Since that's the case, He Kao didn't bother with formalities and said with Divine Thought, "Thank you!"
Mei Guyu asked again, "How do you plan to take it?"
He Kao replied, "I'll still borrow it in a private capacity."
Mei Guyu said, "Then you should ask Elder Li to find Elder Gu and tell him I've already agreed."
The words of such high-level practitioners are like encrypted messages; a few simple sentences contain all the underlying causes and effects, not needing to be spoken but understood by both parties.
How to take the Alchemy Cauldron varies with different identities.
He Kao already possesses the Tier Six Master Yan cultivation. According to the announcement released by the Ancestral Hall two years ago, he can choose to come forward openly, leading the Hidden Moth Lineage back to the Magic Sect.
This doesn't require him to expose the identity of "He Kao," only to publicly announce himself as Hidden Moth and respond to the Magic Sect's call; other matters will be endorsed by the Ancestral Hall.
He Kao planned to use a private identity to borrow it, indicating he temporarily didn't want to reveal his Hidden Moth identity or the existence of the Hidden Moth Sect, nor did he want to disclose his Tier Six cultivation.
Mei Guyu had him ask Elder Li to find Elder Gu, because Gu Chun is presently guarding the Immortal Pot Grotto Heaven, and He Kao can't contact Elder Gu directly, so he could ask Xiuyuan to pass on a message into the Grotto Heaven.
Gu Chun is not the Sect Leader of the Alchemy Sect; he is currently substituting to guard the Immortal Pot Grotto Heaven. For matters like this, he definitely can't make decisions on his own; after receiving the message, he must leave the Grotto Heaven to contact Mei Guyu for confirmation before the Alchemy Cauldron can be lent.
Mei Guyu herself is the Sect Leader of the Alchemy Sect; why not just lend it to He Kao directly, why make it so complicated?
Because Mei Guyu also didn't want to reveal her possession of Tier Seven cultivation; she still planned to stay in Qi Yuan, continuing her "work."
He Kao thanked her again, but Mei Guyu smiled and asked, "How do you plan to thank me?"
He Kao: "May I ask what you need me to do?"
Mei Guyu: "When can you take me to visit the Floating Colors Grotto Heaven?"
He Kao: "Anytime."
Mei Guyu: "There's no rush; you should first go find Elder Li."
At midnight, Li Xiuyuan walked up Dragon Scale Slope and saw He Kao already standing there waiting, slightly frowning, "What's so urgent that you have to meet me, an old man, in the middle of the night..."
Just as he said this, he was stunned, and then both of them exclaimed simultaneously.
Li Xiuyuan: "Fake body!"
He Kao: "Illusionary body?"
The so-called illusionary body uses Illusion Techniques to affect the perception of others, appearing as a True Man, capable of not only communicating but also handing over items—this actually utilizes the ability of Spiritual Sense Manipulation, making it indistinguishable to ordinary people.
With Li Xiuyuan's abilities, his refined illusionary body can even deceive high-tier sorcerers, capable of carrying and using Magical Treasures, almost considered a type of avatar.
Xingshen Sect's Tier Six Sorcerers have been revered as Illusion Masters since ancient times, naturally for a reason.
The limitations of the illusionary body are similar to He Kao's Yin Spirit, only appearing within the range of Divine Sense. Elder Li's true body should be somewhere in the mountain village, but he met He Kao here with his illusionary body.
He Kao had met with Elder Li multiple times on Dragon Scale Slope; whether the previous meetings involved an illusionary body is unknown, but this time he recognized on the spot that the elder was using an illusionary body.
However, the He Kao waiting here was not his true body either; this pair of old and little tricksters played their tricks today.
Hearing Li Xiuyuan's exclamation, He Kao smiled cheekily and said, "This can't be called a fake body, just a manifestation of the Yin Spirit, form without substance... far less exquisite than your illusionary body."
Li Xiuyuan: "I think it's much more brilliant than my illusionary body technique!"
The He Kao before him was not an illusion but a manifestation of the Yin Spirit. The unique Divine Technique of the Hidden E Technique is the Yin Spirit Travel. When He Kao became a Tier Six Master Yan, he could manifest the traveling Yin Spirit into a visible state.
The Yin Spirit manifestation may be visible but only has form without substance, considered a kind of Ah Piao. Even it cannot truly speak; previously, it just mimicked speaking while actually communicating remotely with Divine Thought.
Li Xiuyuan hadn't seen it before and didn't know what to call it, so he mentioned a fake body.
He Kao quickly said humbly, "How could it compare to your brilliant illusionary body technique? My Yin Spirit manifestation can be seen through by any Tier Three Sorcerer with Divine Sense. Even a sharp-eyed ordinary person with strong observation skills could spot the flaws."
Li Xiuyuan: "It still has its advantages."
The Yin Spirit's manifestation, though without substance, has its mysteries: it can teleport within the range of the true body's Divine Sense and possesses passive sensory abilities, such as sight and hearing.
Then the Elder looked at He Kao and said, "You could see through my illusionary body technique and manifest the Yin Spirit; have you broken through to Tier Six cultivation?"
He Kao: "Are you not surprised?"
Li Xiuyuan: "How could I not be? You nearly startled me a moment ago! Tell me in detail how you..." as he was speaking, he paused again, this time genuinely surprised because He Kao sent a Divine Thought detailing the experiences in the Illusion Realm.
Since ancient times, the Illusion Realm is spoken of sparingly; as long as the disciple does not wish to speak, the elder cannot inquire, but before Li Xiuyuan could even ask, He Kao himself had almost disclosed everything.
What he introduced was similar to what he told Mei Guyu, only omitting some unnecessary small details.
Li Xiuyuan was stunned for a moment, then took a long breath and said, "I see... what do you plan to do?"
He Kao: "I plan to keep it secret for now."
Li Xiuyuan pondered, "That's also fine... who else knows?"
He Kao: "Mei Guyu, Elder Mei."
Li Xiuyuan frowned: "Why were you so careless?"
He Kao smiled bitterly, "She was by my side when I broke through and was also protecting me."
Li Xiuyuan: "I've seen that you two have a good relationship, but I didn't expect it to be this good! How much of your affairs does she know?"
He Kao: "She knows almost everything. I told her what I just told you, including my Hidden Moth identity and the affairs of the Hidden Moth Sect... Elder Mei agreed to keep it secret."
Li Xiuyuan was taken aback again but then smiled and said, "Well, well, well, you've managed to win over an Elder, which is excellent!
Actually, even if you hadn't told me, I would advise you not to publicly return to the Magic Sect for now, because currently, I'm not confident that you can gain the unanimous approval of all the elders."
He Kao was surprised and said, "What do you mean by that, wasn't the Ancestral Hall publicly inviting me back to the Magic Sect and rebuilding the Hidden Moth lineage two years ago, can those words not count?"
Li Xiuyuan: "Two different matters, each moment is different! It's not that the Ancestral Hall's words don't count, but your representative identity has changed."
The words were explained through Divine Thought, involving the decision-making mechanism of the Ancestral Hall.
The Ancestral Hall has seven elders, and for ordinary affairs, just one elder can make a decision. But for matters affecting the foundation of the Magic Sect, all seven elders must decide unanimously, each having a veto right.
What are matters affecting the foundation of the Magic Sect? These are issues that impact the organizational form, decision-making rules, and sect regulations.
Back then, He Kao or Huang Xiaopang was merely a "wild" Hidden Moth, whose tracks were unfortunately discovered and safety threatened, so the Ancestral Hall publicly invited him to return to the Magic Sect and smoothly rebuild the Hidden Moth lineage, which was also the best way to quell the turmoil.
Any elder could make the decision, and other elders wouldn't oppose it.
But viewing it from another angle, what if He Kao had chosen to return to the Magic Sect at the time, what would his situation be? First, he would have to hand over the Insect Concealment Skill Secret Technique, revealing the secrets of the Hidden Moth to the Ancestral Hall, which would mean publicly disclosing his identity within the Magic Sect.
Without this, how could the Hidden Moth lineage be rebuilt?
The Ancestral Hall would definitely organize people to practice the Hidden Moth Skill and select and cultivate key inheritors among the entrants to build the sect framework as quickly as possible...
The dominion over rebuilding the Hidden Moth Sect couldn't fall into the hands of He Kao, a low-tier junior sorcerer, but would lie in the hands of the Ancestral Hall, more specifically, be divided among the high-level figures of the major Magic Sect.
There would certainly be various interests and calculations, the internal dynamics of the Magic Sect are also like the Jianghu, with experts displaying myriad tactics. He Kao has no advantage in such disputes, as he was still too weak, too immature.
There's sure to be assistance for him, but those plotting against him would only be more numerous.
Who can guarantee that he is the most outstanding and valued disciple of the Hidden Moth lineage? What if someone else's cultivation surpasses his and achieves greater accomplishments in Hidden Moth Skill? What if there is more than one such person?
He Kao's peculiarity also lies in that he is a Hidden Moth himself; by then, can he retain his Hidden Moth identity?
If he voluntarily "transfers" the Hidden Moth identity, he would become an inconspicuous, maybe even irksome, ordinary disciple; if he insists on retaining the Hidden Moth identity, the threats he faces would only multiply.
Even though He Kao now possesses Tier Six achievements, fully qualified to be in the Ancestral Hall, proving his excellence, these are hindsight insights, looking back to two years ago, no one could have predicted.
Therefore, at the time, the three elders did not suggest He Kao do that, but instead wait until he was capable of self-preservation, otherwise it would be akin to throwing a sheep into a wolf pack, only accelerating his demise, which would be irresponsible.
As for the Ancestral Hall's announcement, it was for outsiders, showing the Ancestral Hall's attitude, warning everyone not to trouble the Hidden Moth anymore, at least not openly, which also acted as protection for He Kao.
Several elders also had numerous protective measures for He Kao, such as clearing him of Hidden Moth suspicions, hinting to everyone that he's a secret disciple of a certain elder, even secretly intervening when he encountered danger.
Even with these precautions, if He Kao was unsuccessful or faced unforeseen circumstances, what could be done then?
Actually, the elders also have backup plans, because they had already obtained the Hidden Moth Skill inheritance from He Kao, and would just select other disciples to practice it and rebuild the Hidden Moth lineage.
If He Kao himself becomes accomplished, it would be the best outcome, and the three elders felt he was worth nurturing.
The facts proved that He Kao's performance even exceeded expectations! Not only did he recover the Floating Colors Grotto Heaven and rebuild the Hidden Moth Sect, but he has now become a Tier Six Master Yan, and if returning to the Magic Sect, he could directly stand equal with the elders of the Ancestral Hall.
However, this in turn led to a new issue.
**
