"Wow, these pillars look delicious!"

As soon as they entered the cave, Mengmeng looked at the nine jade pillars standing inside and couldn't help but speak. As she spoke, the little girl smacked her lips. In fact, these jade pillars were not ordinary jade, but spiritual pillars that could emit spiritual power.

Upon hearing this, Yun Zhongzi was stunned and looked at Mengmeng with some shock.

Wu Tian grabbed Mengmeng's little hand, and thankfully the little one didn't make any further moves. She just kept her big, dark eyes darting around, as if she was thinking of some mischievous idea.

"Fellow Daoist, are you a disciple of the Jade Void Sect?" Guanyin finally asked the question that had been on her mind.

Yun Zhongzi was taken aback at first, then pondered for a moment and nodded.

“I am indeed a disciple of the Jade Void Sect, but…” Yun Zhongzi seemed somewhat hesitant.

"That person wouldn't let you say it, right?" Wutian asked.

Yun Zhongzi looked at Wutian with some surprise.

Guanyin looked at Yun Zhongzi thoughtfully. Indeed, very few people in the entire Chan Sect knew Yun Zhongzi's identity, including her. If it weren't for Randeng's unintentional revelation and the fact that she happened to witness his breakthrough today, she would not have made the connection to Yun Zhongzi's true identity.

"My teacher once said that I must not mention my origins to others before I break through to the Quasi-Saint level," Yun Zhongzi nodded.

Wutian held Mengmeng's little hand and walked around the cave, but soon stopped.

"Sigh..." Wutian suddenly sighed.

"Why is Fellow Daoist sighing for no reason?" Yun Zhongzi asked.

Wutian led Mengmeng to a stone table and sat down, then gestured for the two of them to sit down as well. This gesture made it seem as if he didn't consider himself an outsider. Yun Zhongzi seemed to understand that the other party had something to say, so he also walked to the stone table and sat down.

"Fellow Daoist, do you often feel doubtful, as if you are not yourself, and sometimes even lose some memories?" Wutian asked.

"Yes, fellow Daoist, how did you know?" Yun Zhongzi asked in surprise.

“For many years, I have indeed had the feeling that I am not myself, and sometimes my memory even becomes confused. I always feel that I often fly to the heavens, as if, as if…” Yun Zhongzi paused for a moment as he spoke.

"Like a floating cloud observing the vicissitudes of the world," Wutian replied.

Yun Zhongzi's eyes lit up immediately, and he looked at Wutian in disbelief. The other party had described his mindset at that time so clearly.

"Please enlighten me, fellow Daoist," Yun Zhongzi said, bowing.

"Let me tell you a story," Wutian said.

"Legend has it that before the world was born, when the great god Pangu awoke, he exhaled a breath. This breath slowly merged with the surrounding laws and gradually solidified, thus creating the first cloud in the world. This cloud was initially pure white and drifted aimlessly in the chaos."

For some reason, Yun Zhongzi's heart suddenly started pounding, but he managed to control himself and continued listening to Wutian's story.

"This white cloud is different from the clouds that appeared after the creation of the world. It never dissipates. Later, when the great god Pangu was creating the world, he fought against three thousand chaotic demons. The blood he accidentally spat out was absorbed by that white cloud."

"The white cloud that absorbed Pangu's bloodline gradually turned red. The red cloud gradually gained sentience, obtained a bit of the Heavenly Dao imprint, comprehended the Way of Freedom, and grasped the talent of extreme speed."

As Wutian recounted the story, a picture immediately appeared in Yunzhongzi and Guanyin's minds: a red cloud, drifting quietly in the sky, so beautiful.

"The red cloud continued to wander the world, day after day, year after year. Finally, one day, the red cloud began to take shape. The red cloud transformed into a Taoist in a red robe and took the name Red Cloud Taoist."

"Red represents good fortune, and clouds represent carefree living."

"Hongyun, Hongyun..." Yun Zhongzi was stunned when he heard this, and unconsciously kept repeating the words "Hongyun".

Wu Tian glanced at Yun Zhongzi and continued speaking.

"Hongyun inherited the great love of the god Pangu. He was born kind-hearted and liked to help other living beings. Whenever anyone in the prehistoric world asked for something, he would help them without hesitation. Over time, he earned the reputation of being a good-natured person."

"However, being a good-natured person is both a blessing and a curse. In the end, Hongyun was harmed by this reputation, or rather, harmed by others."

Wu Tian stopped talking after saying that.

"Bang...bang...bang..."

The sound of a heartbeat could be heard coming from inside the cave. It was coming from Yun Zhongzi's body. He was seen clutching his chest, his face contorted in pain.

"Fellow Daoist." Guanyin stood up in surprise.

Wutian reached out and stopped Guanyin from going forward to check.

Yun Zhongzi's face seemed to grow increasingly red, and his mental aura grew more and more intense, as if the entire cave was shaking.

"boom..."

Suddenly, a surge of red energy erupted from Yun Zhongzi's body, instantly filling the entire cave like mist.

"Eeya?" Mengmeng looked at Yun Zhongzi in front of her with curiosity.

"If you don't wake up now, when will you?" Just then, Wutian suddenly shouted at Yun Zhongzi.

A strange light flashed in Yun Zhongzi's eyes, and then he slowly left the ground and floated quietly.

He slowly closed his eyes, and the surrounding red mist slowly returned to his body. His violently beating heart began to calm down, and the painful expression on Yun Zhongzi's face disappeared.

About an hour later, there were no other abnormalities in Yun Zhongzi, but Guanyin could sense that his aura had changed.

"Quasi...quasi...quasi-saint?" Guanyin exclaimed in shock. She was intimately familiar with this aura; it was the aura of a quasi-saint, yet she never imagined the other party had attained it so easily.

Wutian smiled and nodded, agreeing with Guanyin's idea.

Finally, Yun Zhongzi, who was floating in the cave, opened his eyes. His eyes revealed a lot of complex emotions, but they quickly became clear. He slowly descended and then bowed to Wutian.

"Thank you very much, fellow Daoist," Yun Zhongzi said sincerely.

"Are you Yun Zhongzi or Hongyun now?" Wutian asked with a smile.

“Yun Zhongzi is Hongyun, and Hongyun is also Yun Zhongzi.”

"You haven't lost yourself, that's good." Wu Tian nodded with satisfaction.

“Actually, you don’t need to thank me. You will know your true identity when you break through to the Quasi-Saint level,” Wutian continued.

Yun Zhongzi, also known as Hongyun, shook his head with a wry smile.

"No wonder my teacher took me as his disciple back then," Yun Zhongzi sighed.

"Yes, although you have been reincarnated, the merits of your previous life and the residual primordial purple energy make it impossible for you to escape the eyes of a sage."

"Before you unlocked your memories, Yuanshi took you in in order to gather a powerful quasi-saint for the Chan Sect. He was also worried that other saints would find out your identity in advance, so he did not announce your existence to the outside world. Even this cave of yours has his restrictions, preventing saints from deducing your existence." Wutian finished speaking and pointed to the jade pillars.

These nine jade pillars were made by Yuanshi. Besides providing Yun Zhongzi with a continuous source of spiritual energy for his cultivation, they also served to suppress Yun Zhongzi's aura. If it weren't for the opportunity to expose him by the remnant soul of Hongyun within him when he broke through to the Quasi-Saint level, Wutian might not have come to Zhongnan Mountain.

"Sigh..." Yun Zhongzi's expression was very complicated. He didn't know whether to resent Yuanshi or thank Yuanshi. In any case, in this life, he and Yuanshi had the title of master and disciple.

"Don't think so much. Whether it's Yun Zhongzi or Hongyun, you need to live for yourself in this life. Don't repeat the mistakes of the past," Wutian comforted him.

"I understand, thank you, fellow Daoist." Yun Zhongzi nodded.

"Slurp..."

"Click..."

Just then, a commotion came from inside the cave. The group turned to look and saw that Mengmeng had somehow run up to a jade pillar and started gnawing on it. In just a moment, a large hole had been gnawed into the pillar.

Wu Tian was both amused and exasperated. This child was truly speechless. Yun Zhongzi also looked at Mengmeng with surprise. No one knew these pillars better than him. They were as hard as innate magic treasures, yet a child had managed to bite them.

"Ahem, sorry." Wu Tian said somewhat awkwardly.

"Uh...it's alright, it's alright," Yun Zhongzi quickly replied.

Soon, Mengmeng finished gnawing on a jade pillar. The little guy looked back at the three of them, seemingly a little embarrassed, and then said something with a quick glint in his eyes.

"Can I still eat?" Mengmeng asked Yun Zhongzi.

"Huh? This..."

"I'll trade you this." Mengmeng took out a few ginseng fruits from her bag.

“Ginseng fruit…” Yun Zhongzi’s body trembled suddenly. His eyes were fixed on the ginseng fruit, and a name flashed through his mind.

"Zhen Yuanzi, Zhen Yuanzi," Yun Zhongzi murmured, tears streaming down his face as memories of the past resurfaced, the friendship and brotherhood between the two flashing through his mind.

The thought of how heartbroken Zhen Yuanzi would be after his death, and how he had lived alone all these years filled him with immense guilt. If he had listened to Zhen Yuanzi more back then, perhaps he wouldn't have ended up like that.

"Fellow Daoists, I have urgent business to attend to and must leave now," Yun Zhongzi suddenly said.

"Don't rush, I know what you're thinking. We came out this time precisely to find Fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi. To be honest, we're also very good friends." Wutian couldn't help but laugh as he looked at Yun Zhongzi, whose face was full of bromance.

"What? Really?" Yun Zhongzi exclaimed excitedly.

"Let's go, let's go quickly, we're going to Longevity Mountain right now," Yun Zhongzi urged, seemingly unwilling to stay in the Jade Pillar Cave for even a moment longer.

Seeing his anxious appearance, Wutian shook his head helplessly, gave Guanyin a look, and the group walked out of the cave.

"hey-hey..."

Seeing that Yun Zhongzi didn't seem to care about his cave, Mengmeng waved her little hand at the remaining nine pillars. The pillars slowly shrank, then grew to the size of sugarcane, and were put into her treasure pouch. Then she skipped and jumped after him.

At the Jade Void Palace on Kunlun Mountain, the Primordial Celestial Venerable sensed something, slowly frowned, and then made a calculation with his fingers.

"Hmm? The Nine Pillars Formation has been broken..."

After saying that, Yuanshi continued his calculations.

"Has Yun Zhongzi broken through...?" Yuan Shi said thoughtfully, then fell into deep thought, as if the time of the other party's breakthrough was inconsistent with his previous calculations.

Immediately afterwards, the figure of the Primordial Celestial Venerable slowly disappeared from the Jade Void Palace.