novelraw Chapter 405 405: 222, Chang Kun's son, must not be kept (5k4 big chapter, please subscribe)_2
Chapter 405 405: 222, Chang Kun's son, must not be kept (5k4 big chapter, please subscribe)_2
Before the Silver Ring Zhai's Sect Master could speak, Daoist Jiang Yue emerged from behind the beaded curtain. Her voice was cold, her expression flat as she spoke.
The Dao Lord spoke.
The cultivators voiced no further objections. After acknowledging the decision and paying their respects, they withdrew.
...
...
「At the same time.」
Xu Xing, who had been evading the Silver Ring Zhai's pursuit and assassination attempts, had returned safely to the Immeasurable Sect. He now stood before Sect Leader Gu Chengbin.
"Xi Yunling..."
"Wu Yue..."
Gu Chengbin reviewed the list of completed assassinations, the corners of his mouth twitching. "In just over a month, you've eliminated two True Monarchs from the Silver Ring Zhai?"
Although Xi Yunling was only at the Returning Core Peak when she was cursed to death, with her talent and foundation, reaching the Dao Pill realm was not difficult for her. She would have definitely cultivated to the Dao Pill realm within twenty years. Therefore, Gu Chengbin still considered Xi Yunling to have been a Dao Pill Daoist.
After reading the detailed account of Xu Xing's assassinations written on the jade slip, Gu Chengbin shook his head and sighed. "If Junior Brother Chang went out on a few more missions like this, the Silver Ring Zhai... might just collapse without a fight."
"Sect Leader Senior Brother, you jest," Xu Xing said, bowing his hands. "I only succeeded because I caught them unprepared, striking when they least expected it."
As always, he remained humble.
For assassinating one Dao Pill Daoist and one Returning Core Lord from the Silver Ring Zhai, he was, at the very least, a great meritorious official to the Immeasurable Sect. Moreover, with the Silver Ring Zhai now an open enemy, any high-level members of the Immeasurable Sect with a modicum of sense would seek to placate him, not try to force him into marriage again.
"True enough," Gu Chengbin conceded, not refuting Xu Xing's words. "If you were to try assassinating Silver Ring Zhai cultivators now, it certainly wouldn't be as easy."
"One Returning Core Lord, one Dao Pill Daoist. I'll count them as equivalent to two Dao Pill Daoists for you... In terms of sect merit, that's 250,000 points."
"Killing a True Monarch earns 100,000 merit points. Wu Yue was worth more, being in the Dao Pill Later Stage, so that's 150,000 merit points for him."
He took out the Merit Record and a vermilion brush, meticulously recording Xu Xing's recent accomplishments.
"Merit points can be exchanged for treasures from the Ancestor. Here's the list; take a look."
"This list also includes the Smoke Cloud Stone you spread rumors about. The sect even has finished Nascent Soul Condensing Pills, which use Smoke Cloud Stone as a primary ingredient."
Gu Chengbin retrieved a jade slip from his sleeve, placed it on the table, and pushed it towards Xu Xing. "Here," he said softly.
"Good."
Xu Xing nodded, accepted the jade slip, and began examining the list of sect resources available for exchange.
The list on this jade slip seemed specially curated for True Monarchs like him. Apart from some Nascent Soul Spiritual Objects, most of the sect resources were artifacts, pills, talismans, array banners, and other items typically used by True Monarchs.
It wasn't long before he found 'Smoke Cloud Stone' and 'Nascent Soul Condensing Pill' on the jade slip, along with their respective merit point exchange values.
[Smoke Cloud Stone: Primary ingredient for the Nascent Soul Condensing Pill. One unit: 120,000 merit points.]
[Nascent Soul Condensing Pill: One of the pills required for Nascent Formation. Value: 630,000 merit points.]
Killing one True Monarch barely gets me enough for a single unit of Smoke Cloud Stone...
Xu Xing inwardly clicked his tongue in astonishment.
Wu Yue, the Silver Ring Zhai True Monarch, was at the seventh stage of Dao Pill. For killing him, Gu Chengbin had awarded Xu Xing only 150,000 merit points. Yet, a single unit of Smoke Cloud Stone cost 120,000 merit points to exchange.
Then again, the cultivation civilization in the North Yue Country is somewhat inferior to that of East Huangzhou. Here, Nascent Soul cultivators are practically the pinnacle of power for most factions, so spiritual objects related to Nascent Soul formation naturally fetch exorbitant prices.
But East Huangzhou is different. The Ten Major Sects of East Huangzhou all boast Sage Monarchs, and each sect has innumerable Dao Lords...
Xu Xing paused, then understanding dawned.
Auxiliary spiritual objects required for Nascent Formation, like the Human Yuan Fruit and Nascent Soul Condensing Pills, could mostly be refined by alchemists. The Human Yuan Fruit was an exception, being a treasure of heaven and earth.
In the North Yue Country and South Yue Nation, the primary ingredient for Nascent Soul Condensing Pills was Smoke Cloud Stone. However, this wasn't necessarily true in East Huangzhou. The formulas for Nascent Soul Condensing Pills weren't limited to gold stone pills refined with cinnabar like Smoke Cloud Stone; they also included herbal pills made from spirit grass. With a greater variety of pill formulas, the production cost of these pills would naturally be much lower.
If one were to buy Nascent Soul Condensing Pills in East Huangzhou and then sell them in the Nanyan Continent, they'd likely make an absolute fortune...
A lucrative business idea flashed through Xu Xing's mind.
However, he quickly dismissed the notion. It was simply too dangerous.
Nascent Soul Condensing Pills were strategic resources for all major sects and rarely sold on the open market. Even if he sold them on a small scale, not too many at once, it would still attract significant attention. He'd likely be hunted down by Dao Lords and meet his end in the Yellow Spring before a day was out.
"Junior Brother Chang," Gu Chengbin began, noticing Xu Xing's silence after examining the jade slip. He mistakenly assumed Xu Xing was dissatisfied and started to explain, "Regarding the spiritual objects on this list... while the merit points required for exchange are substantial, it's not that the sect is being harsh..."
"Nascent Soul Spiritual Objects are exceptionally scarce. Our sect can only manage to gather a complete set roughly every seven hundred years."
"These items are exceptionally rare, not just for us but for other sects as well. They are practically priceless and can usually only be exchanged for with a significant amount of merit points, and only after making substantial contributions to the sect," he said.
For any cultivator, attempting Nascent Formation is a life-or-death trial. Countless talented disciples from various sects have perished trying to overcome this hurdle. Therefore, to improve their cultivators' chances and ensure their safety, sects usually provide a full set of Nascent Soul Spiritual Objects to increase the success rate of Nascent Formation. It's rare to see a cultivator recklessly attempt a breakthrough with only a single Nascent Soul Condensing Pill or just one type of Nascent Soul Spiritual Object.
"I wonder," Xu Xing mused, putting down the jade slip, "who does the sect intend to support for a Nascent Soul breakthrough within this seven-hundred-year cycle?"