Chapter 181

Chapter 181: Forming the Golden Core

Noticing Ye Zhao Zhao’s gaze, Wu Ling Chuan tried to soften his cold face as he said: “Junior Sister, don’t worry. With Master here, you will be fine.”

“Thank you, Senior Brother,” Ye Zhao Zhao replied.

At once, she asked in her mind: “System, how about using Wu Ling Chuan as the host?”

The System sounded tired, but it answered: “His aptitude is excellent, and his luck should be good.”

[Finally, I can switch.] Ye Zhao Zhao’s heart eased. She had formed a shadow over the people of Emotionless Peak. Even if Li Shuang’s talent and fate were higher, they meant nothing if Ye could not reach her again. Wu Ling Chuan might be slightly worse than Li Shuang, but only slightly. Besides, she was Yan Zhong He’s daughter. He would surely favor her. Stirring up Wu Ling Chuan’s negative emotions should not be hard.

“System, parasitize Wu Ling Chuan,” she urged.

In the next moment, inside the flying boat, Li Shuang felt light from head to toe, as if something that had been blocking her was finally pulled out.

She blinked. [So Ye Zhao Zhao gave up parasitizing me.] Then who did she choose? Li Shuang’s eyes turned a little strange. It seemed that the only one who fit the conditions was Wu Ling Chuan.

Wu Ling Chuan had just defended Ye Zhao Zhao. In the blink of an eye, he became her new host. Li Shuang did not know whether to pity him.

Ye Zhao Zhao’s injuries were heavy. She could not raise her realm. Even to return to the Golden Core Stage would take much work. If she wanted speed, she would have to strip power from Wu Ling Chuan. Once he was drained, it might be Ren Gu’s turn next. The Tyrant Blade Sect’s young generation might end up ruined by a single Ye Zhao Zhao. But this was Yan Zhong He’s choice. Li Shuang could only respect it and wish them luck.

“Master, Ye Zhao Zhao still needs a long time to grow. Her identity is clear now. The situation is not as bad as it looked,” Li Shuang said softly.

Lin Qing Ling’s brow eased. She said calmly: “Whether others believe it or not, we must inform the other Five Sects that Fang Qing Yu is Ye Zhao Zhao reborn. We must keep our guard up against such a strange fiend and never allow her cultivation to rise. In the next few years, I will watch this Fang Qing Yu closely.”

Yet a shadow still hung over Lin Qing Ling’s heart. The Tyrant Blade Sect was pressing hard. Among their under one hundred disciples, they already had five at the Divine Transformation Stage including Ren Gu. Wu Ling Chuan was about to break through as well. Though his current level was lower, he was young and supremely gifted, praised as the Tyrant Blade Sect’s top genius. In three years, his breakthrough was almost certain. By then the Tyrant Blade Sect would have six Divine Transformation disciples.

And the Sword Sect? Besides Jiang Rong Yi, only Luo Ming Yue had just broken through. In the under one hundred arena, they would struggle to win. Losing that bout would be manageable, but if they also lost other matches, the Sword Sect’s place among the Six Great Sects could be taken.

That place was not just a title. It meant resources, talent pipelines, and a voice in top decisions. If they lost it, the Sword Sect’s decline would be hard to stop.

Lin Qing Ling pushed those worries down and said warmly: “Leave Ye Zhao Zhao’s matter aside. It is no longer something you can involve yourselves in. When you return, cultivate with focus and do not leave the sect for now.”

“Yes,” Li Shuang and the others answered.

The flying boat soon returned to the Sword Sect. Without going back to Emotionless Peak, Lin Qing Ling went straight to see Meng Yi Fei. He gathered the sect’s high level members for a meeting. The details did not spread, but Li Shuang guessed it was about the Tyrant Blade Sect.

In the days that followed, relations between the Tyrant Blade Sect and the Sword Sect grew even sharper. Yan Zhong He declared that the Sword Sect had targeted his daughter on purpose. Lin Qing Ling stated that Fang Qing Yu was Ye Zhao Zhao reborn, and if he did not believe it, the Sword Sect would reopen the Heart-Inquiry Platform. At first the Tyrant Blade Sect agreed, but later Yan Zhong He changed his tone, saying the Sword Sect meant to humiliate his daughter. Neither side backed down. The rift widened.

A few days later, the Sword Sect finished counting the spoils from the Heavenly Sovereign Society. Most of the resources went to the group from Emotionless Peak. Sheng Yuan and Shen Yue gained a little, but rewards were based on contribution, and theirs was small, so their share was small. Sheng Yuan became even more sure that Li Shuang had kept him from earning merit that day, and he grumbled about it. Li Shuang could not be bothered. She had used her furnaces many times in the mission and spent a lot, but the spoils were rich. In the end, her wealth grew instead of shrinking.

In a secret room, Li Shuang turned over a trinket shaped like an eye. She had found it in the palace, part of Emperor Chen Yang’s private stash. The eye held some spiritual power, but not much. Even so, when she chose her share, she felt it hid some secret, so she took it. In the days since, she often took it out, but nothing strange appeared. She did not mind. [Maybe my sense was off.]

Today, she had something more important to do.

After a month in seclusion, her realm had reached the Peak of Foundation Establishment. It was time to break through to the Golden Core Stage.

She put the eye away, steadied her mind, and slowly drew in the thin strands of energy spilling from the spiritual light mass in her dantian. By now, liquid spiritual power filled her dantian. The next step was to compress it and condense it into a Golden Core.

She had done this once before. The second Core Formation went even smoother. Under the control of her strong soul, the liquid gathered little by little.

At last, a brilliant Golden Core appeared in her dantian. Li Shuang stepped into the Golden Core Stage without a sound.

This time, a few subtle changes stood out. First, a pattern of a Ninth-Grade Lotus Seed bloomed on the Golden Core. Before, when she built her foundation with a seven grade Lotus Seed, nothing showed on the core. The Ninth-Grade Lotus Seed clearly held deeper mysteries, enough to mark the Golden Core itself.

Second, a Soul Golden Core formed in her sea of consciousness at the same time. She guessed this came from her Soul Method. With the Soul Golden Core’s help, using her soul became easier. Even without sword arts, she could perform Soul Intimidation. She had already reported the Soul Method to the sect, but she did not know how to teach it. It could only be her personal secret art for now.

The moment the Soul Golden Core took shape, Li Shuang murmured in surprise. She drew out the bronze eye from her robes, and a glint of wonder flashed in her gaze.