Chapter 256

Chapter 256: New Supplies

Cold sweat slid down Gu Yuan’s forehead as he spoke with a fawning smile: “City Lord, this is all a misunderstanding. No wonder Li Shuang’s talent is so stunning; so she was personally taught by the City Lord. I meant no harm. I only wanted to take her as a disciple and pass on my legacy. Thinking about it now, someone with her talent isn’t someone I could ever teach. I was arrogant.”

Qing Yan hurried to chime in, nodding fast: “Right, right. Only the City Lord could teach a disciple this brilliant.”

The others didn’t even dare to speak. They kept their heads down and trembled.

The City Lord swept a calm glance over the two of them and said in a mild voice: “Li Shuang is not my disciple; her master is someone else. I only taught her on their behalf.”

Gu Yuan stiffened, then forced a smile and bowed slightly as he said: “Yes, of course. Li Shuang’s master must also be a world-shaking figure. We never meant to offend Senior.”

The City Lord let out a cool laugh and said: “You truly had no evil intent today, so I’ll spare your lives. Otherwise, that lightning just now, Gu Yuan—you would not have endured it.”

Gu Yuan’s body trembled as he answered quickly: “I will never dare again.”

The City Lord looked at them, then turned to Li Shuang and said: “Those three pieces of lightning marrow can also keep your soul clear. In the future, you need not worry about anyone using soul control on you, unless that person’s soul is far above mine.”

The corners of her lips lifted in a faint, mocking smile. [Someone whose soul surpasses mine? In this world, such a person hasn’t been born.]

[This Li Shuang is a fine seed for cultivating the Rebirth Art. I do not want her to fall too early. But with three pieces of lightning marrow and the support I gave her today, I have already done enough. If she still dies along the way, then she is incompetent. And the incompetent cannot grasp the Power of Rebirth.]

Li Shuang bowed respectfully and said: “Thank you, City Lord.”

The City Lord nodded, cool and distant, and said: “The Golden Soul Altar is about to open. Do not embarrass me.”

As her words fell, her figure grew faint and vanished right there in the Hall of Myriad Arts.

A voice brushed Li Shuang’s ear: “Take out the lightning marrow and speak my true name; you can communicate with me. My name is…”

The voice paused for a heartbeat, then came again, carrying endless loneliness: “Ember.”

Li Shuang’s heart gave a small tremor. [Ember? So that is the City Lord’s true name? Ember, red fading to ash, a lonely gaze watching the years fall. Just those two syllables poured in a bleak, aching feeling.]

She couldn’t help being curious. [How long has the City Lord lived? Her cultivation is at the peak, yet she guards Myriad Arts City day and night, rarely going out and seldom showing herself. In those long days when she is alone, what does she think about? Does she think about her little sister who died young?] She did not dare follow that line of thought. [I’ve heard that top experts can sense it if you even think their name in your mind.]

[The City Lord is not someone who needs anyone’s pity.]

After the City Lord left, the people kneeling on the floor finally stood up, still shaken.

Li Shuang looked at them. The same people who had looked down on her now wore kind smiles, just because she had become the “daughter of a past friend” in the City Lord’s eyes. [This is the cultivation world: real, and cruel.]

Qing Yan, the Daoist, spoke with a cheerful grin: “Li Shuang, you should have told us earlier that you knew the City Lord, then we wouldn’t have had this needless misunderstanding.”

Gu Yuan smiled widely and said: “A misunderstanding, indeed. I was wrong before. Your sword is extraordinary, so let me give you a Ninth Grade Frost Moon Stone. When your sword advances, you’ll need it.”

A radiant stone appeared in Gu Yuan’s palm. Its nature matched Li Shuang’s spiritual root. Even Li Li, just from the scent, started drooling like crazy.

“I also have a gift,” Qing Yan said, producing a herb of the Ninth Tier: “Carry this herb, and as long as you still have one breath, you can recover.”

Others hurried over with their own offerings.

Li Shuang soothed the wildly drooling Li Li, then said calmly: “It was only a misunderstanding, so it’s fine. I won’t accept the gifts.”

She kept a cool head. The City Lord had just stepped out to give her a status, and their earlier transaction had ended there. She could use this title to protect herself. But if she used it to gather benefits, how would the City Lord feel?

[Picking up sesame seeds while dropping a watermelon is foolish. I won’t do that.]

Besides, these old foxes never do business at a loss. Whatever they give now, they’ll want back later with interest. Li Shuang wasn’t that foolish. Her attitude stayed firm, and only then did Gu Yuan and the others stop trying to press gifts on her.

When the crowd finally scattered, Li Shuang had time to tally her gains. She had earned a total of one hundred ten thousand Merit Points, shooting onto the Genius Ranking and gaining some name in Myriad Arts City. She immediately spent one hundred thousand Merit Points to buy the second realm of the Rebirth Art.

After two years of cultivation, her Azure Lotus had five petals fully in bloom. That marked Great Completion of the first realm. To go further, she needed two things: the method for the second realm, and a breakthrough in her soul to the Integration Stage.

Breaking into the Integration Stage would be easy for her now, but [I can do better.] With the Heaven and Earth Furnace in her hands, it would be a waste to stop at an ordinary Integration Stage. [I’ll wait until I’ve prepared everything, then break through in one go. When I do, my spiritual cultivation will catch up, and I’ll step into a complete Integration Stage.]

For the moment, she put Rebirth Art training on hold. She had ten thousand Merit Points left. [What can I do with ten thousand?] She opened the Wanfa Eye to check what she could redeem.

Her gaze sharpened at once. Before, items like the Cross-Continent Teleport Talisman hadn’t been available to her. But the City Lord had said she was giving Li Shuang extra permissions. Her Wanfa Eye should now show new supplies.

Sure enough, as soon as she entered the Wanfa Eye, the list of items she could buy with Merit Points had grown.

She saw the very item the City Lord had mentioned: the Cross-Continent Teleport Talisman. Her eyes narrowed slightly. This talisman had only one destination: the Central Continent. No matter which continent you used it on, you would arrive in the Central Continent in an instant.