From a country cook to a master chef

A short while later, Lin Jue retrieved the peach charm that the Six Sects Alliance valued so highly and handed it to Zhao Xiaoyao.

Although the ancient treasure was valuable, he had no use for it at the moment. Moreover, this treasure was an important weapon for the Six Sects Alliance to deal with the Wushan Wizard in the future, and it was related to the survival of the entire Great Wu Kingdom. Lin Jue decisively handed it over to Zhao Xiaoyao without any hesitation.

After she put away the peach charms, Lin Jue also finished collecting most of the lightning-struck wood, and then he couldn't stop laughing.

The trip was incredibly fruitful, far exceeding his expectations.

"Brother Lin, besides being used to forge machinery, lightning-struck wood can also be used to draw out the power of lightning to temper the body. This is extremely important for you martial artists."

Seeing Lin Jue's happy expression, Zhao Xiaoyao picked up a piece of lightning-struck wood and said with a smile, "As for how to draw out the power of lightning within, it's quite simple. I've heard that martial artists often supplement their training with medicinal baths. Brother Lin, you just need to put a piece of lightning-struck wood in the water during your medicinal bath, and you can draw out the power of lightning to temper your body."

Upon hearing this, Lin Jue's face lit up with joy. He hadn't expected that lightning-struck wood had such a wonderful use. It must have been a method devised by some body cultivators who specialized in physical training.

Lin Jue had never heard of such a cultivation method: using lightning to temper the body. He secretly planned that once he returned to Tianwu Mountain, he would definitely follow Zhao Xiaoyao's advice and try soaking a section of lightning-struck wood in a medicinal bath.

……

Nine days had passed since the opening of the Netherworld Ghost Land. The elders of the six sects who had been waiting on the nameless desolate mountain of the Divine Mirror Palace of the Great Wu Kingdom began to take action, using their magic power to open up spatial rifts and activate the teleportation arrays within them.

A black spatial passage opened, and soon some disciples from the six sects were teleported out from it.

As soon as they left the passage, they felt the long-lost magical power within their bodies. They used various methods, either flying on swords or riding flying magical artifacts, to return to their respective sects' encampments in the desolate mountains.

At the Tianwu Mountain camp, Zhong Liang, the vice dean of the inner courtyard, stood with his hands behind his back on a boulder, his expression shifting between joy and frustration.

With the passage closed, all the surviving disciples of the six sects have returned to their respective sects.

Tianwu Mountain sent out a total of ten disciples at the Divine Power Realm, and only four of them have left the Netherworld Ghost Land alive.

Zhong Liang's face was extremely grim. He never expected that this trip to the forbidden area would result in the loss of six disciples from the inner courtyard.

"Alright, you four did a good job. Go and get some rest. You'll be returning to Tianwu Mountain with the people from Yanxia Sect in a magical artifact shortly."

After learning about what had happened in the forbidden area from the four people, Zhong Liang let them rest in the tents at their camp, while he himself traveled to the desolate mountain where the Hengyue Sect was stationed and found the old Taoist priest with a bull's nose who was taking stock of the disciples' harvest.

"Li Changxiu, have you prepared the medicinal herbs we agreed on before? Don't forget the 30/70 ratio."

Zhong Liang walked up to the Taoist priest Li Changxiu, glared at him, and shouted.

Upon seeing that it was Zhong Liang, the Blood-Handed Buddha of Tianwu Mountain, the Taoist priest hurriedly instructed his disciples to continue tidying up the mountain of medicinal herbs on the ground. He then greeted the newcomer with a smile, saying, "Fellow Daoist Zhong, rest assured, seventy percent of the medicinal herbs obtained on this trip will naturally belong to your Tianwu Mountain."

"Hmph, if it weren't for the chaos caused by your six sects, so many disciples of Tianwu Mountain wouldn't have died. Even if we take 90% of your medicinal herbs, it wouldn't be excessive." Zhong Liang said coldly, "However, considering that you are also dealing with the Zhanbo Wizard, this academy will not hold it against you this time. You'd better watch yourselves."

After obtaining the share of medicinal herbs that Tianwu Mountain was entitled to, Zhong Liang immediately returned to his residence and led the four surviving inner court disciples back to Pingzhou by flying boat.

He must learn of what happened in the Netherworld as soon as possible.

Go back and report to the dean.

He never expected the Six Sects Alliance to be so crazy, actually sending Core Formation cultivators to forcibly enter the Netherworld Ghost Land and even engaging in combat with the evil cultivators of Wushan.

On the flying boat, Zhong Liang sighed deeply, facing the four inner court disciples. He first looked them over one by one, and when it came to Lin Jue, he was startled and asked with a hint of doubt:

"I remember you had just entered the Divine Power Realm not long ago. How come your strength has reached the late stage of the Divine Power Realm after entering the Netherworld Ghost Land?"

Zhong Liang's gaze was piercing, making Lin Jue's heart pound with fear. He had the illusion of being stared at by a ferocious beast. It seemed that this Uncle Zhong had also cultivated his eyesight in his daily life. Just one look from him could make a martial artist like Lin Jue, who was at the Divine Power Realm, feel uncomfortable.

"Lin Jue, tell me about your experiences in the Netherworld Ghost Land. I want to hear them!"

"Yes, Dean!"

"Looking back on this trip carefully, I realize that I was really lucky to leave the Netherworld alive..."

After some teasing, Lin Jue recounted his experiences on Qingmo Island, glossing over the parts involving his secrets without leaving a trace.

And so he went on and on, from Shicun to Sanlianzhai, then to Bishuitan, and finally to that underground cave.

As he spoke, Lin Jue took out 30% of the lightning-struck wood he had collected and placed it in front of Zhong Liang to hand over his task.

After listening to his story, Zhong Liang felt much relieved. Even as the vice dean of the inner court, he was still shocked after seeing so many lightning-struck trees.

After pondering for a while, Zhong Liang smiled with satisfaction: "You are now a late-stage Divine Power Realm martial artist. The next step is to comprehend the Inner Academy's Innate Body Techniques and strive to comprehend a body technique that suits you as soon as possible. Here are some of my insights into the Inner Academy's Innate Body Techniques. You can take them and comprehend them on your own."

On the deck, Zhong Liang took out a secret manual from his robes and handed it to Lin Jue, patting him on the shoulder and saying, "I intend to take you as my personal disciple. Are you willing?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jue was taken aback. Although he was prepared, he still couldn't help but feel excited and nodded emphatically, "Disciple greets Master!"

The other three were initially taken aback, then looked at Lin Jue with envy.

They were all accepted as disciples by Zhong Liang, but the difference was that Lin Jue was a personal disciple, while they were just ordinary disciples.

Zhong Liang himself is a genuine Divine Harmony Realm martial artist, whose strength is comparable to that of a Core Formation cultivator. To become the personal disciple of such a powerful figure is an absolutely wonderful thing.

With Zhong Liang's personal guidance, it's not impossible for him to advance to the Divine Harmony Realm in the future.

Upon hearing Lin Jue address him as "Master," Zhong Liang's face lit up with joy, and after a moment of contemplation, he took out a piece of jade from his person and handed it to him.

"This stone is a spiritual stone. Cultivators can use it to replenish their spiritual energy at any time during cultivation. If we martial artists wear it, it will greatly benefit our cultivation."

"Thank you so much, Master!"

Lin Jue took the jade pendant with both hands, carefully put it on his belt, and was overjoyed. He bowed to Zhong Liang again.

After two days of continuous flight, the group successfully returned to Tianwu Mountain.