Cultivation: Immunity to Negative Effects

"All disciples of the Cangwu Sect, assemble before me!"

At that moment, a single Floating Airship was hurtling toward Shifang Immortal City. The other Flying Boats had been put away by the Golden Core Masters, and the Grand Array that once enveloped the Secret Realm had long been taken down.

Just then, Azure Dragon Master’s voice boomed like a great bell, reaching every corner of the massive vessel.

The Cangwu Sect Cultivators heard him and immediately started gathering around Azure Dragon Master.

Meanwhile, the Cultivators from the other Immortal Sects did the same, congregating near their own Sect’s Golden Core Masters.

The chaotic scene quickly subsided as the Cultivators formed ten camps, each belonging to their respective Sect.

Each Sect’s camp was further divided into two groups: one comprised of Foundation Establishment Cultivators, the other of those at the Qi Cultivation stage.

With this, the number of surviving disciples from each Sect was clear at a glance.

Zhang Chi didn’t pay attention to the other Sects, but he noticed that of the one thousand Cangwu Sect Qi Cultivation Disciples who had entered, fewer than eight hundred had returned.

As for the Foundation Establishment Cultivators, fifty had gone in, and forty-one came back.

The casualty rate was around twenty percent—a number that could not be called low.

"Not bad!"

And yet, Azure Dragon Master and the other Golden Core Elder from the Cangwu Sect nodded slightly, seemingly quite satisfied with these losses.

"Those of you with blood on your hands, those marked by the Soul Tracking Technique, step forward now! I will give you one chance to explain yourselves. If you don’t come out, then I will personally cleanse the Sect!" Azure Dragon Master continued.

A stir ran through the Cultivators. Even those who hadn’t killed a fellow disciple felt a little nervous.

Zhang Chi, however, was calm.

With the help of his Jade Pendant, he had quickly put away his mask and Conical Hat right before being teleported out. He had also altered and hidden his Cultivation, so he wasn’t worried about being exposed.

Of course, this was also thanks to the fact that items like the Conical Hat and mask were Magical Artifacts, which could be stored away in an instant.

"Elder, I killed someone, but there was a reason..."

In the next moment, a few disciples voluntarily stepped forward and began to explain the reasons for their actions.

Of course, there weren’t many such disciples—only about twenty of them.

Moreover, Golden Core Powerhouses possess formidable Divine Souls and can sense the true emotions of Low Tier Cultivators, making it easy to determine whether they were lying.

Thus, after half an hour, all the Cultivators marked by the Soul Tracking Technique had finished their explanations and received punishments of varying severity.

For those with genuinely extenuating circumstances, Azure Dragon Master would issue a warning and let them go.

The others were not so lucky.

Those who had killed fellow disciples under severe circumstances were either executed on the spot or had their Cultivation crippled.

Even if the offense was relatively minor, they would be demoted to the status of Mining Slaves, Medicine Slaves, or the like.

Killing Cultivators from other Sects was treated a bit more leniently. As long as they provided enough Spirit Medicine as compensation and accepted a punishment—such as guarding the Demon Abyss as vanguards—they could escape with their lives.

Then, with a wave of his hand, Azure Dragon Master shot out three beams of golden light, instantly piercing the foreheads of three who had slipped through the net and killing them on the spot.

Azure Dragon Master clearly showed no mercy to these Cultivators who had tried to bluff their way through.

Of course, even so, there were surely still some who were missed, like Zhang Chi, who possessed special means to evade the Soul Tracking Technique.

But that came down to their own abilities.

Azure Dragon Master was actually aware that such people existed, but he had no intention of investigating further.

At that moment, the entire area was dead silent.

Many were relieved that when they had encountered trouble, they had held back or found other ways to resolve it.

’I’m still too weak. I have to get stronger!’

A sense of crisis washed over Zhang Chi.

Azure Dragon Master was cleansing the Sect, but if he made a mistake in judgment or deliberately killed a disciple, the target would have simply died in vain.

Fortunately, the man before him had no grudge against him and hadn’t even noticed his existence.

Otherwise, he truly would not have been able to block that golden light from before; he might not have even been able to escape.

"Alright, next we’ll be collecting Spirit Medicine in exchange for rewards. We’ll go in order of Cultivation, from highest to lowest. Foundation Establishment Peak, you’re first."

Seeing that the disciples were all intimidated, Azure Dragon Master nodded in satisfaction and proceeded to the next item on the agenda.

The atmosphere immediately relaxed and soon became lively.

Even though the Cultivators certainly held some back, the amount of Spirit Medicine they turned in was still dazzlingly vast.

Among them, the one at Foundation Establishment Peak undoubtedly had the largest harvest.

Of course, that was only because Zhang Chi chose to get rich in silence; otherwise, even a few more cultivators at Foundation Establishment Peak couldn’t compare to him.

And what this Foundation Establishment Peak Cultivator exchanged for was none other than the Dust Condensing Pill.

Additionally, Zhang Chi noted that Chen Bufan, Zhong Yu, and the other three Foundation Establishment Cultivators also had impressive harvests.

Then came the Qi Cultivation Cultivators.

Among them, the ones with the biggest hauls weren’t the strongest, but the luckiest and boldest—those who dared to venture into the Inner Garden area.

People like Chen Ling’Er and her group, for instance.

Zhang Chi, meanwhile, maintained his low profile, turning in an amount of Spirit Medicine that was merely above average among all the Qi Cultivation Disciples.

This didn’t attract any undue attention.

After all, he was an Alchemy Master and a Spirit Plant Master—a professional in the field—so it was normal for his harvest to be a little larger.

"A fine Physique!"

However, both Azure Dragon Master and the other Golden Core Elder nodded in appreciation when they saw Zhang Chi.

Although they couldn’t see through to Zhang Chi’s true Cultivation, they could still tell there was something unusual about him.

"Thank you for the compliment, Elder!"

Zhang Chi quickly replied with humility.

This immediately drew a wave of envious gazes.

Zhang Chi, however, grew inwardly vigilant. ’Until I’m strong enough, I should stay out of the Golden Core Masters’ sight as much as possible.’

Next, Zhang Chi quickly traded for three drops of Ganlin Jade Marrow and then retreated.

The rest of the Cultivators soon finished turning in their items as well, after which the two Golden Core Masters departed with the Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

The Qi Cultivation Cultivators began to move about freely. Some chatted, others traded amongst themselves, and Chen Ling’Er ran over to Zhang Chi with a few companions specifically to thank him.

"Zhang Chi! Here!" said Chen Ling’Er. "This is a little something from me, Brother Qi, Senior Sister Zhong Yu, and the others as thanks. We owe you for the Little Soul Reviving Pills. We would have been done for without them."

"Also, Senior Sister Zhong Yu said that when you need to exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill in the future, you should go directly to her. She’ll help you get the pill faster."

Chen Ling’Er also gave Zhang Chi a Jade Bottle, which contained seven drops of Ganlin Jade Marrow.

"This is... Alright. In that case, I won’t refuse."

Zhang Chi paused for a moment, immediately understanding that the Little Soul Reviving Pills he had given them had come in handy.

He had actually refined those elixirs himself, so they had only cost him the price of the raw materials.

But since he had saved their lives, it was only natural for them to want to repay him, and he had no reason to refuse.

Therefore, he immediately accepted the items.

To him, these few drops of Ganlin Jade Marrow were nothing remarkable now; it would only take him a little over three months to complete their Refinement.

But it was better than nothing.

The key thing was, it would appear on the surface that he could now advance his Cultivation more quickly.

He also appreciated that they knew how to repay a kindness.

In truth, he had given Chen Ling’Er the elixirs before not only because it was a small effort on his part, but also because she and her friends had always been clear about their debts and grudges, and they were on good terms with him.

"Good. Keep up your Cultivation, and don’t hesitate to find us if you have any trouble in the future," Chen Ling’Er said with a happy smile.

"Alright. If I need something, I won’t hesitate to ask!"

Zhang Chi didn’t pay it much mind, but he nodded nonetheless.

After that, Chen Ling’Er and the others began to recount their various experiences, talking on and on.