Devil Head. Are you in a bad mood?
Yun Miaoqing said, looking up at Lü Yang, who was resting with his eyes closed.
“A little.”
Lü Yang sighed and casually recounted the predicament he had encountered.
“This is the Saint Sect; they treat their Disciples as consumables, utterly devoid of humanity.” Yun Miaoqing parted her red lips.
“Devil Head. Fellow Daoist Lü, your talent is good, and your Heart-Nature is excellent, so why humble yourself in this Saint Sect?” Yun Miaoqing said, “As long as you remove the Restriction on me and help me escape the Saint Sect, I can introduce you to become a Disciple of my Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion.”
Yun Miaoqing wanted to die, but he had no interest in accompanying her.
When poor, one should focus on self-improvement. The most pressing matter was how to improve himself.
After much deliberation, Lü Yang did not buy any yin yang immortal bloom. Instead, he spent all his money to purchase 10 Great Perfection Origin Qi Medicinal Pills that could increase his Cultivation.
“This life has pretty much reached a dead end.”
“After all, I don't plan to repay the loan, nor do I want to waste decades acting like an ox or horse. When the loan period is up, I will definitely die without a burial place.”
“So I must quickly improve myself during this time!”
Lü Yang had already made up his mind. When he restarts in his next life, he would choose Cultivation, and for that, he must quickly raise his strength to a higher level.
“If my Cultivation is too low, Liu Xin, who was present at the time, might notice it. So, at the very least, I need to raise it to the same Realm as him at that time.” Lü Yang pondered in his heart, “It must be at least Qi Refining Middle Stage, coupled with a Qi concealment technique. Only then might I be able to hide it from him.”
Lü Yang dared to think this way, naturally, because he was confident.
Because the Qi Refining Realm has ten layers, divided into Early Stage, Middle Stage, Late Stage, and Perfection. There is basically no Bottleneck within the minor Realms; one only needs to accumulate enough Qi to Breakthrough.
What truly traps many Qi Refining Cultivators are the Bottlenecks when breaking through minor Realms.
From Qi Refining Early Stage to Middle Stage, from Middle Stage to Late Stage, and from Late Stage to Great Perfection, the difficulty almost doubles, preventing countless Cultivators from making any progress.
“According to my calculations, 10 Great Perfection Origin Qi Medicinal Pills plus the Spiritual Vein in the Immortal Cave should be enough for me to Breakthrough to the third layer of Qi Refining. In fact, this is the Cultivation of most Disciples in the Sect, achieved by enduring time and seniority, eventually getting stuck at the Qi Refining Early Stage Bottleneck and becoming the Saint Sect's oxen and horses.”
If nothing unexpected happened, Lü Yang would also be one of them.
However, in this life, he had a variable in his hand.
Lü Yang's thoughts stirred, and a misty, steaming white Qi immediately appeared in his hand, like an extension of his arm, sometimes transforming into a sword shape, and sometimes into thick smoke.
Innate One Qi!
“According to Liu Xin, the greatest use of Innate One Qi is actually to help people Breakthrough Bottlenecks. Its contribution must have been instrumental in his Breakthrough to Qi Refining Late Stage.”
Liu Xin could use it to Breakthrough Qi Refining Late Stage.
It's not a problem for me to use it to Breakthrough Qi Refining Middle Stage.
“As long as I Breakthrough to Qi Refining Middle Stage, this life won't be in vain. At worst, I'll restart immediately. My Cultivation will be higher in the next life, and my starting point will be better!”
A moment later, a sound came from outside the Immortal Cave.
His Great Perfection Origin Qi Medicinal Pills had arrived.
Lü Yang pushed the door open, only to see a woman standing outside the Immortal Cave, dressed in plain clothes, with a face no less beautiful than Yun Miaoqing's, and a figure even more voluptuous.
“This concubine, Fairy Qingchen, greets Junior Brother Lü.” The woman bowed, then let out a soft laugh. The laughter seemed to possess a magical quality, refreshing and making one involuntarily feel good about her: “I was ordered to deliver the Great Perfection Origin Qi Medicinal Pills you purchased, Junior Brother. Please take out your token for verification.”
Lü Yang knew the process and immediately complied.
As the two exchanged, Fairy Qingchen also softly probed, “Junior Brother, since you could purchase so many Medicinal Pills this time, did you perhaps strike it rich somewhere?”
“What are you saying, Senior Sister?”
Lü Yang shook his head, a bitter expression on his face: “I just took out several loans. I'm thinking of improving my Cultivation so I can take on some higher-paying tasks.”
“So that's how it is.”
Fairy Qingchen nodded, her face filled with concern: “Junior Brother, you don't need to belittle yourself. Which of us official Disciples doesn't have a few loans?”
“However… begging Fairy Qingchen's pardon, Junior Brother, you still don't know how to adapt.”
“Oh?”
Seeing Lü Yang's interest, Fairy Qingchen smiled slightly: “There are only so many Sect tasks. How can one possibly repay so many loans relying solely on tasks?”
“In the Saint Sect, if you only stick to the usual path, it's impossible to get rich.” Fairy Qingchen said softly, “This concubine previously thought that Junior Brother you had discovered an Immortal Cave left by some Senior Brother and inherited his legacy to make a fortune, which is why I shamelessly asked. I didn't expect it not to be the case.”
“Immortal Cave…”
Lü Yang's eyelids lowered, his eyes calm, but his tone expressed a hint of interest: “This humble one is dull; please Senior Sister, elaborate.”
“Junior Brother, do you know that the Saint Sect was established in the ‘Jietian Cloud Sea’?”
Fairy Qingchen said faintly: “Within the Cloud Sea, besides the Inner Gate Four Peaks, there are many other peaks, all established by former True Disciples and Elders.”
“However, the immortal path is long, and over the years, people inevitably fall. Yet, after their demise, their mountain peaks and Immortal Caves are not removed but remain within the Cloud Sea. Although there are certain risks, each one is an Opportunity. Even a small gain can be exchanged for a large amount of contribution points!”
“If Junior Brother is interested, this concubine has recently discovered a relatively safe Immortal Cave…”
Really? I don't believe it!
Lü Yang sneered inwardly, solely because Fairy Qingchen's coaxing manner was exactly like Liu Xin's when he tricked him into Cultivating the Innate Dao Book in his previous life.
This is fishing!
What Immortal Cave Opportunity? Just bait.
It seems I've revealed my wealth. Seeing that a newly initiated Disciple like me bought so many Spirit Pills, she wants to trick me out and kill me, taking the Spirit Pills for herself?
Thinking of this, Lü Yang showed a look of interest: “I need to consider it.”
“There's no rush for this.” Fairy Qingchen nodded upon hearing this: “The verification procedures have been completed. Junior Brother, you can contact me after you've thought it over.”
“I've thought it over, I'm not going.”
Seeing that the procedures were done, Lü Yang picked up the bottle containing the Spirit Pills without a word and returned to his Immortal Cave, leaving Fairy Qingchen standing alone.
“???”
A moment later, Fairy Qingchen, realizing what had happened, almost bit through her silver teeth, and her pretty face was filled with Evil Qi: “This Lü Yang… he dared to play me!”
Turning to leave, Fairy Qingchen soon arrived at another Immortal Cave.
And in the Immortal Cave, a young Daoist in luxurious clothes had been waiting for a long time. Seeing Fairy Qingchen's displeased expression, he also frowned:
“Unsuccessful?”
Fairy Qingchen shook her head: “This person… is a bit too cautious.”
“Moreover, Senior Brother Zhao, this person borrowed money but didn't buy the yin yang immortal bloom. Instead, he bought Medicinal Pills. I suspect he probably never intended to repay the money.”
“Wants to default on the debt? In his next life!”
Zhao Xuhe scoffed and shook his head: “Do you know that for every new Disciple, the Saint Sect has already secretly set a price for him.”
“And the amount a Disciple can borrow in the Saint Sect will never exceed his price, to ensure that no matter what happens, the Saint Sect can recover its costs. Flesh, organs, soul… these are all valuable things, more than enough to repay the debt.”
“He wants to improve his Cultivation? Let him improve.”
“As long as the person is still alive, higher Cultivation is even more valuable.”
Zhao Xuhe grinned, the smell of blood seemingly flowing between his lips and teeth: “At that time, not only will we not lose, but we might even make a profit.”
“Besides, he has the money to buy these Spirit Pills, but he might not have the life to use them, right?”
“Senior Brother means…”
Zhao Xuhe nodded slightly, hinting: “Many things are fine as long as they aren't discovered.”
At these words, Fairy Qingchen's beautiful eyes immediately brightened.