Chapter 164: Chapter 163: Thousand Rivers Secret Land
Wen Qingye collected a good amount of the Flame Spirit Gold Water. While plenty of it still floated in the Flame Spirit Pool, he got up and walked directly over to Guu Lei and Ren Hua.
More than a hundred people watched as Wen Qingye stepped out of the Flame Spirit Pool and slowly sat down cross-legged.
One breath passed.
Two breaths passed.
Dozens of breaths passed.
"Can we collect the Flame Spirit Gold Water now?"
Seeing that Wen Qingye had really left, the crowd exchanged glances, each seeing a flicker of eagerness in the others’ eyes.
The scramble for the Flame Spirit Gold Water erupted once more. Just as before, the crowd battled one another, all for a single drop.
...
The contest for the Flame Spirit Gold Water finally ended seven days later. Everyone had managed to gain something, but this particular struggle was a rare event in the history of Qig Mountain Academy—all because of Wen Qingye.
In the end, Wen Qingye had single-handedly occupied the entire Flame Spirit Pool, overpowering everyone in the Inner Courtyard. His strength was unparalleled, the absolute best among them. Had Wen Qingye not left, no one would have dared approach to collect the Flame Spirit Gold Water. For a time, his very name became taboo in the Inner Courtyard.
Wen Qingye mixed a vial of Flame Spirit Gold Water with Star Cold Water and consumed it, working to stabilize his cultivation. He spent nearly five days completely solidifying his cultivation at around the Refining Essence Tenth Layer of Heaven.
At that moment, Wen Qingye looked at his palm, a surge of joy rising in his heart. ’I can finally use the Spirit Fusion Secret Technique. And now that I have the Innate Grass, it means the scars on Zhang Xiaoyun’s face can be completely removed.’
At this thought, Wen Qingye tidied himself up and headed toward the Inner Courtyard’s main peak.
...
On the streets of Phoenix City, Little Yunshan dangled her legs, looking at the white and red fabric in her hands. Her large eyes sparkled with anticipation. ’I wonder what kind of clothes Sister Xiaoyun will be able to make.’
"Oof!"
Suddenly, Little Yunshan felt something catch her foot, and she stumbled forward. The fabric flew from her grasp. Just then, a figure blurred past and caught her.
Little Yunshan steadied herself and hurriedly said, "Thank you, thank you so much."
Yunshan looked up to see a figure dressed entirely in black. She couldn’t make out their face, but judging by their build, it was likely a woman.
"Little one, you should watch where you’re going," a hoarse, cold voice rasped from within the black robes.
Little Yunshan couldn’t help but shudder. She nodded. "I understand. Thank you."
Little Yunshan hurried over to pick up her things from the ground and prepared to head to the Xiang household.
"Wait, little one," the robed figure said, suddenly blocking Little Yunshan’s path. "How would you like me to give you a great opportunity?"
Yunshan froze, asking subconsciously, "An opportunity? What kind of opportunity?"
"Come with me. I will show you the vastness of this world. How would you like to experience the feeling of being revered by thousands?" the robed figure said after a pause.
The moment Little Yunshan thought of Wen Qingye and Zhang Xiaoyun, she quickly refused. "No, thank you. I..."
"Heh heh, little girl, I don’t like being refused. If you had just agreed, I might not have even wanted to take you. But now," the robed figure said, walking toward Little Yunshan, "no matter what you say, you’re coming with me."
Little Yunshan’s face turned deathly pale as she stumbled backward. "Why are you insisting on taking me? I’m still little, and my aptitude is no good..."
"Aptitude is something I don’t care about," the robed figure said lightly. "I happen to need someone to attend to my daily needs. You’ll do nicely. You’re a bit small, but you can be trained. Let’s go."
As the robed figure spoke, they grabbed Little Yunshan’s arm. The moment she tried to resist, her head swam, and she collapsed into the figure’s embrace.
In the blink of an eye, the empty street was silent. All that remained were scraps of red and white fabric; the people were gone.
「Qig Mountain Academy, Main Peak.」
"Is this news true?" Wang Tianming asked, his brow deeply furrowed.
Nie Qinglan replied with a curious expression, "It’s true. I looked into it. Wen Qingye really did cripple Jia Lu. The strange part is that the Jia Family went to great lengths to acquire an Eighth-Grade Pill, yet it failed to heal him."
Yann Shanjun stood by without speaking, but he chuckled to himself. ’This kid’s skill in the Alchemy Dao is so profound, he must have researched the human body extensively. If he’s the one who crippled Jia Lu, it’s perfectly normal that even a Ninth-Grade Pill couldn’t heal him, let alone an Eighth-Grade one.’
"Sigh... what are we supposed to do now?" Wang Tianming sighed, his brows knitting together tightly.
"In my opinion..."
Just as Yann Shanjun was about to step forward and speak, Wen Qingye walked in.
"Greetings, Deans." Wen Qingye cupped his fist to the three of them. ’It’s strange,’ he thought. ’Why are all three of them here today? Did something happen?’
"You’re just in time," Nie Qinglan said as she saw Wen Qingye enter. "We were just discussing your situation."
Wen Qingye was puzzled. "My situation?"
Nie Qinglan asked, "You remember your feud with Jia Lu of the Jia Family, correct?"
"I do," Wen Qingye nodded, not shying away from the subject.
Nie Qinglan said slowly, "He’s dead. He killed himself."
"Oh? So soon?" Wen Qingye smiled, seemingly unsurprised by the news of Jia Lu’s suicide.
The moment Jia Lu threatened to wipe out his entire family, Wen Qingye had marked him for death. ’That man is far too narrow-minded. Even if I had let him go, he would have definitely sought revenge.’
Wang Tianming said gravely, "The Jia Family has now publicly declared that they will demand justice from you. They’ve always been fiercely protective of their own, and Jia Lu was their Young Clan Leader. They won’t let this go easily."
Wen Qingye’s eyes narrowed slightly upon hearing this.
Wang Tianming deliberated for a moment before saying, "There’s no need to panic. I will submit a memorial to the throne on your behalf. Given your talent, I believe the current Emperor will be willing to protect you."
Even as Wang Tianming said this, he wasn’t confident. Wen Qingye might be a prodigy of Qig Mountain Academy, but he could hardly be considered one for the entire Celestial Martial Country.
Nie Qinglan shook her head helplessly, cutting straight to the heart of the matter. "That would only happen after Wen Qingye returns from the Thousand Rivers Secret Land. But getting out of there... it’s incredibly difficult!"
"The Thousand Rivers Secret Land?" Wen Qingye asked.
"It seems you aren’t familiar with this, so let me explain," Yann Shanjun said, stepping forward. "The Celestial Martial Country is one of the Sixteen Countries. The resources among these nations vary, and all are under the jurisdiction of the Celestial Profound Sect. To fairly distribute resources, each country periodically sends its best prodigies to the Celestial Profound Sect. These prodigies must first pass through the Sixteen Countries’ shared Secret Realm—the Thousand Rivers Secret Land—to even have a chance of being accepted as disciples. Once someone is accepted by the Celestial Profound Sect, their future is boundless. Furthermore, their home country will be allocated resources based on the number of disciples selected."
Nie Qinglan added, "The Thousand Rivers Secret Land opens once every eight years. It’s scheduled to open this year, in about three months."
The Thousand Rivers Secret Land was incredibly perilous, with life and death hanging in the balance. The top prodigies from the Sixteen Countries were innumerable. Forget the students of Qig Mountain Academy; for many years now, not even many from the Purple Sun Prefecture had managed to emerge from it alive.
What’s more, successfully navigating the Thousand Rivers Secret Land only granted one the *chance* to enter the Celestial Profound Sect.
Before Wang Tianming could speak, Yann Shanjun suddenly declared with a serious expression, "Regardless, I, Yann Shanjun, am willing to protect you. My name still carries some weight in the Celestial Martial Country."
Wang Tianming and Nie Qinglan were both stunned. They never expected Yann Shanjun to risk offending the Jia Family, one of the Eight Great Families. ’Although Wen Qingye’s talent is impressive,’ they thought, ’is he really worth turning against the Jia Family for?’
