Chapter 42: Fourfold Divine Water

In the blink of an eye, a day had passed.

Ji Ning was temporarily residing in a side hall of a cave dwelling. He sat there, gazing through the railing at the vast and beautiful Three Leaf Realm.

With a soft sound, Ji Ning extended a finger. At its tip, strands of deep yellow lightning danced and flickered, seemingly beautiful yet terrifyingly powerful.

Ji Ning extended a second finger, and immediately a trickle of water flowed from the fingertip, swirling around it. The water glowed with a green light, crystalline and beautiful, but its threat surpassed even the lightning. A powerful First Step Dao Lord, touched by this water, would instantly freeze into an ice sculpture, their true spirit shattered into pieces.

This was the Fourfold Divine Water Ji Ning had refined.

"Lightning is violent; controlling it is indeed harder than controlling divine water," Ji Ning nodded lightly. "Triple Divine Thunder is already my limit for now. Cultivating the Fourfold Divine Thunder is far too difficult."

Firstfold Divine Thunder, Secondfold Divine Thunder... up to Ninefold Divine Thunder.

The difficulty of cultivation soared continuously. According to Lord Wan Shen, a First Step Dao Lord could barely hope to master Thirdfold Divine Thunder, a Second Step Dao Lord could barely hope to master Fifthfold Divine Thunder, a Third Step Dao Lord could hope to master Seventhfold Divine Thunder, and only a Fourth Step Dao Lord could hope to master Ninefold Divine Thunder. Ji Ning was only at the World level, but with the aid of the 'Blueflower Mist Force' and the 'Dan Leaf Seven Chapters,' he had managed to master Thirdfold Divine Thunder.

"Now, my strongest killing move is the 'Yin-Yang Sword Intent Domain,'" Ji Ning chuckled wryly. It was originally a defensive technique, but because of the divine thunder and divine water, it had become his strongest attack!

"Oh, right."

Ji Ning waved his hand.

A figure appeared beside him—Danbao, the World God, looking bewildered. He wore a loose, fiery red robe, with rosy lips and white teeth, but the grease stains at the corner of his mouth ruined the image.

"Master," Danbao said, seeing Ji Ning and finally smiling. "I was wondering why I was suddenly brought here while eating so well."

"You were enjoying your meal, but I was worried and scared for a long time," Ji Ning said with a smile. When Lord Dan had first taken him away, Ji Ning had indeed been uneasy, but fortunately, it turned out well.

"What's wrong?" Danbao asked, puzzled, looking around. "Where is this? And where's Youji? Don't you have other companions, Master? Why are you sitting here alone? Hey, there seem to be some servants over there."

Ji Ning shook his head. "You talk too much. Shut your mouth first."

Danbao quickly closed his mouth.

"I called you out to give you an opportunity," Ji Ning said.

"An opportunity?" Danbao was confused.

"Yes, don't resist," Ji Ning said, extending a finger and pressing it directly onto Danbao's forehead.

Ji Ning transmitted the first chapter of the 'Dan Leaf Seven Chapters' to Danbao. According to Lord Dan's instructions, Ji Ning could only pass on the first three chapters at most. If Danbao could master the first three chapters in a relatively short time, Ji Ning could send him before Lord Dan, and perhaps Danbao too would receive a great opportunity.

After all, once he returned, it would be difficult to come back to this universe.

A long while later—

"Wow, this, this, this... incredible, incredible. This is real alchemy. How amazing. Was what I learned before even alchemy?" Danbao exclaimed.

Ji Ning smiled at the sight.

"So magical. Alchemy can be done like this. I see a whole new path of alchemy," Danbao said excitedly, looking at Ji Ning with fervent eyes. "Master, what you taught me seems incomplete?"

"This is only the first chapter," Ji Ning said.

"What about the rest?" Danbao was thrilled.

His greatest skill was alchemy, and obtaining the first chapter of the supreme alchemical scripture 'Dan Leaf Seven Chapters' had already filled him with excitement.

"A second chapter? Are there third and fourth chapters?" Danbao's face flushed with excitement. "Who created this alchemical method? The master I apprenticed to was a Dao Lord skilled in alchemy, quite famous. But compared to what you've taught me... it's worlds apart. I must become a disciple, I must become a disciple of this great being."

Ji Ning shook his head. "If you want to become a disciple, that great being may not be willing to accept you. First, settle down and learn what I've passed on to you. Perhaps there will be a chance in the future."

"Alright, alright," Danbao nodded repeatedly.

"Master." Danbao suddenly knelt, about to kowtow.

Ji Ning was startled and quickly stood up to pull him. "Danbao, what are you doing?"

"Master, you may not fully understand what this alchemical method means, but to me, it is a path to the supreme. This is true 'Dan Dao.' With it, I have hope of becoming a Dao Lord, and even going further." Danbao said gratefully, "The grace of imparting the Dao—I, Danbao, have no way to repay it..."

Ji Ning nodded. "Then study it well."

This path of alchemy led all the way to Eternal Emperor. Lord Dan had become an Eternal Emperor through this very path.

...

Seeing hope of becoming a Dao Lord, Danbao threw himself into fervent study. Ji Ning only learned the alchemical techniques, but Danbao delved into it completely, even trying to practice alchemy. Danbao had great talent in alchemy, but had lacked proper guidance. His previous master was decent, but far inferior to Lord Wan Shen, let alone Lord Dan.

With the opportunity at hand, Danbao had a chance to soar.

Ji Ning knew well that his foundation was ultimately the Sword Dao. As for the 'Dan Leaf Seven Chapters,' he mainly studied the alchemical techniques. Danbao was his follower, and becoming a great alchemy master would greatly aid him.

...

After imparting the Dao to Danbao, Ji Ning left the cave dwelling the next day, transforming into a streak of light and flying away.

"I am Beiming. Greetings, fellow Daoist."

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Beiming."

Along the way, Ji Ning saw many World-level cultivators and even occasionally some Dao Lords.

The Three Leaf Realm was a vast world, like Mangya Country, with countless living beings and cultivators.

"Emperor Qihuo?" Ji Ning spent over three hours flying through the void, finally reaching the residence of Emperor Qihuo.

"This is the Emperor's cave dwelling. No trespassing."

Two child attendants stood at the entrance. Seeing Ji Ning fly over, they immediately shouted.

"I have heard that the Emperor is skilled in artifact forging, so I came to pay my respects. I wonder if I might have the honor of a visit?" Ji Ning said.

"Want to buy treasures?" One of the attendants pointed to a nearby spot. "Enter through the side gate. Someone will receive you. Don't you even know which door to enter when buying treasures? This is the main gate of the cave dwelling. Those who come to seek an audience with our Emperor wait here for us to announce them."

"I was too rash," Ji Ning said, not taking offense, and flew off to the side.

The two attendants stood at the gate, quite smug.

Their master was the foremost artifact-forging Emperor in this universe. Many sought his audience—Dao Lords, and even Eternal Emperors came to request meetings, requiring their announcement. Naturally, they were proud and looked down on a mere World-level cultivator.

"Good heavens, so many treasures displayed even at the entrance..." Ji Ning flew toward the side gate, startled as he approached.

Though it was a side gate, it was dozens of zhang wide.

A servant stood before the side gate, and above it floated three treasures: a bead glowing with firelight, exuding a surging power; a white flower emitting a white light that brought peace and tranquility; and a scroll painting depicting a landscape world.

"Fellow Daoist, are you here to buy treasures?" A female attendant at the gate, radiating the aura of a Dao Lord—likely a First Step Dao Lord—said with a smile.

"Yes," Ji Ning nodded.

"Please enter, Fellow Daoist. You may purchase any treasure you fancy," the female attendant said, not slighting Ji Ning despite his World-level cultivation. The treasures here were specially sold to outsiders, casually crafted by Emperor Qihuo during practice. Even these casual creations were enough to make Dao Lords fight over them.

Ji Ning stepped inside.

Outside the threshold, nothing seemed unusual, but once he crossed it, he entered a vast void world filled with countless brilliant stars.

Cultivators walked through this void, and servants received them. They strolled through the void, pointing at various stars, each star being a treasure.

"This treasure, three million cubes? Too expensive. Can you lower the price?"

"I'll take this one!"

The Dao Lords here all maintained a humble demeanor. At Emperor Qihuo's place, no treasure cost less than a million cubes, yet countless cultivators were obsessed with them. As for World-level cultivators, they mostly just looked without buying, considering it an eye-opening experience.

When Ji Ning entered the void, the servants glanced at him, maintaining a polite exterior but thinking to themselves, "Another World-level cultivator, just looking and not buying."

...