Chapter 156: CH. 156 | Li Qingxue’s Problem
Lin Tian decided to leave that place and fly toward the southern plains, where Sect Yunlan was located. He wasn’t about to head to Saintess Spring Valley with his mind still weighed down by Li Qingxue’s situation.
He could end up failing to reach heavenly enlightenment, which would mean the whole trip to the valley would be a waste. The best way to clear his mind of that burden was to help Li Qingxue first.
He soared quickly through the sky, leaving a trail other cultivators could spot. Cao Ying, still on her rocky mountain, noticed the fluctuation in spiritual qi.
She opened her eyes and looked out using her qi aura sight. She could clearly make out a Perfect Nascent Soul cultivator passing right over Sect Lingxian’s skies.
"Lin Tian...? Isn’t the ancient gate to that valley up on the northern plains? Why is he heading south?"
"What’s he actually planning this time?"
Cao Ying stepped out of her mountain cave, her attention shifting to the side as she watched Lin Tian streak off into the distance until he disappeared over the horizon.
Her curiosity got the better of her, and she decided to go after him.
Meanwhile, Lin Tian faintly picked up on a surge of qi energy flying toward him. He could tell the spiritual qi behind it was strong, and it felt familiar to him.
He turned his head and looked back, "Cao Ying?"
"You’re supposed to be heading to Saintess Spring Valley, not the southern plains."
"What’s going on?" Cao Ying asked.
Lin Tian stayed quiet for a moment, then turned his eyes forward again, keeping a steady pace. Cao Ying kept flying alongside him.
"Qingxue," Lin Tian said.
"What about her? I haven’t heard anything about her in a while," Cao Ying said.
He told her everything he’d overheard from the people in the city. Cao Ying listened closely the whole time, her expression shifting to shock.
"Is it true that Sect Leader Yuntian actually did that?"
"I don’t know for sure. But given how loyal and close Li Qingxue is with Sect Yuntian, it’s possible it really did happen," Lin Tian answered.
"They’ve gone too far. What they’re doing basically kills off someone’s whole cultivation path."
"There’s not much Li Qingxue or Sect Yunlan can do about it," Lin Tian said, "Sect Yuntian is one of the three dominant sects in the alliance, after all."
"You’re right. So, are you trying to save her?"
Lin Tian went quiet again, still flying with Cao Ying beside him. He let out a slow breath now and then, clearly torn over something in his heart.
"I feel like... if I ignore this problem, it’ll end up disrupting my own path to heavenly enlightenment and my dao concept."
"Maybe we should talk this over with her first. Sect Yuntian’s real goal is finding a way to remove your seal from Li Qingxue, right?"
"Let her decide what her own cultivation path should look like. You don’t need to get involved in their affairs any further," Cao Ying said.
Cao Ying said this because she’d watched Lin Tian suffer while protecting Li Qingxue and Sect Yunlan, even though neither of them was part of Sect Lingxian.
She just wanted Lin Tian to stay focused on his own goal, reaching Soul Formation and building Sect Lingxian into something far stronger and more prosperous.
Lin Tian listened, but he wasn’t willing to make that call on his own. Right now, his focus was on breaking the seal restricting Qingxue’s dual cultivation.
Once that was done, Lin Tian planned to leave Qingxue’s future entirely up to her. She’d be the one to choose whatever cultivation path suited her best.
From a distance, the two of them spotted Sect Yunlan, its buildings looking grand and imposing, its protective barrier active and shielding the place from any outside threats.
One of the sect’s outer disciples flew up and stopped Lin Tian. "Greetings, Senior Daoist. Do you have business with Sect Yunlan?"
Lin Tian stopped and stood mid air, his attention on the young man, "I’m here to see Li Qingxue."
"I’m sorry, Senior Daoist. By strict order of our sect leader and elders, no visitors are allowed," the disciple replied.
But that didn’t stop Lin Tian. He moved forward quickly until he was standing right in front of the sect’s protective barrier, catching the outer disciple off guard.
"Qingxue... I’m here to see you," Lin Tian said firmly, his voice echoing across the whole sect grounds.
The elders heard the commotion. They rushed up into the sky and were stunned to find two cultivators standing there, come to visit.
"S-Sect Leader of Lingxian?"
"I’ve heard about what’s going on with you. Open the gate and take me to see your sect leader," Lin Tian said firmly.
The sect elders exchanged glances with one another, then one of them flew closer to Lin Tian, still staying inside the protective barrier.
"Forgive us, Sect Leader Lin Tian."
"Sect Leader Li Qingxue has gone into closed door cultivation. We can’t disturb her," the elder answered.
"There’s no point in her doing closed door cultivation right now. She won’t be able to break that dual cultivation restriction seal on her own," Lin Tian said.
"Are you here to remove that seal, Sect Leader Lin Tian?" the elder asked, and Lin Tian nodded.
The elders huddled together again after hearing Lin Tian’s intentions. All of them agreed, and they decided to let Lin Tian and Cao Ying into the sect grounds.
"Very well."
The protective barrier opened, and Lin Tian and Cao Ying flew in, escorted by one of the elders toward the sect’s main building.
The disciples training below all watched Lin Tian’s arrival. A cultivator carrying the presence of Perfect Nascent Soul was no ordinary visitor.
Based on past experience, whenever Lin Tian showed up at Sect Yunlan, it always meant something was about to happen, whether good or bad.
Lin Tian arrived at the door of the main building. One of the elders opened it and only allowed Lin Tian inside, while Cao Ying had to wait outside.
He had no problem with that arrangement. He stepped through once the door opened, and his eyes clearly picked up streams of spiritual qi flowing into Li Qingxue’s body from every direction.
There was no one else in the main hall besides her, sitting cross legged, using every spare moment to cultivate even though she’d already realized her own strength wasn’t enough to break the two seals on her body.
"I already told you... I don’t want to be disturbed right now, Elder Yao."
"I’m not Elder Yao," Lin Tian said.
The voice sounded familiar to her. Li Qingxue’s eyes snapped open and she looked ahead, surprised to find that the man who’d come and spoken to her was Lin Tian, dressed in his black robe.
"Lin Tian...?"
"Looks like you’ve ended up in a tough spot because of me, Qingxue," Lin Tian said.
He raised his hand, forming a white orb at his fingertip, the mechanism he’d use to release the dual cultivation seal on Li Qingxue.
"Let me free you from the dual cultivation seal that—"
"Wait!" Li Qingxue said firmly, catching Lin Tian off guard.
"What?"
"Instead of that, what if you helped me break the restriction from Sect Leader Yuntian instead?" Li Qingxue asked.
She wants me to break that restriction? But wasn’t that restriction only put on her because of my dual cultivation seal in the first place?
"Why? Isn’t my seal the whole reason behind all your problems?"
"Actually... your seal has helped me quite a bit. It let me focus on my own cultivation path without having to worry about dual cultivation at all," Li Qingxue said firmly.
"But Sect Leader Yuntian wasn’t happy about it, since his plan to marry me off to his best disciple fell through. He ordered me to come and accept that restriction," she added.
"I couldn’t refuse him, given his position as Sect Leader of Yuntian, and given my own sect’s standing as a member of the alliance."
"Help me break this restriction," Li Qingxue asked.
Lin Tian stepped closer to her, his eyes sharp, "If I remove it, he’ll know right away."
"That’s a risk I’m willing to take, for me and for my sect," Li Qingxue answered, her voice quiet as she lowered her head, looking resigned.
The man standing in front of her couldn’t let that happen. He clenched his fist and took a long breath. He knew exactly what he needed to do to solve Li Qingxue’s problem.
"I know something I might be able to do for you," Lin Tian said.
"What is it? Do you have another idea?" she asked, sounding hopeful.
Lin Tian cleared his throat briefly, "The Restriction Extraction Technique."