Chapter 5 : The Fiancé (1)
Any other disciple would be afraid of facing the elders’ wrath, but Li Qi Ye lightly scoffed:
“Elders, don’t be angry. If I were to actually pass the trials, it would be a great contribution to the sect. The hardworking should be rewarded, no? It should be a given that I would have certain conditions given the dangerous task.”
“Then wait until you have passed the trial, then we can discuss them!”
This elder was extremely unhappy before Li Qi Ye’s attitude, so he roared his response.
“So be it!”
First Elder nodded his head, then continued:
“Don’t you worry. As long as you pass the trial, you are free to select any cultivation methods with the exception of Heaven’s Will Secret Laws and Immortal Emperor Merit Laws. I don’t think the other elders would have any objections.”
The six elders glanced at each other and contemplated the notion. If he indeed passes the trial, then the elder’s suggestion is completely reasonable.
“The other conditions can wait until after the trial.”
Li Qi Ye finally smiled.
“However, there is one condition that I must state beforehand, so that there will be ample time for preparation. Once I reach the Yun Physique level, I require a medicinal paste of the Saint grade.
After hearing Li Qi Ye’s request, the faces of all six elders became sour; they collectively yelled out at the same time:
“How greedy can you be?”
Li Qi Ye pretended to not hear their loud yell and continued to slowly enunciate each word:
“Elders, the marriage between our two sects is a great matter as well as an enormous contribution. An Emperor grade medicinal paste might be precious, but I feel like it is a fair trade.”
“Hmmph, you think a medicinal paste of the Saint grade is so easily obtainable!”
This elder was unhappy, and coldly scowled.
The first elder glanced at Li Qi Ye, and said:
If you are successful, then getting a Saint grade past isn’t too outrageous. But right now, we cannot accommodate you because we lack certain integral efficacious medicines for the Saint paste recipe.”
Looking at the elder’s body language, Li Qi Ye secretly sighed in disappointment. He was thinking too highly of Cleansing Incense Ancient Sect. In the past, its treasure trove was unlimited. It even contained Immortal grade paste; Saint paste was trivial in comparison.
“Fine, I will take one step back; I want the highest grade of King paste!”
“This I can accept, but the condition is that you will still have to be successful.”
The elders glanced at each other, and finally the first elder conceded.
Li Qi Ye smiled at the first elder, and said:
“Outside of this, before going to the Nine Saint Demon Gate, I have another small request. Not knowing how dangerous it will be, I need to learn some techniques, and one or two defensive weapons.”
“Finally, you are still a bit wily, and taking advantage of this situation for personal gains.”
Elder Cao angrily spoke.
First elder actually sympathized, and nodded his head:
“How about this, in the inner sect there are techniques and weapons, you can pick one thing. What do other elders think?”
Even though the other elders didn’t want to accommodate Li Qi Ye, but they still agreed with first elder. They knew the chance of success for Li Qi Ye was near zero. Even if they gave him weapon and technique, it wouldn’t raise the probability, but more is better than none. At the very least it would raise the chance by a little bit.
“Elders are way too worried, I wouldn’t be so greedy.”
Li Qi Ye naturally knew the thoughts of the elders, and calmly smiled:
“I heard that we have a technique named “Invisible Dual Blades” that can be learned in a hurry. I want this technique as well as a pair of blades to accompany it. Would that be acceptable?”
The elders rolled their eyes from surprise after hearing Li Qi Ye. They originally thought that this greedy boy would ask for Emperor level techniques, but he wanted such a normal technique.
“Invisible Dual Blades eh?”
The first elder stroked his beard.
Another elder quickly responded:
“First Elder, that is only a martial technique; it is insufficient. In the world of cultivation, even the simplest merit law would outperform any martial arts.”
“That is not a problem! Nan Huai Ren, bring the ‘Invisible Dual Blades’ to his peak and give him the best pair of dual blades.”
The first elder was happy with this simple request. His opinion of Li Qi Ye decreased from Li Qi Ye’s unwise decision. One would think that the sect would want to give all the assistance they could afford to help Li Qi Ye, but deep down inside, all the elders knew that no matter what techniques and weapons they give to him, completing the trial would still be impossible. They only aimed to minimize the loss of the sect.
“Do you have any other requests?”
Seeing Li Qi Ye not being greedy, an elder was satisfied, and generously asked.
“This little one does not need anything else at this moment.”
Li Qi Ye humbly said.
“Good, go back and prepare, you shall depart in three days. After your return, you can complete the ancestral ceremony to ascend to your position.”
First elder gravely said.
Of course, if he could come back alive that is. The elders had great doubts.
The technique and blades were brought to Li Qi Ye’s peak immediately soon right after he had just returned.
He was satisfied with the dual Crescent Moon Blades. The blades’ curves occasionally shone with sharpness. However, these were merely of Mortal grade and not fit for cultivators. No matter how sharp the edges were, it couldn’t compare to magical armaments.
After Nan Huai Ren left, Li Qi Ye slowly read the “Invisible Dual Blades” technique. Every word and every phrase spoken by him would be replicated in his mind.
Back then, when he was still the Dark Crow, even though he had successfully escaped the Heaven Demon Grotto, but his situation was not stabilized. Sometimes he was still affected by the grotto. Whenever he felt like this, he immediately sealed himself and caused his soul to fall into a deep slumber.
He had spent many tortuous years in each eras to go into the most dangerous places, and had fell in the hands of many masters and had to surpass many tribulations. But because of this, he was able to see many merit laws, even Emperor merit laws and immortal methods.
Because he was afraid that one day he wouldn’t be able to control himself and be summoned back to the Heaven Demon Grotto, so he always remove all of his memories regarding the methods and techniques he had learned, to avoid them falling into the hand of the grotto. However, the Medicine God and Immortal Emperor Xue Xi came up with a mysterious method that allowed Li Qi Ye to quickly understand the truths of these sovereign techniques the moment he saw them again.
Right now, everything that was pertinent to mastering the “Invisible Dual Blades” had been recalled. Taking a deep breath and comparing the manual in his head against the written version, he found that the technique was lacking a certain something; this worried him greatly.
In reality, it was normal for techniques such as the Invisible Dual Blades to be missing parts. In the end, it was not enough to reach the apex. In the eyes of cultivators, this was only a minor art. After millions of years, in the Cleansing Incense Ancient Sect, no many people actually learned this technique.
Focusing his mind once again, Li Qi Ye finally understood the hidden truths behind the technique; he softly smiled.
Even though his Physique, Life Wheel, and Fate Palace were all of Mortal grade, his knowledge and willpower were above what all geniuses were capable of.
What was even more important was that when he was the Dark Crow, he underwent numerous tortures. There was a time when he was imprisoned for ten thousand years without seeing the sun, so his willpower was extremely fortified. Nothing could ever shake it, and no difficulties could ever make him take a step backward.
He gently patted the manual; his attempt at mastering the technique had awakened his memory of the past; a secret that no disciple knows in the current era.
That year, the young Min Ren used to practice the “Invisible Dual Blades” technique. Later, when he became an Immortal Emperor that ruled over the Nine Worlds, he reminisced about this technique. He once again cultivated with it, slowly perfecting the normal martial technique.
Of course, this normal technique was not comparable to the Emperor merit laws that he had created as well, let alone the Heaven’s Will Secret Laws. Min Ren himself did not want his descendants to practice this technique, either. Thus, the technique had lied dormant in the library of the sect for millenniums. No one has understood the real illustrious truths behind the technique, moulded by an Immortal Emperor post ascension.
When Li Qi Ye saw Min Ren perfecting the technique; he teased him greatly. Even if this martial technique was cultivated to its apex and capable of slaying Royal Nobles, no one would want to use it. Normal cultivators can only see the external qualities, thus this martial technique resided in the darkness.
Even after being teased by Li Qi Ye, Immortal Emperor Min Ren only smiled. It was unexpected that Li Qi Ye actually guessed correctly about the fate of this martial arts.
Emptying his mind of unnecessary thoughts, he picked up the dual blades and started to practice. He was extremely strict with himself; he slowly swung each stroke within the manual; each swing required perfection before moving on.