txolops Chapter 51: China and Kyrgyzstan! Looks like it's all settled!
Chapter 51: China and Kyrgyzstan! Looks like it's all settled!
Chapter 51: China and Kyrgyzstan! Looks like it's all settled!
Inside the cave, Lin Chuan sat cross-legged, his gaze fixed on the jade box laid out before him.
Sixty-five Foundation Establishment Pill main ingredients, radiating an alluring spiritual light, and three thousand-year-old blood ginsengs, perfectly preserved and enveloped in rich blood energy, lay there quietly, exuding a magnificent spiritual aura that captivated the soul.
Such a rich harvest would drive any cultivator crazy, but at this moment Lin Chuan was filled with hesitation.
"These spiritual herbs—if all of them were handed over, I would certainly receive a generous reward from the sect, and might even be able to exchange them directly for several Foundation Establishment Pills. But it would also mean handing over most of the benefits to others, and only the qualification to become a disciple of Grandmaster Li—"
His plan was to submit only about twenty main medicinal plants.
According to past practice, this quantity is enough to make him stand out among the disciples in this trial of Huangfeng Valley, and even surpass the number that Han Li submitted in the original work (Han Li seems to have submitted more than twenty plants), ensuring that he becomes the one who contributes the most and wins the promise of Grandmaster Li Huayuan.
He wanted to keep the remaining bulk of the medicinal herbs—nearly forty plants and the three priceless thousand-year-old blood ginsengs—for himself.
Whether used to exchange for other rare resources in the future or for personal alchemy and cultivation, it will be an immeasurable wealth.
However, how to hide this enormous wealth became the biggest challenge.
His gaze shifted to the warm, smooth jade pendant on his chest.
"A spatial jade tablet—I wonder if it can completely isolate the scent of these spiritual herbs? Those old monsters from the Seven Sects raise spirit-sniffing rats..."
The medicine-detecting sable has a very keen nose; if it detects anything amiss—"
Lin Chuan frowned.
If the jade tablet's spatial ability could deceive everyone, he would naturally become rich overnight.
The path of spiritual practice will be smooth in the future.
But if not, hoarding such a huge amount of spiritual herbs, once discovered, the best outcome would be having one's cultivation destroyed and everything stripped away; in more serious cases, one's very soul would be annihilated.
The enormous profits came with equally enormous risks, making it difficult for him to make a decision.
Time slipped away slowly amidst the struggle.
The last few hours of the fourth day passed quietly as Lin Chuan repeatedly weighed the pros and cons and was restless.
The "dawn" (the timekeeping instrument markings) of the fifth day arrived as scheduled.
At this crucial moment, the golden light appeared as promised:
[Today’s hexagram: Zhongji]
[Divination: Before leaving the forbidden area, you hesitated repeatedly, thinking that the spatial jade tablet could deceive the spirit beast. Therefore, you put most of the spiritual herbs into the spatial jade tablet, and only used a storage bag to put twenty-eight spiritual herbs to offer to the sect.]
He helped Li Huayuan win the bet and was accepted as a disciple by Li Huayuan, thus receiving the protection of a Core Formation cultivator.
"Auspicious! The divination confirms it!"
Lin Chuan's eyes lit up, and the weight that had been hanging over his heart finally lifted.
The divination clearly indicates that placing most of the spiritual herbs into the spatial jade tablet is feasible.
Moreover, it is "Central Kyrgyz".
This shows that the spatial jade tablet can indeed evade the detection methods of the seven factions, and it is safe at least during this inspection of the forbidden area's exit.
"Okay! Let's do it this way!" Lin Chuan didn't hesitate any longer and immediately took action.
He quickly and carefully placed the nearly forty Foundation Establishment Pill main ingredients and the three thousand-year-old Blood Ginseng into the depths of the jade tablet space.
Then, from the remaining main medicinal materials, 28 plants of relatively medium to high quality and age, but not the highest grade, were carefully selected and placed in a specially prepared ordinary storage bag.
This number ensures an overwhelming advantage without being too shocking.
Having done all this, he felt at ease and had no more worries.
He quietly left the stone cave where he was hiding, and using the speed of his Cloud-Stepping Boots and the concealment of the "Hidden Spirit Technique," he bypassed any other cultivators he might be facing, quietly retreated from the second layer of the central area's ring mountain, and returned to the relatively safe "garden" area on the first layer.
He found a secluded corner, set up simple security, and began to wait quietly for the exit of the forbidden area to open.
The afternoon of the fifth day.
Beyond the forbidden area lies a nameless, desolate mountain.
Above the ancient plains of yellow sand, seven Core Formation cultivators gathered once again.
Compared to the somber mood of five days ago, they now appeared calm, even somewhat relaxed.
"Let's get started."
"It was a Core Formation cultivator from the Giant Sword Sect," the cultivator said in a deep voice.
The seven people once again unleashed their magical treasures, which shone with various colors.
However, perhaps because the entrance to the forbidden area was already in a relatively "weak" cycle, the spell to break the ban was much easier this time than it was five days ago.
In the short time it takes for an incense stick to burn, with the combined power of the seven magical treasures, the familiar, dark passage reappeared in mid-air.
in.
Once the passage was secured, the seven people retrieved their magical artifacts.
Surprisingly, this time the passage did not require a continuous input of mana to maintain, as before. Instead, it stabilized on its own, emitting stable spatial fluctuations, leading directly into the forbidden area.
Behind the seven, the Foundation Establishment stage leaders and managers from various factions looked much more tense.
They stared intently at the exit of the passage, their eyes scanning the figures emerging one after another, silently calculating the number of survivors in their sect and the amount of spiritual herbs they might have brought out.
This directly relates to the allocation of Foundation Establishment Pills in the coming years, and is closely related to their duties and sect status.
The disheveled "Old Monster Qiong" of the Hidden Moon Sect reappeared on a large rock nearby, scratching his dirty hair and watching everyone with a grin, especially Li Huayuan and Fuyunzi.
Obviously.
He took this bet very seriously.
About half an hour after the passage was opened.
The first figure, with slightly unsteady steps and a weary aura (in disguise), slowly emerged from the dark passage.
It was Lin Chuan!
He quickly glanced at the crowd outside, then lowered his head and strode back to the area where the Yellow Maple Valley disciples should be gathered. He stood silently, looking as if he had exhausted himself and needed to recuperate.
In fact, he didn't risk searching for elixirs on the fifth day. Instead, he conserved his energy and waited for the exit to open so he could be the first to come out and avoid any unforeseen complications.
After Lin Chuan, it took another half an hour before a second person emerged from the passage, looking disheveled. Then, disciples from various sects began to appear one after another, sporadically.
The teams from Spirit Beast Mountain, Blade Transformation Valley, Giant Sword Sect, Heavenly Palace Fortress, and Pure Void Sect—most of these sects only had four or five members each, all wounded and looking dejected, clearly indicating heavy losses during their expedition to the forbidden area.
Meanwhile, in Huangfeng Valley, as time went on, the number of people who came out made Li Huayuan's brows relax slightly: in addition to Lin Chuan who came out first, Lin Jie came out one after another.
Lin Jie's face was pale, and his eyes were somewhat dazed. He seemed unable to remember certain things. Han Li (still low-key and ordinary), Chen Qiaoqian and her brother Chen Qiaotian, and an unknown young disciple, a total of six people!
As time passed, there was less than half an hour left before the passage was scheduled to close.
A strange phenomenon has attracted everyone's attention.
The Hidden Moon Sect still hasn't had a single person emerge from inside!
"What happened? Where are the people from the Hidden Moon Sect?"
"Could it be... that the entire army was wiped out?"
"Impossible! The Hidden Moon Sect has always been the strongest—"
Whispers arose among the various factions.
Even the usually composed Old Monster Qiong stopped joking, his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly, and a hint of worry flashed in his eyes.
The next moment, another person came out.
He was an old man from Huangfeng Valley at the tenth level of Qi Refining. His comical tumbling and crawling appearance amused some people.
Lin Chuan thought to himself, "This old guy is really addicted to acting—"
Seeing the old man come out, Old Monster Qiong frowned, not knowing what had happened.
Logically speaking, with Nangong Wan leading the team, the Hidden Moon Sect should be completely safe.
Just at the very last moment before the passage was about to close!
"Whoosh!"
The light and shadows inside the passage shook violently, and then, suddenly, more than a dozen figures surged out!
They were all dressed in the same attire of the Hidden Moon Sect, and the one leading them was the girl in flowing white robes with a cool and aloof demeanor (Nangong Wan).
Twelve of them survived!
Moreover, judging from their auras, although some of them were injured, their overall condition seemed to be better than that of the scattered disciples from other sects, indicating that they had successfully reunited and acted as a group later on.
"As expected of the Hidden Moon Sect! They actually managed to gather everyone together inside!"
One of the foundation managers couldn't help but exclaim in a low voice.