Bai Qian chuckled and nodded proudly. “I’m from Ben State City.”

　　“Is Ben State City considered a big city?” Chu Li asked.

　　“Of course!” Bai Qian replied proudly. “Ben State City is one of the forty-eight tremendously popular cities in the Li Dynasty!”

　　“I see,” Chu Li said with admiration. “It’s a pity I can’t go out and look around. Miss Ruolan said I’m not allowed to leave.”

　　“Hehe, that’s because she’s scared that you might get lost,” Bai Qian said jokingly.

　　Chu Li pretended to think it over seriously. “No wonder.”

　　Bai Qian felt increasingly amused. He had not expected this guy to be a fool who was incapable of differentiating between a well-intended piece of advice and a malicious remark.

　　“Oh right, Brother Bai, are you planning to join the Holy Church of Light too?” Chu Li asked eagerly.

　　Bai Qian nodded proudly. “Of course.”

　　Chu Li grinned and said, “Then we can keep each other company.”

　　Bai Qian patted him on the shoulder and replied, “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of you!”

　　Chu Li nodded excitedly. “Ben State City is so huge. It must be very fun to live here, right?”

　　“Indeed, there are so many fun places to go to!” Bai Qian laughed. “Especially those young women at Leisure Pavilion. Now that’s truly…”

　　As he trailed off, a peculiar smile appeared on his face as a certain yearning bloomed in his heart.

　　Chu Li’s mouth widened into a grin as he laughed along with him.

　　Upon seeing his response, Bai Qian felt even more satisfied.

　　“Let’s go. I’ll take you out on a tour!” Bai Qian patted his shoulder.

　　Chu Li shook his head. “Miss Ruolan said I’m not allowed to go out.”

　　“Miss Ruolan is just worried that you might get lost. I’m here now, so it’ll be fine!” Bai Qian patted his shoulder again and laughed. “I’ll show you around the city and bring you back before it gets dark. Miss Ruolan won’t mind.”

　　However, Chu Li had read the man’s mind and sighed to himself.

　　Despite his forthright appearance, Bai Qian had a malicious nature and was planning to set a trap for him so that he would get into a fight and then be crippled of his cultivation.

　　Bai Qian grinned at him, seemingly certain that this fool would agree to the proposal.

　　How could a young bumpkin like him withstand the temptations of a bustling city, especially when it came to gambling dens and brothels such as Leisure Pavilion? Once he stepped inside such a place, he would not be able to bring himself to leave. Setting a trap for him would be an easy task.

　　All outer mountain disciples who joined the Holy Church of Light would have to compete against each another to become inner mountain disciples. Thus, they had no choice but to fight to stay ahead.

　　If he could cripple this fellow’s cultivation early on, it would save him a lot of trouble in the future.

　　Although this guy seemed like a dimwit, his aptitude should be impressive enough. Therefore, Bai Qian had to be wary of him. Such simple-minded fools were usually very diligent in practicing their martial arts, so this guy might actually surpass him and treat him as a stepping stone.

　　Chu Li shook his head and replied seriously, “I must obey Miss Ruolan.”

　　“You’re a man. Why should you take orders from a woman?” Bai Qian gave him a look of disapproval and disdain. “You’re not a man at all!”

　　“I must obey Miss Ruolan.” Chu Li shook his head.

　　“Ugh… Really, you’re a fool!” Bai Qian sighed. “In another few days, after we receive the Great Light Scripture, we’ll have to focus on our cultivation, and we won’t be able to go out and have fun anymore, so now’s the time to have fun!”

　　Chu Li shook his head again. “I’m following Miss Ruolan’s instructions!”

　　“Well then, you can stay here by yourself. I’m going out to have some fun!” Bai Qian said.

　　He walked away as he spoke.

　　Through the Omniscient Mirror, Chu Li watched as Bai Qian left the residence without a problem and walked eastward along a quartzite road. Soon, he reached the avenue and entered a heavily decorated building, which was that Leisure Pavilion he had mentioned earlier.

　　Miss Ruolan was sitting in the neighboring courtyard sipping a cup of tea. She had been listening in on what had happened in the courtyard with a mirthless smile on her charming face.

　　As the evening sun went down, the courtyard was bathed in a rosy sunset glow.

　　Chu Li sat by the stone table as he stared up at a sky full of clouds tinged with sunset hues.

　　Since he had now completed the preliminary stage of merging the Omniscient Mirror with Maha-Vairocana’s Immobility Scripture, he decided to momentarily put it aside and try to figure out a way to hide his Omniscient Mirror so he could pass whatever test the Saint would give him.

　　Although Maha-Vairocana’s Immobility Scripture could counter the powers of the Mind Illumination Scripture, it could not be used to fool it.

　　If the Saint failed to read his mind, she would not be pleased. Instead, it would raise her guard, whereby he might get kicked out or even put to death.

　　After pondering it over repeatedly, he decided to begin with the Life and Death Scripture.

　　The Life and Death Scripture was inexhaustibly profound, and what he had learned about it so far was only the tip of the iceberg.

　　As he achieved increasingly high boundaries in his cultivation, more and more of its great profundity was revealed. Thus, his comprehension of the Life and Death Scripture grew deeper.

　　At this point, he could make his body enter a dormant state resembling death, leaving only a trace of consciousness within him so that he could sense his body and the world around him. With just a flicker of thought, he would be able to come out of this dormant state and return to life.

　　If his body could enter this state of dormancy, what about his spirit?

　　If he could make his inner energy leave his body and turn a vast empty field into his Dantian, would he be able to make his spirit leave his body in the same manner too?

　　He began to visualize the Tree of Life and Death in his mind once again.

　　In this visualization, the Tree of Life and Death suddenly shuddered as a ray of divine light appeared out of nowhere.

　　In the next instant, a bright round mirror could be seen hanging from the top of the tree. It was clear and dazzling, and its reflection contained the most minute details. This was the manifestation of the Omniscient Mirror.

　　The Tree of Life and Death suddenly shook again and then slowly vanished from his mind along with the mirror.

　　Chu Li opened his eyes and paid attention to his surroundings.

　　His five senses had suddenly become slower and weaker, as though they had been covered by a veil. There also seemed to be a barrier separating him from the world. Ever since he had cultivated the Omniscient Mirror, he had not experienced such a feeling.

　　Now, he was sure that his Omniscient Mirror had been entirely hidden. It was like he had never cultivated the Omniscient Mirror in the first place.

　　He visualized the Tree of Life and Death in his mind once more.

　　The Tree of Life and Death reappeared with the round mirror hanging off its treetop. Then, the round mirror was lifted from the treetop.

　　Immediately, his five senses recovered their acuity, and he became one with his surroundings again.

　　Everything within a six-mile radius of him emerged in his field of vision, and he could observe the depths of the earth, the sky, the young grass swaying in the breeze – even a shoot sprouting from a seed buried deep in the soil.

　　A soft breeze caressed his face and seeped into his pores as Heaven and Earth brimmed with spiritual energy.

　　This wonderful feeling moved him to his core and intoxicated his consciousness.

　　The sound of footsteps interrupted this mesmerizing moment as Bai Qian strode in smelling of alcohol and perfume.

　　His senses were especially sharp right now, so despite not having circulated the All-Knowing Scripture, his sense of smell far surpassed the others.

　　He opened his eyes and saw that the moon was already shining brightly in the sky. As Bai Qian came and sat before him, the man chuckled and said, “Zhao Dahe, it’s such a pity you didn’t go!”

　　Chu Li replied, “When we become disciples of the Holy Church of Light, we can have all the women we want.”

　　“Hehe…” Bai Qian looked at his face and shook his head.

　　As a disciple of the Holy Church of Light, he would be able to have all kinds of women. However, given Zhao Dahe’s ugly face, there might not be any beautiful women out there who would willingly come to him. How pitiful he would be.

　　Suddenly, two shadows loomed over the courtyard as two masked men clad in black came charging at Bai Qian.

　　Alarmed, Bai Qian pulled out a long sword and swung it at them while yelling, “Who are you?”

　　Chu Li unsheathed his blade and stood beside Bai Qian as he shouted, “Assassins!”

　　He waved his blade at lightning speed and slashed at one of the masked men in black.

　　“This has nothing to do with you. Get out of the way!” The masked man in black glided backward and avoided the blade effortlessly.

　　Chu Li sneered and said, “What do you want?”

　　“We’re here to kill that guy. If you stand in our way, we’ll kill you as well!”

　　“As long as I’m here, don’t even think of killing him!” Chu Li yelled as he swung his blade at them.

　　He immediately realized what was going on here. It was the same old trick they had used before. After all, no one else could have broken into such a strictly guarded residence!

　　“Bang!” The masked man launched a punch.

　　Chu Li was sent flying before crashing into the wall.

　　He quickly saw that Bai Qian had also been sent crashing into the wall as they both slid to the ground together.

　　The two masked men came closer and stared down at them with cold eyes.

　　One of the men picked up Bai Qian’s sword from the ground and swung it swiftly.

　　“Tsh!” Bai Qian’s body was sliced in half.

　　He then shook the blood off the sword and turned his gaze to Chu Li.