Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect-Chapter 248: Qi Collection

The Void Verification Technique is destined to be mine!

This was the only thought in Lü Yang’s mind after hearing World Purger Fei Xue’s warning. This confidence, of course, came from the Centome.

’The biggest problem with the Void Attainment Position is getting killed off by the Masters of Dao after it’s all over. But I’m different. As long as I restart the very moment I secure the Attainment Position and bring it back with me, the Centome will wipe it clean of all cause and effect. What can the Masters of Dao do to me then?’

Lü Yang barely managed to keep a straight face and not laugh out loud as he watched World Purger Fei Xue depart.

And with Zhongguang’s death, the mysterious Perfected Lord vanished once more. The various Perfected Lords dispersed their Attainment Positions, and the sky cleared, as if the great battle had never happened.

"Come back with me."

Lü Yang glanced at the Duo Bao Child, who had been anxiously waiting outside the Blessed Land, too afraid to leave. He smiled slightly. "You still rendered a service, Daoist."

He wasn’t some great Demon, after all.

Life wasn’t easy for Loose Cultivators, and it was even harder for those from Small Sects. Lü Yang considered himself a very empathetic person, so naturally, he wouldn’t give the Duo Bao Child too much trouble.

Besides, there wasn’t any more juice to squeeze from him.

But this one sentence nearly brought the Duo Bao Child to tears.

He thought back on the miserable days he’d been through. Ever since he left the North and threw his lot in with another, nothing had gone right, and he was constantly misunderstood.

Before this, he had even been blackmailed and extorted by the Sword Pavilion, leaving him seething with frustration.

’Looking at it now, the Stain Sect is the only one that truly appreciates talent. They saw the brilliance hidden beneath my surface. Why was I so foolish as to betray them in the first place?’

Previously, a casual compliment from Lü Yang would never have stirred such strong emotions in the Duo Bao Child. But now, after a series of harsh beatings, he found he had not only kept his life but had even earned some merit. For a moment, the Duo Bao Child was so overcome with joy he nearly wept.

"Thank you, my lord!"

Seeing this, Lü Yang nodded. He then drew his Abi Sword, and with a flash of Sword Qi, obliterated the unconscious Ye Guyue nearby into fine dust before striding away.

.......

「Stain Sect, Luofeng Mountain.」

After casually dismissing the Duo Bao Child, Lü Yang began to wander through the mountains, listening to the sounds of people to ease the tension that had built up over many days.

This was Cultivation, after all. The Righteous Dao was to alternate between tension and relaxation, to maintain a proper balance.

He hadn’t been gone long, yet upon his return, Lü Yang felt as if a lifetime had passed. The mountain was just too lively.

As far as the eye could see, the sea of people rivaled that of the former Heaven Mending Peak, and perhaps even surpassed it. Many of these disciples practiced the Wu Ghost Sect’s Cultivation Techniques. After all, under Progenitor Tingyou’s arrangements, the Wu Ghost Sect’s techniques were thirty percent cheaper than others, with limited-time sales events every month.

"What do you think?"

The Myriad-Soul Banner unfurled, and Progenitor Tingyou’s figure materialized beside Lü Yang. His face was filled with emotion, and his words were accompanied by a heartfelt smile.

"You’ve worked hard, Progenitor."

Lü Yang wore a similarly emotional expression. "I remember when I was the sole heir to our lineage, no different from a Loose Cultivator. To have achieved this today feels like a dream."

Hearing this, Progenitor Tingyou glanced at Lü Yang, a trace of sympathy in his eyes. An image formed in his mind: ’the new-generation disciple of the Wu Ghost Sect, oppressed by the Sword Pavilion, living in constant fear day and night, yet never forgetting his duty to revive the sect.’ He immediately clapped Lü Yang on the shoulder.

"You’ve suffered."

Lü Yang shook his head and said earnestly, "Striving to revive the Sect is no hardship... My abilities are limited. I will have to rely on your hard work in the future, Progenitor."

Progenitor Tingyou nodded and took the initiative to say:

"The Saint Sect True Monarchs have broader knowledge than I. So, for now... don’t think about the First-Grade Void Certificate. A Second-Grade one, however, is worth considering."

"I understand."

Lü Yang nodded. It wasn’t that he was truly giving up, but you had to eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time. If you were too hasty—*snap*—it was easy to screw yourself over.

’First, I’ll pursue the path of a Second-Grade Cultivation Technique, slowly figure out the details, and then think about the Void Certificate... Actually, the best method is to take the conventional route first. Forget everything else and just form a Golden Core. Then I can reverse-engineer the Cultivation Technique. Cultivating beyond my level is what suits me best...’

"What do you plan to do next?"

Seeing Lü Yang lost in thought, Progenitor Tingyou asked with concern, "Increasing your Cultivation and Qi to seek a second Innate Divine Technique is no easy task."

"And the Stain Sect... you know how it is."

Progenitor Tingyou spoke very cryptically.

But Lü Yang understood. According to World Purger Fei Xue, she would invite a Perfected Lord to help him refine the Immortal Tree into a Great Pill.

Once the pill was complete, he only needed to consume it to make up for his lacking Cultivation.

It sounded wonderful, but this was the Stain Sect. A pill refined by a Saint Sect True Monarch... could he really eat that? There was no guarantee they wouldn’t add something extra to it!

After careful consideration, however, Lü Yang still shook his head. "The Perfected Lord will not harm me."

"Are you sure?" Progenitor Tingyou frowned.

With the Centome on his side, Lü Yang had an ace up his sleeve and wasn’t the least bit flustered. On the surface, however, his expression was one of pure sincerity. "No, but I trust the Perfected Lord."

"You’re quite loyal."

The words had barely left Lü Yang’s mouth, and before Progenitor Tingyou could respond, a third person’s voice sounded, accompanied by the soft patter of footsteps.

Progenitor Tingyou froze mid-word. The smile on Lü Yang’s face faltered, and immense shock surged through his heart.

’Who’s there!?’

Lü Yang turned to look beside him and saw a woman who had appeared there at some unknown time. She was dressed in brocade robes with a radiant cloak, her black hair cascading like a waterfall, and she had a gentle and graceful appearance.

’A Great Trueman? A Perfected Lord?’

In an instant, a hundred thoughts raced through Lü Yang’s mind. Although either could have approached him without being detected, he made his decision in a split second.

"I greet you, Perfected Lord!"

"Oh?" The woman showed a hint of surprise, then asked curiously, "You know me?"

Lü Yang maintained a respectful expression. "I do not. But regardless of your cultivation level, Senior, I would always address you as Perfected Lord... After all, it’s always better to address someone by a higher station."

"Sharp-tongued."

The woman smiled. "My name is True Monarch Zeng Cai Qiluo. I am an old acquaintance of Feihong... or as you call her, World Purger Fei Xue."

"She asked me to come out of seclusion specifically for you, to help you refine a Wood Armor Elixir to increase your Cultivation in preparation for your second Innate Divine Technique." As she spoke, the woman flicked her silk robes, and a cloud of mist abruptly rose from the hem of her skirt, lifting her up and forming a cloud pavilion.

"Where is the Immortal Tree? Take it out."

At her words, Lü Yang didn’t dare hesitate. He immediately took out the Spiritual Material that Ye Guyue had given him. The woman took it and examined it carefully for a moment.

"Mm, the maturity is quite significant."

"A pity it’s become Minor Metal."

Then, the woman shook her head again. The cloud-mist formed into a teapot, and she tossed the Immortal Tree directly into it before beginning to shake it gently.

"I also heard you’re going for Qi Collection?"

A Perfected Lord was asking. Even though her tone sounded casual, Lü Yang didn’t dare be dismissive.

"Replying to the Perfected Lord, this was also World Purger Fei Xue’s instruction. She said that going Beyond the Heavens for Qi Collection would help increase my Qi and find my Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches."

"It’s a good method, just a bit risky. In the last hundred years, you’ve been the most prominent figure in our Stain Sect. After this recent commotion, your fame has spread far and wide. The Sword Pavilion has lost several Foundation Establishment cultivators, one after another, and whether directly or indirectly, it’s all tied to you."

"You’ve really become a hot commodity now."

Speaking of which, the woman asked with no small amount of curiosity:

"For her to send you Beyond the Heavens under these circumstances... it seems Feihong is either very confident in your strength, or... have you done something to offend her?"

’...Huh?’

At her words, Lü Yang was stunned. He then said cautiously, "May I ask the Perfected Lord, what dangers are there for someone like me Beyond the Heavens?"

The woman laughed. "A Perfected Person like you, who reached the Mid-phase of Foundation Establishment in just a century and is now on the verge of Mid-stage Perfection, often signifies that you are blessed by fortune and possess extraordinary talent. In a way, you are a concentration of the Essence of Heaven and Earth. In other words, you yourself are a fine vintage of Qi."

"A fine vintage of Qi... me...?"

In an instant, Lü Yang’s pupils constricted. He suddenly realized something: was this so-called Qi Collection exclusive to his own world?

The so-called "Beyond the Heavens" must be a relative term!

In other words, if he went Beyond the Heavens to perform Qi Collection in other Outer Realms, he would also become a target for Qi Collection by the Cultivators of those realms!