Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: As Expected of the Saint Sect
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The landscape was like a painting, the setting sun like blood.
Lu Yang stood on the sea of clouds. After a long while, no palm strike descended from the sky to pulverize him, and only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
"Was that... a Foundation Establishment Perfected Being?"
Lu Yang didn't even dare to mutter to himself, thinking it over in his mind. His expression was as grim as it could be; the gap between them was simply too vast.
Not just his body, but even his thoughts had been frozen. He only reacted after Daoist Hongyun had left. The feeling was like a mouse caught by a cat—it was no longer a mere difference in power, but a distinction in level, instantly extinguishing all the arrogance in Lu Yang's heart.
"I'm still too weak, without power."
Originally, after defeating Liu Xin and the others against the odds, Lu Yang had swept away the gloom of his past life, feeling spirited and triumphant. Now, however, his mindset had leveled out once more.
The path of cultivation is long; one must still strive forward.
Lu Yang sighed with emotion, then recalled the matter of Xiao Shiye, a look of fear appearing in his eyes again. "Destiny... can it actually be bestowed by others?"
He remembered it now.
Before heading to the Merit Pool, Xiao Shiye had said something: "It just so happens I've been quite lucky recently, so I wanted to take the chance to try my luck."
Lucky recently.
At the time, Lu Yang had only thought it was the humility of a Son of Heaven's Mandate, but now it seemed that might have been the truth. He really had only just recently become lucky.
Because of that Daoist Hongyun!
"The colored fish in the Merit Pool must be the Colored Merit Fish. Daoist Hongyun wants to use Xiao Shiye to fish it out of the Merit Pool?"
"If that's true, then he succeeded in my past life. But speaking of which, after fishing out the Colored Merit Fish in the last life, Xiao Shiye announced he was entering seclusion and was never heard from again." Lu Yang felt a chill run down his spine. Fishing, fishing... once the fish is caught, is the bait no longer needed?
At this thought, Lu Yang suddenly looked up.
The Primal Saint Sect, the Heaven-Connecting Cloud Sea.
Perhaps to the elusive higher-ups of the Saint Sect, these so-called disciples were just a school of fish being raised in a pond?
"As expected of the Saint Sect..."
Lu Yang took a deep breath, beginning to understand why no one had slapped him to death.
So what if a little fish jumped around a bit more energetically and had some unspeakable secrets? They might even think you're a talent!
"In any case, at least the secret of the [Book of a Hundred Lives] wasn't exposed." Lu Yang felt fortunate. Not only that, but the karma related to the book seemed to have been hidden from Perfected Being Hongyun as well, so much so that the man hadn't suspected a thing about how he'd reached the fourth level of Qi Refining before even joining the sect.
"No time to waste. I should head back first."
Fortunately, although the *Innate Dao Scripture* was taken away by Daoist Hongyun, Lu Yang had already memorized its entire contents.
This was a good habit Lu Yang had developed because of the [Book of a Hundred Lives].
Whenever he encountered a decent cultivation method or divine ability, he would immediately memorize it. That way, he could use it in his next life without needing to spend contribution points to redeem it again.
Moreover, Daoist Hongyun had taken the *Innate Dao Scripture*, but he hadn't taken Fairy Qingchen's *Secret Explanation of Arrays and Treasures*.
"Admittedly, the two are not comparable in the slightest. Fairy Qingchen's work is clearly not worthy of that person's notice... but for me, it is of great use."
In truth, Lu Yang didn't place much importance on the *Innate Dao Scripture*. He had already set his sights on Zhao Xuhe's third-grade true technique. The *Innate Dao Scripture* was optional, but he was very interested in cultivation skills like the *Secret Explanation of Arrays and Treasures*, which involved array formation and treasure refining.
As for the Innate Primal Qi Myriad Spirits Banner...
"There will always be a chance. We'll see about it in the next life."
Returning to his grotto-mansion, Lu Yang patiently settled down to cultivate, studying the *Secret Explanation of Arrays and Treasures* while slowly repairing the damage to his Sword Pellet.
It wasn't until half a month later that he emerged from seclusion once more.
This time, he sought out Zhao Xuhe.
But when he arrived at Zhao Xuhe's grotto-mansion, he saw Zhao Xuhe arguing with a stern-looking young man dressed in the uniform of the Law Enforcement Hall.
"Senior Brother, believe me! Don't you know my, Zhao Xuhe's, reputation? It's been excellent for over a decade. It's just 1000 contribution points, I'll definitely pay it back... What? Interest!? You... Fine, no problem. Senior Brother, just give me a few more days, and I'll definitely pay it back with interest."
After they argued for a moment, the disciple from the Law Enforcement Hall left with a cold smile.
Zhao Xuhe, on the other hand, stood there with a gloomy face, the Qi around him fluctuating unstably. Seeing that the time was right, Lu Yang immediately appeared and walked over.
"Senior Brother Zhao, long time no see."
Zhao Xuhe looked up at the sound of his voice and instantly noticed Lu Yang's undisguised Qi. His pupils shrank. "Junior Brother Lu... you've broken through to the late stage of Qi Refining!?"
"Just a stroke of luck."
Lu Yang smiled faintly. "My aptitude is poor. I spent several months in seclusion and used up quite a few contribution points to have this lucky breakthrough. I've made a fool of myself in front of you, Senior Brother."
Hearing this, Zhao Xuhe's expression grew even stiffer, almost twisting. After all, they had both speculated on the Death-Substituting Yin Puppets. He had lost his entire fortune and even his mistress had left him for someone else, while Lu Yang had made a fortune and even used the contribution points he earned to break through to the late stage of Qi Refining.
What was even more infuriating was that he might not even be Lu Yang's match now!
"Although I obtained Perfected Being Panlong's opportunity, because my destiny was insufficient and my merit lacking, I only managed to get half of that third-grade true technique..."
He had even specifically asked his master about this.
His master had divined the karma and concluded that it was because he had speculated on the Death-Substituting Yin Puppets, prematurely exhausting the merit he had accumulated over three lifetimes, which led to his failure at the last moment.
At this thought, Zhao Xuhe nearly ground his teeth to dust.
Half a third-grade true technique, with only the Qi Refining Realm's *Nine Transformations of the Dragon Art* but missing the Foundation Establishment part, was completely useless to him!
Not to mention he was now in debt. He didn't even dare to disperse his cultivation to switch techniques, fearing that a debt collector would show up during the transition, see him powerless after dispersing his skills, and instantly turn into a robber, plundering him clean before silencing him forever. Then he would truly have nowhere to voice his grievances.
"Junior Brother, is there something you need from me?"
"It's a long story." Lu Yang sighed. "To be honest, Senior Brother, I've come seeking your guidance. I've run into some trouble recently."
"Trouble?" Zhao Xuhe's eyes lit up.
Lu Yang sighed in response. "I was previously focused solely on cultivation. It wasn't until I broke through to the late stage of Qi Refining that I learned about the issue of True Qi grades. I'm filled with regret..."
Hearing Lu Yang say this, Zhao Xuhe suddenly felt much better.
"So it's about the grade of your True Qi."
Zhao Xuhe offered some hypocritical words of comfort. "Most disciples in the Saint Sect are actually unaware of this, so it's normal that you didn't know, Junior Brother."
"Alas, life is unpredictable." Lu Yang shook his head helplessly. "That's why I've come to you this time, Senior Brother. I wanted to ask if there's any way to raise the grade of my True Qi. It would be even better if there's a superior cultivation method... As for the price, you don't need to worry. I can still afford one or two thousand contribution points."
"...Oh?"
Hearing Lu Yang's words, Zhao Xuhe's mind immediately started racing. One or two thousand contribution points... that was exactly the sum he urgently needed right now.
In a flash, Zhao Xuhe's thoughts spun, and he suddenly said:
"Junior Brother Lu, if you put it that way... I actually do have a technique on hand that's suitable for you. As long as you cultivate it, you can definitely raise the grade of your True Qi."
"Really?" Lu Yang's face filled with anticipation. "What technique is it?"
Zhao Xuhe hesitated, feeling a strange sense of unease for some reason. But on second thought, he only had half of the technique; it was already useless.
Rather than keeping it, it was better to make use of this waste and pay off his debts.
At this thought, Zhao Xuhe gritted his teeth and took out the *Nine Transformations of the Dragon Art* he had obtained from Coiling Dragon Island, handing it to Lu Yang.
(End of this chapter)