Ji Chuan looked as if he’d seen a ghost in broad daylight, staring at the enormous Gungun.

When he regained his composure, his expression was exceedingly odd.

To use Lei Jun’s words, it was an expression of pure, unadulterated exasperation—the kind that made one feel like their very manhood was under siege.

Unlike those Yushan Temple disciples who were ignorant of Yuan Mobai’s background, Ji Chuan, for a fleeting moment, truly believed that Yuan Mobai and his disciple were standing before him.

However, he soon realized that although the enormous Gungun before him had intelligent and sharp eyes, it had not yet fully awakened its spiritual wisdom.

This definitely couldn’t be Yuan Mobai.

Even so, Ji Chuan was overcome by a sensation so awkward it felt like his insides were about to burst from the sheer ridiculousness.

Twisting his neck stiffly, his gaze shifted back and forth between Lei Jun and the giant Gungun. "Lei," he said, "does this signify that your sect has started some kind of new tradition?"

Lei Jun replied, "A misunderstanding, purely a misunderstanding. A coincidence, purely a coincidence."

Lei Jun glanced at the giant Gungun beside him, then back at Ji Chuan. "I encountered this spirit beast quite by chance," he explained. "After all, this is the Land of Bashu; it’s rare to find such spirit beasts elsewhere. As cultivators, we follow Heaven’s will and act according to fate. Since there’s such a special karmic bond between it and me, I decided to let nature take its course."

Ji Chuan’s face twitched. "Lei," he said, "you truly have a connection with this Spiritual Seed!"

Lei Jun replied, "I dare not accept such praise. It’s mainly due to the outstanding people and efficacious land of Bashu."

Ji Chuan was once again speechless.

Bashu is, of course, a place of outstanding people and efficacious land. But this one beside you... doesn’t seem to have anything to do with ’outstanding people.’

At that thought, something seemed to click in Ji Chuan’s mind.

His gaze circled between Lei Jun and the giant Gungun a couple more times, his expression growing even more peculiar.

As if sensing his thoughts, Lei Jun said, "Ji, I am purely of the Human Race."

Hearing this, Ji Chuan let out a dry laugh.

His physical condition was actually not good.

The laugh aggravated his injuries, and he started to cough drily.

Lei Jun invited him to sit. After a brief examination, he took out the renowned medicine from Chu Yu’s Hui Tian Hall, the Golden Bone and Jade Muscle Powder, saying, "This medicine is quite effective for external flesh wounds. Ji, you might as well give it a try."

Ji Chuan, recognizing good medicine when he saw it, said, "In these special times, I won’t stand on ceremony with you, Lei. I don’t have any suitable treasures on me at the moment, so please allow me to repay this kindness later."

Lei Jun replied, "Ji, there’s no need for formalities. I’ve troubled your sect greatly during my stay in Shu; I should be the one thanking you."

Although their first meeting had been somewhat unpleasant, their subsequent interactions were relatively harmonious.

During the battle at Cangbo Mountain, Lei Jun knew the mountain was safe, but Ji Chuan couldn’t be certain.

However, Ji Chuan had chosen to stay and look after the Dragon Tiger Mountain disciples who had seemingly succumbed to cultivation deviation, an act for which Lei Jun owed him a favor.

Later, Ji Chuan acted as his guide, showing him the famous mountains and great rivers of Bashu, fulfilling his duties admirably.

During the subsequent internal strife within Mount Shu, regardless of their reasoning, He Dongxing, Ji Dongquan, Ji Chuan, and others, much like Ye Dongming, had all tried to avoid entangling Lei Jun, a True Inheritance disciple of the Celestial Master Mansion, in the situation.

Now that the chaos had largely settled, Ji Chuan finally came to see Lei Jun.

His own physical condition was terrible; he had clearly survived many perilous situations during the internal strife, though he had managed to preserve his life.

Unlike cultivators of the Talisman Sect or the Inner Alchemy Cauldron School, who emphasized cultivating both life essence and the physical body, Daoist Cultivators from the External Alchemy and Artifact Refining lineage prioritized cultivating their Spiritual Soul and external Magic Artifacts.

To them, the physical body was merely a vessel for nurturing the Spiritual Soul in the initial stages.

As their cultivation progressed, it was a process of gradually shedding the mortal flesh.

Therefore, although they possessed the longest attack range among practitioners of the three main Taoist Sect lineages in actual combat, their own physical bodies were the most fragile, typically relying on Magic Artifacts for protection.

Once their physical body was damaged, they were easily severely injured, and healing was more difficult compared to cultivators from the Talisman Sect or Dan Ding lineages.

Artifact Refining and Alchemy both belong to the External Alchemy path of the Taoist Sect.

Besides being a Sacred Land for Artifact Refining, Mount Shu’s mastery of Alchemy was also renowned.

But the issue remained: the immortal elixirs and wondrous Dan Medicines they refined were primarily for nurturing the Spiritual Soul, aiding in early transcendence and transformation.

They did possess Dan Medicines for healing the physical body; after all, as long as one had not transcended and transformed, the Spiritual Soul still required a physical body for containment and nourishment.

However, this aspect was ultimately not their forte.

The fact that Ji Chuan’s injuries had not healed was largely related to this.

Now that he had received Lei Jun’s Golden Bone and Jade Muscle Powder, while it wasn’t an instant cure for all ailments, his complexion visibly improved a great deal, the effects immediate and striking.

"Thank you, Lei," Ji Chuan expressed his gratitude once more.

Lei Jun replied, "There’s no need for such formality, Ji."

He patted the large Gungun beside him, which shifted into a more comfortable position and sat to one side.

Lei Jun said, "Ji, I have no intention of prying into your sect’s internal affairs."

He continued, "It’s just that I previously contacted my master, and he is very concerned about the current condition of your honorable master, Senior He, your esteemed father, Senior Ji, as well as several other seniors in your sect."

Ji Chuan replied, "Thank you for Elder Yuan’s concern. My master and my father have indeed sustained some injuries, but nothing life-threatening. As for the other elders of the sect... alas!"

He let out a long sigh.

Lei Jun nodded slightly; he had anticipated as much.

With Mount Shu undergoing such dramatic upheaval, Lei Jun, being present in Bashu, naturally had to inform his own Longhu Mountain Celestial Master’s Mansion at the earliest opportunity.

Having now reached the Cultivation Realm of the Middle Three Heavens, he could finally create and use one of the True Inheritance High-grade Spirit Talismans from the Mansion: the Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman.

This was a High-grade Spirit Talisman that Talisman Faction Taoists of the Lower Three Heavens realm could not activate.

Never mind drawing it themselves; even if bestowed by a Sect elder, they could hardly make it function effectively.

Back then, true communication relied solely on the arduous methods of physically traveling and shouting.

Only upon reaching the Middle Three Heavens Cultivation, and after the Sect passed down the Talisman Scriptures for High-grade Spirit Talismans, could the Talisman-bestowed Taoists from the Celestial Master Mansion draw and use this advanced Spirit Talisman, the Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman.

Of course, depending on the grade of the Spirit Talisman and the user’s current Cultivation Strength, the efficacy of the sound transmission could still vary greatly.

As for Lei Jun now, even if Master Yuan Moba personally bestowed upon him a top-grade Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman, he wouldn’t be able to send messages very far.

Wanting to send a message directly from Ba Shu Rain Mountain back to the Dragon Tiger Mountain Ancestral Court was completely out of the question. The only solution was to transmit it in segments.

Starting from Lei Jun’s location, he would first transmit the message to a nearby fellow sect member or an external branch of Dragon Tiger Mountain. Then, the information would be relayed segment by segment until it reached the Dragon Tiger Mountain Ancestral Court.

If, along the way, he encountered an exceptionally capable companion, it might even be possible to skip several intermediate relays and send the message directly to the main Ancestral Court.

Once Yuan Mobai on Dragon Tiger Mountain received the message, he would use the same method to transmit a reply to Lei Jun.

Of course, with Yuan Mobai’s Cultivation Realm, the process would be much easier and faster.

The reply to Lei Jun was relatively simple in content.

For Lei Jun himself, the best course of action was to hold his position and not make any moves.

He was not to actively get involved in the Mount Shu internal strife, nor should he be in a hurry to leave, lest he be ambushed or exploited en route.

Yuan Mobai also didn’t require Lei Jun to gather further detailed information, only instructing him that once the situation stabilized and was safe, he should inquire about the status and whereabouts of a few key individuals, namely He Dongxing and Ji Dongquan.

Ji Chuan didn’t hide much regarding this from Lei Jun.

Besides confirming the safety of He Dongxing, Ji Dongquan, and the others, Ji Chuan also revealed some information to Lei Jun, to varying degrees.

Perhaps he had also received instructions from his master and father to proactively convey certain information to the Celestial Master Mansion through Lei Jun, thereby establishing a channel of communication between the two Sects and preventing misunderstandings.

The great battle of Mount Shu had indeed come to a temporary close.

This battle ended with the defeat of the conservative faction that had initiated the internal strife.

The current Sect Leader of Mount Shu and the reformist faction were victorious, successfully quelling the internal conflict.

However, the cost was enormous, and the losses were devastating.

Setting aside material losses for the moment, the sheer number of casualties had caused Mount Shu to suffer Severely Damaged Vitality.

This was a conflict almost comparable in scale to the previous internal strife within the Celestial Master Mansion.

The only slightly better aspect was that Mount Shu, this time, did not end up with a complete schism like the Celestial Master Mansion had experienced when the Yellow Sky Sect broke away to establish itself independently.

The victorious side either co-opted, persuaded, or captured and killed their adversaries, continuously dividing and dismantling the opposing forces.

In a way, the Mount Shu Sect had temporarily suppressed internal dissent and entered a rare period of apparent unity.

However, neither Lei Jun nor even Ji Chuan himself was very optimistic about this.

Ostensibly, it seemed only one faction remained within Mount Shu.

But within that same faction, there was always the potential for further, perhaps even infinite, subdivisions...

Once internal strife began, its future course was exceedingly difficult to predict.

Lei Jun didn’t offer much opinion on this, merely expressing his wish that Mount Shu would henceforth bring order out of chaos and move towards prosperity.

In doing so, he was also conveying the perspective of the High Merit Pavilion, as represented by Yuan Mobai on behalf of their Sect.

This was also the answer Ji Chuan had been seeking.

After chatting with Lei Jun for a while longer, Ji Chuan took his leave.

He still needed to report back to the key figures of Mount Shu, such as He Dongxing and Ji Dongquan.

Lei Jun, meanwhile, remained at Yushan.

On one hand, he was quietly waiting for matters in the Southern Shu Bamboo Sea to come to fruition.

On the other, he continued to focus on his own cultivation.

While cultivating, Lei Jun also mused about his new little companion.

After all, this was the first time he’d obtained a ’living’ fortuitous opportunity.

After spending more time with it, Lei Jun became mostly certain that this oversized Gungun’s physique was not innate.

It must have ingested and digested some special Spirit Flowers, Spirit Grass, or Spirit Fruits, leading to its peculiar size.

This frame wasn’t just superficially enormous; a remarkably solid foundation had already been established within it.

Lei Jun was certain that if he earnestly nurtured it, this oversized Gungun would undoubtedly be a cultivation genius.

Whether it chose to cultivate Demon Qi Evil Miasma and become a Demon, or cultivate Spiritual Energy to become a Spirit Beast or an Immortal Spirit, it was prime material.

To put it bluntly, if it were to fall into the hands of some utterly vicious and unscrupulous individuals, it might be bled for its meat or even entirely refined into medicine...

No wonder the divination had mentioned this was a Fourth Rank Opportunity.

Lei Jun patted its enormous head. "To be born with such a fine foundation, it would be a waste not to cultivate. Later, when we return to the mountain and you meet... Master, we’ll ask him to decide your future."

The pudgy creature blinked, its eyes darting about, wearing an expression of only half-understanding.

More than half of its attention, however, was fixed on the Supreme Pure Golden Bamboo.

Lei Jun chuckled and shook his head, then continued with his cultivation.

「Time passed slowly, and summer gradually approached.」

When summer arrived, Lei Jun finally left Yushan with his new companion, heading for the Southern Shu Bamboo Sea.

There, in that True Yin Land, the previously bizarre bamboo shoots had gradually grown into peculiar, tall bamboos.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com