Chapter 238: The Good Fortune of the Red Dust True Dragon
The story of the Silent Nether Ghost King and the existence of Ghost King Ridge dealt a tremendous blow to the upper echelon of the Clear Sky Sect. After the discussion ended, every one of them wore a grave expression.
Li Dongyue sat beside Li Qingqiu and said, “Senior Brother, you’d better not go out looking for Sifeng for now. Perhaps he’ll come back on his own after some time.”
Li Sijin followed up, “Exactly. My brother might already be on his way back.”
With Li Qingqiu away, although nothing major had happened within the Clear Sky Sect, they all felt uneasy. Clearly, the sect had already produced quite a number of powerful disciples.
“Mhm, I won’t go down the mountain for the time being,” Li Qingqiu nodded.
Afterward, he had Li Dongyue arrange for female disciples to take care of the Prison Qilin. Having lost all four limbs, the Prison Qilin required dedicated care.
The Prison Qilin looked crippled, yet Li Qingqiu felt that it might not be impossible for it to regain its mobility in the future.
He had previously observed that flesh and blood were slowly regrowing on the Prison Qilin’s severed limbs. Perhaps it truly could regrow its limbs.
After all, it was an auspicious creature, not some ordinary wild beast.
Li Qingqiu took Jin Lang with him and returned alone to his cave dwelling. He needed time to restore the Vital Energy within his body to a full state.
……
The turmoil caused by the Silent Nether Ghost King did not spread into the Nine Provinces. Meanwhile, the soldiers stationed at the Cangzhou border discovered that the Northern Barbarians had ceased their incursions and had even withdrawn completely. When the news reached the state capital, the officials were all baffled.
Even with the Northern Barbarians’ retreat, the atmosphere in Cangzhou remained tense. As long as Li Sifeng had yet to return, Cangzhou could not find peace. Everyone was waiting for his return.
On the other side, Liu Jing used Southern Chu Province as his starting point, swiftly annexing Yuzhou and Guzhou before continuing his advance northward.
Liu Jing’s army pushed forward with unstoppable momentum. There were only minor skirmishes, and no major battles occurred for the time being, as though the hearts of all under heaven had already turned toward him.
In the time that followed, the Scripture Repository of the Clear Sky Sect placed several Ghostly Path Spells on its shelves, such as Yin-Yang Eyes, Sensing Ghostly Energy, and Soul-Grasping Hand. This aroused the curiosity of the disciples. More and more disciples, relying on these spells, were able to glimpse the existence of souls. It felt as though they had stepped through the gates of a brand-new world, leaving them extremely exhilarated. As the news spread, it attracted even more disciples to cultivate Ghostly Path Spells.
Early August.
Within Lingxiao Courtyard, Li Qingqiu was listening to Chu Jing describe the new Ghostly Path Spells he had created.
All of the Ghostly Path Spells in the Scripture Repository had been created by him. The threshold was very low, and the names sounded intimidating, but if one truly encountered an evil ghost, it would still depend on one’s own cultivation.
Li Qingqiu did not have high requirements for his Ghostly Path Spells. They only needed to help disciples peer into yin and yang. However, every single spell had to pass his inspection. He was responsible for setting the price, after all, within the sect, only he was capable of verifying them.
“Barely acceptable. Let’s reluctantly set it at one thousand five hundred Dao Fate,” Li Qingqiu pondered and said.
Chu Jing nodded without objection.
He continued, “As for the whereabouts of Hall Master Li Sifeng, we’re still searching. However, half a month ago, he had already entered the territory of Zhongtian Province. It looks like he’s heading back to Clear Sky Mountain.”
From the moment Li Sifeng entered Cangzhou territory, Li Qingqiu had received the news. That kid was fairly clever—he knew to release Piercing Cloud Thunder first to pass on a message to the Clear Sky Sect’s disciples.
Still, he had no idea what had delayed him so much that his southward journey had been this slow.
His wife, Pei Miao, had already returned to Clear Sky Mountain and was personally taking care of Li Shouzheng and Li Shoumin. Once Li Sifeng returned, the family would be reunited.
It was worth mentioning that Li Shouzheng and Li Shoumin were rather distant toward Pei Miao. They preferred Li Qingqiu and Yun Cai along with the other women, which often left Pei Miao sulking in frustration.
The two boys were naturally intelligent, their minds opening earlier than those of other children. No matter how many kind words Pei Miao spoke, it was difficult to change their hearts.
“Go attend to your work. Don’t forget to cultivate—you’ll have to fight for me sooner or later,” Li Qingqiu said.
After hearing this, Chu Jing immediately promised that he would not neglect his cultivation, then took his leave.
Not long after Chu Jing left, Xu Ning arrived.
“Master, I want to go down the mountain to temper myself and find a place with many ghosts to comprehend spells,” Xu Ning said solemnly.
Li Qingqiu’s words—that she was no match for the Silent Nether Ghost King—had deeply stimulated her. During this period, she had been constantly reflecting on it and had gained some insights. However, there were not many wandering souls or wild ghosts within the Clear Sky Sect for her to test herself against.
Upon hearing this, Li Qingqiu instinctively thought of the Soul Refining Banner, but after a moment’s thought, he dismissed the idea. The ghosts within the Soul Refining Banner were all under his control, making it difficult to simulate real scenarios. Moreover, once he opened such a precedent, what would he do when others came looking for him?
It was a chaotic age, and the world was full of wandering souls and wild ghosts. Letting Xu Ning exorcise and eliminate ghosts along the way could also be considered a good deed.
“Don’t go too far,” Li Qingqiu reminded her.
Xu Ning replied, “Don’t worry. I’ll only operate within Guzhou. If the sect runs into trouble, I can rush back within two hours at most.”
“Then go.”
Li Qingqiu nodded. Xu Ning’s Heavenly Thunder Spiritual Root was inherently similar to heavenly thunder, and lightning attributes had a certain suppressive effect on ghosts. He believed she could create powerful ghost-slaying spells, which would also benefit the sect.
Xu Ning raised her hand in salute, then directly executed the Sword Controlling Technique, leaping out of Lingxiao Courtyard and vanishing into the horizon.
Li Qingqiu stood up, preparing to return to his cave dwelling.
Just as he took a step forward, he suddenly sensed something and sat back down.
Xu Ning had only just left when Jiang Zhaoxia returned. What a coincidence.
While waiting, Li Qingqiu summoned the Dao Lineage Panel and began checking the panels of the new disciples.
This year, the number of registered disciples had surged explosively, reaching fifteen thousand. The number of menial disciples was even more massive. The numbers of disciples at every realm had risen significantly, further solidifying the Clear Sky Sect’s control over the Nine Provinces.
Martial sects no longer posed any threat to the Clear Sky Sect. Under such circumstances, it was inevitable that some Clear Sky Sect disciples would bully martial sects, greatly increasing the workload of the Enforcement Hall and the Sword Sect.
Even with extremely high loyalty toward Li Qingqiu, anyone who committed a violation would still be dealt with according to sect rules.
Li Qingqiu felt that managing the sect through systems and rules was better than relying on loyal individuals. Even Zhang Yuchun would be subject to checks and balances.
After waiting for a while, Jiang Zhaoxia entered Lingxiao Courtyard.
His steps were swift. He came before the long table, sat down, poured himself a bowl of spirit wine, and drank it all in one gulp.
Li Qingqiu laughed and asked with a smile, “What is it? Did you gain a lot from this trip down the mountain?”
Jiang Zhaoxia had gone down the mountain with Sword Solitary in early February to temper himself. Half a year had already passed.
Li Qingqiu had arranged for him to go down the mountain mainly to test whether the Red Dust True Dragon fate trait was truly formidable. Sword Solitary had merely been a pretext.
He had to persuade Jiang Zhaoxia somehow. After all, Jiang Zhaoxia had been holding in his strength, eager to catch up to Xu Ning in cultivation.
“There were indeed gains. The most important one was taking Sword Solitary as my disciple. This kid is quite good—very much to my taste,” Jiang Zhaoxia laughed.
Of course he suited his taste. They were both sword dao geniuses with notoriously foul tempers and eyes that saw no one else.
In Li Qingqiu’s eyes, Sword Solitary was exactly what Jiang Zhaoxia had been like in his youth.
“That’s it?”
Li Qingqiu felt somewhat disappointed and immediately kicked the Red Dust True Dragon fate trait out of his selection list.
Jiang Zhaoxia was puzzled. Senior Brother had always prioritized the sect’s development. Taking in Sword Solitary meant grooming him as a key pillar of the sect in the future. Senior Brother should have been happy, shouldn’t he?
He seemed to recall something. Reaching into his storage pouch, he took out a sheepskin scroll and placed it on the table.
“I picked this up from a river on the way back. It seems to point toward some place. Take a look and see if it’s useful,” Jiang Zhaoxia introduced.
Hearing this, Li Qingqiu immediately picked up the sheepskin scroll and unfolded it. He discovered it was a map, but it was drawn too simply, making it difficult to match it to a specific location.
Just as he frowned and was about to speak, his eyes suddenly narrowed.
Eh?
This sheepskin scroll actually concealed a restriction, extremely well hidden. Even for a Spirit Perception Realm cultivator like him, he had almost overlooked it.
He immediately sent his spiritual sense into it and saw a vast map. Mountains and rivers of the land were clearly displayed, and to the west there was an extremely dazzling light, as though it were guiding him toward a destination.
He elevated his spiritual sense further and discovered that the map was far larger than he had imagined. Although the mountain ranges were not as grand as in reality, it did indeed display the Ancient Great Mountain Range, and he himself was currently within the Ancient Great Mountain Range.
The sensation was quite wondrous, as though he had entered a virtual map.
After quite some time, he finally withdrew his spiritual sense.
Jiang Zhaoxia noticed him blinking and asked, “How is it?”
“There’s a world within. It may truly conceal a great opportunity. Third Junior Brother, your luck is really something,” Li Qingqiu praised.
Jiang Zhaoxia laughed. “Yeah. Now that you mention it, it really is strange—I also feel that my luck has been unbelievably good.”
“Then when do you think it started?”
“Since childhood, I suppose. Though there was a stretch in the middle where I was rather unlucky.”
“That makes sense. Meeting a senior brother like me—your luck has been incredible.”
The corner of Jiang Zhaoxia’s mouth twitched. He realized that he still could not outplay Senior Brother.
“Alright, I’m heading back to cultivate. I wasted half a year—catching up to Xu Ning will be even harder now,” Jiang Zhaoxia said as he stood up.
“Ning’er went down the mountain today.”
“Really?”
Jiang Zhaoxia beamed with joy. He felt deeply moved, believing that Senior Brother had deliberately arranged it this way.
Sure enough, in Senior Brother’s heart, he was more important.
Li Qingqiu added a reminder, “Since you’ve taken Sword Solitary as your disciple, teach him properly. Don’t just let him run wild.”
“I know.”
Jiang Zhaoxia waved his hand and turned to leave.
Li Qingqiu looked at the sheepskin scroll on the table. After pondering for a moment, he used the Sound Transmission Technique to contact Yuan Qi outside the courtyard, telling him to summon Ming Guang from the Heavenly Works Hall.
Setting aside whatever opportunity the map might be pointing to, the restriction within the map alone made him feel it was worth studying.
Ming Guang arrived very quickly. He was covered in dust and grime, with multiple scorched black marks on his robe, and a pungent odor lingering about him. It was unclear what he had been tinkering with earlier.
“There’s a special restriction hidden within this hide. Take it back and study it. Remember, you must not lose it,” Li Qingqiu said, pointing at the sheepskin scroll on the table.
Ming Guang’s cultivation was not high. He was only at the third layer of the Nourishing Vital Energy Realm, a level Li Qingqiu had forcibly raised using spirit pills.
Fortunately, the Heavenly Works Hall already had many disciples jointly researching formations. Even if Ming Guang were to pass away, the sect would still be able to continue developing.
“Alright!”
Ming Guang agreed immediately, not asking about the origin of the sheepskin scroll.
After he turned and left, Li Qingqiu also returned to his cave dwelling.
“The Red Dust True Dragon is indeed quite good, but it’s more suitable for someone who trains outside. As the Sect Master, it’s probably not appropriate for me to go out frequently.”
Li Qingqiu silently thought to himself, unexpectedly feeling troubled.