manynovel Chapter 248 Promotion to Elder, Four Prodigies Visit
Chapter 248 Promotion to Elder, Four Prodigies Visit
Chapter 248 Promotion to Elder, Four Prodigies Visit
Upon sensing the fluctuations in Xingfeng's aura, Master Xingmu immediately went to Chen Yi's cave to inquire about the situation.
When Chen Yi told him that it was one of Chen Yi's spirit pets that had successfully advanced to the late stage of the third rank, Master Xingmu was greatly surprised.
It should be noted that Master Xingmu has cultivated for many years and has experienced training in places such as Immortal City and Fish Farm. He has served as an elder of the sect and also served as the sect leader for several years, but he is still one step away from advancing to the late stage of Core Formation.
The late stage of Core Formation is an extremely high threshold in the entire Core Formation period, but unexpectedly, Chen Gongfeng's spirit pet broke through this difficulty first.
Chen Yi was also quite moved. It seemed that the essence and demon core of that late-stage third-tier bear demon had indeed greatly helped the treasure-hunting rat, allowing it to successfully break through its bottleneck.
Master Xingmu felt a bitter taste in his mouth, and his gaze toward Chen Yi changed completely. He solemnly bowed to Chen Yi and said, "Congratulations, Elder Chen, on having the assistance of a late-stage third-tier demon."
He knew very well that Chen Yi's rise in the Star Moon Sect was probably unstoppable. The Star Moon Sect was currently at its lowest point in thousands of years. Apart from Yue Qingqiu, there wasn't even a single late-stage Core Formation cultivator. Chen Yi's current strength was enough to occupy a pivotal position within the sect.
As expected, Yue Qingqiu rushed over from Yuefeng as soon as she heard the news.
Upon seeing the powerful treasure-hunting rat with her own eyes, she immediately announced: "From today onwards, Chen Yi is promoted to Elder of my Star Moon Sect, in charge of foreign trade affairs."
Anyone who objects may challenge him, and only the victor may question the appointment.
When Yue Qingqiu announced the appointment, the rat demon, whose body was comparable to a wolfhound and whose muscles were bulging, stood quietly behind Chen Yi, exuding a strong aura of earthly evil. Lightning occasionally flashed in its eyes as it looked down at everyone present.
If any Core Formation cultivator dares to express even the slightest dissent, it will unleash a terrifying power to suppress their thoughts.
The arena was initially deathly silent. After a moment, as Sect Master Xingmu Zhenren led the way to congratulate Chen Yi, other cultivators followed suit. In an instant, congratulatory messages for Chen Yi's promotion to Elder rose and fell, and many people presented gifts on the spot with the utmost respect.
Chen Yi maintained a humble smile throughout, not placing too much importance on this elder status. To him, it was merely an extra layer of protection when using sect resources in the future.
He knew in his heart that Yue Qingqiu was eager to promote him to elder because she wanted to bind him more closely to the Star Moon Sect and make him an important pillar of the sect.
The implications of this situation are actually mutually beneficial for both Yue Qingqiu and Chen Yi, but they both keep it to themselves and don't say it out loud.
Currently, Yue Qingqiu still relies heavily on Chen Yi's assistance if she wants to break through to the Nascent Soul stage.
With the status of a sect elder, Chen Yi's every word and action could represent the Star Moon Sect.
Yue Qingqiu simply handed over all the tasks of ordering custom-made puppets, beast pills, and thunder brews to Chen Yi. In any case, she had almost prepared the materials she needed to break through to the Nascent Soul stage, and it was time to give Chen Yi some resources in return, as a way of compensating him for his past efforts.
By taking over the identity of the sect's transaction, Chen Yi could even take a cut of the sect's share of the compound interest on the finished products. In addition, with the high success rate of Chen Yi's own refining skills, the profit margin of his refining beast pills and thunder brews directly climbed to four times!
With such astonishing profits, his Tier 3 resources were almost inexhaustible, with no shortage whatsoever.
As for the sect, he only needs to hand over 10% of the resources each year, which is enough to explain himself and will not cause any controversy.
If we break it down in detail: the cost of refining accounts for 20%, the sect takes 10%, and the remaining 70% belongs entirely to Chen Yi.
Such a profit-sharing ratio would be an impossible exception in any other sect, even for artisans with top-notch skills.
This is the most obvious benefit Chen Yi received after becoming an elder.
Of course, this model also has one drawback: the acquisition of fourth-tier resources is not very high.
Usually, if he can get two or three fourth-tier resources in a year, and exchange them for one or two bottles of third-tier high-grade "Escape Technique Thunder Brew", it is already a good result.
Even so, the number of fourth-tier Thunder Brewed Spirit Essence in Chen Yi's possession, as well as various near-fourth-tier puppet materials, beast pill materials, and those spirit herbs and spirit ores that are currently unused but have collection value, will accumulate and improve at a visible speed.
He estimated that if he accumulated enough resources over one or two decades, he would have enough, even more than enough, for both body tempering and the advancement of his magical power to the Nascent Soul stage.
Another year passed, and Yue Qingqiu's Golden Core cultivation was completely stable, her condition perfect, and she had finally reached the crucial moment to break through to the Nascent Soul stage.
She packed all the materials for the Nascent Soul Pill and prepared to go out to find a safe place to refine the pill.
However, not long after leaving the sect, she received an urgent message from the sect informing her that a near-fourth-tier snake demon skilled in stealth was secretly lurking outside the sect, seemingly targeting her.
Yue Qingqiu's heart sank, and she instantly realized that this must have been the work of the Black Serpent True Lord of Eagle Ridge Mountain.
The other party did not want to see her successfully form her Nascent Soul and allow the Star Moon Sect to rise again, so they deliberately blocked her on the way to prevent her from leaving smoothly to refine the Nascent Soul Pill.
To be on the safe side, Yue Qingqiu immediately returned to the Xingyue Sect and did not venture out again rashly.
With her strength at her peak, she wouldn't have been afraid of the near-fourth-tier snake demon, Black Serpent True Lord. However, she worried that Eagle Ridge Mountain might disregard its reputation again, and Black Serpent True Lord might hide in the shadows and launch a sneak attack. If she were to be injured because of this, it would be a loss that wouldn't be worth it.
In the current situation, both sides are racing against time.
Yue Qingqiu needs to strive to reach the Nascent Soul stage in the next few years to solidify the sect's position.
Eagle Ridge Mountain needs to buy time. Once a few years have passed and the impact of the previous battle between Eagle Ridge Mountain and Star Moon Sect's Nascent Soul cultivators has gradually faded, and if Star Moon Sect still does not produce any new Nascent Soul cultivators, they will have a way to completely drive Star Moon Sect out of the fourth-order spiritual vein and swallow up this spiritual vein dojo.
Just when things were at a stalemate, a person who could "offer help in times of need" came to their door—Master Yuntian of Qingyun Cave.
He volunteered to come to the Star Moon Sect, went straight to Yue Qingqiu, and offered to run errands for her, refining the Nascent Soul Pill on her behalf.
At that time, Yue Qingqiu was dressed in a cool, moon-colored long dress, her figure as elegant as a beautiful woman. Upon hearing this, a hint of hesitation appeared on her face.
Seeing her hesitation, Yun Tian immediately patted his chest and swore, "Fairy Qingyue, please rest assured, whether this alchemy succeeds or fails, I, Yun Tian, would never dare to keep any of your materials. If I do so, I am willing to suffer the backlash of Heaven!"
"That's not what I'm worried about."
Yue Qingqiu gently shook her head, her tone frank, "Fellow Daoist Yuntian, I understand your feelings, but you should know that there is absolutely no possibility between us. We can only be friends."
Upon hearing this, Yun Tian felt a lump in his throat, a bitter feeling rising within him.
But he was, after all, a Core Formation cultivator with a strong will, and he quickly suppressed his emotions, forcing a smile to explain: "You're overthinking it, Fairy."
I was running errands for you to refine pills, but my real intention was to ask Fellow Daoist Chen for another bottle of Thunder Brew, not to use it to blackmail you into doing anything.
"Given your ethereal beauty, even if I truly harbored the thought of becoming your Daoist partner, the betrothal gift would at least be a complete Nascent Soul Pill, not this insignificant errand."
Hearing these frank words, Yue Qingqiu's tense expression relaxed a lot, and a bright smile bloomed on her face: "In that case, Qingqiu will trouble Fellow Daoist Yuntian."
"Fellow Daoist, just tell me which kind of Thunder Brew you desire, and I will instruct Elder Chen to refine it for you. I can even halve the cost of the materials."
Seeing Yue Qingqiu's rare and stunning smile, Yun Tian was instantly filled with motivation, feeling that all the previous preparations and efforts had been worthwhile.
As for asking Chen Yi to refine Thunder Brew, it was just an excuse he came up with on the spot to cover up the embarrassment of being rejected to his face.
Yun Tian patted his chest again to assure them, and left the Star Moon Sect in high spirits with the materials for the Nascent Soul Pill and the cost of its production.
Afterwards, Yue Qingqiu told Chen Yi about Yun Tian's help, praising him as a reliable and good person.
Chen Yi just smiled faintly after hearing this, thinking to himself: You don't understand men's thoughts, let alone the obsession of a "simp".
However, he did not say these words aloud, since he had never intended to possess Yue Qingqiu, and the thoughts of others were none of his business.
As for Yun Tian's comings and goings, neither the snake demon lurking outside the sect nor the Black Serpent True Monarch behind the scenes dared to make a move lightly, unless the Black Serpent True Monarch wanted Eagle Ridge Mountain to be completely wiped out and wiped out, thus bearing the wrath of Qingyun Cave Heaven.
A year later, Yun Tian used his personal connections to get Yu Chen Zhenjun to skip the queue and successfully refined a Nascent Soul Pill. He immediately prepared to send the pill to the Star Moon Sect.
When this news reached the ears of the Black Serpent True Lord, it greatly angered him.
Although Black Serpent True Monarch dared not attack Yun Tian himself, he dared to secretly guard the vicinity of the Star Moon Sect, planning to disrupt the Star Moon Sect's mountain gate formation at the critical moment when Yue Qingqiu took the Nascent Soul Pill to break through to the Nascent Soul stage, thereby interfering with her Nascent Soul formation process.
However, when he saw the escort team, he was dumbfounded. Among the three people accompanying Master Yuntian to escort the Nascent Soul Pill, there were two people he could not afford to offend: Ji Wuchen from the Ji family and Qiu Li from the Thundercloud Sect.
Both of these individuals are the chief disciples of their respective powerful factions, undoubtedly Nascent Soul seedlings, backed by their entire forces. They are far beyond what a weak Nascent Soul True Monarch like him can afford to provoke.
As for the last person, the ethereal fairy, it's not a question of "whether or not you can afford to offend her," but rather that he might not even be able to defeat her.
The ethereal fairy's fame had already spread throughout the surrounding grotto-heavens, and even the Black Serpent True Lord felt a chill in his heart just from hearing about it.
Her original name was Yuan Lingling, and her Taoist name "Kongling" came from her innate ethereal Taoist body.
She is also the closed-door disciple of the True Lord of Hongfeng Cave, and follows the cultivation path of the Immortal Martial lineage.
Having achieved the fourth level of Body Refinement in just over ten years, he has already set an astonishing record of being undefeated in numerous battles against early Nascent Soul cultivators. His unique spatial abilities, combined with high-level immortal martial arts techniques, are extremely effective against ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators.
"unlucky!"
Black Serpent True Monarch cursed under his breath, his eyes filled with resentment and apprehension. "The Star Moon Sect is nothing more than a small sect hiding on the edge of the Central Continent, on the verge of extinction. How could it attract so many geniuses?"
He dared not linger any longer, quickly retracting the black snake beneath him. He then transformed into a streak of black light and silently fled from the Star Moon Sect. As long as these people remained in the Star Moon Sect, he could not make a move.
On the other side, Chen Yi and Yue Qingqiu, having heard that Yun Tian had brought distinguished guests, had already flown out of the mountain gate and were waiting to greet them in the distance.
"Hahaha, Fairy Qingyue, True Man Changqing, today I, Yun, have brought you some distinguished guests!"
Even before the luxurious airship could be seen from afar, Yun Tian's loud laughter could be heard.
Chen Yi's Daoist title "Changqing Zhenren" had been forgotten for a long time until recently when he became an elder of the Xingyue Sect, at which point people began to call him that again.
This four-person team was actually assembled by Ji Wuchen for his subsequent trip to the Black Mountain Secret Realm. All four members were top-tier geniuses in the Core Formation stage from the Central Continent.
They were willing to make a special trip to this remote Xingyue Sect, partly at the invitation of True Person Yuntian, to safeguard the Nascent Soul Pill.
If circumstances permit, Yun Tian hopes that the group can stay at the Star Moon Sect for a while to help Yue Qingqiu successfully form her Nascent Soul, but this depends on their wishes.
On the other hand, Chen Yi's escape technique, Thunder Brew, has become increasingly famous in recent years, and even some forces outside the Moon Lake region have heard of it.
After confirming Chen Yi's identity from Ji Wuchen, Qiu Li naturally wanted to come and see him. Firstly, she wanted to see what situation her best friend Qin Chengcheng's "wild man" was in now. Secondly, if she had the chance, she wanted to order a custom-made Thunder Brew and see if Chen Yi could help.
Ji Wuchen's arrival had another purpose—he wanted to ask Chen Yi for help to see if he could buy some of Chen Yi's personal, non-saleable items to aid his journey to the secret realm.
Ji Wuchen knew Chen Yi's character well. Since Chen Yi was willing to sell the third-grade high-quality escape technique Thunder Brew, he must have something of a higher grade, such as the near-fourth-grade Thunder Brew essence.
Ji Wuchen even secretly guessed that Chen Yi was probably close to successfully refining fourth-tier Thunder Brew Spirit Essence.
The arrival of the ethereal fairy was purely due to Ji Wuchen's personal connections, which he managed to obtain with great difficulty.
She is the strongest fighter in this four-person team and the team's spearhead.
She follows the path of cultivating both body and magic, possessing extremely powerful immortal martial arts skills. She has reached the fourth level in both body cultivation and immortal martial arts skills, but her magic power cultivation is still stuck at the late stage of Core Formation.
This woman cultivates the direct lineage body-refining technique of Hongfeng Cave Heaven, and her strength is unfathomable.
Chen Yi had been asking Ji Wuchen for help in finding high-level immortal martial arts techniques or cultivation notes. In order to get something good from Chen Yi on this trip, Ji Wuchen spared no expense to invite Fairy Kongling over.
Otherwise, given Fairy Kongling's status and perspective, she would never have made a special trip to a small sect like the Star Moon Sect.
From a distance, Chen Yi could clearly see the four people on the flying boat.
Ji Wuchen and Yun Tian were both elegant young men, with extraordinary bearing and handsome appearance, exuding an air of genius.
Qiu Li, who was standing to the side, had not seen Chen Yi for more than forty years and had now advanced to the peak of the Golden Core stage.
Lightning flickered around her, and even from a distance, Chen Yi could sense the extremely strong lightning spirit attack power emanating from her. Cultivators who specialize in lightning-based techniques begin to show their talent when they reach the Golden Core stage, and after advancing to the Nascent Soul stage, they can truly master it. Among magic cultivators, their attack and escape abilities are far superior to those of ordinary five-element techniques.
Moreover, Qiu Li's appearance has not changed much over the decades; she still maintains her stunning beauty.
Standing next to Qiu Li was a woman who was half a head taller than her, dressed in a simple white dress, yet she stood out even more than Qiu Li.
She wore a neat ponytail and had a tall and slender figure, yet she did not appear frail; instead, she exuded a strong and heroic air.
With handsome and delicate features, yet gentle and graceful, he exudes a refreshing and elegant beauty just by standing there.
Of the four, Chen Yi dared not underestimate her.
This woman was the only one who posed a significant threat to Chen Yi.
Under Chen Yi's all-seeing spiritual eye, every breath the woman took caused a mysterious force in the world to ripple gently. Clearly, her cultivation had reached the point where she could initially manipulate the power of heaven and earth, and she was far more than she appeared on the surface.
If a fight really breaks out, this tall woman in white martial arts attire could probably take on the other three at once. If I were to face her, I'd likely only have to run away...
Chen Yi secretly assessed the situation, not daring to underestimate it in the slightest.
As the flying boat approached, Yue Qingqiu led Chen Yi forward to pay their respects and formally welcome the four of them.
Yun Tian's gaze remained fixed on Yue Qingqiu from beginning to end, and he even secretly whispered to her, "I have fulfilled my mission."
Seeing the look of surprise in Yue Qingqiu's eyes, he felt as sweet as if he had eaten honey, and was very satisfied.
Qiu Li walked straight up to Chen Yi, looked him up and down, and criticized him with her voice: "You heartless man, you're having a good time here. You've probably forgotten about Chengcheng long ago, haven't you?"
She's still fighting monsters and demons in the middle of nowhere over there.
snort!"
Chen Yi simply replied calmly, "Fairy Qiu, it's been a long time."
Regarding his relationship with Qin Chengcheng, he felt there was no need to explain it to others;
Moreover, Chen Yi was not surprised that Qiu Li recognized him as Xu Jiu as soon as they met. Given Qiu Li's relationship with Qin Chengcheng and her familiarity with Ji Wuchen, it was reasonable for her to guess this identity.
The ethereal fairy merely glanced at Yue Qingqiu and Chen Yi before looking up to examine the Star Moon Sect's mountain gate.
She seemed uninterested in the people in the sect, but instead showed a curious expression at the strange phenomenon between Star Peak and Moon Peak that seemed to connect heaven and earth.
After a few brief pleasantries, Yue Qingqiu immediately ordered someone to prepare a spiritual food banquet.
Although Chen Yi was already a sect elder, the Star Moon Sect did not have any other third-tier spirit chefs, so the food for this banquet was ultimately prepared by him personally.
These individuals were all well-traveled and knowledgeable geniuses, but after tasting Chen Yi's hand-held food, they couldn't help but praise it highly and nodded repeatedly at the spiritual food on the table.
After a few rounds of drinks, Yun Tian put down his wine cup and took the lead in bringing up the serious matter.
He first smiled and said, "I have fulfilled my mission." Then he took out the Nascent Soul Pill, verified its authenticity in front of everyone, and solemnly handed the pill to Yue Qingqiu.
Strictly speaking, the people present were all late-stage Core Formation cultivators, and they all had an urgent need for the Nascent Soul Pill.
At this moment, a finished Nascent Soul Pill was placed in front of him. Yun Tian was able to resist the urge to keep it for himself and kept his promise to give it to Yue Qingqiu.
The other three only observed and appreciated, without any greed in their eyes. Such a mindset is extremely rare in the world of cultivation.
These individuals are all promising talents nurtured by major powers, and they know that while resources are rare for cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage and above, the karmic consequences are even more difficult to resolve.
Moreover, with the support of the powerful forces behind them, obtaining the Nascent Soul Pill was not particularly difficult.
For Yue Qingqiu, this Nascent Soul Pill was extremely hard-won. Not only did it take a lot of effort to prepare the materials, but she also almost encountered the obstruction of Eagle Ridge Mountain when she went out to refine the pill. Therefore, this pill was especially precious to her.
She took the light blue, fourth-tier Nascent Soul Pill, which exuded a rich spiritual energy, and carefully put it into a jade box for safekeeping, fearing that she might make a mistake.
Then, she stood up again and solemnly thanked Yun Tian, her tone full of gratitude.
Just as Yun Tian was about to stand up and say "You're welcome," Yue Qingqiu suddenly pulled Chen Yi up from beside her, her tone naturally familiar: "What are you still sitting for? Get up and thank Xi together!"
Helpless, Chen Yi had no choice but to stand up and bow to Yun Tian together with Yue Qingqiu.
As this scene unfolded, Yun Tian's smile froze, revealing a hint of embarrassment. The way Chen Yi and Yue Qingqiu bowed side by side made them look like a pair of tacit Daoist partners, while he himself became an unwanted outsider, which was completely contrary to his original intention for this trip.
Seeing this, Ji Wuchen, Qiu Li, and the Fairy Kongling all smiled.
Everyone present was quick-witted and could easily see through Yue Qingqiu's intentions.
She was clearly using Chen Yi as a shield to subtly reject Yun Tian's advances, thus saving Yun Tian's face while also making her stance clear.
It should be noted that along the way, Yun Tian kept praising how outstanding Fairy Qingyue was. Yun Tian even asked them to stay at the Star Moon Sect for a while, hoping to observe Yue Qingqiu's Nascent Soul formation.
Their visit was partly motivated by curiosity, a desire to witness the extraordinary abilities of the renowned Fairy Qingyue, whose fame resounded throughout the Moon Lake region.
Unexpectedly, upon arriving at the scene, he saw Yun Tian acting like a clown trying to curry favor but failing miserably, creating a rather awkward situation.
Yun Tian sat down hesitantly, only vaguely saying, "You're welcome. It's only right for friends to do these things," his voice lacking its previous high spirits.
Yue Qingqiu insisted that mere thanks were not enough; Elder Chen must compensate her with a high-grade third-tier puppet to truly express her gratitude.
Upon hearing this, Yun Tian could only shake his head with a wry smile. He himself was a puppeteer, and with the resources of Qingyun Cave Heaven, how could he lack high-grade third-tier puppets?
Yun Tian knew perfectly well that Yue Qingqiu's insistence on settling the matter of gratitude completely was clearly because she didn't want to get too involved with him, lest it lead to unforeseen consequences in the future.
Ji Wuchen, Qiu Li, and Kongling Fairy, who were present, might have thought that Yue Qingqiu and Zhang Lan had arranged for Chen Yi to compensate them beforehand.
The bedroom affair was not like that at all. Yue Qingqiu did not communicate with Chen Yi in advance and directly arranged this "job" for Chen Yi.
Moreover, when trading with cultivators from other sects, she often took on many tedious tasks for Chen Yi.
Yue Qingqiu dared to do this without worrying that Chen Yi would interfere, because she knew that the compensation she would give Chen Yi afterward would be far more valuable than these "extra tasks," which would make Chen Yi willingly accept it.
Seeing this, Yun Tian could only smile bitterly to himself. He could no longer say that he wanted his three friends to stay at the Star Moon Sect for half a year and wait for Yue Qingqiu to form her Nascent Soul. He couldn't make a fool of himself and let his friends laugh at him.
Quickly composing himself, Yun Tian resumed speaking and brought up the second matter.
This time, his gaze turned to Chen Yi, and his tone became formal: "Fellow Daoist Chen, this is Fellow Daoist Qiu Li, the chief prodigy of the Thundercloud Sect."
She came to the Star Moon Sect specifically because she heard that you are skilled in refining Thunder Brew, a technique of escape, and wanted to ask you to customize a Thunder Brew for her with a different approach.
Xi Jinping, acting as an intermediary, also vouched for both of you.
Yun Tian was unaware that Chen Yi and Qiu Li had known each other for many years, so he made the introduction exceptionally polite, treating them with the etiquette due to strangers making their first transaction.
Chen Yi nodded slightly, then turned his gaze to Qiu Li, quietly waiting for her to explain her specific needs.
He never refused such normal business transactions. Moreover, the amount of high-level thunder beast essence blood in the Moon Lake region was already limited. The existing orders for the third-tier superior escape technique, Thunder Brewing, were already full. He needed to develop new sales channels to broaden the ways to obtain high-level thunder beast essence blood and support the subsequent improvement of body tempering and Thunder Brewing techniques.
Among the people at this table, apart from Chen Yi, the rest were all geniuses from various major forces. Qiu Li did not hide anything and solemnly said, "Fellow Daoist Chen, I have carefully studied the Thunder Brew you refined and found that you deliberately deleted the part about the taste of the Thunder Spirit Technique and instead strengthened the escape ability and the duration of the spirit body."
Xi would like to ask if it's possible to refine it in reverse, completely sacrificing the ability to escape, and even appropriately shortening the time for the lightning spirit to materialize, focusing more on enhancing the feel of the lightning spirit technique?
As Qiu Li spoke, she looked intently at Chen Yi, her eyes filled with undisguised anticipation.
Whether or not she could make this special thunder brew was of paramount importance to her. She was currently in the preparation period for Nascent Soul formation. If she could use the thunder brew to further improve her understanding of thunder spirit techniques before breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage, her chances of forming the Nascent Soul stage would greatly increase.
If the effect exceeds expectations, the bed may even affect the quality of her nascent soul, giving her a greater advantage on her future cultivation path.
Ideally, if Chen Yi could refine such a high-quality Thunder Brew that specializes in improving one's comprehension of cultivation techniques, its value to cultivators like them who practice Thunder Spirit techniques would be comparable to a superior Nascent Soul artifact!