Chapter 166: Need more money, simulation start!

Lu Chen recovered from his initial shock.

It seemed the white-clad youth did not want his mother living here.

Did the two of them have a poor relationship?

Or was it just adolescent rebellion?

Regardless, none of this had anything to do with him.

Lu Chen thought of the key point, pondered for a moment, shook his head, and said:

"This is a bit difficult to handle..."

"Recently, there have been changes to the Outer Sect Grand Competition. This year's and next year's competitions have both been cancelled and merged to be held two years from now. Because of this, most disciples will remain in the sect for these two years, making small courtyards a scarce commodity. Prices rising is inevitable."

As Lu Chen spoke, he kept an eye on the white-clad youth's expression, only to see that the other party remained unmoved, as if he had already known this.

He nodded inwardly and continued:

"For an Outer Sect disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect, this is the only path to enter the Inner Sect; the opportunity is rare. Furthermore, this competition coincides with the Fairy Yunxiao widely accepting disciples, so countless disciples from the three continents are flocking here. I'm afraid the price of the small courtyard will climb even higher."

"And for me, this is also the most important opportunity."

Having said this!

Lu Chen's meaning was self-evident: the previously agreed-upon 4,000 spirit stones now seemed too low.

Upon hearing this, the white-clad youth frowned slightly, then relaxed, clearly finding it reasonable.

This Profound Heaven Sect Grand Competition was of great importance; even he had to treat it with caution.

He couldn't help but ask: "In your opinion, what should be done?"

Lu Chen smiled slightly, his smile becoming increasingly brilliant as he said:

"Need more money!"

Lu Chen gently extended his finger to make the number "eight," feeling somewhat nervous inside.

Ten times meant 80,000 spirit stones; for him, this was a bold gamble.

However!

The white-clad youth nodded without hesitation and spat out two words:

"Deal!"

It was clean and decisive, as if these 80,000 spirit stones were merely a trivial amount to him.

Not long after!

The white-clad youth returned.

Lu Chen felt his hand sink as he received a small, exquisite storage bag; spiritual energy surged within it, and 50,000 spirit stones were neatly stacked inside.

The white-clad youth said somewhat apologetically:

"My expenses have been quite high these past few days, and I don't have enough spirit stones on hand. I'll give you a portion first; I'll give you the rest after I raise some more in a few days."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen was momentarily dazed.

He had not expected the other party to fulfill his promise so readily, even delivering the majority of the payment on the spot.

With these 50,000 spirit stones collected, he only lacked 10,000 more to pay off his 60,000-stone debt.

Once the remaining 30,000 arrived, he would have 20,000 left as savings.

Lu Chen's gaze fell once again upon the white-clad youth. Upon closer inspection, he felt the youth's features were becoming increasingly handsome and extraordinary, his bearing heroic.

A little bit handsome!

The other party's generosity was such that he started at ten times the price, treating tens of thousands of spirit stones like drinking water.

Indeed, the gap between people is even greater than the gap between people and dogs.

Seeing that the matter was resolved, the white-clad youth waved toward the courtyard, preparing to leave.

"Oh, right, my name is Cai Yingzhao!"

Hearing this, Lu Chen finally came to his senses; it was indeed the Cai family of the Great Zhou Divine Capital.

Just at this moment!

A colorful bird on the wall flapped its wings and took flight, circling the small courtyard once.

Finally, it landed lightly on Cai Yingzhao's shoulder, its feathers bright as it preened itself with its beak.

The divine bird looked at Lu Chen as if it possessed human intelligence.

A pair of amber eyes, deep and bright, carried not a trace of malice, only curiosity.

It even faintly exuded an indescribable pressure!

It was like the shock of seeing a flood dragon raise its head and break through the water while sailing on a sea of fog.

Within Lu Chen's sea of consciousness, the ancient cauldron in his Mud Pill Palace seemed to sense the abnormality outside and began to vibrate slowly, releasing wisps of warm, ancient aura that soothed his mind.

He took a shallow breath, his eyes gradually returning to calm, and looked composedly at the colorful bird.

After a brief moment of eye contact!

The bird stopped looking, leaping lightly from one of Cai Yingzhao's shoulders to the other, appearing exceptionally agile.

Seeing this, Cai Yingzhao also let out a soft sound of surprise.

"Fellow Daoist, how should I address you?"

Lu Chen was momentarily stunned.

Fellow Daoist?

Within the Profound Heaven Sect, everyone addressed each other as Senior or Junior Brother; why the "Fellow Daoist"?

Thinking about it carefully, it seemed this Cai Yingzhao couldn't bring himself to say "Brother."

Lu Chen didn't mind!

"I am Lu Chen!"

Hearing this, Cai Yingzhao nodded slightly and turned to leave.

Lu Chen watched Cai Yingzhao's departing back, pondering inwardly.

Yesterday, this person clearly harbored malice, but today his attitude had changed.

He walked into the house with the storage bag in his hand.

He placed the food box gently on the table.

Suddenly, Lu Chen remembered something and took out his communication talisman from his robes.

This talisman was specially made by the Profound Heaven Sect and did not require much spiritual power.

As long as one was within the borders of the Profound Heaven Sect, it could be used for instant communication, transmitting information with infinite utility.

Lu Chen channeled spiritual energy into the talisman, and it rippled with clear spiritual light.

One must know!

The Profound Heaven Sect was vast, spanning tens of thousands of miles.

Even if one left the Profound Heaven Sect, communication was still possible as long as the distance wasn't too great.

The person who designed this talisman was definitely someone with vast supernatural powers.

It was said that the realm of a True Person was already like that of an immortal or god; perhaps only a cultivator of such a realm could create this type of talisman.

It could suppress the fortune of an entire sect!

The Peak Masters of the eight branches within the Profound Heaven Sect were all in the True Person realm, which was why they could exert pressure over the three continents.

Lu Chen found Xie Wanwan's "message box" and sent Zhou Liang's talisman number, which was an algebraic code based on the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches.

Both of them would enter the same secret realm on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, so it would be good to have some mutual support.

He also greeted Zhou Liang.

Xie Wanwan replied to the message immediately.

【Okay, thank you, Yu Shixiong Lu!】

Xie Wanwan held the talisman in her room, a look of joy on her face; she hurriedly replied and peeked through the window at the lamp light in the east room.

Lu Chen then exited the "chat box."

However!

There was no message from Zhou Liang's side.

Lu Chen guessed that he was likely starting his nightlife with that Junior Sister or Senior Sister again.

Lu Chen stopped paying attention, got up, and closed the door.

He paid a little more attention to the new neighbor who had just moved into the south room.

The servants seemed to have finished moving everything, but the two large tigers at the courtyard gate remained; they seemed sleepy, lying on the ground, opening their mouths to yawn.

In the courtyard, a servant led the two White Marsh Thunder Tigers to a place on the side of the small courtyard for parking mounts, like a stable.

In Lu Chen's eyes, it was similar to a "garage" in a residential complex.

As for the owner of the west room, he hadn't met them yet, and he couldn't help but harbor some guesses.

Judging by the other party's display, perhaps they had a similar goal to Cai Yingzhao.

Preparing for the upcoming Outer Sect Grand Competition, or for Fairy Yunxiao accepting disciples!

Lu Chen glanced at the sky; the moonlight had quietly risen, hanging in the long sky.

During the day, four great suns appeared in the sky simultaneously.

At night, there was sometimes only one moon, and sometimes two moons vied for brilliance.

Lu Chen hadn't seen the spectacle of four moons in the sky these past few days.

At this moment!

The moonlight was like water, spilling over the small courtyard.

Lu Chen withdrew his thoughts, gently closed the door, turned, and sat on the bed, taking out a jade slip for cultivation from his storage bag.

This jade slip contained the basic cultivation techniques for Profound Heaven Sect Outer Sect disciples and was an important guide on his cultivation path.

As spiritual energy was slowly injected, the jade slip emitted a soft glow.

It contained two cultivation techniques and three martial arts.

One was the "Essential Guide to Cultivating the Field," though it only had the methods prior to Foundation Establishment.

As a widely popular cultivation technique in the Outer Sect, the "Essential Guide to Cultivating the Field" was unique in its neutrality and peace, making it easy to start and highly compatible, serving as the first step for many disciples onto the immortal path.

No matter what profound techniques one practiced later, it could perfectly integrate with them without conflict.

It was also the most practiced Foundation Establishment technique in the Outer Sect.

The second technique was the "Three-Vehicle Five-Elements Gang Method," which was also one of the true methods for cultivating the Second Heavenly Ladder; this method was particularly special in the Outer Sect.

Daoist arts required condensing true essence in the acupoints after Foundation Establishment and planting the Daoist art within the opened "Cave Heaven" before it could be cast.

Unlike traditional Daoist arts that could only be cast after Foundation Establishment, the "Three-Vehicle Five-Elements Gang Method" allowed practitioners who had not yet reached Foundation Establishment, provided they reached the Second Heavenly Ladder realm and possessed the two miraculous physiques of "Golden Skin and Jade Meridians" and "Copper Skin and Iron Bones," to directly utilize a Daoist art.

"Gang Shield"!

This type of energy shield condensed outside the body, though one of the lowest-level Daoist arts, had astonishing defensive power, making it difficult for ordinary weapons to shake it in the slightest.

During the Outer Sect Grand Competition, according to the original situation, only a small portion of Outer Sect disciples had completed Foundation Establishment and could use Daoist arts.

Most were still at the Perfected Second Heavenly Ladder realm!

The reason his predecessor exchanged for this true technique was also to enhance his strength.

Later, in order to reach Foundation Establishment, he hadn't had time to practice this technique.

Lu Chen studied this technique carefully, and a precise map of human acupoints seemed to emerge within his body.

The reason the "Three-Vehicle Five-Elements Gang Method" required the two miraculous physiques of "Golden Skin and Jade Meridians" and "Copper Skin and Iron Bones" as support was precisely because the load on the body when operating the Gang Qi was immense.

If one's physique wasn't superior, the body would likely be unable to bear the burden before even casting the Daoist art.

Lu Chen's gaze turned to the other three martial arts. Among them, the "Jun Heaven Sword," as a martial art passed down in the Lu family, only had methods prior to Foundation Establishment.

After practicing it to the Perfected State, one could condense seven types of Daoist arts.

It was said that these seven Daoist arts were the reliance of the Lu family ancestors when they roamed the three continents.

However, it was a pity that although the "Jun Heaven Sword" was famous, no one had been able to practice the last three most powerful Daoist arts for many years, which had become a great regret in the hearts of several generations of the Lu family.

The "Taiyi Sword Control Art" was a more profound martial art, and its cultivation threshold was the Foundation Establishment stage.

For the current Lu Chen, this martial art was temporarily out of reach.

The last book was also a sword technique.

The "Green Lotus Sword Song" was also the sword technique his predecessor primarily practiced; it had twelve levels and had already been practiced to great success.

After practicing to perfection and Foundation Establishment, one could condense three types of Daoist arts, which were extraordinary in power.

Lu Chen flipped through it slowly, a familiar feeling, as if it had been tempered a thousand times.

At this time, the night was deep and silent.

The cauldron in Lu Chen's sea of consciousness and Mud Pill Palace trembled, emitting a low, mysterious roar.

The Hour of the Rat had arrived!

【Cooldown period ended, start Heavenly Human Reincarnation simulation?】

【Save time: fifty years!】

Lu Chen put away the jade slip and slowly closed his eyes.

His mind settled on the cauldron.

Agree!

The cauldron trembled.

"Dang—"

Wisps of hazy clear light and chaotic air currents surged.

Simulation start!

Recommendation: I wish for longevity at Peach Blossom Temple; although it is a seedling, I can also prove divinity!

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(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 167 =====