Mortal: Fifteenth Realm Sword Cultivator

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao was greatly shocked, as if struck by lightning, yet also as if a withered tree had come back to life.

She would be content to be a maid.

Unexpectedly, after many twists and turns, I was able to become a disciple of a Nascent Soul cultivator, even if only as an "unnamed disciple".

This was an incredible opportunity that a Qi-refining rogue cultivator like her had always dreamed of.

Yuan Yao's naturally alluring peach blossom eyes were devoid of any seductive charm, filled only with pure awe and gratitude.

Without hesitation, he knelt down and kowtowed deeply to Zhuang Huayi, his forehead making a soft sound as it touched the cold rocks.

"Disciple Yuan Yao greets Master! Thank you, Senior Lu!"

Zhuang Huayi looked at Yuan Yao lying on the ground and sighed that the sorrow of the extinction of the Baibishan lineage had not yet dissipated, but now it had taken in an anonymous disciple. The wheel of fate turned so quickly that it caught people off guard.

"Rise. Now that you have entered the mountain gate, even though you are not registered, you should still be mindful of your duties and diligently cultivate yourself. Also, my surname is Zhuang."

"Yes! Your disciple will follow your teachings!"

Yuan Yao then dared to straighten up, her eyes slightly red and her face still wet with tears.

Only now did she dare to steal a glance at Mr. Lu, who was standing beside her master.

From this distance, you can only see the other person's profile; he is a man dressed in a black robe.

He seems to look even younger than his master.

At this point in her thoughts, Yuan Yao's mind involuntarily drifted into deeper worries.

The most urgent matter is to help my senior sister, Yanli.

My senior sister is now just a ghost, her breath faint.

To nurture her soul and prevent it from dissipating, we must find a higher-level artifact or a medium for nurturing it as soon as possible.

More importantly, it's about what path my senior sister should take in the future.

Possession?

Yuan Yao immediately dismissed the idea.

Given her temperament, she would never agree to forcibly seize and erase the soul of another innocent woman and take over her body.

So, it seems there's only one path left: cultivate the Ghost Path techniques.

but……

Yuan Yao's heart clenched again, and she fell into an even deeper dilemma.

The path of ghost cultivation, though it allows one to retrace the path of cultivation, also means completely severing the cycle of reincarnation and rebirth.

This is going against the will of Heaven, fraught with danger, and the road ahead is uncertain and unpredictable.

Later, Lu Jianghe learned this from Yuan Yao.

The three of them were currently not far from Sangxing Island.

This island, along with Tail Star Island and Kui Star Island, are known as the three major islands in the southwest of the Outer Star Sea.

The young master of Qingyang Sect originally planned to stay here, using this island as a springboard to travel to Qingyang Sect in the outer sea via the island's teleportation array.

Unexpectedly, on a whim, he attempted to take advantage of Yuan Yao and Yan Li on a nearby deserted island, intending to forcibly take them both.

Yuan Yao told Zhuang Huayi the whole story of this experience without hiding anything.

Upon hearing this, the latter showed little emotion, only saying with a touch of感慨, "It's already difficult for rogue cultivators to survive, and it's truly remarkable that the two of you have been able to support each other to this day."

On the way back to Tianxing City.

Lu Jianghe didn't intend to use the teleportation array; instead, he planned to cross it with his physical body.

His main reason was that he wanted to see the extent of the monster rampage in the inner sea.

Things went pretty much as he expected.

Since the destruction of the boundary between the inner and outer seas.

Monsters surged in like a tidal wave.

Although the transformed demon beasts dare not easily venture into the core area of ​​the inner sea, there are countless fifth and sixth-order demon beasts that have not yet developed intelligence and act only on instinct.

Along the way, the horrific scenes of ships being destroyed and people losing their lives were quite common on the sea.

Some small islands inhabited by cultivators and mortals were even more tragically swept away by beast tides, leaving only white bones amidst ruins, life extinguished, a common occurrence.

One is at the Nascent Soul stage, the other at the Qi Refining stage; Lu Jianghe cannot be measured by equivalent realms.

It took the three of them more than two months to cross the inner sea with their bare hands before they finally reached Tianxing City.

Yuan Yao floated in the air, gazing at the giant city in the distance, her heart surging with emotion.

That was no longer a city in the ordinary sense, but a city nested within a city, reaching straight into the clouds.

Each floor is densely packed with architecture, spiritual light, and arrays.

The mountain is the city, and the city is the mountain.

The "magnificence" of Tianxing City, as described by others, is not as good as seeing it with your own eyes.

Yuan Yao and Zhuang Huayi both used illusion techniques to conceal their aura and appearance.

The former had lost her innate, captivating allure, while the latter had concealed the spiritual pressure and aloof appearance of a Nascent Soul cultivator. The two of them became like ordinary female cultivators, inconspicuous.

Although Yuan Yao was a disciple in name only, she was still Zhuang Huayi's disciple in name only.

After getting her a permanent ring from Tianxing City, he followed Lu Jianghe all the way to the fiftieth level of the cave.

It had taken seven or eight months to reach the cave dwelling. The cave dwelling's protective barriers were intact, and Xin Ruyin and Yan Ruyan were still in seclusion in the quiet room, immersed in the profound mysteries of the two techniques he had bestowed upon them.

Lu Jianghe scanned the area with his divine sense and understood immediately.

How can one comprehend the techniques in a day or two?

He shook his head slightly, not surprised by this.

Afterwards, he briefly instructed Zhuang Huayi, then turned and entered the quiet room to begin his seclusion.

This trip to Kuixing Island was an unlucky one, fraught with setbacks.

First, he was caught in a raging storm, then he was outmaneuvered by Zhuang Huayi, and fought a battle with the Six Paths Supreme Saint, which took a toll on him.

This is where dreams begin, and where dreams come true.

In retrospect, this trip was arduous and exhausting, yet yielded almost nothing.

Han Li, that kid, probably didn't have time to return to Tianxing City. He's probably found a secluded sea area to hunt demons and cultivate in seclusion, preparing for his breakthrough to the Core Formation stage.

Considering his own condition and the current situation, he must recover to his peak condition as soon as possible.

The natal flying sword cannot nourish the body or spirit.

Among all the cultivators of the Sword Qi Great Wall, Lu Jianghe is unique in this respect.

Lu Jianghe sat cross-legged on the futon, his hands folded in front of his abdomen, palms facing up.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, his breath long and deep, with a mysterious rhythm in his breathing.

The Yin spirit separated from his original form and hovered in front of him, rising and falling, its posture exactly the same as that of the original form.

The two are like an old monk entering meditation, or a true lord sitting in oblivion, or like a divine being undergoing liberation, sinking into the boundless.

From the moment Yuan Yao stepped into Tianxing City, she felt overwhelmed by the sights and sounds along the way.

Upon arriving at the fiftieth level of the cave with Zhuang Huayi, they felt an overwhelming surge of spiritual energy in the world.

With just one breath, the bottleneck in her Qi Refining stage seemed to loosen, filling her heart with indescribable joy.

Zhuang Huayi arrived at Xieshan Pavilion.

The divine sense ascended upwards, but was blocked by an invisible restriction when it reached a higher level.

Is that the Primordial Magnetic Divine Mountain?

His divine sense immediately withdrew and swept over the fiftieth level of the cave before him.

Inside the pavilion, the quiet rooms on both the left and right sides were shrouded in restrictions, their auras obscuring the view, clearly indicating that someone was cultivating in seclusion inside.

Before Lu Jianghe went into seclusion, she did not specify that the person was someone she would protect for three hundred years; she only mentioned the name Xin Ruyin.

After walking around the courtyard, Yuan Yao came to the pavilion.

"Master."

Zhuang Huayi looked at her and nodded, saying, "Yes, your most important task right now is to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage as soon as possible. After that, you can choose to cultivate other techniques or practice the Qingyang Sect's methods, whichever you prefer. I have no bias towards either."

She paused briefly and took out a jade slip.

"If you are interested in the sword path, I happen to have a book here called 'The Phoenix Sword Manual.' This is a sword technique created specifically for female cultivators. Its mystery lies in its ability to subtly improve one's physique and refine one's essence, which will benefit one's future Core Formation and even the breakthrough to the Nascent Soul realm. Practicing this method may increase the probability of Nascent Soul formation by 10%. This is based on the experience of our predecessors, and you can take it as a reference."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao's heart trembled, and she quickly and respectfully accepted the jade slip with both hands.

Improve physical constitution, refine one's essence, and increase the probability of Nascent Soul formation...

In just a few words, the profound mystery of this sword technique was fully revealed.

This was almost the opportunity she had been dreaming of.

For the first time, Yuan Yao truly felt the vast difference between cultivators with established lineages and those who were independent and helpless.

There is absolutely no need to hesitate in making a choice.

"Yuan Yao thanks Master!"

Zhuang Huayi looked at the delighted girl in front of her, but her eyes dimmed for a moment, and she sighed silently in her heart.

Qi Yu, what a fine disciple.

She should have been the most suitable successor to the Baibishan tradition.

It's truly a cruel twist of fate.

"This 'Luanfeng Sword Manual' is a legacy of my Baibi Mountain."

Zhuang Huayi's voice suddenly turned cold, her gaze piercing Yuan Yao like an ice spike, carrying the pressure of a Nascent Soul cultivator.

"After you've memorized it, the contents of the jade slip must be completely destroyed. Under no circumstances should a single detail be revealed, otherwise..."

Her tone was chilling, "Don't blame me for personally taking action to clean house!"

Yuan Yao felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave. She hurriedly lowered her head and said in a trembling voice, "Even if my soul is destroyed, I would never dare to reveal a single bit of this sword technique."

Zhuang Huayi withdrew her gaze, her tone returning to calm.

"Go to a quiet room and contemplate it. If you still have questions, come and ask me again."

"Yes, Master!"

Yuan Yao felt as if she had been granted a pardon, and clutching the warm jade slip tightly, she was about to leave.

Just then, a ripple came from outside, indicating that someone had entered the cave's protective barrier.

Zhuang Huayi immediately turned her head to look, slightly surprised that other people could actually come in.

Soon, a figure appeared at the entrance to the courtyard.

It was a girl who looked to be about ten years old, dressed in purple.

She wore a veil, obscuring her face, but held a token in her hand as she slowly walked in.

Upon seeing Zhuang Huayi sitting in the pavilion, the girl in purple clearly paused in her steps.

Although the veil concealed her expression, the sudden pause in her expression clearly conveyed her inner surprise.

However, this emotion seemed to be quickly suppressed, and in the blink of an eye, calm returned.

Zhuang Huayi remained calm and quietly sent a wisp of her divine sense to probe the area.

However, the moment their divine sense touched that veil, it was as if they had hit an invisible barrier and were blocked back.

It's actually a magical artifact specifically designed to isolate and conceal one's aura and appearance?

Zhuang Huayi felt a slight chill.

The quality of a magic weapon that can be crafted to block the divine sense of a Nascent Soul cultivator is extraordinary, and the financial and material resources required to do so are astonishing.

It seems that this young girl is either from a top-tier family with a deep foundation, or an important figure in a powerful sect.

The girl in purple lingered on Zhuang Huayi for a moment, looking somewhat puzzled, before scanning the courtyard as if searching for something.

She didn't speak, but simply raised the token in her hand slightly.

The token's surface shimmered with a warm, golden luster, perfectly complementing the atmosphere of this fiftieth level of the cave.