Chapter 240 The Ruthless Senior Brother of the Path ...

The Third Elder felt that something was off about Heng Mo's words of forgiveness, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong.

Ultimately, the junior brother's treatment was the most important thing, so the Third Elder had no choice but to suppress his discomfort and look at Heng Mo, waiting for him to continue.

Heng Mo didn't keep him in suspense any longer. He first reached into his sleeve and pulled out a storage bag tied to his arm. Then he took out a mahogany box that looked somewhat familiar to Shen Ting from the storage bag.

Yes, it was the mahogany box he dug out from under the tree, the one that contained a bunch of spirit stones and which he and Lin You then divided.

Shen Ting was so engrossed in listening to the gossip of the old lady selling melon seeds next to him that he didn't pay any attention to what was in Heng Mo's box.

After Heng Mo opened the box, he found a piece of oiled paper with obvious signs of age inside. He carefully peeled off the oiled paper and finally pulled out a box carved from millennia-old black ice.

Heng Mo very carefully opened the box a crack, only letting the Third Elder peek at it. Then the Third Elder's eyes widened in surprise.

"Ice..." Before the Third Elder could finish speaking, Heng Mo had already reached out and forcefully covered his mouth. "Third Uncle-Master, be careful, people may overhear. Just in case, it's best not to say it."

The Third Elder could certainly dodge Heng Mo's movements, but he had just angered him, so now he obediently let Heng Mo cover his mouth, as if it were to appease a child.

Seeing the Third Elder nod and blink in agreement, Heng Mo finally let go of his hand, then looked around as if he was afraid of being robbed.

This was the medicinal herb field halfway up the mountain on the Seventh Elder's hill. There was no array set up to shield divine sense, but the Third Elder still secretly rolled his eyes, thinking that he was being overly cautious.

This is our own sect, our own mountain, not some desolate wilderness. You think you can expect to encounter bandits here?

Heng Mo ignored the Third Elder's disdainful look and said very seriously, "Master has just broken through to the Nascent Soul stage. It would be safer to consolidate his cultivation for a while before using this medicine to repair his spiritual root."

The Third Elder was stunned by his serious expression, and the silly grin that had been on his face disappeared.

After Heng Mo finished speaking, he quickly closed the Xuanbing box, wrapped it tightly in oil paper, stuffed it back into the storage bag, and then tied the storage bag securely to his arm. It was clearly the standard method of an old lady in the mortal world hiding silver.

The Third Elder was stunned by his actions, unsure whether to criticize him for hiding things like a mortal when he was a cultivator, or for carrying the medicine on his person despite being worried about it falling out.

The Seventh Elder glanced at Heng Mo, lost in thought. He knew his disciple's personality very well; he wouldn't care about formalities or perfection.

If Heng Mo was truly worried that someone would steal the medicine, then the first thing he would do upon returning would be to stuff the medicine directly into his own mouth and watch himself swallow it before he would feel at ease.

What constitutes a breakthrough? Instability in cultivation is a minor matter. For a kid like Heng Mo who grew up in the streets, only when he has something in his mouth and swallowed it can he feel at ease.

Although the Seventh Elder was unaware of the specifics of what had happened, he was able to cooperate with his disciple without showing any emotion, nodding in agreement with Heng Mo's words: "My cultivation is indeed still somewhat unstable, so it's just right to take this medicine a few days later."

Heng Mo's actions weren't due to acting out or deliberately teasing the Third Elder; it was mainly because of the warning device that Lin You had previously installed on Xuan Ling.

The moment he opened the box of millennia-old ice, a warning sound rang out, and Xuan Ling found himself standing in the nearby woods without anyone noticing.

Heng Mo and Lin You had discussed their strategy when they were planning to return to the mountain. Given Xuan Ling's obsession with him, even if he couldn't take him as a disciple, he would definitely keep an eye on him with his divine sense.

Therefore, Heng Mo deliberately left a tiny bit of the aura of the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus on his body, and this aura is difficult to detect unless one has an ice or water spiritual root at the Nascent Soul stage or above.

In the entire Xuan Yang Sect, apart from his master who had just broken through to the Nascent Soul stage, only Xuan Ling could sense the wisp of aura he had deliberately left behind.

This is the unique aroma that only those who have eaten the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus can have. For this reason, Heng Mo even took a tiny bite of a petal, about the size of a grain of rice.

It's a very subtle sensation, the kind that makes you immediately recognize someone who has tasted the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus, but hasn't yet eaten the entire petal.

The Seventh Elder had already sensed his return, so he wasn't surprised that his disciple had come back early. However, the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus could not only repair the injuries of both ice and water spiritual roots, but also improve the quality of ice and water spiritual roots.

He had no intention of competing with his disciple for the opportunity, which is why he pretended not to notice. Even though Heng Mo had offered to give him the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus to heal his spiritual root, the Seventh Elder planned to refuse after the Third Elder left.

My youngest apprentice has an exceptional spiritual root and outstanding comprehension, with unlimited potential. Of course, this spiritual medicine should be left for him.

He was merely a high-grade water spirit root who had been injured for many years; why waste such a spiritual medicine on himself?

Unlike the master and disciple who both cared for each other, Xuan Ling, who was fond of taking things from others, had a different perspective.

His divine sense was already the strongest, and because of his previous obsession, he had left a mark on Heng Mo, so he easily sensed Heng Mo returning to the sect.

When Xuan Ling clearly sensed the aura of the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus and saw the petal that Heng Mo had been carefully hiding, which was clearly bitten, his heart pounded.

Although the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus cannot be perceived with divine sense, it is not difficult to guess what Heng Mo has in his hand by combining the aura on his body and what he said to the Seventh Elder.

Xuan Ling couldn't sit still any longer. He flew directly to the vicinity of the herb field and concealed his aura. He had been stuck at the bottleneck of the Nascent Soul stage for many years. If he had this spiritual herb, his chances of breaking through to the Tribulation stage would increase by 70%!

Relying on his superior cultivation, Xuan Ling stood directly behind a large tree a hundred meters away. If it weren't for Lin You's warning device, no one would have been able to detect his whereabouts.

Xuan Ling's ability to detect the aura of the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus was, of course, part of Heng Mo and Lin You's plan.

After all, whenever Heng Mo neglected his duties (doing missions), Xuan Ling would always catch him and give him a good scolding. What else could it be but secretly spying on him?

According to the plot of this world, the girl who shattered Xuan Ling's Dao heart, turned him into a crazy, love-struck madman, and possessed demonic blood might not have been born yet, but Lin You and Heng Mo do not intend to keep him alive for that long.

The two had originally planned to use the petals of the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus as bait and had devised a three-step "fishing plan" targeting Xuan Ling.

To everyone's surprise, the dignified Nascent Soul stage cultivator, Wuqing Dao, was so impatient.

Heng Mo pretended to be a fairy, hiding the ice crystal snow lotus petals tightly, but in reality, they were just petals from an ordinary ice crystal lotus, and the bite marks on them were just pinches he made with his fingernails.

The real ice crystal snow lotuses are all stored in the space of the golden finger, in a large backpack that Xiao You thoughtfully opened for him.

It has a full three hundred compartments, an external space that doesn't belong to this world. No matter how high Xuan Ling's cultivation level is, he simply can't discover it.

Lin You looked on with envy. Her backpack only had 10 slots, and the points required to unlock more slots would increase. As long as she had enough, she wouldn't waste her points.

After leaving the auction, Heng Mo and Lin You bought a lot of Ice Crystal Lotus. He even tore off a petal from his shoelace and stuffed the whole plant into his storage bag.

The others were completely oblivious to Xuan Ling's actions. Shen Ting, who hadn't seen what was inside the Thousand-Year Ice Box, scratched his head somewhat bewilderedly before suddenly realizing what was happening:

"So this is the redwood box you said you had a gut feeling there was treasure, and that's why you spent half the day digging under that big willow tree. I didn't expect it to actually contain something good!"

Shen Ting remained boisterous, even trying to salvage his master's reputation: "This is a joyous occasion, we should celebrate! Shouldn't we tell the other senior uncles and masters?"

With more people around and things getting busier, Xiao Mo probably won't have time to bother his master alone anymore.

The Third Elder was about to nod in agreement when Heng Mo waved his hand, "No rush. It's not too late to ask other senior uncles to protect us after Master's cultivation is consolidated."

The Third Elder nodded nonchalantly. Cultivators have no shortage of time. Heng Mo's suggestion of going a few days later was like saying he'd have a drink of water in the mortal realm before going. It was fine.

Meanwhile, Xuan Ling, who was hiding in the shadows, also withdrew his attack. After all, this was within the sect, and he didn't want to take things by force when he could get them without fighting. It was better to let them hand them over voluntarily.

Xuan Ling appeared immediately upon noticing the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus being opened, mainly because he was afraid that Heng Mo, being young and impetuous, would use the spiritual medicine without thinking. Now that he saw Heng Mo putting it away, he stopped.

For the entire Xuan Yang Sect, it's far better for him, the number one Nascent Soul stage elder in the world, to break through than for a new disciple who has just entered the threshold of cultivation to improve his aptitude, or for the most useless elder who has to hold back his lifespan to break through to the Nascent Soul stage to heal his old injuries.

Xuan Ling's eyes remained cold and indifferent. Since he was able to obtain the North Sea Profound Ice back then, he could obtain the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus now. As for the Seventh Elder, he could only blame his own good luck.

After confirming with the Seventh Elder that he needed another ten days to consolidate his cultivation, the Third Elder, who wanted to stay behind to protect his junior brother, was dragged home by his little disciple.

One should cherish one's own master. The reason his master was left behind was purely for Xiao Mo to tease. If he teased him too much, wouldn't he, the disciple, be the one to coax him?

After Shen Ting coaxed the Third Elder away with two jars of wine, Xuan Ling watched as Heng Mo solemnly decided to choose an auspicious day, and even planned to bathe and burn incense to give the Seventh Elder medicine. He turned away with a hint of disgust.

He had already confirmed that the Ice Crystal Snow Lotus would not be used for the time being, so he went to find the leader of the Xuan Yang Sect.

After receiving the message from Lin You and confirming that the person had really left, Heng Mo immediately pulled his master back to his residence, and very decisively took out a petal of an Ice Crystal Snow Lotus and stuffed it into his mouth. Before the Seventh Elder could say anything, he stuffed him into the seclusion room.

The Seventh Elder hadn't originally intended to swallow the petals, but seeing that Heng Mo had taken out four more petals, guaranteeing that it would be enough for him and even leave two for him to refine pills, he felt relieved and went into seclusion.

He's not really stupid; his thoughtful little apprentice gave him this as a special gift, so of course, as his master, he has to work hard to become stronger so he can better protect him.

Meanwhile, Xuan Ling deliberately created an array to isolate himself from smells before heading to the sect leader's mountain with an aloof demeanor.

"Heng Mo went down the mountain to gain experience and obtained a petal of Ice Crystal Snow Lotus. This is also an opportunity for our Xuan Yang Sect. If I had this spiritual medicine, I would be very confident in breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage."

Xuan Ling certainly wouldn't directly tell the sect leader to snatch the items; he only made the interests clear. He believed that his nephew, who had always been respectful to him, would make the right choice, just like his master had back then.

The sect leader listened to him with a respectful and humble expression, nodding occasionally in agreement, but inwardly he was already unleashing a torrent of吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or critical comments).

What exactly gave Xuan Ling the illusion that the entire Xuan Yang Sect belonged to him and that he could take whatever he wanted?

Where does he get the nerve to target Xiao Qi and cause trouble for her? Back when they were still in the Golden Core stage, their master was worried that something bad would happen.

They didn't dare to openly rob him, so they sent out most of their brothers and had people persuade Xiao Qi to agree time and time again, even offering a lot of things in exchange, before they dared to take the North Sea Mystic Ice. Even so, their fellow disciples still hold a grudge to this day.

Where did Xuan Ling get the courage to covet Xiao Qi's healing medicine again?!

The sect leader lowered his eyes, skillfully concealing the sharpness and coldness within them, and, mimicking the previous sect leader, smiled meaningfully:

"Junior Uncle, rest assured, our Xuan Yang Sect will always prioritize the overall situation. Good things should be used in the right place, and I believe that all of you junior brothers will agree."

Hearing the familiar words, Xuan Ling nodded with relief, waiting for the sect leader to bring him what he wanted. Before leaving, the sect leader generously offered to give him more valuable items as compensation.

The sect leader immediately followed Xuan Ling back, bringing back all the items, as if he wanted to use them to exchange for medicine with Heng Mo right away.

Seeing this, Xuan Ling felt even more at ease and generously gave him a lot of spirit stones, spirit plants, and spirit ores, even more than the compensation he received for the North Sea Mystic Ice.

"I will tell Hengmo that these are all things that Xiaoshi loves him and specially prepared for him," the sect leader said meaningfully.

Xuan Ling was in a good mood and, unusually, chimed in with a couple of polite remarks: "Heng Mo shares the same spiritual root as me, so I should take extra care of him. These items that I don't need are perfect for him."

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Author's Note: [Owl emoji]