A Pawn's Passage

In the past, people with great influence, seniority, and high rank were known as “Boss” in places like Lingnan, but this became widely used in official speech. It simply referred to important figures who held power.

This term also extended into the Daoist community. The Bosses of the Three Sects referred to the Sages with significant influence, at least at Zhang Jucheng’s or Qi Jiaozheng’s level. Qi Xuansu was far from this standard. Even Zhang Yuelu, Yao Pei, and Li Changge still had a ways to go, as they lacked prestige and seniority.

Sage Cihang was the Big Boss among these bosses. Thus, one could only imagine the pressure Qi Xuansu was feeling at the moment.

Moreover, being Zhang Yuelu’s master, Sage Cihang was his future mother-in-law, which doubled the pressure.

The problem was that this future mother-in-law did not follow the usual protocols. She did not ease into the conversation but went straight to the point. How was Qi Xuansu supposed to respond to that blunt question?

Zhang Yuelu cleared her throat lightly and tried to answer. “As for this matter, I know a little—”

But before she could explain, Sage Cihang smiled faintly and interrupted her. “Yuelu, I’m asking Tian Yuan, not you.”

Within the Daoist Order, the master-disciple relationship was akin to that of parent and child. Sage Cihang did not use Zhang Yuelu’s courtesy name. Instead, she used her real name, which was a sign of closeness. This indicated that Sage Cihang was not questioning Qi Xuansu as the Tiangang Hall Master, but rather as an elder with Zhang Yuelu’s best interests at heart.

Zhang Yuelu fell silent, giving Qi Xuansu a look that seemed to say, “Good luck...you’re on your own with this!”

Qi Xuansu settled his mind and carefully considered his words before replying, “Sage Cihang, I dare not hide this from you. In my earlier years, my master and I were ambushed on the way back to Jade Capital. My master tragically passed away from that incident, and I was on the brink of death. But someone saved me and implanted an Auxiliary Heart into me because my heart was shattered.”

Sage Cihang nodded. “No wonder you were able to merge with the Xuan Jade.”

Qi Xuansu was taken aback.

In fact, Qi Xuansu had been curious for some time. Why was it that everyone except him and Li Changge were unable to merge with the Xuan Jade?

Zhang Yuelu was a natural-born Banished Immortal, and Yao Pei was the descendant of an Ancient Witch, so they were exceptions and did not need the extra mystical abilities provided by the Xuan Jade.

However, Qi Jianyuan came from a strong family background, so he should have been able to acquire Xuan Jades. Instead, he had chosen to practice the Qi Refiner lineage like an ordinary disciple.

From Sage Cihang’s words, Qi Xuansu figured that merging with the Xuan Jade was not something just anyone could do. There was a prerequisite, which appeared to be the Auxiliary Heart in his chest cavity.

Qi Xuansu gave it more thought. The Martial Arts Practitioner lineage corresponded to the wood element, the Diviner lineage to water, the Shaman lineage to fire, and the Qi Refiner lineage to metal. These four lineages made up the Five Immortals Lineage, as they were supplements to the Banished Immortal lineage, which itself was not counted among the five. But then, how could the Rogue Cultivator lineage be considered equal to the other Four Immortals Lineages, especially when it corresponded to the most fundamental element, earth?

That line of reasoning made sense—the Rogue Cultivator lineage alone was insufficient to stand alongside the other four. Thus, external reinforcement was required. In other words, it was not the Rogue Cultivator lineage that was key to creating a Banished Immortal, but the Auxiliary Heart.

Sage Cihang noticed Qi Xuansu’s doubts, so she explained, “Before the Jiazi Year, the Daoist Order had another minor clash with the Buddhist Sect in the Western Region, where many Spirit Guards were injured. Inspired by the Western Continent’s Arcane Alchemy, the Huasheng Hall began integrating the remnants of the ancient creation projects and launched a Limb Restoration Program aimed at rehabilitating the wounded. It included things like prosthetic arms and legs. The original intent was to benefit the wounded Spirit Guards. However, as more old blueprints were unearthed, the project began to drift from its original purpose.

“Huasheng Hall soon became dissatisfied with just aiding the wounded. They began to emulate the Western Arcane Council in pursuing human modification. It was during this period that things like Auxiliary Brains, Auxiliary Hearts, Artificial Lungs, Artificial Livers, Synthetic Meridians, Synthetic Dantians, and strange prosthetics of all kinds began to appear. As long as the soul remained intact, one could be revived from the brink of death. These prosthetic organs often came with special powers, akin to innate mystical abilities.

“But there were drawbacks too. These prosthetics were outrageously expensive, often costing tens of thousands of Taiping coins. They couldn’t be mass-produced, so only a select few Spirit Guards or Daoists of special status could access them.

“As a result, development has been slow. Huasheng Hall has mainly focused on reducing production costs. After six decades, the price has dropped by about 3,000 Taiping coins—barely progressing, but still something.”

Before Sage Cihang became the Tiangang Hall Master, she had spent a long time as the Huasheng Hall Master after stepping down as the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion Master. Thus, her knowledge of these inner workings far surpassed anyone else’s.

But this was the first time Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu had ever heard such detailed insider knowledge. They could not conceal their shock.

Qi Xuansu unconsciously pressed a hand to his chest.

Sage Cihang continued, “But I’m not just talking about prosthetics. I’m referring to the unsealing of the old archives from the creation projects. It’s a bit shameful to admit that we have failed to live up to our predecessors. Much knowledge was lost, and many leads were severed, especially after the projects were split between Tianji Hall and Huasheng Hall.

“Many predecessors left the field entirely, like Great Sage Yao, who was the second-in-command of the creation projects. Later, the second-generation Earthly Preceptor who succeeded Great Sage Shangguan started focusing on the Quanzhen Sect’s affairs instead of overseeing Tianji Hall and Huasheng Hall, which were both under the command of the Grand Master.

“Of course, the Daoist Order’s internal power struggles led to some of those with key knowledge about the creation projects being disgraced or killed. Some left the Daoist Order and vanished without a trace. All of this led to the discontinuation of the creation projects. Many of the results were then sealed away in the Kunlun Cave.

“Later, as our ancestors passed on, the next generation grew lazy and indifferent. No one wanted to dig through the mountains of archived records. Even if someone did, without proper transmission of knowledge and instruction, they couldn’t understand much of it. Thus, many creations were lost to time.

“You’ve probably heard that during the Daoist Order’s golden age, we could create manmade Immortals. Whether we still have that ability today is hard to say. Even if we do, it’s likely only possible through reverse engineering.”

Qi Xuansu was not from Huasheng Hall or Tianji Hall, so he was a little lost when he heard all these specialized terms. Thus, he instinctively looked toward Zhang Yuelu for clarification.

Zhang Yuelu explained, “Reverse engineering means deducing the structure, function, process, and specifications of a finished product. Using that knowledge, we then recreate something that functions similarly, though it’s never exactly the same. In other words, even if the Daoist Order can still create Immortals through human effort, it’s no longer the same formidable Sakka as before.”

Qi Xuansu nodded in understanding.

Sage Cihang sighed and continued, “The golden age of the creation projects wasn’t just due to the brilliance of the Holy Xuan and some founding elders. Back then, the Daoist Order was still fragile, beset by enemies, and forced to endure hardship. They had no choice but to claw their way toward survival from countless near-deaths. Thus, everyone gave their all and left nothing to chance.

“But as stability grew, complacency set in. People began to coast on past achievements with half-hearted efforts. Though a few still worked hard, the majority didn’t. Even with great strength, the tide was hard to reverse.”

Zhang Yuelu remained silent.

Now, Qi Xuansu finally understood why Zhang Yuelu had long been determined to reform the Daoist Order. It was like a giant ship with a slow leak. The water seeping in was negligible, nowhere near enough to sink the vessel. But if left unchecked, it would eventually be fatal. In such moments, someone had to step forward and eliminate the hidden dangers.

As a member of the Daoist Order, Qi Xuansu could not help but agree with Zhang Yuelu. This had nothing to do with how close their relationship was. It was just one simple fact—Zhang Yuelu was right.

Sage Cihang continued, “This time, the unsealing of the creation projects’ archives wasn’t limited to written records. Alongside them were a number of partially completed creations. Since they weren’t finished products, they were never officially named at the time. But their material seemed to be a kind of rare jade. Hence, Huasheng Hall named them the Xuan Jade.”

Even though Qi Xuansu long had this suspicion, he was still too shocked to speak.

The very Xuan Jade that changed the course of his life originated from the creation projects.

Sage Cihang explained, “Due to missing key records, Huasheng Hall had no idea how to properly use the Xuan Jade at the time, nor did they realize it was the key to the creation of Banished Immortals. As a result, they didn’t pay much attention to the Xuan Jade itself. Instead, they became fascinated with another item unearthed at the same time. It was an artifact that the original inventors had labeled the Embedded Longevity Stone Heart. It was this design that Huasheng Hall used as the prototype for what we now call the Auxiliary Heart.

“Later, as more old records were gradually unsealed, Huasheng Hall finally realized that the batch of Xuan Jade was the key to creating Banished Immortals. These Xuan Jades were divided into four types, each corresponding to one of the Four Immortals—Earthly Immortal, Manly Immortal, Godly Immortal, and Ghostly Immortal.

“The Longevity Stone Heart was the central component used to integrate the four types of Xuan Jade. However, before this discovery could be fully acted upon, Huasheng Hall suffered a major case of internal theft. Some mid-level members secretly sold off the Xuan Jade on the black market, resulting in the disappearance of a large portion of these gems. Since then, the Taiping Sect’s Li family, the Eight Tribes, and the Qingping Society have all been actively searching for the missing Xuan Jades.”

Zhang Yuelu could not help but glance toward Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu silently placed a hand over his chest.

Sage Cihang concluded, “The Li family is the descendant of both the Holy Xuan and Donghuang. Their bloodline has never been severed, so they not only know these secrets but have even preserved some of the ancient artifacts within their own family.

“Based on my deductions, they likely implanted an original Embedded Longevity Stone Heart into the frail-bodied Li Changge and then aggressively collected Xuan Jades. This turned someone once labeled as useless into a peerless genius, someone who could even overshadow Yuelu, a natural-born Banished Immortal. That said, Li Changge is indeed worth the investment. External help is one thing, but one’s inner willpower must be strong as well.”