Chapter 703 - 650: Boundless Merit
This section narrates everyone’s changes, serving as a transitional Chapter in daily life. It will later introduce some foreshadowing. If you don’t like it, skip it for now or let it accumulate until the new volume, then start with Little Bai’s solo adventure.
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At Heavenly Cry Peak, two waterfalls cascade down without any roaring sound.
Jiang Yuebai stood at the fork in the path, seeing the runic lights through the mist, and couldn’t help but smile.
"How did I not think of sealing the waterfall’s sound back then? Now there’s only birdsong and fragrant flowers left on Heavenly Cry Peak."
One path leads to Huaxi Valley, the other directly up Heavenly Cry Peak. Jiang Yuebai wanted to see both, so to save time, she directly released a White Vine Avatar.
One went to Huaxi Valley, the other up Heavenly Cry Peak.
Huaxi Valley had already transformed significantly, with many more buildings than before, but there were not many cultivators in the valley. The fields were full of various well-made planting puppets, along with a few spiritual beasts and insects that could help with farming.
The current Huaxi Valley gave Jiang Yuebai a feeling of being at the Zhuge Family, with fully automated production, freeing up labor.
The Rice Flower Courtyard where she once lived still stood halfway up the mountain, sealed by a great array. Jiang Yuebai’s White Vine Avatar hid its presence while listening to a Qi Cultivation cultivator responsible for inspecting and maintaining the planting puppets in the field.
The Rice Flower Courtyard’s main hall was still empty, but Master Yuexin, True Monarch Baiyan’s disciple, lived in the outer courtyard. The Woodworking Institute had already become the place for Master Yuexin to develop puppets.
Master Yuexin was Qii Yue, Qii Ming’s sister, who used to help Jiang Yuebai with chores when she was in Huaxi Valley.
Later, Qii Yue began to learn the Puppetry Path from her, and with hard work and dedication, she won first place in the Foundation Establishment Stage during a small competition at the Heavenly Interence Sect the year Jiang Yuebai left, becoming a disciple of the reclusive and low-profile Puppet Master, True Monarch Baiyan, to specialize in puppetry.
Hearing Qii Yue’s title brought Jiang Yuebai great joy, as she initially took a liking to Qii Yue for her diligence and willingness to strive. The achievements she had today were well-deserved.
However, unlike her, her brother Qii Ming, due to issues with his aptitude and being plagued by Lin Xiangtian’s Gu in his early years, was still stuck at the Peak Foundation Establishment without forming a golden core.
Qii Ming was skilled in handling various affairs, so he was summoned by his master to assist and was rewarded with a fifty-year Lifespan Extension Pill to prolong his life.
As long as Qii Ming worked a bit harder, he might break through the lifespan limit and become a Golden Core Master.
Due to the master’s reforms, all of the Heavenly Interence Sect’s planting valleys were constructed like Huaxi Valley, primarily using planting puppets for cultivation, with a few cultivators assisting on the side.
No one had passed the Spiritual Cultivation Master test for many years, as most of the lower-level disciples focused their efforts on cultivation. Compared to the past, the number and probability of lower-level disciples reaching the Foundation Establishment Stage increased significantly.
Puppetry Path showed signs of flourishing within the Heavenly Interence Sect, and over the past two years, the disciples taken in at the peak where True Monarch Baiyan resided almost matched those at True Monarch Cang Huo’s Heavenly Hero Peak.
People were grateful for the new Sect Master’s reform policies and for Master Yuexin’s contributions to the planting puppets, but they still remembered who initially designed the planting puppets.
The senior sister of Heavenly Cry Peak, the strongest Five Spirit Roots of the Heavenly Interence Sect, Jiang Yuebai!
Even Jiang Yuebai herself didn’t realize that she had such a reputation. When she designed the planting puppets, she never imagined they would bring such great changes to the Heavenly Interence Sect.
"I must have immeasurable merit, but why don’t I feel the incense fire showering upon me? Is everyone’s admiration for me fake?"
Perhaps Jiang Yuebai didn’t know, but she had even greater ’merit’.
Now in the Heavenly Interence Sect, and even across the entire Earth Spiritual Realm, any cultivator who was forced into hiding to secretly cultivate, hoping to amaze others later, would curse her, the ’culprit,’ twice before starting their cultivation.
If she hadn’t pursued her cultivation tirelessly, rising from Five Spirit Roots to achieve dazzling heights, pushing the talents of the Heavenly Interence Sect to madly chase her steps, how would this evil wind have affected other sects like the Guiyuan Sword Sect and the Vajra Platform, eventually expanding to other factions?
Even the Extraordinary People Country and the Demon Clan!
Particularly Zhuo Qingfeng, Shen Huaxi, and the little Phoenix from the Demon Clan, who often mentioned Jiang Yuebai’s name, motivating themselves and mocking others.
"If someone like Jiang Yuebai with Five Spirit Roots can achieve this, why can’t you?"
The most dreaded sentence among the Earth Spiritual Realm’s cultivators!
Back then, Jiang Yuebai’s "Wind and Cloud Gathering Tactics Collection" changed the subsequent Wind and Cloud Meetings in Kongfang City, making everyone feel like they would certainly lose unless they analyzed ten or eight strategies against their opponents.
Aside from those who truly admired her, who wouldn’t want to go up and stab Jiang Yuebai three times and six times?
The carefree and unfettered way of immortal cultivation changed flavor starting with her!
Jiang Yuebai’s bit of merit incense had long been offset by the resentment of the masses, and sometimes, her misfortune might be due to this deep resentment.
Neither Qii Yue nor the others were in Huaxi Valley. Jiang Yuebai withdrew her focus from there. Just stepping onto the mountain path staircase, she reached the mid-mountain platform and heard a tiger’s roar and a meow.
Roar!!
Meow!!
A massive white shadow pounced from behind the tree with murderous intent, followed by a small gray shadow.
Jiang Yuebai, who had long detected their presence, curved her lips into a smile, secretly releasing a hint of Candle Dragon Dragon Power.
A subtle ripple wavered through the air, and the small gray shadow behind reacted quickly, tucking its tail between its legs, pivoting mid-air off a tree, and disappearing back into the foliage with a whoosh.
The large white figure in mid-air, unable to stop due to its massive size, was startled by the Candle Dragon Dragon Power, its fur bristling, and in one howl, it rolled into a ball at Jiang Yuebai’s feet.
With ears pressed against its head, its big paws covered its eyes, it shivered like a frightened rabbit, not daring to move.
Meow?
With a dried leaf stuck to its head, the little cat poked out from the bushes, pupils dilated, and surveyed the visitor in fear.
The two troublemakers always acted this way, ambushing anyone who came up the mountain, enjoying seeing others frightened, and eventually furious yet helpless.
"Mountain Lord, Danggui, you two think you’re tough now, daring to ambush even me?"
Jiang Yuebai’s authoritative voice rang out, causing the Mountain Lord shivering on the ground to perk one ear up, before sneakily removing a paw to peek.
Upon realizing it was indeed Jiang Yuebai and not a dragon, the Mountain Lord was overjoyed, but before it could leap up, a ’meow’ rang from the bushes, and Danggui had already leaped into Jiang Yuebai’s arms, cooing with meows, tears of excitement brimming in its eyes.
Meow meow~~
The Mountain Lord rolled its eyes in disdain, then extended its tiger head, rubbing against Jiang Yuebai’s leg.
"Alright, Danggui, I’ve been gone so long, yet you haven’t formed a golden core? And Mountain Lord, why haven’t you become a Nascent Soul? You both cultivate so slowly!"
While demonic beasts have longer lifespans than humans and cultivate more slowly, according to Jiang Yuebai’s understanding, after thirty years, Danggui should at least be in the Early-Stage Golden Core, and the Mountain Lord should have formed a Nascent Soul.
The Lieque she raised started cultivating later than Danggui and had already formed a golden core.
The big one and the small one didn’t care much. Life in the Heavenly Interence Sect was leisurely and comfortable; besides patrolling the mountain and teasing others, they helped Yun Shang catch the runaway Spiritual Rats. Yes, the runaway Spiritual Rats!
As long as they weren’t dying, they could take their time with cultivation.
"You lazy duo, looks like I’ll have to appoint a beast to supervise your cultivation!"
With that, Jiang Yuebai immediately released Jixiang from the Lotus Platform Small World, and the two cats’ eyes lit up upon seeing their once ’beloved’ mouse.
Chirp!
Jixiang, startled by the beams of light flashing a dozen inches long in the two cats’ eyes, darted onto the top of Jiang Yuebai’s head, curling into a ball.
"Jixiang, you coward, you’re already a Nascent Soul, why are you afraid of them? They’re both cultivating Gold Attribute Cultivation Techniques like your cubs. Teach them the Dragon-Elephant Demon Suppression Skill."
Chirp!!
Jixiang tried to refuse, but Jiang Yuebai wouldn’t listen.
Jixiang really wanted to curse. A mouse teaching cats to cultivate? What a crazy idea!
"Here, open your mouths. I’ll give you Blood Jade Pills."
Jiang Yuebai fed Danggui and the Mountain Lord a Blood Jade Pill each, recently refined from Blood Jade Meat Mushroom, to enhance their cultivation.
With three pills left in the bottle, Jiang Yuebai handed the bottle to Jixiang.
Jiang Yuebai’s Divine Sense had already detected Shi Xiaowu’s presence. Leaving Jixiang behind, she quickly headed towards the newly constructed courtyard complex at Heavenly Cry Peak’s mid-mountain.
The weak Jixiang was left in place, looking up in terror at the large and small dark shadows descending from above, with four cat eyes gleaming mischievously.
Gulp!
One mouse, two cats, all swallowed down.