As they drew closer to Tianwu Dao City, and even closer to the branch of the Dan Sect in the He Valley, Du Zhan's emotions became increasingly animated, his expression more lively and spirited.
Upon arriving at the dock, they followed the wide bluestone road, moving with the bustling crowd into Tianwu Dao City. In this short span of a few hundred steps, the three of them stopped every few steps.
The inspections in the Dao City had become much stricter. It was said that there had been several incidents recently where, due to negligence, shapeshifting demon beasts had entered the city, nearly causing disasters that angered the high-ranking figures above, leading to such stringent measures.
However, for Chu Weiyang and the other two, none of this posed any problems.
Just as they had dealt with the situation on the boat, Dan Sect's Du Daozi led the way, with Chu Weiyang and Miss Qinghe following closely behind. They repeated the same phrases many times, and although the process was quite tedious, it allowed the three to enter the Dao City without obstruction.
As they raised their eyes to take in the sights of the Dao City, for a moment, Chu Weiyang thought he had returned to Jing'an Dao City.
The massive structure combined the barbaric essence of the Yuanmen with the rules and regulations of the Xuanmen, even accommodating the unruliness of scattered cultivators, as if it were a perfectly formed Dan Pill, wrapped in thick walls and transformed into a city.
And such a perfectly formed Dan Pill, just by the seaside, numbered as many as seventy-two.
Indeed, what resembled Jing'an Dao City was not just the initial impression upon entering the Dao City; soon, Chu Weiyang discovered more similarities between the Dao Cities—
For instance, in the broadest street at the center of the city, there stood a unique pavilion belonging to the Dan Sect of the He Valley.
The only distinction might be that this Dao City housed the branch of the Dan Sect from the twenty-four Dao Cities in the east, making this pavilion far larger than that in Jing'an Dao City, almost forming a complete block.
In place, Chu Weiyang and Miss Qinghe remained stationary, gazing at the tall entrance with a sense of longing, as the Hundred Flowers Pavilion was indeed the only major sect not located within the Dao City.
On the other side, Du Zhan simply instructed them to wait a moment, then pushed open the door and dashed behind the screen.
Before long, without waiting for Du Zhan to reappear, two slender young Daoists dressed in plain white robes identical to Du Zhan's emerged to welcome Chu Weiyang and Miss Qinghe.
Without any probing or inquiries about their backgrounds or sects, they courteously invited the two into the expansive pavilions of the Dan Sect, leading them into one particularly elegant courtyard. After serving tea and snacks, they left without answering any of Miss Qinghe's numerous questions.
In the courtyard, Chu Weiyang remained composed and steady.
Sure enough, after a brief moment, seated in the small pavilion of the courtyard, casually watching a few koi swimming in the pond, Chu Weiyang, lost in thought, suddenly heard the sound of the door opening.
Turning to look, he saw an old man and a young man walking into the courtyard.
The old man had white hair yet a youthful face, full of vitality, while the young man closely following him was none other than Daozi Du Zhan.
At the same time, the voice of Chunyu Zhi rang seriously in Chu Weiyang's mind.
Chunyu Zhi's slightly sharp voice did not disturb Chu Weiyang's calm.
On the contrary, even though it was the first time he faced a cultivator of the Dan胎 realm directly, inexplicably, the sense of relaxation in Chu Weiyang's heart remained unchanged.
Or perhaps, in front of the old Dan Master’s warm demeanor, any gap in realms could be ignored and forgotten.
Moreover, Chu Weiyang felt an inexplicable thought arise in his mind: this old Dan Master resembled Du Zhan many years later.
As expected, when Chu Weiyang stood up, preparing to respectfully salute the old elder with clasped hands, he saw the old Dan Master quickly walk a few steps forward, directly standing in front of Chu Weiyang. He tightly grasped Chu Weiyang's still-open hand with one hand, while the other hand affectionately patted Chu Weiyang's elbow, causing the jade snake on his wrist to buzz in discontent.
Before Chu Weiyang could speak, he was interrupted by the old Dan Master.
Upon hearing this, Chu Weiyang did not think too much in an instant; in fact, there was no need to think. As soon as he realized this, Chu Weiyang flipped his wrist and firmly supported the old Dan Master's arm.
As the words fell, the old Dan Master smiled even more warmly. However, when he spoke, the density of his words was no less than that of Du Zhan himself.
When he finished speaking, this Liu Shibo flipped his hand and placed a jade box into Chu Weiyang's palm.
Upon first touch, it was the coolness of high-quality water jade, but soon after, through that coolness, a warm energy began to flow into Chu Weiyang's palm.
"Young friend, I heard from Zhan'er that you have also delved into the Dao of Alchemy, achieving considerable success through your own insights. Very good! The Dao of Alchemy is indeed a worthy path to explore! However, I heard that your materials are somewhat lacking, limiting your in-depth study of alchemy, particularly missing a fire attribute main medicine.
Inside this jade box is a piece of Zhu Guo root stem, nurtured in a spiritual field for over sixty years, with potent medicinal properties. You can cut it for use or take small pieces to nurture on your own. However, this precious medicine has never bloomed or borne fruit, and its yin and yang energies are incomplete. It can still produce tubers, but it cannot yield Zhu Guo."
At this moment, upon hearing the old Dan Master's words, Chu Weiyang was inevitably lost in thought.
With his level of insight, he naturally understood that Zhu Guo was a precious material that took hundreds of years to bloom and bear fruit, one of the top-tier fire attribute medicines. It could even be consumed directly without needing to be refined into a pill, providing great benefits!
As for the inability of the tuber in his hand to yield Zhu Guo, this was not a flaw for Chu Weiyang.
Zhu Guo was already a rare treasure that could not be sought after; being able to have any connection with it was enough to be considered a top-quality material!
For a moment, the shock in Chu Weiyang's heart nearly left him speechless.
At this time, the old Dan Master flipped his hand again and placed a thick Dao book atop the jade box.
Looking down, he saw it was inscribed in ancient seal script—"Finger Dan Chapter."
His heart leaped suddenly.
Just then, he heard the old Dan Master's voice continue.
"Zhan'er is still shallow in cultivation and lacks deep insight. I only heard him mention it, yet I could tell that young friend is using inner Dan methods to validate outer Dan methods. Since it is self-understanding, the alchemical techniques are quite crude, but the essence is very high!
Therefore, I pondered for a while and decided to gift you some methods that involve sect lineage and causality. However, needing various oaths and pledges would be inappropriate, as it would muddle the purity of our good relationship. After much thought, I could only offer you this book.
In my youth, I was immersed in the Dao of Alchemy, feeling that there was nothing more splendid in this world than this path. I often dissected the details during the alchemical process, whether changing the dosage or altering the techniques, treating it as self-entertainment.
To boast a little, I still have some talent in the Dao of Alchemy. Back then, I played around until I became familiar, and almost between questions and answers, it was just a flick of a finger. After compiling it into a Dao book, I named it 'Finger Dan Chapter.'
This Dao book is outside our sect's alchemical lineage, but it records the intricacies of medicinal properties, combinations, monarchs, ministers, assistants, yin and yang changes, and even the genuine details of alchemical techniques, which can perfectly supplement your shortcomings in alchemy.
If you can comprehend it deeply, you might even derive several complete alchemical formulas from the 'Finger Dan Chapter.' They are all adaptations based on the foundations of predecessors, gifted to you without touching our sect's lineage!"
Upon hearing this, the excitement in Chu Weiyang's heart was almost beyond words to describe.
He had thought that this journey would yield rich rewards, but he had underestimated the wealth of those in the Dao of Alchemy.
Chu Weiyang was left speechless, still in a daze.
Beside him, the old Dan Master smiled kindly, gently patting the back of Chu Weiyang's hand before releasing his grip.
As the words fell, the old Dan Master nodded slightly to Chu Weiyang, ultimately not instructing him to say anything further, and hurriedly left.
Until the sound of footsteps faded away, Du Zhan finally smiled.
After saying this, Du Zhan slowly shifted his body.
Hearing this, Chu Weiyang seemed to gradually come back to his senses.
He nodded, somewhat belatedly.
Seeing Chu Weiyang respond, Du Zhan clasped his hands in salute and left the courtyard.
In place, Chu Weiyang maintained his original posture for a long time.
Causality, causality...
He gradually savored the flavor within.
Dreaming of the West Hua to the Ninth Heaven, the True Person grants me the Zhi Xuan Chapter.
Among them, there are few words of simplicity, only teaching one to refine mercury and lead.
Xun Chun Xu Zhou
Many books are now hard to find; cherish them while you can.