Chapter 155: Chapter 151: The Fall of a Prodigy
Several weeks ago, at the very moment Du Youqian used his "Broken Water" Sword Intent to severely injure Du Ruyuan, the Guardian Envoy of the Taihe Sect, Xi Mengran’s soul was stirred by some unknown stimulus and awakened within the Soul-Imbued Jade.
No, "awakened" might not be the most appropriate word.
After all, it’s a soul. What is there to "awaken" or not? It’s not like she’s a living person.
A more accurate description would be that Xi Mengran’s soul had regained some activity, showed some reactions, and was able to engage in simple interactions with the outside world.
Of course, for now, the soul could only understand and convey very simple information, far from the point of regaining consciousness.
To use an analogy, it was like a person in a vegetative state for ten years who could finally respond to external stimuli with subtle movements like curling a finger, blinking an eye, or pursing their lips.
But to say this person could understand complex meanings or convey complex information? That was still a long, long way off.
However, this slight progress was enough to make Meng Xiao ecstatic.
He even volunteered to Du Youqian, declaring, "If people from the Taihe Sect come looking for trouble again, there’s no need for you to act, Fellow Daoist Yu. I’ll take care of them for you!"
What an incredible display of initiative!
It was enough to make capitalists weep, slave owners look on with envy, and the powers that be issue a formal commendation for his incredible initiative.
At this moment, Xi Mengran’s soul was still extremely fragile.
So, Meng Xiao settled down peacefully, patiently trying to establish communication with Xi Mengran in the secret chamber every day.
How patient was he? You might see the same level of patience from a young mother teaching her babbling child to speak.
Sometimes, Meng Xiao would even let her soul out, briefly exposing it to the air to stimulate its further awakening.
It was hard to say whether it was Meng Xiao’s patience that worked or the nourishment of the Spiritual Qi, but Xi Mengran’s soul rapidly grew stronger and more substantial.
Another month passed. Although she had yet to regain consciousness, had no idea who she was, and possessed not a single memory from her past life...
...she was already strong enough to remain outside the Soul-Imbued Jade for the time it takes an incense stick to burn, and could sometimes even understand fragments of the Ghost Cultivator methods Meng Xiao taught her.
Meng Xiao optimistically estimated that in another three to five years, her consciousness would recover enough for her to begin practicing the arts of a Ghost Cultivator.
And if he wanted to speed up this process, it would naturally require various Treasures of Heaven and Earth suitable for Ghost Cultivators.
For example, Hao Li Fragrance, White Ghost Grass, Purple Spring Returning Grass, Aixian Stone, and the like.
Although the extreme scarcity of Ghost Cultivators in the Nine Countries of Momenan Desert meant that the prices of these Treasures of Heaven and Earth weren’t too high...
...using them over many years would still amount to a considerable expense.
Therefore, Meng Xiao had recently taken to hovering around Du Youqian, hoping to find some task to do for him and then, as a matter of course, ask for a reward.
Having lived several lifetimes, Du Youqian was old and cun... I mean, deeply calculating, and had long since seen through Meng Xiao’s little scheme.
’But I really don’t have anything for Meng Xiao to do right now.’
’I can’t just deliberately provoke the Taihe Sect just to give Meng Xiao a reward and let him take action, can I?’
After much consideration, Du Youqian finally gave Meng Xiao a mission: return to the Sect and gather intelligence.
Meng Xiao had been too much of a homebody before, so his sources of information were limited.
Luo Jinyu’s and Gu Xiaofang’s Cultivation and status were too low for them to inquire about important intelligence.
His master, Feng Xiaoyi, certainly knew many secrets, but she wouldn’t tell Du Youqian everything.
So, after some thought, Du Youqian decided to groom Meng Xiao to be his intelligence-gatherer within the Sect.
In a few decades, once Gu Xiaofang’s Cultivation had risen, he could take over the job.
Meng Xiao was actually a bit frustrated. He thought to himself that he was at Foundation Establishment Perfection. Within the Sect, he was among the absolute top tier, second only to the Core Formation Ancestors... No, wait, excluding the True Inheritors... and also excluding the True Successor Candidates. Basically, the top tier.
’And he’s being sent to gather intelligence?’
’Isn’t that a gross misuse of my talents?’
But on second thought, all he wanted now was to live on safely and help Xi Mengran successfully transition into a Ghost Cultivator.
Considering this, the new job was actually a perfect fit.
Du Youqian, along with Fang Hua, shamelessly overstayed his welcome at the Shengxuan Sect for another month, finally waiting long enough for the special envoy from the Taihe Sect to arrive and preside over the promotion ceremony, thus satisfying his curiosity.
The ceremony was naturally grand and magnificent. The Shengxuan Sect paid no mind to the costs, going all out to make this once-in-a-millennium celebration as spectacular as possible.
At the end of the ceremony, the Taihe Sect’s envoy produced a special list. It contained numerous inheritances of skills, Cultivation Techniques, and Secret Techniques—all things that only a Third Class Sect or higher was permitted to possess—and allowed the Shengxuan Sect to choose from it.
This so-called promotion wasn’t just a nice-sounding title; it meant the Shengxuan Sect could possess a deeper foundation and claim a larger share in future resource allocation...
The benefits were numerous.
In reality, however, using a Cultivator who possessed Tier Three Cultivation Techniques as the qualification for a Sect’s promotion was not a very stable approach.
When that Cultivator died of old age, if the Sect had not nurtured a new Cultivator with Tier Three Cultivation Techniques, or produced a Fake Pill Cultivator, or even a true Core Formation Cultivator, then the Sect would soon be demoted.
During the demotion, the envoy from the Taihe or Holy Blood Sect would also take back the parts of the Sect’s Inheritance that a Sect of its fallen rank no longer deserved to possess.
In this process of gaining and losing, a sect actually stood to lose a great deal.
This was because what was bestowed was often a little less, and what was taken away was a little more—not because the rules dictated it, but because the people handling the process always had their own selfish interests.
But if any Sect encountered an opportunity for promotion, even knowing the risks ahead, who could resist letting their Sect ascend?
After all, the benefits were tangible and right in front of them.
As for being unable to produce a successor in a few dozen or a hundred years—well, that was a problem for a few dozen or a hundred years in the future.
Enjoy the ride first, and worry later!
~~~~~~~~
After observing the ceremony, Du Youqian bid farewell to the people of the Shengxuan Sect and, amidst their joy at seeing him go—as if sending off a plague god—returned to the Hundred Flowers Sect’s Blessed Land.
Luo Jinyu had successfully reached Foundation Establishment, which naturally called for congratulations.
For a Cultivator, successfully reaching Foundation Establishment was almost equivalent to a rebirth.
From then on, life would be different.
However, Luo Jinyu himself was quite stoic about it.
The person he wanted to catch up to was far, far ahead.
His successful Foundation Establishment was merely a small, intermediate victory.
He was still a long way from catching up to that person’s shadow.
After that, it was Cultivation, Cultivation, and more Cultivation.
Du Youqian also found the time to sneak away for a trip to the Chongzhen Sect’s Blessed Land, where he spent some time with the parents of his current "Yu Fei" identity.
In the Blessed Land, the elderly couple wanted for nothing, were nourished by Spiritual Qi, and only labored out of interest, so they were in excellent health.
They even looked a little younger than they had a few years ago.
Having lived several lifetimes, Du Youqian could find common ground with anyone.
So when he was with his parents of this life, it wasn’t as if they had nothing to talk about.
However, this ability to communicate was entirely based on Du Youqian giving up his own expressions and simply going along with whatever his parents wanted to talk about.
He could understand this pair of parents, but they could never truly understand him.
It was a somewhat sad thought, but as long as neither side acknowledged it, they could get along harmoniously.
At least the elderly couple was happy from the bottom of their hearts to have their son’s company during this time.
And for Du Youqian, keeping them company wasn’t a chore; he could even nourish his Sword Intent while making small talk...
In a flash, another year passed.
Du Youqian was not far from reaching the Foundation Establishment Fourth Layer.
He could sense that his breakthrough would not face any bottlenecks.
Instead, it would happen quietly and effortlessly.
So when Meng Xiao, acting as the Sect’s messenger, delivered an Elixir meant to help break through to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, it wasn’t some desperately needed aid for Du Youqian. It was merely a gain equivalent to less than a thousand Spiritual Jade.
Du Youqian, now flush with wealth, no longer thought much of a thousand Spiritual Jade.
As for why the Sect would so kindly gift him such a precious Elixir, the reason was simple. Meng Xiao told him frankly that it was a reward for suppressing Du Ruyuan with three moves of his sword.
In the secret chamber, Meng Xiao reported the intelligence he had gathered in the Sect over the past year.
"Bai Shaofeng has fallen," Meng Xiao said.
Du Youqian was stunned.
Even though he didn’t usually pay much attention to news from within the Holy Blood Sect, he knew that name.
A Core Formation Lord had once commented:
"This generation has over twenty True Successor Candidates."
"Which three will obtain the True Inheritor Identity?"
"No one can say for sure; even the Ancestors find it hard to predict."
"But if the rules for this generation were changed so that only one person could become a True Inheritor..."
"...then without a doubt, that person would be Bai Shaofeng."
"It could only be him."
"How could he have fallen? I don’t believe anyone could have killed him," Du Youqian said, finding it incredible.
Meng Xiao replied, "It’s said he suffered a cultivation deviation during seclusion. By the time he was discovered, it was already too late."
Du Youqian shook his head, still in disbelief. "A prodigy like him, who could practically suppress his entire generation of peers—you’re telling me he suffered a cultivation deviation? Do you believe that?"
Meng Xiao stroked his beard. "Fellow Daoist Yu, whether you or I believe it doesn’t matter. In any case, the Sect’s upper echelons believe it, and so do the other disciples in the Sect."
Du Youqian’s mind was exceptionally strong, but even he felt an immense shock upon hearing such news.
Just then, Meng Xiao added in a low voice, "Actually, I had already guessed he would fall. I just didn’t expect it to be in this manner."
Du Youqian’s head snapped up, and he stared at him. "What do you mean?"
Meng Xiao gave a somewhat helpless smile. "This is just my own wild speculation, Fellow Daoist Yu, so don’t take it too seriously. Anyway, I happened to come across some information and discovered that over the past few thousand years, a figure like Bai Shaofeng—someone who could suppress their entire generation—has appeared every few centuries. Sometimes they’re a disciple of the Holy Blood Sect, sometimes the Taihe Sect. In rare cases, they emerge from other sects."
"But without exception, all of them ended up falling before they could form their Golden Core. Some suffered cultivation deviations, some had accidents in Secret Realms, some disappeared while exploring dangerous lands..."
Something clicked in Du Youqian’s mind. He felt like he had faintly grasped a clue.
