I Became an Immortal in the Mountains - Chapter 5: The Hidden Treasure of Beiquan Mountain

Outside the imperial capital of Da Qian, at a secluded royal estate.

A man and a woman sat in a lakeside pavilion, listening to the gentle patter of rain.

The young woman, elegant and serene, wore a palace robe draped with a light white shawl. Her delicate features held a quiet charm, enhanced by the single silver hairpin adorning her styled bun. While not strikingly beautiful, her presence exuded a unique, graceful aura.

She moved with practiced ease as she prepared tea, calm and composed.

Across from her sat a young man dressed in fine robes. Handsome and dignified, his heaving chest betrayed the storm of emotions he was trying to suppress.

“Who is it?” he asked, voice tight with tension.

“I am my father’s only daughter,” the woman replied calmly. “I have no interest in worldly affairs and was always destined to leave the mortal realm behind. Leaving behind a child… perhaps this is how I resolve my ties to this world.”

Her voice was light, like drifting clouds and wind. This was none other than Princess Li Miaoxuan of the Da Qian Dynasty.

The man’s eyes drifted to her slightly rounded belly. His gaze turned bloodshot.

“Junior sister… don’t you know how I feel about you? How could you… how could you…”

Li Miaoxuan poured him a cup of tea, her smile calm and distant. “Senior Brother Qin, please have some tea.”

Clang!

The teacup flew from his hand, smashing against the railing in a shower of porcelain shards.

Her calm demeanor only deepened his heartache.

“You won’t even give me a single explanation. I came all this way to see you, and you won’t even remove the Illusory Sky Hairpin you wore in our sect. Yet with him…? Am I, Qin Bojun, so easily cast aside in your eyes? Fine—bring him here! I want to see what kind of man could steal the heart of Lingxu Sect’s proudest disciple!”

Li Miaoxuan’s smile faded. Her voice cooled.

“Senior Brother Qin, since you’ve spoken so plainly, I will too. I’ll always remember your kindness and protection in the sect. But I, Li Miaoxuan, have chosen the path of cultivation. Matters of love and affection… let’s not speak of them again.”

You’re already pregnant, and now you’re saying that?

Qin Bojun’s anger surged. He stood abruptly, fists clenched. With a sharp clang, he drew the sword on the table and slashed sideways in a burst of rage.

Sword energy tore through the air and struck the lake, parting the water like a canyon. Rain exploded from the surface in a crashing spray.

He drew a deep breath, shot Li Miaoxuan one last look, and leapt away—his feet barely touching the surface of the water as he dashed across the lake, vanishing into the night.

Li Miaoxuan remained seated, gently lifting her teacup for a sip. She let out a faint sigh, brow creased slightly.

“I returned from the sect to sever worldly ties. But I didn’t expect that moment of enlightenment to spark a breakthrough. My hidden cultivation surged, and my Dao Heart was clouded. In the capital, I let down my guard—and someone used a subtle aphrodisiac on me during that moment of weakness.”

“An unwed pregnancy in the royal family is a scandal. Who knows how long I can keep this hidden…”

***

That night, under dark skies and a moon shrouded by clouds, Gu Yuanqing lay on his recliner, eyes turned to the heavens.

His mind entered the Mountain Observation state. He could feel every movement of the wind brushing across the hills.

The sensation was intoxicating. With each observation, his understanding of Beiquan Mountain deepened. The range of his perception grew ever wider—he could now faintly sense even the soldiers stationed at the mountain’s base.

Boom!

A bolt of thunder cracked through the sky, and the rain poured down in torrents, rushing from the distance to the mountain peak.

Raindrops the size of beans struck the mountain with a rhythmic pulse, soaking the earth.

Gu Yuanqing could feel it all.

As the rain hit his courtyard and began falling on him, the sensation intensified.

It was as though Beiquan Mountain had become his own body—and he, like a newborn gaining awareness, was learning to feel every part of himself.

The feeling grew stronger and more real, until suddenly, he broke through some unseen barrier. His awareness fully fused with the mountain.

Previously, observing the mountain had felt like watching a silent film. Now, he was inside it.

His consciousness expanded further—from the surface to the depths below. The illusory mountain in his mind transformed, changing from a flat image to a three-dimensional presence.

After a long while, he opened his eyes and looked to the west.

Through the rain, he saw the withered old servant quietly step out of the house, agilely leaping down the cliff to the base of a tree, and slipping into a cave.

Gu Yuanqing closed his eyes again. That once-inaccessible cave now appeared clearly in his mind.

There were five deep caves carved into the cliffside, each extending over a hundred meters into the rock.

The old man wielded a chopping blade. With each swing, he cleaved off massive chunks of stone, which he then pressed into nearby walls with bare hands.

“If he isn’t in the True Martial Realm, there’s no way he’d have this kind of strength. If I fought him now… I wouldn’t stand a chance.”

Just as this thought crossed Gu Yuanqing’s mind, the old man froze mid-swing. He looked around sharply, sensing something for a moment—then relaxed and resumed digging.

“What’s he looking for?” Gu Yuanqing wondered. He swept the area with his mind but found nothing unusual.

After watching for a while, he chuckled softly to himself. “Well then, let’s see what secrets lie within this mountain.”

With his upgraded perception, he projected his awareness into the cave wall, toward where the old man was digging.

It was a strange and unfamiliar sensation. At first, it felt like diving into deep water—his surroundings heavy, the pressure immense. But he adapted quickly.

His awareness moved slowly through the rock, compressed by the density of the earth. Still, within moments, he had searched a hundred meters in every direction.

Then, he pushed deeper—and suddenly, the pressure vanished.

A vast underground stone chamber appeared in his mind’s eye.

Gu Yuanqing’s spirit surged with excitement. “Could this be the hidden treasure of the Beiquan Sword Sect?”

He immediately enveloped the entire chamber with his consciousness. The first thing he noticed was a massive bookshelf, packed with all kinds of texts:

Movement techniques, palm strikes, fist styles, swordsmanship… categorized by type and school.

Joy overwhelmed him. His mind wavered, and he snapped out of the Mountain Observation state.

His breathing grew heavy. His heart pounded.

These were things he had always dreamed of but could never attain.

Taking several deep breaths, he struggled to calm himself. After a while, he reentered the Mountain Observation state and returned to the stone chamber.

It lay hundreds of meters beneath the surface. There was once a tunnel leading up, but it had collapsed about a hundred meters from the exit, buried in rubble.

The chamber was immense—nearly ten meters in both length and width. At its far end hung a portrait of an old man with an immortal’s aura, sword on his back. Below the painting was an offering table, upon which rested a short sword, no longer than three inches.

“That must be the secret sword,” Gu Yuanqing thought.

He focused on the blade but didn’t sense anything extraordinary about it.

On another wall, three longswords hung neatly. Beneath them, a weapon rack held a heavy iron spear and a large, rusted broadsword.

Further in was a stone bed and a few daily necessities, all covered in thick layers of dust.

After examining everything, Gu Yuanqing returned to the bookshelf, heart pounding.

“With these manuals, I can finally form the foundation of my cultivation technique!”

He couldn’t help but feel excited.