Chapter 303: Chapter 301
"I have long since reached Perfection, and my True Essence is overflowing. Why would I need to dual cultivate with you..."
A strange light flickered in Master Suihan’s eyes, showing no trace of infatuation with her beauty.
"So what if your Realm drops? Or would you rather experience a fate worse than death, trapped for all eternity?"
The color drained from Fairy Lianyu’s face. She never imagined she would escape a tiger’s den only to fall into a wolf’s pit.
The Joyful Union Sect was originally a branch of a Nascent Soul Major Sect. However, due to internal ideological disagreements, several Elders left and came to Liang Country to establish their own lineage.
Their Basic Cultivation Technique is the Celestial Maiden Scripture. Once a cultivator reaches the Core Formation Realm, they develop all sorts of wondrous abilities.
While it doesn’t offer much of a boost in combat strength, it grants the cultivator a sacred aura.
Their personal charm and Spiritual Illusion Techniques both undergo a qualitative leap.
Upon reaching Mid-Stage or Late-Stage Core Formation, they can manifest a Joyful Union Bell within their Sea of Consciousness.
This is precisely where the Joyful Union Sect gets its name.
With this Joyful Union Bell, one can become immune to most spiritual and charm-based magic.
Furthermore, if their Charm Arts fail, it can neutralize the Divine Sense backlash.
Shattering the Joyful Union Bell triggers the Six Desires Sacred Sound. In the instant the other person hears it during the intertwining of Divine Senses, they can experience the Primordial Spirit Power of the Nascent Soul Realm ahead of time.
This is a top secret within the Joyful Union Sect, known only to one or two of the most core members of each generation.
If word of this ever got out, the fate of the Joyful Union Sect would be easy to predict.
Even if the Joyful Union Bell is only half as effective as a Nascent Soul Pill, every Core Formation True Man of the Joyful Union Sect would inevitably become the prized captive of a Nascent Soul Major Sect.
Their entire value would be to cultivate desperately to manifest the Joyful Union Bell, only to serve as a "Great Medicine" for a Core Disciple of a Nascent Soul Major Sect on their sprint toward the Nascent Soul Path.
The fact that Master Suihan could so clearly describe the details of the Joyful Union Bell proved he wasn’t just chasing rumors or repeating fragments he had overheard somewhere.
To continue denying it or making excuses would be an insult to the intelligence of this five-hundred-year-old fox standing before her.
"True Man, since you know the wonders of the Joyful Union Bell, you should also be aware that it only works if I perform it willingly."
Fairy Lianyu calmed down, knowing she had no hope of escaping from a Core Formation Perfection expert on her own.
But Master Suihan, at his age, still harbored dreams of reaching the Nascent Soul Realm; his heart that sought the Great Dao was as firm as a rock.
The importance he placed on the Joyful Union Bell—evident from the fact that he had been tracking and observing her for a long time after learning of the Celestial Maiden Scripture’s wonders—meant there was still room for negotiation.
"If you want my willing cooperation, I hope you can offer some compensation, True Man..."
"Good. I appreciate a woman who can read the situation and knows her place," Master Suihan said with an appreciative look, clapping his hands. "If I successfully form my Nascent Soul, I can take you as a concubine and provide you with the resources to cultivate to Core Formation Perfection. If I fail on the cusp of success, you will still receive a Life-Extending Elixir and two bottles of Guangling Pills."
"We can both swear a Dao Heart Oath to ensure there are no ulterior motives. This is an opportunity for you as well. Do you really think you could glimpse the Nascent Soul Realm on your own?"
"This Cultivation Technique of your Joyful Union Sect was created for the sole purpose of latching onto the powerful. It’s certainly one way of forging a path."
"You are absolutely right, True Man. The Great Dao is arduous. To be able to ride on your coattails and ascend with you was likely the painstaking intention of the ancestor who created this Cultivation Technique..."
Seemingly having accepted her fate, Fairy Lianyu’s brow furrowed delicately as her body went soft and she leaned against him.
"My aptitude is poor, so from now on, I will be counting on you, True Man... If you manage to reach the Nascent Soul Realm, you must not cast me aside when I am old and my beauty has faded."
"Haha! Am I the sort of man to discard the old for the new? I have long heard of your famed beauty, Fairy. Today, I’ll finally have the chance to experience it for myself."
Master Suihan laughed heartily as he felt a pair of soft, boneless wrists caressing his body.
...
「Qii Mountain, outside the Holy Lotus Sect’s Grand Array.」
’True Monarch Jiulian is actually unmoved. I even showed him the soil carrying the aura of a Tai Sui, and he’s still not tempted...’
Fang Tiancheng’s silver hair whipped in the wind, his heart heavy.
Every year that passed brought the return of Blood God True Man one step closer.
The Spirit Control Scripture was both his greatest boon and his greatest curse.
As the cultivator in the history of the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect who had cultivated the Spirit Control Scripture to its highest realm, the technique had granted him combat power and longevity far surpassing his peers, but it had also become the shackles holding back his progress.
If he had cultivated any other technique, Fang Tiancheng would have had a twenty to thirty percent chance of success if he forcibly attempted Shattering his Core and Transforming into a Nascent Soul.
But as things stood, even a ten percent chance was optimistic.
His Lifebound Spiritual Beast was stuck as a Tier Three Peak Spirit Beast, with no hope of Breaking through its Realm.
Even if he himself could survive the two tribulations of the Heart Demon and Celestial Thunder, he would still be dragged down by the immense amount of Spiritual Power his Gold-Devouring Earth Dragon Beast needed to advance to Tier Four.
The newly manifested "infant" would rapidly collapse and disintegrate right after forming, for lack of enough True Essence to sustain it.
’Every drink and every peck is determined by fate... If not for the lifespan transferred from my old partner, I would be nothing but a pile of withered bones by now.’
Fang Tiancheng let out a long sigh. For the sake of the Five Crystal Divine Iron, he had to take this risk.
This was the limitation of the Spirit Control Scripture. Although its creator was astonishingly talented, he was, after all, only a Core Formation True Man, and his considerations had not been far-reaching enough.
Fang Tiancheng had built upon that foundation and taken many steps forward, almost forging the path ahead completely.
But just before the final step, he was halted because his Lifebound Spiritual Beast was too powerful, and its advancement requirements were too high.
True Monarch Jiulian didn’t have much of his lifespan left; his craving for a Life-Extending Spiritual Object surely grew stronger with each passing day.
The Tai Sui, an extremely rare and special type of Demon Beast, had always been regarded as a symbol of longevity.
Consuming its flesh directly could slow aging and extend one’s lifespan.
The flesh of a Tier Three Tai Sui could extend a Core Formation True Man’s life by one 60-year cycle.
A Tier Four Tai Sui could only be withstood by a Nascent Soul True Monarch. After refinement, it would directly extend their life by 120 years.
The soil Fang Tiancheng had presented was indeed stained with the genuine aura of a Tier Four Tai Sui.
He claimed to have encountered it by chance in some Ancient Ruins while wandering through Beiyuan.
Because his strength was insufficient to deal with a Tier Four Tai Sui, he wanted to cooperate with True Monarch Jiulian to explore the Ancient Ruins together.
Having dealt with the Holy Lotus Sect for so many years, Fang Tiancheng naturally knew True Monarch Jiulian’s situation well and was certain this was a temptation the man could not refuse.
He never expected that after visiting and stating his purpose, True Monarch Jiulian would reject him outright, cutting off all his subsequent plans at the root.
’That person gave me the soil, so it must have been dug up from the lair of a Tier Four Tai Sui... and I have never revealed my thoughts to any outsider. There’s no reason for True Monarch Jiulian to have seen through the hidden trap.’
Fang Tiancheng couldn’t fathom how his seemingly perfect plan had failed at the very first step.
The other party simply didn’t follow the script, rendering all his subsequent moves useless.
On his way flying from Qii Mountain, Fang Tiancheng saw six cultivators in tall hats and wide sashes, all of them in the Core Formation Realm.
The elderly man in the lead had a Perfect Core Formation Cultivation, and from the fluctuations of his aura, he was not much weaker than Fang Tiancheng himself.
’Since when did the Liang Country Cultivation Realm have so many new Core Formation True Men?’
A thought struck Fang Tiancheng. He felt that the appearance of this group of Core Formation Cultivators was definitely related to True Monarch Jiulian’s change in behavior.
After returning to the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect, he immediately summoned Master Hei Feng to inquire about recent changes in the Liang Country Cultivation Realm.
"The Ghost Spirit Sect joined forces with the Central Domain’s Celestial Principle Sect to attack Black Mountain, but they were defeated by the Qingfeng Sect and even White Bone fell? And then the Qingfeng Sect counterattacked Hejian County and has already broken through the Ghost Spirit Sect’s defenses?"
Fang Tiancheng’s hair and beard stood on end. He had only been away from Liang Country for a few months, yet such earth-shattering events had occurred.
"We received the intelligence three days ago. The Qingfeng Sect took Ten Thousand Ghosts Creek with lightning speed... Their Tier Three Array couldn’t even hold for a single day before it was reportedly broken by Ge Cang and Bai Zichen."
When Master Hei Feng first read the intelligence report, he suspected the spy had made a mistake.
Since when had a Tier Three Array, guarded by a Core Formation True Man, become so fragile?
Only after multiple sources corroborated the information did he truly believe it.
All he could say was that the Qingfeng Sect’s rise was too fast. In less than a century, it had transformed from a small, borderland sect into a powerful one capable of rivaling the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect.
Of course, thanks to the Tier Three Demon Beasts they raised, the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect still held an absolute advantage in the number of Core Formation-level combatants.
But as details of the sect war were revealed by fleeing Ghost Spirit Sect cultivators, the strength of Ge Cang and Bai Zichen was portrayed as increasingly terrifying.
If those Ghost Spirit Sect cultivators weren’t exaggerating, no one in the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect besides Fang Tiancheng could withstand the spearhead of those two.
Even Feng Moyun, who was regarded as a Nascent Soul Seed, would be no match.
"However, there are rumors that the Celestial Principle Sect joined the Ghost Spirit Sect’s side at the instigation of the Holy Lotus Sect. That’s why everyone is pessimistic about the Qingfeng Sect’s ability to hold Hejian County... Once two Nascent Soul Major Sects make their move, what can the Qingfeng Sect possibly use to defend itself?"
Master Hei Feng was amazed, but he was not optimistic about the Qingfeng Sect’s prospects.
’So those people were Celestial Principle Sect cultivators...’
Fang Tiancheng had a sudden realization. With such a major event unfolding, it was no wonder True Monarch Jiulian couldn’t even be bothered with a Tier Four Tai Sui.
’True Monarch Jiulian won’t necessarily make a move. To annihilate the Qingfeng Sect and prevent Ge Cang and the others from escaping, he would have to deploy his Nascent Soul Realm and use all of his Divine Techniques...’
’In his current state, his lifespan might be completely exhausted after one battle. He’d return to Qii Mountain only to pass away within a few years... At that point, would the Holy Lotus Sect still be the one calling the shots in Liang Country?’
As Fang Tiancheng, who had been a top-tier cultivator in the Liang Country Cultivation Realm for two hundred years, he could see at a glance that the Qingfeng Sect’s situation was not as hopeless as it seemed.
The Holy Lotus Sect had no successor internally and faced great enemies externally.
If True Monarch Jiulian really did that, the only ones who would be happy are the Valley of Ten Thousand Poisons and the Celestial Principle Sect.
’Interesting. If the Celestial Principle Sect really can’t make it in the Central Domain and wants to relocate to Liang Country, and you add in the probable return of Blood God True Man... it’s very likely we’ll see a situation where three Nascent Soul True Monarchs form a tripartite balance of power.’
Fang Tiancheng suddenly felt the situation opening up; it was no longer a pool of stagnant water.
If three Nascent Soul powers were to gather in Liang Country, Blood God True Man would have to act with some restraint. It would be questionable whether he would still try to annihilate a sect with great fanfare.
Regardless, the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect would definitely have more room to maneuver than before.
Of course, the best choice was still to become a Nascent Soul True Monarch himself, so he would never again have to act according to the whims of others.
’If True Monarch Jiulian won’t take the bait, who should I switch my target to... In the entire Northern Domain, there aren’t even two Nascent Soul True Monarchs I have any sway with.’
After dismissing Master Hei Feng, Fang Tiancheng walked over to his Lifebound Spiritual Beast, took out two pieces of Red Fire Elemental Copper, and fed them into the Gold-Devouring Earth Dragon Beast’s mouth.
"Old friend, you helped me reach Core Formation Perfection. Now it’s my turn to fight for your path to Tier Four... The Five Crystal Divine Iron... I must get my hands on it, no matter what!"