After Nie Caizhu's figure completely disappeared, Daoist Master Qing Lian said, "I originally thought that with your aptitude, you wouldn't have the luxury of seeing Cai Zhu again in this life."
"I don't know if Senior is disappointed now?" Shen Luo looked up at her and asked.
"On the contrary, I don't feel disappointed, but somewhat surprised. With your aptitude, being able to cultivate to the Out-of-Body Stage in such a short time is a surprising thing in itself. It's a pity … "Daoist Master Qing Lian said and shook her head regretfully.
"It's a pity that Junior doesn't have much lifespan left …" Shen Luo smiled and finished the second half of her sentence for her with an incomparably calm tone.
"You came to participate in this Immortal Apricot Summit to increase your lifespan, right? However, with all due respect, using external forces to increase your lifespan is just a stopgap measure. The real solution is to cultivate and break through to the Immortal Ascension Stage. However, with your current cultivation, it's too difficult to reach the Immortal Ascension Stage. Even if you have the opportunity, you don't have enough time, "Daoist Master Qing Lian said slowly.
"Didn't Senior think that it was impossible for Junior to reach Junior's current cultivation? Then, who can say for sure what will happen in the future?" Shen Luo was neither servile nor overbearing as he replied with a smile.
"Your future is worrying, but Cai Zhu's Great Dao is within reach. Don't you think that appearing in front of her again will only be a burden to her?" Daoist Master Qing Lian's expression remained unchanged as she asked.
"If I hadn't met her before, I might have such doubts, but after seeing her, I'm not afraid. I also ask Senior not to look down on Cai Zhu. None of us will become a burden to each other," Shen Luo said with a smile.
"I'm never worried about her aptitude. The only thing I'm worried about is her temperament. Previously, in order to leave the mountain as soon as possible, she cultivated without restraint. Now, it's difficult to break through the bottleneck. Can you say that it's not because of you? "Daoist Master Qing Lian frowned.
"The rule of not leaving the mountain before reaching the Grand Ascension Stage was set by Senior. How can you blame it on me? However, Senior doesn't need to worry. This kind of bottleneck can't stop Cai Zhu, "Shen Luo said helplessly.
"Regardless of the outcome of the Immortal Apricot Conference, I can give you an Immortal Apricot after the event. It won't be a problem for you to increase your lifespan by at least 200 years, as long as you guarantee that you won't obstruct Cai Zhu's Dao Verification in the future." Seeing that his persuasion was ineffective, Daoist Master Qing Lian spoke bluntly.
"Thank you for your kind intentions, Senior. However, there are some things that Junior will never give up. There are also some things that I prefer to fight for myself." At this point, Shen Luo didn't have the mood to continue talking. He cupped his fists and turned to leave.
"Are you so certain that you'll be able to seize first place in the Immortal Apricot Assembly?" Daoist Qing Lian asked.
Shen Luo just waved his hand with his back to her and walked away without stopping.
Daoist Master Qing Lian looked at his back as he left. His eyes flashed slightly, and his figure suddenly disappeared.
…
In the blink of an eye, several days had passed.
In Mount Putuo's Sumeru Valley, there was a huge square that occupied an area of ten thousand feet. It was bustling with noise and excitement.
A large number of Mount Putuo's disciples gathered around the square, discussing the Immortal Apricot Assembly that was about to begin. Many of the workers who were usually busy with work had free time today, so they also came to watch the grand event.
Shen Luo and Bai Xiaotian came to Sumeru Valley under the lead of a Mount Putuo's Deacon Elder.
Before the two of them entered the valley, they heard a loud shout, "Fellow Daoist Bai, Shen Daoyou."
Shen Luo turned his head to look and saw a tall man dressed in green armor walking quickly toward them, leaving behind the deacon elder of Mount Putuo who had been leading the way.
He was more than nine feet tall, with neat short hair and a beard that was longer than his hair. He carried a huge sword that was as wide as a door on his back. From afar, he looked like an iron tower standing in front of them.
"Fellow Daoist Zheng," Bai Xiaotian said with a happy expression.
He was the Giant Sword Sect's disciple, Zheng Jun. He was also here to participate in the Immortal Apricot Assembly.
"Fellow Daoists, how are your preparations?" Zheng Jun walked up and asked with a smile.
"What's there to prepare? It's just a competition between fellow Daoists. Friendship comes first, competition comes second, "Bai Xiaotian said with a smile.
"Can't you be more spirited? After hearing what you said, I don't have the energy to do anything," Zheng Jun said helplessly.
"I don't believe you. Don't you want to perform well in front of Senior Sister Lin Qianqian from Emei?" Bai Xiaoyun said with a look of disdain.
Unexpectedly, Zheng Jun's ears turned slightly red. He didn't hesitate and admitted it directly.
"That's true, but with Senior Sister Lin here, even if I don't want the Immortal Apricot, I still want to help her fight for it."
When Bai Xiaotian heard this, he only glanced at Shen Luo subconsciously and did not say anything.
The Immortal Apricot could increase one's lifespan by at least two hundred years. It was very important to cultivators at their level. Who wouldn't want it?
However, he came here to help Shen Luo obtain the Immortal Apricot.
As the three of them talked, they had already entered the valley. They walked along the path that led directly to the square and walked onto the white square.
Along the way, Putuo's disciples discussed animatedly and pointed at Shen Luo and Bai Xiaotian. Some praised Shen Luo for being handsome, some said he was just so-so, and some compared Shen Luo to one of their Senior Brothers.
Most of them scoffed at the rumors about Nie Caizhu.
Shen Luo heard it but didn't take it to heart. He looked calm and relaxed as he sized up the surroundings of the square.
In the middle of the square, there was a statue of a woman more than ten feet tall. She held the Fearless Seal in her right hand and a jade vase in her left hand. Behind her, thousands of arms spread out like a peacock's tail. It was the statue of the Thousand-armed Guanyin.
Right in front of the statue was a lotus pond that was almost 300m in size. Numerous lotus flowers were growing within it, and they were blooming brilliantly. The surroundings were fields of lotus leaves that were dark green like jade, and they complemented the pink petals of the flowers, causing it to be extremely beautiful.
At this time, there were already a few people standing beside the lotus pond. When they saw the three of them approaching, each of them had different reactions.
One of them, a beautiful woman in a light green dress with an exquisite figure walked up and greeted them warmly.
"Junior Brother Zheng, Junior Brother Bai, Junior Brother Shen …"
This woman was the Senior Sister Lin Qianqian that Zheng Jun had mentioned. Through Bai Xiaotian's connections over the past few days, they had become familiar with each other.
Shen Luo and the others hurriedly returned the greeting. Zheng Jun, who was originally calm, smiled more when Lin Qianqian walked over. However, he seemed to be a little reserved.
After Lin Qianqian, a young monk in a green robe and a young monk in a white monk's robe walked over at the same time. They saluted the three of them and chanted the name of Buddha.
Although Shen Luo had never seen these two people before, he knew from Bai Xiaotian that the former was Zen Master Ku Lin from Green Lotus Temple and the latter was Zen Master Chuan Yue from Mount Jiuhua.
Although Green Lotus Temple was a subordinate of Buddhism, it was unique and didn't follow most of the rules and precepts. Its cultivation method was mainly to subdue demons and exterminate demons.
Mount Jiuhua was even more unique. It belonged to the Underworld and was an extension of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's orthodoxy. Its cultivation method focused more on exorcising ghosts and evil spirits.
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