Chapter 442 - 240: The Five Qi Gang Dou Treatise, Part 2

Chapter 442: Chapter 240: The Five Qi Gang Dou Treatise, Part 2

"What...?" The Mixed Element Child also grew troubled. "Theoretically, I should be able to sense the Sect Leader’s Seal if we get close to it. But finding it in such a vast place is undoubtedly like looking for a needle in a haystack..."

Besides, if the flow of time was chaotic throughout the Dojo, he feared they couldn’t just go wherever they pleased.

Hearing this, Xuzhuang frowned deeply and said, "In that case, I can only do my best."

Even now, he still felt a sense of disconnect with this place, as if separated by a veil. He didn’t know why, but he had a faint feeling that with a single thought, he could be "rejected" by the Five Directions Five Elements Dojo and cast out.

If the task truly proved impossible, he wouldn’t hesitate to withdraw when the time came.

The Mixed Element Child sighed and replied, "I suppose that’s all we can do." The search for the Five Directions Five Elements Dojo had been a sudden whim in the first place. Although they had entered the Dojo much more smoothly than expected, no one could be blamed if this search for a needle in a haystack failed.

Xuzhuang nodded slightly. Still, he had been entrusted with a task and had to see it through. He ought to give it his all before running out of options. Besides, the opportunity for his own Primordial Spirit had yet to materialize.

Having made his decision, Xuzhuang didn’t linger. He was about to head toward the Main Trunk of the Immortal Vine, but just as he set foot on the stone steps, his expression suddenly shifted.

At that moment, the sense of disconnect remained, but the feeling that he could leave at any time had suddenly vanished.

The Mixed Element Child and the Taiyi Rainbow Sword sensed something was wrong and were about to ask, but Xuzhuang suddenly took a step back. His expression immediately eased a little. Back on this "Leaf Island," the feeling returned. It was as if this place was the anchor point, the very gateway for his escape.

This situation wasn’t the worst-case scenario. However, not being able to withdraw at will meant that Xuzhuang would undoubtedly have to be even more cautious while exploring the Five Directions Five Elements Dojo.

Xuzhuang said, "Mixed Element Child, I might have to trouble you to guard me at all times."

"Alright." The Mixed Element Child knew the urgency of the matter and agreed without hesitation, unfurling the Primordial Treasure Lotus Parasol to shield Xuzhuang.

Only then did Xuzhuang wave his sleeve and descend at a faster pace. As he moved, the Mixed Element Child added, "The fluctuations in the flow of time are intensifying..."

Xuzhuang nodded grimly and, instead of slowing, sped up a little more. He quickly covered half of the long, winding stone staircase when the Mixed Element Child suddenly grew excited and called out, "Wait, wait."

Before Xuzhuang could ask, the Primordial Treasure Lotus Parasol suddenly lifted one of its hanging streams of Treasure Qi and pointed into the distance. "Do you see that over there?" the Child cried.

Xuzhuang looked up. Through a gap in the clouds and mist, he could just make out a section of the Main Trunk of the Immortal Vine, where he could faintly discern a Five-Color Platform.

The Mixed Element Child said, "If the Dharma Origin Sect’s records are correct, that must be the middle section of the Immortal Vine. It’s where the Primordial Extreme Immortal Venerable held his sermons and the most common gathering place for the countless Cultivators of the Five Directions Five Elements Dojo."

"Oh?" Xuzhuang mused. "In that case, if there’s any place we’re likely to find a clue, it would be there."

"Exactly," the Mixed Element Child said with certainty.

"Then let’s head there." Xuzhuang studied it for a few moments, confirming that climbing up the Main Trunk of the Immortal Vine was the correct path. His spirits lifted, and he hurried down the remaining steps.

Just as he stepped onto the Main Trunk of the Immortal Vine, the Mixed Element Child suddenly said in a low voice, "Xuzhuang!"

Xuzhuang glanced upward. The stone steps on the main trunk stretched even longer, and the Five-Color Platform was now hidden within the clouds. Not wanting to delay, he kept moving upward and simply replied in his mind, ’Speak freely, Child.’

The Mixed Element Child said gravely, "If we use the moment we entered the Dojo as an anchor, our journey just now may have cost us an entire year of outside time."

Xuzhuang’s heart sank. He knew it wasn’t his lifespan that had been consumed, but that for what felt like half a day here, a year might have passed in the outside world. And that was assuming the temporal distortion rate hadn’t changed since they first entered.

After all, when they entered the Five Directions Five Elements Dojo, Xuzhuang, the Mixed Element Child, and Hong’Er had all found their senses inexplicably blurred. This was precisely the outcome Xuzhuang had most wanted to avoid.

"All the more reason not to delay." He glanced upward again, and with a single step, he seemed to cross thousands of feet, using an Earth Escape Skill that made great distances feel short. At the same time, he said in a low voice, "Please keep watch for me, Child. I don’t want to be disconnected from the outside world for too long."

The Mixed Element Child asked, "Do you have a time limit in mind?"

Without much hesitation, Xuzhuang replied, "One hundred years!"

...

Xuzhuang seemed to recall hearing someone once say that the flow of time was like a great river, always rushing forward. Whether a raging torrent or a gentle stream, it would never turn back.

A hundred years to arrive, then another hundred to leave. And that didn’t even account for how long it would take to pursue any leads he might find.

The Mixed Element Child knew Xuzhuang was already giving his all. It said nothing more, focusing all its energy on sensing the changes in time. Fortunately, as they traveled, the situation seemed less severe than they had imagined.

Based on the time of their entry, they had lost at most an extra twenty or thirty years. However, amidst these violent fluctuations, Xuzhuang seemed to develop a faint, indescribable sense of discomfort, which instilled in him a growing sense of urgency.

Fortunately, after cautiously and slowly traversing a long section of stone steps so shrouded in mist that he could hardly see, the view suddenly opened up before him, and the Five-Color Platform came into sight.

The entire platform was constructed from Five-Colored Jade, which seemed to shimmer with the flowing light of a sunset. Every few steps, Daoist Talisman Characters were inscribed upon its surface, hinting at other marvels.

Stepping onto it, Xuzhuang was surprised to find this Jade Platform was only about a thousand zhang across. For a place where an Immortal Venerable gave sermons to countless Cultivators, it seemed far too small.

But it was reasonable to assume the Jade Platform could change its size at will, or perhaps it even contained a Grotto Heaven within. Xuzhuang didn’t dwell on it. What disappointed him more was the complete absence of the scattered bones he had half-expected to find.

The five directions of the Jade Platform seemed to correspond to the Five Elements, but from Metal to Earth, every side was clean and solemn, as if nothing had ever happened here.

In the center of the Jade Platform, there was no Magic Altar left from the Immortal Venerable’s sermons. Instead, a jade pillar stood there, its surface densely covered with what appeared to be talismans, carved in characters as small as a fly’s head.

As if sensing Xuzhuang’s confusion, the Mixed Element Child thought for a moment before suddenly exclaiming, "I know what this is."

"Legend says that before each sermon, the Immortal Venerable would have his disciples erect a pillar on the Five-Color Platform and inscribe the topic he was about to lecture on."

"This way, the people in the Dojo could decide for themselves whether to attend. Those who were interested could study and contemplate the topic in advance, then compare their understanding when the Immortal Venerable began his lecture. This allowed them to benefit even more."

"I’ve heard that many Cultivators who came from the Five Directions Five Elements Dojo adopted this practice for their own sermons. My Dharma Origin Sect, on the other hand, doesn’t have this custom, so I didn’t recognize it at first."

"Oh?" Hearing this, Xuzhuang’s interest was piqued. He strode to the center of the Jade Platform and looked up at the pillar, a flicker of surprise on his face.

Written language exists to record and express. For someone like Xuzhuang, it wasn’t difficult to infer the meaning of even unfamiliar scripts, let alone these, which were orthodox Daoist Talismans.

Using Daoist Talismans to expound on profound principles made them easier to understand the more advanced a Cultivator’s own Daoist arts were. Xuzhuang had only scanned a small portion of the text but already felt a glimmer of insight.

"The Chapter of Five Qi Astral Combat."

It seemed to be a Chapter from the *Immortal Talisman of the Five Elements Primordial Extreme True Union*. It detailed a profound transformation of Five Elements Magical Power: by condensing it into talismans, one could imbue them with Divine Techniques.

It sounded simple, but the principles were exceptionally profound. Using this method to merely refine Daoist Talismans would be a gross underutilization of its power. One could even bestow these talismans upon others, allowing them to wield the Daoist arts contained within. The ability to transform the five elemental Yuan Qi into Warriors was just a minor application mentioned in passing within this single Chapter.

"So this is the Daoist art the Immortal Venerable preached?" Xuzhuang praised in awe. "It’s truly beyond imagination."

But no sooner had the words left his mouth than Xuzhuang froze, a chill running down his spine.

A voice suddenly spoke from behind him. "Is that so?"