Chapter 266 - 200: Altar Establishment and Ranking

Yinluo Country, Heart Rot Valley

Qin Xuan sat cross-legged in meditation inside his Cave Mansion, with Jiang Xiaofeng’s Storage Pouch placed before him.

"As expected of a Holy Sect Altar Master, a Purple Mansion Ninth Level True Demon. His reserves are truly profound!"

When he probed it with his Divine Sense, Qin Xuan was greatly surprised, a look of immense joy spreading across his face.

Inside, there were over 1.2 million low-grade spirit stones alone, and more than a hundred mid-grade spirit stones!

As for the other Talismans and Pills, they were too numerous to count.

But what excited Qin Xuan the most was that there were actually three Poisonous Insects inside!

One was a Netherworld Skull Spider, shimmering with a faint, cold light. Its eight legs were as slender as hairs, and its back naturally bore a pattern that looked just like a ghastly white skull.

Another was a vibrant Seven-Colored Toad, only the size of a palm. Its skin was covered in a viscous, constantly flowing poison that formed patterns of twisted, agonized human faces.

"GROAK!"

The Seven-Colored Toad’s belly swelled and deflated, letting out a low GURGLE.

The last was a purplish-red scorpion. Its stinger was like a nine-sectioned steel whip, its tip gleaming with a cold light. Its carapace was covered in a series of natural spiral patterns.

All three Gu Insects were Tier Four Demon Insects!

Besides these, there was also a thin, black booklet.

It seemed to be something Jiang Xiaofeng used specifically to record his insights and experiences.

Qin Xuan hadn’t paid it much mind at first, but after a quick look through it, his heart couldn’t help but pound violently several times, and even his breathing grew ragged.

The Ten Thousand Poison Sword Talisman Nurturing Manual.

It was actually Jiang Xiaofeng’s own notes on nurturing his lifebound Sword Talisman!

"Demon Blood as the guide, Profound Iron as the base, plant the Demon Embryo, forge the Demon Bone..."

The more Qin Xuan read, the brighter his eyes grew.

’So that’s how it is! Nurturing one’s own Sword Talisman requires three stages: Sword Embryo, Sword Bone, and Sword Heart!’

A single sentence of true teaching is worth more than ten thousand scrolls of falsehoods.

This was an incredibly valuable piece of information. An ordinary Purple Mansion Demon Cultivator would have no way of knowing how to nurture a Sword Talisman before their third entry into the Blood Pool Sword Tomb.

But now, Qin Xuan was effectively one step ahead of them.

After finishing Jiang Xiaofeng’s manual, a rough plan for how to nurture his Sword Talisman immediately began to form in his mind!

’Besides the Bloodthirsty Rune that was originally on my Lifebound Longsword, I currently have three other mature Sword Talismans: Breaking Gold, Ten Thousand Forms, and Divine Blade.’

A lifebound Sword Talisman’s Sword Embryo must be nurtured in the Purple Mansion Realm, and it can only be fully formed after its Sword Bone is forged in the Golden Core Stage.

This was also why, in the Blood Pool Sword Tomb, only the Blood Talismans left behind by Golden Core Blood Demons were considered truly precious.

If one wished to nurture their own Sword Talisman, the first step was to transform their Lifebound Longsword into a Sword Embryo and begin nurturing it.

Usually, a cultivator would only begin to dabble in this step after entering the Blood Pool Sword Tomb for the third time.

However, the type of Sword Embryo a Lifebound Longsword transformed into was different for every Demon Cultivator.

Jiang Xiaofeng, for example, had nurtured a Ten Thousand Poison Sword Embryo.

And those three Tier Four Poisonous Insects were the necessary tools he used to nurture it.

’It’s a shame I couldn’t devour Jiang Xiaofeng’s Flesh Body. Otherwise, I might have been able to break through and raise my Cultivation Realm to the next level.’

Qin Xuan felt a pang of regret, but on second thought, he was more than satisfied with just getting the Storage Pouch.

Just as Qin Xuan was pondering what kind of Sword Embryo he should nurture, ripples suddenly spread through the air outside his Cave Mansion.

The figure of a Golden Core True Demon wearing a gray Daoist Robe slowly emerged from the Array.

Qin Xuan took a closer look and immediately recognized him as the Director of the Reincarnation Department, Gao Fengliang, with whom he had dealt before.

"This humble one, Qin Xuan, pays his respects to Director Gao!"

Behind Gao Fengliang stood three other Purple Mansion Altar Masters. One of them, a man who looked like a sickly ghost, was Ruan Fusheng, who had a past grudge with Qin Xuan.

As for the other two, Qin Xuan didn’t recognize them.

"Valley Master Qin, you’re too kind. This one has come on the orders of the great Dark Flame Blood Prison Demon Monarch to congratulate you on establishing your altar and to make the necessary preparations."

Gao Fengliang said with a chuckle, "I wonder what kind of Magic Altar Valley Master Qin intends to establish? And are you in need of subordinates?"

Establish a Magic Altar!

Hearing this, Qin Xuan’s spirits lifted.

He hadn’t expected news of Venerable Linglong granting him the Big Horn Life Star to have spread so quickly.

He had only just returned to the Holy Sect, and someone was already at his door!

Qin Xuan asked, "Director Gao, what should I be aware of when establishing a Magic Altar?"

Gao Fengliang replied, "First, the name of the Magic Altar. Second, the number of branch altars and their personnel. Then there’s the location of the altars, the choice of Cultivation Techniques for your subordinates..."

"For example, the Plague Poison Altar where Valley Master Qin was previously stationed focuses mainly on Gu poison. Then there’s Master Wei Qingshan’s Ten Thousand Laws Altar, which specializes in Magic Techniques and Artifact Refining..."

Gao Fengliang listed a long string of items, then paused and added meaningfully,

"Of course, the most important thing is what you can provide for the Holy Sect!"

Qin Xuan couldn’t help but click his tongue in amazement.

He never would have thought that establishing a Magic Altar involved so many details.

’A name, Cultivation Techniques, and the ability to recruit disciples... This is no different from building my own faction within the Holy Sect!’

Qin Xuan was overjoyed.

He couldn’t help but admire the open-mindedness of the Holy Sect’s founder.

However, Gao Fengliang’s next words left Qin Xuan completely stunned.

"Valley Master Qin, have you thought of a name for your Magic Altar?"

"Oh, right. To establish a Magic Altar in the Holy Sect, you first need to pay a naming fee of two million low-grade spirit stones. On top of that, once you’ve chosen a location for the altar, there’s an annual depreciation fee of three spirit stones per acre..."

"The same goes for passing down Cultivation Techniques. For every disciple with a Foundation Establishment Cultivation added to your Magic Altar, the Holy Sect collects an annual talent tax of one hundred spirit stones. And for each entry into the Blood Pool Sword Tomb, you must pay ten thousand spirit stones on their behalf..."

Gao Fengliang produced an abacus from somewhere and began flicking the beads, which made a sharp CLACK-CLACK-CLACK sound.