Yuan Qi and his party hadn't walked for long when they came across a path leading up a mountain. The mountain wasn't very high, probably only about a hundred meters. At the top of the mountain stood a palace that looked magnificent and resplendent from afar.

In the time it takes to drink two cups of tea, the group reached the mountaintop.

There is a fairly large platform at the top of the mountain, paved with blue bricks. The whole thing looks like someone has cut off the mountain peak and created a flat area here.

A three-meter square carpet was laid out in front of the main hall, on which a tea table and a soft couch were placed. Xuanqing sat in the left-hand seat.

Xuan Qing pointed to the seat opposite him and said with a smile, "Senior brother, please sit down."

Guangcheng Daojun snorted: "So you've finally admitted that you're a traitor to Fusang Temple."

Xuan Qing remained calm and unperturbed, not taking Guangcheng Daojun's reprimand to heart. He said indifferently, "Even so, so what? Today, my senior brother is still going to die here. Once you are dead, no one will know about this."

Yuan Qi wanted to retort, saying something like, "It's not necessarily who will die," but Daoist Guangcheng raised his hand to stop her, telling her to be quiet.

Yuan Qi had no choice but to swallow back the words he was about to say.

Daoist Guangcheng sat opposite Xuanqing. A young Daoist boy came over to pour tea for Daoist Guangcheng, then stepped aside without saying a word.

Yuan Qi looked at Xuan Qing's confident demeanor. Logically speaking, Xuan Qing should have heard about her many battles in the past year or two and have a clear understanding of her strength. Yet, she spoke with such certainty.

Could it be that he has mastered some kind of evil technique?

Yuan Qi observed Xuan Qing discreetly and concluded that since there was no black aura or malevolent energy around him, he was either extremely powerful and had reached a certain level of prowess, or he was just a novice.

However, the former is more likely.

Moreover, seeing that Xuan Qing's cultivation level was similar to hers, Yuan Qi felt more confident. However, although she was confident, Xuan Qing was not so easy to deal with.

"It's been many years, and you've aged a lot, Senior Brother." Xuan Qing's eyes held a hint of sarcasm.

Daoist Guangcheng retorted without hesitation, "Junior brother is getting old too. You haven't formed your core yet, have you?"

Xuan Qing's expression turned cold: "Senior brother hasn't formed his core either, has he? He won't live for more than a few years, just like me."

Yuan Qi stood behind Daoist Guangcheng, side by side with Yuan An, to prevent Xuanqing's people from launching a sneak attack from behind.

Bai Youhui was unaware of the cultivation levels, so he walked over to Yuan Qi and whispered, "What is Core Formation?"

"It refers to the cultivation realms. People like Master Jiu who have just started cultivating are in the Qi Refining stage. Once they reach a certain level of cultivation, they can establish their foundation. After establishing their foundation, they can live to be over two hundred years old. If they cannot reach the next level, Golden Core, before they are two hundred years old, they will die. Once they break through to the Golden Core stage, they can have a lifespan of five hundred years."

Bai Youhui exclaimed enviously, "So that means you have at least two hundred years of lifespan? I'm so envious! I also want to cultivate the Dao. Will you formally accept me as your disciple?"

Yuan Qi glanced at him sideways and ignored him.

Xiangli Youming was pondering something else entirely. He wondered how many years it had taken Yuan Qi to reach the Foundation Establishment stage. How many years did it take for him to achieve it? Would Yuan Qi agree to marry him once she reached the Foundation Establishment stage? Otherwise, he wouldn't have such a long lifespan and would have died long ago, leaving Yuan Qi alone in the world…

Yes, he needs to work hard to reach the Foundation Establishment stage.

Xuanqing picked up his teacup: "Senior brother, please—"

He let go, and the teacup hovered in mid-air.

Guangcheng Daojun chuckled and picked up his teacup. The teacup stopped in mid-air and slowly rose along an arc until it reached Guangcheng Daojun's lips. The teacup tilted to the side, automatically feeding him water.

After finishing the tea, the teacup fell back onto the table by itself.

The same thing happened to Xuanqing; he fed him water himself using a teacup.

Bai Youhui whispered, "Are they having a magical duel?"

Yuan Qi hummed in agreement: "They're evenly matched."

Xuanqing used magic to control the teapot and pour tea for Daoist Guangcheng, which Yuanqi found utterly boring. She was already tired of such low-level magic. Could it be that Xuanqing was nothing special after all?

But in the eyes of others, this was already an extraordinary technique.

Yuan Qi thought that perhaps the other party was simply inviting his senior brother for tea.

Regardless, the mountaintop feels very peaceful, without any malevolent energy.

After three cups of tea, Xuanqing waved his hand, and the young Taoist boy took away the teacups and teapot, and brought over a jade-like dark green chessboard.

Xuanqing, holding the white chess piece, politely said, "Senior brother is the guest, please go first."

Guangcheng Daojun knew that Xuanqing was intelligent from a young age and was most skilled at chess, using chess as a battle formation to kill enemies invisibly.

"Alright, let's settle this in one round." Daoist Guangcheng had already seen the killing intent in the other's eyes.

Yuan Qi disagreed. She grabbed Guangcheng Daojun's arm and shattered the dark green chessboard with a single palm strike.

Xuan Qing's face immediately darkened: "Is this how senior brother teaches his disciples? This is far too unruly!"

Yuan Qi spoke bluntly: "Uncle-Master, Master is not good at chess or setting up formations. Are you trying to kill him?"

Xiangli Youming glanced at Yuan Qi indifferently. He was skilled at chess, but he had never seen a chess game where magic could be used to fight. He couldn't help but be a little curious and decided that he would definitely ask Yuan Qi for advice in the future to study the formation properly.

Xuan Qing made no attempt to conceal his intentions, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes: "So what? Who doesn't use their best moves when facing off? Guang Cheng is terrible at chess, a complete idiot. I'll just take this opportunity to kill him."

Guangcheng grumbled to Yuan Qi, "You kid, I've learned a lot of chess games over the years, but that doesn't mean I can lose to him."

Yuan Qi said, "You can't even beat me, how could you possibly beat him? We're all here as friends, why play chess? Let's just start fighting."

She turned to look at Xuan Qing, her words provocative: "You're not just good at chess, are you?"

Xuanqing snorted unhappily: "Senior brother, you have to be strict with your disciples. You can't do it like this."

Daoist Guangcheng disagreed: "Teaching is my business, so don't interfere."

Suddenly, Xuanqing grabbed a handful of white chess pieces from the chess basket and threw them into the air, where they scattered in all directions.

Yuan Qi unleashed a burst of spiritual energy, blasting away all his own men within ten steps.

The next second, she found herself in a blue world. The ground was blue, and her surroundings had turned into a space made of piled-up rocks.

However, upon closer inspection, the rocks were actually made up of individual skulls, and even the arched dome was blue and flaming.

She turned around and saw Daoist Guangcheng inside: "Master! What are you doing here?"

Her sudden jolt should have sent Daoist Guangcheng flying as well.

Guangcheng Daojun felt very cold, his face turned pale, and ice crystals formed on his hair and beard.

He spoke calmly, "Xuan Qing escaped from my grasp, how can I let you face him alone? However, over the years, his formations have become increasingly mysterious."