Chapter 447: Shenxiao Sect Does Not Feed Idlers—The Splendor of This Sword!

"Chen Senior Brother, your guidance on the path of Foundation Establishment has been immensely beneficial—I truly thank you."

"Yu Junior Brother, you overstate it. We share the same courtyard roof and are fellow disciples; helping each other is only natural."

Yu Ke's gratitude was sincere. This neighbor, whom he had just met, not only generously offered him breakfast but spent the entire morning explaining the subtle, meticulous details of Foundation Establishment with crystal clarity.

In Yu Ke's mind, even the Outer Sect elders of Shenxiao Sect might not teach it so clearly and deeply.

Moreover, seeking advice from Outer Sect elders on cultivation difficulties always costs a substantial amount of spirit stones.

This situation was like seeking medical treatment in his past life.

"Registration" was unavoidable.

There were even "specialist appointments" and "general appointments."

Chen Jingqiu's level of insight was undoubtedly a priceless "specialist appointment."

Yet!

Yu Ke felt a flicker of doubt: Chen Jingqiu had not yet achieved Foundation Establishment—how could he possess such profound insight into the path?

He even described the finer details after Foundation Establishment with ease.

Or perhaps his family elders had taught him.

"Luo Yunfeng, Chen Jingqiu…" Yu Ke silently turned the name over in his mind.

A prominent clan of Sanzhou, born with a true spirit as his guardian—this new neighbor was no ordinary man.

Seeing the hour was late, Yu Ke took his leave, planning to rent a cultivation cave in the Outer Sect's Eastern Courtyard that day.

For the sake of Foundation Establishment.

"Chen Senior Brother, Wang Junior Sister, I take my leave!"

Xie Wanwan hurried after him, walking out of the courtyard side by side with Yu Ke.

As Yu Ke passed the carriage outside the courtyard, he couldn't help glancing several times at the woman seated calmly with her qin.

She wore a white veil over her eyes, her long skirt trailing gently, concealing her legs and adding an air of dignity and mystery.

As Chen Jingqiu's maid, she remained dutifully stationed outside the courtyard.

Yu Ke secretly wondered: were the jiaoren truly as the legends claimed—human above, fish-tailed below?

He studied her repeatedly, trying to catch even a hint of jiaoren traits, yet found nothing.

Xie Wanwan stood beside him, cautiously and hopefully extending her hand, wanting to gently stroke the "Leize White Tiger" pulling the carriage—the white "big cat" in Yu Ke's eyes.

The big cat showed no interest, tilting its head away, blocking her with its furry paw, licking its tongue, and lazily swishing its tail.

Yu Ke couldn't help smiling at this.

She had just attempted a "head pat"!

Xie Wanwan reluctantly withdrew her hand. After all, this was a spiritual beast—a White Tiger. One had to show some respect; it wasn't some household "kitten."

The qin-bearing woman sensed Yu Ke's gaze and bowed slightly in greeting.

Yu Ke returned the courtesy.

Then, Yu Ke and Xie Wanwan left the courtyard, heading toward the Outer Sect's Eastern Courtyard.

Yu Ke calculated his savings: though modest, they were enough to buy the elixirs needed for Foundation Establishment and rent a suitable cave.

He had already ruled out cultivating within the courtyard.

His former self had been penniless, with no choice—and the courtyard had only ever held him and Xie Wanwan.

Today was different.

The courtyard now had new neighbors.

Among the Outer Sect, only the Eastern Courtyard offered cultivation caves—and they were expensive, charged by the hour.

Yet the space within each cave was a cultivator's treasure: the largest could hold hundreds of mu, the smallest the size of a palace, with spiritual energy fivefold denser than the outside world.

More crucially, the caves were extremely secure—only those inside could open them; outsiders could enter only if the shopkeeper held the "cave key."

Thus, cultivators could safely cultivate Foundation Establishment within, free from external interference or threats.

Generally speaking,

Outer Sect disciples seeking Foundation Establishment would carefully select a cave and hire a Sect elder to guard them.

After all, the process of Foundation Establishment was perilous; having an elder present undoubtedly added safety.

Of course, hiring an elder cost spirit stones.

The Sect's elders were priced according to both seniority and strength.

Yu Ke had no intention of hiring one—he carried something precious and must be cautious.

He marveled inwardly: this system, he'd heard, had been in place since Shenxiao Sect's founding.

The ancestor who designed this entire operational framework—

Was truly a "genius."

The principle was simple: Shenxiao Sect does not feed idlers.

…

…

Within the courtyard,

Chen Jingqiu and the other remained.

Chen Jingqiu slowly walked to the courtyard's "training ground," where several wooden dummies for sparring stood.

Alongside them, a row of weapons: swords, spears, halberds, axes, hooks, forks.

He walked straight to the dummy Yu Ke had just used, his gaze fixed on a single sword mark upon it.

Wang Yunxi followed curiously, watching her cousin Chen Jingqiu carefully trace the sword scar on the dummy, puzzled.

"Cousin, what's so special about this sword mark?"

Chen Jingqiu said: "Cut it."

Wang Yunxi drew her magic sword from her storage pouch. She had been directly admitted into the Inner Sect by Shenxiao Sect.

Beyond her lineage from Langya Wang Clan, her own cultivation talent was exceptional.

Just one year into the Sect, she had already reached the peak of the Second Tier, fully unblocking the Small and Great Heavenly Circuits, and possessed two divine traits.

【Golden Skin, Jade Bones】

【Copper Skin, Iron Bones】

The Second Tier was also called the Body Purification Realm.

It drew spiritual energy from heaven and earth to cleanse the meridians and open the acupoints, forging the tendons and bones to become tougher, achieving the effect of marrow-washing and bone-renewal.

In essence, it still served to lay a solid foundation for Foundation Establishment.

Wang Yunxi gripped her magic sword; behind her, a faint crescent moon rose like a tide, radiating soft light.

"The Moon Rises Over the Sea!"

This was a Dao art passed down through the Langya Wang bloodline—those with exceptional talent could activate it merely by awakening their bloodline, without needing Foundation Establishment.

Wang Yunxi thought inwardly: "Cousin, just watch."

She was also at the Second Tier, and with her bloodline Dao art—how could she possibly lose to Yu Ke?

Thinking this, she brimmed with confidence, gathering all her strength and cried out sharply.

"Crack—"

A deep diagonal slash appeared on the black-iron dummy, extending downward over three inches.

Deeper than Yu Ke's.

Wang Yunxi suppressed her delight, looking at her cousin, waiting for praise.

Chen Jingqiu barely glanced at it.

"Do you know that Yu Junior Brother used only about one-tenth of his spiritual power for that strike?"

Wang Yunxi's face filled with disbelief.

"That's impossible!"

"Yu Ke hasn't even achieved Foundation Establishment, and he didn't use any Dao art. Cousin, did you misread it?"

Chen Jingqiu said coolly: "Do you think so?"

"In the Sect, shouldn't you call him Senior Brother? You address him by his name directly—was this how your father taught you?"

His tone was distant, cold.

Wang Yunxi looked at her tall, elegant cousin, standing with hands behind his back.

Pear blossoms drifted down and landed on his shoulder, while he spoke to her in such a chilly tone.

Wang Yunxi suddenly felt wronged.

I'm your good little cousin.

You side with a stranger you just met, scolding your own blood relative.

Don't think just because you're my cousin you can treat me like this.

I'm the Wang Clan's legitimate daughter—my mother never spoke to me like this.

"Disagree?"

Wang Yunxi lowered her head weakly and whispered: "No."

Chen Jingqiu flicked his finger through the air; an invisible wind blade shot toward the black-iron dummy.

"Crack—"

Not the sound of impact, but the sound of the dummy splitting cleanly in two and falling to the ground.

Chen Jingqiu stared at the smooth cut surface inside the dummy, where wave-like grooves traced the fracture.

Wang Yunxi walked over to look and found that the upper half of the puppet was completely damaged inside.

"Do you understand now?"

"Was this done by Yu… Yu Jinyu's single sword strike?"

Chen Jingqiu nodded.

Wang Yunxi still found it hard to believe, but her cousin wouldn't be mistaken.

With only one-tenth of his strength, no Daoist art used, a single blow shattered the interior of this "ironwood."

What kind of sword art is this!

A glow of spiritual energy shimmered on Chen Jingqiu's chest, illuminating the puppet; the puppet, once split in two, mended itself perfectly, restored to its original form.

Anyone else would have been utterly astonished.

Just now's "wind blade," and now this miraculous "Daoist art."

He had already used two Daoist arts, so effortlessly.

Yet Chen Jingqiu had not yet reached Foundation Establishment.

Wang Yunxi found it perfectly normal—her cousin had always been an extraordinary "child of heaven," beyond ordinary reason.

Among her generation of younger clan members, Chen Jingqiu was the undisputed number one, unmatched by any.

As a child, when he read the Daoist scriptures at night, starlight from the Nine Heavens would descend to illuminate him.

At age three, he had finished reading ten thousand scrolls of Daoist texts.

At age four, he was officially designated by the clan's ancestral elder as the next patriarch; his father became head of the Chen clan in this generation solely because of his cousin.

As he grew older, his cousin began traveling across the Three Zhou.

To Wang Yunxi, it was no surprise that her cousin, still not at Foundation Establishment on the Second Rung, could wield several Daoist arts.

At this moment!

Chen Jingqiu gazed at the white pear blossoms drifting down in the courtyard, a faint smile curling at his lips.

"It seems this journey to the Shenxiao Sect won't be dull."

(End of Chapter)