Patriarch Reliance sat in his sealed meditation zone, the flames of his fury rising to the heavens. He cursed continuously in anger and pain. Regarding Meng Hao, the Patriarch had a somewhat helpless feeling. After all, he was the Reliance Sect's only heir….

"That little bastard is just too ruthless. I'm his Patriarch! First he steals half my treasures, then takes away my Demon Sealing Jade. After that, he robs me of my spiritual energy, and then shamelessly pillages one of my demonic lamps!!" He was nearly out of breath from cursing. When he thought of the ancient demonic lamp, he suddenly looked worried.

"Okay, so I didn't dispel the poison, that's true, but that doesn't mean you can act like this! An upright person should be reasonable. When I stole treasures from people, I discussed things with them reasonably first.

"He really reached the thirteenth level of Qi Condensation. All those years ago those bastards said that the Demon Sealing Jade couldn't be taken away by someone who hadn't reached the thirteenth level of Qi Condensation…. Originally I thought they were just trying to make it sound mysterious, and was really happy. Obviously, those old bastards tricked me. If the Demon Sealing Jade couldn't be taken away, then even if my plan worked, I wouldn't be able to break the seal. But… wow! He actually reached the thirteenth level!! And the little bastard took it away! I can feel that… the seal is weakening!

"I might be missing one of the demonic lamps, which reduces the chances of opening the Demonic Seal, but still, it's been unstable for years now. And now, it's showing even more signs of weakness… Holy crap, how come the Cultivators of the Demon Sealing Sect always deceive me!? Those bastards were like this years ago, and now the little bastard is the same…" Patriarch Reliance ground his teeth, but as he thought about all this, he remembered Meng Hao throwing his words back at him. Then he thought of his stubborness in reaching the thirteenth level of Qi Condensation, and couldn't help but sigh.

"This kid really does things in line with my style. I didn't want to put myself in a bad position that time; you deceived me, I deceived you. The old bastards from the Demon Sealing Sect didn't tell the truth. They thought that if they ran away, I couldn't get at them. Well, maybe that was true, but at least I could change the name from Demon Sealing Sect to Reliance Sect. I couldn't deceive them, but I could deceive their descendants…. Dammit, if I'd known Meng Hao would reach the thirteenth level of Qi Condensation and then get the required latent talent to take away the Demon Sealing Jade, I would have just dispelled his poison and sent him on his way as fast as possible. Then he would never have had the chance to reach the thirteenth level. But if that happened, then I probably would never have the chance to open the seal, right?" Patriarch Reliance was somewhat at a loss. Even though he was upset, he could only sigh and feel torn.

Patriarch Reliance had a very eccentric personality and was not easy to get along with. Meng Hao didn't know that, of course. In fact, before the Sect had been disbanded, no one else had known either. Only the people who were of the same generation as Patriarch Reliance could know of such matters. To them, the mere mention of Patriarch Reliance would arouse feelings of hatred.

But you cannot use normal methods to analyze people with eccentric personalities. For example, even though Meng Hao robbed his treasures, stole his spiritual energy, took away one of his demonic lamps and angered him to the point of driving him crazy, he actually felt admiration for him. This type of thing is not something that ordinary people can understand.

Actually, if Meng Hao had just silently left, then Patriarch Reliance would have forgotten about him completely within a couple years. But acting as he did had left a deep impression on Patriarch Reliance. He would never be able to forget the complicated, torn feelings he was experiencing.

Outside of the Reliance Sect, in the State of Zhao, it was a warm and sunny day. However, storm clouds were brewing on the horizon. Meng Hao's face was calm as he sat cross-legged on his treasured fan. He soared forward at high speed.

He had lowered his Cultivation base back to the ninth level of Qi Condensation. He wouldn't reveal the great circle of Qi Condensation unless he needed to. Even though his achievements were significant, the poisons in his body had not been dispelled. It was like a fishbone stuck in his throat. He sat in silent contemplation, trying to figure how to get rid of the poison.

"Of the four poisons, I was able to get rid of one. Excepting the poison from the three-colored poison pill, the other poisons will be easy to dispel…. I need to figure out the fastest way to find the poison dispelling pills." Regarding everything that had happened with Patriarch Reliance, Meng Hao's hatred and anger had already subsided.

He glided along, and before long thunder and lightning filled the sky; big raindrops the size of beans fell down. The land was covered with sheets of rain, making everything look dim and hazy.

It was raining now, but the general temperature was as hot as ever. The heat was stifling enough to make it difficult to breathe. Only within the rain could a bit of coolness be felt.

Amidst the heavy rain, Meng Hao stopped gliding and stood atop a mountain top. Looking off into the distance, he pushed the rain away so that it wouldn't fall onto him. It was like he was standing in his own land, separate from the rest of the murky world.

He looked out at the earth surrounding him and thought of all his experiences over the past years. He had completed the great circle of Qi Condensation, which seemed like something from a dream. After thinking about everything for a long time, he sighed.

"I wonder… I wonder how Elder Sister Xu is doing now," he said softly as her face appeared in his mind. He looked off in the direction he supposed was the center of the Southern Domain.

He lifted up his right hand, and a jade slip appeared. The jade slip was carved with mountains and rivers, and was covered with cracks. It looked as if it might crumble at any moment.

This was what Patriarch Reliance had called a good luck charm, which he had found at the bottom of the mountain of Spirit Stones. He looked at it closely, then sent a bit of his spiritual energy into it. There was no reaction.

Muttering to himself, he put the good luck charm back and then pulled out the palm-sized black flag. There appeared to be a spark of energy moving about inside it. Muttering to himself again, he opened his mouth and blew out some Qi from his Cultivation base, sending it into the flag.

"This item isn't sealed to Patriarch Reliance, so I can use it. I'll need to refine it a bit before I can use its full power, though…." He infused it with some more Qi before putting it back.

Next, he carefully brought out the burning oil lamp, within which was a tiny figure sitting cross-legged. When Meng Hao pulled out the burning Nascent Soul, streams of spiritual energy once again roiled out.

Flames appeared in front of his eyes, but he didn't feel any heat. However, he knew that it was powerful. After all, the flame was life force and the Nascent Soul was the fuel.

"This item will be extremely useful. I can use it as a life-saving treasure!" Eager to the extreme, Meng Hao tucked it back into the bag of the Cosmos.

At last, he pulled out the ancient jade piece. It carried a sense of profound ancientness, as if it had existed for countless ages.

Meng Hao looked at it, heart thumping. He sent some spiritual energy into it, upon which three characters appeared in his head. "Demon Sealing Sect…."

Some mnemonics also appeared, which he couldn't quite see clearly. Only the first three characters were legible.

He poured a greater amount of spiritual energy into it, whereupon a roaring sound filled his head. He involuntarily took a few steps back and immediately stopped forcing spiritual energy into it. He could tell that someone who hadn't completed the great circle of Qi Condensation would only be able to see the three characters and a bit beyond that. As of now, he was only able to read the first line.

"Ancient Dao; Tenacious Desire to Seal the Heavens; Benefaction for All in the Mountains; Dao Tribulation Must Come to the Nine Mountains and Seas; My Fate is the Aeon." Meng Hao's body trembled and suddenly his vision cleared. The rain was currently falling on him, soaking him.

A strange light filled his eyes. He looked back down silently at the jade slip. In his head, images appeared of the Demonic technique used by Patriarch Reliance, and the Demonic magic Shangguan Xiu had used to control the aura of Mount Daqing.

After contemplating for a long time, he still didn't understand. He sat down cross-legged, again pouring some spiritual energy into the jade slip. Once more, he contemplated the words' deep meaning.

Enough time passed for an incense stick to burn. The rain had come quickly, and it passed quickly. Meng Hao suddenly opened his eyes. Even as a child, he had been very smart. Even though he hadn't succeeded in his life as a scholar, once he entered the Reliance Sect, he had been very quick to grasp magical techniques. He didn't need to spend a lot of time practicing. In fact, this was the first time he had ever had trouble utilizing a mnemonic.

It was as if the mnemonic was something which required enlightenment to understand. Without enlightenment, it could only be observed from the outside, never entered.

"The words seem extremely complicated, their true meaning obscure. It's like trying to look at flowers in the midst of fog, or the moon on rippling seawater…." He pondered silently for a while, until a bright look appeared in his eyes. He lifted his head and gazed up at the sky, looking a bit hesitant.

More time passed. Finally, determination rose in his eyes. He leaped up, and a flying sword appeared beneath his feet as he shot off into the distance.

"If I can reach Foundation Establishment, then I can fly for long periods. That will be much better than this." The wind buffeted his face as he soared forward. After a while, the flying sword's momentum began to fade. Meng Hao dropped to the ground and continued to run.

Time passed slowly. The first time he had left these mountains, he had been at the sixth level of Qi Condensation, and it had taken him two days. Now, he was of the great circle of Qi Condensation, and it only took about an hour. Soon, he was out of the mountains, and had reached the North Sea.1

He stood once again on the shore, looking out at the lake. He took a deep breath, and then, face filled with sincerity, clasped his hands and bowed deeply two times.

The first bow was for the North Sea's kindness in demonstrating the Dao and helping him break through his bottleneck.

The second bow was for when the North Sea had helped him during his battle with Ding Xin, when it had saved his life and caused him to be reborn.

"I've already made my promise two times, so I won't say it again. It has been imprinted onto my heart." He lifted his head, looking out toward the center of the lake. After some time, he closed his eyes and sat down cross-legged to meditate. In his mind, the mnemonic from the jade slip appeared.

"Ancient Dao; Tenacious Desire to Seal the Heavens; Benefaction for All in the Mountains; Dao Tribulation Must Come to the Nine Mountains and Seas; My Fate is the Aeon." A long time passed, and the words continued to reverberate in his mind. And yet, he still did not understand what they meant.

More time passed as Meng Hao continued to try to decipher the meaning of the words. Suddenly, a hearty laugh echoed out from across the lake.

"Young sir, do you want to cross the sea?"

Meng Hao lifted his head and saw a boat approaching. On the boat was an old man wearing a woven rush raincoat. Inside was a young girl, eight or nine years old, with big eyes. When she looked at Meng Hao, an innocent smile appeared on her face.

Meng Hao laughed, clasping hands and bowing to the old man and the girl. Then he leaped up onto a flying sword and shot toward them. He dropped down into the boat.

Just like before, there was a bottle of alcohol being warmed. The young girl took it out and poured a cup for Meng Hao, but didn't hand it to him. She put her chin onto her hands and looked at him.

"Why did you come back, Big Brother?" she said, her voice pure and clear. "Did you come to see Guyiding Tri-Rain?

Meng Hao stared at her blankly.

"Guyiding Tri-Rain is my name. But, you can't tell anybody, okay Big Brother?" She laughed and winked at Meng Hao, looking very charming.

Meng Hao smiled and cupped his hands again in a bow, then accepted the cup of alcohol.

The old man laughed as the boat continued on toward the center of the lake. He looked back at Meng Hao. "We haven't seen each other for many days. Young sir, your demeanor is much more refined than in the past. Are you heading for the other shore this time?"

"I of the junior generation am not here to cross the lake," Meng Hao said lightly, taking a sip of alcohol. "I'm here to clear up some confusion."

Previous related chapters about the North Sea: Chapter 44 and Chapter 66