Immortal Refiner

Back in his cave abode, Li Qing gazed at the pills and spirit materials before him, which had completely drained his contribution points. He sighed deeply.

”I used to think spirit stones were spent quickly, but now that I’ve joined the sect, I realize contribution points vanish even faster!”

Half a bundle of six-legged shadow spider silk, a bottle of Purple Yang Pills, and a bottle of Clear Profound Pills had completely exhausted all the contribution points he had accumulated since joining the sect, as well as the points he had frantically earned from commissions in recent months.

Although all these pills enhanced cultivation and refined mana, the Purple Yang Pills were particularly potent, with remarkable efficacy and minimal pill toxin. Consequently, a single bottle cost as much as two bottles of Clear Profound Pills.

”If the Heavenly River Sect hadn’t bought up a large batch of spirit herbs for refining Purple Yang Pills, their price would likely be lower.”

”What I didn’t expect was that the Heavenly River Sect would come to the Lingyun Sect to purchase pills last year.”

Li Qing narrowed his eyes, recalling the long-standing conflict between the Heavenly River Sect and the Shangqing Sect.

”Are they about to reignite the war? They truly are eternal rivals.”

As he spoke, an image of a graceful figure with a gentle, water-like demeanor flashed through his mind.

”I hope you remain safe and your path on the Dao remains smooth.”

With these words, Li Qing retrieved a Clear Profound Pill.

Gulp.

Having previously consumed the Purple Yang Pill he had traded with Shen Ningbing, he wasn’t particularly surprised by the Clear Profound Pill’s slightly weaker medicinal power.

Silently circulating the Crimson Blaze Heaven-Burning Art, he completely refined the pill’s medicinal power, leaving no trace behind.

”Not bad! Though it can’t compare to the Purple Yang Pill, it’s still quite impressive. A single pill is equivalent to a long period of arduous cultivation.”

Now that he had become the refining elder, he could no longer retreat into seclusion at will, as sect affairs required his attention.

It took Li Qing over four months to fully digest both bottles of pills and convert them into his own strength.

In the blink of an eye, he realized he had been a member of the sect for five years!

”Five years already, and I’m still stuck in the early foundation establishment realm. But this is likely the best I can achieve.”

Though still in the early foundation establishment realm, his mana had grown significantly denser, far surpassing what it had been when he first achieved foundation establishment.

Furthermore, his body arts cultivation had reached the Second-Tier. With his formidable physical prowess alone, he could spar with many foundation establishment realm cultivators, and even victory wasn’t out of the question.

Yet this was only after six revolutions of his Vital Energy. He had yet to trigger the remaining three.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t activate them; rather, he preferred to proceed step by step, quietly experiencing the gradual strengthening of his physical body.

Rushing to maximize his physical strength all at once would make it difficult to control his power later, requiring even more time to adapt. Such a hasty approach would ultimately be counterproductive.

His Vital Energy was exceptionally vigorous. If fully unleashed, it would roar like crashing ocean waves.

With such a foundation, he could complete the remaining three revolutions of his Vital Energy at any time. After all, he still possessed a considerable amount of Crimson Crystal, which contained the pure Red Moon Secret Power needed to trigger the transformations—an effect far superior to absorbing moonlight in the World of Eternal Night.

”Truth be told, this Nine Revolutions of Qi Blood Method I possess is a considerable treasure,” Li Qing murmured to himself. ”If I could disseminate the Crimson Crystals, this secret technique would become immensely valuable.”

Despite this realization, he remained in no hurry to reveal this body refinement secret technique from the World of Eternal Night.

”Well, one step at a time. You can’t swallow a meal whole. Thinking about all this now is still a bit premature.”

With that, Li Qing left his cave abode, intending to head to the refining hall to do some work.

But almost immediately, a small green Spirit Bird swooped down, carrying a letter in its beak.

What a coincidence!

Li Qing released a gentle stream of spiritual energy, directly retrieving the letter from the Spirit Bird’s beak.

He scanned the contents at lightning speed, absorbing the entire message in a single glance.

”Hmm, it’s been almost five years. The Ascension Conference is about to start again.”

The letter was from Sect Leader Xu Yun, and copies had been sent to most external affairs elders and a select few elders in secluded cultivation.

The message was simple: the Lingyun Sect’s Ascension Conference, held every five years, was about to begin. Two elders were needed to oversee the event, maintain order, and safely escort the newly accepted disciples back to the sect after the conference concluded.

The Ascension Conference would be held in the sect’s own market town, using the event as a promotional gimmick to boost the market’s reputation and foot traffic. This practice was common among the three cultivation sects in the Azure Ridge Domain.

Naturally, the Heavenly River Market stood out as the most successful. Throughout the Azure Ridge Domain’s cultivation world, it was widely acknowledged as the most prosperous and popular market among those operated by the three major sects.

Even after suffering a devastating blow, this widely accepted truth remained unchanged in people’s minds.

”The contribution points offered for this task aren’t particularly generous,” Li Qing mused, narrowing his eyes. ”No wonder they’re seeking the elders’ opinions. They must be hoping someone will volunteer.”

Li Qing’s thoughts drifted to another matter.

”If I can accumulate enough experience and seniority leading teams, perhaps the sect will prioritize me to lead disciples into the Cold Wind Secret Realm when it opens in over a century.”

”A century-long plan can’t be achieved overnight. I must start accumulating bit by bit.”

”Well, fewer contribution points are fine. With my long lifespan, it’s only right to contribute to the sect.”

With this resolve, Li Qing used his fingertip as a brush, took out a piece of paper, and wrote his willingness to attend the Ascension Conference. He then sent the message back to Sect Leader Xu Yun via Spirit Bird.

Several days later.

In the Sect Leader’s Hall, Sect Leader Xu Yun, his hair and beard snow-white, wore a deep frown.

”These lazy good-for-nothings! Sigh!”

”Everyone’s making excuses to avoid this task. No one wants to take it on.”

Sect Leader Xu Yun shook his head repeatedly, tearing the returned Spirit Letters to shreds one by one, sighing deeply all the while.

”Hmph, Ji Bai’s excuse is weak. I distinctly remember him returning from training just recently, yet now he claims he needs to go out for more training?”

”Dedicated to creating new talismans? This... that girl from the Chu Clan is truly...!”

”Have they all forgotten how they joined the sect in the first place? Even if the contribution points are a bit low, attending the Ascension Conference isn’t exactly a hardship, is it?!”

Seeing the overwhelming number of rejections and excuses, Sect Leader Xu Yun felt helpless. He even considered personally presiding over the Ascension Conference.

Being a sect leader isn’t as easy as it looks!

”Are we going to have to resort to drawing lots again, just like before?”

Before he could finish speaking, Sect Leader Xu Yun finally spotted Li Qing’s reply.

Initially, Sect Leader Xu Yun hadn’t intended to read the letter closely. But when he saw Li Qing’s willingness at the end, he froze in place, a rare smile of satisfaction finally gracing his face.

”Ah, Junior Brother Li truly understands the greater good and sees the bigger picture!”

With a sigh of admiration, Sect Leader Xu Yun began to carefully examine Li Qing’s phrasing in the letter.

The contents were sincere and heartfelt, his devotion to repaying the sect evident in every word.

”If I hadn’t been rescued by the sect’s returning party from the Ascension Conference, I would have perished beneath the Golden War Boat, my soul scattered to the winds. I will never forget this.”

”Though I joined the Lingyun Sect through an Ascension Token, my life was given to me by Senior Brothers Chen and Wu, who presided over the Ascension Conference.”

”This is a debt I can never repay!”

”Having reached the foundation establishment realm some time ago, I believe my strength has grown considerably, allowing me to handle unexpected situations. If no other senior brothers or sisters are willing to oversee the Ascension Conference this year, I humbly offer my services!”

”The sect’s kindness is etched in my heart! It would be an honor to contribute even in a small way!”

As Elder Xuyun read each word of the letter, he almost felt himself transported into Li Qing’s desperate situation, witnessing his miraculous escape from the brink of death.

He was deeply moved!

”Excellent! Excellent! Junior Brother Li, I understand your intentions perfectly!”

”If everyone in the Lingyun Sect were like you, we would have no reason to worry about our sect’s future prosperity!”

Elder Xuyun nearly burst into tears. Unlike the other torn letters, he carefully folded Li Qing’s reply and tucked it away as a precious keepsake.

”Having a foundation establishment elder like Junior Brother Li is truly a blessing for our sect!”

As he mused, Elder Xuyun began drafting a reply, overflowing with praise for Li Qing. It almost seemed as if he were ready to hand over the Sect Leader’s position to him outright.

In the end, he mentioned that Li Qing should contribute to the upcoming Ascension Conference and that a second elder would be selected by lottery to accompany him.

After all, among the returned letters, only Li Qing had foolishly agreed to the task, while all the others had refused!

(End of the Chapter)

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