Chapter Nineteen: Gaze from Afar

Once the threads of cause and effect are set in motion, they are difficult to calm. Even though I have restrained myself to the utmost, extraordinary power inevitably casts a stone upon the still waters—one capable of stirring a towering wave.

That stone was the serene pill, imbued with a trace of the “Alchemy Dao Principle,” which I casually crafted and bestowed upon the Hundred Herbs Valley.

After receiving my “transmission of the way,” the sect’s alchemical prowess advanced by leaps and bounds. To acquire more cultivation resources and elevate their influence within the Yun Prefecture cultivation community, they selectively brought some elixirs personally refined by Liu Qingmei—of far superior quality than peers—to Yunmeng City, the capital of Yun Prefecture, for trade.

Yunmeng City is the heart of Yun Prefecture, teeming with cultivators and brimming with formidable experts. The largest elixir market here is controlled by a colossal entity—the Yun Prefecture Alchemy Alliance.

The Alchemy Alliance, as its name implies, is a vast coalition formed by hundreds of alchemical sects and families throughout Yun Prefecture. Its leader is a grandmaster of alchemy at the half-step transformation stage, wielding considerable influence across the region.

One day, a batch of elixirs from Hundred Herbs Valley caught the eye of an elder of the Alliance. This elder, Wu Jingshan, himself a Master Alchemist at the early Nascent Soul stage, possessed a sharp and discerning gaze. He noticed that not only were the elixirs of flawless quality, but they also exuded a subtle, harmonious alchemical aura he had never before encountered.

Driven by curiosity and a desire to investigate the sudden advancement of a minor sect’s alchemy, Wu Jingshan used his elder privileges to inspect all the elixirs involved in this trade. His attention finally fixed on a serene pill displayed as a “non-sale” item, meant to showcase the sect’s strength.

This pill was the proud creation of Liu Qingmei, painstakingly replicated after contemplating the elixir I had gifted. Though its Dao resonance was less than a ten-thousandth of the original, for a cultivator at Wu Jingshan’s level, it was astonishing.

With just a sweep of his divine sense, he felt his soul drawn into a vast starry expanse, where countless profound truths of “serenity” and “tranquility” in alchemy flickered like stars before his eyes. This was an aura of law far surpassing his comprehension, even beyond what the Alliance leader could reach—an essence nearly akin to the Dao itself.

“This… is this an ancient alchemical legacy? Or… the emergence of an immortal’s lost treasure?” Wu Jingshan trembled, holding the pill with hands shaking, eyes filled with awe and ecstasy.

He immediately reported the matter to the Alliance’s upper echelons.

The news shook the entire Alchemy Alliance. An elixir containing such profound law resonance was of monumental significance. It could signify a hidden immortal alchemist or an undiscovered ancient alchemical relic! Either way, for the Alliance whose very foundation rested on alchemy, this was an opportunity not to be missed.

The Alliance leader acted decisively, issuing the highest order: pursue the origin of this pill at all costs!

Soon, Hundred Herbs Valley was targeted. Despite the Alliance’s threats and enticements, Sun Baicao and Liu Qingmei remained tight-lipped, only claiming the legacy was found in an ancient cultivator’s cave, long since destroyed, refusing to utter a single word about the “Guixu Hermit.”

The Alliance leaders naturally did not believe them. When conventional methods failed, they deployed one of their most treasured relics—the “Source-Tracking Compass.”

This compass, a rare ancient artifact, could trace the origin of an item by the lingering law resonance it carried. While ineffective against true immortal-grade treasures, it was more than sufficient to track an elixir imbued with Dao resonance.

Three days later, a team personally led by Wu Jingshan, accompanied by two late Golden Core stage protectors and over ten others, quietly left Yunmeng City. Holding the archaic bronze compass, they sped toward the remote Qingshi Town.

They moved with utmost secrecy, bypassing all sects and settlements like hounds in the night, silently following the faint but unwavering light emitted by the compass, steadily closing in on their target.

…

Within the Guixu Cottage, I was playing chess with Jiang Yiyi. The board was natural bluestone, the pieces simple black and white river stones.

Suddenly, my hand holding a white piece paused mid-air. My gaze pierced through the stone walls of the cave, beyond layers of mist, reaching toward the distant horizon.

There, a subtle yet persistent probing force was attempting to penetrate my mountain-protecting formation, locking onto this location’s coordinates. The source of this force was an ancient compass spinning endlessly.

“A visitor,” I said calmly, placing the white piece gently on the board, producing a crisp “click.”

Jiang Yiyi and Jiang Xiaobai, who was chasing a treasure-seeking mouse nearby, both stopped and looked at me.

“Are they hostile guests, Father?” Xiaobai blinked her big eyes, excitement written all over her face as if a fight was great fun.

“Just a bunch of ants who don’t know their place,” I shook my head, expression unchanged. “They’re spying on what they shouldn’t. Since they came, they must be taught a lasting lesson.”

My tone was flat but carried an unshakable authority. I did not wish to kill or draw unnecessary karmic consequences, but my sanctuary would never tolerate unwarranted intrusion.

At that moment, above the mountains surrounding Qingshi Town, Wu Jingshan excitedly watched the Source-Tracking Compass in his hand. The pointer, once wildly spinning, now firmly directed toward a fog-enshrouded mountain range ahead.

“This is it! The source of that supreme alchemical law is within this mist!” Wu Jingshan’s voice quivered. “Set the formation! Seal off the area! No one may enter or leave! I shall use the compass to break this trivial illusion and uncover the ancient relic!”

“Yes!” Two Golden Core protectors promptly obeyed, arranging sealing formation flags.

Wu Jingshan took a deep breath and poured his entire cultivation power into the Source-Tracking Compass. The compass blazed with light as a solid azure beam, like a sharp sword, stabbed toward the mountain-protecting formation of the Guixu Cottage.

He intended to forcibly pinpoint and tear open a breach using the law power of this ancient artifact.

Yet, just as the azure beam was about to touch the mist—

Inside the cave, I lifted my eyes.

No earth-shattering spell, no cataclysmic divine power. I merely sat calmly on a stone bench, facing the direction of the intrusion. Raising my index finger, I flicked it lightly into the void.

“Pop.”

A faint sound, like a bursting bubble, nearly inaudible.

But a thousand miles away, Wu Jingshan and his team witnessed a terrifying scene they would never forget.

The azure beam from the Source-Tracking Compass, capable of piercing mountains, suddenly struck an invisible yet utterly impassable barrier just before reaching the mist and instantly froze. Then, an imperceptible ripple rebounded from the mist.

“Crack…”

A crisp sound of fracturing.

Wu Jingshan looked down in horror to see a tiny fissure appearing on the Source-Tracking Compass, a treasured and supposedly indestructible relic of the Alliance.

Before he could react, the crack spread wildly like a spiderweb.

“Not good! Fall back!” Wu Jingshan screamed in terror.

But it was too late.

“Boom!!!”

The compass shattered explosively with a deafening roar! Countless fragments, accompanied by violent streams of chaotic law energy, swept outward.

Wu Jingshan bore the brunt of it, as if struck by an invisible giant hammer upon his soul. He screamed in agony; his Nascent Soul trembled violently, blood spouted from all seven orifices, and he flew backward like a kite with a broken string, unconscious on the spot.

The two Golden Core protectors behind him and other cultivators were also flung away by the horrific backlash, spitting blood, their souls severely damaged. The weaker ones had their Golden Core shattered, their foundation utterly destroyed!

In an instant, this once formidable Alchemy Alliance investigation team suffered a devastating blow.

The survivors struggled to rise, gazing at the unconscious elder Wu and the ruined surroundings, then at the still serene mist-covered mountains as if nothing had happened, their eyes filled with boundless fear.

What kind of power was that?

No fluctuations of cultivation power were sensed, no attacks seen. Perhaps the opponent hadn’t even left the cave—just a thought, a warning, shattered an ancient artifact and grievously wounded a Nascent Soul elder!

This was beyond their comprehension—it was the gulf between gods and mortals!

“A devil… There’s a devil living in there!” one cultivator screamed incoherently, tumbling as he fled in panic.

Fear spread like a plague. They dared not linger, hastily carrying their wounded comrades, fleeing with all their might from this land that sent chills even to their souls.

Deep within the mist, inside the Guixu Cottage.

I withdrew my finger and gently pressed the white piece firmly onto a star position on the board.

“All done,” I smiled slightly at my daughters, who looked at me with admiration. “The flies have been driven away.”