Chapter 619

Chapter 619: Terrifying Consumption

As Fang Lie violently absorbed Spiritual Energy, the dense mist within the Purple Palace Secret Realm began thinning. Though the change was minor, it shocked everyone present.

The vast Secret Realm spanned tens of thousands of miles. Even a slight disturbance across such an expanse was unheard of.

The Elder panicked and immediately channeled his Magic to crush massive quantities of small spirit pearls. The released energy passed through the Purple Palace’s outer walls, blended with primordial purple energy, then flowed back into the Secret Realm.

Only through this process could the Spiritual Energy gain the primal chaos essence—the true treasure for cultivation. This energy not only refined one’s Magic but also tempered the body while deepening comprehension of the Heavenly Dao.

Within moments, hundreds of thousands of small spirit pearls vanished. The watching Elder wailed, "This brat’s absorption rate is monstrous! He’s consuming triple a Thunder Tribulation Immortal’s annual intake—thirty million pearls! If he keeps this up for 25 years, our Mo Sect will go bankrupt! Sect Leader must expel him immediately!"

Without delay, the stubborn old man sent a Flying Sword message to Mo Qianxun.

Mo Qianxun arrived swiftly, brow furrowed. "What’s urgent?"

"Sect Leader, look!" The Elder pointed. "Fang Lie devours energy thrice faster than a Thunder Tribulation Immortal! Continuing this for 25 years will drain our resources and damage the Secret Realm for centuries!"

"Impossible!" Mo Qianxun scoffed. "Last time, he couldn’t match Lanyun’s pace, let alone a Thunder Tribulation Immortal’s!"

After inspecting the Secret Realm, Mo Qianxun roared, "That spendthrift! A mere Qi Sea realm cultivator using Meditation Incense, Ninth-Rank Spirit Gu, a Divine Marrow altar, and gobbling eighth-rank spirit pills like snacks?!"

The Elder choked. "No wonder his cultivation speed’s insane! I’ve never touched Meditation Incense or Ninth-Rank Spirit Gu! How’d he get Divine Marrow? And eighth-rank pills—I hoard mine, yet he eats them daily! Can he afford this for 25 years?"

"Apparently yes," Mo Qianxun grimaced. "Xuan Sect recently sold out their eighth-rank pills for a decade. Now I know why—they funneled everything to him!"

"Sect Leader, we must stop him!" The Elder urged. "He’ll bankrupt us and wreck the Secret Realm!"

"Impossible." Mo Qianxun shook his head. "He’s here because he donated a Ninth-Rank Treasure. Returning it to save resources? Our sect’s fate depends on that treasure! Suggest that, and the other Elders would skin you alive."

The Elder sighed. "My shortsightedness. But we’re running out of pearls! Your last shipment lasted mere months. We need twenty million more."

"Damn that Zhu Xian conflict!" Mo Qianxun growled. "Our trade networks collapsed. Raising twenty million pearls now…"

"Your problem, Sect Leader." The Elder shrugged. "No pearls, I eject Fang Lie."

"Unthinkable!" Mo Qianxun paled. "That blockhead has the Benevolence Token’s backing! He’ll reclaim the Ninth-Rank Treasure, and I can’t stop him!"

"Your solution?"

"We’ll beg loans from major sects or sell demon weapons." Mo Qianxun sighed. "Thank the heavens we’ve reserves."

Two months later, Mo Qianxun reluctantly delivered twenty million pearls. Both men hoped tightening budgets would suffice.

They were wrong.

Fang Lie’s cultivation speed kept accelerating. After one year, his Qi Sea ballooned to 30,000 miles. Empowered by Dao pattern karp, his body strengthened toward the Innate Dao Body, boosting absorption rates further.

What seemed a 10% increase to Fang Lie meant three million extra pearls consumed annually—another bleeding wound for the Secret Realm.

This was no small number, leaving Mo Qianxun and the Elder distressed for quite some time.

What followed nearly drove them mad. As Fang Lie’s body evolved toward the Innate Dao Body, his Spiritual Energy absorption rate kept accelerating by roughly ten percent annually.

Calculations showed Fang Lie consumed thirty million small spirit pearls in the first year, thirty-three million in the second, over thirty-seven million in the third, exceeding forty million in the fourth, around forty-five million in the fifth, and surpassing fifty million by the sixth year.

To understand the gravity, Mo Sect’s total yearly income previously stood at fifty to sixty million small spirit pearls. Even after Fang Lie’s massive contributions boosted earnings to seventy-eight million annually, it proved insufficient.

These figures represented liquid assets only – treasures and materials weren’t included.

Though income seemed substantial, Mo Sect’s vast operations required heavy spending. Only about thirty million in movable funds could be saved yearly, with the rest reinvested for daily operations.

Had Fang Lie consumed thirty million annually, Mo Sect could’ve written it off as a bad year.

But sixty-seventy million yearly consumption – potentially exceeding a trillion later – threatened the sect’s foundations.

Only then did Mo Qianxun realize the true cost of obtaining a Ninth-Rank Treasure. Trapped by his promise, he resorted to desperate measures.

The Semi-Immortal leader begged loans from allies, strong-armed subordinates for spirit pearls, and even sacrificed high-rank materials.

Still, expenditures outpaced income. After twenty years of Fang Lie’s closed-door training, his annual consumption hit two trillion small spirit pearls – with ten percent yearly increases.

Cornered, Mo Qianxun refused to sell Eighth-rank or higher treasures. Seventh-rank Treasures brought poor prices. His last resort? Raiding the Secret Vault.

This battle fund, meant for existential crises only, required Mo Qianxun to exercise Sect Leader privileges and convince several Token Lords.

Mo Sect’s war chest held staggering wealth – millennia of savings ranging from millions to tens of millions yearly deposits. Even after historical expenditures, it retained enough to fund a thousand-year War. This vault underpinned Mo Sect’s reputation as the world’s wealthiest sect.

The emergency funds solved the crisis – repaying debts and sustaining Fang Lie’s cultivation.

After twenty-five grueling years, Mo Qianxun immediately yanked Fang Lie from Purple Palace Secret Realm, hurled prepared treasures from heaven and earth inside, then sealed the realm permanently.

The dimmed purple hues of the Secret Realm pained Mo Qianxun and the guarding Thunder Tribulation Immortal. Fang Lie’s twenty-five year rampage caused damage requiring a millennium to heal – dooming most Thunder Tribulation Immortals (with under thousand-year Lifespans remaining) from ever using it again.

Finished sealing the realm, Mo Qianxun roared at Fang Lie: "You damn brat! Do you know what you’ve done?"

"What did I do?" Fang Lie blinked innocently.

"Your Spiritual Energy appetite equals ten Thunder Tribulation Immortals! That final year alone burned three trillion small spirit pearls! Three trillion! Mo Sect needs years to earn that much!"

"Was it really that much?" Fang Lie gasped. "I didn’t notice!"