Qi Jiufeng was clever and bright. After entering the sect, he learned Taoist techniques and scriptures with a photographic memory. While it took others a year to grasp the basics and three to achieve minor accomplishments, he could do so in just one year. Sweet-talking and good at currying favor with his master, he thus became Wang Qingyang's favorite. When he turned twenty, Wang Qingyang ascended, passing the position of sect leader to his eldest disciple, Liu Yuanshan. Qi Jiufeng, who never liked this introverted, stubborn, and dull senior brother, began to cause trouble and challenge Liu Yuanshan after the master's death, never really accepting him in his heart.
Other disciples also felt discontent with the senior brother, so they banded together, hoping to force the senior brother to relinquish the position of sect leader. Liu Yuanshan, though honest and simple, had accepted an extremely formidable disciple, Zhang Zhenyue. This disciple, being outstanding in Taoist magic and cunning, with a sharp mind, helped Liu Yuanshan fend off Qi Jiufeng and the others' rebellion. However, because Liu Yuanshan was kind-hearted and did not wish to harm the fellowship among sect members, he only confined the three ringleaders—Qi Jiufeng, Zhao Baling, and Wan Liuzhi—in the back mountain to reflect on their mistakes. Qi Jiufeng, being a closed-door disciple, had learned a technique from the master that none of his fellow brothers knew—the external incarnation. He had previously created a puppet and transferred his incarnation into it, deceiving Liu Yuanshan and Zhang Zhenyue by confining the incarnation in the back mountain while his true body escaped!
Qi Jiufeng, after his escape, still couldn't let go. Relying on his familiarity with the sect, he sneaked back and stole the Tongxuan Sect's treasured Tongxuan Bright Mirror. Once the treasure mirror left the Heavenly Yin Pool, it triggered the protective prohibitions. It was immediately discovered, prompting Liu Yuanshan and Zhang Zhenyue to lead a pursuit. As Qi Jiufeng fled helter-skelter, Liu Yuanshan called out to him from behind,
"Ninth Junior Brother, please do not compound one mistake with another. This Tongxuan Treasure Mirror is a treasure of the Immortal Realm, lost in this world during a great battle between immortals in primeval times. Only a person with great fortune and opportunity can wield it. You lack the required destiny. Holding it in your hands will surely ruin your life. Be careful... you're risking everything for nothing, Junior Brother..."
Qi Jiufeng did not listen and laughed madly three times,
"Senior brother, stop deceiving me with words even children wouldn't believe. I want to see how it can harm me!"
...
Speaking up to this point, the Old Taoist Priest's expression was filled with regret and remorse as he sighed to his disciple,
"How I regret not heeding my senior brother's words..."
With the mirror in hand, Qi Jiufeng left the sect because he feared the Tongxuan Sect's pursuit. He hid with the treasure mirror, ducking east and west. After three months, he discovered the unusual aspects of the treasure mirror.
This Tongxuan Bright Mirror, during the ancient times, was held by an immortal lady who had a Pure Yin Body. The mirror, which she cultivated within her own immortal body, could bridge yin and yang and emit divine light. Wherever the divine light shone, it could seize people's souls and spirits, and during spell combat, it could also capture others' magical treasures and spiritual objects. It was extremely powerful.
Being nurtured from an Innate Pure Yin Body, it needed to absorb the primordial yin energy for nourishment. This treasure, being yin in nature, was most suitable for females to possess. Although men holding it would not harm their lives, prolonged possession would inevitably lead to disturbance by pure yin energy, gradually weakening one's yang energy. Depending on the depth of the holder's cultivation, the minor side effect would be a loss of masculine vitality, while the severe effect would require a reversal from male to female, transforming into a woman.
The founding ancestor of the Tongxuan Sect was a resolute and tough man. After obtaining the treasure mirror and recognizing its power, he traveled through various renowned mountains in this world. After much difficulty, he found an extremely yin place and nourished the mirror underground in the Heavenly Yin Pool, rarely carrying it with him.
Although Qi Jiufeng was favored by his master, he was not the person Wang Qingyang intended to be the sect leader, so naturally, he was not told the secrets of the mirror. Now, realizing the problem, he immediately and discreetly inquired around to find out about this ancient secret.
Qi Jiufeng began to regret his actions at that point and wanted to return the mirror to the sect. Still resentful towards Liu Yuanshan and not willing to back down after what had transpired, he firstly wandered in the Itinerant World with the mirror for a while, secretly searching for a way to shield this Immortal Treasure. Several years later, he indeed found a method: to find a female with a Pure Yin Body to keep the mirror in her body for nourishment,
"Considering that the immortal lady was a Pure Yin Body, nourishing it inside another Pure Yin Body could both sustain the treasure and shield its celestial secrets. Even Zhang Zhenyue with his acute deductions could not locate it then!"
He then began to search everywhere for a girl with a Pure Yin Body. After roaming outside for about a year, he finally came across Gu Shi Yi, who at the time was the young lady of the Gu Family from Chenzhou, a family of immortal cultivators. Though referred to as a noble family, they were only prominent because a hundred years ago a member reached the Nascent Soul Stage. That ancestor failed to overcome the Heavenly Tribulation when attempting Divinity Transformation and perished, but he left behind numerous Cultivation Techniques and Elixirs, allowing the Gu Family to flourish until today.