Chapter 134: Lonely Courtyard (Second Update Seeking Monthly Tickets)

  There are still three days before the appraisal meeting, and in these two days, Ningyuan, He Zhengxun, Yao Xinyan and a few others have been wandering around Liao Hai City, visiting some of its famous scenic spots.

  For Ningyuan and He Zhengxun, the more famous mountains and rivers and ancient scenic spots are their favorites. In these places, it is easy to feel the changes of the earth's pulse and the vicissitudes of history, which is very beneficial for secret exercises.

  At present, Ningyuan feels that his knowledge is not enough, so he hopes to spend two years at Fuhai University, attending classes and learning more about history and human culture from various places. Then, he will travel extensively, visiting mountains and rivers all over the country, in search of a way to break through the Yuan Shen boundary.

  The Yuanshen boundary is a watershed in the practice of secret methods, and it is a spiritual transformation from acquired to innate. The path to breaking through the Yuanshen boundary is different for each person, and there is no way to borrow or reference.

  Some people like to sit quietly, some people like to walk around, some people like calligraphy. Everyone is searching for their own path, cultivating their emotions, tempering their spirit and mind, seeking to enter the realm of the original spirit.

  Ning Yuan had only been in the spiritual realm for less than a month, and the yuan Shen boundary was still quite far away from him. Even with his exceptional talent, it would be extremely difficult for him to enter the yuan Shen within two or three years.

  Ningyuan also knew the principle of "going too far is as bad as not going far enough", so his mentality was very stable. He took it one step at a time, first consolidating his own accumulation, and then seeking his own path to enlightenment. Only when he had cultivated his spirit and entered the realm of the original spirit could he truly laugh proudly, blend in with the three teachings and nine streams, and roam freely in the mortal world.

  Two days passed in a flash, and on the third day afternoon, at two o'clock, Ningyuan was drinking tea and playing chess with He Zhengxun and Yao Xinyan in the hotel room. Then someone from Di Zong arrived.

  It was Zhu Si, an old acquaintance of Ning Yuan's, who arrived first. After entering, Zhu Si greeted Ning Yuan and the other two with great courtesy, and respectfully said to Ning Yuan: "Ning senior, He Zhangmen asked me to come and pick up a few seniors to attend the appraisal meeting. Today, all the fellow martial artists can gather at Di Zong. Tonight, Di Zong will host a banquet to welcome all the seniors and fellow Jianghu."

  "Hehe, okay, I'll lead the way then." Ning Yuan smiled faintly. He glanced at He Zhengxun and Yao Xinyan, stood up and said, "After waiting for several days, the Southeast Treasure Appraisal Conference has finally arrived."

  "A few seniors, please!" Zhu Si respectfully yielded and let Ningyuan and several others leave the house first, then led them to the hotel entrance.

  There were already cars waiting at the hotel entrance, and at the same time, Ning Yuan and several others also saw Ke Mohua and his son who had just come out of the hotel, smiled and nodded to Ke Mohua, and got into the car driven by Zhu Si.

  The car started slowly and drove out of the city, heading towards Donghua Mountain in the suburbs of Liaohe City.

  This appraisal meeting is a grand gathering in the Jianghu. It's impossible to hold it in a big hotel in the city, but rather in the inner sanctum of the sect, which is located on Donghua Mountain.

  Donghua Mountain is also a relatively famous mountain range in the country and a well-known tourist destination in Liaohe City. Compared to Lianyun Mountain in Shangjiang City, it is more majestic, with rolling hills and mountains that resemble a giant dragon.

  The car drove out of the city and into the Donghua Mountains, where Zhu Si drove for a whole hour before entering the depths of the mountains. As he approached the edge of a cliff, he didn't hesitate, instead turning the steering wheel sharply to drive straight ahead. After passing through, the road suddenly opened up, revealing a wide stone-paved path stretching out before him.

  The main road was like a long snake, winding and twisting, extending deep into the mountains, with the rugged Donghua Mountains still on both sides of the bluestone road.

  "Haha, this Earth Sect's illusionary formation is quite good. Generally, even a master of the secret arts who has reached the inner world realm wouldn't be able to find the entrance if they didn't understand array techniques." He Xiezhong laughed and said from inside the carriage.

  "Heh heh, the Di Zong sect in Donghua Mountain has a history of several hundred years. In those days, the Xingfa sect surrendered to the Japanese devils and many sects were destroyed, but Di Zong was spared. This illusion array is indeed a great achievement." Yao Xinyan nodded and said.

  Ning Yuan sat silently in the car, staring out of the window. Although he was already a master of spiritual transformation, this kind of sect's illusion array was still something he had never seen before.

  They are the nine Xuanmen people, and in those years, the Qingping Daoist was only one person, almost equivalent to Sanxiu. The Qingping Daoist himself is a free cloud and wild crane, naturally without a fixed sect, even if it is the current Yangping Mountain Taoist temple, it is just the place where Qingping Daoist settled in his later years, there is no illusion array.

  Ning Yuan grew up in a Taoist temple, and although he followed the Qingping Taoists to many places, he rarely visited orthodox sects, so he was indeed curious about this sect's fantasy array.

  "Heh heh, little brother is seeing the sect's illusion array for the first time, right? Actually, this is just a large-scale maze array, it doesn't have much power, its purpose is just to isolate ordinary people, so that the sect won't become a gathering place for tourists." He Zhengxun said with a smile as he saw Ning Yuan looking out the window.

  As they spoke, Zhu Si's car had already turned several corners, and Ning Yuan and the others could see the gate of the Earth Sect in the distance. At the end of the bluestone road, a large mountain gate stood upright, with two large ancient characters carved on it - "Earth Sect".

  Seeing the grandeur of the sect's gate, Ningyuan finally understood why they had to set up an illusion array outside. The sect's gate looked magnificent and elegant in style, if exposed, it would definitely be a perfect tourist destination and resort villa.

  Zhu Si's car stopped in front of the mountain gate, and Ning Yuan, He Zhengxun, Yao Xinyan, Gu Feng, and Lin Si got out of the car. They were greeted by He Yuntang and several high-ranking members of the Di Sect who had been waiting at the entrance.

  "I've met Senior Ning, Senior He and Senior Yao. Welcome, seniors, to our sect's Treasure Appraisal Convention." He Yuntang, with a stack of smiles on his face, bowed politely towards Ning Yuan and the others.

  "Ningyuan has troubled Master He this time," Ningyuan said with a smile, while He Zhengyun and Yao Xinyan stood quietly on either side of him, not making a sound.

  This triennial appraisal meeting is a grand gathering in the Jianghu, and those who come to participate are not only from the Xuanmen but also include fellow practitioners from various martial arts schools. It's considered a formal martial arts assembly. Although Yao Xinyan and He Zhengxun are older than Ning Yuan and are his seniors, they still can't overstep their bounds. Otherwise, Ning Yuan, as the sect leader, would be ridiculed by others.

  "Hehe, Elder Ning is joking." He Yuntang respectfully invited Ning Yuan and several others into the sect, while introducing them to several high-ranking members of the Di Sect who had come together to welcome them.

  Entered the sect of the earth religion, went up the steps, in front was a large martial arts training ground, on both sides of the training ground were Qing dynasty style houses, and behind was the great hall of the earth religion.

  The entire Dongyue Temple was built on the middle of Mount Tai's eastern peak, covering a vast area. The layout inside is well-organized and tidy. The temple almost relies on the majestic mountain range of Mount Tai, cutting off more than half of its mountainous momentum.

  He Yuntang personally escorted Ningyuan and several others past the martial arts arena, to the middle gate. Only then did he let people take Ningyuan and several others to rest, while he himself took people to welcome high-ranking masters from other sects.

  With Ningyuan and He Zhengxun, Yao Xinyan, Gu Fenglin, and four others were He Yuntang's junior fellow apprentice, named Gao Zonghui, over 50 years old. Ningyuan suspected that this Gao Zonghui might be a younger generation of Gao Yifan.

  Gaotong Hui was not very good at speaking, and all the way he didn't make a sound, only occasionally explaining two sentences when passing by some buildings in the place. At this time, the entire place was filled with disciples of the sect wearing the sect's uniform, and they didn't meet anyone from other sects.

  It seems that even if Qingping Daoren has passed away, the Earth Sect still doesn't dare to underestimate the Jiuxuan Gate lightly. The first ones they invited were Ning Yuan and his companions.

  Gao Zonghui brought Ningyuan and several others to the backyard of the Earth Temple, which had a row of rooms. The entire yard was self-contained, with flowers and grasses planted throughout, as well as a small artificial lake and fake mountains. Water gushed from the top of the fake mountains, making the whole yard look very elegant.

  Upon entering the courtyard, Gao Zonghui respectfully said: "This is a separate courtyard of our clan's estate. Normally, it is where the elder and master of the clan occasionally reside. The few seniors will be resting here for the next few days. If there's anything that doesn't meet your satisfaction, you can call out at any time."

  "En, the yard is not bad, thank you on my behalf to He Zongzhu, if you're busy then go ahead and attend to your business, we don't need to be polite." Ning Yuan said with a faint smile, surprisingly without any awkwardness or courtesy, with an air of seniority.

  That night, the junior generation took their leave. The yard had everything, if you needed tea or pastries, you could call out to the disciples at the gate. Gao Zonghui responded with a sound and then took his leave after reporting his guilt.

  After Gao Zonghui left, Gu Fenglin looked around the yard and said with a smile: "This yard is quite unique, I thought Di Zong would arrange us in the wing room."

  "What is He Yun Tang doing, putting us on the fire to roast? Such a unique courtyard, the entire sect has only a few, he arranged for us Nine Profound Sect to live in such a place, it's like he's lifting us up first, and when the time comes for the treasure appraisal meeting, if we don't have the corresponding strength, living in such a place will become a joke. As the saying goes, 'high places are hard to defend', some things are not something that anyone can enjoy." said He Zhengxun.

  "Let's just stay here, this secluded house is indeed not bad, quiet and elegant, it's a good place. This also shows our identity as the Ninth Mystic Gate. He Yuntang was just probing us, let's just live here peacefully, no need to think too much, what's meant to come will come." Ning Yuan said with a smile.

  As he spoke, he shouted towards the door and a young servant came in. Ning Yuan smiled and instructed, "Bring some tea over."

  Di Zong's disciple responded with a sound, hastily went to make tea, He Zhengxun smiled and looked at Ning Yuan: "Little Shidi is indeed open-minded, has a very carefree feeling."

  "Being able to let go is also a kind of happiness." Yao Xinyan said with a smile.

  Several people were chatting when a bright and cheerful laughter suddenly came from the entrance of the courtyard: "Hehe, several junior brothers are indeed well-treated, and there is such a place. I've come to bask in its glory, you won't mind, will you?"

  The sound fell, and a nearly seventy-year-old old man walked in with a smile. The old man wore a Tang suit, was slender, very tall, had white hair, but was still spirited.

  Seeing the old man coming in, He Zhengxun and Yao Xinyan hurriedly stood up, and Ningyuan also followed suit, standing up and smiling at the old man: "It's actually Brother Li, it's been years since we last met, and you're looking even more spirited."