and claim the child for themselves. He had never imagined that Tongtian would send his own incarnation!

This incarnation was, in truth, Tongtian in the body of a Saint. Only his level of cultivation differed from the original.

“Have you come here to drink tea?” Xuandaozi made a gesture of invitation.

Burning Lamp hurriedly shook his head.

“Fellow Daoist, please carry on with your business.” Burning Lamp wished only to leave as quickly as possible. He could not offend the Saint of the Spirit Sect over a single disciple. Otherwise, he might as well remain on Kunlun Mountain forever and never venture out again.

The Spirit Sect’s disciples were scattered throughout the Primordial World. Although Tongtian had recalled them all to Golden Turtle Island, the subordinates of the terrifying Four Great Disciples were more than enough to make Burning Lamp suffer.

The followers of Daoist Duobao and the others formed the Spirit Sect’s four divisions. They respectively governed the major affairs of the Primordial World: intelligence, assassinations, the former Heavenly Court’s stellar lords, the demon race’s wandering immortals, and the like.

As he watched Burning Lamp Daoist depart, Xuandaozi was in excellent spirits.

Trying such tricks on me? Even if you had been born a hundred years earlier, you still would not have been my match! Xuandaozi thought.

“Master, master! The madam has given birth! The madam has given birth!” At that moment, the midwife hurried out of the chamber to offer Li Lu her congratulations.

“Is it a boy or a girl?” Li Lu asked joyfully.

“A young master!” the midwife replied, her face worn with exhaustion.

“Excellent, excellent! Someone, quickly give this old mother a red packet! A red packet!” Li Lu was so delighted that he could hardly keep from dancing with joy.

Before long, Xuandaozi saw the newborn outside the birthing chamber. The baby’s eyes were slightly closed, his little face flushed red, with phoenix-shaped eyes and large ears. He was clearly a child blessed with great fortune.

“The child has not yet been given a name, has he?” Xuandaozi said softly to Li Lu.

“Please, Human Father, bestow a name upon him!” Li Lu immediately seized upon the offer.

“Gentle in virtue and able to pacify the people is Jing. Reverent in conduct and sparing in speech is Jing. Broad-hearted, joyful, and blessed with a good end is Jing. Let the child be named Li Jing. What do you think?”

“Li Jing! Li Jing! An excellent name, an excellent name!” Holding Li Jing in his arms, Li Lu burst into hearty laughter.

While one household rejoiced, another seethed with anger. The Primordial Heavenly Venerable was furious. The entire Li family had been taken away by the Spirit Sect—what, then, was to become of his own sect?

“Master, master! The Grand Master has arrived.” White Cloud Boy knelt on the ground as he reported the news.

“Quickly, invite him in!”

White Cloud Boy had only just risen to leave when the Primordial Heavenly Venerable himself flew to the gate to welcome Grand Supreme Elder Lord.