Chapter 475: A Tribute That Nearly Costs Xuanqing Everything (6K)

South Hong, land and water, Qizixian Sect.

At this moment, there was a strong sense of a storm about to come and the city about to crumble.

A demon at the eighth layer of Void Return, who in the Dragon Palace would only hold the position of a vanguard general, had now drawn the attention of numerous Bai Yujing cultivators.

They sat quietly within their cave dwellings.

Their thoughts gradually began to drift.

The hearts of cultivation, silent for who knew how many years, now faintly rippled with waves.

Behind every seated figure was a jaw-dropping past, their illustrious names as prodigies endlessly sung by disciples.

But beneath those empty reputations lay Dao hearts, withered from ten-thousand-year waits, long unable to bear further torment.

"..."

A sweep of a gold-threaded white robe streaked across the long sky, not yet having descended onto the Lingyun relief.

Wei Yuanzhou already felt dense, layered divine senses enveloping him, the malice within barely concealed.

His face turned cold as he slowly looked back.

The instant their divine senses touched, those prying gazes instantly dropped by nine-tenths.

The malice in the remaining gazes had lessened considerably, carrying only a hint of curiosity.

Wei Yuanzhou stepped quietly into the light screen.

The instant his figure vanished, low murmurs rose within Dao tablets one after another, all complaints sent to those they trusted.

"As if he's the good man, and the rest of us are all villains."

"Without trials, how can one tell whether that Shen Zongzhu has the qualification to preside over the treasured land?"

"Could Zhu Shixiong Yuanzhou be intending to indulge Shen Yi into becoming a second Senior Xuanqing!"

"He hasn't even inherited the Lingyun treasured land, yet already acts as though he were the Sect Master — utterly presumptuous. Why not just take charge of all seven sects at once? From now on, the Seven Sons of South Hong shall take the surname Wei!"

Clearly, these cultivators were greatly disappointed at having failed to wait for Shen Yi's plea for help.

Not only had they squandered such a fine opportunity for nothing.

Wei Yuanzhou's leaving the sect this time had also given others the impression that he was a supporter of Nanyang Sect, and might even lead others to think Lingyun Sect would shelter Nanyang's vassals.

Under such circumstances, it was almost a foregone conclusion that Shen Yi would hold out until the Seven Sons Assembly convened.

What they had been looking forward to was like flowers reflected in a mirror, the moon in water — forever lost.

But the thoughts of these people clearly could not affect Wei Yuanzhou.

He returned to Lingyun Sect, unhurriedly entering the Patriarch Hall, and stood with hands at his sides before the statue.

"How was it? Did he accept your kindness?" The eyes of the towering patriarch statue flickered.

Wei Yuanzhou first bowed in salute, then straightened his body and said seriously, "This matter has nothing to do with Yuanzhou; it was all Shen Zongzhu alone."

"..."

Hearing these words, the patriarch statue clearly paused in thought for a moment, then said with slight surprise, "You mean he already has the strength to surpass that General Dao Hai water python?"

Enough to cause a Hegemon of the Dao Merging realm to change his tone.

Even if it was only because the one before him was his most intimate disciple, it was enough to show his view on the matter.

"Cultivation at the fifth layer of Void Return, a four-layered Celestial Palace, mastery of two spiritual arts, of which that spiritual formation has already reached minor accomplishment — he has the makings of Senior Xuanqing." Wei Yuanzhou sighed.

"That's still a far cry." The patriarch statue chuckled lightly. "When Xuanqing broke through to the ninth layer of Void Return, every layer was a Celestial Palace. Even at the most arduous Perfect Void Return, every single one was a first-grade Dao Pillar, forging a three-layered Immortal Palace — enough to make old fellows like us green with envy back then."

"He came from the Abyss Land; Senior Xuanqing was cradled in the palm of Nanyang's Sect Master." Wei Yuanzhou slightly raised his eyes, not at all afraid of offending Xuanqing, because he himself was the same.

As the Sect Master's personal disciple, the treatment he enjoyed was never the same as that of other cultivators.

It would not be an exaggeration to call it a world of difference.

"Enough." The Lingyun Sect Master had no intention of dwelling further on this matter; once one reached the Dao Merging realm, they seldom paid attention to the process and focused instead on the result.

The path of cultivation was endlessly changing; it could not be schemed through by human effort.

There was no such thing as a future Dao Merging realm cultivator.

Either one was, or one wasn't.

"Since it has nothing to do with you, why did you put on such an act just now?" The patriarch statue sighed and lowered its gaze.

"A pack of petty wretches — what is there to fear?" Wei Yuanzhou arched a brow and broke into a bold, easy smile. "Could Yuanzhou possibly be afraid of a few extra glances? Would they dare come before me and blather?"

While master and disciple were chatting idly.

Figures returned one after another from outside, streaking toward the Liudaxian Sect respectively.

They swiftly vanished into certain cave dwellings, hurriedly recounting everything they had seen.

Almost simultaneously, the Dao tablets of these Liudaxian Sect were filled with the name Shen Yi.

Things such as the Celestial Palace and spiritual arts caused the expressions of those figures within the cave dwellings to gradually shift.

"..."

Among them, those who had been keeping an eye on Nanyang Sect now wore a rare look of bewilderment.

The intelligence they had gathered from beginning to end lay word for word before their eyes, yet no matter how they tried, it would not add up.

In every transmission, it seemed as though they were each describing a separate cultivator — and now these spies were telling them it was all one person?!

Absurd!

Qingyue Sect, within a bamboo tower.

Liu Shiqian looked at the two Dao tablets on the table; one was silent, the other flickered ceaselessly.

Elder Chiyang put away the one belonging to himself and cast a teasing glance over. "You're truly loathed by everyone now — such a lively affair, and not a soul is willing to chat with you about it."

Yet Liu Shiqian did not respond, as though lost in thought.

"What is it?" Curiosity rose in Elder Chiyang's eyes as he sat up slightly straighter. "The young man you favored is now growing so swiftly it startles all Seven Sons — and here you are putting on a show of being deep?"

Hearing this, Liu Shiqian closed his eyes. "If they find the cause hopeless, what will they do?"

"Naturally, those who should rein themselves in will rein themselves in, and those who can't should go into closed-door cultivation to cool off. Just pretend the matter of the Nanyang treasure land never happened." Elder Chiyang didn't even need to listen to the voices coming from the Dao tablet to figure out what these fellow cultivators were thinking—after all, they all shared the same predicament.

"And the rest?" Liu Shiqian opened his eyes, expression turns solemn.

"The rest…" Elder Chiyang's face faltered slightly, then likewise grew heavy: "Take a desperate risk, gamble their lives on a single throw?"

To tell the truth, not every cultivator can keep their heart as still as an ancient well, especially those once-brilliant prodigies from every path—each and every one of them had staked their lives to fight their way into Bai Yujing.

Fighting one more time… didn't seem like much.

What on earth were the six sect masters pondering? Could it be that after merging with the Dao, they really did start treating themselves as immortals?

Talk about "going with the flow."

If it comes to brothers turning on each other, that won't be something so easily smoothed over.

……

Nanyang Sect.

Shen Yi had, at some unknown point, already returned to that mountain peak.

【Slain Return-to-Void realm Ash-Scaled Water Python, total lifespan 198,000 years, remaining lifespan 152,000 years, absorption complete】

【Remaining demon lifespan: 379,000 years】

This was the first aquatic demon bearing the title of "prodigy" that Shen Yi had encountered.

But judging by this total lifespan, the creature was not even a match for the Young Lord of Golden Sparrow—indeed stronger than ordinary demons, but compared to its reputation, its bloodline had clearly held it back.

Fake?

Shen Yi pondered for a moment, then suddenly thought of another possibility.

Among demons, there was probably also such a thing as comprehension, after all—hadn't he run into foxes from Qingqiu before, the kind of demon that lived by its wits?

Thinking of this.

Shen Yi no longer hesitated. As usual, he first condensed a Suppression Stone, then began gathering the demon's origin through lifespan.

This demon had clearly been through a great deal; its will was fairly stable—the exact opposite of other demons.

At an age of just over forty thousand years, it took five demon origins to fully reconstruct it.

"General Dao Hai pays respects to my lord."

The great water-python demon still wore the appearance of that silver-armored youth, and bowed deeply to Shen Yi with great deference.

Shen Yi did not rush to place it into the Suppression Stone—after all, only one second-grade Suppression Stone remained, not enough to gather six Dao pillars, so there was no need to hurry.

He glanced sideways: "Spirit arrays or fist-and-palm arts—which are you better at?"

"Reporting to my lord… fist-and-palm arts, then." General Dao Hai hesitated, then chose the latter.

The moment the words fell, it had already been recalled by Shen Yi into the panel.

The vast demon lifespan poured entirely into Tianyan Sijiu.

【Year one, you begin imparting Xuan Qing's insights to General Dao Hai, hoping the other party will grasp this fist-and-palm spirit art as quickly as possible】

Spending one's own lifespan to teach a demon the Dao.

Shen Yi always felt something was a little off about it.

Yet what followed made his mood grow somewhat more complicated still.

【Year 1,300, General Dao Hai has fully grasped the insights left by Xuan Qing, and his attainments are on par with yours; you begin attempting together to decipher the next stage of Tianyan Sijiu】

Seeing that General Dao Hai showed no signs of collapse from contact with the spirit art.

Shen Yi gradually set his mind at ease.

Perhaps because of the demon's companionship, the panel's feedback this time was not as intense as when he had previously cultivated the Returning-Ruins Immortal Armor Array.

【Year 17,000, having departed from Xuan Qing's insights, you and General Dao Hai increasingly find every step a struggle; you spare no effort in urging it on, hoping for some harvest】

Working together, the confusion in Shen Yi's mind was gradually sorted into clarity.

His entire field of vision was occupied by a pitch-black canopy of heaven.

Though it is called Tianyan Sijiu, this art clearly has not yet touched the level of "Dao"—it merely borrows that name. In truth, it is the clumsy path of first comprehending all arts, and only then being able to break through all arts.

No wonder Xuan Qing lost interest right after entering the sect.

Coincidentally, neither Shen Yi nor General Dao Hai were cultivators nurtured in a greenhouse.

Both had endured endless slaughter, their combat experience rich to the extreme.

As demon lifespan rapidly drained away.

【Year 67,000, General Dao Hai helps you break through the barrier, pushing Tianyan Sijiu to a new level】

【Return-to-Void (Spirit). Tianyan Sijiu: Minor Completion】

Shen Yi did not rise, but immersed himself in the deep canopy of heaven, continuing to deduce further.

He did not know how long had passed, until the remaining demon lifespan was exhausted.

Dense clusters of panel notifications swept past, yet could not draw Shen Yi's attention in the slightest.

He staggered to his feet.

He stared blankly at his own palm; as his five fingers curled slightly inward, it was as if he held the entire heavens in his grasp.

Tianyan Sijiu had long since reached Great Completion, but Perfection remained far out of reach.

A demon was, after all, only a demon—forcing it to cultivate a human spirit art, with its lifespan it could indeed break through to Great Completion in its twilight years, but after thirty thousand years of deduction, a price had ultimately been paid.

【General Dao Hai sat like a withered tree, only his eyes wild with madness, gazing up at the canopy of heaven, suddenly seized by a terror from the depths of his heart】

Shen Yi withdrew his gaze with a sigh of feeling.

Fortunately he had the demon soul's aid—otherwise the one to go mad would most likely have been himself.

He summoned the demon soul and poured it into the Suppression Stone.

Whether its mind was clear or not didn't matter—as long as it could still fight, and if it truly couldn't fight in the end, it could still be used as a Dao pillar.

"Hah."

Shen Yi gazed at the night, then stepped toward the Ancestral Master Hall.

Thinking too much; need someone to clear his mind.

"The Sect Master has returned?"

Xuan Qing had already finished distributing all the tributes brought back last time.

He rose to welcome him, but when their eyes met, Shen Yi's deep gaze made him pause briefly, then he joked with a smile: "If the Sect Master wishes to see something, just say it directly. Xuan Qing is already a wooden body; there is nothing here that cannot be seen."

"Shut up."

Shen Yi rubbed the center of his brow, easing the aftereffects of Tianyan Sijiu.

Subconsciously wanting to deconstruct all techniques in the world and find flaws in others had nearly become instinct.

Yet after that brief glance just now, Senior Xuan Qing appeared so ordinary, with no trace of spiritual pressure... and no weakness whatsoever.

"Although speaking these words as a disciple is somewhat presumptuous."

"But truly, you have done very well."

Xuan Qing slowly lowered his gaze; clearly, he had also received news about the killing of General Dao Hai.

One might say that within the Seven Sons of Yu Nanhong, anyone with any status now already knew of this matter.

At least for now.

Shen Yi's position as Sect Master was already half secured.

Among those vassal forces, the weaker ones dared not defy him, while the stronger ones, how could they fail to see how terrifying this Sect Master's talent truly was.

The reason it was said to be half secured.

Was because, based on Xuan Qing's understanding of cultivators at that same realm, it was highly likely that desperate dogs would leap over walls.

"Then let Xuan Qing offer another bow to the Sect Master."

As he spoke, the wooden figure slowly closed its eyes.

In the next instant, another surge of extremely dense purple qi overflowed from it, its vastness even surpassing the total of Shen Yi's current Hongmeng Chen Ziqi.

"This object is Xuan Qing's sorrow; since then, I have never heard celestial music played to congratulate Xuan Qing again."

"Please, Sect Master, wear it for me."

Xuan Qing stumbled back onto his cushion, and the vitality on his wooden body suddenly diminished greatly once more.

"..."

Shen Yi silently watched the wooden figure's back.

After a long while.

He said lightly: "How about continuing the story you didn't finish last time?"

Xuan Qing stared at the Ancestral Master statue, then suddenly revealed a carefree smile: "The past is past; why bring it up again? Xuan Qing has long forgotten... I wish to sit alone for a while."

"Very well."

Shen Yi nodded slightly; the Wuliang Demon Emperor Palace leapt from his brow, casting the night sky in a blood-red hue.

That dense purple qi slowly split into four streams, surging toward the four heavenly palaces.

In the next instant, the Hongmeng Chen Ziqi in every heavenly palace surged dramatically, nearly doubling!

With such abundant reinforcement, plus the recently perfected Tianyan Sijiu... there were even signs that it could help him cross another watershed.

Shen Yi withdrew his Dao Palace and did not disturb Xuan Qing further.

After all, even if he listened now, he could only listen for now.

There would still be opportunities.

After Shen Yi left the Ancestral Master Hall.

Xuan Qing finally reopened his eyes, gazing at that Ancestral Master statue, and suddenly sighed: "Except for you, he is the first person who wanted to hear my stories. Do all Sect Masters love causing trouble like this?"

"But after you listened, the Nanyang Sect was gone..."

Outside the Ancestral Master Hall.

Shen Yi casually picked a spot, flipping through those scrolls, wondering if there were still ways to harvest the lifespans of demons and monsters.

Seeing the empty panel of demon and monster lifespans always made him feel a lack of security.

Xuan Qing's sudden gift.

Actually already explained many things.

In fact, just thinking about it, under the attraction of such a precious He Dao Nanyang Baodi, becoming a direct disciple of the Sect Master was already no easy task; to safely climb to Bai Yujing and then inherit the He Dao Nanyang Baodi.

How perilous this path truly was.

How many fellow disciples wanted to kill him and only then feel satisfied.

Just one treasure land, one path to immortality; why should it be yours? If it were decided by strength, since all are from Bai Yujing, without truly fighting to the death, who would willingly admit they were weaker than others.

Xuan Qing had obviously experienced it once, which was why he acted this way.

Just then, led by Li Qingfeng, several people hurriedly arrived.

"Sect Master, they have returned."

Li Qingfeng's face was full of smiles, somewhat different from usual.

When he turned aside.

Shen Yi raised his gaze and saw, among that group of clerks, a familiar figure: "You went out?"

"Wanted to do a little something."

Nie Jun replied softly, weariness hidden in his brows and eyes.

The True Person Master Master Xuanjian, once known as a killing prodigy, after the opening of the Nanyang Nanyang Baodi, even witnessing so many powerful beings, had not had his cultivation Dao heart affected in the slightest.

He had simply been lacking many things before.

Now that Shen Yi had helped him make up for it, all he needed was time.

A cultivator who could reach the top three under heaven within the Abyssal Land — how could he possibly be weaker than the prodigies of other sects?

"I gave up the third-rank Dao Pillar and switched to fourth-rank. I've already taken shape of three pillars now; I only lack the refinement of precious materials."

"……"

Shen Yi pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "Give it up once more — at least second-rank. Whatever you're missing, go find Wen Qiujin. Consider it a loan from me to him."

Nanyang Sect does not lack a errand-running steward at the second layer of Return-to-Void.

"Wouldn't that be too forced?" Nie Jun slowly raised his head, a trace of hesitation flickering through his eyes.

Having witnessed the existence of the Tiangong with his own eyes, how could he be content with forging only an ordinary Dao Palace?

But those exceedingly precious materials were something Nie Jun could never dare hope for.

He needed to first possess the strength before he could have the qualification to go out and compete with others for precious materials.

Shen Yi wasn't some sect master either. The other party had never enjoyed anything from Nanyang Sect — he had walked out from obscurity entirely on his own, and owed nothing to anyone.

"When the Sect Master speaks, a mere little disciple like you should just obey!" Li Qingfeng hurriedly kicked his senior brother.

Staying in the Scripture Pavilion every day, how could he know how splendid Shen Zongzhu's current situation was.

Nie Jun glanced at Li Qingfeng.

The kid was so startled his whole body trembled: "What! I'm now… I'm now…"

Li Qingfeng racked his brain for a long time and still couldn't squeeze out a fart — doing the work of a sect elder, yet in reality not even counting as an inner disciple.

"Many thanks, Sect Master."

Nie Jun withdrew his gaze and once again cupped his hands in salute toward Shen Yi.

Yet the hesitation in his eyes did not fade, as if it were not solely a matter of cultivation.

"We went to Taoyuan Shanzhuang — this is the tribute they gave."

Finally bringing up the main business, Nie Jun placed two storage bags before Shen Yi.

At this point, the several stewards nearby also puffed out their chests — their first time out on an errand, and they had actually managed to collect tribute in advance.

Moreover, it was from a major power like Taoyuan Shanzhuang, which was only one tier below the four highest-ranking families.

"If the Sect Master has no other instructions, I'd like to go back first and look at the Dao Pillar technique."

Nie Jun took his leave respectfully, but before he could turn around, he was called back.

"Nothing else, then?" Shen Yi toyed with the two storage treasures and said lightly.

The several stewards who had been about to withdraw all showed puzzled expressions, then stood their ground once more.

Only Nie Jun slowly tightened his grip on the Xuan Sword at his waist.

He was silent for a long time, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. Then he turned, walked before Shen Yi, crouched down, gently separated the two storage treasures, and pointed to each in turn: "This is the tribute… this one is their life-buying money."

"Whose life are they buying?"

Shen Yi unhurriedly rose to his feet and brushed off his hem.

He had noticed the issue in Nie Jun's state of mind from earlier — the other party had gone from a sword with its edge fully bared to one that had, seemingly for no reason, been sheathed.

"……"

Nie Jun let out a long breath: "Someone saw what was happening inside the Nanyang Nanyang Baodi and knows there are existences like the Great Qian. Taoyuan Shanzhuang needs a great many lives — countless ones — so they came to me, hoping I could deliver some to them. This is only the first batch."

"I wanted to act, but I can't beat them."

Nie Jun's voice suddenly dropped much lower.

Li Qingfeng, meanwhile, stared over in astonishment — everyone knew Zhu Shixiong Nie's temperament; when had he ever cared whether he could win or not?

If he hadn't been beaten half to death back then, he wouldn't have become a disciple of Mount Wutong.

And he certainly wouldn't have accepted the other party's things.

Saying he couldn't beat them… was probably more about worrying he'd cause trouble for Shen Zongzhu.

"The Seven Sons Assembly is still two months away. I wanted to wait until this matter was over before reporting back to the Sect Master." Nie Jun gave a self-mocking smile, his five fingers gripping the sword nearly crushed to pieces.

He had finally become the kind of person he despised most.

Considering the big picture, caring about all that damned nonsense.

Even the temperament his own master had failed to change had, following Shen Yi, gradually begun to shift.

When Nie Jun's words fell silent.

The several stewards from Qinghai Prefecture and the Chen family all wore somewhat unsightly expressions.

Although they didn't know what Taoyuan Shanzhuang was doing, the fact that they had sought out Nie Jun — who appeared to be at the lowest realm — meant they didn't want Nanyang Sect to know about this matter.

They believed that with Nie Jun's strength, he couldn't possibly reach the true great figures of Nanyang Sect.

Regardless, it was tied to the lives of mortals.

If it got out, it would be the Xian Sect's reputation that suffered.

But they could also understand Nie Jun's consideration — at least within these two months, what Shen Yi needed more was stability in the situation; it would be best if he didn't even have to leave Nanyang Sect.

Everything was to prioritize the Seven Sons Assembly.

Yet none of them noticed Li Qingfeng's face suddenly turn deathly pale: "Hah!"

Based on his understanding of Shen Yi.

It's over, it's over — something big is about to happen!

Sure enough, things went just as Li Qingfeng had predicted.

He didn't keep everyone waiting long at all — Shen Yi casually glanced toward Nie Jun.

Then he flicked his finger at his waist, and the black-glimmer flying-sword pendant transformed into a streak of light that landed beneath his feet.

His calm voice spread through the surroundings.

"Lead the way."

(End of chapter)