Longevity Heavenly Dynasty, above the clouds.
A meteor-like golden light was moving forward; though it seemed slow, it was actually fast, crossing a thousand miles in the blink of an eye. This apparent "slow motion" was to accommodate the group of people within its circle, especially the figure seated cross-legged at the center. It was a young Daoist, who, at the moment, was closing his eyes in deep concentration, seemingly in a state of cultivation.
However, it was not so. Tao Qian was indeed meditating, but he was not advancing in his cultivation.
It wasn't that he didn't want to, but rather that he couldn't.
Before encountering the third calamity, Tao Qian had already reached the Perfection of the Qi Refining Realm, his body had cultivated the Nine Extremes Immortal Spirit Qi, he possessed an Innate Dao Seed, and had obtained the Taishang Treasure No-leak Body.
As for the Cultivation Realm and Divine Power Talent, there was temporarily no possibility of advancement.
If it hadn't been for the limiting factors, Tao Qian might have already advanced three levels by now after surviving the three calamities and being refined by the Human Dao Destiny.
Unfortunately, beyond the Qi Refining Realm was the crucial Foundation Establishment Realm for cultivators.
To establish foundation!
Yet, one must be in the Spirit Treasure Mountain Gate.
The mysterious master, whom he hadn't yet met, had sent the Three Great Immortal Treasures to guide him here, clearly considering this.
Had Tao Qian continued towards the mountain gate in his current state, he might have faced many adversities along the way.
Currently, the Immortal Spirit Qi in Tao Qian's body was surging, and his Dao Seed seemed eager to challenge the gates of the Great Dao... forcing Tao Qian to occasionally use the "Spirit Treasure Nourishing Spirit Technique" to calm the internal movements, a technique brought by a girl named Zhong Doudou, originating from his prophetic future master.
After dozens of breaths, Tao Qian revived himself.
Upon opening his eyes, he saw a delicately beautiful face approaching close.
It was Zhong Doudou herself. Although their acquaintance was brief, this girl was natural and forward, considering herself Tao Qian's maid, and she was utterly open about her origins and her true nature in front of him.
The girl's original species was not of the Human Clan but belonged to a special life form called the "Crystal Clan."
Each individual within the clan possessed innate divine powers.
And her branch of the Crystal Clan relied entirely on Tao Qian's mysterious master.
Zhong Doudou claimed she was the best at fighting, the most beautiful, and the cleverest... Tao Qian found all three questionable, for now.
But she was truly naive and carefree.
In such a short time, this young girl had already fully bonded with Shan Jiu, Little Age, and Lian Jing'er.
However, they had occasional small conflicts.
At this moment, seeing Tao Qian awaken, Zhong Doudou immediately threw herself into her young master's arms.
While her young master wasn't paying attention, she would sneak in a few draws of Qi, and pointing at the innocent-looking, green-haired Shan Jiu not far away, she immediately complained:
"Young Master, you must uphold justice! I said I wanted to be the big sister, but this green head insists he is older than me. How can I bear this?"
"I think this green head has malicious intentions, trying to take my place as Zhong Doudou. This won't do. I can let other things slide, but when it comes to being in Young Master's arms, I, Zhong Doudou, must be first. He doesn't even deserve to be second. Who ever heard of a wild leek demon in a young master's arms?"
"If the young master wants to look better, I, Dou Dou, can rent the second and third positions to Aunt Yunhua's small marten or Aunt Fox's little fox. They are both extremely beautiful and will surely make you the most prestigious among your peers."
"This Wild Leek Demon is shameless, claiming an immediate connection and similar fortune with the young master, wanting to follow and cultivate. Humph, I think he's just coveting the young master's body."
As she spoke, the girl firmly believed in what she said, her face full of conviction.
Seeing this left Tao Qian speechless. Well, it seems he, Master Tao, is being treated like a heavenly treasure, and beyond fighting for a higher seating, she even plans to start trading like a middleman?
Tao Qian wanted to flick her forehead but then remembered the pitiful swelling at his fingertip from last time.
Zhong Doudou's may or may not have lied about other things, but the hardness of her body was indeed real.
In her own words: "I, Zhong Doudou, am unafraid of fire or water, immune to swords and blades, have a treasure body without faults, and a clear divine soul, perfect for handling."
Just as Tao Qian was mediating the conflicts among the children, causing his head to ache slightly,
suddenly, the space beside him cracked open, revealing the Spirit Treasure Rejuvenation Mirror leaping out.
The surface of the mirror flashed with brilliance, then spat out a mottled and dim relic.
Needless to say, it was the Buddha Bird Relic from Bai Qin, cleansed by Human Dao Destiny after Tao Qian survived the intense third calamity, now devoid of any demon thoughts.
Each of the one hundred Dharma-protecting Buddha Bird Vajras contained inside possessed extremely terrifying combat power. With enough mana, using this relic could grant one fearsome battle capabilities.
Yet combat was just one of the many modest functions of the relic.
Its true great use was far more astonishing than mere combat.
As the mottled relic returned to Tao Qian's hand, a voice emerged from the mirror, deep and magnetic, sounding like a middle-aged man,
"Little Peach has indeed faced extraordinary fortune in surviving the Three Calamities."
"I have sealed this Buddha Bird Relic for you, so you needn't worry about it escaping as before, when the bald monks from the Great Freedom Temple used Bai Qin's reincarnation body's convenience, covertly applying Buddhist law."
"In fact, that was the only instance. That so-called reincarnation body of Bai Qin, afflicted with Karmic Fire, forcibly used a slight, almost non-existent causality link to remotely activate the relic. In that instant, he was directly killed, and the subsequent interference was just other monks from the Great Freedom Temple messing around."