Chapter 119 The Grand Competition Begins, The Two Sect Masters Support
As he approached the Immortal Sect Competition for disciples, Li Changshou could clearly sense that there was a hidden biasness in the sect.
“Elder Ge, do you have any extra Ambition Pills?”
“Sigh, Little Wu only gave me three pills. After using them, I feel that the effects are really not bad. It’s as if I’ve found that feeling of having my heart race, from back then…” “This item is really not bad. We’ve tried many Spirit Pills and elixirs before. The Ambition Pill is the only thing that caused our Dao Hearts to stir again.” “Not bad, not bad. It contains an extremely rare medicinal herb. I have been thinking about it for a long time, but I still can’t understand it.”
“I have to say that the young disciple who refined this pill is a genius…”
“We have to keep a disciple like him in the sect and focus on nurturing him…”
That was the conversation between two elders on the cloud, who were in the Heavenly Immortal realm. Li Changshou’s Wind Speech Incantation caught it by chance.
The medicinal herb that they could not figure out should be the Love Stone that is more “unorthodox”…
Originally, Li Changshou only needed to release the pill formula, and that matter would have nothing to do with him.
However, the Ambition Pill was not only used to awaken the old Qi Refinement cultivators’ passion for life. If someone used it to do evil things, he would have to be laden with karma.
That pill was different from the Poisonous Dragon Wine.
The Poisonous Dragon Wine would replenish the Primordial Energy and Yang of a Dao Body. It would use the Dao Body’s reaction to affect one’s actions.
However, the Ambitious Pill would directly affect one’s mental state.
Now, the most important thing to do was to control the usage of those pills through Uncle-Master Jiu Wu.
The refining method of the Ambition Pill was not complicated. The requirements for refining were not extreme. The difficult part was getting the “Love Stone”.
Thus, it would not arouse any suspicion about Li Changshou’s cultivation level.
At most, others would be amazed at how smart he was as a disciple. They would think that he was good at creating array formations and alchemy.
Originally, there was still half a month to go before the Immortal Sect Competition. As a young disciple, Li Changshou ought to be preparing to fight with his fellow disciples later.
Although it was useless, it was the only reasonable thing to do.
But now…
“Compete? What for? Will you gain more benefits from the sect competition, or from refining the Ambition Pills? Changshou, you are not selling pills. You are making outstanding contributions to the harmony and stability of the Immortal Du Sect! Do you need Love Gu? I’ll go and get you 180 pairs. Just wait!”
After saying that, Uncle-Master Jiu Wu hurriedly left the Immortal Du Sect and rushed to the town to search for some Love Gu.
Li Changshou also reminded him that the Ambition Pill was a secret of Little Qiong Peak and the matters regarding the Love Gu and the Love Stone could not be spread around. Jiu Wu naturally agreed.
With the restrictions of the Great Dao oath, Jiu Wu would not fool around and put his long, remaining life on the line.
After Jiu Wu went out for six days, he really managed to obtain three pairs of Love Gu and secretly gave them to Li Changshou.
Li Changshou did not hide anything.
In front of Jiu Wu, Li Changshou fed the Love Gus with the Spirit-Solidifying Poison Herb and turned them into Love Stones. He then produced the secret pharmaceutical water that was necessary for refining the Ambition Pill and sealed it in the Pill Chamber…
However, the next batch of Ambition Pills would require at least 49 days to produce.
Since he already had new Love Stones, Li Changshou took out two-thirds… of his remaining stock.
He had to keep some for himself in case of emergencies. “Uncle-Master, I have an idea.”
Li Changshou pondered for a while and slowly said, “Please pay more attention to these Ambition Pills from now on. You must record where every pill goes to. Even if the elders brought them around and gave them away as gifts, you must ask where the pills are being brought to. This thing can be used to stimulate one’s Dao heart, and it could also be put to evil means. It is best to be careful. I can’t let you work for nothing either, Uncle-Master. Uncle-Master, let’s split the benefits from the elders equally between us. How about that?”
Jiu Wu smiled and said, “You’re being so cautious. I don’t know why you’re so afraid! Let’s not split them by half. That’d be unfair to you.”
Li Changshou said seriously, “I am supplying the Ambition Pills while you are in charge of giving them to the elders, Uncle-Master. Both of these segments are equally important. The cost of these pills is just these pairs of Love Gu. Uncle-Master, you had also provided precious materials for refining the pills.”
“Just as you said before, Uncle-Master, we’re not selling pills. We are doing others a favor. It is reasonable for us to split the rewards from the elders equally between us. Uncle-Master, don’t stand on ceremony with me.”
“This…” Jiu Wu muttered to himself. When he saw Li Changshou’s sincere gaze, he nodded and agreed.
Li Changshou reminded Jiu Wu not to mention anything about him when he was “offering” the pills. He also gave Jiu Wu a copy of the pill formula.
Jiu Wu felt a little uncomfortable for him to be treated so well by a disciple-nephew.
However… he, the “main distributor of Ambition Pills” of the Immortal Du Sect Ambition Pills was also very touched.
Thus, another batch of pills were “distributed” by Jiu Wu and landed in the hands of the elders who had Dao companions.
That resulted in a slightly abnormal phenomenon.
A few days later, the sect’s internal competition began. Most of the Heaven Immortal Elders and the Perfected Immortal elders who were in charge of external affairs, gathered on a cloud in the sky.
There should have been more than a hundred old Daoists with white hair and youthful looks, who gave off immortal vibes.
However, the people who appeared were a group of young, middle-aged male immortals, as well as some beautiful and gentle female immortals…
As the disciples’ horizons were broadened, the Sect Master of the Immortal Du Sect who appeared later almost thought that he had gone to the wrong sect.
It was half a day before the official start of the competition.
Qi Yuan finally walked out of his straw hut and looked at his two beloved disciples who were about to go on an expedition. His eyes were filled with emotions.
He had watched his two disciples grow up slowly, and he was about to send them to the Heaven-Breaking Peak for the “examination”. Qi Yuan’s heart stirred slightly. However, Qi Yuan took a closer look and realized that something was amiss.
His eldest disciple, Li Changshou, was naturally the same as usual. He was dressed in an ordinary long robe, and his aura was not outstanding. It made people subconsciously ignore him.
However, his younger disciple Ling’e was quite different that day.
She was dressed in a warm, yellow dress. The dress had an ordinary style, but it was not at all ordinary and the craftsmanship was rather intricate. More importantly, there were some immortal lights circulating on it. It looked like an Immortal Treasure.
In addition to the long dress, there was also a red hairpin on Ling’e’s head, a bangle on her jade-like arm, a short sword in her hand, and a pair of unique-looking earrings on her earlobe. They were all immortal treasures that contained immortal light… In order to let his junior sister clinch a good ranking, Li Changshou equipped her with immortal treasures. Moreover, those Immortal Treasures were all gifts from the elders in the sect, which were handed to them by Uncle-Master Jiu Wu.
Although that matter should not have been publicized, the elders were not surprised by the fact that the Little Qiong Peak had so many treasures.
“Changshou,” Qi Yuan looked at Li Changshou and asked softly, “Did you do something that went against your conscience?”
Li Changshou did not know whether to laugh or cry. He handed a treasure pouch to his master.
“Master, take these treasures for self-defense. Don’t worry, Master. These treasures were all bestowed by the elders.”
Li Changshou then reported the matter regarding the Ambition Pills to his master. Qi Yuan did not know whether to laugh or cry.
“We’re from the Ren School, so why would the matters regarding the Dao companions be like this… ah, forget it. Changshou, don’t covet the elders’ rewards when you offer the pills. The Immortal Du Sect has the protection of these elders. Only with the help of everyone will we be able to cultivate peacefully.” Li Changshou nodded. He had to comply with his master. However, it was impossible for him to give the pills for free.
With the help of the Ambition Pills, Li Changshou’s plan to transform the Little Qiong Peak could be completed hundreds of years earlier…
The bell on the Heaven-Breaking Peak rang. The two of them bid farewell to their master and rode a cloud towards the Heaven-Breaking Peak.
Along the way, many clouds flew out from the various peaks. Some were high, some were low, but all of them were rushing to the venue of the internal sect competition.
The venue was at the foot of Heaven-Breaking Peak. There was a slope and a valley there. At that moment, they had already set up the place.
The competition rules were not complicated. All the disciples drew lots for the technical fights. Every disciple had twelve chances and would go for twelve preliminary rounds. Based on the number of wins and losses in the twelve rounds, 360 people would advance to the next round, which was the number of Heavenly Cycles.
They kept repeating the same thing. 108 winners would be selected out of the 360 candidates, followed by 72 out of 108, and 36 out of 72…
As there were many disciples, there was no time limit for the competition. During the day, they would fight and during the night, they would listen to the elders in the sect who would talk about sutras.
From this, they could tell that it was indeed a grand event that was held once every two hundred years in the sect. It was comparable to the grand opening ceremony After Li Changshou and Ling’e arrived, they naturally found an inconspicuous corner to stay in.
Some of the high-profile peaks, such as Pill Tripod Peak and Immortal Downpour Peak, would also set up flags with the words ‘Pill’ and ‘Lin’ written on them respectively. The disciples at the peak would also gather together.
Some of them were more casual. The disciples gathered together with their close friends and often visited each other.
The bell rang nine times.
The white clouds rose and fell everywhere, and the mountain valley was filled with people.
The last time there were so many disciples gathered in one place, was when the Immortal Du Sect was in danger. However, the disciples were only fleeing for their lives and were in a sorry state back then.
Today, they were high-spirited and eager to try their hands. They had the demeanor of immortals of a great immortal sect.
Seeing this scene, Li Changshou also felt a little poetic. He recited in his heart,
The entire mountain is filled with beautiful young people. I can see all the beautiful young girls.
Looking up at the clouds, the elders are not simple.
Li Changshou felt a little helpless and speechless when he saw the elders who had gotten rid of their old appearances.
All of a sudden, a series of exclamations could be heard as dozens of white clouds flew over from the Heaven-Breaking Peak.
The first person was dressed in a fiery red dress. Her black hair was tied up in a simple ponytail. Her face was as cold as ice. With a huge sword on her back, she landed in the most eye-catching spot that was reserved for her.
She was the Head Disciple of the current generation, Youqin Xuanya.
Before Youqin Xuanya landed on the ground, she was searching for something in the crowd. After looking around for two rounds, she finally saw the duo— Li Changshou and Ling’e. The corners of her lips curled into a smile as she nodded slightly.
Instantly, numerous gazes gathered on Li Changshou and Ling’e. When Youqin Xuanya appeared, Li Changshou had already taken half a step back without a trace. Everyone’s attention was drawn to Ling’e.
On the other hand, Ling’e graciously bowed and returned the gesture. She raised her clean chin slightly, and a gentle smile on her lips. She appeared rather confident…
She heard a voice transmission in her ear.
“Bear in mind that you will copy the Steadiness Sutra for a hundred times.”
Ling’e immediately lowered her head and thought, My Dao Heart is bad. Why didn’t I stop myself from comparing myself to Senior Sister Youqin just now? As the disciples gathered in the mountain valley, white clouds floated around them. Most of the immortals from the Immortal Du Sect were gathered there. After a while, the bell rang again. A jade platform rose from the Immortal Du Hall, and dozens of Daoists sat on it.
The Empty Sect Leader… Ahem, Daoist Wuyou, the Deputy Sect Leader Exalted Zhong Yu, Exalted Wang Qing and the other Heaven Immortal realm elders accompanied dozens of guests who had arrived a few days earlier. They slowly walked over from the jade platform.
Li Changshou sensed the aura from the jade platform and frowned.
The Qi Refinement cultivators of Golden Ao Island were there again.
Furthermore, there were two Golden Immortal realm experts who had come this time. They were emitting some oppression of Golden Immortals. Perhaps, they were one of the ten Heaven Monarchs.
Li Changshou had never seen them before. That was just his guess.
Previously, when the Blood Mosquito puppets attacked the Immortal Du Sect, three of them were Qi Refinement cultivators of Golden Ao Island. Later on, the Great Daoist Master Xuan Du came forward to investigate and discovered that the three of them had been controlled.
Today, the Qi Refinement cultivators of the Golden Ao Island had arrived to observe the ceremony again. They must have wanted to “bury the hatchet” with Ren School. There was a hint of apology in their attitudes.
That had nothing to do with him, a small disciple.
However, there were a few young disciples standing behind the Qi Refinement cultivators of Golden Ao Island. Li Changshou was very familiar with one of them…
At that moment, that young man also noticed Li Changshou.
He whispered a few words into the ear of a Golden Immortal from Jie School before he slipped off the jade platform and flew towards Li Changshou and Ling’e.
It was the disciple of Jie School, the Second Prince of the East Ocean Dragon Palace, the Second Sect Master of the South Ocean Sea God Sect and the Great Azure Guardian Dragon — Ao Yi!
“Brother Changshou!” “Oh, Brother Yi, how have you been?” “Thanks to you, Brother Changshou, I’ve been well lately.”
The two of them looked at each other and did not say anything.
According to the rules of the Sea God Sect in the South Ocean, the simple conversation just now actually meant: “Greetings Sect Master!” “Second Sect Master, you’re exempt from formalities. Everyone is watching.”
“The Sea God Sect has been doing well recently. Sect Master, you don’t have to worry about it. Just focus on your cultivation…”
So on and so forth…
Although the two of them were playing dumb and did not expose anything, it was not a secret that Ao Yi had been on good terms with Li Changshou in the Immortal Du Sect previously
However, Li Changshou felt a little uncomfortable at that moment.
On his left was his little junior sister who was as beautiful as a flower. Her Fairy Ranking in the sect had been rising rapidly. Occasionally, male disciples would look over at her.
On his right was a young man with a powerful background. He had an outstanding appearance and a pair of dragon horns on his head which made him look rather adorable. Occasionally, female disciples would also look at him.
Li Changshou, who was standing in the middle, was speechless.
He had a feeling that the peaceful, comfortable, and low-key daily cultivation routine that he had been in for eighty-nine years had disappeared.