Cultivation: Immunity to Negative Effects

"Junior Martial Uncle Zhong, what can I do for you?" Zhang Chi asked, confused.

"Well, thank you again for saving everyone earlier. This is a personal gift from me as a token of my gratitude," Zhong Yu said with a gentle smile.

As she spoke, she indeed took out a small Jade Bottle and handed it to Zhang Chi.

"Is this... Bone Marrow Cleansing Spirit Liquid?" Zhang Chi froze for a moment. He then took it, opened it, and his eyes lit up.

"That’s right. This item can remove about seventy percent of the Pill Poison from a Qi Cultivation Cultivator’s body. You’re a Pill Master and your Cultivation isn’t slow, so you must have consumed a lot of Elixirs. With too much Pill Poison, even if you reach the Qi Cultivation Peak, you’ll never succeed in Foundation Establishment. But if you start controlling it now and use this bottle of Bone Marrow Cleansing Spirit Liquid, there might still be a glimmer of hope for your future!" Zhong Yu said with a light nod.

"Thank you, Junior Martial Uncle Zhong!"

Zhang Chi immediately expressed his thanks.

He had the Jade Pendant, so he didn’t actually need this. However, he could sell it.

Moreover, since this was a resource controlled by the Sect, it was extremely scarce even within the Sect and required queuing to exchange for it. As a result, it fetched a high price on the market and was always in short supply.

Furthermore, it could outwardly serve as a cover for his rapid Cultivation and his "successful Foundation Establishment" in the future.

He had even considered that if Zhong Yu hadn’t given it to him, he would have had to find a way to publicly purchase a bottle in the future, or openly queue up to exchange for one in the Sect.

Now that Zhong Yu had given it to him, he couldn’t be happier.

He couldn’t help but admire Zhong Yu’s thoughtfulness, as she must have given this gift a great deal of consideration.

Although her judgment was wrong, it was a fortunate mistake.

"It’s nothing. Keep working hard. Once you reach Foundation Establishment in the future, I have another opportunity for you!"

Zhong Yu smiled faintly, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders.

Apparently, for someone with her personality, being indebted to others or having others indebted to her was detrimental to her Cultivation.

"Understood, Junior Martial Uncle Zhong!"

Zhang Chi nodded earnestly.

He was actually very curious about the other opportunity.

But since she didn’t elaborate, the time was obviously not right, so he didn’t ask.

"Junior Brother Zhang, this is some Ganlin Jade Marrow. Please don’t look down on it."

Seeing this, Chen Ling’Er hesitated for a moment, but ultimately grit her teeth and also gave Zhang Chi something.

After all, Zhang Chi had essentially saved everyone this time, which of course included her.

Besides, she had a good relationship with Zhong Yu, so she was also very grateful that Zhang Chi had helped Zhong Yu by luring away the powerful enemy.

But she couldn’t compare to Zhong Yu, so her gift was not as precious.

However, for a Qi Cultivation Cultivator, this was already a gesture of immense sincerity.

"We also want to thank Junior Brother Zhang. Although we can’t afford treasures like Ganlin Jade Marrow, if you ever need anything in the future, just come to us. Whether we can help or not, we will go through fire and water for you without hesitation!" the other Qi Cultivation sect-mates chimed in, also expressing their thanks.

But they couldn’t compare to Chen Ling’Er and could only make promises, showing that they would remember this debt of gratitude.

"Everyone, you’re being too formal. We are all fellow disciples. I was only acting to protect myself. There’s no need for this!"

Zhang Chi said humbly with a smile.

Although these sect-mates gave him nothing, he had acted on his own initiative and hadn’t expected anyone to repay him.

Besides, he had already shared a good portion of the spoils of battle earlier.

Of course, many of these sect-mates were at the Qi Cultivation Peak. In the future, some of them would surely succeed in reaching Foundation Establishment.

In that case, they might be of some use to him when he needed it.

Even if they were of no use, just having a good reputation could bring him many conveniences.

On the other hand, if they had actually given him gifts, he probably would have looked down on them.

After all, these people were definitely not as wealthy as Chen Ling’Er.

"Junior Brother..."

Hearing this, the sect-mates couldn’t help but feel a surge of admiration.

"Junior Sister Zhong, are you deliberately trying to solicit benefits for this kid Zhang Chi from us?"

"Exactly. You gave such a precious gift. It would be unreasonable if we didn’t offer something as well."

"Indeed. But Zhang Chi performed a great service and deserves more rewards!"

Seeing this, Chen Bufan and the other three Foundation Establishment Cultivators all chuckled and each took out an item to give to Zhang Chi.

Among them, Chen Bufan also gave Ganlin Jade Marrow, but a full three drops of it.

Of the remaining three Foundation Establishment Cultivators, the first gave him a Small Shifting Talisman, saying it was to directly replenish Zhang Chi’s life-saving measures.

The last two gave him a Vajra Talisman and a Fire Dragon Talisman, respectively. Both were Tier Two Low Grade and relatively less precious, but for Zhang Chi, they were better than nothing.

Of course, for an ordinary Qi Cultivation Late Stage cultivator, these gifts were actually quite precious.

After all, none of them knew that Zhang Chi had already reached Foundation Establishment long ago.

"Thank you, Martial Uncles. And thank you, Junior Martial Uncle Zhong, for securing these benefits for me."

Zhang Chi expressed his thanks once again.

These thank-you gifts were a complete windfall for him, so he naturally wouldn’t be picky.

With that, the matter finally came to a close.

Chen Bufan and the others even chatted with Zhang Chi for a while, asking about his situation at the Medicinal Garden and specifically giving him pointers on his Cultivation and Swordsmanship.

Of course, this "guidance" was completely unnecessary. Zhang Chi’s skill level was no lower than any of theirs.

But Zhang Chi knew they meant well, so he didn’t show any impatience.

Chen Ling’Er also received some extra rewards from the Foundation Establishment Cultivators, but it was significantly less than what Zhang Chi received.

Half a day passed quickly, and the group finally returned to the territory of Azure Dragon Ridge, all breathing a collective sigh of relief.

"Zhang Chi, we’re at the Medicinal Garden. You can head down. If you run into any trouble in the future, remember to contact us!"

"That’s right, don’t you dare hesitate!"

Zhang Chi then disembarked from the Flying Boat outside the valley where the Medicinal Garden was located. The Foundation Establishment Cultivators made a point of speaking to him as he departed.

This made the other Qi Cultivation sect-mates very envious, yet they found they couldn’t bring themselves to be jealous.

"Junior Brother Zhang, we’ll meet again!"

They then bid farewell to Zhang Chi one after another.

"Alright. Take care, everyone!"

Zhang Chi nodded slightly, then, under everyone’s watchful eyes, flew into the valley on his sword.

He didn’t get carried away by the gratitude and high regard of his fellow disciples, because he knew that strength was the foundation of everything.

Even the special treatment from the Foundation Establishment Cultivators was likely only because Chen Bufan and Zhong Yu held him in particularly high esteem.

Zhong Yu’s gift, in particular, had given him a plausible path to Foundation Establishment in the eyes of others.

’This trip was quite fruitful, more so than I expected. And with these public gains, I can finally reveal a higher Cultivation level sooner.’

’But I can’t get arrogant. After all, I was lucky this time to only encounter a Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Tribulation Cultivator. If I had run into a Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivator, or someone even stronger, I would have been in real trouble.’

’Even with the Blood Escape Technique, I might not have been able to get away. So, it’s better for me to go to Shifang Immortal City by myself next time.’

’Chen Bufan and the others being followed this time wasn’t due to carelessness. The problem was that there were too many of them, making it impossible to disguise themselves. But if I’m alone, it’s much more convenient.’

On the way back, Zhang Chi couldn’t help but reflect on the events.

He had thought it would be safer to travel with the group, but now he realized he had underestimated the danger.

After that, he entered the Medicinal Garden. Since he had been gone for only a short time, everything was in order.

He then showed himself to Hong Hu and the other disciples so they would know he had returned.

Finally, he entered the Inner Garden, activated the Array to seal it, and only then did he take out his recent gains to carefully take stock of them.