Li Yan saw a row of pavilions along the edge of the lotus pond, with five or six more rows of pavilions staggered behind them. At this point, Feng Zhiran, who was in front, stopped, turned around with a smile, and pointed his right index finger at the buildings not far ahead. "Fellow Daoist Li, the Teleportation Formation is in a large hall behind these buildings. But you've arrived the earliest today, so you'll have to wait for a while. These are the residential courtyards for the temple's disciples. Considering there might be others like you who arrive early, we've cleared out a courtyard here for fellow Daoists to rest and have tea."
With that, he made a gesture of invitation with one hand and turned sideways to walk along the small path by the lotus pond. Li Yan followed with a smile.
The two of them only walked a short way along the stone path by the pond before they reached the first row of houses adjacent to it. The courtyard gates of this first row, however, opened between the first and second rows.
The two walked along the long courtyard wall for nearly a hundred meters before reaching the front courtyard gate. Although the houses here were said to be in rows, the distance between every two rows was a full hundred meters, so one didn't feel any sense of a narrow alley.
When they arrived, Feng Zhiran stopped and pointed to the first courtyard in the first row. "This is it." He then walked towards the courtyard gate. Li Yan saw that the gate was quite magnificent, with two lifelike Cloud-Swallowing Qilin stone carvings at the entrance. Li Yan actually felt a hint of pressure from these carvings, no weaker than that of a third-layer Qi Condensation cultivator. They were quite extraordinary.
Feng Zhiran paid no mind to Li Yan's observation and went directly into the courtyard, continuing to speak, "This courtyard is not far from the Teleportation Formation behind, and its location is convenient. The courtyard has no restrictive formations, but the other surrounding houses are all protected by formation restrictions. Most of them are inhabited by disciples of the temple, so please, Fellow Daoist Li, do not wander around. Otherwise, if you trigger a formation restriction, you will inevitably suffer. Some senior martial uncles and aunts have even added offensive capabilities to their courtyard's formation restrictions, making it easy to take a person's life."
As he said this, although he smiled and looked back at Li Yan, his eyes held a warning. Li Yan, just as he had imagined, showed a trace of fear on his face, which made Feng Zhiran quite satisfied.
By now, they had already entered the courtyard. It was quite grand, with the courtyard alone being several dozen zhang in size. Several large trees provided a pleasant contrast. A small bluestone path started from the gate, wound under the trees, and on both sides of the path under the trees were some stone tables and stools. The bluestone path ended at a row of about five or six houses. Each one had red lacquered pillars and carved rafters, with carved wooden windows. Some shady branches with green leaves rested on the eaves and window corners, exuding a sense of otherworldly detachment. The main door in the center was open, and on either side of the door stood two people in green robes with their hands hanging down. Judging by their attire, they seemed to be handymen of this place, and they also had the aura fluctuations of the second layer of Qi Condensation.
Feng Zhiran led Li Yan along the bluestone path directly to the front of the middle house. When they arrived, Feng Zhiran stopped. He pointed a hand at the exquisite house with its open door and said with a smile, "Fellow Daoist Li, this is the place. This is the main hall. You can drink tea and wait inside. If you need anything, just call these two." As he said this, he pointed to the two young servants in green who were looking at them respectfully.
"If Fellow Daoist Li wants some peace and quiet, you can also choose a side room to rest in. You've arrived early, Fellow Daoist Li, so these side rooms are all empty. If you were late, you would only be able to wait in the main hall. But it won't be too long anyway, I imagine we'll have six people in an hour or two." With that, he pointed to the closed doors of the side rooms.
Li Yan first glanced at the main hall before him. On both sides of the hall were several tables and chairs, with a simple tea set placed on them. Facing the main door were three large, open windows. Outside the windows was the fragrant and clear lotus pond. Even standing at the doorway, a light breeze carried a refreshing scent.
"Oh, I'll wait in a side room," Li Yan said after a moment of contemplation to Feng Zhiran.
"Alright. Are all the rooms here empty?" Feng Zhiran wasn't surprised by Li Yan's answer. Cultivators rarely liked to sit in the same room with others. Li Yan's answer was within his expectations. His latter words were directed at the two green-robed servants. Although he knew that all the rooms should be empty at this time, he still asked as a matter of routine.
"Reporting to Senior Brother, yes, they are. All the rooms are empty," one of the servants quickly replied.
"Then Fellow Daoist Li, feel free to choose one. I won't disturb you any longer. I'm still on patrol. If there's anything, just find these two. I will go and speak with the senior martial uncle at the Teleportation Formation." With that, Feng Zhiran made a Daoist salute, turned, and walked away.
Li Yan returned the bow with cupped hands, looked around, and his face returned to its calm state. He glanced at the two servants who were looking at him with anticipation and said coldly, "I am tired. Let me know when the Teleportation Formation is about to open. I don't need anything else." Without another look at the two, he walked straight to one side.
Seeing this, the two green-robed servants nodded in unison. Although their faces were respectful, a hint of disappointment showed in their eyes. They cleaned and organized this place, serving tea and water to outside cultivators daily, and would occasionally receive some Spirit Stones. Their cultivation was very low. If they relied solely on the Spirit Stones issued by the sect each month, they didn't know when they would be able to cultivate to the third layer of Qi Condensation and become Outer Sect disciples, shedding their handyman status. Therefore, they were usually very happy to do handyman work here, as they would more or less receive extra Spirit Stones. Although disappointed, neither of them harbored any resentment. Most cultivators had strange personalities, and cultivators like Li Yan were seen every day.
Li Yan walked directly to the corner room closest to the side courtyard wall. He pushed open the door and looked inside. The room was much smaller but was still exquisite and ingenious. The furnishings were simple. Opposite the door was a table and chair under a window against the wall. To keep the room dry and ventilated, the window was wide open at the moment. Outside the window were the same verdant lotus leaves and nodding white and red lotus flowers in the wind. On the right side of the room was a sandalwood bed. That was all.
Li Yan glanced around, and his Divine Sense was instantly released. A moment later, he stepped inside. After entering the room, he flicked his sleeve, and the door behind him closed again.
Walking to the window, he looked at the lotus pond and the distant mountains. After a moment, Li Yan reached out and wiped his left wrist. Several rays of light flashed out and landed in the four corners of the room. Instantly, a faint spiritual power fluctuation filled the room. The scenery outside Li Yan's window distorted and blurred for a moment before returning to normal.
This was a simple set of Protective Formation Flags. Most cultivators had a set on hand. It had no offensive capabilities, only serving to isolate Divine Sense and act as a warning. When someone approached with the intent to enter, or when someone's Divine Sense tried to probe inside, it would alert the person in the room.
Although Li Yan had heard that Xuanqing Temple had a good reputation during his inquiries at the Trading City, he was a cautious person and would not believe everything he heard. Even for a temporary stop, he had to be vigilant, not to mention this was a gathering place for other outside cultivators.
Li Yan did not close the window. Under the isolation effect of this set of formation flags, the situation inside the room could not be seen from the outside, unless someone forcibly probed with their Divine Sense. He, however, could see everything outside clearly. After doing all this, Li Yan turned around, walked to the bed on one side, sat down cross-legged, and slowly closed his eyes.
Half a day was not short for an ordinary person, but for a cultivator, it was just the time for a short meditation. Soon, it was noon. As Li Yan was meditating with his eyes closed, his eyelashes suddenly twitched. Then, streams of light flickered in the room, and the formation emitted a low hum. A voice then sounded from the doorway, "Senior, the number of people heading north is full. Please proceed to the Teleportation Formation."
Hearing this, Li Yan slowly opened his eyes, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. This Xuanqing Temple really did this kind of business often; their timing was extremely accurate. At the same time, a trace of helplessness rose in his heart. The person outside the door was also at the Qi Condensation stage, yet he called him 'Senior.' The cultivation he was displaying now was only at the Qi Condensation realm. It was clear how difficult life was for low-level Qi Condensation disciples. In order to obtain cultivation resources, they probably addressed everyone as 'Senior,' regardless of their cultivation, hoping to win their favor and be casually rewarded with a few Spirit Stones. This kind of situation did not exist in the Malevolent Spirit Sect. It showed the scarcity of cultivation resources in smaller sects.
After standing up from the bed, Li Yan waved his hand again. Several rays of light in the four corners of the room flickered and flew towards his hand. He caught them and then wiped his left wrist, storing them in the "Earthen Mark." Then, with a flick of his wide sleeve, the door swung open, and he strode out.
Outside the door, the same green-robed servant from before was waiting respectfully. Seeing Li Yan come out, he bowed respectfully. "Senior, this way please." He then led the way towards the main hall.
Li Yan followed behind him. The main hall was only a few dozen meters away. Li Yan had already noticed seven people standing under the shade of the trees at the entrance of the main hall when he first came out of his room, but he hadn't casually scanned them with his Divine Sense. As he approached, he got a clear look at the seven. From their standing positions, they seemed to be divided into three groups. One group was led by a man with a curly beard, whose aura was powerful. He was actually a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Behind him stood a young man and woman, with the aura of the seventh or eighth layer of Qi Condensation. The man was quite handsome, dressed in a white robe with a long sword at his waist, looking dashing and romantic. This attire surprised Li Yan. Cultivators rarely carried their weapons outside, usually keeping them in their Storage Pouches. But this person clearly had a Storage Pouch at his waist. But then he saw the handsome young man looking affectionately at the woman beside him, and he understood. This was a deliberate dress-up. The woman was dressed in a yellow shirt, with a slender figure. Although she was not stunningly beautiful, she was pretty and charming. When the handsome young man glanced at her from time to time, she would lower her head shyly. The two seemed to be whispering, completely ignoring everyone else, looking like a couple in love.
A dozen steps away from the man with the curly beard were two people in black robes with their hoods covering their heads, hiding most of their faces. A gloomy aura emanated from them, making people feel a bone-chilling cold from a distance. The people around them kept a wide berth. Although the two black-robed people seemed to be together, they both kept their heads lowered and did not talk to each other, making them seem even colder. The spiritual power fluctuations from these two were very faint, making it difficult to see their cultivation level. Li Yan's Divine Sense, after cultivating the True Scripture of Gui Water, was already much higher than his peers at the Foundation Establishment stage, and he could judge that both of them were at the late Foundation Establishment stage.
On the other side was a young man and a hunchbacked old man, clearly a master and servant. The young man was tall, about twenty-three or twenty-four years old, with handsome features and a purple robe. He had a sorrowful expression on his face, and his cultivation was at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation. The most conspicuous thing about this person was his pale skin, but it was not the kind of paleness from sickness; it seemed as if he hadn't seen the sun for years. The hunchbacked old man stood with his hands hanging down by the side of the purple-robed young man, dressed in coarse linen clothes, carrying a bundle on his back, but with no Storage Pouch hanging from his waist. But the moment Li Yan saw this hunchbacked old man, his pupils couldn't help but shrink. He couldn't see through this old man's cultivation either, but the feeling he gave was even more dangerous than the man with the curly beard and the two black-robed men.
The moment Li Yan came out, besides the young couple who only glanced over, everyone else looked at Li Yan. Even the two black-robed men raised their heads slightly and looked over from under the brim of their hoods. However, after scanning Li Yan's cultivation level, except for the sorrowful-faced young man who nodded slightly at Li Yan, everyone else withdrew their gazes.
As Li Yan walked, he sensed his surroundings. Besides the seven people outside the main hall, he could also sense spiritual power fluctuations coming from two of the side rooms. The doors of the remaining side rooms were wide open. It was clear that some of the seven people in front of him had also been in the side rooms just now. As for the two rooms with closed doors and spiritual power fluctuations, they were probably cultivators heading east for teleportation. He had already inquired before coming. The Xuanqing Temple's Teleportation Formation could teleport ten people at a time, but it required a minimum of six people to activate. Including himself, there were only eight people here. It was clear that this was the number of people heading north.