Chapter 173: Chapter 169: I Can Grant You a Foundation Establishment Pill, but the Price Is...
"What? The Shangqing Purple Qi Divine Pill Creation Technique?" Sect Leader Jin shot up from his throne in shock.
Ma Chongyu chuckled inwardly.
This Sect Leader Jin was always putting on airs, so prim and proper. It was rare to see him lose his composure like this.
’Then again,’ Ma Chongyu thought, ’my reaction wasn’t much different when I first heard the news.’
"Indeed," Ma Chongyu said. "That Guardian Envoy told me..."
After Ma Chongyu recounted the story Du Youqian had told, Sect Leader Jin’s eyes seemed to well up with tears. He sighed longingly. "Junior Qiu... we’ve wronged him all these years. For the Sect, he truly gave his all, until his very last breath."
Shaking his head, Sect Leader Jin asked, "Did that Guardian Envoy tell you where Junior Qiu’s remains are? Junior Qiu is a great hero of the Sect. We must bring his remains back for a proper burial."
Ma Chongyu’s expression turned strange, and he began to stammer.
Only after Sect Leader Jin repeatedly pressed him did he say, "That Guardian Envoy was evasive and wouldn’t give me a straight answer. I suspect that, since he is a man of the Demon Sects, he has likely refined the bones of my wretched disciple into a Demon Artifact..."
Sect Leader Jin froze, then beat his chest and stomped his feet. "What are we to do! Junior Qiu performed a great service for the Sect, and yet we can’t even bring back his remains!"
He cried and lamented, yet never once mentioned settling the score with that Guardian Envoy.
Ma Chongyu felt a wave of contempt, but his anger quickly deflated. ’If I were in the Sect Leader’s position, I certainly wouldn’t tear all face with a Guardian Envoy from the Demon Blood Sect over a dead hero.’
’The dead... well, a little injustice done to them doesn’t matter much.’
’They’re already dead, after all.’
’The living are what’s important, right?’
After wailing for a while, Sect Leader Jin asked with concern, "This Cultivation Technique, can it be taught to all of our Sect’s True Inheritors?"
Ma Chongyu shook his head. "No, that Guardian Envoy was very clear. He would only pass it to Shen Miao."
Sect Leader Jin thought for a moment, his eyes suddenly brightening. He asked, full of hope, "Then did he make Shen Miao swear an oath not to pass it on to others?"
Ma Chongyu grinned knowingly. "That, he did not."
"HAHAHAHA!" Sect Leader Jin’s booming, bell-like laughter nearly blew the roof off his personal chambers.
Everyone nearby turned to look, wondering what could have made the Sect Leader so happy.
After laughing for a while, Sect Leader Jin instructed, "This matter must be kept secret for now. Several Supreme Elders are still in seclusion. In a while, once everyone has come out, we will meet and discuss how to proceed."
Ma Chongyu nodded. "Yes."
’A meeting like that would definitely be a summit of the upper echelon, those at the Foundation Establishment Realm and above.’
’Those at the Qi Cultivation Realm, even True Inheritors, would have no say in a matter like this.’
After Ma Chongyu left, Sect Leader Jin sat alone for a time, slowly pouring tea and sipping it by himself.
At times he would smile, and at others his brow would furrow.
After a while, he stood up again and paced back and forth in the room.
After a long moment, he finally left his chambers and had a disciple handling Miscellaneous Tasks outside summon the Hall Master of the Soul Calming Hall.
Before long, the Hall Master of the Soul Calming Hall, Elder Xi Yingran, hurried over and bowed. "Sect Leader, for what reason have you summoned me?"
Sect Leader Jin’s tone was casual, as if discussing some trivial household matter. "Elder Xi, how many Life Soul Plates are currently in the Soul Calming Hall?"
Xi Yingran froze for a second. After quickly gathering his thoughts, he replied, "The plates of all True Inheritors and Inner Disciples from the last eight thousand years are there. Also included are those of our Sect’s seniors—Elders and Supreme Elders who did not start as True Inheritors or Inner Disciples—and all our contemporary disciples. The total number should be around 800,000."
Sect Leader Jin said in a nonchalant tone, "A few decades ago, I had a junior, a True Inheritor named Qiu Yuanqing. His Life Soul Plate should still be in the Soul Calming Hall, correct?"
Xi Yingran replied, "Of course it is. However, Junior Qiu’s Life Soul Plate cracked long ago, proving his death. So that plate has been moved to the side hall."
Sect Leader Jin stared at him, his gaze stern and piercing. "Are you sure?"
Xi Yingran was taken aback. "Sure about what?"
"Sure that his Life Soul Plate has cracked."
A flicker of unease crossed Xi Yingran’s face. "Of course I’m sure."
"Go and check again."
Xi Yingran gave a dry laugh. "Yes, I’ll go and confirm it right away."
Back at the Soul Calming Hall, a beautiful female disciple was walking out from within.
Xi Yingran stopped her and asked casually, "Ju, I remember a few years ago, you were the one who organized the Life Soul Plates of all the True Inheritors, Inner Disciples, Elders, and Supreme Elders who have fallen in the last century and moved them to the side hall, correct?"
The female disciple answered respectfully, "Yes, that was indeed me."
"Then, let me ask you, did you notice anything unusual when you were organizing the Life Soul Plates?"
The female disciple blinked, wondering if the Hall Master had taken the wrong Elixir. ’Unusual, you say? What do you mean?’
"For example, were there any plates that hadn’t cracked?"
The female disciple answered swiftly, "No, I checked them myself. All the Life Soul Plates were cracked."
"Alright, you may go," Xi Yingran said with a wave of his hand.
Watching Xi Yingran’s retreating back, the female disciple suddenly felt a pang of guilt.
’Could the Hall Master have heard some rumor?’
The female disciple pouted.
’I didn’t do anything wrong. I just took a peek at Elder Qiu’s Life Soul Plate to see if it was cracked and told someone, and I got 10 Spiritual Jades for it. They wouldn’t come after me for earning a little extra on the side, would they?’
’That woman, Li Ying, was probably a Demoness from a Demon Sect... but I didn’t leak any Sect secrets or harm the Sect’s strength. The higher-ups wouldn’t bother investigating such a trivial matter, right?’
Xi Yingran dawdled in the hall for a while longer before going back to report to Sect Leader Jin.
"Sect Leader, I have checked. Junior Qiu’s Life Soul Plate has indeed cracked."
Sect Leader Jin nodded majestically. "I know. I just had you confirm it because of certain matters. By the way, don’t tell anyone else about this."
"Yes," Xi Yingran thought, ’As if I’d tell anyone about something so bizarre.’
~~~~~~~~~~~
Du Youqian didn’t know much about the properties of Life Soul Plates.
This was a blind spot in his knowledge.
In fact, very few Cultivators would deliberately study the characteristics of Life Soul Plates.
If he had thought of it, if he had taken precautions in advance.
Some things might have developed differently.
The outcome might have been better, or it might have been worse.
But in this world, there are no ’what ifs’.
At this moment, he had just finished explaining a section of the Shangqing Purple Qi Divine Pill Creation Technique to Shen Miao and sent him off to comprehend it on his own.
After Shen Miao had expressed his heartfelt gratitude, Du Youqian added, "By the way, Shen Xiaoyou, you’ve been at Qi Cultivation Perfection for some time now. Aren’t you planning to attempt Foundation Establishment?"
Shen Miao could only force a bitter smile. "This junior is still in line waiting for a Foundation Establishment Pill. I don’t know when it will be my turn!"
Du Youqian gave a playful smile. "This seat finds you to be a man of fine talent and quality. Moreover, this seat shares a tangled fate with that Fellow Daoist Qiu. How about this: you become this seat’s disciple, and this seat shall grant you a Foundation Establishment Pill?"
Shen Miao swore, he was truly shaken.
That was a Foundation Establishment Pill, after all.
The Sect was often short of them. Sometimes it took a year, sometimes even several years, to obtain just one.
If you were to buy one from a Marketplace outside, it would cost at least 400 to 500 Spiritual Jades, and even then, it was often unavailable at any price.
You would usually have to pay an extremely high premium to get your hands on one.
He remembered a senior brother once half-joked, "The path of the Dao is hard. Sometimes you have to give something up to get something back. If a Foundation Establishment Pill were the reward, I’d even be willing to serve as a Furnace Cauldron for a Demoness from the Jinjiang Sect (a Third-class Demon Sect in the Han Kingdom) for a year."
"If they threw in a Spiritual Artifact, I’d even do it for a male demon."
When he was younger, Shen Miao had scoffed at those words.
But as he grew older and the sixty-year age limit for Foundation Establishment drew ever closer, fear and doubt often boiled within him.
While he still didn’t agree with his senior brother’s words, he had come to understand them a little more.
But what he had to do now wasn’t to become a Furnace Cauldron for some male or female demon.
It was merely to accept a master.
’Although this Guardian Envoy is a Demon... after interacting with him, I feel he’s actually a respectable person.’
’Demon Sect or not, it doesn’t really matter.’
Shen Miao could hear his own heavy breathing. HUFF, HUFF.
He could hear his own heart pounding like the wild war drums of a barbarian tribe. THUMP, THUMP.
’I really want that Foundation Establishment Pill, but...’ He shook his head with great difficulty, his voice hoarse. "I’m afraid I cannot obey. This junior has only one master, surnamed Qiu, with the given name Yuanqing. In this life, this junior does not intend to find a second."
Du Youqian smiled faintly. "That is up to you. But if you don’t become my disciple, you’ll have to pay a different price for this Foundation Establishment Pill."
Shen Miao felt as if his breathing had hitched. "What price?"
Du Youqian’s smile was like the temptation of a devil. "Listen closely..."
~~~~~~
There are Nine Countries in Momenan.
Two First-class Sects and seven Second-class Sects each reside in one of these countries.
If a country’s leading sect belongs to the Demon Sect Camp.
Then, a Fourth-class Sect, also from the Demon Sect Camp, would be responsible for dealing with the Mortal Realm and acting as the Immortal Sect behind that mortal nation.
For example, the Yan Kingdom, where the Holy Blood Sect is located, and the Jin Kingdom, where the Heavenly Emotions and Oceanic Resentments Sect resides.
If a country’s strongest sect is from the Profound Sects Orthodox, then the Immortal Sect behind its Mortal Realm also belongs to the Profound Sects Orthodox Camp.
For example, the Wu Kingdom, where the Chongzhen Sect is located, and the Han Kingdom, where the Lingxiao Sword Pavilion resides, are both like this.
"Being sent to garrison the Mortal World is, of course, a thankless task for us Cultivators. The Spiritual Qi is almost non-existent, and despite meditating diligently every day, our Cultivation still regresses. Although we don’t need to govern the country, we still have to pay attention to the court and maintain a balance."
"Demon Cultivators often stir up wars in the mortal nations for their own selfish desires, to refine Demon Artifacts. If we discover any signs of this, we must report it to the Lingxiao Sword Pavilion in time to prevent widespread devastation..."
"Grand-master, let me interrupt. What if a Core Formation Ancestor from the Demon Blood Sect wants to refine a Demon Artifact?"
"This... We True Cultivators of the righteous Dao naturally do not fear powerful enemies. If you discover such a thing, you must burn it into your memory. Cultivate diligently from now on, and even if you reach the Core Formation Realm yourself, or an even higher Realm, you must still remember it well."
"Just remember? And do nothing?"
"The Celestial Dao has its own plans. There is no need for us to interfere."
"...Grand-master, I will remember."
Ma Chongyu asked, puzzled, "Why have you suddenly requested to go garrison the Mortal World?"
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