Volume 1, Chapter 23: The Founder of Longevity Temple

The memories of Li Hanzhou’s original self contained very little information. It was clear that this guy hadn't just neglected his cultivation—he hadn't cared about anything regarding the Longevity Temple either. Relying on his status as the temple master’s junior brother, he had simply acted as a parasite.

"Uncle-Master, what are you doing here?" Just then, Liu Dongyue had returned from his cultivation practice. Seeing Li Hanzhou standing in front of the main hall, he couldn't help but approach and ask with curiosity.

"Why is the main hall locked?" Li Hanzhou asked, turning his head.

"Uncle-Master, ever since Master went missing, the disciples of our Longevity Temple have drifted away one by one. It’s been a long time since any pilgrims came to offer incense, and we haven't had the money to buy incense to honor the patriarchs, so we locked it up. Why did you suddenly think of coming to see the hall?" Liu Dongyue was puzzled. His uncle had truly changed his ways lately; he hadn't stepped foot in the main hall in eight hundred years. What was going on today?

"I just wanted to take a look." Li Hanzhou nodded. "Who has the key?"

"It should be with the Senior Brother, right?" Liu Dongyue said uncertainly.

"Speaking of which, hasn't your Senior Brother returned yet? Did he go to hunt demons, or was he eaten by one?" Li Hanzhou said, speechless.

Liu Dongyue indicated that he had no idea.

Since the key was missing, Li Hanzhou walked straight up to the door. With a flash of light in his palm, the Autumn Burial appeared. With a single swing, the lock was shattered.

"What a fine blade!" Seeing the sword's sharpness, Liu Dongyue’s eyes lit up. "But why does this sword look so familiar?" He scratched his head. The design seemed to ring a bell, but he couldn't quite place it. "And since when does Uncle-Master have a storage bag?" he added, feeling a twinge of envy.

Li Hanzhou had already pushed the door open and stepped inside.

*Creak.*

The door hinges groaned, and a musty smell immediately assailed his senses. Dust covered everything, and there were spiderwebs everywhere. It was clear no one had entered for a long time. In the center stood a massive incense burner, containing nothing but residual ash.

When Li Hanzhou looked up at the towering statue of the patriarch, he froze on the spot.

The founder of the Longevity Temple looked incredibly familiar! How could he possibly forget that face? It was the face of the Old Daoist!

"The Old Daoist?" Li Hanzhou rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was suffering from such extreme longing that he was hallucinating. But no matter how he looked at it, it was that exact face. Especially that bulbous, wine-red nose—it was identical.

What was going on? Why did the patriarch of the Longevity Temple look exactly like the Old Daoist? Was it a coincidence?

"Uncle-Master, what's wrong?" Liu Dongyue walked in and saw Li Hanzhou staring blankly at the statue, so he asked curiously.

"Is this the patriarch of our Longevity Temple?" Li Hanzhou steadied his breathing before asking.

"Yes, this person is the founding ancestor of our Longevity Temple," Liu Dongyue nodded. This was something one naturally learned upon joining the sect.

"What was his name?" Li Hanzhou asked again.

Thinking his uncle was testing him, Liu Dongyue replied earnestly, "Uncle-Master, as a disciple of the Longevity Temple, I naturally remember. The patriarch’s name was Li Qingfeng. Back in the day, the martial arts world called him the Daoist Patriarch Qingfeng. In those years, with him at the helm, our Longevity Temple was truly awe-inspiring. He was, without a doubt, the greatest in the world!"

The moment the name "Li Qingfeng" left Liu Dongyue’s lips, Li Hanzhou’s mind went blank.

That was right. The Old Daoist’s name was indeed Li Qingfeng.

What was happening? Li Hanzhou felt his thoughts spiraling. He had originally assumed his transmigration into this world was a coincidence, but now that he had come to the Longevity Temple and discovered its founder was the Old Daoist, he began to suspect it wasn't a coincidence at all. It was something the Old Daoist had calculated and arranged long ago.

He had arrived here only after cultivating the "Northern Emperor Sutra" and developing a trace of spiritual energy—the very same sutra the Old Daoist had forced him to practice. He had even lied, telling him that if he cultivated this and developed spiritual energy, he would be able to go ten times a night without tiring!

It was all a scam!

"Old geezer..." Li Hanzhou glared at the statue. This old man had probably been plotting this since the day he found him. How sinister!

"My thirty million!" Li Hanzhou’s heart bled.

"Uncle-Master, are you alright? You don't look well," Liu Dongyue asked, concerned by the look on his uncle's face.

"I'm fine," Li Hanzhou said, suddenly looking at Liu Dongyue. "If I recall correctly, the mental cultivation method you practice is also the 'Northern Emperor Sutra', right?"

"Yes, the 'Northern Emperor Sutra' is the premier technique of our temple, but since the great change in the world, it has lost its former power," Liu Dongyue said. "They say that in the patriarch’s era, one could use it to draw spiritual energy from heaven and earth into themselves. I don't know if that’s true or not."

"Circulate your energy for me to see," Li Hanzhou commanded.

"Yes." Without asking why, Liu Dongyue began to circulate his "Northern Emperor Sutra."

Li Hanzhou placed his hand gently on Liu Dongyue’s shoulder, his divine sense probing into the disciple's body. He watched the flow of energy intently, looking for any difference between Liu Dongyue’s execution and his own.

However, after several cycles, Li Hanzhou was shocked to find that the circulation paths were identical. The difference was that when he practiced, his pores would open, drawing spiritual energy from the world into his body. Liu Dongyue, on the other hand, could not sense the spiritual energy at all; his technique merely condensed internal energy into his dantian.

So, he was cultivating spiritual energy, while Liu Dongyue was only cultivating internal energy. The many peerless techniques of the Longevity Temple required spiritual energy to function; they were powerless when driven by internal energy alone.

No wonder the Longevity Temple had declined. It was like a garage full of top-tier sports cars that could only be powered by AA batteries—it was a miracle if they could even move at all.

But why? Li Hanzhou couldn't figure it out. If the people of the Longevity Temple couldn't cultivate spiritual energy, the temple could never rise again. And why was he the only one who could?

Why had the Old Daoist gone to such lengths to pluck him from Earth and bring him here? What did he want him to do? He hadn't left a single clue. Was he supposed to revitalize the temple? But if they had no way to cultivate spiritual energy, what could he possibly do?

"Uncle-Master," Liu Dongyue said, looking despondent, "the Three Sects are coming soon. My strength hasn't improved in the slightest. I fear they will beat me to death."