txolops Chapter 261 Congratulations and a Grand Gift
Chapter 261 Congratulations and a Grand Gift
one year later.
Li Ping finally fully refined the Devouring Yuan Sword, allowing him to unleash about 70% of its power.
At this point, he did not continue his seclusion.
……
Ji Nianyun sat cross-legged, guarding the outside of the secret chamber. His gaze swept over the chamber from time to time, revealing bursts of excitement.
Because of his special relationship with Li Ping, Shi Yutong sent him here to wait for Li Ping to emerge from seclusion and to convey the goodwill of the Flying Snow Sect as soon as possible.
Compared to how they treated Xiao Yunzhi before, the Flying Snow Sect now clearly values Li Ping much more.
After all, Li Ping was not only a Core Formation cultivator, but also a master alchemist who could refine third-tier pills.
Core Formation cultivator plus third-tier alchemy master.
Such a status would earn them sufficient respect even in the Great Zhou Dynasty, let alone in the far north.
After years of waiting, Ji Nianyun finally opened the door to the secret chamber.
A graceful figure emerged slowly from within, his face thoughtful; it was Li Ping.
At this moment, the Devouring Sword was inside his abdomen, ready to be summoned at any time to fight the enemy.
He also completely understood the rules of the second gray island.
As he had guessed, the island's thousand-fold time acceleration function only worked on individual medicinal herbs. Once he planted several more medicinal herbs, they would share the acceleration effect.
Furthermore, given the limited area of the gray island, even if he didn't care about the time acceleration effect being dispersed, he could only plant a maximum of ten spiritual herbs.
After understanding the rules, Li Ping couldn't help but sigh slightly.
A thousand-fold time acceleration is certainly good, but planting too many medicinal herbs on the island will dilute the thousand-fold time acceleration effect, which undoubtedly greatly affects his mood.
Of course, even with such flaws, the second island is still incredibly amazing.
……
Upon seeing Li Ping emerge from his secluded cultivation chamber, Ji Nianyun immediately greeted him respectfully, "Grandpa Li, Nianyun congratulates you on achieving the Golden Core stage! You now have a bright future ahead!"
In Ji Nianyun's eyes, Grandpa Li's attire was not much different from what it had been more than ten years ago.
But at this moment, his eyes were like lightning, his gaze sharp and piercing, and every move he made exuded the aura of a superior, making him completely different from before he formed his core.
"Oh? Are you waiting for me to come out of seclusion here?" Li Ping was in a good mood upon hearing Ji Nianyun's congratulations.
As the first person to congratulate him on his advancement to the Core Formation stage, he planned to give Ji Nianyun some rewards.
"Yes, Grandpa Li." Ji Nianyun could tell that Li Ping was in a good mood, so she quickly said respectfully, "Ever since I learned that you had achieved the Golden Core stage, I have been waiting here for your instructions."
Li Ping smiled and nodded: "Not bad, not bad, you've put your heart into it."
Just as he was about to take out some pills from his storage bag to give to Ji Nianyun, he heard the sound of wind whistling and a figure flew from afar and landed in front of Li Ping.
With snow-white skin and silver hair, wearing a long robe with gold and silver stripes, her face was as beautiful as a snow lotus flower; it was Shi Yutong.
As soon as she landed, she immediately said respectfully, "Senior Li, Yu Tong congratulates you on forming your Golden Core, which marks another step forward on your path to immortality."
Before Li Ping reached the Core Formation stage, Shi Yutong addressed him as Brother Li.
She addressed him that way mainly to express affection, but at the same time, it was also because they were both monks of the same rank that she could be so playful.
Li Ping has now formed his Golden Core and is now a True Person.
Naturally, she could no longer address him as Brother Li, so she obediently changed her address to Senior Li.
"You're too kind, young friend Shi. I owe my successful Core Formation to the venue provided by your sect," Li Ping replied with a smile, his tone gentle, but he did not correct Shi Yutong's form of address.
He never had any romantic feelings for Shi Yutong, and more than ten years ago, when Lu Chang'an from the Great Zhou Dynasty was investigating the destruction of Silver Moon City, Shi Yutong exposed Xiao Yunzhi's existence, which made him unhappy.
Moreover, after reaching the Core Formation stage, he had no further desires for the Flying Snow Sect.
All these reasons combined led him to choose to distance himself from Shi Yutong.
Anyway, after reaching the Core Formation stage, he didn't plan to stay in the far north anymore. He couldn't wait to return to the Western Wilderness, explore the spiritual vein under Little Plum Mountain, and then hide there to cultivate his main cultivation technique.
As for the threat from the Blood Shadow Cult...
Fifty or sixty years have passed since Hua Hong's death. Even if Hua Wuji is still alive, he has probably given up after so many years of searching without finding the murderer.
"And that Wei Yiling, I wonder if she managed to escape to the Great Zhou." Li Ping thought of the woman who had made a fool of herself in front of him.
If she hadn't been captured by Hua Wuji, he might not have known that it was Li Ping who killed his descendant.
On the other hand, when Shi Yutong heard Li Ping accept her address so readily without any intention of correcting it, her eyes dimmed.
Actually, before, she was just trying to win over and befriend Li Ping; she didn't have any other special intentions.
But now that Li Ping has reached the Core Formation stage, she suddenly realizes that her feelings for him are a little different.
Deep down, she seemed to long to be held in Li Ping's arms and cherished.
She couldn't tell whether it was the girlish love that had been hidden in her heart for a long time, or the admiration she felt for a Core Formation cultivator.
Forcing herself to cheer up, Shi Yutong smiled and said, "Senior Li, you are too kind. Our sect has only provided some insignificant assistance. It is an honor for our sect that Senior Li is able to break through to the Core Formation stage, bringing glory to our sect."
After some polite greetings, Shi Yutong respectfully led Li Ping to a large hall where they sat down.
Immediately, she took out a spiritual material that she had prepared in advance and presented it: "This piece of jade gold is a gift specially presented by our sect to congratulate you on your Core Formation. We hope you will not find it offensive."
"Oh?" Li Ping looked at the item that Shi Yutong had presented.
Jade Gold is a third-tier spiritual material with metallic properties. It is not very precious, but it can be used to refine magical artifacts.
A piece of jade gold the size of a palm can fetch around seven or eight thousand spirit stones at an auction.
To present him with such a treasure just to congratulate him on achieving the Core Formation, Shi Yutong was incredibly generous.
However, this amount of spirit stones was nothing to Li Ping, and he didn't want to create any further karmic ties with the Flying Snow Sect because of this piece of jade gold.
Therefore, when faced with the spiritual material presented to him, he simply smiled and waved his hand, saying, "I cannot accept this jade gold without merit. Young friend Shi, please take it back."
Shi Yutong was about to try to persuade him further, but when she saw Li Ping's indifferent gaze, she immediately took back her words of advice.
"It was Yutong who was being presumptuous." Shi Yutong put away the jade and gold, stopped trying to persuade him, and instead asked Li Ping for guidance on the path of cultivation.
Li Ping nodded slightly, then smiled and began to offer her guidance.
In fact, Shi Yutong's mother, Qianxue Zhenren, was a Core Formation cultivator. Although she was a bit sentimental, her Core Formation cultivation was genuine.
If Shi Yutong really encounters any problems in her cultivation, she can seek guidance from her mother and resolve her doubts.
The reason she is now asking Li Ping for advice on spiritual practice is mainly to get closer to him.
After all, there is no one in this world who doesn't like to be a teacher.
A person can gain immense satisfaction from guiding others. .
After a long while, Li Ping rose to take his leave: "My journey to form my core has been quite an inconvenience to your sect. I cannot disturb you any longer today, young friend Shi. I will visit you another day!"
"The Flying Snow Sect will always welcome Senior Li." Shi Yutong could tell that Li Ping still had things to do, so she didn't try to keep him any longer. Instead, she said these words with a smile.
Li Ping smiled and nodded: "Okay."
……
As he stepped out of the hall, Ji Nianyun was still respectfully waiting outside.
Li Ping flew out of Feixue Sect, signaling Ji Nianyun to follow.
"Grandpa Li." Seeing Li Ping greet her, Ji Nianyun couldn't help but show a look of surprise and quickly followed.
Along the way, Li Ping would occasionally offer guidance on his cultivation, which made him feel that he had gained a lot and that his cultivation was about to break through.
But he quickly realized that it was just an illusion caused by absorbing too much knowledge at once.
Just like many people who skip dinner and feel they've lost ten pounds, only to find out when they step on the scale that it's a complete illusion.
Li Ping led Ji Nianyun back to the Changpingfang Cave.
Upon arriving at the pavilion, Li Ping smiled and gestured for Ji Nianyun to sit down, but Ji Nianyun refused to sit down and stood respectfully. Li Ping had no choice but to let him sit down.
However, what Li Ping said next made his expression change drastically.
Li Ping smiled and said, "I will be leaving Flying Snow City soon."
"Grandpa Li, are you leaving?" Ji Nianyun's face was full of shock.
Li Ping nodded: "Yes, I plan to return to the Western Wilderness to handle some miscellaneous matters. By the way, your father wished to return to his roots before he died. Please send his ashes over, and I will take them back to the Western Wilderness and bury them in the Ji family ancestral tomb."
"This?" Ji Nianyun hesitated.
It turns out that although Ji Shuxuan hoped to return to his roots, the Ji family did not agree, especially Ayun, who hoped to be buried with her Daoist partner after her death.
Ji Nianyun was in a dilemma because he worried that if Grandpa Li brought his father's ashes back to the Western Wilderness, his mother would be devastated.
Li Ping pondered for a moment and concluded that Ji Nianyun's concerns were not without merit.
On one hand, there was his father's last wish, and on the other hand, there was his mother's longing. No wonder he felt conflicted.
"How about this?" Li Ping suggested a plan for Ji Nianyun based on a plot from a novel he had once read: "Divide your father's ashes in two. Leave one half in Feixue City as a memento for you, and I will take the other half back to the Western Wilderness so that your father can return to his roots."
In reality, Ji Shuxuan was already dead.
After death, one realizes that all things are empty.
Whether it was A-Yun's so-called longing or his wish to return to his roots, it was all in vain.
Dividing the ashes in two might seem like a way to prevent Ji Shuxuan from having a complete body after death, but in reality, it was a win-win solution.
Ji Nianyun hesitated for a moment, but finally agreed to Grandpa Li's approach. However, his expression was slightly gloomy.
Immediately, he prepared to go back to the ancestral hall to retrieve half of his father's ashes and give them to Li Ping.
But Li Ping stopped him: "Don't rush the matter of the ashes. I have something to give you."
Upon hearing that Grandpa Li was going to bestow a treasure upon him, Ji Nianyun's eyes lit up immediately.
brush!
With a wave of his hand, Li Ping summoned a black figure nearly two meters tall in front of Ji Nianyun. He smiled and said, "This second-tier high-grade puppet is of little use to me, so I'll leave it to you."