Born with immortal seed

Chapter 184 All the scheming came to naught
"The sect often has reserves of Pure Yang Gang Sha and Black Water Gang Sha. With my status, it won't be a problem to exchange one with the sect in the future... Xuan Shuang Gang Sha is even simpler, as it is produced in our own Earthly Fiend Yin Vein."

The Seven-Pearl Mystic Pearl contains seven restrictions, each corresponding to one of the seven restrictions.

Each time a strand of Qi is refined and the corresponding restriction is perfected, the power of the Mystic Pearl will increase by one point.

All seven types of evil spirits are present, connected end to end, complementing each other.

It unleashes the essence of the Seven Wonders Pearl, directly transforming it into a magical treasure.

"The remaining types of Qi and Sha are a mix of things I've heard of and things I've never heard of before... but there's still a long time ahead, so we can treat it as a long-term plan and collect them slowly."

Bai Zichen connected his mind and spirit to the Seven Wonders Mystic Pearl, wielding it with ease, before finally putting away this top-grade spiritual artifact.

Don't be fooled by the fact that he already has two magical treasures in his dantian and qi sea; they are both damaged and need nurturing, and he may not be able to use them even after he forms his own core.

On the contrary, the Seven-Pearl Mystic Pearl seems to have a greater chance of being upgraded.

With a flick of his wrist, another jade bottle appeared, containing the Xuan Shuang Gang Sha that Lu Song had collected several years ago.

The air was chilling and bone-deep, like a wisp of gas weaving back and forth.

Sometimes it condenses into a stream of inky liquid, lying quietly at the bottom of the bottle.

"It's a pity there's no suitable successor, so this Profound Frost Qi Fiend can't be used for the time being..."

Bai Zichen carefully put away the jade bottle. Tong Huan was still young and had low cultivation, so Lu Song needed to use the Foundation Establishment Pill to break through to the next level.

We'll have to wait and see if we have a suitable candidate among our staff.

With the power of the Xuan Shuang Gang Sha, he should be able to attract some disciples to join his ranks.

In the days that followed, Bai Zichen focused his main efforts on the second level of the Fire Dragon Returning to Origin Scripture.

Occasionally, he would comprehend the True Sword Technique and the third level of the Five Crystal Glazed Body to alleviate his loneliness.

He would emerge from seclusion every one or two months to guide Tong Huan's cultivation.

During this time, Liang Yu also sent a letter saying that the original plan to safeguard the righteous path had been approved by Old Ancestor Yang and could be given a try.

The team of nine consisted of one person at the peak of Foundation Establishment, one at the late stage of Foundation Establishment, three at the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, and four at the early stage of Foundation Establishment.

They are all elites in their respective fields, possessing powerful spiritual artifacts. With inside help, their surprise attack on an undefended spirit stone mine is practically a sure thing.

Old Ancestor Yang personally led the way, trailing behind them for about a hundred miles.

In the event of an accident, a signal will be sent, and they will arrive in no time.

Even if they encountered a corpse-ridden old man or even He Daoren, they would not be afraid at all and would be able to escape unscathed.

In his letter, Liang Yu also said that perhaps because his time was coming to an end, Yang Laozu had become more aggressive and less restrained in his actions.

In the past, it would have been absolutely impossible to agree to this.

They would never secretly provide protection or assistance to disciples who were plundering spirit stone mines.

The Core Formation Ancestor is the sky and the pillar of the sect, but he cannot truly become the sect's nanny.

That would be putting the cart before the horse.

Old Ancestor Yang's situation is special. He has walked with Qingfeng Sect for four hundred years, and for a hundred years in between, he single-handedly supported the sect. His feelings for the sect are beyond those of ordinary people.

I want to leave as much as possible for Qingfeng Sect in my last few years.

Attacking the spirit stone mine would not only cause the Ghost Spirit Sect to lose a large number of spirit stones, but also reduce the number of disciples.

Even though the Ghost Spirit Sect has a quick way to achieve enlightenment, the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators in the sect far exceeds that of the Green Maple Sect.

Losing five people at once is a considerable loss.

But a month later, Liang Yuxin's message arrived. They acted swiftly, concealing their tracks as they crossed the border and headed straight for the spirit stone mine at top speed.

Everything went very smoothly. The inside agent used a barrier-breaking talisman to destroy the formation and instantly wiped out all the Ghost Spirit Sect cultivators in less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.

However, there were only a few thousand newly mined spirit stones on the vein, and the expected 300,000 to 400,000 spirit stones had vanished.

According to the inside source, the Ghost Spirit Sect headquarters suddenly sent people the day before yesterday to transport away this batch of spirit stones ahead of schedule.

The incident happened so suddenly that he didn't even have time to send out the intelligence.

The swift operation, along with the spoils looted from the dead Ghost Spirit Sect cultivators, amounted to no more than fifty or sixty thousand spirit stones.

It was far from the original plan.

Disregarding the losses, the group hastily cut off a few pieces of spirit stone ore.

At the same time, destroying the spirit stone mine will take the Ghost Spirit Sect at least several years to restore the mine's production capacity.

"The sheer scale of this operation, the favors owed, and the promises made are enough to justify this amount..."

Bai Zichen's gaze was deep and thoughtful.

"The key point is that a hidden card was exposed, so Senior Brother Wei can be said to have made a losing deal... However, Senior Brother Liang said that he was slightly disappointed, but not discouraged, so he must have other backup plans."

"But who would have thought that Senior Brother Wei's inside man in the Ghost Spirit Sect was actually his eldest disciple... If it weren't for his high aspirations and the exorbitant amount of Core Formation resources required to set up the Heavenly Gang Gathering Spirit Array, he wouldn't have been exposed."

"Your plans are quite grand!"

Wei Dao had four direct disciples. The eldest disciple was raised by him from childhood and was treated like a son or nephew.

Unfortunately, after advancing to the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, just when everyone thought he would shine brightly and become another rising star of the Qingfeng Sect, he tragically perished during a journey.

Of the remaining three disciples, two successfully established their foundations, while the youngest disciple, being the youngest, was still stuck in the late stage of Qi Refining.

However, he is also one of the best among the inner disciples.

The high success rate of his disciples earned him a reputation for teaching according to aptitude and being skilled at instructing students.

This is why the mere rumor that Wei Dao wanted to take on another disciple caused such a stir back then, with countless self-important talents and younger generations of cultivation families wanting to become his disciples.

And this inside man hidden in the Ghost Spirit Sect was actually Wei Chuming, Wei Dao's eldest disciple who should have been dead for more than thirty years.

Wei Chuming was an orphan, without father or mother, and took his master's surname.

More than thirty years had passed since they last met. Wei Chuming had also reached the early stage of Foundation Establishment and held a certain position in the Ghost Spirit Sect. He was one of the five Foundation Establishment cultivators responsible for guarding the spirit stone mine.

It is precisely because of this that Wei Dao has detailed information and can grasp the time nodes for the mining and transportation of spirit stones in the mine.

It can be inferred that Daoist He has important business to attend to and is returning to the mountain gate, and will not appear at the border for some time.

It can be determined that although this operation is risky, it is worth the risk compared to the reward of 300,000 spirit stones.

The originally flawless plan was ruined by a last-minute change within the Ghost Spirit Sect, which led to the premature removal of the spirit stones.

According to Wei Dao, Wei Chuming was indeed attacked and seriously injured during his travels. He was also chased by bandits from all sides and only managed to escape the encirclement by choosing the unexpected route through Hejian County.

After contacting Wei Dao, he decided to play along, faked his death to escape, and infiltrated the Ghost Spirit Sect under the identity of a rogue cultivator from Hejian County.

Liang Yu said there must be some ominous or untrue aspects to it, but since Wei Dao vouched for it and there was indeed an inside agent passing on intelligence, he should be granted the status of sect elder after a routine investigation.

"A storm is brewing; improving our own strength is the most important thing..."

Bai Zichen frowned slightly and muttered to himself.

The Qingfeng Sect destroyed the Ghost Spirit Sect's spirit stone mine. The Ghost Spirit Sect has been acting strangely lately, with many personnel changes. Old Ancestor Yang's time is nearing its end; he may only have a year or so left...

These events, taken together, could potentially create a storm that sweeps across both clans and counties.

As a disciple of the Qingfeng Sect, he certainly had no way to avoid it.

To protect oneself and contribute to the sect, the stronger one is naturally, the better.

"With my strength, ordinary late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators are not particularly troublesome... but Senior Brother Liang's cultivation technique is extraordinary, and he also possesses a secret treasure. I can only win by using all my trump cards."

The Ghost Spirit Sect occupies the fertile land of Hejian County, where the population is thriving.

Demonic cultivation techniques are relatively less particular about aptitude and temperament, and they can accept disciples from all walks of life.

Since it doesn't cost anything for the lower-level disciples, each of them was given a copy of the cultivation method and taught basic cultivation knowledge.

It's like raising a venomous insect, causing a huge number of lower-level disciples to kill each other, while the strong take all.

In addition, the Heavenly Demon Blood Fiend Pill developed by the Blood God True Man uses other spiritual ingredients to replace the thousand-year-old Golden Crown Lingzhi in the pill formula, reducing the refining cost to one-third of that of the orthodox Foundation Establishment Pill.

Despite its many drawbacks, it was still welcomed by a large number of demonic cultivators, resulting in a large number of cultivators who remained forever at the early stage of Foundation Establishment.

The Ghost Spirit Sect has five Core Formation cultivators and nearly two hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators. On paper, their strength far surpasses that of the Green Maple Sect.

The only advantage of the Qingfeng Sect is that Ancestor Ge Cang is incredibly strong and is the nemesis of demonic cultivators, having once achieved the feat of defeating four opponents single-handedly.

Even if Master Baigu and the others were prepared and purchased special magical treasures, it would still take at least four people to stop Ancestor Ge Cang.

The fear is that the Ghost Spirit Sect, relying on its numerical advantage, will launch attacks in multiple directions. No matter how strong Ancestor Ge Cang is, he cannot possibly cover several routes by himself.

"At least one must have the combat power to directly confront a Core Formation Realm cultivator in order to play a decisive role in the war between the two sects."

Otherwise, he could at most kill a few Foundation Establishment cultivators, which would have little impact on the overall battle.

Bai Zichen understood this, and stopped wasting time. He took a Nine-Turn Dragon-Tiger Pill and closed his eyes to refine it.

After advancing to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, the elixir became effective again for him, and he could take it once more.

Several months ago, Qinghe from Wanbaoge made a special trip to Feiyue Lake to visit him, bringing two Nine-Turn Dragon-Tiger Pills and other pills to enhance his cultivation that he needed.

She also informed Bai Zichen that she had received a transfer order from Wanbaoge headquarters and would be transferred next month, with a dedicated person to take charge of this branch.

Bai Zichen felt it was a pity, because Qinghe clearly had some connections at the Wanbaoge headquarters, and her ability to mobilize resources was much faster than that of the previous branch manager.

It's estimated that his gilding process is complete, and he'll be transferred back to headquarters for another appointment.

Once the Nine-Turn Dragon-Tiger Pill is ingested, spiritual energy is generated throughout the body, from limbs to bones, creating a completely different experience compared to taking ordinary pills.

Nine powerful streams of spiritual energy surged, generating drops of spiritual liquid, saving him five years of arduous cultivation time in refining this pill.

Taking advantage of the remarkable effects of the Nine-Turn Dragon-Tiger Pill, he deduced that it would take him about sixty years to cultivate to the peak of the mid-Foundation Establishment stage.

"Now there are only fifty-five years left... The Earth Flame Elixir is still effective for me. If I keep taking the elixir, I can achieve it in thirty years at most."

Bai Zichen opened his eyes, a sharp glint still flashing within them, inspiring awe in those who looked upon him.

In a peaceful and stable period, thirty years would be fine.

But at this critical juncture, thirty years is too long.

We must shorten the time limit and acquire greater strength in order to break the deadlock and enable our sect to gain the upper hand in the subsequent clash between the two sects.

(End of this chapter)