Born with immortal seed

Chapter 543 Kill two birds with one stone

Through soul-searching of the cultivators in the Demon Cave, Bai Zichen already knew that the mastermind behind the abduction of Huo Feiyan and the hiring of bandits to kill, burn, and plunder on Qingfeng Sect's territory was Xingxiu Hai.

Those two dens of iniquity were merely pawns on the surface, and he has already uprooted them completely, but that's far from enough.

Whether they are the masterminds behind it or the sects of the Myriad Star Islands who are the executors, they will all pay a heavy price.

They came specifically to target him, and Huo Feiyan, as his disciple, was implicated.

"This disciple's progress is slow, and I am unable to share the burden with Master. These matters still require your personal attention... When I have achieved a certain level of cultivation in the future, my second senior brother and I will act together to avenge my third senior sister."

Ma Ruoxi had a resolute expression and dark skin, which contrasted sharply with the snow-white skin of the female cultivators.

His clear eyes held a wildness, and when he spoke of revenge, there was an undisguised cruelty in his eyes. He was also filled with longing for the unknown battles.

"If you have this intention, then Feiyan will not have wasted her time as your fellow disciples, and she will not have failed my requirements for you back then: to respect your hometown and be of the same blood."

Bai Zichen nodded slightly with some satisfaction. Although this disciple was a woman, she was not lacking in the indomitable spirit of a sword cultivator.

"How has your swordsmanship improved over the years? And what is your current realm of Returning to Truth?"

"This disciple is dull-witted. After mastering the Sword Qi Thunder Sound Technique, I have made no further progress and have not even grasped the basics of refining swords into threads. Senior Brother Li formed his core more than ten years earlier than me. When he formed his core, there was a thunder god phenomenon on Thunder Cliff, and all the Thunder Sound Bamboo grew a bit... But twenty years ago, when Senior Brother was trying to break through to the middle stage of Core Formation, he forcibly evolved a dual thunder technique to help him break through the bottleneck. As a result, the thunder technique went out of control, and his dantian and sea of ​​qi were severely damaged."

When Ma Ruoxi mentioned this incident, she was still somewhat frightened. Who could have imagined that the most dangerous experience among the Core Formation True Persons of the Qingfeng Sect in the past hundred years was caused by her own excessive eagerness and recklessness?

"Fortunately, Senior Brother Li has perfected the Nirvana Indestructible Body cultivation. At the critical moment, he locked up his vital essence and protected his internal organs, preventing himself from turning into charred remains. In recent years, he has been in seclusion to recuperate and restore his foundation to its full strength."

"Haste makes waste. All thunder magic in the world harms the user before it harms others. I warned him long ago not to think he could compare with the Holy Son of the Five Thunder Sect just because he has a thunder spiritual root. He has an innate thunder spiritual body, his body can transform into divine thunder, and he is not afraid of the backlash of thunder magic. He is different from the general thunder cultivators."

Bai Zichen sighed. Among the four disciples, Li Guizhen had the highest spirit.

As a child, he left his hometown and traveled across several states to the Qingfeng Sect, which was just beginning its ascent.

Despite having a lightning spiritual root, she wholeheartedly wanted to become Bai Zichen's disciple, rather than the seemingly more suitable Ancestor Ge Cang.

Throughout the journey, they maintained their own ideas and were not swayed by external factors.

With the help of the thunderous power accumulated over millions of years at Tianlei Cliff, he smoothly cultivated to the peak of Foundation Establishment and, with lofty ambitions, aimed to achieve the theory of alchemy and perfectly form his core.

After reaching the Core Formation stage, Li Guizhen, who had high expectations of himself, began to get impatient as he remained stuck at the bottleneck of the mid-stage Core Formation.

He disregarded Bai Zichen's instructions, convinced that with his unwavering courage and his philosophy of alchemy that could save lives and even the dying, he might find a one in a hundred chance to break through his bottleneck using the violent divine lightning.

Unfortunately, it still failed, and instead, it cost more time to act on impulse.

Bai Zichen could vaguely sense Li Guizhen's thoughts, which were hiding a desire to compare himself with Ge Cang. At the same age, Senior Brother Ge was already in the mid-stage of Core Formation.

If you don't want to fall behind, you have no choice but to take a risk.

What Li Guizhen didn't know was that Ge Cang was not just a simple person with a Wood-type Heavenly Spiritual Root; his talent in comprehension was truly unparalleled.

Regardless of the Cantong Qi, the Five Crystal Glazed Body, or the Yuan Yang Divine Thunder, which are all extremely difficult cultivation techniques, Ge Cang has cultivated them all to a very high level while maintaining his cultivation level.

Even without the Dingqi Ge (a type of ancient Chinese text), they had all cultivated to the fourth volume of the Cantongqi.

He cultivated the Five Crystal Glazed Body to the fourth level, the Glazed Fire God Body, achieving a level comparable to that of Ancestor Qingfeng.

In his hands, the Primordial Yang Divine Thunder reached its highest level, creating the Qian Tian Primordial Yang Divine Thunder Net, which was his greatest asset when he dominated the cultivation world of Liang Kingdom during his Core Formation stage.

This level of comprehension is astonishing, even among the top sects in the Central Region.

There is no doubt that he is a holy son of a sect.

In addition, Ge Cang's understanding of the true meaning of the Great Dao was not at the Core Formation level at all, but rather at the Nascent Soul level long ago.

The Dao of Illusion and Reality, a dual truth, uses thunder magic to conceal the true nature of wood giving birth to all things, deceiving everyone.

Once one has survived the Heavenly Tribulation and achieved the Nascent Soul stage, the path of the Great Dao becomes increasingly complex, blurring the lines between reality and illusion, making it impossible to discern which path is genuine and which is false.

In Bai Zichen's view, Li Guizhen was excellent in terms of talent and temperament, and the fact that he was able to obtain the Xuanming One Qi Formless Divine Thunder that matched his own when he went out to travel showed that his fortune was also of the highest quality.

Compared to Senior Brother Ge Cang, they are like fireflies compared to the bright moon, not even in the same league.

Li Guizhen is at least at the Core Formation stage, but has the potential to reach the Nascent Soul stage.

For Ge Cang, the Great True Monarch realm was a level that could be reached step by step; only the Divine Transformation realm was the real challenge.

If it weren't for Bai Zichen's emergence, Ge Cang would have been the Northern Region's greatest hope for having its own Nascent Soul cultivator.

Li Guizhen's choice of such a target to catch up with is indeed somewhat unrealistic and ambitious, and may even harm himself.

"There's no need to rush if you haven't broken through the sword-refining-silk technique yet. I will be staying at the sect for a long time this time, and I will guide you in your swordsmanship in the future."

Bai Zichen thought for a moment, then took out a Thunder Sound Sword and erased the traces of his own refining.

"This sword is a gift for you when you reach the Core Formation stage. As a sword cultivator, how can you not have a fine flying sword?"

Having received the Ruomu Sword from the Shenmu Sect, he freed up a flying sword from his sword formation, which he then bestowed upon his disciple.

"Thank you for bestowing the sword upon me, Master. I will practice diligently and live up to your expectations."

Ma Ruoxi excitedly accepted the Thunder Sound Sword, both because she was happy to have obtained a third-tier flying sword and because of Bai Zichen's promise.

She spoke with some trepidation, fearing that her kendo achievements would be looked down upon.

After all, his master is a once-in-ten-thousand-years sword immortal, whose talent in swordsmanship is unmatched.

He mastered the art of refining swords into silk during the Foundation Establishment stage, attracting fourth-tier flying swords to him willingly.

As his disciple, no matter what achievements you make, you will feel ashamed when you compare yourself to him.

"By the way, the Gengjin essence you asked us to collect over the years has totaled seven jin and three liang, and I had the people from the Spirit Mine Hall seal it all away. In addition, thirteen Thunder Sound Bamboos have mutated in the bamboo forest on Thunder Cliff. This is mainly because the Bai family disciples have been unproductive in recent years, and there haven't been any new spiritual bamboos mutating and advancing for a long time."

After obtaining the flying sword, Ma Ruoxi connected it to these two matters and immediately reported it.

"well done."

With the memory of a Nascent Soul True Monarch, he could recall that Bai Zichen had discovered a Gengjin mine on Jinguang Mountain.

Because refining the essence of Geng metal into a flying sword can increase the lethality of a third-tier flying sword by several times, he casually gave the order.

Despite decades of mining, only a few kilograms of Gengjin essence have been obtained; this stuff is rare to begin with.

It is possible that even if tens of thousands of kilograms of Geng metal are used, only a single grain of Geng metal essence the size of a soybean can be found in the core area.

Such a quantity is enough to prove that this Gengjin mine is quite large.

He no longer cared much about the destructive power of the third-tier flying sword, but normal reforging only required a small piece. If the amount of Geng metal essence added was increased several times, the flying sword could break through its limits, and the probability of its spiritual sublimation would be greatly increased.

Even if the chances are still slim, at least they've gone from having no hope to having one in ten thousand.

For a cultivator who hopes to awaken his flying swords through the Cantong Qi and greatly increase the number of third-tier flying swords he possesses, the essence of Gengjin takes on an extraordinary significance.

This amount of material is enough to completely reforge the third-tier flying sword in his hand.

As for the reduced production of Thunder Sound Bamboo, it's not Ma Ruoxi's fault, nor is it the Bai family disciples' fault for being lazy and inattentive.

Since he left and no longer regularly applied the aura of the sacred beast, the Yi Mu Qing Shen Technique naturally lost its magical power and degenerated into the most ordinary spiritual plant spell.

He would be surprised if Thunder Sound Bamboo continued to be born under such circumstances.

"The essence of Geng metal will be delivered tomorrow. Lei Yin bamboo will be sent to the Star Gazing Pavilion when I give the order... By the way, how are my cousins?"

Before leaving Black Mountain, Bai Zichen issued a long-term mission in his personal capacity, offering 50,000 sect contribution points annually for taking care of the Thunder Cliff Hall.

The task recipients were none other than Bai Ziying and Bai Ziyu, a brother and sister.

Thanks to this long-term mission, their sect stipends were no less than those of a Core Formation cultivator.

However, among the Core Formation disciples mentioned by Ma Ruoxi, neither of the two names were present, which clearly shows that even sufficient cultivation resources could not make up for their lack of aptitude.

"Ziying lived to be 212 years old without any illness or pain, and she has only been gone for a short time... She was only at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment when she died, and apart from cultivating the Desolate God Stealing the Sun Technique, she did not take any longevity pills. She told me that she had lived a very happy life and had tried everything she could see and do. But since she had no chance to form a core anyway, why bother to linger for another 10 or 20 years?"

Ma Ruoxi realized that this report was no easy task, and said dryly.

"After Ziyu successfully completed his Foundation Establishment, he attempted to form his Core once, but failed. Fortunately, he stopped in time and did not deplete too much of his essence. The Spirit Plant Hall allocated three apricot plums to him, and he also purchased several longevity pills, which will give him several decades of lifespan. However, I heard him say last time that he was still not giving up and wanted to try again... The second Core Formation is much more dangerous. If he fails at his age, he will basically never be able to leave the meditation room."

“I didn’t expect that the foolish and clumsy Ziyu would go even further and still pursue the Great Dao… I won’t see him anymore. Later, you can transfer a Core Formation spiritual item and thirty-six high-grade spirit stones to his name in my name. Whether he lives or dies is up to his own fate.”

Even so, Bai Zichen still remembered this matter, wondering where he could obtain a Core Formation item that was even better than the Pure Spirit Jade Marrow.

It would be fine if he had no ambition, but since Bai Ziyu still aspires to reach even higher levels, he will definitely support him.

Ma Ruoxi readily agreed.

Although she did not hold a specific position in the sect, everyone respected her because of her status as a Core Formation True Person and a disciple of the White Ancestor.

This is a small matter that can be handled very easily.

"By the way, hasn't Senior Brother Ge returned yet?"

At the summit of Flaming Mountain, another fourth-tier spiritual land was also unused, Bai Zichen asked.

"Yes, Elder Ge has not returned to the sect, nor has any news been sent back."

Gun Gun slid down from his master's arms as he stood up, and grabbed two pieces of refining materials that were lying to the side, stuffing them into his mouth. Ma Ruoxi quickly picked up the black and white dumpling and followed closely behind him.

Bai Zichen frowned slightly. Senior Brother Ge Cang had also disappeared in the Central Region. Where had he gone?

I was thinking of going back to my sect to ask him about the Cantongqi, but it seems I'll have to learn it on my own again.

"Go back and inform all the Core Formation cultivators in the sect to come to me... but don't spread the news of my return to the sect, lest outsiders know that there are some things that are inconvenient to do."

Through Ma Ruoxi, I have learned most of what is happening within the sect.

However, one should not listen to only one person; one should also listen to the opinions of other Core Formation cultivators.

In addition, it is necessary to understand the situation in the entire northern region.

Ma Ruoxi has no official duties and is devoted to the way of the sword; you can't rely on him for outside information.

Over the next few days, Bai Zichen met with all the current Core Formation cultivators of the Qingfeng Sect.

Everyone was overjoyed at his appearance, as having a Nascent Soul True Monarch was extremely important to a sect.

It can be said that the entire Qingfeng Sect is living off the legacy of its two Nascent Soul ancestors.

However, everyone had different accounts of the current state of their sects and the situation in the cultivation world of the Northern Region.

Upon closer analysis, it's quite an interesting matter.

However, from Bai Zichen's perspective, he didn't care about the petty scheming of the cultivators below, as long as it didn't affect the normal operation of the sect and the smoothness of the selection path for disciples to advance.

"Let's put aside the overall situation in the Northern Region for now, but to have a stable rear in this chaotic world, at least one province needs to fully support the Azure Maple Sect. Otherwise, given the current number of new disciples, it won't be able to maintain the current overall treatment for a few years."

Bai Zichen stood on a huge map of the Liang Kingdom, his finger quickly moving away from the vast ice plains.

After lingering on Mount Wanshou for a while and knocking a few times, they moved to Mount Qi.

"Four Nascent Soul sects are too many. It would be in the sect's best interest to lose one or two..."

Bai Zichen had already learned from Qi Yue that two spirit plant masters from the Divine Wood Sect had arrived at Black Mountain ahead of schedule, but they hadn't even decided on a location to plant the spirit rice, so naturally they wouldn't hand over the seeds of Azure Dragon Spirit Rice to them.

Qi Yue was instructed to relay the message that the rice to be planted was of the fourth rank, and that they should first wander around the Black Mountain Range to see if there were any suitable spiritual fields.

At present, Qingfeng Sect only has third-tier spirit fields and has not even cultivated a single fourth-tier spirit field, mainly because they are reluctant to give up fourth-tier spirit land.

As long as you have the Breath Soil, there is no requirement that Azure Dragon Spirit Rice must be planted on a fourth-tier spirit field.

However, this spirit rice is too important; if we can provide the best conditions, we must do our best.

"Conquering Qishan not only yields a fourth-tier spiritual vein, but also resolves the dilemma faced by the Heavenly Principle Sect, allowing them to withdraw smoothly from Liang Kingdom. It can be described as killing two birds with one stone."

Bai Zichen quickly made a decision: to eliminate Qu Yang and his group, thus ending the history of the Holy Lotus Sect.

The conflicts within the cultivation world of Liang Kingdom can then be easily resolved.

With their enemies all dead and ample compensation provided, the Heavenly Principle Sect, now with a way out, had no reason to continue fighting to the death at Qishan and bleeding the enemy dry.

Of course, one must demonstrate sufficient strength to prevent the Heavenly Principle Sect from harboring any wicked thoughts.

(End of this chapter)