<b>Chapter 1242: Zhang Baitu's Dao Enlightenment</b>
The human cultivator fled right away after being scolded by the old man. Throughout history, no one dared to offend Rainbow City. Rumor has it that even a contemporary sea god wouldn't test them.
Li Qiye smiled and handed the refined jades over.
The old man immediately beamed happily after getting the refined jades and said: “I wish you two luck in comprehending the supreme grand dao to reach the peak of this world.”
Li Qiye grinned and looked at the old man and leisurely spoke: “You said earlier that there are draconic bones and runes in the valley. If I carelessly dig them up, do they all belong to me then?”
“Well.” The old man's expression changed after hearing this but he still revealed a smile in the end: “Well, yes, of course.”
Li Qiye saw his expression and started to laugh before patting his shoulder and said: “I'm just joking. I'll only take him to listen to the sounds here for dao enlightenment.” With that, he brought Zhang Baitu into the valley.
The old man's smile froze as his body became stiff. He watched Li Qiye and Zhang Baitu disappear into the valley.
“I have to go too.” Eventually, someone from the line spoke up, waking the old man up from his stupor. Just thinking about Li Qiye's grin left the old man frightened with chills running down his spine.
“Rascal, don't play with me.” Eventually, the old man murmured in a low voice that only he could hear.
This was Zhang Baitu's first time coming to Dragonhark. Even though he knew about it beforehand, he didn't have enough money for the entry fee.
He curiously asked: “Does this place really have those mythical items?” In his eyes, Li Qiye was an expert at everything.
“You shouldn't think about these things.” Li Qiye beamingly smiled in response: “Finding them is nice, but it's fine to be without them as well. They are not meant for you.”
Zhang Baitu quietly nodded. He naturally didn't have unrealistic expectations. In his eyes, being able to comprehend the Zhang merit laws was more than enough. As for the bones and runes, they were supreme items that he didn't dare to think about.
There were beautiful sceneries everywhere in this big valley with majestic cliffs, elegant springs, and a pleasant melody from the rustling leaves.
They saw cultivators in many places. Some were sitting on top of cliffs while huffing and puffing the energy of the clouds. Others were meditating below waterfalls to quietly listen to the sound of the water. There were also those sitting in the pine forest in order to comprehend the grand dao.
Even though ten Heavenly King Jades were a lot to many, experts from great powers were willing to try at least once. Who in this world didn't want to become enlightened in the dao?
Moreover, for those who had reached a bottleneck, they needed an opportunity to break through.
There were rumors that there were dragon roars or even the whispering of a true dragon in this valley. How could there be smoke without fire? Some experts had made these claims before while meditating in this place.
Because of this, many cultivators came here in hopes of getting lucky. Perhaps they would be able to experience the same type of adventures as well.
The duo crossed over the mountains and went deeper inside towards their destination.
“Young Noble, have you been here before?” Zhang Baitu asked after seeing how familiar Li Qiye was with this place. Li Qiye only responded with a mysterious grin.
Many of the cultivators they met didn't find anything, so they kept on changing their location.
“Eh, isn't that Hundred-Disciple?” A few cultivators recognized Zhang Baitu along the way. The majority of them were from the sects near Dongting Lake. [1. Baitu = Hundred-Disciple.]
Zhang Baitu had joined many sects without any results. Because of this, the cultivators near Dongting Lake all knew about him.
“Zhang Baitu, are you here to listen to the valley as well?” A cultivator shook his head and laughed: “In my opinion, you should be saving money to buy a coffin, that will save a lot of trouble. You have joined so many sects for no reason, do you think you will actually gain anything here at Dragonhark Valley?”
Another cultivator saw Li Qiye standing next to him and mocked: “Who would have thought that you, Zhang Baitu, would actually try to be exemplary one day and take in a disciple. Hey, child, finding a master is a lifelong event, so you can't be careless or you'll regret it for the rest of your life after finding the wrong master.”
The majority of the people who recognized Zhang Baitu started with taunts or mocked Li Qiye. Of course, there were some who had good intentions and advised Li Qiye.
Zhang Baitu didn't respond to any of them and only followed right behind Li Qiye. He had grown used to these remarks and had heard much worse before.
After a while, in a more remote location, he whispered: “It is my fault for tarnishing your reputation, Young Noble.”
Li Qiye waved his sleeve dismissively and insipidly commented: “There's no need to take to heart the words of mere ants.”
Zhang Baitu didn't say anything else and continued to follow him.
Eventually, the two went into a thicket with fresh verdant leaves. When the breeze blew by, one could hear their fluttering rattle like a melody.
Li Qiye walked around before stopping in front of a dying tree. He carefully looked at this old tree and nodded: “Right here.”
He then ordered Zhang Baitu: “Sit with your back against this tree and calm your mind. Block off your six senses to feel its rhythm. Remember, stay calm — this is the only way you will feel its existence.”
Zhang Baitu solemnly shook his head and took a deep breath. He sat down firmly under this old tree with his back against it. He closed his eyes and shut off his six senses then began to feel it.
Li Qiye looked over him for a bit before quietly leaving. At the same time, he casually drew a circle around this thicket.
Zhang Baitu meditated in order to sense this old tree. However, moments passed by and there were no signs of change. In the beginning, he was able to keep calm, but he gradually lost his patience and his breathing turned rapid.
“Remember, it exists when your heart is calm. You are the descendant of the Zhang Clan, this is something you should have. Be patient and persevere.” Li Qiye was watching everything from a distance.
His words were like a tranquilizing pill. The anxious Zhang Baitu slowly calmed down again with steady breaths. His quiet meditation began once more.
“Isn't that Zhang Baitu? Is he actually thinking about comprehending the dao?” Someone laughed while looking at Zhang Baitu meditating under the tree.
Another said with disdain: “He wants to understand the dao? Such wishful thinking.”
Their companion sarcastically commented: “People say that one can only succeed after experiencing failures and learning from the lessons. Zhang Baitu had so many masters after joining numerous sects for nothing at all, so maybe he has accumulated enough experience. Come, let us see if he can comprehend anything.”
Although some cultivators were dismissive of him, others were irritated by their own lack of progress, so they wanted to tease him to get rid of their bad mood. In their eyes, Zhang Baitu was only a piece of trash. They could humiliate him however they want.
“Don't cross the line.” Li Qiye coldly spoke the moment these ill-willed cultivators approached his line.
These cultivators stopped and one of them laughed: “Oh? You must be Zhang Baitu's disciple. Hah, a foolish master can only produce an idiotic disciple. You think you can comprehend the dao here as well?”
Li Qiye ignored him and emotionlessly repeated: “Don't cross the line or face the consequences.”
“Brat, who do you think you are?!” Li Qiye's attitude made a few younger cultivators with some status quite annoyed. They contemptuously spoke: “You think we'll listen to you? What are you going to do about it? Only an ant yet you still dare to shout in front of us! So what if we cross the line, are you gonna bite me? Oh wait, I forgot, a dog that bites will never bark.”
With that, they headed towards Zhang Baitu.
Li Qiye didn't bat an eye. Instead, he performed a sweeping kick. These cultivators turned furious after seeing this, and one of the nobles said: “Naive fool!”
“Bang!” They couldn't even counter since they were kicked flying by Li Qiye. Blood spurted out along with many explosions; Li Qiye mercilessly sent them into many huge trees with blood spraying everywhere.
He then stared at them coldly and slowly walked over.
At this time, these pale cultivators were frightened. They wanted to crawl back up, especially the noble-looking one. He screamed: “You, don't come over here, don't come over here!”