Chapter 24 Competition 1 Are you the legendary angler who hits the target every time...?
"Xu Xu! Why did you run off all by yourself?"
Wen Yao caught up with them and scolded, "The dean is going to give a speech after the trial, but you just slipped away."
Xu Xing wanted to bind with Shen Du as soon as possible, without even telling Wen Yao and the others.
"You have no idea, just now the dean's horse actually bumped into the dean and almost threw him off!" Wen Yao brought up the incident.
"Isn't the Dean's mount a Wind Spirit Deer? I heard it's very docile, how could something like this happen?"
Xu Xing recalled the spirit deer he had seen before entering the trial. It was pure white with a faint seven-colored light swirling around it, exuding an ethereal aura, and was exactly the kind of divine mount he had imagined.
"Who knows? Even docile spirit beasts are like this, let alone demon beasts. I heard my mother mention that the Beast Taming Grounds plan to announce to the entire sect that disciples are not allowed to form contracts with demon beasts not tamed by the Beast Taming Grounds."
"But it's fine this way."
Wen Yao said with lingering fear, "My team was tasked with collecting Crimson Moon Dew, but who knew there were monsters lurking around. One of my teammates was almost injured. The monsters were indeed ferocious."
"What?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Xing's expression became somewhat unnatural. How could the announcement be released at such a convenient time...?
Wen Yao keenly noticed that something was wrong with her and asked suspiciously, "What's wrong with you?"
Seeing Xu Xing's slightly embarrassed expression, Wen Yao's eyes widened. "No way? You!"
"squeak!"
The two returned to Xu Xing's cave. With a thought from Xu Xing, the Iron-Eating Beast poked its little head out.
"You actually brought the Iron-Eating Beast out with you!"
Wen Yao looked utterly pitiful. "Do you know that although the Iron-Eating Beast isn't particularly strong, it likes to eat metal ores? How are you going to raise it?"
Xu Xing lowered his head and dared not utter a sound. He then silently took out a piece of black iron stone from his backpack. When the Iron-Eating Beast saw the familiar "food," it immediately climbed up and began to gnaw on it.
Wen Yao stared intently at the Iron-Eating Beast, her face serious.
Just when Xu Xing thought she was about to get angry, he heard her suddenly say, "So fluffy, so cute."
"..."
With its master's permission, the Iron-Eating Beast, despite its reluctance, could only be held in Wen Yao's arms and stroked from head to toe.
Teasing the little beast until it whimpered, Wen Yao was finally satisfied. "Actually, it's not a big deal. Although there's supposed to be an announcement, it hasn't been released yet. You formed the contract before the announcement, so it doesn't violate the rules."
The Jade Cloud Sect must strictly control demonic beasts, but it is impossible for cultivators who previously had demonic beasts as pets to release them. Therefore, it is not unusual for Xu Xing to raise a small Iron-Eating Beast.
Although cultivators can form contracts with spirit beasts through the art of beast taming, the Immortal Academy's curriculum hasn't covered this yet. Moreover, the contract between Xu Xing and the Little Iron-Eating Beast is different from the beast contracts used by human cultivators. If others discover this, it will be difficult to explain.
Captivated by the cuteness of the little iron-devouring beast, Wen Yao waved her hand generously, "If it's discovered, just say it was a gift from my mother!"
It turned out that when Xu Xing was about to leave Xuan Tie Mountain that day, the little iron-devouring beast was unwilling to leave no matter what. She sensed this and found an excuse to avoid Li and Ye and secretly met with the iron-devouring beast king.
It turned out that the Beast King also agreed to let Xu Xing take its child out of the secret realm. With the help of the Beast King, the two formed a beast contract, and from then on, the little Iron-Eating Beast became Xu Xing's pet.
Fortunately, after forming a bond, the pet can be stored in the game's inventory; otherwise, Xu Xing, who didn't have a spirit beast pouch, really wouldn't know what to do with it.
"You're really amazing. You actually managed to get the Iron-Eating Beast to give you its child willingly."
After hearing the whole story, Wen Yao was quite moved.
Xu Xing, however, felt that this was probably due to the Beast Spirit Pill. She didn't have any Beast Spirit Pills on hand right now, but once she bought a pill-refining furnace, she could refine more and give them to Tuanzi as snacks.
That's right, Xu Xing has already chosen a name for the little guy: "Tuanzi".
"Why is there a sudden martial law against demonic beasts?" Xu Xing asked, puzzled. Demonic beasts are not magical beasts. Although they cannot be compared with spirit beasts, spirit beasts are rare, and most cultivators' pets are demonic beasts.
"Mother didn't say much, but it seems to be related to the demon realm."
Wen Yao wasn't sure either. "I'll ask around later."
"However, compared to the matter of the demonic beasts, the changes in our Immortal Academy are more puzzling. Although this is my first time participating in the Five Elements Trial, I feel it is too easy. Moreover, I heard that the disciples' monthly spirit stone supply has increased, and even the Yao Guang Academy has a share!"
"In this way, many disciples will be able to complete the assessment four years from now."
With spirit stones come resources, making cultivation easier for disciples than before. However, cultivation is never about who has more resources. Even if the supply of spirit stones and pills speeds up the cultivation process, the difference will become apparent when reaching a critical point in advancing to a higher realm.
The new disciples of the Immortal Academy have never received such treatment before; they just don't know whether this change is good or bad.
It should be understood that consuming too many pills can lead to a weak foundation. For such cultivators, every time they undergo a tribulation of lightning to advance their cultivation level, it is as if they are walking through the gates of hell. Moreover, there are different levels of tribulations of lightning.
The most common type of lightning tribulation is the three purple lightning bolts, which most cultivators encounter; above these are the six wind lightning bolts, which geniuses with a single spiritual root might encounter; the most difficult is the Nine Heavens Lightning.
Legend has it that cultivators who successfully withstand the heavenly lightning will have the opportunity to attain immortality in the future!
In the thousands of years of the Jade Cloud Sect, only three cultivators have encountered the Heavenly Lightning of the Nine Heavens during their advancement, one of whom is the current sect leader who has now reached the Great Ascension stage.
"Isn't this a good thing?"
Xu Xing rested his chin on his hand and said, "I was worried that I wouldn't be able to reach the fourth level of Qi Refining. Now that the supplies have increased, maybe even a useless person like me with five spiritual roots can stay."
Wen Yao's expression changed instantly, and she said seriously, "You can't think like that!"
Wen Yao already felt that her good friend was not serious about cultivation, spending her days tinkering with alchemy and such. Now that she actually had such thoughts, Wen Yao immediately lost the desire to tease the little iron-devouring beast. She put the dumpling on the table, took Xu Xing's hand, and spoke earnestly.
"My mother often tells me that cultivation is about cultivating the mind, and only with a firm mind can one go far. Even if one doesn't become a sword cultivator and focus solely on arduous training with only one sword, one should always be vigilant and never rely on external things. Moreover, all pills have toxicity. Since you want to develop in the direction of alchemy, you should know that if you consume too many pills, the toxicity will accumulate and one day affect your foundation."
Even the most common pills, such as the Spirit Gathering Pill, contain extremely weak toxicity, let alone spiritual pills like the Foundation Establishment Pill.
erysipelas……
Xu Xing was somewhat dazed. She had forgotten this point: cultivators in the Qi Refining stage cannot detect the poison in pills because of their low cultivation level. The higher the cultivation level, the greater the impact of the poison in pills. Therefore, all high-level cultivators want rare and precious materials to remove the poison in pills.
The reason why the seventh-grade seven-leaf Ganoderma lucidum is so precious is because it has the effect of removing elixir poison.
However, she can see the buffs on her body through her skills, so she should be able to see the negative effects of the poison as well. Could it be that her cultivation level is not high enough?
Knowing that Wen Yao genuinely cared for him, Xu Xing smiled and said gently, "I understand. Don't worry, I won't rely on resources."
This wasn't just a perfunctory remark. Although Xu Xing could completely refine pills to be self-sufficient, she genuinely had no intention of relying on pills to improve her cultivation.
Or rather, while other cultivators strive to attain immortality, Xu Xing did not. For her, cultivation was merely a medium to "play" with life skills; she never imagined she could become an immortal.
That was too vague and unrealistic, while she lived in the present.
Because of their differing opinions, Xu Xing was seen by her friends Wen Yao and Zhao Linglan, as well as other disciples of Yaoguang Academy, as someone who didn't care about cultivation. She hadn't realized that her fellow disciples in Yaoguang Academy had all heard of this junior sister's reputation as a "lazy bum."
Although she had received Xu Xing's assurance, Wen Yao still felt a little worried. She always felt that Xu Xu was different from them. There was no desire for immortality in her eyes, nor was there any firm commitment to the path of cultivation.
Although she didn't know the reason, Wen Yao knew it must be a reason she couldn't understand.
Thinking this way, Wen Yao didn't press the matter. Even if Xu Xu herself didn't care, as her friend, she should naturally keep an eye on her and supervise her more in the future.
After seeing Wen Yao off at Xichen Residence, Xu Xing repeatedly assured her that he would cultivate diligently. Once Wen Yao's figure disappeared, he turned around and went to buy a pill furnace.
He bought a lot more Spirit Gathering Grass, which meant that Xu Xing had spent almost all of his spirit stones. However, with the help of the alchemy furnace, the effect was remarkable. Not only did the quality of the pills improve to the top grade, but each pill was also round, plump, and flawless, so that no one could find fault with them.
Looking with satisfaction at the Spirit Gathering Pill she had refined in her alchemy furnace, Xu Xing had a sudden thought. Alchemists all had their own mark. Although she could only refine first-tier pills at that time, if she wanted to develop in the long run, she should have her own mark.
After thinking for a moment, she used her spiritual power to inscribe two lines on the bottom of the pill bottle.
After accumulating dozens of bottles of Spirit Gathering Pills, Xu Xing contacted Tong Yuanbai.
Xu Xing doesn't care about the sale of pills now. As long as the amount of spirit stones she receives is good, she doesn't care how many spirit stones Tong Yuanbai actually sells them for.
Fortunately, Tong Yuanbai is trustworthy and has never lied. He still doesn't know Xu Xing's true identity, but he has never tried to find out. This alone is enough for Xu Xing to regard him as a long-term partner.
The Immortal Academy increased the supplies for its disciples, giving them much more money. As a result, the demand for elixirs also increased significantly. Tong Yuanbai's clientele alone had already placed a considerable number of orders.
However, he didn't know how many pills his alchemist friend Xu Xing could refine, so he didn't dare to agree rashly.
"Two hundred bottles? That's too many."
Xu Xing was startled. Such a large demand would take dozens of days even if she didn't eat or drink and worked day and night to refine pills. Although she refined pills to accumulate spirit stones, it didn't mean she was willing to spend all her time on it.
Shen Du has already rented a spiritual vein and is currently in seclusion to break through to the Golden Core stage. It is common for seclusion to advance one's cultivation level to take two or three years. Before he comes out of seclusion, Xu Xing has a long time to earn spirit stones, so there is no rush.
After a moment's thought, Xu Xing said, "Take these and sell them first. I'll give you another fifty bottles of first-grade high-quality Spirit Gathering Pills at the beginning of each month. Let's set the price at eighteen spirit stones per bottle."
"Fellow Daoist Yu, everyone who has tried your pills feels they are better than those provided by the sect. Why not raise the price?"
Because the number of pills was limited, it was initially known only to a small group of disciples in the Yaoguang Academy. However, as time went on, others naturally discovered it, and now many disciples in the Yuheng Academy have inquired about Tong Yuanbai and want to buy the pills.
Products made with life skills are guaranteed to be of high quality.
Xu Xing shook his head, "I'll sell it for eighteen spirit stones, with priority given to disciples of Yaoguang Academy."
Upon hearing this, Tong Yuanbai suddenly realized, "Fellow Daoist's righteousness is beyond my reach."
Xu Xing felt a little embarrassed, unsure what Tong Yuanbai was imagining. She simply felt that selling pills shouldn't attract too much attention; high-quality pills weren't necessarily a good thing...
Tong Yuanbai quickly noticed the mark on the bottom of the pill bottle. He exclaimed, "This senior alchemist is not only exceptionally skilled, but even his mark is so refined! The crossed pattern is just like two crossed swords, wonderful!"
It was just an English "X"...
Xu Xing chuckled twice. This top salesman was good at everything, except he was too good at bragging. Anyone with a thin skin would have been unable to withstand his flattery...
Refining fifty bottles of Spirit Gathering Pills a month was a piece of cake for Xu Xing, who now had a pill furnace. As long as she was well-fed and had enough spiritual energy, she could refine seven or eight bottles a day. She was already very skilled at refining Spirit Gathering Pills, and could even refine ten bottles a day. She could accumulate enough for a month in just a few days.
In this way, she can spend the rest of her time figuring out other skills.
Occasionally, cultivators can be seen fishing in the stream beside the Jade Cloud Sect's Spirit Plant Garden. Most of them are elderly seniors with stable cultivation levels. They usually find a spot, sit down, and fish, then leave without exchanging words with each other.
However, recently, a young man who doesn't fit in has appeared among these anglers who catch fish nine times out of ten, attracting everyone's attention.
"You say she hits the bullseye every time? There's a limit to bragging. Are you kidding me?"
Feng Ling looked skeptical. She'd been itching to fish since emerging from seclusion, only to be told by a fellow angler that their school had produced a master angler with a perfect catch rate. What a joke! Everyone knows the fish here are incredibly cunning. A perfect catch rate is absolutely impossible!
"Don't worry, I've been observing her for a while now. She's been coming every two weeks lately, so it should be around today. Just wait and see!"
Across from them stood an old man with a white beard and white hair, speaking with unwavering conviction. He said that those arrogant fishermen from the inner sect were talking about holding a fishing competition. Hmph, if they could bring that master angler to their side, they would surely win!
This old man was the peak master of one of the outer sect peaks, named Guo Rui. Now that his disciples had become successful, he handed over all the affairs to them and spent his days fishing and drinking, living a very carefree life.
He and Feng Ling became friends through fishing.
"She's here! She's here!" Guo Rui winked.
Seeing the old man acting like that, Feng Ling couldn't bear to look. She turned her head and saw a thin girl carrying a fish basket walking over.
Instead of checking which areas had the most fish, she found a smooth, comfortable rock in the shade, took out a tattered bamboo fishing rod, baited it, and threw it into the stream.
"She uses this to fish?" Feng Ling glared at Guo Rui. Is this what you call fishing?
Feng Ling's fishing rod was custom-made by a master craftsman. It was lightweight and extremely resilient, making it a perfect fishing tool. Unfortunately, the fish in Yunlin Creek were imbued with spiritual energy and were all very clever, only taking the bait and not catching the fish.
As they were talking, Feng Ling saw the girl reel in her fishing rod and pull up a clump of water plants.
"..."
Feng Ling, who had never caught any water plants in Yunlin Creek after fishing for so many years, stood up speechlessly. "Take your time looking around, I'm leaving."
"Hey! Don't rush! Take another look!"
Guo Rui quickly pulled her aside and said mysteriously, "That's what makes her special. Whether it's water plants or fish, she catches them every time she casts!"
"Have you come back empty-handed too many times and gotten so angry you've lost your mind? What's so special about fishing for weeds that guarantees a catch? You..."
"Look!" Guo Rui exclaimed excitedly, his beard bristling. "Look!"
Xu Xing took the fish off the hook and put it and the water plants into the fish basket. After learning about weapon crafting, she realized how much more expensive weapon crafting was compared to alchemy.
The ores that are much more expensive than spirit herbs are just the most basic materials; the materials taken from demonic beasts are the most expensive.
Although she already had a stable income from selling pills every month, she was still far from being able to refine weapons. Xu Xing knew that it was not easy to save spirit stones. Every time she ate a bite of food bought with spirit stones, she felt that she was one step further away from refining weapons. So she simply went fishing to be self-sufficient.
I seem to be having exceptionally good luck today. Except for the first fish that I caught, all the others were fish, and they were quite big.
After catching three plump fish in a row, Xu Xing licked his lips, already planning in his mind which one to braise and which one to steam.
"Young friend~"
Just then, he heard an unfamiliar voice. Xu Xing turned his head and saw a woman with a beautiful face.
Seeing the questioning look in Xu Xing's eyes, Feng Ling bent down and said in a friendly tone, "I see that you have excellent fishing skills, and I would like to get to know you. I wonder if I am disturbing you?"
"You, Feng Ling!" Guo Rui was so angry that he blew his beard and glared. He was the one who discovered this fishing master first, but Feng Ling beat him to it!
Not to be outdone, he quickly ran over and smiled kindly at Xu Xing, "Little kid, you're amazing! In all my hundred years of fishing, I've never had such a bountiful catch!"
"What are you two seniors doing here...?"
Faced with two enthusiastic faces, Xu Xing subtly protected his fish basket. Could they be here to steal his fish?
Guo Rui shoved Feng Ling behind him and spoke first, "Young friend, you may not know this, but some anglers are going to hold a fishing competition in Yunlin Creek. I'd like to invite you to join. With your skill level, you're sure to win first place!"
Feng Ling added with a smile, "This competition is just for our own amusement, and the prize is just a second-tier spirit vein. If you join us and win the competition, we are willing to give you the spirit vein."
The prize was clearly a third-tier spiritual vein...
Guo Rui glanced at Feng Ling and understood her intention. This little girl's cultivation was so low that giving her a third-level spiritual vein would only cause trouble, while a second-level one would not be so conspicuous.
Second-tier spiritual veins were merely one of the resources the Jade Cloud Sect provided to Golden Core cultivators; they weren't considered particularly valuable. However, in the eyes of lower-level cultivators, a second-tier spiritual vein was an immense benefit. Seeing that this young girl's cultivation was only at the first level of Qi Refining, Feng Ling assumed she was just a junior disciple of the Immortal Dao Academy. How could he not be tempted by the spiritual vein?
Upon hearing this, Xu Xing's eyes lit up. "I wonder what the value of a second-tier spirit vein is? Can it be converted into spirit stones?"
For cultivators, spirit stones are the least valuable of all resources. Wouldn't it be like losing a watermelon to pick up a sesame seed if you exchanged a spirit vein for spirit stones?
Guo Rui asked curiously, "Are you short of spirit stones?"
Aren't the junior disciples at the first level of Qi Refining all cultivating every day? Even if they wanted to buy pills, they wouldn't need so many spirit stones. The important thing is to cultivate and improve their cultivation level by utilizing the spiritual veins.
Guo Rui thought about it again. However, she was a disciple of the Immortal Dao Academy. Instead of cultivating in the academy, she often came to fish, which showed that she was lazy.
But since he's not his disciple, it's fine if he's a little lazy. If he weren't lazy, he wouldn't have discovered such a skilled fisherman! After the competition, he'll definitely have to ask him for some fishing tips…
"Of course!"
Feng Ling readily agreed, "If you don't want the spirit vein, I'll exchange it for three hundred mid-grade spirit stones for you. What do you think?"
Three hundred mid-grade spirit stones!
There's hope for weapon crafting!
"I was in such a rush, I forgot to introduce ourselves, we..."
Guo Rui, unaware that Xu Xing had already calculated in his mind how many materials these spirit stones could buy, thought she had doubts and was about to reveal her identity when she was interrupted before she could finish speaking.
"I agree!"
Xu Xing looked at Feng Ling and Guo Rui with eager eyes, as if they were money trees.
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Author's Note: Thank you to the lovely BaiBaiBai for the nutrient solution! [heart emoji]
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