"You are now the Great Elder of our Qingling Sect, so the task of teaching new disciples will be left to you, Junior Sister," Li Sheng said with a smile.
"Me?" Bai Ye was taken aback. She was only seventeen years old and had no experience teaching disciples.
Just as she was about to refuse, Li Sheng spoke up, "Don't worry, I'll be there to guide you."
"Alright, then," Bai Ye nodded in agreement.
"By the way, Senior Brother, there have been rumors about our Qingling Sect all over Qingshan City recently."
"What kind of rumors?" Li Sheng asked, a little curious.
"Rumors about you taking over as sect leader and the three elders leaving the sect. It's been causing quite a stir," Bai Ye explained.
Li Sheng thought for a moment and then chuckled. "It seems like it's the handiwork of those old guys."
"Why would they do that? It's not exactly a glorious thing to be spreading," Bai Ye said, puzzled.
"They're doing it to put on a show for the Guard Pavilion while also scouting for a new place to go. After all, a martial artist at the seventh rank is still in high demand."
After chatting for a while longer, Bai Ye got up and left.
Li Sheng returned to the courtyard, feeling the surge of medicinal energy inside him, and began practicing the "Nine Forms of the Spirit Snake." As he took up the stance, a faint stream of energy flowed through his body, circulating continuously. Every complete cycle consumed a large amount of his energy and blood, but thanks to the pill's effects, it was quickly replenished.
Before he knew it, two hours had passed. Li Sheng finished his training and, after enjoying the meal sent from the kitchen, headed to the pill room. Just moments ago, the daily limit on his refining attempts had been refreshed.
In the pill room, Li Sheng busily worked, and soon, an orange-yellow pill with four stripes appeared in his hand.
"An exceptional-quality Internal Breath Pill!"
According to his calculations, taking one of these top-grade pills could sustain full-powered cultivation of a martial technique for about a month. If it were a dual-spirit form martial technique, it could last around three days.
If someone used a low-grade pill to cultivate a spirit-level technique, it could take years to fully complete even one form. As for when they could comprehend the spirit form, that depended on their personal insight.
After placing the pill in a jade bottle, Li Sheng called for a woman to deliver the pill to Bai Ye, then made his way toward the Martial Arts Hall.
...
In Qingshan City, at the Laifu Inn, Room Four on the top floor, laughter and conversation filled the air. Xiong Zhuang, his face glowing red from drink, laughed loudly as he flirted with the two women beside him. The scene was rather amorous.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
"Who's knocking like that? Can't a man enjoy a drink in peace? Come in!" Xiong Zhuang shouted, slamming his large hand down on the table.
The door creaked open, and a burly young man with an ordinary appearance stepped inside. His breathing quickened when he saw the two scantily clad women.
Recognizing the young man, Xiong Zhuang calmed down slightly and gruffly asked, "How did the talks with the Huajian Sect go? Any results?"
The young man lowered his head and replied, "Uncle, Sect Leader Liu refused."
"Refused?" Xiong Zhuang sneered but didn't seem too concerned. It was merely a diversion, after all. The Huajian Sect was in a similar predicament to the Qingling Sect. If it weren't for Liu's daughter being so pretty, he wouldn't have even bothered.
Years ago, Xiong Zhuang had reached the peak of the seventh rank. He was confident about advancing to the sixth rank, but what he lacked were resources.
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If not for the promise of help from Lu Ying, who could connect him with the second-star sect Fengjian Valley, he wouldn't have given up the position of sect leader so easily. After all, he didn't understand why Fengjian Valley was so interested in the Qingling Sect. After all his years there, he hadn't noticed anything special.
Xiong Zhuang's thoughts wandered briefly to Bai Ye's delicate face and blossoming figure. A flicker of desire flared in his heart. If not for Lu Ying's interference, he would have already taken her for himself. But since he needed something from her, he had to refrain from acting rashly.
"Any word from Lu Ying?" Xiong Zhuang asked, shaking off his thoughts.
"She said everything is about 80-90% certain, and she'll call you to Fengjian Valley in a few days."
"Great news! Ha ha, excellent news!" Xiong Zhuang laughed heartily. "Once I latch onto Fengjian Valley, breaking into the sixth rank will be a sure thing!"
"And there's even more good news, Uncle," the young man said slyly.
"Oh? More good news? Let's hear it!" Xiong Zhuang laughed again and took a swig of wine.
"Well… Hehe, Uncle…" The young man rubbed his hands together, casting a lecherous glance at the two women nearby.
"You little rascal, just tell me already! If it's really good news, those two girls are yours," Xiong Zhuang said with a grin.
"Uncle, you know Wang Er, right?"
"I think I've heard of him. What about him?"
"It's like this: his uncle is a coachman, and a few days ago, he was hired to transport a load of resources to the Qingling Sect—one cart full of martial arts manuals and another full of alchemy materials. It was quite the haul!"
"Is that so?" Xiong Zhuang's eyes lit up. He was in desperate need of cultivation resources. But where could that trash Li Sheng have gotten so many spirit stones?
Recalling how the previous sect leader had favored Li Sheng, Xiong Zhuang wondered if this was part of the leader's legacy.
"Is this information reliable?" Xiong Zhuang set his wine cup down, a greedy glint in his eyes.
"Absolutely, Uncle. I even questioned several of the coachmen myself, and their stories all matched up."
"Good!"
"The girls are yours," Xiong Zhuang said with a wave of his hand, standing up and heading downstairs.
As he left, the flirtatious voices resumed in the room.
...
In the Spirit Gathering Room, Bai Ye held the jade bottle tightly, deeply touched. She resolved that once she had avenged her family, she would dedicate herself to running the sect and training its disciples, repaying her brother's kindness.
Last night, after completing the "Turtle and Snake Body Refining Technique" and undergoing its transformative effects, her physique had greatly improved, pushing her cultivation to the peak of the eighth rank.
When she took the exceptional-quality Internal Breath Pill, the abundant spiritual energy in the room wrapped around her, and the bottleneck in her cultivation broke. She had one foot in the seventh rank, the Bone Refining stage.
At the Martial Arts Hall, Li Sheng synthesized three ninth-rank martial arts techniques and stopped.
"That should be enough. Now it's time to synthesize eighth-rank techniques," he muttered, tossing five ninth-rank manuals into the Purple Qi Martial Cauldron to begin the process.
Soon, two new eighth-rank manuals were formed. Glancing at the four eighth-rank and five ninth-rank techniques on the shelf, he smiled in satisfaction.
"My daily limit for synthesis is up. Tomorrow I'll see if I can unlock a dual-spirit form technique."
Returning to the courtyard, Li Sheng resumed practicing the "Nine Forms of the Spirit Snake." He had a feeling that today might be the day he finally broke through the Body Refining stage that had confined him for the past decade.