The third morning bell rang, and the outer gate square was crowded with people. Today the "Entry Pill" - the key to breaking through and establishing the foundation through Qi refinement, whoever gets it is equivalent to half a foot into the inner gate. Chu Xuan stepped on the point, his blue cloth shirt washed pale, but couldn't hide the light in his eyes: the peak of the eighth level of qi refinement, the silver dragon coiling pill, the star core shining, just this east wind was lacking.
After the distribution table was handed out, Elder Li sat upright in the armchair. The tea lid gently tapped the rim of the cup, making a "ding ding" sound, as if setting the tone for this distribution. Zhao Tianlei stood aside, his sleeve gold thread gleaming in the sun, with a smile of certainty at the corner of his mouth.
"Jing, Chu Xuan." The deacon called out the name, dragging it out very long.
Chu Xuan came forward and bowed his hands. Elder Li lifted his eyelids, and the tea lid pointed to the register: "Chu Xuan, the last grade of miscellaneous spirits, less than three months into the door, according to the custom - slow release."
Slow release? The square blew up in an instant. The miscellaneous spirits are indeed poorly paid, but the "entry pill" has always been given to everyone, never heard of "slow distribution"! Chu Xuan's eyes flickered slightly, but his face turned white with a smile: "May I ask, Elder, how long will it last?"
"When?" Elder Li took a light sip of tea, nonchalant, "Come and collect when you transform your spirit into the middle grade. Otherwise, it's a waste of elixirs. The resources of the sect are not for you to practice."
In a word, block the way. The disciples around whispered to each other, some sympathized, more watched the spectacle. Zhao Tianlei stepped forward at the right time, holding a jade-fat bottle in the palm of his hand. The bottle was filled with crimson patterns and the fragrance of medicine.
"Elder, disciple Zhao Tianlei, sixth rank of Miscellaneous spirits, I wish to give the quota to junior Brother Chu, lest the outside sect say I am bullying the weak." Let me? The crowd was in an uproar. Once the elixir was given away, the list was immediately rewritten. Zhao Tianlei sought a good reputation, but Chu Xuan owed him a huge favor!
Elder Li nodded approvingly: "Since that's the case, it will be under your name." The deacon immediately put pen to paper and handed the jade bottle to Zhao Tianlei. The whole process was smooth and fluid, not even a chance for Chu Xuan to interject.
Chu Xuan stood still, his palm slightly tight, but still smiling: "Brother Zhao's kindness, I appreciate it. But the rules of the sect state -- 'The elixir of entry shall be given to each person and shall not be given privately.' Brother, the word "let" is likely to break the rules?
The voice was not loud, but each word was clear, and there was an instant silence around. A flash of 阴鸷 flashed in zhao tianlei 's eyes, and then he smiled gently: "junior brother, I misunderstood. I'm just keeping it temporarily. When your spirit ascends, return the original."
Safekeeping? Chu Xuan sneered in his heart but bowed his hands on the face: "Then thank you, senior brother. Only -- "He tapped the jade bottle with his fingertip, and a strand of silver thread slipped out of the sleeve and returned in an instant," this pill seems a little damp."
Damp? Everyone was stunned. Zhao Tianlei's face changed slightly and he clutched the jade bottle subconsciously. Elder Li paused his tea cap, a cold light flashed in his eyes: "Chu Xuan, stop talking nonsense! The elixir comes from the Elixir Hall and is of flawless quality. How can you slander it?"
"I dare not." Chu Xuan lowered his eyes, but frost was churning in his eyes. The message brought back by the silver thread was clear - the elixir had been tamper with a very thin layer of "heart demon saliva" on its surface, and if one was not careful during the refining process, it would be counterattacked by the heart demon. At best, the breakthrough would fail; at worst, the meridians would be damaged!
What a venomous method! He raised his eyes, his gaze swept over Elder Li and Zhao Tianlei, like two venomous snakes in human skin, but his face smiled more humbly: "Disciple said it casually, Elder, don't blame him. Now that the elixir has been stored, I will wait until the day when the 'miscellaneous spirit' ascends to bother you."
Having said this, he bowed his hands and stepped back. As he turned, his fingertips flicked in his sleeve, and a wisp of ice-blue sword intent quietly sank to the ground, freezing that wisp of "heart Demon saliva" as a reserve. Zhao Tianlei thought he was sure to win, but did not notice that the jade bottle in his hand had been planted with the "Cold Star Mark" by Chu Xuan, which would leave evidence once it was opened.
The crowd in the square gradually dispersed, and sympathetic, mocking, and playful glances pierced Chu Xuan's back like needles. He walked with ease, as if weaving through the back mountain of his own home, with each step steady - the hunters of the mortal world know best that the more cunning the prey is, the more patience is needed.
Behind the Bingzi Temple, the moonlight was as clear as if it had been washed. Chu Xuan sat cross-legged at the mouth of the Ice valley, the lotus seal in his palm flickered faintly, the silver dragon coiled around his arm, and the dragon's whiskers fluttered gently as if he were defending his host. Suddenly a cold wind blew, and a figure in a white robe emerged quietly, holding a small ice box at the tip of his finger. The elixirs in the box were crystal clear and gave off a refreshing lotus fragrance.
"Ice Lotus Pill." Ling Qingxue's voice was indifferent, but with an unyielding determination, "It can help you break through, but you need to overcome the inner demons. Dare you take it?"
Chu Xuan opened his eyes, a flash of cold star in his eyes, and laughed until his teeth turned white: "Given by the senior, I dare to venture through the sea of knives and fire. Besides - "he raised his hand, his finger lightly pointing towards the distant square," Someone has gone to great lengths to set a trap for me. If I don't break the trap, won't I betray their good intentions?"
Ling Qingxue's eyes turned slightly frosty, and with a light flick of her finger, the ice box fell into Chu Xuan's palm. The coldness was instantly devoured by the silver dragon and transformed into a gentle spiritual stream, pushing the eighth layer of the peak barrier of Qi Refinement "click click".
"For a month, if the inner demon passes, you will be the seed of the inner gate." She turned, her back into the ice mist, her voice scattered in the wind, "If not... As if I had made a mistake."
Chu Xuan rose to his feet and bowed far into the mist, his voice low but firm: "Senior, rest assured, I have a hard life, my inner demons can't gnaze me."
Under the moonlight, the young man turned and strode into the depths of the ice valley. His back was drawn long, like a sword that had just opened its edge, its sharpness restrained but its chill piercing. The silver dragon coiled around his dantian, rolling the newly acquired ice lotus Pill, with each breath he exhaled, adding an unbreakable bond to this forbidden land.
The ice lotus pill melts in the mouth, and a refreshing lotus fragrance descends down the throat to the dantian. Wherever it passes, the blood seems to be washed by the snow water, and even the thoughts are clearer. The silver dragon rolled around joyfully, its mouth wide open, swallowing the lotus fragrance and the coldness together, the edges of the dragon scales gave an ice-blue sheen, the temperature of the dantian dropped sharply, but the meridians were warm and relaxed.
"Good guy, more aggressive than you might think." Chu Xuan was stunned and focused on guiding the power of the medicine. At the core of the lotus fragrance, a wisp of deep blue coldness quietly bloomed, like an ice flower unfurling its petals, each one was the most pure sword intent - the origin of Ling Qingxue's inner demon, sealed by her own hand in the Dan, now turned into a trial, also a gift.
The moment the coldness burst forth, Chu Xuan saw a sudden change
In the dark blue world, the ice fields are boundless, and grey snow is falling. An ice lotus platform hangs in mid-air, on which a graceful figure sits cross-legged, dressed in white stained with blood, with ice chains entwined, the links full of barbs, and with each sway it splatters tiny drops of blood. The figure looked up, and the ice lake in her eyes shattered, reflecting the young man's astonishment and shock.
"Senior? !" Chu Xuan's mind trembled violently, but he walked uncontrollably towards the lotus platform. Qian Ying's lips moved slightly, and his voice, as if crossing the river of time, rang out directly in his mind:
"Primordial spirit... May... For me... Cut off this inner demon?"
Before the words were finished, the ice chain tightened abruptly, the barbs pierced into Qianying's skin, blood beads splashed down, instantly condensed into ice crystals, and smashed onto the ice field with a crisp crackling sound. Chu Xuan's pupils constricted and a strange rage welled up in his heart: It turned out that Ling Qingxue, who was usually as cold as ice, had been tormented to this point by her inner demons!
"I'll help!" He gritted his teeth, his voice not high but firm. The silver dragon let out a cheerful hissing in its dantian, its mouth opened wide and swallowed up all the blood drops that had splashed down, and its scales instantly shone with a deep blue luster, as if it were wearing an ice armor.
The figure nodded slightly, and with a light touch of the tip, a wisp of coldness, more refined than before, followed the finger and crept silently into the Chu Xuan meridian. Wherever it passed, the blood nearly froze. The silver dragon, overjoyed, opened its mouth and swallowed, its body expanding at a speed visible to the naked eye, and its scales shining with brilliant starlight.
"Nine levels of Qi Refinement, break!" "
A faint "puff" sound came from within the body, the barrier shattered instantly, a massive amount of spiritual energy poured in, and the meridians shone with a pale silver glow. Chu Xuan's vision went black, but he gritted his teeth and stood firm, bowing to Qian Ying from afar: "Thank you, senior, for your gift!"
Qianying's lips curled slightly, like a soul that had fulfilled its mission, and began to become transparent. At the last moment, she flicked her fingertip, and a wisp of icy blue light sank into Chu Xuan's brow, turning into a tiny lotus seal, cold but no more chill.
The dark blue world crumbled with a crash, and Chu Xuan saw a flower before his eyes, returning to reality. The ice valley was silent, the cold wind was howling, but it couldn't blow away the heat in the young man's eyes. He lowered his head, and the lotus mark flickered gently, as if responding, as if saying goodbye.
"Ling Qingxue..." Chu Xuan murmured, the absurd but reasonable guess in his heart was finally confirmed - the sealed figure was none other than Ling Qingxue, the supreme Elder of the Qingyun Sect! Only the latter is as cold as a sword, the former as lonely as snow, one stands tall in the clouds, the other locked in the ice field.
He shook his head, suppressed his thoughts, and bowed solemnly to the void: "Senior, rest assured. I will lend you warmth and I will return you spring breeze."
With that, he turned and strode out of the ice valley. Under the moonlight, the young man's back was drawn long, like a sword just drawn from its scabbard, whose sharpness could not be concealed but whose coldness was restrained. The silver dragon swirled in his dantian, rolling the newly acquired lotus seal, and with each breath he exhaled, it added an indescribable connection to this forbidden land.