Chapter 392 283: Ablaze and Radiant

For days, Jiang Yi sat still within his Foundation Establishment Realm, deeply contemplating the Fire Virtue until he could make no further progress in its many mysteries.

The brilliant golden Magical Robe billowed slightly, and the tall, straight figure slowly opened his eyes.

'Dao Fruits are intricate and profound. Only those with extraordinary Dao Wisdom should even attempt to touch them…'

Jiang Yi sighed softly. Even with the Celestial Book to resolve his doubts, he still had no definitive answer as to how one was supposed to accumulate achievements for the Celestial Fire.

As he mulled it over, he couldn't help but grow restless.

So, seeking action after a long period of stillness, Jiang Yi rose gracefully and headed for True Master Xuanmiao's Foundation Establishment Realm.

One must understand that a Foundation Establishment Realm is a manifestation of one's Dao Foundation, and each is unique and wondrous in its own way.

Such a critical place could be considered a matter of life and death for a Cultivator, the most private of domains.

If an outsider wished to enter, they would have to entrust their Life Essence and offer their True Spirit as collateral. Otherwise, even with heaven-defying abilities, they would be denied entry.

But Jiang Yi and True Master Xuanmiao had a close relationship; their fortunes were tied together, for better or worse.

Furthermore, True Master Xuanmiao's Foundation Establishment Realm was already attached to the Yang Qi Taiyang Palace, like a vine clinging to a great tree.

Now that Jiang Yi had become the true master of this unique vessel, he could naturally come and go as he pleased, without any of those tedious formalities.

...

...

With a turn of his thoughts, Jiang Yi lifted his head, took a step, and the world changed around him.

The moment he stepped in, his vision brightened.

A landscape of spiritual beauty spread out before him. The mountains were as dark as jade, the clear water was like a mirror, and amidst the swirling clouds and mist, palaces and pavilions could be faintly seen.

Compared to Yu Shenxiu's Yang Qi Taiyin Heaven, it lacked the oppressive might of a blazing Great Sun but possessed a greater sense of vibrant life.

"Xiao Jiang?"

True Master Xuanmiao's plump figure emerged from the clouds, his cat-like eyes narrowed to slits.

"What brings you to my place today?"

"I grew restless from the quiet and came to pay a visit to the Cat Master," Jiang Yi said with a smile, clasping his hands.

"Perfect timing!"

True Master Xuanmiao's spirits lifted, his tail shooting straight up.

"Come with me. I'll show you something interesting!"

Jiang Yi readily agreed and followed the Cat Master through the clouds, looking down in the direction he indicated.

A city stood there imposingly, with high copper walls and a network of intersecting streets, looking just like a mortal kingdom!

But the citizens of this country were not ordinary Mortals, but cats of all shapes and sizes.

An orange cat wore a dragon robe, seated upright and proper on a throne in Jinluan Hall, listening to reports from his ministers.

A tabby cat was dressed as a Chief Constable, carrying an iron ruler and leading a group of cat-constables on patrol through the streets.

There was also a calico cat carrying a peddler's pole, weaving through the alleys crying out its wares of dried fish.

Jiang Yi stared, dumbfounded.

"This is..."

"Interesting, isn't it?"

True Master Xuanmiao looked immensely pleased, his whiskers twitching.

"This is the Cat Country! I've been raising it here for several hundred years!"

Jiang Yi focused his gaze, his eyes like the Sun and Moon Candle, perceiving the finest details.

He saw the Orange Cat Emperor in Jinluan Hall holding a vermilion brush, reviewing memorials. His expression was solemn, giving him the air of an enlightened monarch.

Below the throne, ministers—black cats, white cats, and multicolored cats—were dressed in official robes, arranged in two rows, and were also earnestly discussing matters of state.

"Your Majesty, the granaries are quite full this year. This humble servant requests we open them to provide relief to the poor," a gray cat reported, bowing.

"Approved."

The Orange Cat Emperor nodded faintly.

"Have the Ministry of Revenue organize it. There must be no delay."

Jiang Yi watched, unable to stifle a laugh.

"Cat Master, your Cat Country really does have the look of a proper imperial Court."

"But of course!"

True Master Xuanmiao's tail wagged cheerfully.

"I, this master, modeled it after the old systems of mortal dynasties, establishing laws, an official hierarchy, rites, and music for them—the whole shebang!"

Just as he spoke, a sudden clamor arose from outside the city.

Jiang Yi shifted his gaze and saw a dense, dark mass of rat heads swarming at the base of the city wall.

It was a mob of rats, gathered to rebel!

Their leader was an enormous gray rat, as large as a common cat. It was riding on the back of a lame old cat, waving its front paws and squeaking wildly.

"Brothers! Today we will breach this Cat Capital, overthrow the Orange Thief, and establish our Rat Country!"

"Overthrow the Orange Thief! Establish the Rat Country!"

The horde of rats roared in unison, their cries shaking the heavens.

The cat soldiers on the city wall immediately panicked. A white cat guard-captain started meowing frantically.

"Quick! Report to His Majesty! The rat-folk are rebelling!"

In Jinluan Hall, the Orange Cat Emperor was incensed upon hearing the news. He slammed his paw on the table and shot to his feet.

"How dare those wretched rats! Pass on Our imperial decree! Order the Commander of Nine Gates to lead the troops and quell this rebellion at once!"

"This servant obeys the decree!"

A tabby cat with rippling muscles strode forward. He was clad in Armor, a Treasure Sword hanging at his waist. With an imposing air, he led a squad of cat soldiers charging out of the city.

The two armies formed ranks outside the city, and for a moment, the sky thundered with the sounds of battle.

The Tabby Cat Commander took the lead, charging into the rat formation, pouncing and biting left and right, utterly unstoppable.

But the rats were also extremely cunning. Some burrowed into the ground, others scrambled over walls, tying up the cat soldiers.

"HAHAHA!"

True Master Xuanmiao was overcome with amusement, his whiskers trembling.

"See that? This rat plague acts up every ten years or so. If they don't, the cats get too comfortable and lose their Essence Qi and spirit!"

Jiang Yi smiled.

"So, the Cat Master is nurturing bandits to increase his own importance?"

"What nonsense!"

True Master Xuanmiao rolled his eyes.

"This is called... this is called being prepared for danger in times of peace! Look at that fat orange cat. Usually, he's lazy as can be, but the moment a war starts, don't his spirits just shoot right up?"

Sure enough, the Orange Cat Emperor eventually donned his armor and took to the field, personally beating the war drums to rally his troops.

Seeing His Majesty in person, the cats' morale soared, and they all fought with renewed valor.

Seeing the tide turn against him, the Rat King turned to flee on his lame old cat, but the Tabby Cat Commander pinned him to the ground with a flying pounce, rendering him immobile.

"Spare me, Your Majesty! Spare me!"

The Rat King hastily knelt and begged for mercy.

The Orange Cat Emperor sneered.

"We have not treated you poorly. We allowed you to live and multiply outside the city, yet you dare to rebel? Guards! Drag him away, throw him in the rat prison, and execute him after the autumn!"

The cats all cheered in unison.

"His Majesty is wise and brilliant!"

Jiang Yi couldn't help but be amused. The Cat Country may be small, but it had all the vital parts, and put on such a spectacular show.

"The Cat Master's Foundation Establishment Realm is certainly interesting."

Jiang Yi said with a laugh.

True Master Xuanmiao puffed up with pride, accepting the compliment.

The man and the cat, having watched the battle conclude, took their seats in a cloud pavilion.

Jiang Yi took a sip of tea and began, "Cat Master, there is something I wish to ask you."

"Speak."

"It's about the Fire Virtue..."

True Master Xuanmiao narrowed his eyes, listening intently, his tail swaying gently.

'So, Xiao Jiang wishes to pluck the Celestial Fire…'

"That is no ordinary Fire Virtue Dao Fruit. Like the sun rising in the sky, its light shines upon all. One must have glorious achievements, renowned throughout the world, to have any hope of obtaining it."

"That is precisely what confuses me."

Jiang Yi sighed.

"The mere Li Family, a single Cyan Sheep Mountain... how could that possibly be worthy of the Celestial Fire?"

True Master Xuanmiao pondered for a moment, then suddenly said:

"Xiao Jiang, have you ever heard of the Great Yan Dynasty?"

"The Great Yan Dynasty?"

Jiang Yi shook his head.

"I am poorly-read and have not."

"It's a story from the Middle Antiquity era."

True Master Xuanmiao began to narrate the tale.

"A Daoist of the Southern Observation Eight Sects once undertook a monumental effort to pluck the Celestial Fire."

Jiang Yi's heart stirred, and he sat up straight.

"I would like to hear the details."

"That Daoist was exceptionally talented. Before he was even a hundred years old, he had already entered the Foundation Establishment Realm and had hopes of ascending to True Monarch.

He cultivated the Fire Virtue, and as the Daoist of a major sect, he was naturally unwilling to settle for less, so he set his sights on the Celestial Fire."

True Master Xuanmiao paused, then continued:

"But the Celestial Fire is the foremost among all Fire Virtue Dao Fruits—supremely honored and noble. One's achievements must illuminate the world, like the Great Sun hanging in the sky, so that all living things may bathe in its radiance. Only then can it draw the fruit's attention.

This Daoist thought it over and over and made an astonishing decision: to dissolve his cultivation and reincarnate!"

Hearing this, Jiang Yi was slightly taken aback.

"A revered True Master reincarnating as a common mortal?"

"Correct."

True Master Xuanmiao nodded.

"That Daoist willingly gave up a lifetime's worth of arduous cultivation to be reborn as a mortal. For the first forty years, he was aimless and muddled, stirring up trouble all day long, no different from a common street ruffian."

"Later, he received an awakening that unlocked the wisdom of his past life. He drew his sword, slew a white serpent, and thereby seized his destiny."

Jiang Yi listened intently and asked:

"And then?"

True Master Xuanmiao smiled.

"Then, in the span of ten years, he pacified the world, established the Great Yan Dynasty, and took the title of High Ancestor. On the day of his enthronement, the Great Sun hung high in the sky, casting down ten thousand rays of light, and all the people of the world looked up in reverence."

"At that very moment, the Celestial Fire, sensing his manifest achievements, finally shifted its gaze and merged with him.

That Daoist used the merits of a single lifetime to pluck the Dao Fruit and become a True Monarch!"

"Cat Master."

After hearing the "old story," Jiang Yi spoke slowly:

"If I may be so bold to ask, when this Daoist dissolved his cultivation, reincarnated, and plucked the Dao Fruit... did he truly rely on his own power alone?"

A flash of appreciation appeared in True Master Xuanmiao's eyes.

"Xiao Jiang is indeed clever. How could any great undertaking concerning the 'path of the Dao' be accomplished by a single person?"

"Before the Daoist dissolved his cultivation, he had already arranged numerous backup plans. Within the sect, three True Monarchs secretly divined his destiny for him. Twelve True Masters voluntarily followed him, dissolving their own cultivation to be reborn as mortals, becoming his advisors or generals, and protecting him every step of the way."

Jiang Yi nodded. 'Now that makes sense.'

'An Upper Cultivator from an Ancestral Sect would never fight a battle unprepared.'

He lowered his gaze in contemplation. A ready-made example was laid out right before him.

'To pluck the Celestial Fire, one must be cloaked in ten thousand fathoms of light, standing at the very apex of the world.'

'Only then is there a sliver of a chance to be noticed!'

...

...

「Back in his own Foundation Establishment Realm」

Jiang Yi sat cross-legged.

His eyes half-closed, he began to use I beg the Celestial Book to ask in detail about the old history of the Great Yan Dynasty.

One by one, he cross-referenced and repeatedly verified every detail.

An unknown amount of time passed before Jiang Yi's eyes shone with a bright light, having finally digested the vast and complex information.

'I see... The 'burn' of the Fire Virtue is its superficial aspect. Its true, fundamental mystery is actually to 'shine'.'

'The more brilliantly it shines, the greater its power. Lower Cultivators who fail to grasp its true meaning mistake it for a mere tool of slaughter...'

A thousand thoughts swirled in Jiang Yi's mind, and just as he was sorting through them...

The Copper Lamp hanging in his Foundation Establishment Realm began to shake violently.

The mysteries of Illuminating the Dark and the Light were in turmoil!

'Huh? Did something happen to the Li Family?'

Jiang Yi's heart tightened. He released his Divine Sense, and in an instant, all of Cyan Sheep Mountain was within his view.

He saw that within the Li Family ancestral home, lanterns and colorful banners were hung. The air was festive, and all the clan members were gathered together, celebrating something.

Li Conglong was dressed in a brocade robe, holding a swaddled infant in his arms. His face was wreathed in smiles, smoothing out even his wrinkles.

"Congratulations, Family Head! A joyous occasion, Family Head! You've been blessed with a fine son!"