Free Web NovelChapter 410: Chapter 254: Sect Leader
Yang Jing walked around and saw that the house hadn’t changed much since he left. It was just kept very clean, with almost no dust to be seen.
He sat cross-legged in the Quiet Chamber. Although the Upper Yang Demon Exorcism Formation had been dismantled when he left, the entire Cave Mansion was still filled with abundant Yang Qi, drawn in by the Pure Yang Apricot Tree.
Now that Iron Head had re-established the Upper Yang Demon Exorcism Formation, the Yang Qi within the array immediately began to circulate.
Yang Jing took out the Pure Yang Treasure Pearl he had obtained from the roots of the Pure Yang Apricot Tree.
The Pure Yang Essence Qi contained within this Treasure Pearl surpassed even that of Yang Jing’s Golden Core.
’This Treasure Pearl has two uses. First, I could directly absorb the Pure Yang Qi from it to cultivate my True Yang Body. Second, I could bury it among the roots of the Pure Yang Apricot Tree to hasten the tree’s aging.’
Yang Jing only hesitated for a moment before deciding how to use the pearl.
After his Core Formation, his Essence, Qi, and Spiritual underwent a qualitative change. His efficiency at breathing in and out of Celestial Yang Qi was now far beyond what it had been during Foundation Establishment. Even without the pearl, his cultivation speed for the True Yang Body would still be extremely fast.
Furthermore, the True Yang Body demanded extreme purity. Although Pure Yang Essence Qi could combine with all sorts of Yang Qi and convert it into Celestial Yang Qi, the result was ultimately a bit inferior to breathing in Celestial Yang Qi directly.
This slight difference was completely negligible for other Cultivators of the True Yang Body. The Yang Qi they breathed in and out of was so impure that it was actually inferior to what could be converted from Pure Yang Essence Qi.
But for Yang Jing, who possessed the Bright Qi Talent, the difference was significant enough to be a concern.
He walked up to the Pure Yang Apricot Tree. With a pull of his Magical Power, the soil around the tree instantly surged back like a tide, revealing its gnarled roots.
Yang Jing placed his hand on the trunk. With a surge of his Magical Power, the massive Pure Yang Apricot Tree instantly vanished into thin air.
The next moment, the Pure Yang Apricot Tree appeared inside his Inner World.
Yang Jing embedded the Pure Yang Treasure Pearl within the apricot tree, then used Earth Escape to maneuver the tree and set its roots deep into the earth.
He had long noticed that within his Inner World, the Five Elements were showing signs of imbalance because the wood element was too weak.
It was just that the Spiritual Qi in the Inner World was thin, and besides a few Spirit Grasses that were almost like weeds, Spirit Plants couldn’t grow at all.
The Pure Yang Apricot Tree was the solution Yang Jing had come up with to balance the Five Elements.
This tree’s Wood Qi was dense enough to maintain the Five Elements balance in the Inner World, with Yang Jing regulating it. And with the Pure Yang Treasure Pearl supplying Yang Qi, it wouldn’t wither away due to the lack of Spiritual Qi.
As the Pure Yang Apricot Tree settled, the Inner World trembled slightly. The flow of the Spiritual Mechanism, which had been somewhat stagnant, instantly began to move freely.
Yang Jing could even faintly sense that the concentration of Spiritual Qi in his Inner World was increasing. It was just that this increase was extremely slow; if his Spiritual Sense hadn’t become much sharper after Core Formation, he wouldn’t have even been able to perceive this change.
He was certain he had made the right choice.
When his Divine Soul returned from the Inner World, he saw his disciples already waiting by the large pit where the Pure Yang Apricot Tree once stood. Inside the crater Yang Jing had created with Earth Escape, several plump Demon Insects were burrowing through the soil.
They were originally ordinary insects, but after feeding on the sap from the roots of the Pure Yang Apricot Tree, they had transformed into Demons.
Upon seeing them, Yellow Foot’s mouth began to water. He immediately reached out with his small, chubby hands, grabbed them all, and slurped them into his mouth.
"Iron Head, go to the Sect’s Ten Thousand Medicine Hall and fetch another Pure Yang Apricot Tree."
Yang Jing said to his eldest disciple.
Ever since the Sect obtained the original Pure Yang Apricot Tree from the Nine Yang Sect, they had been continuously propagating it. If a Foundation Establishment Inner Sect Cultivator wanted to obtain a Pure Yang Apricot Tree, it was a huge hassle, even if they had enough Merit Points.
But as a True Disciple with a Golden Core cultivation, all Yang Jing had to do was ask for a Pure Yang Apricot Tree.
Not long after Iron Head left, a middle-aged Spirit Plant Cultivator arrived, piloting a medium-sized Flying Boat. Suspended beneath it was a Pure Yang Apricot Tree with a crown as grand as a ceremonial canopy.
"Senior Brother Yang, should this Pure Yang Apricot Tree be planted in the same spot?"
The Spirit Plant Cultivator asked respectfully.
This Pure Yang Apricot Tree was already 1,200 years old, one of the oldest Pure Yang Apricot Trees in the Five Elements True Spirit Sect.
It was only because the request came from the disciple of the renowned Yang Jing. Otherwise, the Master of the Ten Thousand Medicine Hall, who managed all the Sect’s Spirit Plants, would never have parted with this particular Pure Yang Apricot Tree.
"That’s right."
Iron Head saw that the Spirit Plant Cultivator was about to command dozens of laborers to lift the Pure Yang Apricot Tree with iron chains, so he waved his hand and said:
"No need for all that trouble. I can do it myself."
As he spoke, he flew down and wrapped his arms around the trunk.
"Senior Brother Yang, don’t be reckless! The wood of the Pure Yang Apricot Tree is incredibly hard, and it’s extremely heavy. This tree weighs a full 127,600 jin! It’s not something you can move easily!"
Iron Head still looked like a boy of just over ten, while the Pure Yang Apricot Tree was a colossal, ancient tree that would take several adults to link arms to encircle.
’If the Pure Yang Apricot Tree falls, that’s one thing. But if something were to happen to Iron Head, I absolutely could not bear the responsibility. After all, legend has it that he is Master Yang’s most beloved disciple.’
Iron Head channeled the True Gang from his Acupoints. With a surge of strength in his arms, he lifted the entire Pure Yang Apricot Tree. He then took a dozen or so steps through the air before carefully placing the tree’s roots into the large pit.
In the past, he could have also shouldered this massive tree, but walking through the air while doing so would not have been nearly this effortless.
It was just a coincidence that three years ago, while opening his Acupoints, he had comprehended a magic called the Nine Steps of Spiritual Void. It allowed him to treat the void as solid ground, enabling him to fly through the air even while carrying a weight of several hundred thousand jin.
The effortless, masterful way Iron Head handled the immense weight left everyone on the Flying Boat completely dumbfounded.
The lead Spirit Plant Cultivator, himself an Inner Sect Disciple, was the first to react. He urged his subordinates to reconnect the Qi Veins of the newly planted Pure Yang Apricot Tree and to water it with Spirit Water.
After a great deal of bustling about, the transplantation of the Spirit Plant was finally complete.
"Senior Brother Yang, this Pure Yang Apricot Tree has only just been transplanted, so it’s bound to be in a weakened state for a while. Once its roots have fully taken hold in the Spirit Vein, it will recover its former vitality."
The Spirit Plant Cultivator then gave Iron Head a few essential tips on caring for the Pure Yang Apricot Tree. He lingered for a while, hoping to catch a glimpse of the legendary Yang Jing, but left feeling rather disappointed when he didn’t appear.
"Senior Brother Yang, this Pure Yang Apricot Tree was acquired with Merit Points. If there are any problems with it, please feel free to come find me at the Ten Thousand Medicine Hall."
For the next few days, Yang Jing cultivated in his Quiet Chamber.
Thanks to the arrangements of someone influential, the Spirit Vein in his Cave Mansion was now approaching the peak of Tier Three. Even though he had reached the Golden Core Stage, it was more than sufficient for him to practice breathing in and out of spiritual energy.
When the day of his audience with the Sect Leader arrived, he drew water from the Spiritual Spring and bathed meticulously. He then used Yang Qi to purify his body of any stray energies before flying toward the Ancestral Hall to wait for his meeting.
"Junior Martial Uncle Yang!"
Li Weixin of the Ancestral Hall saw Yang Jing, and a complex look flashed in his eyes. He had been the one in charge on the day Yang Jing joined the Sect.
Over a decade had passed. He himself had reached Foundation Establishment, which he had considered a minor accomplishment. But now, seeing Yang Jing who had already achieved Core Formation, he truly understood that there are always new heights to scale.
"Junior Martial Uncle, you’re early. The Sect Leader probably won’t be here for another half an hour."
"How could I, a disciple, dare to make the Sect Leader wait?"
Yang Jing replied. He wasn’t surprised that the Master of the Ancestral Hall was avoiding him like the plague. The Ancestral Hall had very few daily affairs, making its positions prestigious and comfortable. As such, it had always been controlled by the Noble Lineage of the Five Elements True Spirit Sect. The majority of its members were children of Noble Families.
The Master of the Hall himself was even an uncle from Zuoqiu Ye’s clan.
’If the Sect Leader hadn’t summoned me today, I’d suspect someone might try to secretly sabotage me.’
Because he missed the Sect-joining ceremony back then, Yang Jing had been in the Five Elements True Spirit Sect for many years but had never met the Sect Leader. He only knew that the Sect Leader’s name was Zhang Yuan, his cultivation was at Nascent Soul Perfection, and he was the Cultivator in the entire Five Elements True Spirit Sect with the best hope of advancing to the Divinity Transformation Realm.
It’s just that the difficulty for a Nascent Soul Cultivator to advance to Divinity Transformation far exceeded the previous few hurdles.
Sect Leader Zhang Yuan had been stuck at Nascent Soul Perfection for a hundred years, unable to advance to Divinity Transformation.
Li Weixin very respectfully showed Yang Jing around the Ancestral Hall, recounting some interesting recent events in the Sect. He had served in the Ancestral Hall for a long time, where his primary duty was to receive new disciples, and he had become quite an eloquent speaker.
A streak of purple Tunneling Light shot over from the distance.
"The Sect Leader is here."
Having welcomed and seen off countless people at the Ancestral Hall over the years, Li Weixin had long since developed a keen eye for identifying important figures by their Tunneling Light. He recognized at a glance that the arrival was none other than the Sect Leader.
Countless figures suddenly emerged from the previously deserted Ancestral Hall. They walked out respectfully and formed ranks to welcome the Sect Leader.
The purple Tunneling Light dissipated above the Ancestral Hall, revealing the figure of Sect Leader Zhang Yuan. He was a tall, elderly man dressed in a purple Treasure Robe, his hair held up casually by a single Jade Hairpin. He looked less like a sect leader and more like an unrestrained scholar.
He looked at the Ancestral Hall disciples lined up in welcome and flicked his sleeve impatiently.
"Enough. No need for such tedious formalities."
After dismissing the people in the Ancestral Hall, Zhang Yuan’s eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through everything, fell upon Yang Jing.
"Excellent! Your divine radiance is contained, yet your aura is manifest. To have just achieved Core Formation and already reached such a Realm in the Tai Shi Five Elements True Talisman Scripture... you truly are worthy of the title of the number one Talent in our Five Elements True Spirit Sect."
Hearing this, Li Weixin, who stood beside Yang Jing, felt his eyelids twitch violently.
Although this was already a widely accepted fact among the new generation of Five Elements True Spirit Sect disciples—something even those from the Noble Lineage had to begrudgingly accept—hearing it from the Sect Leader’s own mouth gave it an entirely different weight. ƒrēewebnovel.com
Because the gap had become too large, Li Weixin couldn’t even muster a trace of jealousy in his heart.
"I am unworthy of such praise."
Yang Jing hurriedly put on a humbled expression.
"Enough of that. Come with me. It’s fortunate you achieved Core Formation when you did, otherwise you would have missed out on this great opportunity."
With that, he turned and strode decisively into the depths of the Ancestral Hall.
Yang Jing hadn’t expected the Sect Leader to have such a brisk and decisive personality. He could only hurry to keep pace, following closely behind him.
As for Li Weixin, he was left standing there, burning with curiosity, but all he could do was watch as the figures of Yang Jing and the Sect Leader vanished into the main hall of the Ancestral Hall.
