Chapter 81: Fellow Disciples, Do You Want Any Pills?

In the past, she knew that if the male lead killed his wife to attain the Dao and reached Foundation Establishment within a year, he could already be considered a genius.

Only after arriving in Xizhou did she realize that was not the case at all.

Cultivators from clans in Xizhou also began Spirit Refining at twelve or thirteen, but they generally reached Foundation Establishment by seventeen or eighteen. Because of their family foundations and the experience passed down through generations of clans, their children were nurtured with various spiritual supplements from birth, allowing their spirit bones and meridians to bathe in Spirit Qi until it became a habit. By the time they reached the day of Spirit Refining, success was achieved in one go, and reaching Foundation Establishment from Qi Refining was also a simple matter.

Therefore, the total number of cultivators in Xizhou was the lowest among the Five Prefectures, but the resources mastered per capita, as well as the mortality rate, were the lowest; the mortality rate below Foundation Establishment was not even ten percent.

It was nothing like Nanzhou, where a Qi Refining loose cultivator could suddenly vanish while walking down the road.

She had never been to Central Province, but as the center of the Five Prefectures and the most prosperous and flourishing place, she imagined that geniuses with their cultivation speed were not rare there.

Furthermore... she was still a Foundation Establishment cultivator who had "damaged her spirit bones" by entering the Dao too early.

"Whether I'm talking nonsense or not, we'll know once the Secret Realm ends... Oh, Xie Huai is here." As Lu Jin was speaking, she suddenly saw Xie Huai standing at the entrance.

Xie Huai lowered his head with a faint smile, bowed humbly, and his clear, resonant voice sounded like broken jade striking stone: "Greetings, Senior Sister."

Lu Jin smiled from ear to ear, "Good, good, good. Let's go, let's head to the Questioning Heart Stone."

Although Lu Jin had only met Xie Huai a few times, she seemed to be leaning toward the direction of the Outer Sect female disciples, and Ruan Xing couldn't help but want to wake her up.

Wake up, hey! His face is fake and his personality is a disguise; don't be deceived by his appearance! But having made a prior agreement, Ruan Xing didn't intend to expose Xie Huai. She could only look up at the sky speechlessly, roll her eyes, and focus her attention on the Questioning Heart Stone.

The process was no different from when Ruan Xing first arrived, except that this time, the people standing by the bridge watching had become two.

Ruan Xing watched helplessly as Xie Huai had just crossed the bridge when his expression suddenly turned grave, and he shouted: "Who is this Senior!?"

"Pfft!" Ruan Xing couldn't hold it in and almost laughed out loud, nearly spitting out her saliva.

So it really was like this! It was like watching a one-man comedy show.

Lu Jin covered her mouth and giggled beside her, "Interesting, right? But you must keep it a secret. Aside from us in the Treasure Pavilion, not many Inner Sect Disciples know about this yet."

"I will certainly keep my lips sealed," Ruan Xing promised with a smile, then suddenly felt a bit regretful, "If only I had an Image Stone in my hand right now, I could save this scene to watch from time to time in the future."

On the platform, Xie Huai dodged left and right, rolling on the ground in a disheveled manner, seemingly avoiding some kind of attack.

Immediately after, Xie Huai took out an array flag and flicked it, quickly forming seals with his hands. He tapped his toes lightly on the ground and retreated half a step. The array flags hovered in the air, circling him like an equilateral triangle, forming a golden semicircular shield that protected him within.

"Not bad!" Lu Jin's eyes lit up, and she praised, "He's only at the Foundation Establishment stage and is already using array flags instead of an array disk. Moreover, he is controlling three array flags simultaneously. He lives up to the name of a genius; his cultivation speed is fast, and his attainments in formations are high. I fear that in the future, even if he goes to the talent-filled Central Province, he will be able to stand out."

Ruan Xing couldn't recognize what kind of array flag this was, but she could guess it was a defensive formation. She asked, "Ajin, you are knowledgeable and experienced; what do you think of his formation's defense?"

"Hmm... actually, I can't tell the difference in quality either, but his speed in setting up the array flags is very fast, his movements are smooth as flowing water, and the array positions are precise to the millimeter. One look and you can tell it's been practiced many times. It's good to look at." Lu Jin commented with an appreciative gaze. Ruan Xing wanted to roll her eyes again; looking good was useless, one had to know how much force of attack he could defend against.

Lu Jin paused for a moment, then continued: "But looking at the spiritual power wall of the protective shield, I estimate it can at least withstand a normal strike from a Golden Core Early-stage cultivator. If you run into him during the Jin Tai Dao Discussion, you must resolve the fight with lightning speed before he can pull out his array flags. Otherwise, you can only let him stay on the platform like an iron turtle. If he doesn't consume Spirit Returning Pills, he should have no problem maintaining it for a day or two with three array flags. If he still has the energy to set up an array disk to attack, then the enemy can only be beaten passively without being able to hurt him in the slightest. Fighting an array cultivator, once you let them set up a formation, it is indeed quite disgusting."

Ruan Xing nodded thoughtfully.

An array cultivator's main means are array disks and array flags. Every array disk contains a fixed formation; when using it, one only needs to input spiritual power, and the array disk will automatically unfold to form the formation. It is relatively simple to destroy or block it. Ruan Xing once fought Xie Huai in an underground river tunnel; as long as one used brute force to deflect the flight trajectory of the array disk before it landed, the formation would not take effect even if the disk landed, and the array cultivator would have to set it up again.

Array flags, on the other hand, are the life-bound magical artifacts of an array cultivator who has reached the later stages. Each array flag must be refined with one's heart's blood and then controlled by the array cultivator's Divine Sense to form ever-changing formations. Such formations are far more powerful than array disks and are more flexible in their use. However, the disadvantage is that when there are few array flags, one cannot set up two or more interlocking formations simultaneously. Therefore, when an array cultivator's cultivation is low, they mostly use array disks; it saves spiritual power and does not exhaust their Divine Sense. As long as the setup is successful, it only requires a little spiritual power to maintain, and there is no need to expend effort to control it.

Xie Huai can control three array flags because he is himself a Foundation Establishment Late-stage Demon Cultivator, and his Divine Sense is far more powerful than that of a cultivator who has just entered the Foundation Establishment stage. Perhaps he is already at Foundation Establishment Perfection and close to forming a Golden Core at this moment.

Furthermore, he did not choose the kind of opportunistic, non-resistant method Ruan Xing used, but instead used his Divine Sense to control the array flags to build a defensive formation. This way, he would not expose the fluctuations of his own magical power, and at the same time, it demonstrated that he was an array cultivator, providing a reasonable excuse.

It must be said that his thinking is indeed meticulous, choosing the identity of an array cultivator.

Most importantly, both array disks and array flags can use Spirit Stones to compensate for power. As long as there is enough money, even a Qi Refining cultivator can use high-grade array disks...

Tsk, this kid really was hiding something. It is absolutely impossible that he only had one hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones on him. She had asked for too little back then.

Ruan Xing's wandering thoughts drifted further and further away, and things were almost coming to an end on Xie Huai's side. Lu Jin put away her gloating smile, coughed twice, and said quietly, "He seems to have died inside; I'll go wake him up."

"Alright, then I'll head back first," Ruan Xing replied. She felt that with Xie Huai's brain, he should be able to guess that his performance had been seen through completely. It was better not to stay here and be an eyesore. If this petty Demon Cultivator got angry from embarrassment and affected the subsequent Jin Tai Dao Discussion, that would be bad.

"Ah?" Lu Jin was surprised, "I haven't taken Xie Huai to choose a place to stay yet."

"I won't go then. Just tell me where he's staying once you've chosen," Ruan Xing found a random excuse, "Registration for the Jin Tai Dao Discussion is about to start; I need to hurry and prepare and study my opponents."

"You're already at Foundation Establishment Mid-stage, what opponents are you studying? Your spot is set in stone," Lu Jin joked, "But you could ask Senior Brother Wu; he only participated once ten years ago and has experience."

That's right, Senior Brother Wu is also at Foundation Establishment Mid-stage, and he participated in the last Dao Discussion.

Ruan Xing hadn't thought of this point and said gratefully, "Thanks for the reminder."

"Alright, go on then," Lu Jin waved her hand and hopped onto the platform to call Xie Huai.

Every Inner Sect Disciple only has one chance to participate in the Jin Tai Dao Discussion. Many Foundation Establishment Early-stage disciples participate either because they have absolute confidence in their own strength, or because they feel that since they definitely won't get in anyway, they might as well treat it as an opportunity for a real-combat drill. There are even more arrogant ones who think that they will form a Golden Core before the next ten years arrive, so they participate in a hurry. However, there is another type: those who want to enter the Secret Realm but lack confidence choose to suppress their cultivation to participate. Senior Brother Wu is one of these people.

Don't let his young appearance fool you; in reality, he is already an elderly man of ninety years old, all thanks to his skill in preserving his youth. Lu Jin is only in her forties, but they have one thing in common: both of them spent nearly thirty years in the Qi Refining stage before reaching Foundation Establishment. After reaching Foundation Establishment, Lu Jin saw too many disciples who reached it in a dozen years or so and gave up on herself, only then devoting herself to the affairs of the Treasure Pavilion.

Wu Xing did not have such pessimistic thoughts. Although he did not give up on cultivation, he chose to let nature take its course regarding forming a Golden Core. Therefore, with his steady personality, he entered the External Affairs Hall, and more than a decade ago, he broke through to Foundation Establishment Mid-stage, only then going to participate in the Jin Tai Dao Discussion.

"Then did you successfully enter the Secret Realm?" Ruan Xing couldn't help but ask.

"I did," Wu Xing sighed with emotion, "I teamed up with three senior brothers, killed a Foundation Establishment Late-stage Monster Beast in the Secret Realm, and even obtained a precious medicinal herb that could refine a Breakthrough Pill. One of the senior brothers was about to form a Golden Core, so he took the medicinal materials and compensated us with one thousand Spirit Stones each. After coming out, we divided the other gains, and I also earned five hundred Contribution Points and six or seven hundred Spirit Stones. In just one month inside, I earned nearly two thousand; the Golden Terrace Secret Realm is indeed quite good."

Ruan Xing continued: "Is the Golden Terrace Secret Realm only open for one month? Did that senior brother go to Central Province after forming his Golden Core?"

The smile on Wu Xing's face faded, "No, because when we were exploring a ruin, we were unfortunately injured by the mechanisms inside, so we came out early. That senior brother who was about to form a Golden Core was severely injured and his life was hanging by a thread. In order to take a gamble, he asked someone to refine a Breakthrough Pill and tried to force the formation of a Golden Core, but the breakthrough failed, and he died. As for the other two senior brothers, one went out to travel and seek opportunities for a breakthrough and has had no news for eight years now; another died accidentally while participating in a Xizhou Secret Realm."

"Hiss... so dangerous." Since entering the Dao, Ruan Xing had only entered the Cold Mountain Secret Realm. As the Xuanbing Sect's private property, the Golden Terrace Secret Realm actually had no guarantee for the personal safety of its disciples?

Wu Xing shook his head and laughed self-deprecatingly: "In the past, everyone who could enter the Golden Terrace Secret Realm was an Inner Sect elite who could fight ten men at once. Thirty years ago, many died or were injured in accidents, so the threshold for the Golden Terrace Secret Realm was lowered. Otherwise, someone with mediocre strength like me wouldn't have dared to participate in the Dao Discussion, right?"

So that was it. Although the batch of Demon Cultivators that suddenly appeared thirty years ago was quickly suppressed and eliminated, it also caused some impact on the Xuanbing Sect in Nanzhou.

"Yeah, so I can't help you much regarding the Golden Terrace Secret Realm, because the Secret Realm is very large. We only explored a small area during the month we stayed there, and the maps provided by the Sect are also scattered and basically don't match up."

"Then... what is the method of the Dao Discussion?"

Wu Xing introduced: "That's easy to explain. The preliminary round is a rotation; everyone fights three matches against different opponents. Winning one match adds one point. Finally, according to the ranking, the top sixty are selected to enter the secondary round, where they start drawing lots for duels. There is a ten-day interval between the preliminary and secondary rounds for cultivators to heal their injuries, until the final victory is decided. The first place can receive a Breakthrough Pill rewarded by the Sect, and the second and third places can receive a Low-grade Magical Artifact."

She didn't expect there to be prizes; Ruan Xing was a bit surprised, but she didn't consider this, because she knew she definitely wouldn't get them.

And they even left time for healing...

Ruan Xing couldn't help but ask: "What if one accidentally kills a fellow disciple?"

Wu Xing laughed, "That won't happen. There are two Sect Elders watching the whole time. If there is a life-threatening danger, they will intervene and call a halt. The Sect cultivates us and will not let disciples be lost in such a place."

That's true.

Ruan Xing nodded, "Thank you for clearing up my confusion, Senior Brother."

"So, my advice is..." Wu Xing suddenly said solemnly in a low voice: "Take advantage of these few days to buy some high-quality Healing Pills first; the price will go up once the Dao Discussion starts."

Wait... does the world of Cultivation also have profiteers?

Ruan Xing was bewildered.

A few more days passed, and the Jin Tai Dao Discussion, which had been hyped up for a long time, finally began.

On the plaza in front of the Sect Master's main hall, several circular platforms had already been constructed using Magic Art. They featured pale white protective barriers that would automatically rise once a duel began, isolating the inside from the outside; this both protected the plaza from being damaged by the fallout and prevented the Cultivators inside from being affected by the outside world.

Suspended in mid-air, facing the plaza, were several Crystal Chairs, complete with tables and desks, adorned with clusters of flowers and silk ribbons. Behind them was a large Xuanbing Sect logo, and in the middle of each character was a crystal box representing the three prizes for the top three places, shimmering with flowing light and looking magnificent.

Opposite this, a massive water curtain hung down, displaying pale golden characters that showed the names and cultivation realms of the registrants. Once the registration deadline arrived, the names on the water curtain would automatically be arranged into a rotation order.

Ruan Xing followed Wu Xing's advice and, during these few days, exchanged all of her remaining three hundred Spirit Stones for medicinal ingredients for Healing Pill and Spirit Returning Pill. She also used up her Contribution Points to redeem spiritual herbs from the Treasure Pavilion, staying in her room day and night to refine pills.

Her pill furnace and Earth Fire were almost growing moldy from sitting in her Storage Bag.

Besides, this thing called Earth Fire had an expiration date; if she never used it, she wouldn't even know if it died one day.

For Ruan Xing, refining first and second-grade pills was something she could do with her eyes closed without making a mistake. By the time she left her room, the few square meters of space in her Storage Bag were already stuffed with various pills.

She smiled slightly, watching the crowd gathering on the plaza, and after registering, she watched her name appear on the water curtain.

A few Cultivators nearby whom she didn't recognize were gathered together complaining.

"I don't know who it was, but all the second-grade Healing Pill in the Treasure Pavilion have been redeemed. I went to ask, and there wasn't a single one left."

"Sigh, don't even mention it. Me too. I even went to the Outer Sect's trading fair yesterday. Never mind second-grade, even the first-grade ones have gone up in price."

"Don't spoil them. It only takes a day to go to the town. I'll head down the mountain to buy some in town in a bit."

"That's easy for you to say, but what if you run into an accident on the road after going down the mountain and get delayed returning? Today is the last day for registration."

Ruan Xing stepped forward, tugged on their sleeves to attract their attention, looked up with an innocent and harmless smile, and whispered mysteriously: "Fellow sect members, want to buy some pills?"

Thanks to Book Friend 20220328172747561 for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to 20210301104135260278 for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Book Friend 180706011435075 for the monthly ticket~ (End of chapter)