Chapter 401: Chapter 34 What, this thing again?
[Location Two: Shushan Shangqing Faction, Qingluo Peak.]
[Character Identity: Ling Yunpo.]
[Mirror Flower Water Moon Template overlaying, currently traveling through time and space.]
Early in the morning, Ling Yunpo shouldered a broom and went out to sweep the floor.
Although it was the end of winter, the temperature in Shushan had already started to warm up, and there were far fewer days with rain or snow.
Ling Yunpo had plenty of free time, and he thoroughly cleaned both inside and outside of the observatory.
Suddenly, he saw a sword light descend from the sky, landing on the ground outside—it was none other than An Zhisu, returning from buying wine at the foot of the mountain.
“Junior Brother!” An Zhisu said delightedly, lifting her skirt and hurrying over. “There’s some great news…”
“The White Jade Capital competition, right?” Ling Yunpo said calmly, continuing to sweep.
“How did you know?” An Zhisu paused, then smiled and said, “This time, the White Jade Capital competition will determine…”
“The top twelve seats,” Ling Yunpo interjected.
“Exactly,” An Zhisu affirmed earnestly, “It’s said that the word has come down from above—we at Shushan must secure at least half.”
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“Secure half?” Ling Yunpo couldn’t help but laugh at the bold claim.
Not to mention the others, Qiu Changtian and Xu Yinglian from the Kunlun Sect, Luo Yan from the Penglai Sect—these three were not only peerless within their own sects, but even when faced with opponents from Shushan, Lin Duanshan and the others would surely not prevail.
I won’t mention Qiu and Luo; they are my alter egos.
Xu Yinglian’s advantage lies in her control of the Great Bright Fire combined with her Phoenix Bloodline, which have ranks and powers so high they are extraordinary, able to withstand anything but the strongest Daoist Magic.
However, most of the Shushan Sword Immortals focus on studying Swordsmanship, and very few practice Daoist Magic as well.
When confronted with situations that necessitate the use of Daoist Magic, they can only substitute it with Sword Dao Techniques.
Unfortunately, even if the Daoist Magic is identical, the consumption of True Yuan is much higher when using a flying sword to activate it—as there’s an additional layer that causes True Yuan to be lost at a high rate.
Therefore, when a Shushan Sword Immortal faces a Kunlun Cultivator, if they cannot quickly kill the opponent, the battle often turns into a contest of True Yuan depletion, eventually leading to a drawn-out defeat.
With her Phoenix Bloodline and the cultivation of the “Nine Heavens Clear Entrance True Mantra,” Xu Yinglian’s True Yuan is incredibly strong.
Additionally, after consuming various rare elixirs for the Purple Mansion, such as the Mercurial Elixir Liquid, Essence of Millennium Frost, Vermillion Sun Mercurial Pill, and the Nine Revolutions Vermilion Phoenix Pill, her Purple Mansion has long transformed into a Jade Mansion, boasting a frighteningly fast True Yuan recovery rate.
Outside cultivators honorably call her “Phoenix Immortal,” while Kunlun Cultivators refer to her as “Little Qiu Changtian.” Defeating her is not impossible, but to swiftly kill her… not even Qiu Changtian is capable of that.
Without a quick kill and engaging in a drawn-out battle, given Xu Yinglian’s True Yuan strength, along with her indomitable spirit and determination, the fight would only drag on to a pace she is most familiar with.
Thus, it’s basically assumed that among the twelve seats in the White Jade Capital, three are already reserved by Qiu Changtian, Xu Yinglian, and Luo Yan.
If Shi Liuli makes ample preparations before the competition, with her Taiwei Star Sand and Southern Dipper Galaxy Secret Technique, it’s possible for her to secure a spot in the top twelve.
However, when speaking of “possible,” one must consider her divine favor from the Heavenly Dao. If this young mistress really starts manipulating luck before the competition, who could withstand it?
Ling Yunpo assumes that as long as Shi Liuli truly strives for it, there is definitely a place for her among the twelve seats.
In other words, on the surface, it’s a contest for six seats among twelve, but in reality, Shushan is vying for six seats out of eight.
Senior Sister An and I will certainly have no problems, but the challenge lies in whether Lin Duanshan and the others can smoothly make it into the top twelve.
Penglai shall not be mentioned for now. Over at Kunlun, Qiu Changtian’s seniors, being the chief disciples of their generation and personally taught by the Sect Leader, are cultivating the “Nine Heavens Clear Entrance True Mantra”, with such exceedingly formidable True Yuan it’s almost unreasonable.
Lin Duanshan and the others who are to compete with them in the grand competition can only be said to have a hope, but the difficulty is certainly not small.
As Ling Yunpo carefully recalled and pondered, making strategic calculations, An Zhisu quietly stood by his side, not making a sound to disturb his train of thought.
However, before long, three streaks of Sword Light arrived at the summit of Qingluo Peak one after the other, belonging to Lin Duanshan, Duan Fenhai, and Guan Shanyue.
“Ling Junior Brother!” Lin Duanshan called out from afar, “Do you know of the upcoming White Jade Capital competition…”
Before he could finish, An Zhisu immediately glared at him, signaling him to quickly shut up and not to disturb Ling Yunpo’s thinking.
Lin Duanshan, who was good-natured, immediately stopped talking with an embarrassed laugh upon receiving the glare from An Zhisu.
But Ling Yunpo had already awoken from his thoughts and looked up at Lin Duanshan and the others, greeting them with clasped hands:
“Senior Brother Lin, Senior Brother Duan, Senior Sister Guan.”
“Hey! Normally it’s fine.” Guan Shanyue teasingly said, “This time I arrived before Duan Fenhai, so why am I still the last one to be greeted?”
“Senior Sister Guan is joking.” Ling Yunpo replied without changing his expression, “Being listed first means closeness, being listed last is a sign of respect.”
“Oh?” Duan Fenhai also laughed heartily, “So being in the middle means neither closeness nor respect?”
“No.” Ling Yunpo said with a slight smile, “Senior Brother Duan is magnanimous.”
Thus, everyone laughed together, increasingly admiring Ling Yunpo’s ever-more exquisite social skills.
Back to the matter at hand, the reason the five of them were gathering again at Qingluo Peak was naturally to discuss the matters of the White Jade Capital competition.
There was no need to mention Lin Duanshan, who had always been close with An Zhisu and Ling Yunpo, consulting them was habitual.
Duan Fenhai, since the last time in the Giant Tree Secret Realm, he had completely altered his view of Ling Yunpo for volunteering to stay behind and fight the deranged Dao Ye True Person alongside Senior Sister An.
This time, he came not only to discuss the White Jade Capital competition, but also to deliver the Spirit Grass they had collected in the Giant Tree Secret Realm, now refined into Purple Mansion Secret Medicine, to Ling Yunpo and An Zhisu.
As for Guan Shanyue… While her actions were often spontaneous, upon reflection, they were never without a trace of reason; it was better not to dwell on her motives.
“From the last Giant Tree Secret Realm, we have all kinds of Purple Mansion Secret Medicines that have been refined, and they are all here,” Duan Fenhai said as he took out two Storage Bags and passed them over, “If we divide them equally, each person’s Cultivation Level should improve by roughly ten years.”
“Sima Junior Brother and I have discussed it. Since the two of you stayed behind to fight to the death last time, we’re giving up half of our share to make up for it. That would be fifteen years of Secret Medicine for each of you, how does that sound?”
“Senior Brother Duan is indeed generous.” Ling Yunpo laughed as he took the Storage Bag, neither expressing any objections nor examining the Elixirs inside closely.
Although they had volunteered to stay behind that time, it was Sima Changyan who provided the intelligence on the Secret Realm’s location. When it comes to contribution, it’s actually quite hard to clarify… All one can say is that the former seemed more important, but exactly how much more was difficult to quantify.
Duan Fenhai and Sima Changyan each surrendered five years of Refining Mansion Cultivation, which seemed roughly justifiable. Ling Yunpo didn’t want to quibble over the exact number of years, and An Zhisu naturally didn’t mind even more.
After securing the Storage Bag, Duan Fenhai spoke seriously:
“Regarding the upcoming White Jade Capital competition, the sect has set a goal for us to secure at least half of the top twelve spots.”
“If we can make it into the top six, we are guaranteed to receive at least one Vermilion Marrow Pill!”
Vermilion Marrow Pill… Ling Yunpo was somewhat stunned.
Because last time, after Qiu Changtian broke through the Intercepting Cult Sword Formation outside Penglai Island, Chi Song of Kunlun had already rewarded him with one.
He had already taken it though!