For Bai Xianzhong, the Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique was ten, even a hundred times more important than the Taiyin Su Yun Xuan Shui True Skill.
No matter how good the Taiyin Su Yun Xuan Shui True Skill was, it was impossible for him to switch cultivation techniques. For one, his Spiritual Root was incompatible. Furthermore, switching techniques meant he would have to re-cultivate all the Magical Power he had accumulated since reaching Foundation Establishment, a process that would waste at least a decade of his life.
Although a Great Foundation Establishment Cultivator might seem to enjoy a long life of two hundred years, cultivating even a single Tier Two Daoist Technique requires years of effort. To raise one's Magical Power from the early stage of Foundation Establishment to its peak is a process measured in decades. When one did the math, there was simply never enough time.
The Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique, on the other hand, was different. Bai Xianzhong had already given it a cursory look and found that it wasn't very difficult to cultivate.
It was divided into three layers, breaking down the difficulty even further. He might even be able to master the first layer in just six months to a year.
For the Bai Family, however, a technique like the Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique, which only a Great Foundation Establishment Cultivator could practice, was still too advanced. Even without any restrictions, it would simply be shelved and left to gather dust.
"For submitting the Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique, Bai Zichen is likewise awarded five hundred Clan contribution points. In addition, I will transfer five hundred contribution points to him from my personal account."
Clan rewards had to be impartial, but there was no problem with a personal one.
"Tomorrow morning, I will personally take you to the Qingfeng Sect. We'll see what resources these two cultivation techniques can bring back for the Clan. As long as the Qingfeng Sect accepts them, there will be further rewards for the two of you."
In Bai Xianzhong's opinion, the Qingfeng Sect might not offer a particularly high reward for the Taiyin Su Yun Xuan Shui True Skill, but the Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique was a different matter entirely.
The Qingfeng Sect had Five Halls and Seven Departments, and with over thirty Foundation Establishment Cultivators, every single one of them could make use of the Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique.
This was especially true for the older cultivators and the few at Late-Stage Foundation Establishment, whose need for this technique would be even more pressing.
When it came to life extension, the most common item was the Golden Jade Green Heart Pill. A single pill could increase one's lifespan by twenty years, but it was only effective the first time it was taken. In recent years, whenever one appeared at auction, the final price hovered around three thousand Spirit Stones.
As for Core Formation Spiritual Objects, the one most commonly used by Mizhou Cultivators was the Clear Spirit Jade Marrow. It originated from a Secret Realm discovered by a Core Formation Ancestor of the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect. Every 60-year cycle, this realm would produce one hundred drops of Clear Spirit Jade Marrow.
Refining a single drop of Clear Spirit Jade Marrow could increase a cultivator's chance of reaching Core Formation by ten percent.
After setting aside enough for their own Sect's Cultivators, they would sell a portion of the remainder. Typically, only factions with strong ties to the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect were able to purchase any.
Even at a "friendly" price, a single drop of Clear Spirit Jade Marrow cost upwards of twenty thousand Spirit Stones.
It was precisely by relying on this Core Formation Spiritual Object that the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect had grown increasingly prosperous over the past millennium, producing several Core Formation True Men in succession. The sect's influence was vast; even sects from neighboring prefectures would show them deference, and they were gradually on trend to becoming the number one sect in all of Mizhou.
The Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique offered both life extension and an increased chance at Core Formation. One could only imagine its value.
「The next day.」
As the Clan Leader, Bai Xianzhong naturally possessed a Flying Magical Artifact—a Gourd-shaped, Top-Grade Magical Artifact. When he summoned it, it swayed in the wind and swelled to several hundred times its original size.
The body of the Gourd had several indentations, perfectly sized for a person to sit in.
'Flying Magical Artifacts are so bizarre. They come in all shapes and sizes. Don't any of these Artifact Refining Masters consider ergonomics when they forge these things?'
Bai Zichen grumbled to himself as he sat on the Gourd. 'But then again,' he mused, 'few Artifact Refiners would waste their time and effort on Magical Artifacts meant for Qi Refining Cultivators. It's only at the Spiritual Artifact stage that you see real creativity and sparks of genius.'
Fortunately, despite its strange appearance, the Gourd flew much faster than his Peach Blossom Pocket.
Soon, a majestic green mountain appeared on the horizon. Its main peak was like a sharp sword thrusting toward the heavens.
White clouds swirled around it, and the faint cries of cranes echoed through the air as several Pure White Immortal Cranes soared between the peaks.
With its rolling peaks, precipitous ancient gorges with gurgling streams, and a waterfall cascading down the mountainside, it was a truly breathtaking immortal landscape.
Bai Xianzhong flicked his finger, sending out a pulse of Magical Power that gently tapped against the Qingfeng Sect's Mountain Protection Array. In an instant, two Sect Disciples appeared.
"Are you Senior Bai Xianzhong, the current Clan Leader of the Ink Bamboo Bai Family? The Mountain Protection Elder has ordered us to welcome the Bai Family's guests to Luoxia Peak to rest."
"That would be me. May I ask which High Cultivator from your Sect is the current Mountain Protection Elder?"
Bai Xianzhong put away the Gourd and asked amiably.
He wasn't surprised that the Qingfeng Sect disciples knew his identity beforehand. The Sect's Grand Array enveloped a hundred-li radius; even when not fully active, it could detect the slightest disturbance.
"It is Junior Martial Uncle Ma, the top True Disciple of the previous generation! He entered seclusion five years ago, successfully reached Foundation Establishment in a single attempt, and has just accepted the post of Mountain Protection Elder!"
As the two Qingfeng Sect disciples spoke of this Junior Martial Uncle Ma, they beamed with pride, their admiration and reverence plain to see.
'So it's Fellow Daoist Ma,' Bai Xianzhong thought, his eye twitching. 'It's been years, and now he's a fellow Foundation Establishment cultivator.' He clearly knew this former True Disciple. "If you would be so kind as to lead us to Luoxia Peak, young friends."
Luoxia Peak was where the Qingfeng Sect received its guests. Dozens of courtyards had been built into the mountainside, each one well-spaced from the others, ensuring a quiet and tranquil environment.
'What pure Spiritual Qi! I feel like I could refine Magical Power at least thirty percent faster here than in the outside world!'
Bai Zichen took a deep breath. He could clearly feel that the Spiritual Qi here was a cut above that of Hanxiu Peak.
'If I could cultivate in an environment like this, it wouldn't take me five years to reach the peak of the Sixth-Layer Qi Refining.'
"The Qingfeng Sect was built upon a Tier Three Spirit Vein, and they have established a Tier Three Grand Array that connects to the Earth Veins. It channels the Spiritual Qi, ensuring not a single wisp escapes. Furthermore, a Tier Three Array can even alter the flow of the Spirit Vein to a limited degree."
"For example, in the peripheral areas where the Outer Sect Disciples live, the Spiritual Energy Concentration is only at Tier Two Low Grade. Here on Luoxia Peak, and in the Inner Sect Disciple residences, it reaches Tier Two Top Grade. Only the very core of the Qingfeng Sect reaches Tier Three."
"And I suspect the Qingfeng Sect has other special methods to gather Spiritual Qi, further purifying it at the very heart of the Spirit Vein. This likely creates a small section of Tier Three Top Grade Spirit Vein for their two Core Formation True Men to use."
Bai Xianzhong was no stranger to the Qingfeng Sect; this was, in fact, the third time he had stayed in this very courtyard on Luoxia Peak.
He took the Forbidden Jade Token from the main gate and, after infusing it with a trace of Magical Power, activated its simple warning and defensive functions.
"You two are to stay in the courtyard for the next few days. Don't wander off. I expect it won't be long. The Qingfeng Sect won't gather all of us Cultivation Families together for this; they'll likely see us in batches. However, since this involves cashing in a reward, a regular Elder can't make the call. We'll have to wait and see when the big shots are free."
After these brief instructions, Bai Xianzhong returned to his own room. He was eager to study the Desolate God Stealing Sun Technique and didn't want to waste another moment.
「Three days later.」
A Steward from the Qingfeng Sect finally arrived to inform them, requesting the Bai Clan Members to proceed to the Ancestor Hall to discuss the exchange of the cultivation techniques obtained from the Inheritance Stele.
The Ancestor Hall was a three-story pavilion, somewhat smaller than the Bai Family's main hall. As Bai Zichen ascended the steps, his eyes fell upon an old turtle the size of a millstone, resting in a pond before the entrance.
The old turtle was covered in moss and silt. If not for the occasional flicker of its eyes, it would have been indistinguishable from a stone statue.
'A Tier One Peak Demon Beast... no, that's not right. It should be called a Spirit Beast!'
Passing by the pond, Bai Zichen sensed the turtle's profound qi and blood. To his astonishment, it was a Tier One Peak Spirit Beast, the equivalent of a human Qi Refining Great Perfection Cultivator.
Those that grew wild in the mountains and rivers were called Demon Beasts. Those that were raised by Cultivators under contract were called Spirit Beasts.