A Pawn's Passage

After Madam Qi told Qi Xuansu the location of the Qingping Society’s contact point in Xiping Prefecture, she ended their communication through the mother-child talisman.

Qi Xuansu opened his hand and let the ashes of the mother-child talisman disperse in the wind. Then he turned around and headed in the direction of Xiping Prefecture. By the time he arrived, it was already late at night.

Xiping Prefecture was not as safe as Jade Capital or Shangqing Prefecture because it was close to the Western Region, where the war was still ongoing. Thus, the city gates closed early, and there was no side gate for people to go through. The only way to enter the city at this hour was to climb over the city walls.

Qi Xuansu walked around the perimeter of the city to find a more secluded place and slowly climbed up the wall, like a gecko. After reaching the top of the city wall, he went around the barbican and climbed down the other side.

Fortunately, Xiping Prefecture was not in the war zone. Otherwise, the city’s defense would have been tighter, and the guards would have noticed Qi Xuansu.

After Qi Xuansu entered the city, he did not dare to walk on the streets because he wanted to avoid the patrolling Black Robes. He walked through the various alleyways and went to the location Madam Qi mentioned. Finally, he reached the remote alley.

Qingping Society’s contact points were all similar, with no obvious differences. They were usually hidden in towns and cities but situated in the more remote areas.

The alley was dark. Qi Xuansu walked quickly to a small door at the end of the alley and knocked on it with a specific pattern. He gently knocked three times, paused for three breaths, and pounded four times.

After a while, a voice came from inside. “Don’t worry, as peace reigns in all directions.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the door opened from the inside. The doorman quickly shut the door as soon as Qi Xuansu entered. It was just as dark inside because there were no lanterns.

The doorman led Qi Xuansu down a winding path behind the door to meet the owner of the place.

The owner of this house was a middle-aged woman. After Qi Xuansu showed her the fish talisman, she handed over the package that Madam Qi had sent him and arranged a room for him.

Qi Xuansu went to his room and opened Madam Qi’s package. It was a wooden box with three layers. The first layer contained the mother-child talisman, while the second and third layers contained some pills.

After he became an official member of the Qingping Society in September, he was entitled to one set of mother-child talisman, ten Wuyou coins, a Blood Dragon Pill, and a Purple Pill every month.

It had been four months since September, so he had four sets of mother-child talismans, four Blood Dragon Pills, and four Purple Pills. The Blood Dragon Pill was good for strengthening the blood and body, and the Purple Pill could improve qi training, so they were suitable for Qi Xuansu. Madam Qi gave Qi Xuansu two mother talismans to contact her and two child talismans for her to contact him.

Qi Xuansu kept the mother-child talismans, took out a Blood Dragon Pill and a Purple Pill, and swallowed them. Then he began to refine the pills’ medicinal effects. After having the experience of refining the medicinal wine last time, Qi Xuansu knew how to properly refine elixirs and pills. By the time Qi Xuansu woke up from his trance, 24 hours had passed.

He only felt that his cultivation had improved significantly.

Among the five major Daoist lineages, Banished Immortals were undoubtedly the best. In the past, Qi Refiners were regarded as the inferior substitutes for the Banished Immortals.

It wasn’t until the emergence of Rogue Cultivators that this theory was broken. The original intention of the Daoist Order was to mass produce Banished Immortals, and Rogue Cultivators was a byproduct of the failed experiment. As a result, Rogue Cultivators were not as good as Banished Immortals and Qi Refiners. Before the Heavenly-Being stage, the cultivation methods of Banished Immortals, Qi Refiners, and Rogue Cultivators were similar, focusing on qi training in the Dantian.

That was why Qi Refiners were regarded as the better substitutes for Banished Immortals, and Rogue Cultivators were regarded as the lesser substitutes for the Banished Immortals.

As Xiantian Beings, Rogue Cultivators would go through three realms according to the three stages. The Inner Dan Realm in the Kunlun stage focused on the lower Dantian; the Yuding Realm in the Yuxu stage focused on the middle Dantian; and the Holy Embryo Realm in the Guizhen stage focused on the upper Dantian.

These three realms corresponded to the Qi Refiner’s Qi Refinement Realm, Qi Transformation Realm, and the Divine Qi Realm, respectively.

The Rogue Cultivator’s Yuding Realm, the Qi Refiner’s Qi Transformation Realm, and the Banished Immortal’s Purple Qi Realm were all preparations for the final opening of the upper Dantian.

In the human body, the section of the spine from the tailbone to the second lumbar vertebrae was the coldest, also known as the Snow Mountain Area. The effort required for the qi to cross this area was minimal. Thus, Daoists named this phenomenon the Goat Cart.

Behind the Snow Mountain Area was the spine, consisting of 24 segments corresponding to the 24 solar terms. The head and tail of the spine were called the Dragon and the Tiger respectively. This Dragon and Tiger Pass was the longest section and required the most effort for the qi to cross, so Daoists called it the Deer Cart.

After the Dragon and Tiger Pass, the qi would reach the Fengchi acupoint at the back of the head, also called the Yuding Pass. It had the smallest orifice, which was difficult for qi to pass through. Thus, the most precise amount of force must be used. Daoists called it the Ox Cart.

In other words, the final step of the Rogue Cultivator’s Yuding Realm was for the qi to pass through the 24 segments of the spine to the Yuding Pass. After breaking through the Yuding Pass, the qi would enter the upper Dantian, and the Rogue Cultivator would advance to the Holy Embryo Realm. This realm corresponded to the Qi Refiner’s Divine Qi Realm and the Banished Immortal’s Nascent Soul Realm.

The Holy Embryo Realm, Divine Qi Realm, and Nascent Soul Realm focused on cultivating the upper Dantian rather than opening it.

The Diviners at the Kunlun stage had already reached this point, but the price was having weak bodies due to underdeveloped lower and middle Dantians. They did not have innate qi and relied too much on their Thoughts in ​​​​the upper Dantian. That was why Martial Arts Practitioners had an advantage over Diviners.

At the moment, Qi Xuansu had broken through to the 18th segment of the spine, so he still had six vertebrae and a Yuding Pass before he could advance to the Holy Embryo Realm, which was the Guizhen stage. He estimated that he would be able to reach the 22nd segment out of the total 24 segments after taking all these pills.

Qi Xuansu rested in Xiping Prefecture for a few more days and waited for the heat of the Eagle and Dog Slaughtering Assembly to pass before he left the contact point. He did not loiter around and quietly left the city, heading toward the desert that Madam Qi mentioned.

This time, Qi Xuansu took out the Jiamas[1] that Zhang Yuelu gave to him and tied them to his legs. He could travel faster with these than on horseback, up to a few hundred kilometers a day. Thus, it only took him about one day to arrive at the outskirts of the Great Gobi Desert.

This place was located to the west of Cuowenbu, also known as the West Gobi. Qi Xuansu took off his Jiamas and walked normally. After about five kilometers, a projectile hit Qi Xuansu right between the eyebrows without him realizing it beforehand.

It was a good shot, but it was a pity that the projectile was the most common kind. It definitely could not compare to the Dragon Eye Bullets produced by Tianji Hall or even the most basic armor-piercing bullets. They were just ordinary projectiles.

Thus, the projectile hit Qi Xuansu between his eyebrows and ricocheted instead of doing any damage.

Qi Xuansu was neither surprised nor angry. He calmly looked in the direction of the projectile and saw a man holding a long gun behind some broken rocks. The man’s clothes were made of pieces of rags spliced ​​together. His skin was dark due to the sun, and the long gun in his hand was old.

It seemed to have a flintlock mechanism, not the firing pin mechanism commonly used at the moment. The gun was missing many parts as well. However, it had been polished until it shone brightly, indicating that the owner took great care of it.

Judging from the man’s firing posture, he must have received proper training. He was not an ordinary civilian who accidentally picked up a gun.

Qi Xuansu asked, “Why aren’t you reloading your gun? Are you just going to wait for your death?”

The man was silent for a moment before he replied with a strong accent, “It’s useless. I know I can’t kill you.”

Qi Xuansu smiled. “I have no ill intentions. I’m here to look for someone. If you can be my guide, I’ll give you a satisfactory reward.”

Qi Xuansu walked toward the man while talking. The man looked hesitant, but he stood his ground. At the same time, the man held the long gun with one hand to show that he was not hostile.

When they were less than ten meters apart, the man suddenly pulled out a pistol without warning and fired it at Qi Xuansu’s heart.

This was the Bird Pistol of the Divine Armory. Although it was not as powerful as the Divine Dragon Pistol, it should not be underestimated at close range. Moreover, the pistol was also loaded with special armor-piercing projectiles.

This shot broke through Qi Xuansu’s qi shield. Although Qi Xuansu had already dodged, he was still shot in the chest, leaving a bloody hole in his sternum.

Qi Xuansu was angered and leaped forward, swinging his arm horizontally in a Martial Arts Practitioner’s style. The strike sounded like firecrackers as it landed hard on the man’s chest.

The man was sent flying, crashing into a huge rock. His body stuck to the rock before it slowly slid down. His entire chest had sunken, and he looked dead.

Soon after, the projectile, which was lodged in Qi Xuansu’s chest, was spat out by his regenerating muscles and fell to the ground. His chest wound healed quickly, thanks to his self-healing abilities.

1. Talismans that could boost one’s speed of walking. ☜

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