Chapter 78: Meeting Wu Zheng Again

After sorting through the remaining spoils, he carefully organized them into categories. Upon a meticulous count, Song Yan now possessed more than six hundred and fifty spirit stones, along with five mid-grade spirit stones. For a cultivator at the mid-stage of Qi Refining, this was undoubtedly a considerable fortune.

He had no intention of keeping all these spirit stones for himself. After some consideration, he decided to retain only three mid-grade spirit stones and a hundred low-grade spirit stones for emergencies. All the rest would be exchanged for cultivation resources. Only when these things were put to practical use for himself could he feel at ease.

“The most important matter now,” he said to himself, “is, on the one hand, to diligently cultivate spiritual power and break through to the seventh layer of Qi Refining, thereby entering the inner sect. On the other hand, it is to comprehend the Sword Intent…”

To be honest, both goals seemed far off. For ordinary cultivators, breaking through to the seventh layer of Qi Refining usually took five to seven years. Now, having grasped the budding form of the Dao Mind and obtained a trace of intangible spiritual intent from the Unmoored Boat, plus having refined the essence of Wind and Thunder, the Dao Seed beneath the Sword Mansion was already quite full. Though he had no means of comparison, he guessed that his rate of absorbing spiritual energy was now nearly on par with the “geniuses” of the inner sect who possessed dual spiritual roots.

“If so, perhaps three or four years would be enough to reach the seventh layer of Qi Refining?”

“As for Sword Intent…”

He planned to devote more time each day to practicing the sword techniques recorded in the treatise. Do what he could, and leave the rest to fate.

He felt no anxiety.

In the days that followed, Song Yan settled into a disciplined routine of cultivation, channeling spiritual energy, practicing swordplay, and, whenever time permitted, honing the Five-Star Pulse Technique.

Whenever he ventured out, he kept an ear to the winds within the sect, mainly out of concern that the matter of him slaying Dan Zifeng might come to light. News of Dan Zifeng’s death had indeed sparked some discussion, though the atmosphere was surprisingly cheerful. The matter soon faded from people’s attention. After all, in such a vast sect, dying in a fight outside was simply a matter of skill. Dan Zifeng was not the child of any great cultivator, so no one would pursue the matter deeply. The false and borrowed tyranny died with him before the year’s end.

The calmness reassured Song Yan.

However, he heard another piece of news.

It was said that Senior Brother Lin Qing had, just a few days ago, passed the Path of Heart Refinement and successfully advanced to become an inner sect disciple.

“This Brother Lin is quite a character…” Song Yan thought to himself.

He had reached the seventh layer of Qi Refining early on, but never attempted the Path of Heart Refinement. He lingered in the outer sect for eleven years, only formally joining the inner sect recently.

Song Yan had originally assumed the Path of Heart Refinement was some difficult trial. But after spending more time in the sect, he learned that since its establishment, no one had ever failed it.

“I wonder what Senior Brother Lin was thinking.”

Curiosity aside, it was not his concern. Lin Qing was now an inner sect disciple, and whatever he had done before, there would always be outer sect disciples to analyze its subtleties.

One day, Song Yan left his cave and headed toward Tongchen Peak.

Dan Zifeng had not returned for more than ten days; during a routine inspection, the attendant disciples discovered his life lamp had gone out and reported it to the stewards of Tongchen Peak.

Disciples dying outside was all too common.

However, the Affairs Hall needed a new person to take over his duties.

This person, Song Yan knew. Or rather, had seen before.

In the Affairs Hall, Wu Zheng and the attendant disciple assisting him greeted Song Yan together.

Wu Zheng, cheerful as always, still wore the look of a genial old man.

Song Yan vaguely recalled that when they explored the cave of the rogue cultivator Wu Shu together, Wu Zheng had only been at the sixth layer of Qi Refining. Perhaps, after lingering in the mid-stage for so long and gaining some harvest from the cave, he had quickly broken through upon returning to the sect, entering the late stage of Qi Refining. He had then advanced to the inner sect around the same time as Lin Qing.

“Junior Brother Song, I’ve been waiting for you,” Wu Zheng said with a hearty laugh, patting his shoulder. He seemed completely unconcerned that Song Yan had used a false name during their previous expedition.

“The spirit items sent from Xuanyuan Sect are truly tempting!”

Wu Zheng spoke without any hint of inner sect superiority, instead joking in a friendly manner.

“If you’d come a few days later, I might not have been able to resist and would have swallowed them all up, which would have been a terrible mistake, hahahaha…”

Song Yan smiled, though his thoughts drifted to Wei Dao. He said nothing.

With the attendant disciple as a witness, they jointly inventoried the “apology gifts” from Xuanyuan Sect.

It was indeed a generous amount: two hundred low-grade spirit stones, ten bottles of Yellow Sprout Pills, three sets of Small Spirit Gathering Arrays, and even a small bottle of special pills.

Three pills per bottle, lake-blue in color, emitting a faint glow.

“Condensing Spirit Pills?” Song Yan exclaimed.

Condensing Spirit Pills were among the mainstream pills used by Qi Refining cultivators. Compared to Yellow Sprout Pills, they were more suited for breaking through bottlenecks.

In the world of cultivation, genuine “breakthrough pills” that increased the success rate of advancing realms were rare and not available to everyone. Most Qi Refining cultivators, confronted with bottlenecks, could only rely on accumulated spiritual power to attempt breakthroughs again and again.

If lucky, they broke through the realm.

If unlucky…

They had to recuperate and wait for another chance, repeating the process until success.

Condensing Spirit Pills, though not true “breakthrough pills,” possessed potent medicinal power. When taken near bottlenecks at the later stages of Qi Refining, they could barely provide some aid.

A bottle of five Condensing Spirit Pills could fetch forty spirit stones or more if well made.

These three pills, being from Xuanyuan Sect, were of exceptional quality.

No wonder Dan Zifeng had tried so hard to pocket them for himself.

If all were exchanged for spirit stones, it would total nearly five hundred…

Little did anyone know, Shen Yu’s original intention was to secretly secure a spiritual vein for himself and his family. Unexpectedly, things spiraled beyond his control, and he genuinely feared that the Dongyuan Sect hotheads would storm Xuanyuan Sect’s gates at the slightest provocation.

To settle matters peacefully, they sent gifts of the highest quality.

Besides cultivation items, there were also some “unofficial histories of the cultivation world,” “Festival of Flowers invitations,” and other trivial knick-knacks.

“Junior Brother Song, take care.”

“Farewell.”

Song Yan left the Affairs Hall, pondering how to best use this trove of spirit items and resources.

“How wonderful it feels to have spirit stones.”

This “cultivation subsidy” from Xuanyuan Sect had truly elevated his assets to their peak.

“All this is thanks to those elders in the sect who supported their peers, and to the Dongyuan Sect’s leader…”

“Especially Elder Xu Ziqing and the Sect Master.”

Song Yan knew well that their intervention was likely not for him personally.

But actions speak louder than words.

He felt deep gratitude.

Thinking of his mysterious sect master, he could not forget that sword, vast and shrouding the heavens.

It stirred his soul.

He was also curious—what kind of person was the sect master, really?

Lost in speculation, he made his way toward the Spirit Source Market.

He hoped to sell off some surplus magical tools and sundry items soon.

With the new year approaching, many cultivators would be hard to find, which could prove troublesome.

…

Special thanks to the readers: Night Qinghuan, Blitz Assault, Floating Dream Yu, Tai Bu Daren, Shendai Youji, IIIIII, 20190614222248570, 20180728230907695, 160121134928419, 20221025212027479, 20190506165454307 for their monthly ticket support! Thank you all for your recommendations and subscriptions! Much appreciated!