At the village entrance, the battle had already broken out. Han Tianrui and the others were fiercely engaged with the cultivators of the Blood Fiend Sect, and the two sides were evenly matched. Although the Blood Fiend Sect cultivators slightly outnumbered them, Han Tianrui, being a Golden Core stage cultivator, single-handedly suppressed two of their experts, temporarily gaining the upper hand.
When Ye Wuji and Elder Xuanyang arrived, the battle was at a stalemate. Elder Xuanyang's expression tightened. With a wave of his left hand, a streak of azure light swept toward the enemy formation like a long dragon.
"Elder Xuanyang?!" A middle-aged man among the Blood Fiend Sect cultivators turned pale with fright and hurriedly recalled his subordinates. "Retreat!"
"Want to leave? Too late!" Elder Xuanyang sneered, forming hand seals with both hands. A huge azure net suddenly appeared in the sky, descending from above. Realizing the situation was dire, the Blood Fiend Sect cultivator took out a blood-red bead and violently hurled it to the ground. With a deafening roar, thick smoke billowed everywhere. When the smoke cleared, the members of the Blood Fiend Sect had vanished without a trace.
"Damn it, we let them escape!" Han Tianrui gritted his teeth and said.
Elder Xuanyang shook his head. "It's fine, they won't dare go far. The fact that they dared to come here so blatantly means they are very confident about this place and must be plotting something."
"Master, look!" Ye Wuji pointed at a small hill near the village, where several figures were rapidly climbing upward.
Elder Xuanyang's gaze was sharp as lightning. "Follow them!"
The group quickly gave chase and soon arrived at the foot of the hill. In the eyes of the Green Mountain Village villagers, this small hill was nothing more than an ordinary mound, usually neglected and ignored. However, Ye Wuji discovered that there seemed to be a concealed cave entrance halfway up the slope, and those Blood Fiend Sect cultivators had just entered from there.
"Watch out for traps," Elder Xuanyang warned, taking the lead to clear the way while the others followed cautiously.
Entering the cave, the interior was unexpectedly spacious, forming a downward passage. Night-pearls were embedded in the walls, illuminating the passageway as bright as day. On both sides of the passage were some peculiar runes, emitting a faint fluctuation of Spiritual Power.
"These runes..." Elder Xuanyang observed carefully. "They are the mountain-guarding grand array of the ancient Taishang Dao! Could this place actually be a branch of the Taishang Dao?"
Ye Wuji was extremely surprised. "Didn't the Taishang Dao vanish long ago?"
Elder Xuanyang shook his head. "Although the Taishang Dao declined, it didn't completely disappear. It is said that before ascending, the Taishang Daoist passed down his orthodoxy to seven disciples, who each established branches of the Taishang Dao. However, as time passed, these branches either declined or merged into other sects, and very few people know that the inheritance of the Taishang Dao still exists."
The group continued forward as the passage grew wider and wider, finally leading to a massive stone chamber. In the center of the stone chamber stood an altar, upon which was enshrined the statue of an old man with white hair, possessing an expression both benevolent and majestic.
"The Taishang Daoist!" Elder Xuanyang exclaimed in shock, then solemnly bowed. Seeing this, the others quickly followed suit.
Ye Wuji looked closely at the statue, feeling an inexplicable sense of familiarity in his heart, as if he had seen it somewhere before. Suddenly, he thought of the mysterious old man who had given him the Hunyuan Formula; their facial features bore a striking resemblance!
"Master, the old man who gave me the Hunyuan Formula looks a bit like this statue," Ye Wuji said softly.
Elder Xuanyang nodded. "He might be a successor of the Taishang Dao, imitating the attire of the Patriarch."
As the group was observing, the sound of fighting suddenly came from the other end of the stone chamber. Elder Xuanyang made a gesture, signaling everyone to advance carefully. Passing through a short corridor, the view suddenly opened up into an even more magnificent grotto.
In the center of the grotto was a deep pool with emerald-green, transparent water, emitting a rich concentration of Spiritual Qi. A fierce battle was taking place by the pool—people from the Blood Fiend Sect were entangled in combat with another group of cultivators dressed in white robes.
"Those are... people from the Heavenly Dao Sect!" Han Tianrui whispered. "Why are they here too?"
Elder Xuanyang's brow furrowed tightly. "It seems all the major factions received the news. The relics of the Taishang Daoist are hidden right here."
At the center of the battle, an elder of the Blood Fiend Sect was confronting a female cultivator from the Heavenly Dao Sect. The female cultivator possessed an exquisite figure and a cold, ethereal appearance, holding a white jade longsword. Her sword light was like snow, and every move was fatal.
"Shen Qianxue..." Han Tianrui said in surprise. "The successor of the Heavenly Dao Sect's 'Frost Flower Faction', I never expected even she would personally show up."
The female cultivator, Shen Qianxue, said coldly, "Xue Wuxin, the relics of the Taishang Daoist are treasures to be shared by the righteous path of the world; how can you allow the Blood Fiend Sect to lay its hands on them?"
Xue Wuxin let out a sinister, cackling laugh. "Immortal Fairy Shen is mistaken. When did the Taishang Daoist ever say that his relics belonged exclusively to the righteous path? The Taishang Dao advocates that Dao Follows Nature, making no distinction between righteousness and evil. Your Heavenly Dao Sect forcibly draws boundaries—that is what truly violates the intentions of the Taishang Daoist!"
Shen Qianxue pointed her sword at Xue Wuxin. "Enough nonsense! Today, I am sworn to bring the Taishang Dao relics back to the Heavenly Dao Sect!"
The two clashed again, their magical power fluctuations sweeping across the surroundings like a tsunami. At that moment, ripples suddenly appeared on the deep pool. A white light rose from the water, transforming into the phantom of a white-haired old man—it was none other than the mysterious person who had given Ye Wuji the Hunyuan Formula!
"Hunyuanzi!" Xue Wuxin and Shen Qianxue exclaimed simultaneously.
The phantom looked around, its gaze lingering on Ye Wuji for a moment. The corners of its mouth curled up slightly, and then it said in a clear voice, "Fellow Daoists, why bicker endlessly? The relics of the Taishang Dao have their own rightful destination; they are not something to be contested by human force."
Xue Wuxin said eagerly, "Senior Hunyuanzi, as long as you hand over the Taishang Danjing and the Hunyuan Pill to our Blood Fiend Sect, we will definitely carry forward and spread the glory of the Taishang Dao!"
Shen Qianxue was not to be outdone either. "Senior, the relics of the Taishang Dao concern the future direction of the Immortal Realm. Please hand them over to our Heavenly Dao Sect for safekeeping, lest they fall into the hands of the demonic path!"
The Hunyuanzi phantom smiled faintly and shook its head. "The Taishang Dao makes no distinction between righteousness and evil; it only speaks of the Dao heart. Today, I have already chosen my successor, and the Taishang Dao relics naturally belong to the one with a predestined affinity."
With that, he pointed a finger toward Ye Wuji. A white light shot out and vanished into the center of Ye Wuji's brow. Ye Wuji instantly felt countless pieces of information flood his mind, concerning the history of the Taishang Dao, cultivation techniques, and... the method for refining the Hunyuan Pill!
"It's him!" Xue Wuxin and Shen Qianxue looked at Ye Wuji at the same time, their eyes filled with shock and greed.
The Hunyuanzi phantom spoke again. "This young friend and I share a predestined affinity, and I have already passed down the core inheritance of the Taishang Dao, the *Taishang Danjing*, to him. As for the Hunyuan Pill..." The phantom sighed. "It was already refined and integrated into my own body long ago to sustain the spiritual veins."
"What?!" Xue Wuxin was furious beyond measure. "You refined the Hunyuan Pill? Then didn't we go through all this painstaking effort to search for it all for nothing?"
The Hunyuanzi phantom smiled indifferently. "Fellow Daoist, do not be anxious. The *Taishang Danjing* contains the method for refining the Hunyuan Pill. As long as you gather all the materials, you can refine it again."
The gazes of Xue Wuxin and Shen Qianxue simultaneously turned toward Ye Wuji, murderous intent blazing in their eyes.
Anticipating this scene, the Hunyuanzi phantom continued, "However, I have already placed a restriction upon this young friend. If he dies, the information of the Danjing will be automatically destroyed. If you want to obtain the Danjing, you must ensure his safety."
These words were like a basin of cold water, extinguishing the two sects' intentions to make a move against Ye Wuji. However, their gazes remained filled with covetous desire, obviously plotting how to obtain the Danjing from him.
The Hunyuanzi phantom turned to Ye Wuji, his tone gentle. "Young friend, the inheritance of the Taishang Dao rests on your shoulders from this day forward. Remember, Dao Follows Nature, unrestrained by convention; the distinction between righteousness and evil exists only in the human heart. You must choose your own path for the future, without being bound by worldly limits."
Flustered and overwhelmed by the unexpected favor, Ye Wuji hurriedly bowed. "Thank you, Senior, for your immense kindness. Wuji will never forget it."
The Hunyuanzi phantom nodded, then looked at Elder Xuanyang. "Fellow Daoist Xuanyang, this young friend shares a master-disciple affinity with you; please look after him well. However..." He paused meaningfully. "Do not bind his Dao heart with the rules and regulations of the Qingyun Sect; that would be a great loss to the Immortal Realm."
Elder Xuanyang bowed solemnly. "Senior, rest assured. I will certainly guide him well and allow him to walk even further on the correct path."
The Hunyuanzi phantom seemed to sense the insistence in Elder Xuanyang's words. He shook his head slightly, but said nothing more. Finally, he looked around with a profound gaze. "Three thousand years ago, the Taishang Daoist prophesied that great changes would occur in the world, that the Heavenly Dao had rotted, and that a new order would be established. The seed of revolution has already been sown; when it sprouts depends entirely on the will of Heaven."
With those words, the phantom gradually dissipated, leaving only a lingering, ethereal voice in the air: "Remember, defying the heavens is the true Great Dao!"
Silence filled the grotto as everyone digested Hunyuanzi's words. A moment later, Xue Wuxin broke the silence first. "Since the Hunyuan Pill is gone, we can only obtain the Danjing from this kid."
Elder Xuanyang immediately stepped in front of Ye Wuji. "Xue Wuxin, if you want to lay a finger on my Qingyun Sect disciple, you'll have to ask my permission first!"
Shen Qianxue also said coldly, "The Blood Fiend Sect can dream on if they think they can touch the *Taishang Danjing*!"
Seeing that the three factions were about to go to war again, Ye Wuji suddenly spoke up. "Wait! Senior seniors, I have just received a vast amount of information and am currently digesting and comprehending it. The *Taishang Danjing* is profound and vast; I'm afraid I won't be able to fully master it for a while. Besides, the materials for refining the Hunyuan Pill are scarce and hard to find; even with the recipe, success is not guaranteed."
Xue Wuxin sneered. "Kid, stop playing dumb here. As long as you hand over the Danjing, my Blood Fiend Sect can spare your life!"
Ye Wuji shook his head. "Senior, you do not know this, but the information Senior Hunyuanzi passed on to me was imprinted deep within my soul through a special method. I cannot directly 'hand it over'; I can only gradually master more content as my understanding of the Danjing deepens."
Shen Qianxue looked thoughtful. "That does fit the inheritance method of the Taishang Dao."