The next morning.
Drizzling rain, the Yin energy in the Land of Death thickened again by a few degrees.
For Wen Jiu, it was a good thing; the heavier the Yin energy, the better.
But Wang Nian was troubled, and had to use a Vaginal Charm once more to disperse the surrounding Yin energy.
This time.
Wang Nian was even more irritable.
Frightening the corpse buriers so much that they didn't dare to breathe too loudly.
"That boy... come here!" Wang Nian waved his hand, then pointed, "Yes, you, boy!"
Wen Jiu, who was pointed at by Wang Nian, quickly put down the cart and approached respectfully, "Senior, what can I do for you?"
"What's your name?"
"Wen Jiu."
"Old Wen's son?"
"Mm-hmm."
Wen Jiu nodded.
The three words "Old Wen" were the nickname for his father at Deadman Peak in his memory.
"Follow me."
Wang Nian walked away from the Corpse Remains Death Land.
Wen Jiu hurried to follow.
Quietly waiting for more words.
After walking a hundred feet, Wang Nian stopped with his hands behind his back, and said directly, "Do you remember the few words Elder Chen said in the Dharma Transmission Tower back then? The Heterodox Dao harms the body and shortens life; even if you are first in cultivation, you are unlikely to be an apprentice."
The speech ended.
Wang Nian examined Wen Jiu from head to toe,
Wen Jiu nodded, displaying no unnecessary emotions on his face, no disappointment or distress.
"I remember."
Wang Nian stared and asked again, somewhat surprised by Wen Jiu's reaction, "Don't you want to be an apprentice at Deadman Peak?"
"I do." Wen Jiu replied without hesitation.
Upon hearing Wen Jiu's reply, Wang Nian was even more puzzled, "Then why do you look as if you don't care at all?"
Wen Jiu responded, "If I obtain it, it's my luck; if I lose it, it's my fate!"
The words ended.
Wang Nian was stunned.
He kept chewing on Wen Jiu's words in his mouth.
The more he thought about it, the more profound it seemed.
He couldn't help but look at Wen Jiu with admiration.
"A pretty good-natured guy..." Wang Nian praised, then said, "How about we make a deal?"
"A deal?"
This time it was Wen Jiu's turn to be surprised.
Deals are only made between equals.
But he and Wang Nian were not equals.
He initially thought showing a little skill and earning Wang Nian's appreciation would already be good enough.
Wang Nian shook his hand and said, "If it weren't for your sister, do you think you have the qualifications to make a deal with me?"
"My sister?"
Wen Jiu was taken aback.
But before he could say more, Wang Nian continued, "In a few days, you'll clear the corpses with excessive Yin energy in the Land of Death for me, reducing the Yin energy there, and in exchange, I'll give you a non-graded Corpse Nourishing Pearl, how about that? Although the Corpse Nourishing Pearl is non-graded, with your status, you couldn't possibly buy one... Do this for me and I'll give you the Corpse Nourishing Pearl today."
"Deal!"
Wen Jiu nodded.
Without hesitation.
Wang Nian nodded in satisfaction upon seeing this.
Just as he was about to give more instructions, Wen Jiu spoke up, "Senior, I wonder why you mentioned my sister just now?"
Wang Nian was straightforward and said, "You're lucky to have a sister who's not only good-looking but also kind-hearted. Recently, she caught the eye of the old lady of the Xu family while she was serving as a servant. They're planning to bring her into the Xu family as a concubine for her son... Once Steward Xu returns, your sister's status will be entirely different; even I will have to respectfully address her as the Sixteenth Madam Xu."
Wang Nian's words contained quite a bit of information, which made Wen Jiu very happy. He wanted to ask more about Steward Xu's background and character, but thought that asking Wang Nian to evaluate someone else was too abrupt, so he only inquired about his cultivation technique.
"Senior, may I ask what cultivation technique this Steward Xu practices?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Nian revealed a satisfied smile again, saying, "I didn't expect your first reaction wasn't joy or excitement, but to inquire about Steward Xu's cultivation technique. You're quite a person. Rest assured, Steward Xu is one of the Side Peak Stewards and is at the Middle Stage of Qi Cultivation, practicing a normal Qi Cultivation Technique..."
Wang Nian suddenly hesitated.
Wen Jiu quickly asked, "Please, Senior, tell me truthfully. I promise to keep it a secret and will reward you generously in the future."
"I'm only saying this because you seem loyal and righteous; if it were someone else, I wouldn't even bother to speak further." Wang Nian hesitated before speaking, "The Qi Cultivation Technique is indeed a Qi Cultivation Technique, but Steward Xu is a person of unpredictable temper and is greedy and lustful. It's only been a year since he became a Side Peak Steward, and he's already taken in seventeen concubines... I guess you're wondering why your sister is the Sixteenth Madam, that's because two of them died; it's said they displeased him and he killed them with one slap."
"This..."
Wen Jiu's heart tightened.
With a person like that, wouldn't his sister be jumping into a fiery pit by marrying him?
"Thank you, Senior." Wen Jiu came to his senses, immediately thanked him, while silently resolving in his heart.
No.
His cultivation level must be improved quickly.
He must find a way to prevent his sister from marrying him.
Therefore, Wen Jiu hurriedly asked, "Senior, besides the top three in cultivation next year becoming apprentices, is there any other way?"
"There is indeed another way, but it's something beyond the capability of ordinary people. I advise you not to consider it."
Wang Nian seemed unwilling to talk more about it.
Wen Jiu bowed again, forming a perfect ninety-degree angle, demonstrating utmost respect, "Please guide me, Senior."
"You boy... actually, it doesn't matter if I tell you. Even if you know, you will back away. That is to kill a disciple of a rival sect, requiring at least a Second-Layer Qi Cultivation Cultivator. Although heterodox cultivation is indeed faster than normal Qi cultivation, to kill a Second-Layer Qi Cultivation Cultivator, you would at least need to reach Qi Cultivation Second Layer Perfection, which might take you five or six years."
Having said this,
Wang Nian spoke no more.
He waved his hand, gesturing for Wen Jiu to leave.
Wen Jiu respectfully bowed.
As he turned to leave, he immediately made up his mind—if the first method doesn't work, then he would use the second method.
Second-Layer Qi Cultivation?
Fine.
I will remember this!
...
At dusk.
Wang Nian handed the Corpse Nourishing Pearl to Wen Jiu.
Last night, Wen Jiu had thoroughly researched the Corpse Nourishing Pearl, as Wang Nian had said, the Pearl indeed serves as an excellent auxiliary artifact for the Corpse Nurturer. Even an ungraded Corpse Nourishing Pearl has incredibly powerful effects.
Its first function.
Gathering yin energy.
As long as the white stiff holds the pearl in its mouth, the yin energy within a thousand feet naturally gathers and converges.
Its second function.
Purification.
The speed at which the white stiff absorbs yin energy is limited, but the Corpse Nourishing Pearl can automatically purify it, which means that in the same amount of time, the white stiff can absorb more yin energy.
After Wen Jiu received it, he compared the daily experience gains on the same day, and the result was unexpectedly significant.
[Attracting Earthly Evil Yin Qi, supplemented with a large amount of cultivators' fresh blood, Yin Qi nourishing corpse for twelve hours, panel experience +1, corpse nurturing experience +6, +13.5, Corpse Nurturer experience +1, Blood Transformation Body experience +12]
"After obtaining the Corpse Nourishing Pearl, I immediately sent it to the white stiff... the settlement at midnight happened to be after three hours."
Three hours for an additional 1.5 experience points!
In other words,
Twelve hours can gain six extra experience points.
The efficiency of nurturing the corpse with yin energy increased by a substantial fifty percent!
"Indeed, showing a little skill was the right choice." Seeing the effect, Wen Jiu was very satisfied with his decision.
If he hadn't shown himself a bit.
Would Wang Nian have traded with him?
Would he have obtained this Corpse Nourishing Pearl?
Perhaps he could buy it in the future.
But that would be after becoming an apprentice.
How long would that take?
Probably three to five years.
But obtaining the Corpse Nourishing Pearl in advance reduces the time needed to become an apprentice disciple.
Of course.
Becoming an apprentice disciple is not the goal.
Wen Jiu's aim is to climb higher and thus gain more resources—being a person for two lifetimes, he understands too well the principle that a vast number of resources are concentrated in the hands of a few.
Moreover, practicing heterodox Dao means he must climb up, latch onto a powerful ally to avoid being mistakenly killed by the "Righteous Path."
"However, if I want to stop my sister from marrying Steward Xu, this cultivation speed is still not fast enough."
Wen Jiu's expression hardened.
He decided to visit Wang Nian again tomorrow.
He needs a Yin Soul!
But Yin Souls at night are too strong and dangerous.
Yin Soul.
Belonging to Yin.
And coincidentally, the night is when Yin energy is heaviest.
The Yin Souls formed in the Land of Death are even more fierce at night.
Letting the white stiff search at night, or accompanying it to do so, is not the best strategy.
What if the white stiff is torn apart by a strong Yin Soul?
Start nurturing again?
So it must be during the day to search for the Yin Soul.
In the daytime.
Yin Souls are weaker.
Hiding in dark places.
Ordinary people find it hard to find, but the white stiff can locate them.
Although the white stiff fears sunlight, the Land of Death is shrouded in yin energy, death energy, and blood energy, preventing sunlight from penetrating.
So going during the day is the optimal choice.