Chapter 168: With Arts Like Heaven-Cleaving and Sea-Gathering, Cultivation is Swift

What is going on? Qin Haoxuan was stunned, but then he remembered that his was not the only consciousness within the small snake’s body; the snake’s original consciousness was also there. It must have seen him stop cultivating the Tyrannical True Dragon Art and decided to continue on its own.

Qin Haoxuan was pleasantly surprised. He had originally thought that although the snake had developed a consciousness, it had not yet developed intelligence. But its current behavior clearly proved otherwise. Would an unintelligent snake know how to cultivate? He tried to approach its consciousness with his own, intending to communicate, but the moment his drew near, the snake’s would flee and dim significantly. He realized that his own spiritual sense was too strong and difficult to control, like a sharp sword that threatened to dissipate the snake’s weak consciousness. Thus, he had to give up the idea of communicating with it.

He entered the Immortal-Slaying Poison Valley. The pressure from the valley left him no room for other thoughts. He arrived at the stalagmite forest, glanced at the still-growing Cockscomb Grass, and then began to search his way back towards the valley entrance. After searching for a whole night, he only found a single waste pill, but he was still gratified. It was better than wasting a whole night for nothing.

On the way back, in a secluded spot, he discovered Little Gold, who was facing the bright moon, absorbing its essence. A sacred luster faintly shone from its dark golden fur. The snake could feel that its aura had become much more condensed, and Qin Haoxuan noticed that Little Gold’s eyes were no longer black, but a mesmerizing, shifting rainbow of seven colors.

He sighed to himself. His luck was truly not bad. Although his own aptitude was poor, the heavens had compensated him well. Not to mention the little snake, which could now cultivate the Tyrannical True Dragon Art at a speed no weaker than a Purple Seed’s—in just one night, its internal spiritual energy had grown tenfold. Even the little monkey he had picked up had such ability. Its troop of Mighty Apes had now expanded to five hundred, and the number of spirit fields they managed was growing, making him, without a doubt, the richest person in the Spirit Field Valley.

In the days that followed, Qin Haoxuan spent his days cultivating and practicing talisman crafting, and his nights exploring the Immortal-Slaying Poison Valley. Ten days passed in a flash.

In those ten days, thanks to the Qi-Circulating Pills and the Meridian Protecting Powder, as well as the superior Sea-Gathering Art, Qin Haoxuan had actually sprouted two more leaves. He was now at the Fourth-Leaf of the Spirit Sprout Realm. When news of this cultivation speed spread, the entire Spirit Field Valley was thrown into an uproar.

“Tsk tsk, three leaves in ten days! That’s faster than a Gray Seed! Zhang Yang only just grew his fourth leaf this morning, but Qin Haoxuan grew his last night. He’s a monster!”

“What’s so monstrous about it? It’s all because of Xu Yu. Qin Haoxuan is a smart one; he latched onto a powerful backer.”

“Exactly! If not for Xu Yu’s pills and powder, I guarantee he’d be even worse than me!” a disciple still stuck at the Rooting stage said resentfully.

“What a waste to give them to him! If I had those pills, I would have definitely sprouted my fifth leaf by now…”

His terrifying speed filled many disciples, including Murong Chao and Zhang Yang, with a heart-pounding jealousy. In their eyes, his rapid progress was solely due to the pills Xu Yu had given him.

For his part, Qin Haoxuan was a bit frustrated. Besides his first golden leaf, the other three were just ordinary seven-veined leaves. The narration noted that if anyone else heard him complaining about seven-veined leaves, they would probably die of anger. What he was truly pleased with was his progress in using his spiritual sense. He had memorized Introduction to Spiritual Sense and could now condense his spiritual sense into a small, sharp golden sword, which was many times more powerful than his previous crude attacks.

In these ten days, not only was Qin Haoxuan’s progress astonishing, but Xu Yu’s was also terrifying. Starting from the Ninth-Leaf, she sprouted a new leaf every two days on average. By the time he reached the Fourth-Leaf, she had already reached the Fourteenth-Leaf. This news shocked the entire sect, even reaching the Sect Master.

In a side hall of the Taichu Grand Hall, an attendant knocked on the door. “Sect Master, this disciple has news to report.”

“Enter,” Huanglong replied, his face as still as water.

“Reporting to the Sect Master, this disciple has received news that in the past ten days, Xu Yu has been sprouting a new leaf every two days and has now reached the Fourteenth-Leaf of the Spirit Sprout Realm.” The attendant paused, then continued, “And there is even more surprising news. In these ten days, Qin Haoxuan has shot up from the First-Leaf to the Fourth-Leaf…”

“What!” Huanglong slammed his hand on the table and shot to his feet. If he could understand Xu Yu’s speed, then Qin Haoxuan’s was completely beyond his imagination. A weak seed disciple had sprouted three leaves in ten days. Such a thing was unheard of in the entire cultivation world.

He sat back down and stared at the attendant, who was also his most trusted confidant in charge of gathering intelligence. “How did he do it?”

“As far as this disciple knows, Xu Yu asked her senior sister, Luo Jinhua, to refine a type of Qi-Circulating Pill that is much more effective than the powder. One must also take Meridian Protecting Powder at the same time…” Before the attendant could finish, the look of shock on Huanglong’s face deepened.

“A total of four such pills were refined. She gave two of them to Qin Haoxuan.”

Hearing this, a look of understanding appeared on the Sect Master’s face. He was no longer angry, just filled with a sense of speechlessness and helplessness. For a weak seed to eat such pills, what a waste of heavenly treasures.

The attendant asked, “Sect Master, shall I summon Xu Yu and have her hand over the pill’s recipe?”

Huanglong decisively shook his head. “Inappropriate. Xu Yu is, after all, an Unsurpassed Purple Seed. If I were to force her today, even if I obtained the recipe, I would surely earn her resentment. The end result would not be worth the cost.”

He thought for a moment, then said to the attendant, “Summon Xu Yu again. This seat wishes to see her.”

“Yes.”

When the attendant brought Xu Yu to the side hall again, there was an unexpected person already waiting: Master Chi Lian of the Ancient Cloud Hall.

After seeing the Sect Master, he bowed deeply to the ground. “Chi Lian pays his respects to Uncle-Master.”

Huanglong said with some surprise, “You have come to see me in such a hurry. What is the matter?”

“I have heard that you were summoning Xu Yu, Uncle-Master. This disciple wishes to ask you to plead for a few Qi-Circulating Pills on my behalf. My lifespan is nearing its end, and I wish to use them to attempt a breakthrough, so that I may serve the sect for longer.”

A sharp glint flashed in Huanglong’s eyes. He knew that Master Chi Lian had smelled an opportunity and had come running. However, anyone who could cultivate to the Spirit Tree Realm was a pillar of the sect, and he certainly hoped they could reach even higher realms.

“You may wait to the side. After Xu Yu arrives, this seat will speak to her on your behalf.”

A short while later, Xu Yu was once again brought into the side hall.

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